“We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” -Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Heading to Honduras tomorrow... we'll all meet at the airport around 5AM, fly to Miami around 7, have a short layover there and head to San Pedro Sula... we'll be there by early afternoon.

Not everyone knows how I was lead to mission work... but I will say that a very wise and kind woman told me I should take an opportunity and follow my dreams... Little did she know that my dream was to help orphans in Africa and little did I know that a year later I would have already lived in DRC for three months and be on my way back to assist some families going through the adoption process and report on some children who had been matched with families!! Here I am TWO years later going on my second trip to Honduras in 8 or 9 months. 

I should not be so amazed at all God has been doing in my life- yet I still am! Mission work and advocating for orphans has quickly become a passion in my life and I thank each and every person who has helped me get to this point. I was worried about this trip because I wasn't feeling well recently and my sister went into the hospital last night due to concerns about her pregnancy... but here I sit, 10 hours from leaving from the airport and Erin is resting at home and I'm on the mend :-)  

Today I ran into Psalm 131 (my birthday, imagine that!) 

O Lord, my heart is not lifted up,
   my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
   too great and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
   like a weaned child with its mother;
   my soul is like the weaned child that is with me.

O Israel, hope in the Lord
   from this time on and for evermore.

I have calmed and quieted my soul... I pray God brings peace and calm to all who read this. 

Looking forward to sharing stories and photos soon!

Adios & God's Peace,

Rachel 

Sometimes it's just hard...

As you may, or may not, know- I'm going back to Honduras with a group of United Methodists, including a member of my church, in late October to serve God's children at Worldwide Heart to Heart Ministries. I'm so excited! Serving God around the world has become a very special activity I'm blessed to participate in. I have learned how to be patient, open my heart and mind to different experiences (and FOOD, LOL!), different customs, different views of God and I've been able to meet Christians from all walks of life! I've also been blessed to see God's creation in many other places! How amazingly blessed I am!!
I won't lie, it's not all sunshine and rainbows... I require a lot of sleep and don't always get it. I (along with everyone else traveling the globe) have to be careful about what I eat and drink while still trying new things and being open to food enjoyed in different cultures. There's the language barrier (however, my Spanish, French and Swahili have improved in the past year!!) Customs are different and any small gesture that means nothing to me could totally offend someone elsewhere. I like to have some alone time once in a while and when serving with a team, that doesn't happen unless you're in the shower (and then you probably have little creatures with you) or when using the facilitates, but then you have to make sure not to put the paper in the toilet, etc, etc... Oh the JOYS! :) But honestly, serving IS a joy. I love it. 
Another part of my serving that is hard is affording these trips. It's hard to constantly get in front of the congregation and ask for money to help with these trips. Everyone who has ever given has been so generous and kind with his/her donations. I constantly tell those who want to serve on mission trips to never let the cost hinder him/her. God WILL provide, I've seen it time and time again. These trips are very affordable! The cost of travel to Honduras (round-trip) is only a few hundred dollars, room and board is also reasonable and at least $250 of the money we pay goes to help the sites we're serving. Also... if this trip is anything like the last, we also spend a lot of our own money when we're in town. On the last trip we purchased a lot of items for the state-run orphanage and the two private orphanages we served with our own money. (After seeing what life is like for most of those we serve, you'd want to give all the money in your pockets too- and more if you could!) 
I'm SO EXCITED to go back and serve in this hot, humid, beautiful, poor country! I am SO BLESSED to have a job, friends, and family who all support this Call in my life- my job has even made it part of my job-title! I'm so SCARED about where the $1700 will come from for this trip. I have less than a month to have the money together and have about... $5... Yes, it's hard to say that I can't just reach into my pockets and pay this on my own. But you know what? God ALWAYS provides! The finances will come from somewhere- God did not create us to worry, God created us to freely serve God and to freely love God :)
In case you haven't seen photos from the trip... check out these:

Here are two of the children from Heart to Heart who blessed us with their talents during Worship.

We may not share a language,  we may not understand each others lives, dreams, hopes and desires... but we CAN join together with music and have a LOT of fun!

Sometimes letting a new friend sit on your lap or sharing a hug is all that you can do, and sometimes it's all that's needed.

State-run facilities. Sometimes no words can explain what is going on in your heart and head in these situations.

I ask that everyone keeps me in your thoughts and prayers as I strive to follow God’s call and the tug on my heart to serve!! Please keep ALL who serve around the world in your hearts and prayers. Serving in third-world countries comes with much anxiety and has it's own type of stresses... Whether you are able to make a donation or not, THANK YOU for having an interest in what I’m doing!!! If you are able to make a donation, I'm asking for $1. As the crow flies, the location where this next team will be serving is approximatly 1719 miles from Alexandria. Since I need to raise $1700 I'm hoping to get a dollar per mile. (If I come back, your donation of a dollar actually gets me TWO miles, LOL!)

If you would like to make a donation, a fund has been set up at my church for mission trips. Here’s how it works: Please make the check payable to “WSUMC.” In the memo line please write “VIM fund.” (VIM stands for Volunteers in Mission… by writing the name of the fund instead of my name, your donation is tax deductible and can be used by others who are serving too!)
Checks may be mailed to:
WSUMC
c/o Rachel Miller
115 S. Washington Street
Alexandria, VA 22314

Please note: Unless you indicate otherwise, your name will be shared with me so that I can properly thank you for your donation.
If you don't care about your gift being tax-deductible you can send it directly to me. (Just email me for my address... or send it to the church address, above, but make the check payable to "Rachel Miller" and please put "VIM" in the memo line. Any money that is donated that I do not use will be put back into the fund at the church for future trips.)

Finally, if you'd ever like to find out more about serving in the US or around the world- please let me know! I'm happy to talk with you, pray for you and help you however I can!!

“If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one." - Mother Teresa

God's Peace!
Rachel

Oh the joys of ministry!

Most of my blog posts are about my adventures around the world serving God and God's children... but what about here at home?!? We're all given different gifts of the Spirit and I feel one of my callings is to serve around the world, but I also love to serve at home! For those who might not know, my church hosts a breakfast ministry each week. (For more info: Click here.) This ministry has been around for a year now and each Monday is so very different from the last! Please note that the stories below are not meant to make fun of anyone- they are examples of finding joy and fun in my service to God. (All names changed.)

Just some stories to share with you:
- A few weeks ago I turned around and saw a guests with his shirt unbuttoned. I had no idea what to think but later I found out that I missed the real show! Here's part of an email I rec'd later that day from a friend:
"You just saw it undone.  He actually had it all the way off earlier.  I was talking to [John] and his eyes got big, so I looked behind me to see what was going on and he'd taken it off. [My husband's] theory was that it was a new shirt and he was fascinated with the buttons --- he kept playing with them.  He certainly didn't appear to mean anything by it, just seemed a bit confused."
- I'm not sure why but recently the guests have been asking me to sing- one in particular asks me each week. Even though he asks me each week it always seems to catch me a little off guard. Our guests have now started asking me which service I lead the singing at... What an interesting way to get folks thinking about attending Worship- who knew?!?
- We have a great guest who enjoys 'dumpster diving.' Each week he now gifts the ministry and myself with a bag of goodies! A few weeks ago I was gifted a piece of costume jewelry, last week a stuffed animal. Last week our ministry was also gifted with: Brillo pads, a bag of unopened sunflower seeds and an unopened box of pantyhose from this thoughtful guest... We NEVER know what he will bring in for us!  However, I think it's amazing and sweet that he thinks of us during the week!

I have so many other great stories but no time left to type... I'll just have to keep you guessing for now!!!
Much love!
Rachel

I'm right and you're- well, maybe you're right too...

There are roughly 7 billion other points of view (other than yours) on every single topic you can ever imagine in this great world... I've just been wanting to share that for a while :) (And yes, I know that means there are also roughly 7 billion other points of view than mine on any topic imaginable, and I'm fine with that... unlike some folks in the world I know that I'm not always right and am happy to accept that) However, this blog is called "Rachel's Rainbows" so this is where I (Rachel) share MY points of view.
I do know that there are certain things I believe in and will always believe in. No one can stop anyone from believing what she believes. I know that I believe in God- no one can ever, ever talk me out of that belief! However, what God looks like to me, what God looks like to you, what Allah looks like to a Muslim sister, and what a 'higher being' looks like to a friend who may not be sure what she believes - those are all open to our own points of view and interpretation. Guess which of those four beliefs are right?!? Really- guess! Are you right? Am I right? Who knows!?! In the end, I believe in God, no matter what God might look like. We could sit and argue that humans are made in the image of God... perhaps that means the physical image, perhaps a type of spiritual image, perhaps that means a free-will, free-thinking type of image... you could show me documents throughout history to prove your point, I could do the same. We could discuss all kinds of theology, etc. But wait- why are we arguing over what God looks like when neither of us REALLY know! ---- Am I making a point here or just going around in circles? In my point of view, I'm making a point... in your point of view, or that of 7 billion others, who knows :)
ONE of MY points of view is that it's okay to be wrong, to tweak what you believe and to question what you believe. I have belonged to a United Methodist Church most of my life, my parents raised me with their beliefs which were a bit different than what the current UMC believes, they were raised with THEIR parents beliefs. I was raised in Ohio, by parents from Kentucky but who were raised in Ohio. I was raised that family, not 'stuff,' are important and that friends, family and God are what matter in life. I was raised with animals. I could go on and on and on... but you're bored now so I won't :) What I'm trying to say (or write, I guess) is that all of the above makes me, ME. It doesn't make me YOU, it doesn't make me one of 7 billion other people currently alive right now. It has created this almost-thirty-year-old who lives near my nation's capitol, works in the church, doesn't like to stay out late and party like a rock star, who loves animals, who wants to help everyone in need all over the world and who likes to change her hair color. You have been created by your life, beliefs, circumstances of the universe, family, etc also. You have your OWN point of view on certain topics. YOU are special and unique in your own way! There is NO ONE JUST LIKE YOU anywhere, at anytime, EVER. Your beliefs might stay the same your entire life! Your beliefs, or parts of them, might change over the years due to new circumstances. Again: YOU are special and unique in your own way!
So let's review- every person is unique and every person has his/her own point of view. Got it! There are also seven billion other people in that boat. WOW! What a mix :) So now, since I'm ME, I just want to reiterate what I started this blog post out with. When you talk about a topic- be it faith, social justice issues, body image, even pizza toppings- please be nice to others. I get tired of hearing and seeing people arguing about how they are right- PERIOD. Well yes, perhaps what you said is right for you and your family. But no, perhaps what you said is NOT right for someone raised in another country with other beliefs. That's right! Perhaps your "right" is "not right" for another or right universally. (Reminder, there are roughly 7 billion 'anothers' in this world.)
Finally, please heed this amazing tidbit of advice that has been passed down through the ages: Think about what you say before you say it. (Or, if you're an avid facebooker- Think about what you type before you type it.) Discussions are healthy, they are amazing, they are needed and our world would not be the way it is today if there weren't discussions. But be nice. Share YOUR thoughts and YOUR feelings in a pleasant way. If your point of view is different than someones I can almost assure you that being rude and doing everything in your power to prove someone else is WRONG and you're RIGHT won't make someone change his/her mind. Nope, sure won't. Be nice, be fair, have healthy (in person) discussions and as my Mom always told me "If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say anything at all." (... don't forget to read the postscript below for some friendly clarification...)

 

P.S.- Please don't think that I'm saying that you shouldn't stand up for what you believe in and what is right! (At least, what is right for YOU.) Where would this world be if people hadn't done that over the years?!?! And yes, there have been wars because people WERE RIGHT and others WERE WRONG! I completely agree with that!! However, all the above is about general conversations, political backstabbing emails, facebook posts, etc. It's about people being mean to each other to get a point across- not about nations fighting with other nations to stop injustice. That's an entirely different blog post for another day!! Okay, thanks! :-)

I can't sit still when...

I can't sit still when there's so much suffering and pain in the world... However, I know I can't fix it all and that's painful in itself. I constantly pray for opportunities to serve God's children all over the world and another opportunity has arrived! I am so amazingly grateful for family, friends, a job and a landlord who are understanding and supportive of this calling in my life!! 

Life here in the States isn't always grand. Bills come in and pile up but the money doesn't... people are sick... folks around us suffer from substance abuse and major mental illnesses... loved ones lose jobs... However, there is still so much to be thankful for. I ask each person who reads this new post to think of four things you are thankful for: A/C? food in the fridge? supportive friends? love? reruns of Golden Girls? afternoons at the pool? fresh water to drink? Advil for headaches? yummy smelling shampoo?

For real! RIGHT NOW- think of four things. DO IT! :-D

Okay, good job! Now- know that there are people around the world who have nearly NONE of what I listed above and still have smiles on their faces, laughter on their lips, and joy in their heart!! 

Well... not sure what I was getting at with all that- except that I want to continue to go on serving the smiling, laughing, joy filled children around the world!!

Please support me with your prayers! The current plan is to go to Honduras in late Oct for a week and a half or so... Once I get info on the supplies we need I'll be sure to let folks know! If you'd like to donate monetarily to help myself and others from my congregation as we travel on mission trips you can make your check out to WSUMC with VIM in the memo line... (WSUMC, 115 S. Washington St, Alexandria, VA 22314.) 

I look forward to sharing more of my adventures with all of you! If you're every looking for a ministry or mission to work with or donate items to, please let me know and I'll find one that's fit for you :)

Have a wonderful evening!

Much love,

Mupenda 

(I recently remembered an evening out with friends in DRC last summer when a couple of the guys picked new names for Hanneke and I... Mine was Mupenda- which means 'love' in Swahili)

Also, if you haven't checked them out already- here's a link to the photos from the trip in Feb/March... we'll be going back to the same place!! :) Here are the photos...