New Convert: Dionisia!

Last week we stayed in San Pedro Sula until Friday, because we were expecting a couple brethren from the States to stop in Quimistan that day and preach for us. Daniel suffered a few days from allergies and a general lack of sleep. He has a condition which causes him to feel incredibly ill when he doesn´t sleep well (Wednesday he spent half the day laying in the bathroom floor). I used the extra time in SPS to take care of some State-side stuff. Thankfully, Daniel recovered and Friday we left for Quimistan.

Unfortunately, a last-minute change was made to the agenda of the visiting brethren, and they ended up going to Omoa instead of Quimistan. We found out about 10 minutes before our worship began Friday night, so I had to jot down some quick notes on Mark 2:1-17 and preached somewhat impromptu. Daniel, Digna and I all felt very disappointed, mainly for the young Christians in the church. We had changed the meeting time from Thursday to Friday and almost the whole church had come out to hear the visitors preach. We want these babes in Christ to know they can trust us. No one complained though, and we had decent turnouts Saturday and Sunday. 

Saturday I finished Mark 2:18-3:6 and Sunday I taught Hebrews 10:19-25, driving the last verse particularly hard. That very afternoon, one of the families in the church had decided to go personal-loan hunting instead of worshiping. (You may remember the man who had planned to see his grandmother last week instead of worshiping. Same person.) 

We had a few good studies Saturday. The first was with a cobbler named Jose. This man has suffered a lot. He was at one time a very active member of an evangelical group, but left it after he witnessed the pastor violating a 14 year old. I´m glad he left that group, but now he harbors a lot of understandable distrust of preachers and churches. We encouraged him to make the Lord his focus, not men. All men fail, frequently. God never does. We also tried to encourage him to not let that terrible experience control the rest of his life. God has given us a spirit of power and of love and of a sound mind. Jose regained that sound mind when he gave up alcohol years ago. Now he needs to regain that power over his own life and use it for the glory of God. He asked us to come back to talk with him on Fridays. 

Another study was with a man named Betty (not joking) and his wife. They are relatives of Jorge and Carmen, who worship with us in Quimistan. Betty and his wife did not seem overly interested during the study, but they agreed to let us come back next week. 

The most rewarding study was with Dionisia, the woman I wrote about previously who wants to come worship with us but is afraid of her husband´s reaction. Daniel and Digna have been meeting with her for a couple of months and Saturday, Daniel urged her to make a brave decision and become a Christian. She looked very uncomfortable as we talked about the need to follow in the footsteps of people like Jesus and Paul, who were willing to lose their lives for the will of God. But after a few minutes of talking, she agreed. Almost every home in Honduras comes equipped with a functional ¨baptistry¨: the pila, which is a large basin to store water when the supply line is cut off (a constant annoyance in Central America). Dionisia didn´t have to leave her home to become a child of God. She still isn´t ready to come worship with us, but we will be visiting her every week. We are praying that God changes her husband´s heart. 

This Wednesday I will be travelling to Guatemala to spend a week in Quetzeltenango, where I will visit with the brethren and preach some. I am also hoping to attend a Spanish school for a few days if possible to correct some grammar inconsistencies before the Henderson Boulevard Church of Christ group comes down in March, so I will be a little better prepared to translate. Please pray for this trip. It will require 12 hours of riding in a bus, one border crossing and one night in Guatemala city (one way). 

Thank you for your interest in the work here. 

Your servant,

Caleb