Keeping My Focus

We are finding that by the end of each day we are completely exhausted. The effort required to do everyday life is unbelievable, from driving in the city to trying to learn the language to the profound need seen everywhere. Please pray for strength and energy for us as we begin our ministry here.

It's late, can't sleep, listening to the rain and some praise music...and the power just went out. Wow, it gets really dark out here without any lights. Guess I'll head to bed.

On The Ground

After more than 2 years of preparation, we finally arrived in Tegucigalpa on November 17th; from the roller coasters in Disneyland, to the emotional roller coaster in Honduras.

Thank you to everyone that prayed for ease in getting through customs. Other than 2 guys that seemed to be trying to work us for a bribe to get the dog through, it went very smooth. And when we produced the 2 letters from the Honduran consulate approving the dogs entry, they were left stammering and let us go.

Our first 2 1/2 days were spent shopping to furnish the house...everything from beds to pots and pans. The boys and I prayed Monday night in Houston that we'd be able to get beds and sleep in our own house Tuesday and the Lord blessed us with just that. We got to the furniture store about 3:00 pm and after paying they literally loaded them into the truck and followed us to the house. We were told that this NEVER happens in Honduras, but then we knew Who was really behind it.

Friday night we celebrated with the first hot dog feed and marshmallow roast at the Wiggs. 18 Micah guys and staff and our family had a great time playing Bop It around the fire pit. During the time we were praying for God to bring the right house, this was a vision consistently in our mind. Seeing it come to life was joyful indeed.

Reality began to creep in on Saturday, though, when Brian got lost in the city. No cell phone and a wrong turn made him realize how alone and vulnerable we truly are. He did manage to find his way out and home, but it was a bit unsettling. Here he was, a gringo, in the middle of a country in the throes of political chaos, with little ability to speak and no way to contact anyone he knew for help. Later that night we heard loud voices and music behind our house, obviously a party going on. This also was quite unsettling as we live in the woods, out of the city. There are no houses behind us, just dense thick trees. It dawned on me at that moment that if we were to ever be in any danger out here, you can't just pick up a phone and call 911.

As I was praying that night I began to see just how much of my faith and security are in the things of this world, and how little of it is in the Lord. Deep down inside I had to ask myself if I truly believe the things about God that I profess to believe. According to E-dictionary the meaning of believe is this: to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so. I love the Lord and my life is His. I will go and do what we are called to do. But when I dug deep inside I found that the KNOWING, the unbending KNOWING of all I claim wasn't there. What was there was hope, hope that my belief in Him is not in vain, hope that what I have staked my life and the lives of my children on is true, and hope that He will reveal Himself to me in such a way that one day I will KNOW, absolutely KNOW.

The next week Brian went with the Micah Boys to the North Coast to spend 4 days in the jungles of Pico Bonito. Cliff diving, zip lines, white water rafting, they had a wonderful time together and it gave Brian a great opportunity to build "street cred" with the boys. These kids are tough, most have seen and been through things the rest of us will only ready about. They play soccer in the brick courtyard at Micah in the rain, slipping and slamming to the ground as if it were nothing. They wrestle so hard I have to leave the room it makes me cringe so much. I'm convinced they'll be a trip to the ER everytime we're there. So if you are going to have any respect from them, you have to earn it, and Brian was able to gain some solid points on the trip.

Michael, Brian James, and I stayed behind and began home schooling. We also had Hauner here, one of the older Micah guys who had was under disciplinary action which meant he couldn't go on the trip. Hauner is the brother of Oscar Amaya, who was in Portland earlier in the year. He's a 10 year old in a 19 year old body, with the true mindset of an orphan. He was about 7 when both of his parents had died, and spent many years in various orphanages and on the streets. He is desperate to be part of a family. He was so happy to have "his room" and to do chores, to sit down for 3 meals a day, and to play with Legos for hours. The Lord has placed a burden on my heart to give him that family he craves, to be the mom he lost 12 years ago. He currently does not live at Micah due to interpersonal conflicts, but he is still very much a Micah boy. Pray for us as we strive to give him the sense of stability and family that he needs so very much.

One day while Brian was in La Ceiba, while walking the dog, I spied something in the grass back up into a hole in a rock. I bent down to take a look and to my horror discovered a tarantula. I went bounding and screaming across the yard, what a site that must have been for our neighbors. I hate spiders more than anything. My friends used to throw balls of fuzz on me and yell "spider!" when I was a kid just to watch me freak out. A tarantula? No, that just couldn't be happening.

Two days later, Saturday, we took a short drive to Valle de Angeles, a city about 20 km from us that is a hot spot for tourists. We browsed through all the souvenir shops and had lunch, got the boys pictures taken in front of a jeep with a machine gun locked and loaded as the military was guarding the building were the electoral ballots were being kept, and had a nice afternoon. Upon arriving home Michael and Brian jumped out of the car first and ran to the front door, only to run screaming off the front porch. The tarantula was no longer in the rock, it was waiting for us at the door. I freaked out, locked myself in the car and screamed like a baby. Meanwhile, my husband is taking pictures of it! So much for living in denial. I kept yelling at him to catch it and relocate it, but he just kept moving it on the wall for a better shot. ARRRGGGGHHH!. Finally, he moved it out onto the sidewalk where I could see it walking and I started screaming again. This thing was huge, probably about 5 inches in length, black and hairy. I thought I was going to pass out.

After it had been disposed of, I went inside and had a mini nervous breakdown. I screamed "I moved from my comfy home in Beaverton to a house in the jungle with ants in the kitchen, mosquitos that carry dengue, and spiders big enough to eat my dog! And I have to do tick checks on my kids every night! I'm ready to go home now!" I proceeded to lay on my bed in the fetal position and have a meltdown.

Not exactly what you were expecting from a "missionary", right?

Sunday found me a little calmer and a little more realistic. It was election day and the streets were quite empty. On our way to the 8:00 pm worship at Micah it was incredibly eerie to be 1 of about only 4 cars on the road in a city of 1.2 million people. The city was almost deserted as people stayed in their homes hoping to finish the day peacefully. During prayer we heard the sound of gunfire from all around and I was brought back, once again, to the question of where my faith and trust are. I knew that in just a few moments we were going to have to get in our car and drive home, with the popping of gunfire going on around us.

It has been an emotionally taxing 2 weeks, and I know that the Lord will continue to stretch and grow us like never before. But today He also gave me a gift that put it all into perspective. While driving in the car from the city to our house, with Hauner in the passenger seat giving me directions, he said in his limited English, with sincerity and gratitude, "thank you for giving your life for me."

Wow.

I told him my life was Jesus Christ's and it was His to give. But I knew what he was saying. Suddenly spiders were just not that big of a deal anymore.

Praise God for:

A wonderful vacation and safe travel.

For getting our house furnished.

For the relatively easy transition, so far.

For new friends for the boys just 500 km down the road.

For a peaceful election yesterday and the hope that Honduras can move on and get back to regular life.

For His abundant blessings that have been so graciously poured out on us.

Prayer requests:

For additional friends and opportunities for the boys to interact with other missionary kids.

For us as we begin formal Spanish classes next week.

For continued protection and safety as we travel and spend time in the streets in ministry.

For strength and courage to face whatever the Lord places before us each day.

That our cargo, sitting in the Port of Cortes, would arrive safely and nothing would be "missing".

That the short sale offer that we received on our house would be accepted by Bank of America.

We are grateful beyond words for your prayers. Love and blessings to you all,

The Wiggs

En Route Part 1

The last 6 days have been quite a whirlwind and I'm finally getting a few quiet minutes to sit down and make a post. We left Beaverton at 4:30 am on the 6th. God Bless you Mark Mavromatis for being the chauffer at such a crazy hour. And to Mary Hunter, a huge "forgive me" for when you stopped by the night before. I was teetering on the edge of a breakdown trying to get everything packed and together so we could get just a few hours of sleep. You know I love you girl!

So, with about 4 hours of sleep we arrived in LA ready for some fun and escape from reality. Our oldest son, Jake, flew in at the same time. He's a senior in high school this year, on the wrestling team, working at Chili's, very busy with his own life, so we hadn't seen him in 14 months. It was a great reunion on the sidewalk there, waiting for the Enterprise shuttle so we could get our minivan...

But wait, that wasn't big enough for all our bags. Yah, wish I was kidding. We had to upgrade to a full size four door pick up for the 19 bags that we had (3 were Jakes's). The checked bagged fees are killing us, 2 of the 4 legs into the trip and we've rang up $376 in fees. It's kind of crazy to think that we have whittled our lives down to 39 boxes heading to Honduras, 8 full size bags, and 8 carry ons.

After checking in to the Super 8 we went on to Disney's California Adventure and hit the California Screemin' roller coaster first thing. As I've said before, better living through pharmaceuticals...my Xanax let me enjoy the ride just as much as my adrenaline seeking boys and it actually ended up being my favorite. We spent the rest of the day in that park and had a fabulous time.

Day 2 was spent in Disneyland riding rides and having fun. I hadn't realized until then just how much pressure we'd been under as I found myself really enjoying the "unreality" of everything. Not having to think about anything in particular, no agendas, nothing that had to get done. The world just kind of ceases to exist when you go through those gates.

We took Sunday off from the theme parks and went to the Van's Skate park in Orange so Jake could do some skating and shopping. Then we headed to Beverly Hills and Rodeo Drive, just to say we'd been there. Out of the mouths of babes, you know, as Michael said "wow, I just thought it would be so much, I don't know, more." Made for a great little discussion on what you choose to spend your life chasing after, fame and fortune, or things with eternal value. I had never been on Rodeo Drive either and was also quite unimpressed. I did make everyone just about hold their breath and keep their hands behind their backs as we looked at the $150,000 sculpture in the porcelan shop, however.

From there we did what every good parent does after dark in LA and took our kids to Hollywood Boulevard and walked the Walk of Fame. Wow, so many freaks in such a short amount of time. People in costume everywhere letting you flash a picture for a price. Gene Simmons, the first version with platform boots and detachable 6" tongue...disgusting; Captain Jack, Michael Jackson. Outside of Madame Toussad's there was a wax Samuel Jackson that totally gave me the creeps. Then we performed our most daring feat of the trip and had dinner at McDonalds on Hollywood Boulevard...there isn't a street vendor in Honduras that can scare us now. And I got to channel my 80's heavy metal days and get my picture by Motley Crue and Ozzy Osborne's stars. Sweet.

We spent Monday at Universal Studios. Jake has been accepted to Highland College in New Mexico and wants to study cinematography. After seeing the sets and the shows, learning how special effects are made and just being on the studio lot, it really just made him that much more sure of the direction he wants to take. "I'm going to work here someday"...I hope you do, Jakey.

Our last day in LA we spent going back on all our favorite rides at Disneyland and California Adventure, ending where we started, on California Screamin. It was a wonderful trip, a much needed break from the hectic schedule we've been on, and an unforgettable time together for all 5 of us. Our last chance at a great vacation before Jake goes off to college, we made it a good one.

Now we are in Phoenix visiting family and getting some rest. Who knew playing in Disney could be so tiring? I did, though, find out that my new knees are amazing! I walked more in those 5 days than I've walked in the last 3 years all together and never had any problem or pain in my knees...my leg muscles are another story. It'll take some time to get those back into shape. But it was great to know that the surgeries were very successful and that they'll be able to stand to whatever Honduras brings.

I'll get some pictures posted later today. Part 2 to come...

Almost time to go

October 25th marked our last Sunday at our home church, Grace Point Community Church. We were blessed with an amazing send off, 3 services and a dinner. Vicki Knez did an amazing job on this video.

The house is empty except for one room that will be cleaned out tomorrow. We are all feeling the complete range of emotions...excitement, sadness, fear, anticipation, relief. Please pray for us that our 10 days on vacation as we transition will be restful and a time to reflect on God's faithfulness over the past year to bring His plan for us in Honduras to fruition.

More to come...

Love, The Wiggs

"Chance" encounters

So, back on the 2nd we put some of our furniture out there on Craigs List to start getting it sold. Today I get a call from this young gal that lives in Albany, about 60 miles from here, about our sofa and loveseat. We chat for a bit, she says they are stopping for lunch and then they'll be up to look at it.

Turns out they are both on fire believers that attend Vineyard church, which reaches out to the homeless and the mentally ill. They know all about Nightstrike and what we do there. I mentioned I read on a blog that I follow that there is a Vineyard church getting ready to break ground in Tegucigalpa...yup, that's one of their sister churches. An hour later, many "I know (them, that, that place)" later, we stand on the sidewalk while they pray for us and our work to come in Honduras, and we pray for them that they would continue to be a light for Christ right here in Albany.

There are no coincidences. Ask Brad Butcher sometime about buying a bed at Costco. God is always on the move, seeking those with eyes and hearts to see Him. What an awesome day.

"Purchase Now".............

Q: How many people can you fit into a 3rd world taxi/car/motorbike?

A: One more.

Brian and Drew with kids living in one of the orphan homes.

Typical house in the Cambodia

Tuk tuk, common mode of transportation.

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Lady at church in Cambodia.

Victims of Poll Pot and the Kemer Ruge

Sign at the S21 facility.

Dorm for female factory workers. Brian and Drew got to attend the dedication ceremony.

Tractor rehab program.

Street in the Philippines.

Words not necessary.

What's up with that?

Houses in Philippines

The Philippines

Sewing class

Carpentry school

Carpentry shop

Part of the Second Mile/Working Hands campus

Automotive school

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32 Days

Tuesday, September 29th, Brian and I sat and looked at each other. The curser pointed to a green button that said "purchase now", my finger poised over the enter button. "Are you ready?" I asked. No more words between us, eyes locked, seconds ticking by, and we both nod.

We had just purchased one way tickets to Tegucigalpa Honduras.

What began as a dream and a hope 3 years ago is becoming reality. Packing boxes with inventory lists are being tpaed shut. Legal documents, change of address notifications, medical and dental visits are being completed. The "to do" list is just about all checked off. Has it all gone the way we planned? Not a bit. But is has all gone exactly as God had planned. The finish line is the same but the route to get there has had some unexpected bends and turns.

One of the biggest "plans" that has not gone the way we hoped is the sale of our house. 5 months later, the Hasson sign is still in the yard. Only 2 offers have come in, both of which would have been short sale land. We turned them both down, figuring a better offer would be coming in at any time. We watched as the other 3 houses in our neighborhood that have been on the market during this time all sold, telling ourselves it was because they were all single level homes. Ours is a split level home, a style that does not appeal to many. But a buyer would come. Then we watched as the split level down the street was foreclosed on, purchased by a renovation company, and is now being made into a brand new house for resale. New windows and siding, interior gutted and remodeled, new driveway ready to be poured. Seems to us to be a death nail. For those few that do want a split level, which one of the two are they going to pick? Ours, which is in good shape but not completely updated, or the one 2 houses away that is completely brand new?

But God has been at work in us. With each of the 50+ showings of our home, and the silence of no offer that followed, we have had to ask ourselves "what if it doesn't sell?" Keeping it as a rental is not an option. Being 4,000 miles away and not having any capital (remember, we're poor missionaries!) to repair any potential damage from renters makes that not a possibility. What about staying here until it does sell? Logic,reason and the world would tell us that is what we should do. But God doesn't operate out of logic and reason, He operates in the spiritual realm with the bigger picture always in mind. Everyone agrees He has called us to be missionaries to The Micah Project. Our outgoing support is fully funded. Our prayer support is fully committed to. And we are just $596 a month from being fully funded on monthly support. How can we postpone based on our home not selling?

I have prayed much about this, and the resounding message in my heart is that God wants us to rely solely on Him. 3 years ago when we began this journey our faith and security were in our home and the equity we had in it. We had grand plans at the time of selling our home, taking the $80k in equity (at that time) with us to Honduras, buying property and building our dream home. That was our plan, to be all safe and secure in the home we had built, never having to worry about where we would live again.

Was there anything wrong with that? Inherintly, no. But when we looked deeper we saw that our faith and trust was in our money, our ability to provide for ourselves. Scripture, however, tells us that we are to go and take nothing, that our security and faith must only be in Christ Jesus. Every missionary we know currently serving overseas went with very little. No fat bank roll to buy a plush house, just a few basics and a wing and a prayer.

So now, 32 days before departure we sit in our home that has decreased in value by $70k, unsold, showings dwindling down to once a week or so. What are we going to do? Our plan is to get on the plane on November 6th. If the Lord brings a buyer, praise God. If not, we'll mail the keys back to Bank of America knowing that we had a wonderful, blessed home for 9 years, and that we have a beautiful, blessed home to go to in Honduras for however many years God allows us to live there.

Where In the World is Mel Zelaya?

There was a show awhile back called Where in the World is Carmen San Diego? Carmen was a person that you never knew where she'd turn up. It takes some searching, but you can still find news about the political turmoil in Honduras. It certainly isn't at the forefront of mainstream media. After all, a "coup d'etat" in a tiny Central American country doesn't bring in many viewers - aka dollars - for news shows. For awhile there it was like watching a roulette wheel spin wondering what country Mel would be showing up in that day...Venezuela, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, El Salvador, the US, he hit them all. But if you do take the time to search, most of what you will find is written from the leftist perspective and is a slanted (at best) description of the reality of the situation. I'm not going to take up byte space trying to debate whether tossing Mel Zelaya out of office in June was right, or constitutional, or if the majority of the people are for or against it. I have my opinions (I'm betting you figured that out), but I'll keep them to myself.

Here's what I do know. Mel Zelaya reappeared in Honduras 2 weeks ago, given refuge in the Brazilian Embassy. Daily demonstrations from both sides have taken place since then. Radicals throwing molotav cocktails through the windows of private homes, looting businesses, and blocking roadways were broken up with tear gas and water canons. A 24 year old girl that inhaled some tear gas died from complications. A random man leaving church last Sunday night with his family was shot in the back and killed by someone in the pro-Zelaya demonstration that was moving down the street. Supporters on both sides have died, yet neither side seems to be willing to compromise. Elections to name a new president are slated for November 29th, a seemingly simple solution to the crisis. But most of the International community is saying they won't recognize or legitamize any president voted in while the "coup" government is in power. There was some talk of a multinational military presence to ensure the elections were fair and legitamate, but nothing as come of that as of yet. Tensions wax and wane, most Hondurans are doing their best to just continue on with life. The final outcome is anyone's guess.

We are asked almost daily if the political scene changes our plans in any way. In a word, no. Yes, it's a little unnerving to know that we're going to be arriving in the Capital 12 days before the planned elections. The tensions in the country are high, it's a volatile situation. But, once again, we have to keep our eyes focused on Christ and keep walking. Our fear is not for our family, as we know that He will protect us until our work on this earth is done. Our fear is for the Honduran people that we love. To see the country being torn in two, to watch the "leaders", not only of Honduras but all around the world (if they've commented on the situation), be driven by pride and ego and self serving motivation, is difficult. We pray daily for the safety of our missionary friends already on the ground. Two days of nationwide lockdown was a wee bit stressful...imagine keeping 12 teenage boys indoors for 2 days, virtual prisoners in their own home. Please pray for this situation, that the Lord would bring those that are in power to their senses, that a peaceful resolution will be forged, and that Honduras can return to living.

What happened to Sunday?

On September 12th Brian and Drew Smith left for a 12 day trip to the Phillipines and then on to Cambodia to see two ministries that have been up and running for years, and to gleen from their years of experience. The first text message I received notifying me that they had arrived safe and sound said "We got on a plane on Saturday, we got off on Monday. What happened to Sunday?" That whole time space continuum is too much for me to wrap my brain around, and I was so glad it was the two of them on that trip. I would most likely have been disoriented to the point of absolutely uselessness.

After hitting a Starbucks in Hong Kong they flew on to Manila where they spent several days with Daryl Germaine visiting the Second Mile and Working Hands programs. Daryl has a program similar to what we hope to start in Honduras. 15 years after starting they have a large, beautiful campus that educates 40 students and houses 13 staff members (7 US, 6 Filipino graduates of the program). Potential students must bring a recommendation to the school from a pastor, Christian worker or missionary. Local churches are vital to the program in that they house the students and provide transportation to and from the school.

The carpentry program is a 10 month program with a 6 month internship. The program is rigorous and disciplined, each minute is basically scheduled. Discipleship is 1/2 of the training and students must remain active in their local church and return each with week with a not from the pastor indicating that. Students are paid 100 pesos per day while in on-the-job training and the employer pays lunch & transportation costs.

In the automotive program students are tested in several areas before being admitted to the program. Things like being able to sit still and learn, math skills, and spiritual commitment are assessed, as well as logic and mechanical aptitude. They are trained to the International Standard in auto repair and are expected to pay 5% of their salary back to the school for the 1st year after graduation. This repayment gives them a sense of ownership of their education and a realization of gratitude for the opportinity they received.

Seeing what God has already done in the Philippines was amazing. They left with a copy of Daryl's 15 years of notes and a curriculum for the 1st year, absolutely invaluable information. We are truly blessed to have connected with these believers and that they so freely gave of their years of experience to help The Micah Project Technical school succeed. Beyond the advice given for starting and maintaining a vocational school, they also shared real life advice. These people have been on the front lines, they know the pitfalls that will come our way. #1 - Job one needs to be learning the language and settling in with the family. Devote 6 months entirely to this. #2 - preparation time for the facility and the program. #3 - Raise up leaders and assistants. If we follow these steps, heading the timing of the Holy Spirit, we stand a good chance of seeing real fruit for our labors.

From the Philippines they went on to Phom Phen Cambodia. Ted Olbrich is a missionary with the Foursquare Church that began planting churces in 1999. These churches started orphan homes, using a "two birds, one stone" approach by giving widows room and board in exchange for caring for the orphans. There are now over 3,000 churches headed by local pastors with 400,000 believers. 106 of these churches are orphan homes with 25-30 orphans each. They have recently built a dormatory that houses 480 girls that come in from the rural areas to work in garment factories. This gives them refuge from the predators in the sex trade trying to lure in those that have no place to stay.

They also visited an internship program that buys old dilapidated tractors from the US, completely refurbishes them, and then sells them. The monies raised go to help support the ministry. The parallels between this model and what could be implemented in Honduras with cars were obvious, and just added one more layer of possibility to what the Lord may have planned for The Micah Project.

But Brian and Drew also learned that the war in Cambodia didn't end in 1978 like much of the world believes, and instead are just 11 short years out of war. They visited the Killing Fields and saw a tree that babies were killed by being slammed into. They visited the S21 compound, now a museum, and learned of the Khmer Rouge and the genocide that led to more than 2 million deaths. And they came away with a new awareness of just how real evil is in this world, and our call to fight it.

Onward Christian Soldiers

So here we are, 32 days from departure. Filled with excitement, anxiety, questions, a little fear, but a determination to go where we are called. We have sensed God's peace that passes all understanding like never before and our faith in Him and His providence grows with each passing day. Please be praying and giving as you can.

What we need from you:

• PRAY! Please pray for continued peace as we finish up the final details before leaving. Pray that we would extend extra grace and mercy to each other in our family as this is a tumultuous transition for all. Pray for our kids, that they would feel they are an integral part of this journey, and that they will feel loved, safe, and at peace
• GIVE! Ministry can't happen without money. We need your support! We still need committments for $596 a month in monthly support to bring us to fully funded. If you are viewing this letter on the blog you can go to http://www.actionintl.org/ and find us under the Browse By Missionary button to sign up for monthly support. If you are viewing this as an e-newsletter or by hard copy you can fill out the forms at the end and send them in to begin your monthly support. Thats just 12 people at $50 per month, or 24 people at $25 a month.
• SHARE! If you have a heart for this ministry and what God is doing, tell others. The more people that get involved, the more this ministry can expand and bless those that we go to serve, the homeless, abandoned, and hopeless of Honduras.
• VISIT! Mission trips for 2010 are forming now. If you would like to be a part of a trip to see firsthand the work at Micah, contact Grace Point Community Church in Tigard Oregon, or Riverwest Community Church in Lake Oswego Oregon. If you have a group of people interested in visiting on your own, get in touch with us. The calendar is filling up quickly with available dates for mission teams.

We want to thank all of you that have followed us over the last couple of years. We appreciate your prayers and support more than words can express and pray that God will richly bless you as you partner with us to do His work in Honduras.

Love and blessings,

Brian, Natasha, Michael, Brian James

The Wiggs

August 8, 2009. We have 9 weeks until we are scheduled to leave for our family vacation prior to landing on the ground in Honduras. 72 days to accomplish so much. Besides the packing and moving part of it, I have my second knee surgery in 9 days and in September Brian is taking a 10 day trip to the Phillipines and Cambodia. There are two other technical schools that have been up and running for 15+ years and instead of trying to "recreate the wheel", they are going to teach Brian what works and what doesn't when it comes to taking a person from the street to a structured program.

All of it very cool and necessary stuff, but Thursday we both found ourselves on complete overload, overwhelm, over the top, freaking out. A few prayers, a little conversation, and a nice dinner later we've got our heads screwed back on and feel settled in to finish this part of the race determined and focused.

We had a great trip to Honduras. When we got off the plane what a joy it was to see 20 Micah boys and staff waiting for us! Very emotional for me as it had been 16 months since my last visit. I'm home, I'm home. That's all I could hear in my head as I cried for joy.

As I said in my short post from Honduras, despite what we had seen on the news here in America, not much was out of the ordinary in Tegucigalpa. A few more police than usual, perhaps. The only military we saw were a couple of trucks heading to the Nicaraugan border. No big demonstrations, although there were reports of road blocks on the major roads heading in/out of Teguc. The man we rented the house from, in fact, got caught in one for 9 hours. Toward the end of the demonstration one foolish individual decided they had had enough and tried to drive through the protestors. Not a good move. They broke all the windows out of the car and then picked it up and threw it into a ditch.

These are Zelaya's supporters, folks. Not the military. We have heard since returning that the military is becoming less patient with the protestors. Yes, people have the right to peaceful demonstration and protest. The do not, however, have the right to disrupt the entire country including the flow of trade, or the right to destruction of private property. I say yeah to that. Even neighboring countries are getting a little tired of the disruption since most of their exports have to go through Honduras to the Port of Cortes. We keep an eye on the news, but for the most part it seems that life has returned to normal, as much as possible, in Honduras. The current government has dug it's heels in and is intent on keeping things as they are until the upcoming elections are held and the new President is sworn in. President Michelletti called for a national day of prayer while we were there, over the political storm. Hmmmm. Our President cancelled ours in May, the first time in a decade. Interesting.

But back to the trip. Since there wasn't much happening we went ahead and did what we normally do. Brian and a bunch of the Micah guys did some street ministry, they held the regular Friday night soccer game with the street kids. Out to Villa Linda Miller, to AFE. We went up into the dump and passed out water and bread to the people that work there. Pastor Jonny went with us and took some of his amigos, one of whom lived and worked in the dump with his family for 20 years. A year and a half ago he went to work for Jonny at AFE and Villa Linda Miller and was able to move his family out of the dump into a small house. He gives God all the praise and glory for what has happened in his life and is now a shining light to those that still live there.

One of the main goals of this trip, though, was to rent a house. We had been praying very specifically about what we hoped for...a house out of the city, a big enough piece of land to have a fire pit and have the boys come out for "camping", a tree for a treefort. And we had a budget of $700 a month.

The first house we went to was a townhouse that, when they saw North American gringos, was going to rent for $900 a month unfurnished...sorry, that's over our budget. Not to mention, nothing like what we had envisioned.

The second house, however, was hand picked by God for us. Josias and Perla Garcia are both dentists. They have twin 12 year old girls and have been called to move to Miami. They have a house on family property 5 minutes outside of Tegucigalpa on the road to Valle de Angeles. We went to the property on Monday and after you drive through the ivy covered archway that leads from the highway, down past the fathers house, brothers house, and sisters house, you come to a gate leading to a typical cinder block/adobe home. All around are hills with lush green trees, you can hear the nearby brook, birds chirping and, at night, the sound of crickets. There is a gigantic Ceba tree (our Swiss family Robinson tree as Brian calls it) with a tire swing, a large open area perfect for a fire pit and pitching a tent. A pen holds a goat and a lamb...although lamby was sick and has now passed away. In the back yard there is a german shepherd and a golden retriever and a space large enough for our kids Easy Set pool. There is also a nice sized area for the garden we want to have.

Inside the home is fairly large for a middle class Honduran home. From the front door to the right are the living room and dining area, the kitchen (which is all white just like mine here), the laundry and storage rooms, and the maids quarters. Yup, maids quarters.

From the front door straight ahead is a hallway leading to two large bedrooms each with their own bathroom. The master bath even has a tub.

Patio doors open from the living area out to a covered patio, or outdoor living room as they call it, that looks into the backyard.

Josias and Perla had been praying for North American missionaries to rent their home. And so, as things happen, someone that knows someone, that knows Josias and Perla recommended we look at the house. Concidence, right? Just like stepping off the plane, we walked into the house and felt like we were home. The house rents for $600 a month, the live in maid makes $100 a month. There's our $700 budget.

The Garcia's have chosen to sell all of their household items and buy new in the states, so we purchased all the kitchen appliances and will be purchasing their 2004 Honda Civic. You have to be careful with used cars, they get a lot of totals from the states and rehab them. But the Garcia's bought this car new and have records of maintenance every 5,000 miles. It'll be a great car for us.

Much of the trip was just spending time with the Micah boys. Our kids both found good friends and are happy to know they'll have a friend right away. I gave Miguel the task of helping to teach Brian James and Michael Spanish and he sat down with a spanish vocabulary book one day and worked through it for about 20 minutes with each of them. They played soccer in the indoor courtyard everyday. Not even the downpour stopped them! They played video games and pool and had a great time. We were treated to a show one night by the second genration of Los Micahs boys. Hector, Cristofer, and Wilmer did 3 songs in the regatone (sp?) genre, kind of rap, kind of not.

When Brian was there in March Wilmer came to a crossroads. A switch went off inside him, he dedicated his life to Christ and got baptized. And when we were there you could see the difference. A very focused determined young man, he is turing into leader at Micah. The other one we see turning into a leader is Axel. He came to Micah a year ago and has never left once back to the streets. He's incredibly smart, doing well in school and, again, very determined and focused to take this opportunity and make the most of his life.

The last night of our trip Michael, Brian James and I did 2 puppet skits. Michael is on the puppet ministry team here and we want to start a team with some of the Micah boys. We explained what the team does and did the 2 short songs. They loved it! And then Michael Miller said he had a present for our boys and pulled out 2 large puppets. During a recent move into a new apartment he found a plastic bin that had 3 puppets in it. Apparently some team had left them sometime over the last 9 years, and now they'll get put to use. That's so like God. Our team will be "Yo y Mi Boca Grande Dos", which is Me and My Big Mouth Two in English, to follow Me and My Big Mouth here in Tigard.

72 days. It was an amazing trip and to see the way the Lord is unfolding everything is humbling. One night after we got home, in the midst of our panic, we both looked at each other and said "we can't do this"...it seemed to huge, too big, for us. And then we said the obvious, no we can't. But God can. It's been Him all along, we just need to keep following His lead. I have a picture in my head of Jesus in front of me, holding my hand. We're walking on a tight rope and I am blindfolded and He's saying "trust me".

And so we are. For each day, each step, for all the pieces to come together. Thank you for your prayers and support.

Love and blessings to you all,

The Wiggs