Ministerio Restauracion

At Herman’s request, I’ve recently started attending church in Los Pinos every Sunday. The church is called Ministerio Restauracion, and is located about five minutes away from most of the families we work with in Sector F. I’d been once in the past on my very first trip to Honduras, but never since, so I was really excited to go back.

For those of you who’ve never experienced a Honduran church, it’s very different than most we have in the States. There’s a lot of screaming, dancing, shouting, praying, many times fainting, and just a lot of things going on! And while it can be a lot to get used to, I’ve seen lately just how beautiful the church family is and how much God is working through them. 

The people attending this church live constantly surrounded by violence, extreme poverty, and darkness. While we casually and routinely thank God for the food on our table, many of these people are begging God for the same thing. They hear gunshots throughout the night, see messed up and broken families, and see lives everyday destroyed by drugs and alcohol. Yet through all that, they come together as a family every week and are so obviously and completely filled by the joy of the Holy Spirit.

Certain images will never leave my mind. For example seeing one man jumping and literally reaching for heaven with more force than I’ve ever seen before, just out of anticipation for the moment God will take all the stresses of this world from him. Also, every single service (in every Honduran church I’ve been in), there is a prayer specifically dedicated to praying over the nation of Honduras, and praying for the fulfillment of the prophesy that Honduras will be a light for God to the nations. Included in this church family are former gang members, men and women formerly or currently addicted to drugs and alcohol, and sitting right next to me is Herman, who has a past of violence, drugs, and gangs. Yet there they are, pulled out and redeemed by God and placed in this safe haven where God fills them more and more every day.

I can’t imagine what it is like to preach to people living in this environment every day, and how differently it is received. Sure, I don’t understand why ten people fainted and are laying on the ground, or why that guy is dancing around screaming, or why everything is so loud! But I’ve also been seriously spoiled by God, and I’ve experienced a whole lot of heaven on earth: comfort, provision, the love of a family, safety, peace, etc. How much more radically and desperately would I come before God if I had never even had a taste of these things He promised? I’ve never witnessed such eagerness for the presence of God in my life!

The church has given me such a warm welcome into their family, and I love going every week with Herman and whoever else of our family wants to go. Anderson and his sisters went with us one week, Noehmi and her family went one week, and Jennifer went with me once as well. Pastor Nicolas is now dedicating time every Monday to have one on one discipleship time with Herman. God is using Pastor Nicolas and this church to reach out into a place desperately in need of God. There is incredible work being done, and I ask that you guys partner with me in praying for this church, for the leadership, and for the church family. Ministerio Restauracion is a light shining SO bright in the darkness!