Day Three -- August 10, 2006

We woke up early this morning and took another 3 hour ride to City of Catacamas. Our driver is keeping us all prayed up as he insists on passing while on curves and climbing mountains. The countryside is beautiful, and the village was much more typical of Honduras than Teguchigalpa. Catacamas highways are dirt roads and can be very challenging to navigate. We visited the caves of Talgua an ancient burial ground with bones dating all the way back to 600BC. We walked through the 'jungle' on a narrow path to the entrance and then took a one mile tour through the cave on a rickety walkway made from pipes. After coming to the end of our tour, we had to turn around and walk back. The caves beauty was worth the effort and we all lost 10 pounds due to the exercise and humidity. On our way to the caves our bus got stuck in a "small" mud hole. Everyone had to disembark and after many tries our courageous driver made it through without slipping over the edge of the road and doing minimal damage to the front end of the bus. The door has become extremely temperamental and has to be opened manually instead of automatically.






We checked in to our Hotel at Catacamas and quickly discovered what it means to be on a mission's trip. The Hotel was no Marriott and you were thankful to have a "lukewarm" shower. No wash cloths were available and towels were scarce! We keep telling ourselves, this is what it's all about!



The people here in Honduras are very friendly and they all smile, wave or honk when they see you. Also when they are passing you while in a curve going up a hill, they give a honk to let you know they are trying to committ suicide. We all speak just enough Spanish to make them think we know the language. They begin speaking rapidly to us and we have all learned well the phrase, "no comprehendo".

That night we went to church at the Tabernacle of Life in Catacamas. The church was an open air sanctuary that had just expanded and we worshipped together on freshly poured damp cement. Even though the sanctuary was dimly lit, and the night was extremely hot, the Spirit of the Lord was definitely moving. We couldn't understand everything they were saying, but we felt it! Many of our young people testified and the entire group sang a song in Spanish. We sang, "When the spirit of the Lord moves on my heart, I will dance like David danced", and did we ever dance. At that point, it was definitely an international service, with Hondurans and Americans singing and praising God together with all our might. Three of the trips young men preached for the first time with an interpreter ~ Jeremy Halley, Jereomy Perry and Mike Jackson. Bro. Jackson gave an altar call and the front filled up as the Spirit of the Lord exploded on us! We all agreed it was one of the most powerful services we had ever been in, and it was hard to decide who had ministered to whom. We felt just as touched as our Honduran brothers and sisters. We have headed back to our resort hotel.

Until Later
ERM and CECJ