A New Year Brings New Opportunities

Life in Siguatepeque, Honduras
El Centro de Siguatepeque, the center of town, is modern for a 3rd world city and similar to a US city in some ways. There is a central plaza, many locally owned general merchandise stores, a grocery store, a pharmacy, a park and a theater!  Also there are a few businesses familiar to us North Americans: a Payless shoe store,  a Pizza Hut-yummy and a Wendy’s not far from El Centro.  We have been to the theater a couple of times, on Wednesdays they show movies in English with Spanish subtitles.  We saw Murder on the Orient Express and Wonder (called Extraordinario in Spanish), two good movies.  To be so far away from home, this is a good place to be!

Elections were held the last week of November and the winner was not announced for over a week. Many people were not happy with the announcement and the “loser” certainly was not.  So a recount was requested. Two weeks later with no official winner announced, there was some unrest throughout Honduras. In the bigger cities there were protesters blocking streets, setting fires, and yes, sadly several people were killed. Travel to the airports was dangerous and some airlines stopped flights. A curfew was issued from 6pm to 6am which helped to settle some of the unrest for a while. In our city of Siguatepeque there were peaceful protest. At specific times of the night those on the “losing” side would stand in front of their house and beat pots and pans then shoot fireworks. It was noisy but they were able to express themselves with no harm done. We praise God for the internet during this time, missionaries throughout Honduras were able to stay in touch and be informed with where the trouble was. The best part was we were able to join together at designated times each day praying for peace to come to Honduras. Things calmed down just before Christmas so travel was easier and missionaries got to go home to be with families. Thanks to all who prayed for us and for Honduras during this time. We know God is with us, God is for us and will never leave us no matter what the situation.

We were introduced to more of the Honduran culture this month. It was a sad experience but a necessary one. The father of one of our teachers passed away, he was in his 80’s and had been sick for a while. Before school we received an email that he had passed, during school, at different times, a couple of teachers and students went to the house to visit until we all had visited. The next morning all teachers and students attended the funeral. In Honduras when a person dies, they are quickly put in a casket at the home, friends come and decorate the room for visitors with curtains and pictures of the deceased. Bouquets of flowers are given and displayed around the casket just as in the states. Friends prepare tamales, rice, bread, etc. to offer family and visitors as they come by. The next morning, usually within 24 hours, is the funeral. We all went to the house at 8:00 in the morning where the family and many friends had already gathered. The casket was placed on the back of a truck and the flowers were placed around it. The family came out and we all walked, following the truck, to the cemetery about four blocks away. The casket was place in an above ground cement grave as we gathered around. A minister spoke a few minutes then a family member briefly spoke. Several wreaths were placed on top of the casket then a couple of men from the family sealed the grave with bricks and cement then the remaining flowers were placed on top of the cement grave. There everyone stays at the grave site while the family seals the grave. When the family is ready everyone leaves walking back to the house. Later as we talked with our teachers about the funeral, they could not believe that in the states everyone does not wait at the grave site until the family completes the burial process by sealing the grave. Things are just done differently there. We pray for God’s continued peace and love for this family.

Christmas in Honduras is a time for family to get together and have a big meal of tamales and torrejas, a special dessert they really enjoy.  Most do not put up Christmas trees or decorate with lights, theirs is a peaceful time of family gatherings and church services.  At school, since most students are Americans, there was a tree, garland, lights and tables decorated with Christmas flowers. We had a Christmas party with a delicious meal of ham and turkey with all the trimmings, everyone enjoyed this. Then we had a surprise, Santa came! This was an exciting time for all since many of the teachers had never seen Santa in person.  Everyone got to have their picture made with Santa and we had a gift exchange.

One Sunday we visited friends in a neighboring city, they served us a delicious meal of chicken, rice and salad then we had torrejas for dessert. Dessert was very good, similar to Tres Leches. They are a Honduran family so we got to practice our Spanish while their daughter-in-law practiced her English, it was fun and funny for us all. They are a sweet, loving family who helped make our Christmas special.

A look ahead
When we return to Honduras, we will be settling back into our apartment in Siguatepeque. Well, not really settling, the plan is to take a few more months of language studies while starting to search for a more permanent location to live in. One main focus when we return is to get a vehicle, probably a truck, so we can start visiting areas to see where the Lord wants us to minister. There is a lot of unrest in Honduras right now, but we know the answer is Jesus. We hope to share Jesus with many and give hope to Honduras!

In a dream, I have seen a lost generation. Let me explain. A lot of ministries focus on children and youth. It seems like most ministries work in this area directly or indirectly. I hear many missionaries saying that if you reach the children, you will reach the parents. Yes, I believe that is a correct statement. It is a much needed ministry and a worthy task.  But I have seen a generation of adults lost and hopeless, not being reached. Many adults were ‘saved’ as children but that’s as far as it got. They do not have any knowledge of God, they don’t know they can have a relationship with God. So, reaching the children will not reach and has not reached those adults. God revealed His longing to reach these people to me. He loves them and wants a relationship with them. He is not willing to let them slip away. This is why I believe I have been called to minister to adults. To share the heart of Jesus with them through relationship, so they can accept the invitation of the Holy Spirit to partake in a personal relationship with their heavenly father. I believe a lost and, in some aspects, forgotten generation can be reached.

Our vision and direction is becoming more laser focused. Click this LINK to see our mission and purpose statement to get a feel for our direction. Please keep us in your prayers as the Lord continues to fine tune our ministry direction.

We appreciate your prayers and support and trust that each of you had a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year. 2018 brings opportunities for all of us. Keep your eyes and heart open for where and how the Lord wants to use you.

Because of your generous giving, our school tuition was paid in full for the past six months that we studied language in Honduras. Your support is greatly appreciated.

We will be returning to Honduras on February 6 for more language study, more ministry with established missionaries and a concentrated search for the specific location to start our ministry work. If the Lord leads you to support our ministry 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.

Click this LINK to view our Honduras photo gallery (newer photos appear toward the bottom of the gallery). We will continue to add photos to this gallery.

Blessings,

Gene & Robin Willis