I recently hit my five-year anniversary of being at the Finca, and that made me reflect on the craziness and wildness of my Finca journey and just how important the Finca has become in my own life and heart. I entered the Finca on September 30, 2021 as a 23-year-old young man that had never done any sort of mission work or volunteer work outside of the United States. I entered that front gate knowing VERY, VERY little Spanish, and I remember being worried about being able to form relationships in my second language and being able to love and be loved by my community in rural Honduras. I entered the Finca in September 2021 thinking, “Nate, it is only a 16-month commitment. You can do anything for 16 months, no matter how horrible it is or how much you suffer.”
Fast forward 5 short years, and I am still at the Finca!!! I have experienced the roller coaster of a lifetime during my 5 years at the Finca, with lots of life-changing, memorable highs and numerous lows that challenged me at my core to depend further on God and trust in His plan for my life. There isn’t enough paper in the world to write down all of my experiences (both good and bad) that I have had at La Finca del Niño in these 5 years, but one thing is super clear on my heart and mind: La Finca del Niño is my home. It is the place that I love most in this world, and the place that gives me the greatest sense of purpose in my life to be able to wake up and fight for our kids in La Finca. The Finca is an imperfect place and it will NEVER, EVER be considered perfect by any stretch, but I love it for what it is: imperfect of course, but it has a magical sense of peace, joy, and love within our 10-acre fence. I have never experienced such peace, joy, life, and wonder in just one place in my entire life, and I have learned to chalk it up to simply being God’s beautiful work and creation.
Reflecting on my original thoughts as I entered the Finca in September 2021 often brings me great peace in being able to rely on God’s goodness and sovereignty. I have fell in love with international mission work, as I think there is nothing more beautiful than meeting someone where they are at, walking with them in their culture and language, and simply loving them and accepting their love. I am now fluent in Spanish (although I will never be a native speaker), and I have been able to form life-giving relationships that will be with me for the rest of my life. I truly love my Honduran brothers and sisters like they are my own family! Lastly, I have certainly suffered my fair share during my 5 years at the Finca, but I no longer view it as simply a 16-month commitment or a 3–5-year commitment as service coordinator. I view it as it is: MY LIFE!!! The Finca del Niño is currently my life, and I am grateful every single day that God has allowed me to still be at the most magical place on Earth after 5 years. Every single day within that fence in rural Honduras is an absolute gift and never to be taken for granted.
On March 27, 2026, I hurt my knee playing soccer with our Finca kids on our campo in the middle of the children’s home. Unfortunately, it was later revealed that 2 surgeries were necessary to repair my knee due to damage to several ligaments and my cartilage under my kneecap. The first surgery was in mid-August, and the second much more extensive surgery was yesterday (October 20th), which will require at least 2-3 months of recovery time in the United States. Who knows what God is doing in this time of surgery and recovery, but He is certainly doing something! After 5 years in the daily grind of a busy and chaotic mission, I have suddenly found myself in the silence of my own thoughts for the majority of every day, unable to get out of bed for the next 2-3 weeks. Talk about a stark difference!! However, the Finca has taught me to accept each day just as it is given to me and to seek out the beauty in every moment. God will help me, no doubt!
Along the same lines, I would like to humbly ask for your help. It has been an expensive year to say the least with all of my medical expenses. I had 3 basal cell skin cancer surgeries in April and have now had two different knee surgeries over the last 2 months. Our Farm USA staff has graciously offered to pay for my medical expenses, but I have been at the Finca for a long time nowadays and I fully understand how the process works. Every dollar spent on me (regardless of how long I have been at the Finca, how much I have done for the Finca and our missionary program, and the healthcare that I deserve as a human being) is a dollar that isn’t spent on our precious children in rural Honduras. I humbly ask for your donation to La Finca del Niño to help offset some of my medical expenses incurred this year and to support our wonderful children in La Finca del Niño. If you are interested, please use the link below for your donation.
https://www.farmofthechild.org/donate-now
From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for your support for me and for our beautiful mission in rural Honduras! Like I mentioned earlier, it is the most terrific place in the entire world that has fully captured my heart! One last request for you: please pray for me and my recovery! Please pray for my ability to depend more on God in this time of suffering and to see the incredible beauty around me at all times, such as such intimate time with my family and friends.
Please pray for our 5 new missionaries in La Finca del Niño that are continuing to adapt to the mission! They arrived on September 30th!
Please let me know how I can pray for you!
God Bless!