Zach, our SP staff who oversees our sites in Central America, shares of a small church in Honduras who has a heart for the Muslim world. From one slum to the next.
Servant Partners has had a connection to a poor neighborhood that hugs the hills of Tegucigalpa for over 16 years. The local Honduran pastor and his wife, despite poverty and lack of resources, have been praying for the Muslim world and developing leaders for years. I have had the privilege of staying in their cement floor home and love preaching at their church and eating at their table over the years. In January, we were part of sending them, with a youth from their church to visit one of our teams in North Africa – where the life-long dream of seeing a Muslim nation happened.
Our hope and prayer is that as they return to Honduras, and as leaders in their denomination, they help recruit and send many—including the young lady who traveled with them—to minister to the Muslim world.
It’s a huge privilege to be part of seeing people in one slum actually help those in another half-a-world away. While visiting our team in North Africa, members from this church were able to learn about remaining joyful in the midst of difficulty.
One of our team leaders in North Africa was down with a pinched nerve in his back, unable to move for two days. I have rarely seen a team hit by so many trials: sicknesses, rough teammates, a major robbery of their community center, expulsion from their homes, and financial support falling through. Yet somehow they have stood up again and again and are not only surviving, but thriving in the midst of their suffering. Despite their struggles, there is joy at how the team is progressing, how neighbors are responding to Jesus and how much they love their life in North Africa. They have not only risen to the challenge but have persevered. This team served as an example to the local Honduran pastor, his wife, and the young woman who came to visit.