South Carolina present and accounted for...

The Palmetto church group from Columbia, South Carolina, arrived in Tegucigalpa today. The flight was an hour late getting here but that is pretty standard for this end of the world. And, believe it or not, all of their bags made it too. That was a thrill for me since I was totally prepared to go back to the airport Saturday to pick up lost luggage. Even though they were tired from the 11:00 pm departure the night before, they were excited to be back to do what they love to do.... serve God.

After a quick lunch we headed off to Hospital Esquela for a visit. We arrived around 4:00 so we only had a little over an hour to go in. We divided into 4 teams led by our fearless team of translators. We went to the burn unit and divided up to cover the children's ward. Lots of toys, stuffed animals, coloring books and bubbles were given away. Many stopped and prayed at bedsides for the children that were ill. Even though is was a short time it was well worth it.

From there we went to the grocery store to buy food to make lunches for the next couple of days. We arrived at the mission house around 6:00. We had our orientation and question/answer session and gave out room assignments. We had dinner and then had devo at 8:00. Danny Thomas spoke and read from Matthew 25 and focused on the point that everything we do is done in the name of Jesus and therefore nothing we do is trivial. Whether it is scooping beans into a zip-lock bag or nailing a board into place, it is all important.

Saturday we are going to be building 2 houses in Mololoa and will be working on the foundation for the daycare center that is being built. We are also having the official dedication at the site tomorrow with our special guests, the Claypools. We are very grateful for their generous spirit to help the Manna Project to get the funds needed to begin the daycare facility. Next summer it will be up and running and we will be able to see the fruits of our labor from this trip. Sunday we are going out to the Valley of Angels for worship and to pass out flyers for our VBS / medical team that will be out there next week. We are also going to be visiting a children's home located just outside the city. We will also have our devo at Santa Lucia. A group of 40 from Lebanon, Tennessee, and Auburn, Alabama, will be joining us.

It is going to be a great trip. We are excited and ready to roll. Keep us in your prayers, we have 1 sick already. After the last group, we have no idea what to expect! Until later, Dios te bendiga! Blessings to all,

TR