The End and The Beginning

Thank you all for your special prayers during this last month.  We have been seeking the Lord for specific direction and we believe He has not failed in delivering.

The end of one thing is the beginning of another. Our six months of language training is up this month and it is the end of 2017 (one thing ends). The New Year, 2018, brings new possibilities, opportunities, dreams and direction (another thing begins).

Our developing plans for 2018 will bring us back to Siguatepegue, Honduras in February.   We are planning to continue language studies for a few additional months. At the same time we will continue to step up our ministry work.  We will be working with other missionaries in the local pueblos and aldeas (villages) while looking for additional ministry opportunities and a house to rent in the area God leads us to.  The direction is to find the right location and begin to establish our presence there, to start ministering to our new neighbors and friends through Bible studies and other outreach/ministry opportunities and to become GOOD and TRUSTED neighbors.  We feel this is the recipe for real relationship here.

Our goal is to establish relationships and spread the heart of Jesus to as many as we can reach in the local community where God places us. Over the last few months in Honduras and actually for 10 years working in the mission fields of Central and South America, we have come to see and realize how bound most of the people of Central America are to the captivity of a legalistic dead religion.  They desperately need the fresh live word of God’s grace, balanced with faith, to understand the love of the Father for each of us.  Please continue to join us in prayer as the Lord reveals His plans helping us to focus on the purpose and direction He has for us.

La Esperanza
Our friends who live in La Esperanza asked us to come up and spend the weekend with them.  So we went to the bus station as soon as we were out of school on a Friday afternoon to catch the bus for La Esperanza.  This was our first experience with riding the ‘local’ bus.  We had taken the ‘big’ bus from San Pedro Sula after we flew into the country and we took the ‘big’ bus to La Ceiba to leave for our visa run.  But, those were the larger buses similar to buses in the states.  This was going to be the ‘local’ bus.  We took a taxi to the bus stop (a small building on the side of the road) and patiently waited.  That is all we knew. There are no tickets to purchase, just get on the bus as it pulls in and pay the guy on board later as he walks back and takes your money. A bus drove up and a lot of the people started to get on so we asked if this was the bus to La Esperanza, yes, we were told, so we jumped on.  As we headed up the road, the bus stopped several times to let people on and off.  After about an hour and a half, we pulled into La Esperanza.  There our friends were at the bus station to meet us.  We had successfully taken the ‘local’ bus with no problems at all!  It was great to see Steve and Kelly again.  We had a great time with them.  Especially on Saturday, when we got a local guide to go with us into the mountains to visit some of the rural aldeas and craftsmen at work.  This was a wonderful afternoon.  We also attended a local church on Sunday morning before returning to Siguatepeque. This all provided new experiences with the culture and a great time with friends.

Children Ministry
This month a local missionary started a children’s ministry project in the aldea of El Rincon.  Once a week Lindsey and her family, the missionaries, along with several students from language school, including us, visit the aldea and minister to the children with songs, Bible stories, memory verses, crafts and lots of hugs.  There are 12 to 20 children that attend and it is a lot of fun. Lindsey is planning a Christmas program for the village of El Ricon, something new for this area. Please join us in prayer for this project and the people of El Rincon. Here in Honduras the schools are out the last week of November through February due to this being the coldest part of the year. Since the schools do not have heaters or air conditioners and the children are more accustom to the heat, it is better for them to stay at home during the cold months. During these winter months the temperature drops to the low 60’s and with the rain it is a “chilling, cold to the bones” time even for us gringos.

Bible Study
Michael, the director of the Spanish Institute we attend, has been holding Bible studies in the aldea of Cerro Azul for several years now.  This month, I was blessed to go with him for the bi-monthly study and hope to go back whenever possible. The people I met are discouraged with the local churches but their hearts are hungry to hear the truth of the Word. The harvest is ripe but the laborers are few.

We appreciate your prayers and support and wish each of you very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. 

Because of your generous giving, our school tuition has been covered through the end of the year.  We will be home for Christmas returning to school in February and start focusing on specific areas to begin more full time ministry.

Your support is greatly appreciated.

If you feel lead to help support us financially, all gifts are tax deductible and should be mailed to:

Heart of the King Ministries
115 Creden Pl
Alabaster, AL. 35007
Please note that our mailing address has changed.

Checks should be made payable to Heart of the King Ministries.

If you would like to use a credit or debit card or your PayPal account,
PayPal is available on our website at this link (https://heartoftheking.org/donations-multi-currency/).

Click this LINK to view our Honduras language school photo gallery (newer photos appear toward the bottom of the gallery). We will continue to add photos to this gallery while we are attending school.

Blessings

Gene & Robin Willis