January 2010
Well hello one and all
We hope you have all had a very enjoyable Christmas and are finding 2010 to be a good year so far. It was really enjoyable to be back in our home church for Christmas and to sing in English.
Firstly we would like to apologise for the snow in England. After having experienced two winters in 2009 and we looked at returning to England for our third, Rachel said, “Well if it’s gonna be cold, there better at least be snow!” God, faithful as ever provided. We think it probably would have been better for most if she had at least given a time scale for the thaw.
We would just like to thank everyone who has sent us Christmas wishes and given us room and board over this time. Jet lag wasn't too bad, but it’s been a good excuse to stay in bed to 8/8.30am most mornings (that’s 5am Paraguay time to us). Plus it explains our lack of communication before this point. Honest, it was nothing to do with all the yummy food, drink and distracting presents.
We had a really emotionally tough time leaving the children's home. It’s one thing to know why you're doing something, but completely different going through the experience of it. We had been blessed with some donations from England, which allowed us to take the little ones to a soft play complex. We had a really great time, watching the 2 year olds swim in the ball pool and some of the older children bouncing the younger ones on the trampoline. There was also enough money to buy every child an individual Christmas/leaving present. Which was really enjoyable to see the kids’ faces and to be able to give them a last memory of us.
The final 2 months were spent winding down our roles in the lives of the children. Which meant we were still around to help out, but we stepped back as the primary carers in situations. John continued to spend every afternoon in the carpenters’ workshop with the older teenage boys, helping them to turn wood and giving them a chance to ask any questions about our leaving. We even had a few offers for some of them to go with us.
We were very privileged to accompany Maria on a trip up to the north of Paraguay, to help with some fund-raising. We had made a very good friend with a 75 yr old teacher who visited the children's home on many occasions, so it was wonderful to get to visit him and stay in his home. Through him we also met another Brit, a nurse helping out at an established mission, providing medical care to the indigenous people in the north. It was really nice to chat and joke in English and share some good stories.
We were pleased to have made the effort to visit then, as 2 weeks later our dear friend the teacher was involved in a car accident and died the Friday before we left. Which was an extra added sadness to our departure, but we will always be thankful for the few precious days we spent in his hospitality.
We are now spending January and February visiting different churches and a conference to share about our experience over the last year and to talk about the plans for our next project in Honduras. We hope to be flying out the first week in March, visas permitting.
Please pray for us as we travel around the UK, that we will be able to communicate clearly and also the current political climate in Honduras will settle before we fly out, rectifying the visas issue.
Thank you once again for all your support and prayers during this time, it is really appreciated. We hope to see you soon at a nearby church.
God Bless
John and Rachel
All gifts towards our ministry in Honduras should be designated for the ‘McDonoughs’ and sent to Elim International Missions, Elim International Centre, De Walden Road, West Malvern, WR14 4DF, England (cheques payable to Elim International Missions). Thank you.
If you would like to make regular gifts towards our support contact missionssupport@elimhq.net
Charity nos 251549 / SC037754.