It was a bit of a process but we finally made it to Honduras after a bus ride from Washington DC to JFK airport in New York, then a flight from JFK to Liberia,Costa Rica, then a bus ride from Costa Rica to Managua, Nicaragua (stayed the night) then from there a bus ride to our final destination Telgucigalpa, Honduras.
Beautiful Telgucigalpa
We’ve been in Honduras for just over a week now and it still doesn’t really seem real. We’ve been so blessed with our ministry this month, like seriously spoiled. We have home cooked meals, and even a place to get snacks on site. Pastor Tony and his wife run a ministry called Zion’s Gate (Puerta de Sion) in Telgucigalpa, Honduras. The focus of the ministry is working with teenage boys from the ages of 12-18. These boys have all come from very rough neighborhoods(mainly Los Pinos…one of the roughest neighborhood in Honduras) and have been exposed to things way beyond their years. The boys live on site with Tony and his wife (currently 8-9 boys and 2 girls) and are all there because they have made the choice to make a change in their lives and know that this is a safe place for them. We (all 57 of us G-squaders) are staying on the property, living in our tents, and just really investing in these boys’ lives. We get to love on them all day long. Though I don’t speak Spanish I’ve really been working hard on picking up any and all Spanish words I can. I personally have had a connection with a young man named Herman. It all started with me wanting to learn Spanish and he happens to be in the process of learning English, so he would write out a phrase in Spanish and I would write what it said in English. I am always greeted with a hug and kiss on the cheek. It is truly a joy to see the way these boys love others, they are all so affectionate.
Herman and I
So the agenda this month is to work on the property. The place where this ministry is located used to be the most notorious nightclub in Honduras. Where there was once so much darkness there is now such a bright light. Needless to say there is still many projects to get done to get this place to where they want it to be. G-squad is made up of 8 teams so each of us has a project this month that we will work on Monday thru Wednesdays each weeek until we leave Honduras. Team Mashach’s project is working to make a laundry area where there is once a whole lotta of weeds and rocks. We will be putting up more laundry lines, planting some trees, and washing down some of the buildings on the property. I WILL TRY AND GET PICTURES UP ASAP….THEY ARE ON SOMEONE ELSE'S CAMERA.
On Thursdays we go to a program called INHFA, working with teenage girls that have been taken off the street either because of bad family situations or causing too many problems. Our team got to lead the worship this week, then a few people on my squad shared our testimonies. Afterwards we get to break off into groups and braid hair, paint nails, make bracelets, etc.
Becca painting some toe nails
Fridays we take truth to the streets, hand out candies, holding posters, and just try and put a smile on the people’s faces going through the busy intersection. It may seem crazy and something we may never do in North America but it has seriously been one of my favorite things we have done so far!!! Fridays are also our only internet day, we get the chance to go to the mall and spend a couple of hours there.
This past Saturday we went to a youth church service where we got to do some worship and a few of my squad mates got to share their story. Sunday’s are our day of rest as well as a church service in the evening.
A few of the G-squaders doing a skit for the youth service
I’ve had a really awesome week getting to know my squad better as well as my team. Turns out my team is quite musically inclined and we have been working on a song based of the scripture Isaiah 61. I hope to have a video of it posted soon!
Fun fact: I thought we would be sweating to death this month being in Central America in July and all but turns out its quite chilly here in the valley. It had rained every single day at some point (unitl yesterday) since we have been here and I would say its about 18-20 Celsius.
Fun fact: I thought we would be sweating to death this month being in Central America in July and all but turns out its quite chilly here in the valley. It had rained every single day at some point (unitl yesterday) since we have been here and I would say its about 18-20 Celsius.
A FEW PICS FROM MY TIME IN DC!!!
Fireworks on the 4th of July in Washington DC
The Washington Monument
