It’s hard to believe that month 2 in Honduras is coming to an end and we’ll shortly be in Nicaragua for our last month before heading to Asia…time sure does fly by! The last two weeks in Tegucigalpa my team has been going to the hospital to pray for people, visiting the abandoned yellow building down the road to play soccer and hang out with the kids there, and we’ve also had the opportunity to bless our contacts by painting the inside of their house! Looking back on this past month I’ve picked my top 11 favorites:
11. The Pulpería– At the ministry where we were staying, there was a little room with snacks that we could buy and the profits would go into the ministry. There was ice cream (might I add cheesecake ice cream sandwiches), candy bars (like the ones you would find in the States…unfortunately no Reeses), and granola bars and such. I probably made too many visits there, but at least the money is going back into the ministry!
10. Pupusas and Baleadas– Some of my favorite typical foods in Honduras are pupusas (which really originated in El Salvador) and baleadas. The pupusas are fried corn meal with cheese melted in the middle (I think you can also have meat in the middle if I’m not mistaken) in the form of a small pancake with cabbage and veggies on top. They were delicious! Baleadas consist of tortillas, beans, scrambled eggs, cream, fried plantains, and rice. It didn’t look very appetizing to me, but the flavors really go well together…job well done Honduras!
9. Using a washing machine– On the property you can pay to use a washing machine. I usually stuck to washing my clothes in the pila by hand, but I did take advantage of the washing machine once and it made a huge difference in how my clothes smelled! It also didn’t take as long to dry.
8. Painting Tony and Nidia’s House– Our contacts, Tony and Nidia, never really have the time or the finances to take care of things that aren’t super important. They take care of things that need to be done and they are always putting the boys before them; so our team decided to put our painting experience from last month to work and paint the inside of their house…now instead of a house, it looks more like a home! It was also a wonderful bonding experience for our team.
7. Stargazing– On the property is a wall about 10 feet high and four feet wide. Since we are outside of Tegucigalpa, we don’t have lights that get in the way of seeing the stars. On nights that weren’t cloudy we would go up and look at the stars and talk. I have never seen so many shooting stars…definitely one of my favorite things about being away from a lot of lights!
6. Espresso Americano– We did not find a Starbucks in Honduras, but we found something way better…Espresso Americano! They had hands down the best white mocha I’ve ever tasted. The United States needs an Espresso Americano.
5. The Hospital– The hospital was one of the more challenging things for me this month, but definitely worth it! We walked around the hospital in Tegucigalpa in the mornings and prayed for people that wanted prayer. It was the first time I’d ever prayed in Spanish. I was super intimidated to be praying for these people in their native language when it’s not mine, but once I started praying in the Spirit and not from my understanding, God gave me the boldness and the words to say. God really strengthened my prayer life these past two weeks through stepping out of my comfort zone and putting my trust in Him.
4. Going deeper with the Lord and my team– One thing my team kept telling me during our feedback time at night is that they wanted me to go deeper in my relationships with them and with the Lord as well. I had been really struggling with how to do that because I thought I was being pretty intentional about it, but once I stopped trying so hard, my relationship with the Lord started growing and so did my relationships with my teammates. I still want to grow deeper with them but it started this month in Honduras (which is so appropriate since “hondo” is “deep” in Spanish and is in the country’s name).
3. Gracie’s ministry– During our first week we were at El Corazón de Cristo (The Heart of Christ) ministry working with an American couple that moved to Honduras 8 years ago to follow God’s calling. They now work with girls who have been raped and their children, children that others don’t want to care for and women who have been abused. That week was extremely draining, but so worth it. I loved seeing the passion that Gracie and Lee have for the ministry and how God’s voice is so clear in their lives.
2. Seeing a squad mate’s arm healed– Earlier in the week one of the girls on our squad had injured her arm…similar to a fracture but not quite. We went to church one Sunday and the pastor spoke about the power of our words and healing. A few of our squad mates prayed over her arm after church and her arm was healed and out of the wrap before we left the building. I’ve always believed God can heal immediately, but I’ve never actually seen it happen. It was such an awesome thing to see and really strengthened my faith in God and the power He gives us to bring glory to Him.
1. Pastor Alejandro and the boys– This month our team got to spend a lot of time with a pastor who was in Honduras helping with our squad and Zion’s Gate. His name is Alejandro and he is from Nicaragua. We got to help teach him English and get to know more about him and his family and his testimony. He’s starting a ministry in Nicaragua similar to the ministry in Honduras and there’s a possibility our team will be able to help him start the ministry next month in Nicaragua. Creating relationships with the boys at Zion’s Gate was awesome too. They are full of love for everyone who comes and visits and they will definitely be missed by all of us when we leave.
I’m still over $2000 short of being fully funded, so if you feel led to donate to my journey, you can click the “Support Me” tab on the left side of the page and help me out. I also love prayers!!
