June 8-8 Update

The  Betania Church youth retreat continued on Saturday (students slept in dormitory rooms on the MEDA campus; we all enjoyed delicious meals together in the cafeteria). 

Our team set up and ran competitive and laughter-filled games on the soccer field. Luke and the other guest speaker finished the day with a teaching session and a Q&A, joined by two leaders from the church. We gave each student four Spanish-language booklets from Banner of Truth—to equip and challenge each with biblical truth. 

At the close of the retreat mid-afternoon, we made a final trip to the mountain church plant that we served alongside, to attend their service. Pastor Renato preached in Spanish; a couple of team members who are becoming more proficient in Spanish understood much of the sermon. The rest of us were blessed to pick up bits and pieces and were encouraged to see at the service several people we visited earlier in the week. 

On the way back to MEDA, we stopped at a coffee shop with the Zelaya family. Edwin (a.k.a. Chino) shared his powerful testimony of how God brought him to saving faith and protected him from many hardships and dangers.

Our final evening of this incredible week was spent in the Montoya home, singing, sharing reflections on the week, and enjoying sweet fellowship with most of the faithful ministry partners (including wives and children) we served and served with. 

At this writing, we are on our final flight home. We look forward to sharing more with the church family. Without you, this trip would not happened. And because of your prayers and financial support, we achieved our team goals and have been forever changed by the experience. As our team was preparing to leave, a team from Jacksonville, Florida (ministry friends and TES campus), was arriving. What a joy to be part of a network of biblical churches that support the enduring ministry efforts in Siguatepeque through Betania Church and MEDA to the people of Honduras and Central America!

“For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.”

—Malachi 1:11

 

            

 

More Photos

June 6 Update

Students arrived this morning for the youth retreat. There are about 40 students, most of them from Betania Church. The theme for the retreat is God‘s Wisdom, with two sessions taught by Luke Giraudeau and two by a graduate from SEPE. The students are being challenged to understand and see true wisdom as grounded in the person and fear of God—further to surrender to Christ and seek God’s wisdom for all of life. 

Before and after teaching sessions, we’ve enjoyed laughs, fellowship, and the joy of the Lord. We played games on the soccer field that is part of the MEDA campus and in the meeting hall. The students and youth staff demonstrate genuine care for one another and are generally eager and willing to talk with our team. 

We ended our night around a bonfire, singing praises to our great God and Savior. Ben, Audrey, and Lachlan shared their testimonies—a rich blessing to the students and honor for those thee. 

June 5 Update

After several days of rising early and serving in various ways, we enjoyed a day at an enormous lake about an hours-drive away. members of the Montoya and Zelaya family joined us, which always makes a wonderful time even more wonderful.

Several of us paddled kayaks down a long river channel out into the open water of the lake. Others enjoyed the journey on a pontoon boat. We all enjoyed the beautiful surroundings for a couple of hours. We were also able to enjoy a relaxing time at a coffee shop in this land of coffee plantations.

Back at the MEDA campus, we organized supplies for the youth retreat, happening Friday and Saturday. We also rehearsed music and enjoyed another late night game of futbalito (indoor soccer).

“For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation,my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God.”

—Psalm 62:5-7

June 4 Update

Today marks the halfway point of our time here. God has answered prayers in terms of team unity and strength. There has been only minor health issues and any exhaustion has more to do with the heat and humidity. However, that does make a long day feel longer. By God’s grace, we are all energized by his Spirit to excel still more. 

This morning, the ladies continued working on artwork that we will be putting up on nursery room walls at Betania Church. Then, the entire team returned to the local elementary school and presented the program we did yesterday to several more classes.

After lunch, we served the young children (toddlers through elementary) at a local church plant pastored by one of the students from SEPE. We presented the gospel through song, a puppet show, and the gospel-through-colors, which we did at the schools. Then, we played a games with them and did gospel-themed crafts. 

After a little time to relax in the afternoon and an early dinner, we headed to Betania Church for their Wednesday evening service. One of the seminary students preached on Psalm 3, detailing how God provided security, hope, and salvation for David in the midst of persecution, and how that is exemplified in Christ for all believers.

June 3 Update

Nightly rainstorms—complete with lightning and deafening thunder—give way to beautiful, cool daybreak. 

This morning was spent at a nearby public elementary school. We split into four teams, which included members of the Montoya and Zelayas families and other faithful members of Betania Church who provided translation. 

Each team gave a half-hour presentation to two different classes (8 classes total). We played an icebreaker game, sang songs and proclaimed the gospel, using the color format we used at the mountain schools on Monday (black=sin, red=Christ’s blood, gold=God’s glory, etc.). The older children gave responses to our questions in Spanish and English. They were joyful and eager to participate. 

After a quick lunch, we returned to the mountain community to resume visitation to several homes—four teams visited 3-4 families each. Some people are somewhat regular attendees; some have attended once or twice; and some have not yet attended. 

Works righteousness is the norm here (so a natural approach to evangelism as in the U.S.). The people are universally welcoming, kind, and willing to listen. We understand that the Lord must open blind eyes and give faith to believe. We encouraged people to attend the church plant—which is typically a half-hour to hour walk. Few people have motorized transportation; we passed several adults and children on horseback. We plan to attend their church service, which meets on Saturday afternoon. Lord willing, we will see some of those families there. 

One woman we spoke with, Olga, was genuinely responsive to the gospel—and said that she had never heard it explained the way we did from Scripture (Christ alone, grace alone, faith alone; she, too, had a works understanding of salvation). We had the unspeakable joy of praying with her to embrace salvation in Christ. Please pray for her and the others we spoke with, as well as the children who heard biblical truth. 

In addition to the crippling poverty in the mountain community we visited, illiteracy is common. This compounds the difficult task of equipping people to know and understand the truth or to grow in it if they are saved. The pastors, Renato and Waldimir, are looking to add a literacy ministry to their many efforts. 

Our ministry in the mountains was spared from the rainstorm until we arrived back in the city, where we enjoyed sweet fellowship over dinner among our team, the Montoya and Zelaya families, SEPE leadership, and young adult interns who are currently serving here.

The day closed with a lively game of futbolito (indoor soccer) with the team, the missionaries, and friends from Betania. Thank you for your prayers!

“Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been bound, that I may make it manifest in the way I ought to speak.” Colossians‬ ‭4‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ 

June 2 Update

Sunday night was busy practicing puppet show evangelism, and assembling crafts for youth evangelism later in the week. We also heard an encouraging testimony from one of the seminary students at SEPE. His name is Waldemir and he is one of the pastors of the church plant in the mountainous area we visited on Monday.

Immediately after breakfast, Monday, we loaded up and headed into the mountains on what you could loosely call roads—more rock than road. We climbed past hillsides alternating between wild green growth and coffee and banana plants.

We visited two schools, one with about 300 students the other with about 40. The children loved the puppet show, which presented sin and repentance. That was followed by a walk-through redemption using colors (gold for heaven, black for sin, red for Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, green for Christian growth, etc.). The team showed lots of enthusiasm, singing songs and playing games with the children. Those efforts make great inroads to the mountain community, pointing them to the only solid church within miles.

After lunch at the mountain church, we split into teams and visited close to a dozen families, encouraging those who are believers, challenging others who have shown interest in the new church, and sharing the gospel with those who are lost. Our translators are the backbone of all these efforts—a rich blessing to everything we do. Our time in the mountains came to an end as another afternoon rainstorm nearly washed us back down the roads. We crossed growing streams and several fallen trees from the storm. 

Dinner was followed by a celebration of Samuel Montoya's 87th birthday at the Montoya home where we heard his testimony of faith and stories of his early ministry in the Americas. The day was wrapped up by preparations for Tuesday’s activities. 

Thank you for remembering us in prayer. We wouldn’t be here without you!

“It is good to give thanks to the Lord,to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning,and your faithfulness by night.”

May 31-June 1 Update

Saturday began early with our flight to Miami then onto Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We arrived safely at the campus of SEPE in Siguatepeque and enjoyed fellowship with Montoya and the Zelaya families. Discussions about ministry plans for the week ahead were followed by dinner and preparing for Lord’s day services at Betania Baptist Church.

Saturday night brought a powerful and welcomed rainstorm coupled with warm hospitality from the SEPE staff. 

On Sunday we enjoyed sweet fellowship with Honduran brothers and sisters in the Lord.  Sunday school was taught by Raul Villatoro on Galatians 1 on the “True Gospel” (he and his wife, Analee, travel to Winston-Salem for medical treatment; many of you have met them on their visits). The sermon was by Carlos Montoya from 2 Timothy 3 on the “Believer’s Suffering” (simultaneous translation was provided to our team for both messages via Zoom audio). The sermons were powerful and a witness to the church’s faithfulness to the truth as they introduced several new church members who left the charismatic church. We also enjoyed singing new and familiar songs in Spanish and shared in the Lord’s Table with this extended church family. 

Sunday night was spent practicing and preparing for ministry to children over the coming days. 

We thank God for the abundant prayers and support for the whole team and those we will be serving and serving alongside.

“Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness:

He was manifested in the flesh,

vindicated by the Spirit,

seen by angels,

proclaimed among the nations,

believed on in the world,

taken up in glory.”

—1 Timothy 3:16