We were recently invited to a church in Choloma, Cortes called Iglesia Cristo Viene Pronto. So we took advantage of the trip and visited Villanueva seeing that it was on the way to San Pedro Sula. We visited one of our newest pastors, Pastor Juan Sanchez and his family. He is the young pastor and his church is now up to about 30 adult members and 40 kids in Sunday school. We were invited inside their home to get acquainted. The pastor’s daughter, whom is only 9 years old, sings at the church services and wanted to sing for Enrique and me. We were very impressed by her voice and heart for God. While we were talking the pastor told us of a situation of one of his dedicated members of the church. She is an older lady whom was recently widowed and lived with her daughter and 5 grandchildren. Pastor Juan asked us if we would like to go visit her, since it was only a short walk away. So we headed out in the 95 degree weather, walking through a river, and into a small wooded area. When we arrived we found the family in extreme living conditions. Enrique consoled, ministered and hugged the crying widow, while the pastor’s wife explained to me the conditions in which they lived. She pointed over to an old hay troth were cows used to feed. It now stood abandoned except for a tattered, stained twin bed that rest beneath it, and a few items of clothing hanging over the beams. She said that this is where the daughter and all 5 grandchildren sleep. She then pointed to a building that looked abandoned, and said that this is were the children in this community go to school. There are 40 children and only one teacher and no books. I thought “How does a child learn in an environment like that?”. Our hearts were breaking while listening to the widow’s story. This situation is very similar to the hundreds of Honduran’s stories we encounter everyday. However, there is something different about this family, they were smiling. Except for the tears shed by the elderly lady while thinking of her husband, you could not take the smiles off kid’s faces if you tried, and why would you want to! They are beautiful. Finally we all prayed together and exchanged hugs and kisses.
A week later Iglesias Comunidad de Amor was able to purchase a good size bed for the mother and her children. We are also putting together a care package of clothes, toys, and hygiene supplies to deliver to them next time we visit.
That afternoon, Pastor Ayestas was excited to show us a piece of land that he found for a possible location for his church building. The other piece of land that was going to be donated was going to be a litigation nightmare. Upon arrival we realized it was in a great location, because it was next to the main road and in the heart of the community. After asking questions, getting measurements, and taking pictures, we set off to prepare for the night service.
Later on that evening, Pastor Ayestas, his wife and another brother in Christ came with us to the church service at Iglesia Cristo Viene Pronto for their 14th anniversary celebration. We were warmly welcomed by the pastor and congregation. They had a beautiful worship and praise service, which was followed by Enrique’s message titled “The 4x4 Church”. It was about the fundamentals of a thriving church. After taking pictures with the pastor and his family and saying good bye we headed back to our hotel for the evening. We left early the following morning to head for Tegucigalpa full of stories and information to report.
Choluteca
Two days later we visited Choluteca and Pastor Adan Blandin, who serves as our supervisor for the South. We drove 45 minutes on a dirt road to Tablones Arriba. When we arrived we met with Pastor Ananias Mendez and his family. Part of the congregation was inside just praying and worshipping. It was the middle of the day and it was about 100F. We proceeded to supervise the newly purchased land and building for our most recent addition to Iglesias Comunidad de Amor. What a blessing to see that this church will be active in this community, when the former leader of that church almost closed it.