For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and
not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV)
Gene was born and raised in Gainesville, GA. He was saved at age 8 but as a teen ager strayed away from God. He became a computer programmer and was very content.
Robin was born in Weaver, AL and saved around the age of 8. After moving to Georgia she went to work as a computer operator in the same company as Gene worked at.
Some say fate but we say God. God brought our paths together. After working for the same company for about 10 years we finally met and started talking. We married in June, 2002 and started attending church at Free Chapel in Gainesville, GA. Soon we discovered our mutual interest in missions and in 2003 took a mission trip to Guatemala. The next 3 years we did mission trips to Argentina, Honduras, back to Guatemala then to Peru. In 2006 we became “team leaders” for the Free Chapel Peru mission trips. We were hooked. We led 14 team trips to Peru and have completed a total of 33 mission trips between 2003 and 2014. Missions work is truly our passion and calling. In 2014, we wanted to go to the mission field full time but did not get a release in our spirits. The Lord led us to go to Charis Bible College in Woodland Park, CO. This school had a third year mission track specifically to prepare students for mission work. On May 10, 2017 we graduated the third year mission program and immediately made plans to attend language school in Honduras to learn Spanish in July. Our future is in God’s hands, He is leading us one step at a time. Our hearts are to reach the lost and teach those who have a desire to grow in Christ wherever God leads us.
To continue the story…
On July 3, 2017 we landed in San Pedro Sula, Honduras and traveled by bus to Siguatepeque, Honduras ready to begin our new journey at The Spanish Institute of Honduras. With very little knowledge of the language we began Spanish classes which taught language and customs of Honduras, we learned a lot but soon realized what most people told us was true, it takes years to begin to feel comfortable with another language, you just have to get out, make mistakes and keep learning. After 10 months of training we felt the desire to move to a city in the mountains, La Esperanza, Honduras and did so. This is where the rest of the story begins …
The next part of the story …
We have been in Honduras for over 3 years now and currently live in La Esperanza, Honduras. We have been working with and living life with the Hondurans and a few American missionaries located here. Gene started teaching Bible classes to high school students at a local private school in 2019. Since the Covid-19 virus arrived here, like everywhere else in the world, we have been working closely with the municipality of La Esperanza to purchase, pack and deliver food and medicine to those in need. Also, because the bus and taxi services have been closed since the virus arrived, we have been assisting Hondurans and missionaries with transportation to the hospital, clinics, grocery stores and other areas of need. We are here to serve and we will pursue every opportunity the Lord gives us. We will see what the future holds …
Gene & Robin Willis
Click HERE to see the countries where we have ministered with short term mission teams.