A Weekend in Siguatepeque

 "Que rica!" That's how the girls at Casa Hogar described Siguatepeque when I told them all the interns were going there for the weekend. Literally translated "rica" means "rich." The girls meant that the city was beautiful and that we were going to have a lot of fun, but it was indeed a rich weekend for us. None of us anticipated how beautiful the YWAM base where we stayed would be; none of us expected to be so filled up physically, emotionally, spiritually; none of us could have imagined the peace we would feel in the beautiful city of Siguatepeque. A missionary family lives next to the base and run it--Carlos, Melissa, and their four boys (plus one girl on the way). In addition, there are three short-term missionaries living in the base that help Carlos and Melissa--Missie from Wisconsin, Ema from Argentina, and Roberto from Tegucigalpa. We arrived on Friday afternoon and just spent some time drinking coffee and talking. That night after dinner, Carlos taught a class on mobilizing the church. It was really interesting because one of the other interns and I had talked a lot about how that's such an issue in the States. Carlos also shared his testimony with us and it was absolutely incredible, so inspirational. We all slept well that night, exhausted from a hot, sickening bus ride through the mountains to Siguatepeque. The next morning we all spent some time alone with God before breakfast. I think several of the other interns are not used to spending time in silence with God, so it was really good for all of us. Then, coffee in hand, we plunged into almost 5 straight hours of classes. Missy taught us about aligning our dreams with God's dream, Roberto taught on the Great Commission, Melissa used the Old Testament to show us that God is and has been a missionary God, and Ema told lots and lots of stories that all related back to the Great Commission and Philippians 4:8. It was like trying to drink out of a water bottle during a monsoon. We spent the afternoon living what we had just learned about. We went to the local dump where several families live, and with the smell of trash twisting our faces into snarls and the hazy smoke burning our eyes, we passed out food and clothes to the people there. Another intern and I talked with a couple of the women--Clementina and Sara--and prayed for them in an English prayer that they couldn't understand. My hope is that Carlos and his YWAM crew will be able to return and build relationships with the people there.  We spent the rest of the afternoon prayer walking around downtown Siguatepeque before returning to the base for supper and a movie, "End of the Spear." I had trouble sleeping that night because I had so much on my mind. In the silence of the night, I had a lot of realizations about what my life should look like and what the life of a missionary looks like. Our last morning was beautiful. We had a time of praise, just singing along with an acoustic guitar. It was such a simple time, our voices seeking only God and our hearts attempting to bring glory to Him alone. We took some time to share what we learned during our time there and the missionaries prayed over us. At that point, it was time to leave. I was sad to leave the peaceful, beautiful, "rica" city behind and begin my last week here. Hopefully all eight of us interns will be able to maintain the spirit of Siguatepeque and take the peace back to Casa Hogar and the children there. 

Please pray that this week is as rich and peaceful for us and the children we are working with as our weekend in Siguatepeque was.
Pray that we would pour out everything we have in this last week and that God would change our hearts. 
Pray for Clementina and Sara, that God would protect them and that they would come to know Him personally.

"The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him...I was young and now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken or their children begging bread." Psalm 37:23, 25