Honduras Missions
Every year a group of Trinity members, along with people from all over the U.S.A., travel to Tegucigalpa for an evangelism/medical/construction mission. The 2004 trips are planned for February 7-14 (medical) and February 16-23 (construction). Please join the team for the first planning meeting on September 21st at 7 p.m. at Trinity. You can also request information via email at church@tledwardsville.org by phone at (618) 656-2918 or by mail at 600 Water Street, Edwardsville IL. 62025.
The following is a letter from Paul Darr, organizer of the trips.
Hello to all,
We have an ever widening group of individuals and church congregations
becoming interested in this opportunity. One from Chicago, one from
Denver and one from North Carolina. Timothy Lutheran Church, St. Louis is also
planning to make the trips with us. We have indeed been blessed and look forward
to each of you and your congregations becoming involved with us in an ever
broadening way.
Please place both trips in your prayers, especially the ranch building trip
since this is our first construction team. We definitely need skilled
individuals
for that trip willing to step forward as work team directors at the Ranch.
Please consider yourself or other skilled individuals especially for the trip to
the Ranch. These can be electricians, carpenters, concrete workers, brick
layers, etc. to guide the rest of the team in their efforts.
I would also like to ask the members of each congregation to consider having
a trivia night fund raiser to assist us in achieving monies for medications,
glasses and supplies. We have contacted Thrivent for matching funds and will
probably be able to double our funds in several of these events.
I have a church bulletin flyer made and I'm sending it to area churches to alert
them to the 2004 Organizational Meeting on September 21st, 2003 in the lower
level of Trinity at 7pm. Hope to see you there.
With anticipation to a wonderful two weeks working for God and his kingdom,
Paul A. Darr
Honduran Mission Report 2003
On January 11th a group of twenty-six people from Edwardsville Illinois area churches embarked on a week-long mission trip to Tegucigalpa Honduras. This group consisted of nurses, doctors, evangelists, and their support personnel. The trip was coordinated by Paul Darr of Trinity Lutheran Church Edwardsville through World Gospel Outreach in Humble Texas.
Over the course of this trip the group ministered to the basic medical needs
of these people who live in grinding poverty. Once the door to their hearts had
been opened by these acts of kindness evangelists ministered to their spiritual
needs. The goal was the goal of every Christian - to win as many souls for
Heaven as possible by attempting to live out the example set by Christ.
This is the story of that mission trip, in the words and pictures of those who
were there.
Saturday January 4th -
Area Lutheran grade school children collected over $1000 to buy supplies for the trip. This morning Paul took them shopping to make their purchases for their Honduran brothers and sisters.
Saturday January 11th -
The group assembled in Trinity Edwardsville's parking lot at 3 a.m. to leave
for the airport in St. Louis. The flight stopped in Houston before ending in
Tegucigalpa at 12:17 p.m. All but three of the bags made it, we expect them
tomorrow.
The drive from the airport to the mission house took us through the
city of Tegucigalpa. We stared out the bus windows at a culture and country so
completely different from our own that it was difficult to take it all in.
Everything you can imagine is different - the stores, cars, houses, streets,
trees and flowers. The colors everywhere are incredible. The people waved and
smiled as we passed by.
Once at the mission house, which sits on the side of a mountain overlooking the
city, we met the staff and received a heartfelt welcome and thank you from the
Hondurans for coming to help them.
Later in the evening we talked and had devotions, and sang. Imagine yourself
sitting in a mission house on the side of a mountain in Tegucigalpa, the lights
of the city twinkling below, singing Awesome God accompanied by the guitar of
mission house leader Peter Bellingham. Awesome? More than you could imagine.
Sunday January 12th -
Today, church in Tegucigalpa. We split up between the English speaking Union Church and the New Life Deaf Ministry Church. Then had lunch and seen some of the surrounding country side and talked with the people. In the evening, we worked into the night preparing for the first mission site tomorrow. We were told that this first site would be in a particularly impoverished neighborhood. We will need your prayers tomorrow.
From Dan and Kelly Frey -
After a restful night's sleep, we started the day with devotions and a
wonderful, but simple breakfast. We had a choice of church services and we chose
the New Life Deaf Ministry where everything was presented by the hearing
impaired and translated into English and Spanish. It was fascinating to watch
the expressive faces of the deaf leaders as they gave their testimonies. They
showed tremendous pain the their faces as they talked of their sin and then
tremendous joy when they spoke of Jesus Christ. No one in the congregation
closes their eyes at this church during the sermon.
After church we went to the El Patio, one of Tegucigalpa's finest restaurants,
for lunch. We gathered up all leftovers so they could be given to some families
near the mission house. In the afternoon we visited the mountain community of
Valley of the Angels and bought some souvenirs to remind us of this beautiful
place and its wonderful people.
Monday January 13th -
From the Nurses -
Today we left for our first brigade (mission) site at 8 a.m. We drove nearly two
hours. The last thirty minutes was over rutted and rocky dirt roads up the side
of a mountain. The community of Nuevo Capital has only been in existence a few
years but consists of only crude one room homes made up of whatever material
these people can come up with. Women were washing their children's clothes by
the side of the road with water that flowed down the hill. Children walked down
a steep rocky hillside with buckets to pull drinking water from a newly dug
well.
When we arrived at the clinic, people were standing in long lines waiting for
us. Mothers had been standing there since before dawn, huddled in the chill wind
with their infants. Today is their only chance for medical attention for them.
We divided up into six stations - dental, optometry, medical, pharmacy,
children's ministry and adult evangelism and got to work.
These people who had been waiting for hours were patient and appreciative of our
presence and care. They greeted us with smiles and at times, hugs. We struggled
with our emotions caring for these wonderful but destitute people. Their need
was so great but yet their stoic attitudes amazed us. Later, back at the mission
house the people working in evangelism told us stories of great loss, but yet
great faith. These people do not have personal comfort and possessions to get
between them and God.
Tonight, the cold wind that blew all day is still howling outside, and it's
started to rain and we think of those little ones in their threadbare clothing
huddled in their tiny unheated homes.Tomorrow we return to Nuevo Capital to
continue God's work, giving them hope and the assurance that they are important
to us, and to God.
Tuesday January 14th -
Today was our second day at the Josue (Joshua) 1:9 Church in the community of Nuevo
Capital. We again had the opportunity to ride the dusty roads to and view the
devastating conditions that the people there live in. Yet still they have the
ability to smile and demonstrate friendliness, regardless of the conditions.
Arriving at this site we immediately understood the immensity of their needs by
the length of the line of people waiting to enter the church for our services.
We saw nearly 200 people for eye examinations today. Some had vision conditions
so poor it was a wonder they could even find the church. During the hectic
morning there was a ten minute span where we each saw a patient with less than
20/1000 vision, effectively blind. Once fitting them with eye glasses, we were
blessed with the opportunity to experience the smiles on their faces as they
could clearly see our faces and the faces of others in the room.
God truly demonstrated his power by allowing us to have these rare prescriptions
with us to correct their vision. We pray that he will continue to guide us
throughout the rest of the week.
Dr. Jeff Herberts and Dr. Gary Meier
Pastor Silvia, a 24 year old single, Spirit-filled woman who
walks in her community with the dignity of Sister Teresa and the authority of
the Apostle Paul.
Wednesday January 15th -
After witnessing the conditions of the past two days, we were
fortunate enough to see hope in Honduras. Today we visited Centro de Vida (CDV),
the orphanage supported by World Gospel Outreach. CDV takes in children who have
been abused in many ways. Most of these children have parents, but live at the
orphanage. They are given a bilingual education, as well as a spiritual
education. We met many of the children, but one in particular touched us all.
Julio Caesar came to CDV in September. He’s five years old, but is the same size
as a two-year old boy. Julio was found severely malnourished, but has gained
weight and is doing much better. The whole team enjoyed playing with him and
listening to his happy giggle. We then traveled on to Rancho Ebenezer. The Ranch
currently houses around nineteen children. The children live in houses with
couples who show them the love and responsibilities of being part of a family.
The team met the children, including the three babies- all less than 18 months.
Several team members remarked on the contradicting scenes of yesterday and
today, it was as if we were in a completely different country.
For those of us who have been on past trips to Honduras, it has been exciting to
watch the progress that has been made out at the ranch. The infant ward has been
added and three children are currently living there.
Also, watching those who are here for their first time has been very moving. To
see how they react and are touched by God’s work makes the trip worthwhile.
Tomorrow we start our next brigade site and the three of us will be working in
children’s ministry together.
We look forward to catching up on the week of college that we have missed and
spending time with our friends. But we are overjoyed that God has called us here
together. Thanks to our close friends and family who are following our trip and
keeping us in their prayers. Keep up the good work. We miss you all.
Jamie, Makenzie, and Colby
Thursday January 16th -
From Becky Sennholtz -
Greetings! Our God is an AWESOME God!
This morning when we got on the bus, we prayed once again for safe travel. That
proved to be especially vital today. None of us knew which neighborhood church
we would serve, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we were
simply amazed at the road we traveled. It’s obvious that the term “passable” is
used very loosely in Honduras. When the bus finally stopped, we learned that we
would have to carry the many trunks of medical, dental and optical supplies down
85 rugged steps to the church to “set up shop.”
Shirley was thankful for a relatively easy day in medical. Although a large
number of people were treated, she reported that the illnesses were not a
serious as in previous days.
Katie worked alongside Kelli & Tyler in children’s ministry. She shared the
Gospel story with the children and then asked them to repeat it to her. A
friendly game of “Who Can Sing the Loudest to Jesus” followed, and the children
gladly poured out their hearts.
Dr. Gary asked us tonight to keep his patient, Kenan, in our prayers. Kenan is a
three year old boy who suffers from congenital glaucoma. Although he has been
treated with medicine since shortly after he was born, his eyesight has
continued to deteriorate, and he is now on the verge of total blindness.
Today was a day of firsts for a few of us. I was given the opportunity to work
with our Honduran dentist, Lizeth. It was my first day in the dental area, and
Lizeth made me glad to be there. Although we were faced with a difficult case at
the end of the day (a woman who had four teeth extracted and subsequent
sutures), we enjoyed our time together. Lizeth has a compassionate heart and
makes her patients feel relaxed. Her relaxation technique includes singing to
her patients and she politely asks her assistants to sing along. Thankfully we
knew a lot of the same songs, so we spent the afternoon serenading our patients
and, unbeknownst to us, the rest of the people in the church too.
Evangelism was a first for two of the team: Steve and Tammy. Steve was thankful
for an easy day. He told us during evening devotions that all but one of his
visitors was a Christian and shared the Gospel message with him. Like Dr.
Hoffman says, “What Else is There to Say but Amen!” The other one, an 18 year
old young lady who seemed disinterested at first, finally settled in to listen.
She ended up praying with Steve and left with tears in her eyes. What a
privilege it is to witness the power of the Holy Spirit!
Tammy told us through her tears of a grandmother who had brought her young
grandson, Christian, along to the brigade site. This grandmother seemed more
interested in reporting the child’s bad behavior than she was in listening to
the loving message Tammy was sent to convey. Christian is an abused school boy.
His mother beats him for his poor behavior at school – that is when he even
bothers to attend. Tammy was finally able to position herself between Christian
and his grandmother so she could assure the boy that love does exist. Although
she took some time to admonish Christian about the importance of education, she
also took time to tell him that she loves him and that, most importantly, Jesus
loves him too and knows when he hurts.
Pastor Groth was faced with a lot of tough cases today. The final case was tough
in the literal sense. His last visitor, Jimmie, arrived with his friend, Haros.
Pastor learned through his interpreter, Santos, that the two are members of a
gang. After Santos spoke at length with the two boys, he said that Jimmie had
begun to show an interest in the Christian message. Time was short, however, and
the rest of the team was waiting at the top of the hill. They were invited to
return tomorrow to learn more. Pastor prayed with Santos and the two young men.
He asked that if it was not God’s will that he meet them again here, he would be
united with them again in Heaven.
We learned tonight from Peter, the WGO missionary here, that a worker at the
mission house needs our prayers. Her name is Raina, and her father is in the
final stages of cancer. Peter asks that we pray for the comfort of Raina and her
father. Please also remember, Kenan, Jimmie, Haros and Christian in your
prayers. Finally, we ask that you continue to keep us in your prayers. We are
all well and enjoying our work.
God’s blessings to you all at home! We love you!
P.S. Peggy says to please say “Hi” to Dean!
Friday January 17th -
From Debbie and Katie Rathert--
Another busy day--we had to carry all of our equipment back up the 85 steps so
we could bring it back to the mission house. There were plenty of us out of
breath when we reached the top. I (Katie) worked in pharmacy in the morning
while my mom worked in optical with the auto refractor. In the afternoon, mom
went to evangelism while I took her place in optical. We found out when we
returned to the mission house that we saw a record 1,300+ patients this week. No
doubt we were blessed as much as the patients and children to whom we
ministered. Tonight we shared individually what we believed we were taking home
from this experience. Peter, the missionary here, shared the story of Jesus
washing the disciples' feet from the book of John. He reminded us that Jesus put
himself in a position to serve as His father wanted. Then, much to our surprise,
he and the other team leaders washed the feet of each team member. It was a
humbling but powerful demonstration of the love that Jesus showed to his
disciples that we hope to share with others both here and at home. This has been
a wonderful week. We all agree that we have received much more than we gave.
Thank you to all of you who kept us in your thoughts and prayers, and please
remember to bring a warm coat to the airport for your loved one(s)!!! Hasta
manana!
Saturday January 18th -
Today we say goodbye to our WGO mission team members and our Honduran
friends. It is very difficult to leave these people who have embraced us this
past week. No one leaves here the same person they were before, no one.
Our flight left at 12:30 p.m. and we landed in a freezing St. Louis at
8:00 p.m.
If you would like more information on this trip or on World Gospel Outreach, please contact them via the telephone numbers or email addresses listed here. You may also visit Trinity Edwardsville and World Gospel Outreach websites. It's not too soon to start planning to join them for the 2004 trip! February 7-14 will be the medical trip and 16-23 the construction trip.
Trinity Lutheran Church and School 600 Water Street Edwardsville, Illinois
62025
(618) 656-2918
World Gospel Outreach P.O. Box 14348 Humble, Texas 77347-4348
(281) 548-7222
Centro de Vida, Rancho Ebenezer, and New Life Deaf Ministry and Church are 3 strong shining beacons of Christian Hope in the bleak existence of many in Honduras. The entire WGO organization is funded through donations. If you are moved to assist this real and true Christian effort, I urge you to contact WGO at 218-548-7222, or contact Trinity Lutheran Church, 600 Water Street, Edwardsville, IL 62025. We will send you a WGO brochure and a pledge form to assist you in beginning a relationship between yourself, Christ and the people of Honduras. Who knows, maybe next year, you will be walking down the steps from the plane, looking forward to your appointment with Jesus in Tegucigalpa, Honduras with a group of missionaries. I hope so, as you will be surprised by how much God has to teach you, if you watch, listen and pray.
All 2003 Pictures Updated 4/2/2003