We have seen 28 different people this week for reading sessions, all with different levels of English skills. We are expecting at least five more people to start reading with us on Monday. Most of our readers come every day.
Since there are seven of us, our schedule has not been completely full, but that has given us the opportunity to help in other areas. Some of us have been helping with the Basic English class that meets in the mornings. Since the teacher is a native Spanish speaker, it helps to have native English speakers to demonstrate pronunciation.
We have also had time to encourage the evangelistic school students by learning to communicate with them (they teach us a little Spanish and we teach them a little English), singing with them, and playing ping-pong. In addition, we have worked one-on-one with a few people in beginning English. We look forward to more opportunities to help Mission Upreach next week.
Please pray for the other three members of our team, Owen and Austen Corwin, and Morgan Daniel, who are already on their way here, and will arrive in Santa Rosa tomorrow. And of course, please continue to pray for our project and the people we are encountering here.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Our Schedule
I think our lives are settling into a schedule of sorts:
At 8:15 or so we have our group devotional and then pack up and leave for the day. We walk a few blocks to the church building.
At 9:00 we have readers.
10:00-12 there is a basic English class, and most of us sit in. (I sat in the first day, but since then I have used the time to journal and blog.)
At Noon we go to the Centro Regional Evangelistico de Occidente (a school of evangelism that Mission Upreach started last year) to eat lunch with the students. They don't speak English, but we are having fun learning to communicate with them. There are four male students, ranging in age from 14 to 21.
From 1:00 to 7 we have readers, but we all have breaks at various times.
At 7:00 most days we will probably call it quits and get some dinner. Tonight, however, the kids have been invited to go and play soccer with some of the kids from church, if it's not raining. Debbie and I will probably go back to the house to cook dinner and do laundry.
At 8:15 or so we have our group devotional and then pack up and leave for the day. We walk a few blocks to the church building.
At 9:00 we have readers.
10:00-12 there is a basic English class, and most of us sit in. (I sat in the first day, but since then I have used the time to journal and blog.)
At Noon we go to the Centro Regional Evangelistico de Occidente (a school of evangelism that Mission Upreach started last year) to eat lunch with the students. They don't speak English, but we are having fun learning to communicate with them. There are four male students, ranging in age from 14 to 21.
From 1:00 to 7 we have readers, but we all have breaks at various times.
At 7:00 most days we will probably call it quits and get some dinner. Tonight, however, the kids have been invited to go and play soccer with some of the kids from church, if it's not raining. Debbie and I will probably go back to the house to cook dinner and do laundry.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Getting Started!
Sunday night we made it into Santa Rosa de Copán just as Church was getting started at the Iglesia de Cristo. Jenny, a girl in her late teens that I remember well from last year, greeted me like a long lost friend, which made me weep a little. The service was all in Spanish, but I picked up a few words here and there, enough to guess that the preacher was talking about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3. I picked up a few more words in the songs (since the words were on Power Point), but even if I didn't know what I was saying I was praising God in my heart as I joined in with the Hondurans' enthusiastic voices.
After the service everyone wanted to shake our hands to greet us. There were so many familiar faces and it was such a joy to see the love they expressed to us and to each other. I'm guessing there were around 150 in attendance.
Monday morning I sat in on a basic English class led by Phil Waldron, one of the missionaries here, while some of the others shopped for groceries (we are staying in a house and have to cook some of our own meals). I enjoyed meeting the Hondurans, and it was fun to watch how enthusiastic they are to learn English. The LST team who was here before us started the basic English class, and one of their readers has been recruited to continue it starting today!
At lunchtime I met up with the rest of the group at the small men's Bible college that Mission Upreach runs, and their wonderful cook made us a delicious lunch. The Bible students were very shy, but a few allowed us to take their pictures.
After lunch we had a meeting with Phil to discuss the transition between the last LST group and ours, and then we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening calling and e-mailing readers to confirm and schedule appointments. The readers we talked to on the phone were very eager to come and meet us and continue their sessions. We also ate delicious spaghetti made by Meridith, and spent time getting to know each other better and bonding as a team.
We are all looking forward to a day filled with beginning relationships with readers! Thank you all for your continued prayers. It is amazing to see what God is doing already.
(And I'm also happy because I got my yummy Honduran coffee and my Zambos (plantain chips).)
After the service everyone wanted to shake our hands to greet us. There were so many familiar faces and it was such a joy to see the love they expressed to us and to each other. I'm guessing there were around 150 in attendance.
Monday morning I sat in on a basic English class led by Phil Waldron, one of the missionaries here, while some of the others shopped for groceries (we are staying in a house and have to cook some of our own meals). I enjoyed meeting the Hondurans, and it was fun to watch how enthusiastic they are to learn English. The LST team who was here before us started the basic English class, and one of their readers has been recruited to continue it starting today!
At lunchtime I met up with the rest of the group at the small men's Bible college that Mission Upreach runs, and their wonderful cook made us a delicious lunch. The Bible students were very shy, but a few allowed us to take their pictures.
After lunch we had a meeting with Phil to discuss the transition between the last LST group and ours, and then we spent the rest of the afternoon and evening calling and e-mailing readers to confirm and schedule appointments. The readers we talked to on the phone were very eager to come and meet us and continue their sessions. We also ate delicious spaghetti made by Meridith, and spent time getting to know each other better and bonding as a team.
We are all looking forward to a day filled with beginning relationships with readers! Thank you all for your continued prayers. It is amazing to see what God is doing already.
(And I'm also happy because I got my yummy Honduran coffee and my Zambos (plantain chips).)
Sunday, July 10, 2011
We're In Honduras!
We had several people brave the early morning hour to see us off yesterday! Thank you so much to the Brooks, the Waldons, the Taylors (my parents) and Frannie (my camp buddy) for showing your love by your presence and your kind words.
All our flights were on time yesterday, and the hotel shuttle was waiting at the airport in San Pedro Sula once we cleared customs. We stayed in a hotel last night, and this morning we will journey to Santa Rosa de Copán, where we will spend the next two weeks talking to people about Jesus!
Thank you so much for your continued prayers!
All our flights were on time yesterday, and the hotel shuttle was waiting at the airport in San Pedro Sula once we cleared customs. We stayed in a hotel last night, and this morning we will journey to Santa Rosa de Copán, where we will spend the next two weeks talking to people about Jesus!
Thank you so much for your continued prayers!
Friday, July 8, 2011
Leaving on a Jet Plane!
Jessica and I are leaving early tomorrow morning for Honduras! In fact, I need to get in bed. I'll try to update from Honduras. Pray for us when you think of it!
Monday, July 4, 2011
Good News!
Happy Independence Day!
We leave in just five days! With each detail that gets finalized I get more excited.
There is a Let's Start Talking group on site in Santa Rosa de Copán right now, and we are planning to take over their schedule when they leave. I heard today that they have almost FIFTY readers! It's so exciting to hear that God has brought so many people to learn about Jesus while practicing English. We've been praying for our readers for months, and this is an answer to our prayers. I can't wait to meet them!
This week will be a whirlwind of activity as we complete our final preparations and packing, review our Let's Start Talking materials to prepare for our readers, and prepare Dale and Caleb to fend for themselves for two weeks. I think I just used the word “prepare” three times! Preparation is great and definitely needed, but we also need to be sure we don't get stressed out. It's clear that God has been preparing the way for us on this project, so we need to trust that He will make sure we have everything we need.
We leave in just five days! With each detail that gets finalized I get more excited.
There is a Let's Start Talking group on site in Santa Rosa de Copán right now, and we are planning to take over their schedule when they leave. I heard today that they have almost FIFTY readers! It's so exciting to hear that God has brought so many people to learn about Jesus while practicing English. We've been praying for our readers for months, and this is an answer to our prayers. I can't wait to meet them!
This week will be a whirlwind of activity as we complete our final preparations and packing, review our Let's Start Talking materials to prepare for our readers, and prepare Dale and Caleb to fend for themselves for two weeks. I think I just used the word “prepare” three times! Preparation is great and definitely needed, but we also need to be sure we don't get stressed out. It's clear that God has been preparing the way for us on this project, so we need to trust that He will make sure we have everything we need.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Prayer List
Please pray for:
Everything Jessica and I do to bring glory to God
Our hearts to remain open to His leading
Us to be free from anxiety and be able to focus on our preparations and work
The people we will work with in Honduras, that their hearts will be open to the seeds of His Word
The missionary family in Santa Rosa, the Waldrons (Phil, Donna, Harrison, and Laura)
The teens we worked with last year—hopefully we'll be able to follow up with them
Our preparations, packing and travel to go smoothly (and that we won't forget anything!)
Our safety while traveling, including our bags
Our health and safety while we are there
The other LST team who will be there either just before us (from Washington)
Dale and Caleb, that things will go smoothly for them here at home while we are gone
Everything Jessica and I do to bring glory to God
Our hearts to remain open to His leading
Us to be free from anxiety and be able to focus on our preparations and work
The people we will work with in Honduras, that their hearts will be open to the seeds of His Word
The missionary family in Santa Rosa, the Waldrons (Phil, Donna, Harrison, and Laura)
The teens we worked with last year—hopefully we'll be able to follow up with them
Our preparations, packing and travel to go smoothly (and that we won't forget anything!)
Our safety while traveling, including our bags
Our health and safety while we are there
The other LST team who will be there either just before us (from Washington)
Dale and Caleb, that things will go smoothly for them here at home while we are gone
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