Hey Friends and Prayer Warriors,
Thanks so much for your faithfulness in praying for us here in Honduras. God is continuing to work in our lives and in the lives of our students and their families. We have just finished our school year and I praise God for the diligence of the teachers and the parents of all 300 students in completing the work in their homes. For one year, the parents have gone to the different bus stops on the highway each Monday and picked up the school work for their children to do in their homes. Probably in February when classes begin again, we will be able to have the students in person in classes once again, after not seeing them for two whole years!!! We have changed our school calendar to line up with the Honduran public school so we now have classes from February to November each year.
God is doing amazing things at Destino right now. For years, our parents have attended weekly church services at Destino and at times, there were as many as 500 people in those services. I would always look around with frustration at how many people were hearing the gospel but no one was discipling them and praying individually with them. It was overwhelming to know we are to be making disciples but there were no workers to help. God has answered our prayers in bringing our church in Siguatepeque (Esperanza Viva, “Living Hope”) to be the workers that we need to accomplish this huge task. The pastors were coming to preach during the weekly meetings but Pastor Christian came to me and shared that it is difficult to teach hundreds of people and have no real connection with them. So —- as of last week we started small groups with all the parents. We had divided the parents into four groups (each group coming a different week because of Covid — so averaging about 200 each week). We have some worship time in singing and then everyone goes into small groups with excellent leaders all equipped by the church. At the same time, we have Bible classes for the children and the teens have a youth pastor working with them during the small group sessions. Please pray — there are some kinks to work out in the process of working with over 900 people but I am so thankful for all the reports we are receiving of how the people are being so blessed by being individually taught and prayed for. I know that MUCH FRUIT is going to come from these new disciples at Destino. As Pastor Wade says, “There is no impact without contact” so even though the parents had sat through many many sermons in the past few years, I don’t believe most of them were truly impacted by the Gospel, and now that is going to change!!
Another huge thing that is about to happen this coming week is that we are going to have the first pastoral training week at Destino for about 15 – 20 pastors. Pastor Wade and Pastor Kevin have commited to come every three months for the next three years to train up pastors in how to know and teach the Word of God. Pastor Wade was so happy to see the hunger of our church pastors to be taught more deeply the word of God and I cannot wait to see how this training will enable many more to come to Christ and be discipled by these men of God. The first training begins Monday so please be praying. We have completed (except for flooring) the conference room in the new lodge so the pastors will have a peaceful and quiet place to study together. God is going to produce MUCH FRUIT through these men because of their dilligence to learn and teach the truth of the Word.
I am so happy to know that God is going to use Destino in this way and that although the ministry is growing and exploding in growth, I do not have to take on anything more personally. God truly has been preparing the church of Esperanza Viva to lead and make disciples of these hundreds of parents at Destino!!! A great harvest is coming!
I thank you for your prayers for my kids at Bryan College. All five of them are diligently studying and I am so proud of each of them. I know that God has chosen them for leadership in His kingdom work and Bryan College is preparing them further for their ministries. I have a feeling God is preparing them to take over Destino for me in a few years, if they do not become missionaries in other countries. For years, people have said they thought I was raising my replacements and I am seeing that possibility now. They are all so smart and have differing gifts and interests and abilities. I am looking forward to seeing how God is going to use each of them. Please continue to pray for the finances to keep them at Bryan — it is a miracle that we have had enough to pay the tuition and room and board up until now, but we have another semester coming up. Thanks for your prayers and generosity if the Lord leads you to help with that. Jonathan plans to join them in August and then Sammy in a year from January. It probably sounds crazy to some that I am sending so many to college on prayers, with no finances promised, but God promises to provide for whatever He calls us to do and I know He has told me to send them. He will be faithful.
Please be praying for the teachers we need for February. We need three American volunteers to come to teach our English classes. Please let me know if you know anyone who might be interested. They would need to raise support of about $550 a month and they do not need to speak Spanish or have a degree in education. We have really great curriculum and we want them to only speak English in their classes. We have had several volunteers come to us straight out of high school and they have done a great job and then we have had older retired women come to teach as well. God uses and equips anyone who is willing to be used here no matter their age or education. Thanks for praying for this urgent need.
Also we are expanding our school by having two classes for each grade. There are hundreds of children in surrounding villages who need to have a Christian education and whose families need to know Christ. So this year we will have two kindergarten classes, two first grades and two second grades so we need several new Honduran teachers as well and will appreciate your prayers as we interview for those positions. We will need 50 new sponsors for the incoming students in February so please keep that in your prayers as well.
I thank the Lord that my knee is doing a little better. I am able to get more work done now and will continue to do some rehab. Thanks for your prayers that I will recover completely and be able to keep up with my little ones!!
I thank all of you for your love for us and for all you do for us. A big shipment of used clothes, shoes, pillows, sheets, games, school supplies, etc. is supposed to be sent in the next few days — please pray for its safe arrival and that God will bless greatly all of you who have contributed!! The kids are really needing the clothes and shoes so we are praying it will arrive quickly!
I want to thank all of you as too who have contributed to the building of the new lodge. With the discipleship program growing and the training of pastors, I can now see why God put it in the hearts of people to build this building. It will be used a LOT!! We now only lack the flooring (already ordered and coming in next week), the finishing and painting of the outside, and it will be done! It is very big and will sleep about 48 people easily. We plan to start constructing an outside kitchen near the lodge for future retreats and camps. With the groups coming in the near future (possibly Bryan College soccer players) we will use our school cafeteria to feed them. Thanks for this great provision for the ministry. We will use it wisely as God leads.
Thanks again for your prayers. If you want to respond to me, you will need to write me at rhondadestino@yahoo.com You cannot hit “reply” to this message. I would love to hear from you and know how to pray for your needs as well.
Love in His infinite grace,
Rhonda
