The Depth of God's Love....

~This is a wild, beautiful story,  a long and interwoven tale of God's love that to me is just incredible. A story that demonstrates His power and His desire to draw us to Himself, to love us, to want us, to be there for us no matter who we are, where we are from, or what color our skin is. Our past, our language, our heartaches and ultimately our forgiveness and hope are all within God's reach!

  While in the Spanish Institute of Honduras for two and a half months this summer we had a pretty awesome, pretty cute, and totally fun teacher, Gabriella. She was my first friend in Honduras, cheery, energetic, loves the Lord and taught Spanish excellent (without speaking a word of English). Her classes and stories were a blast! She fell in love with the Snyder's and we all fell in love with her.

 So now that I'm home we message back and forth and one day three or four weeks ago she told me she has a sister in NYC and can I help her. Her situation was that she was living with her older brother who was busy with school, work, married, etc., etc., and he was moving and wanted her out by January.... She had no place to go, knew no one in the city, speaks no English and had no options except living in a Shelter, or back to Honduras. (Poor thing!!!)

  Marcela came to the states recently for medical help for her little daughter, Naidelin (17 months old) who has spina bifida and kidney trouble and a few others things that would make living in Honduras very difficult, because without proper medical care she will die and this, Marecela told me, was why she was afraid to return to Honduras.

  I spent so many hours night and day thinking, praying and trying to figure out how we could help this girl in some way.... prayed, concocted plans, asked questions..... we texted a ton and talked on the phone- she was so lonely!! Where could she go? I wanted to take her in immediately but we have little room.... where could she live and if we had a place how could she afford it? And what about hospitals and doctors and, and........ the questions were endless.

  Desperate I called our neighbor, a long time friend of ours from a neighboring church, and on the spot after hearing her story he offered to pay for an apartment for her!!!!  Here. Close by so we could be involved in her life, and be here for her. I was thrilled!!!

  He searched, I called around to multiple places- Nothing came available and then what I thought would work, at last minute fell through and meanwhile her brother decided she should leave sooner and bought her a ticket for today- stress. Two days before she arrives and no house. I slept very little that night wondering what kind of mess I had just got into and prayed, God if you want her to come here, give her a place to stay.

  It just happened that this spring friends of ours moved to Buffalo and have an empty apartment, fully furnished that they have been hoping god would use to minister to someone. They heard about Marcela on Tuesday evening, and Wednesday she had a place to live and tonight Juli and I drove out to Buffalo and met her at the Train Station.

  Marcela is so sweet, her baby beautiful and I already fell in love with them just chatting the past few weeks. She is only 20, abandoned by both her Mom and Dad all her growing up years and that's why she loves her baby and is doing so much to keep her healthy. She told me she wants to be there for her daughter and take care of her. She doesn't want her to grow up how she did.  Listening to her I just wanted to cry.... it doesn't even seem fair, we've been given so much!! And she does not know the Lord. I am so thrilled, so excited to watch God reaching out, loving her, and putting all the pieces together. This Christmas, give love, the way you'll be blessed is beyond amazing!!

( Hopefully they will come to church now and then. I told her I have friends who want to meet her and she's happy to meet you- brush up on your Spanish)