Another Great Day in Honduras

Today was awesome. We were all filled with a kind of excitement to serve the Lord again today and the knowledge that tomorrow most of us would be on our way home. It was a sad and happy day. We started off by sending a small group to put a roof on a house for a family. The other two buses loaded up with Bibles and food bags headed out with one thing in mind, feed the people both spiritually and physically. One group headed up to Ojojona to hand out the Bibles and food and the other bus handed out on the way into Santa Anna and in Santa Anna until all the food had been given. Each family also recieved Bibles as well. It was great. After the food was gone the group converged on Casa de Esperanza to play with the kids until it was their lunch time. After the kids went in for lunch both groups headed to the mall to eat and spend a couple of hours then back to the Mission House. We enjoyed a great supper together and then a super devotional. It was a tearful time as we all said our goodbyes and know that in the morning we will all be up early and headed out for the airport. There are 6 who are staying for another great week in Honduras, so pray for them to stay well, stay safe, and serve the Lord.

Thursday's Adventure

Well the visit to Villade Morales went so well yesterday a team went back there today to build a house. It was a great house. When we first started it had begun to mist and then cleared off and was very muggy and humid. Marc and Terri showed up and Marc was able to help with the house and even put in the door before he had to leave for other jobs. Terri stayed to the very end and nailed the window frame and hinges on the window. It was a super house. Again the lady was presented with a house kit from the Columbus group. She was very excited. As we were loading up the bus we handed out food bags to those who were around. It was another great day at Villade Morales.
Another group went to do some work with the mayor of Tegu... They were finished fairly quickly and then came out to the house site.
The others went to make sandwiches to take out to the dump and then were off to the Special Needs Orphanage and then to the Blind School. It was a busy day for all and everyone is having mixed feelings because the end of most of ours trip is over. We are sad to not have more time to do things here and anticipating being home at the same time. There will be six staying on for a third week. We have more to do tomorrow as well as some flying home.

Villada Morales/Los Pinos Houses

Today the group who was working on the Los Pinos' house went back to finish it. They were successful and then went to the hospital to cheer up the children there. They sang songs including the Hokey Pokey and made many smiles happen for the sick children there. One little girl in the cancer ward just loved it and asked for them to do it again and again. What a blessing they were to those in the hospital.
The rest of us went to Villada Morales to build 2 houses. One house was for a lady with seven children. We decided to have a ladies house where only the ladies would build it for them. We had a great time, this was the first time in this community for us to build and they really did not know what exactly would happen or what the wood would build. While we were starting to build the evangelizm team starting studying with the lady and her two older children and a man. They returned back to the house some time later and Cisco said, "We have news.." We didn't even have to hear the rest because of the wet hair and clothes we knew that the Lord had added these to the church. Later they also studied with others and one more was added.
When the children entered the house for the first time their eyes were wide and they were very excited. What they had been living in before was not very good at all. They loved the window that they could look out of and see the beautiful mountain. The family was given a house kit that was sent by the Columbus group and she kept saying thank you, thank you. It was a great house and the team worked hard to build a great house for this family. The others went and built a house for a couple with five children. It was also a great house and they got a house kit that was sent by the Colombus group. We also delivered some food bags while we were in this community. Marc is hopeful that with the assistance of the Baxter Institute that a church can be planted there. Pray for this effort and the people in this community who seem to be receptive to the Word. It was a great day!

Organized Chaos in Action

Some from Starkville went to visit the children at Para Los Ninos today. This is a place that many people from there have close ties to. One said they were surprised that so many of the children remembered them and that they asked about others from Starkville several years ago.
One group went to Los Pinos to build a house and the site they built on was very challenging with a lot of rock to bust through. They perservered and will finish the house tomorrow.
More evangalizm was going on at Los Pinos and another soul was added to the church.
A large group went to do a clothing give away in the Valley... we had never done a give away there and they did not have a church building to work out of so we set up on the soccer field. The bus was on one side and we set up the boxes around and managed the group and gave away to about 200 people. This was a place where most of the children did not have shoes and they were really grateful for the shoes. This is a place where 200 more pairs of shoes would have been appreciated. More people were coming down the hill and we had given all of the stuff we had brought. The people also got Bibles and the people in line who didn't get any clothing still got a Bible and they were very happy. Some of the older children got Bibles too and they seemed very excited.

Stuff happening all over

Today was an awesome day. A devo this morning we found out that another one of our group was baptized last night. A group went to Los Pinos to finish a house, build a house and evangelize. The Lord added another brother in Christ. Several other studies were done and the seed was planted.
One group several of whom were from Starkville went to the dump today and handed out 350 sandwiches and water. The people at the dump seem to have no reason for hope, but the smiles as they received the sandwiches seems to offer some hope. They stay under umbrellas or lean-tos made out of cardboard boxes. Pray for a way for the dump ministry to continue throughout the year and how to be able to meet their spiritual needs as well as their physical. The group also went to the Special Needs Orphange to play with the children there. These children live there and very few of their parents even visit with them and they really enjoy visitors. They got to help feed them lunch. A prayer was said before lunch and after each child said something they were thankful for. A bowl of rice, green beans, potatoes, roast and bananas. Some played catch and just enjoyed hugs. They really enjoyed the visitors. After they visited for a while they went out to Casa de Esperanza to play with the children. They played soccer and around on the equipment and trampoline. And just showed Jesus' love to them.
A third group went to Sector Ocho to do a clothes give away. This was the first time a clothes give away was done there and it went very well. Around 600 people got clothes today. It was a blessing in this area. This is the same area where the bridge was built. It is amazing to see how much that bridge is used.
It was another great day in Honduras.

The church in Los Pinos

This morning the whole group attended church services in Los Pinos. It is amazing to think back to 5 years ago today and know that the very first service was held there with brand new Christians. The church there has grown incredibly during that time and has become a center for the community. The Sunday school classrooms are filled with children that are growing up knowing who Jesus is and singing praises to God. The church is growing in knowledge and are evangalizing on their own and not just waiting for mission teams to appear to evangalize. This morning the Lord working through Wesley and Cisco enabled His message to rain down with fire and passion. Four more Christians were added to the church this morning. Behind me I could hear encouraging words and when I looked over my shoulder I saw a lady writing down all of the scriptures and the lady next to her whispering about the scriptures. She was one of those who accepted Jesus today and was baptized. God is amazing the way He is using all of us for His glory. Seeing the now familiar faces of the church there is a blessing each and every time I go.
After worship the group went to the Valley of the Angels and shopped and enjoyed a day of rest and team building. Today really was a great day in Honduras.

A Great Week in Honduras

Saturday the evangalism was happening again at Los Pinos. Two groups were going out and spreading the good news. As a result the Lord added another 6 to the church. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Others went to the The Market and bought food to put into bags. They took the produce back to the Bodega and sorted it into around 200 bags of food. Each bag had cucumbers, carrots, cabbage, potatoes, and oranges. They took them to a place where we had not given food away before and also took Bibles to give away as well. They gave away 5 cases of Bibles. One lady laid her food bag down when she received her Bible, hugged the Bible tightly to her chest and kept saying, "Que linda" "Que linda" (How beautiful). They were all grateful for the food, but were overcome with excitement to be given a Bible. Imagine if you had no Bible and all of your money had to be used for your family's survival and no way to purchase a Bible. One lady came and asked for a Bible, when they told her there were no more on the bus she said she would wait. She said she had 5 children and needed a Bible for the family. They said maybe the red truck had a Bible, so she waited. When the red truck came they had one and she was so grateful to have a Bible.
This week had been amazing! Twenty-three new Christians, 600 meals went to the
dump, 8 houses were built, 1 bridge was built and has been a great blessing for the people at Sector Ocho. We visited there and saw several people walking across the bridge when just a week ago we saw several walking through the water and getting their feet and clothes week. Also, 2 school building were finished in Nuevo Oriental and 400 bags of fresh food was given away in two communities. God is very good!

Great Da;ys in Honduras

On Thursday the Evangalism teams were spreading the good news in Ojojona while others were doing the clothes distribution. The Lord added seven to the church that day. Some were baptized in their own pilas and others went down the road a few miles to Santa Anna to the church building.
Friday a crew went to Los Pinos to build a house for a family of six. The family was blessed with a house and will be sleeping in that house this very night. We even moved their bunk bed, full size mattress and small refrigerator (which had almost no food in it) into the house. This was actually done before the fourth wall was put on. Others went back to Nueva Oriental to work on the classrooms. One Bible study was conducted there which resulted in a baptism. One of our very own was baptized as well. Another study on Los Pinos added another sister. The granddaughters were baptized 4 years ago then the mother later and now the grandmother is a Christian as well. God is Good! A trip to the market to buy fresh fruits and vegetables had everyone going out in groups of 5 to buy the assigned fruit or veggie. As a result over 350 families in Los Pinos were taken food boxes of fresh food. This is a rare luxury for most living in this community.
Tonight the group was able to go to the Jesus Statue for a devotional and enjoyed the singing, watching a plane land, and just enjoying the cool weather.

Tuesday and Wednesday

Tuesday groups went to the feeding center, to continue building on the school buildings, a group went to the bodega (storage room) to sort clothes and make up more baby bags and home kits, another group went to the hospital. Two groups went up to near The Good Shepherd nursing home to build houses for some of the people that work there so they can now live closer to work. One house was the Jinkerson memorial house. His wife, children and grandchildren were here to go out with Marc and build this house in his memory. Two families were blessed to have a new roof over their head. One lady met a child at Nuevo Oriental Mon. and went back and found him on Tues. She is going to sponsor him to help him get school clothes and supplies, and help to feed him as well. She was greatly encouraged by this because she just lost her son to leukemia. She is now able to help another son. God is at work here. Another group had an opportunity to go to Via Nueva Sector Ocho and build a bridge there across the river. This is the place we went to church last Sunday. They used to have a bridge, but it had been ruined during a flood. The group put in the footers, steps and telephone poles and are returning Wed. to drill, put in rebar and put slats on to complete the bridge. This bridge was much needed as some children had to cross the river there to go to school and the water would be about waist deep for them and sometimes they would not be able to go to school at all if the water was too high. Also, some people have to cross the river to go to church as the church building sets next to the river. I know I saw one lady come into the church building Sun. morning carrying a towel. Apparently she had walked across the river, dried her legs and came on up the hill to attend church services. I wonder if we had to walk up a mountain, wade through a river, and arrive not looking our best if we would make it to services or just make an excuse. Something to think about. The whole community will be blessed by this bridge.
Wednesday morning the groups left to continue working on the school buildings, a group went to the dump to do the feeding there and another group went to Ojojona to do a clothes give away to about 200 there. Tonight plans are for an early supper and a trip to Santa Lucia to have devotional at the old church building there. This building is one of the very first buildings built in Central America. More tomorrow.

Great News

We got great news about 2 little girls that were living on a mountain. SiSi and Rosita's mother had left them several years ago with their grandmother. SiSi is 6 and Rosita is 8 and their grandmother was hit crossing the road and killed sometime last year. They were living with their aunt and she had to leave for work around 7 in the morning and didn't return until 8 or 9 at night. THey were pretty much on their own and others were trying to take care of them. Tonight they are now at the Casa de Esperanza and will be safe and well taken care of. Today the groups took off in many directions. One group went to the hospital and got to take time and see the children and encourage them, some even painted fingernails. One boy just didn't think he wanted to do that although they tried to talk him into it. One group went to the feeding center to help feed the 230 children who came their today to eat. Others worked on the cement school buildings. We built 2 houses in Los Pinos today, had a VBS and did evangalism on the mountain. As a result 2 were baptized. One lady was one who they had studied with last year and she just wasn't sure and this year she was glad to see them and was ready to be baptized. Another was a husband of a lady who was baptized last summer. She was so glad they came back and studied with him. We also had a group go to the dump to feed the people living there. One comment made tonight about that experience was that "I have never seen something so awful but beautiful at the same time." One said the smell was so bad it just took her aback. We will be ready to go out again tomorrow.

Showing God's Love

Monday a group went to Hospital Esquela and visited all of the floors to uplift all of the children. A group went to Nueva Oriental and worked on the cement block high school and the foundation for the new cement block elementary classroom that is being built. Others were on the mountain evangalizing. The Lord added two souls to the church. Praise God! Others helped in the feeding center that is working Mon. through Friday. They helped the two women who generally cook the food. They made tortillas, vegetable stew, small bits of ham, and rice. They feed usually between 175 to 250 children daily. Those who served were amazed by these women because the work is hard. They have a stone stove which is fueled by wood. Amazing to think of feeding that many on a wood stove. Another group was off to Santa Anna for house building. A group from Chenal Valley group along with a few extras to help went to build a special house right up on the hilltop. They carried the wood straight up the mountain, worked through some rain, and didn't stop until the lighting stike hit a tree about 50 yards from the house. Looking at the smoking and split tree they knew it was time to quit and leave the mountain. God kept everyone safe and they are returning Tuesday to finish the house for mary Williams. The view is awesome and they are eager to drive back, hike up and finish. God's love was shown in all of the places we were. God is Good.

Sunday's Adventures

Today was a great day in Honduras. We went to church in a little place called Via Nueva Sector Ocho. The bus can only take you part way and a little hike up a hill was what was needed to get our blood pumping. We walked over the last little hill and the low water crossing indeed had water crossing over it. Marc loaded up 10 in his truck at a time and backed over the flowing water, let those out and crossed over again until he had everyone over and we all were able to walk 30 feet and into the church building. The worship service was tremendous. They were all so happy to have us worshipping with them. You could see their excitement in each and every face. After worship we again took the trip over the low water crossing in the truck. Several of us were willing to walk through the water after all everyone else (the natives) was walking over. Marc reminded us of the parasites in the water and we all crawled in the back of the truck to be driven over. Off to lunch we went. We left about 10 to eat at the fast food area and the rest of us went to a little Honduran resturant and enjoyed Honduran food. It was great and the 6 person staff took care of our group as quickly as possible. When we got everyone back on the bus it was off to the bodega (the storage place) to pick up some toys and things to give away during a quick trip to Hospital Esquela. As we were picking up toys Marc bought 200 hamburgers and we took the toys and burgers to the hospital, fed the children and their families and did our very best to cheer them up. Then back to the Mission House. We are all waiting for our final bedding arrangements and then praying that the group driving up from San Pedro Sulu indeed make it here by 10:00.

Please Be Prepared

As you all know, the price of everything has been like a "skyrocket". We have been able to hold the cost of the 2008 mission the same for the past 3 years however, this year you will need to be prepared to pay your own exit fee. This is not terrible - the current cost is $34. I just wanted to give everybody a heads-up as soon as I could. The main reason is that our airfare has risen to more than $900 per person this year. In the past we have been able to get tickets for around $750 to $800 per ticket.
The cost increases may cut the number of houses we build by 2 or 3 (we will still build more than 13 or 14). I can promise you that we will all be as busy as ever.
Thanks for all that everybody is doing to get ready for TORCH 2008. Don't be afraid to encourage friends, family, and people that you don't even know to participate in your mission. Tell them about your work and see if they would like to build a house or send some food to a hungry family.
Be a blessing to somebody today!
Marc Tindall

Summer 2008

I have been spending a lot of time on the mountains where we will be working. The people here are very excited that you are coming. Even if you have never been here, there are prayers for you and prayers for what our God has planned for you while you are here in Honduras.
If you have never heard me say it before, you will when you are here - you are coming here to be an answer to many prayers. Right now, people are praying for help with a house, help with food, for hope, for something better than they have right now. You - along with the others in our team are going to be the hands and feet of Jesus. Others will be the voice of Jesus as they take the good news of the gospel to people that need a little bit of good news.
We will be working in many different communities - some of them are Los Pinos, Santa Ana & Ojojona, Nueva Oriental, and several others. All of these places are unique. If you have been here before, you will already have a favorite and if you are coming for the first time, you will be amazed at how loving the people are....especially the kids.
I am counting the days till you come. Terri and I are both excited that all of you are coming.
Be a blessing to somebody today.
Marc

TORCH 2008

As we approach the middle of February, we are well on our way to making TORCH's 2008 mission to Honduras a reality. I don't know who our God has planned to be a part of this years mission but, I am anxious to find out. I do know this, in the many years that we have been putting teams together, we have never been disappointed with the mission that our God sent us on.
As you may have noticed, there are 3 weeks of mission opportunity this year. We have already had several that have indicated that they would like to stay for the entire 3 weeks. That will be great - the only increase in the cost would be the cost of an extra week at the mission house and a few dollars to help us off-set the cost of the buses. I haven't calculated the total extra cost but it will be somewhere around $125 to $135. Send me an email or list your interest when you send your registration.
Please feel free to post a question, send me an email, or let me know if you need to talk and I will give you a call.
Be a blessing to somebody today!
Marc

TORCH 2008

I am back on this blog area and will be giving you updates on all you need to know about coming to Honduras in 2008. For those of you coming on the July mission - this post will have a registration for the summer trip. You will note that this year we are going to have 2 trips - one running from July 20 to August 2 and an overlaping trip that will run from July 27 to August 9. I expect the first group to be about 75 strong and the second group to be about 25. Feel free to send me a note if you are interested in staying for the entire trip.
2008 Registration
July 20 – August 2 OR
July 27 to August 9
Cost of trip is $1350.
TORCH MISSIONS
PO 9222Columbus, MS 39705
Trip Date____________________________
Email address__________________
Name(As on your Passport____________________________
Date of Birth_____________ Age______
Street Address______________________________________________
Home Phone______________________
Cell Phone_____________________________
Social Security Number_______________________
Passport Number_______________________
City Issued_________________________
Date Issued____________________________
Expiration Date_____________________
Are you a Christian? Yes____ No_____
Name of Church youAddress of Church you attend_______________________________________________
Male____ Female____ Adult____ Teen____ Child____ Single____ Married______If married are husband and wife on the trip together?? Yes_____ No_____
Adults occupation_______________________________________________
Students academic classification & name of school_____________________
Languages you speak____________________________________________
Foreign Countries you have visited_________________________________
Are you in good physical condition? Yes_____ No______
Are you taking prescription medication on a regular basis? Yes____ No_____
If yes, List medications and conditions being treated_______________________________________________________
Allergies_________________________________________________
Adult T shirt size Small_____ Medium_____ Large_____ X Large ______ XXL_____
Signature & Date_____________________________________________
IMPORTANT Everyone traveling must fill out an applicationThis registration is due ASAP & must be accompanied with a $150 deposit. Airfare of $650 is due by May 1 and the balance is due June 30
Your registration also includes a commitment to raise a minimum of $200 that will be used for benevolence work in Honduras.