Returning Home

Hi Everyone,

Pastor Randy called yesterday with a quick update, again unable to get internet access. He called while the team was preparing to do their last outreach. One thing he mentioned was that the dramas were extremely effective in presenting the gospel to the Hondurans. Many of the people have limited or no reading skills. Being able to see the message of the gospel was so much more powerful than trying to read it or just hear someone else read it. They had an enormous response from the drama presentations, and many people were surprised because they had never seen a team present the gospel message this way before.

He also called the church office to let us all know that barring any major problems in San Pedro Sula, they expected to have no trouble getting on the plane this afternoon. I thought for the very eager, you might enjoy watching their progress over the Gulf of Mexico and into Atlanta.

Continue to pray for travel mercies and opportunities to share as they return. Pray for their bodies, as I'm sure they're all exhausted. I'm looking forward to the next update to be from Pastor Randy, saying they're home!

Third-hand Friday Update

Pastor Randy called Beth at the church office to let her know that each time he's tried to update the blog, his internet connection disconnects. So, he asked that I post a quick update.

First and foremost, all is well with the team, and the team members who were suffering from physical afflictions all seem to be recovering well.

As I wrote last time, the team has adjusted their focus a little to spend time encouraging the long-term missionaries, and they have canceled a couple outreaches to be able to spend more time doing this and allowing for some recovery time. Please continue to pray that God would lead them by His Spirit and that He would give them wisdom and clear direction about how to continue to minister for the remaining few days.

Also, continue to pray for unity and perseverance. From my experience with overseas missions, the first few days are full of excitement and adrenaline, but after a few days of poor sleep, upset tummies and hard work, circumstances can begin to seem larger-than-life, and the flesh can begin to rebel strongly. Pray that the Lord would allow them to continue to set their minds on the things of the Spirit, and to trust Him completely, and that they would seek Him for strength, and He would give them the strength they need!

He also requested that we continue to pray for the team's health. He said the food is delicious but has a tendency to be a little hard on the digestion.

Praise the Lord for His faithfulness to do the work that's needed! Continue to lift them up in prayer, and may the Lord return them safely to us in a few short days!

Tutorial: Comments

There's been a couple requests about how to post comments, especially for those without any kind of blogging account. Posting a comment requires you to prove that you're human so we don't get a bunch of evil ads in what they call "comment spam".

Here's a quick tutorial about how to post a comment. You only have to do this the first time:

1. Click on the Comments link below a blog post:

2. Type your comment, and click the "Select Profile" menu. It will show several choices. The easiest is probably the "Google Account" option, if you don't have an account of one of the other types. Select your choice and click the "Post Comment" button.

3. This will bring you to a Google sign-in page. If you already have a Google account, just sign in with your Google account information (the red box). If you do not have a Google account, click on the "Create a Google Acccount" link (the green box).

4. If you sign in with your Google account, skip to step 5. Otherwise, you'll be presented with the following screen. Fill out the information, using your normal, everyday email address. The weird looking word on the bottom is called a CAPTCHA, and it attempts to verify that you are human.

5. Once you click the orange "Continue" arrow at the bottom, you will be presented with a screen that looks like one of the ones below. Click "Post", and type in the CAPTCHA, if you have one. After this, you may need to sign in again, but you should not need to create another Google account.

6. After this, you should not need to register for a Google account again, but you may need to sign in again. Just use the directions, skipping step 5. If you click the "Stay signed in" checkbox in step 4, you will stay signed in indefinitely. Here's a picture:

Hope that helps with posting comments!

Adam

Telephone Update

Pastor Randy called with an update for the body. They have not been anywhere near a computer since Sunday, so he called to let us know how things are going.

Monday (yesterday) was a physically exhausting day preparing to pour concrete, and today is looking to be about the same, but with the Lord's strength, they'll be pouring the concrete today. Please keep that in your prayers!

The team has been working together in an awesome way. The preparation time and the prayer time with CC Greer has been enormously fruitful. Their times of prayer and worship together while in Honduras have been blessed beyond beyond words through the Holy Spirit's ministry. Their fellowship has been sweet, and spiritually, they are walking in victory.

Physically, there are a few prayer needs. Keli, Loq and Michelle have all had stomach problems, so please, please keep their health, and that of the whole team in your prayers.

There is an URGENT prayer need for the full-time missionaries in Honduras. There are a lot of the Lord's servants who have answered the call to minister to the Honduran people. Many of them do not have teams to support them and are exhausted, empty and burnt-out. Imagine trying to do the work of the Lord with no one to help and no one to talk to. They are in desperate need of a filling of the Holy Spirit and the fellowship of the Lord.

With this revelation, the team is going to change their focus for the rest of the trip to one of encouragement. At the leading of the Lord, they may cancel outreaches if they determine they can answer the call to build up the missionaries there. Please, please pray diligently for the full-time missionaries down there that God would give them strength, would restore their joy, and give them life and life more abundantly. Randy asked specifically that we would lift them up from here.

Please, please, continue to pray for the team. The enemy wants to discourage and frustrate and disappoint. God wants us to draw close to Him, and not just the team, but each of us. We can draw close to Him by lifting them up to Him.

Sunday...

We've just returned to the missions base after a very full day of ministry in which we experienced the Lord's power in such wonderful ways-

We arrived at the Church quite early and had a time of prayer together as a team. Other than Kat, the ladies had not been to the Church yet so they explored the buildings and the property and I had a chance to explain the physical work that we'll be doing starting tomorrow. Eulogio had to run to pick up some people for Church, and on the way back he had an accident; a man and a little boy on a bicylcle swerved into his lane and hit him head on!!! No one was hurt, no one cried foul, and they went along their ways. This made him late for Church, where he was supposed to lead worship, so Pastor Chris asked me to do a few songs in English. A new family came, Lok's mechanic from San Pedro, and they really enjoyed the service. They said they'd be back next week, and asked for a schedule of our outreaches so they could come help!

After Church we headed back into Pena Blanca to purchase food to prepare food boxes to deliver to some families in need. We broke into two groups and went in different directions to take the food, clothes, and a message of Love in the Name of Jesus.... I don't have time to get into details, but our team was RADICALLY touched by what they saw today. The poverty, the filth, the living conditions, the children's beautiful faces, thier filthy and hungry bodies; it was too much for most of them and as we left houses (If you can call them that) we just wept. The boys that were with me shared a vision to get the Church finished so that the ministry of the Word could reach its full potential here.

At dinner I saw this thing that has happened on every mission trip I have ever led, it jsut happens different each time. As we discussed the day the team was broken before the Lord, tears were flowing as thier old ideas about their life gave way to new priorities placed in their hearts by the Holy Spirit, and the Lord moved among us in a powerful way. We had hours of prayer, ministry to one another, some accapella worship, and Pastor Chris and I layed hands on those who asked for special prayer. As I prayed for the group to receive a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit a cool wind blew through the hot room, like a cool drink to our souls. What an awesome time we had with the Lord....

Tomorrow will be a full work day; we'll be moving 8 dumptruck loads of dirt, by hand, into the Church to level the floor. After we compact the dirt we'll start pouring and finishing the concrete cloor. A second team will be moving dirt and tring to re-direct the massive amounts of water that is running into the property during the rainy season.

We are praying for you all, and even though we miss you, we are right where Jesus wants us to be
Pastor Randy

First day of Ministry

Greetings from Pena....

All is well, the team is doing really well. Other than a 2+ hour delay getting out of Atlanta, all went better than we could have hoped for (Maybe people were praying.....). After we drove to Pena we ate our dinner and then got organized in our housing.

Today we had some free time in the morning to get refocused on why we are here. We took some time to organize our equipment and get ready for the coming days.

Today we saw the gifting of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the team-

We did an outreach in front of the Catholic Church in El Tigre (The Tiger), a nearby village. The rain was threatening us all day, but we didn't see more than a sprinkle. About 150 or more men, women, and children gathered to listen to American worship music and to watch the dramas. Of course, the children were all over us, and the adults started out watching from the distance. Once the dramas began they all slowly migrated close, and I think the Lord impressed them (The full time missionaries here told us that they've never seen a group do anything like what we're doing). During the last drama, King of Hearts, the rain let loose! The drama team didn't even flinch, they just kept on performing. At first the Hondurans ran for cover, but then they all came back to watch the rest of the drama! A few of us quickly tore down the sound system and loaded up, but most of the team were playing out in the rain with the kids. The Lord did some neat things in our team through the events of the day, but there isn't enough time to write about it now.

Tomorrow, after church, we're going to break into groups and deliver food/clothing boxes to some very poor families. Pray for this to be a Holy Spirit led time of ministry.

We're praying for all of you, we'll upload some pictures when we get the chance.

Blessings to all
Pastor Randy and the team

The mission team has arrived safely in Honduras! They were a little later arriving than they had hoped because of the delay in Atlanta, but everything else went smoothly. There was even a chance for the mission team to minister to and pray for people on the plane! Pastor Randy said he would try to send an update by this evening about today's events.

The team has an outreach today at 3pm Honduras time, which is 5pm Eastern. If you see this before then, please pray for them!

Finally, here's a couple pictures as Pastor Randy addresses the team with some last minute logistics before they left the church to drive down to the Atlanta airport. The picture are a little grainy, but it was still dark at 4am (and the camera operator was a little groggy too!):

Sitting on the runway still waiting out the weather. Some of the team are already sharing Jesus with people...

On the plane; 2 other mission teams on our plane.

Stay tuned for updates after we arrive....

Don't forget to pray
Pastor Randy

3am came quickly and most of the team didn't sleep... Nik S is serenading us as we drive to Atlanta. Everyone is excited.
Jesus, here we are in Your hands, ready to do your will

CC Pena Blanca's Building Project

Part of our ministry in Honduras will be to serve CC Pena Blanca by contributing to the ongoing building project!

Currently the Church has dirt floors, but God willing by the end of next week we will have...

1. Brought in countless wheelbarrow loads of dirt to level the floor

2. Mixed (By hand), poured (i.e. filled up and pushed wheelbarrows), and finished more concrete than an entire concrete truck could deliver

It is now the rainy season, and one of our projects is to figure out how to deal with the incredible amount of water that runs down the dirt road and through the Church property. Our job will be to put together and execute a plan to divert the runoff away from the Church building and if possible, the entire property. We've agreed to hire a man who owns a piece of earth moving equipment to spend 2-3 days working on this project. God has provided the finances, pray that He gives us the practical wisdom to get this project finished.

The team from Pastor Gary's Church in Abq tackled this problem last week. During the spring storms this tree fell on the newly constructed Children's building. The Abq team were able to lay 9 more courses of block, and if we are able to lay 2 more (God willing) we'll begin constructing the roof.

Pray for strength....

Pastor Randy

Safety or Submission?

Matthew 10:16 “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves

Over the last 6 weeks or so Honduras has been in a state of political unrest. Although the civil unrest that has resulted has been very mild compared to other parts of the world experiencing these same problems, they are problems nonetheless.

Unfortunately, the mainstream media's reports of civil unrest in Honduran cities has resulted in many of the Honduran missionaries being recalled by their missions boards. Entire denominations have brought their Honduran missionaries home to "Watch and wait". Meanwhile, the work of the gospel and the practical ministry has all but ceased in many places, including Pena Blanca, where the absence of the missionaries is being felt by the residents. Medical missions have diminished, service oriented missions have diminished, and most importantly, evangelism isn't taking place. The news is reporting one thing, but our Missionaries in Pena are reporting "Business as usual", other than a curfew being implemented.

Jesus never told us that the work of the gospel was "Safe" work; in fact, much of what He said was just the opposite. Consider His Words...

Mt 10:38 –Mt 10:39 (NKJV)

And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

The community of Pena Blanca and the families that Calvary Chapel Pena Blanca are ministering to are taking notice of the fact that C.C. Pena has kept their hand to the plow, that Calvary's from the U.S. are still sending teams, and now our team has the privilege of going to serve in a place where others are leaving to seek "Safer" places to serve.

Nothing "Safe" ever results in radical ventures of faith where Jesus reveals His presence, His provision, or His protection. I choose to walk a little closer to the edge! Wanna come!

Pray for the work of the gospel through the hands, the feet, the hearts, and the mouths of those who choose to go and serve where Jesus has asked them to go....

Pastor Randy

Stay tuned for some really exciting news @ Honduras....

Check back a little later today for an exciting update on ministry conditions in and around Pena Blanca....

Pastor Randy

The Lord's abundant provision

Thanks to the Body of Christ, and our sending Church, Calvary Chapel of Greer for being the conduit through which this mission team has received such wonderful love, encouragement, and through which we've seen God's abundant provision. Once the vision was shared, the Church's response to support this work was nothing short of overwhelming. As a missions team, we can truly say that our Church is "Sending" us to do the work of the ministry that Jesus has laid out before us. What a great feeling that is! Once again, thank you.

The team has been working hard to prepare for the trip; long Sunday night meetings were devoted to prayer, fellowship, planning, and learning dramas to perform during our outreaches. They also devoted themselves, along with countless others, to the fundraising projects that not only blessed each team member with financial provision, but during the process the team began to mesh, to grow, and to work together. The yard sale and the Honduran dinner were The Lord's way of teaching this team how to serve when they were tired and pulled in too many directions, like they'll be for 12 days.....

To all who read this we ask just one more thing of you. Be in prayer, serious prayer, for the work that God has called us to as a Church! In Greer and in the Upstate of S.C. we are called to make disciples, to equip the saints for the work of the ministry (A group of equipped saints are headed to do the work!!). In our missions outreaches we are called to undergird the work and to strengthen the arms of the full time missionaries that have devoted their lives to the same things we have, but on foreign soil. Remember what Jesus said-

Mt 9:37 –Mt 9:38 (NKJV) “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”

By the work of the Holy Spirit, the fearless obedience of those called to be involved, & for the Glory of The Lord, there are more laborers heading for the Harvest Field....

Continue to pray

Pastor Randy