Viva Honduras

My trip to Honduras was everything I could have hoped for and more!

The people were so friendly, and our host church CEAD went above and beyond to make us feel welcome. That included greeting us with a banner at the airport in the wee hours of the morning, throwing us a welcoming party, serving as translators and guides throughout the week, and sending us off with a night of culture, which included food, music, and fireworks!

The people of Honduras were ready for change. They were open to inviting Jesus into their lives and into their country.

God showed up in a Mighty way in Honduras. I’m honored to have been part of this historic trip.  I’m still amazed that 2,000 missionaries went to flood Honduras with the love of Jesus and that I was one of them! (To read how I decided to go on the trip, click here.)

There’s no way I could fully describe everything I saw, felt and experienced in Honduras, but I will try to give you a just a taste.

Honduras is one of the most violent countries in the world because of all the gang activity that takes place. It is located in Central America, near my Mom’s home country of El Salvador.

The country is divided into 18 different states or provinces. The teams were spread out all throughout Honduras. A group of more than 100 was assigned to Honduras’ capital city Tegucigalpa in the state of Francisco Morazan. There we broke up into seven teams.

The team of 20 that I was with on a daily basis was called Team 4. We were a mix of folks from New York, New Jersey, Florida, Texas and North Carolina. (You guys rocked!) Monday through Thursday we visited various sites including an elementary school, a middle school, a high school, the Harvard of Honduras, a hospital, a detention center for street boys, and a temporary shelter for families who had traveled for hours so their loved ones could be admitted into the hospital.

At each of those sites we performed skits and dramas, shared testimonies, gave salvation calls, and prayed for the people afterwards. At each of those sites, we felt God’s prescence in a powerful way! Amazingly, my team alone saw more than 240 people give their lives to Christ! Yes, the harvest was ripe!

While we were ministering to the youth and some of the poor, there were other missionaries who were conducting medical clinics, distributing food and shoes throughout the country and leaders training the local pastors. There were others who visited the Westpoint of Honduras. The military was so receptive that they ordered hundreds of the discipleship books being distributed so that incoming students could also be trained!

Everywhere we went, people welcomed us and remarked that they could feel that God was with us. People were so open to prayer. That included our guards, our hotel staff, the mayor of the beautiful tourist city we visited on our free day called Valle de Angeles, etc…

Our US team in Francisco Morazan plus the local Honduran team helped bring the Gospel to more than 40,000 people in those few short days. More than 12,000 people received the Lord! Glory to God!

If all that wasn’t amazing enough, then Saturday came. That was the official 1Nation1Day when 18 crusades or festivals were to take place. The President had already declared July 20th a national holiday. So much prayer and preparation went into the events. Would the people come?

The answer?  YES!

In our stadium alone, 35,000 cheered and worshiped the Lord! Some 3,000 were in an overflow stadium!

Very early on in the evening, we saw a man walk right out of his wheelchair! There were reports that people were being healed as they were simply entering the stadium!

I was rejoicing just being in the stadium, and then they invited us to go onto the field! What an honor! We got to take a lap around the stadium. The people were cheering and thanking us for coming. I felt like I was an Olympian in the Closing Ceremonies. Except I was an Olympian for Jesus!

Things got even better!

So we’re standing there on the track and it’s time for the salvation call so we’re asked to start interceding for the people. I’m praying for people from afar, but I’m still hoping that I can interact with them. But they are behind a fence. And so many raised their hands to receive the Lord. How could we pray for all of them?

Then the guards open the gates and the people start trickling onto the field. And they start coming to us with their prayer requests! Yes! That’s why we came! To pray with the people and to encourage them and to love on them!

We’d pray for one person, and then a family, and then two friends. We’d pray for adults and kids. We’d pray for healing. We’d pray for salvation. We’d pray for other requests.

It was organized chaos, and I loved it!

The crusades made the covers of the local papers. Sweet!

In San Pedro Sula, the “murder capital of the world” there are usually 20 murders a day. Prior to our arrival in Honduras, the two major gangs had called a truce. That had to be God parting the seas! I’m told that during the 9 days that a team was there, there were no murders. Praise God!

I’m so thankful that God kept us all safe. I’m so thankful that the team got along so well. I’m so thankful that people recovered from the stomach bug that was going around. I’m so thankful that our family and loved ones were kept safe while we were away.

I’m so thankful that God showed up in unexpected and extraordinary ways!

All I can say is that we serve an AWESOME GOD! Jesus is real. He is alive. He still heals. He is still in the miracle working business.

The same Jesus that showed up in Honduras wants to flood your life with His Love and His Power. Will you let Him?

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” (Ephesians 3:20 – 21)

If this encouraged you, please feel free to leave a note below!

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