Hello friends!
An intimate, delicate story from a changed life in the mountains of Honduras:
One day in ministry on the mountain, our squadmate wanted to be baptized and was baptized along with a couple local Hondurans! The trough for baptisms was outside of a local’s house and the neighboring house belonged to a mother of four. Our pastors (our ministry hosts) asked us to pray over her because she had just lost her baby 8 days prior. My friend Cait asked more questions and learned more of her tragic story.
Cait was moved to the point of action and hopped on her Instagram (she was one of the few people with service down the mountain) and shared of what she had learned to fundraise for food and supplies for the grieving family.
The delicate details:
The woman (girl) is 16 years old.
She has four children – all of whom she birthed.
Her fifth child had died 8 days before we walked into her life.
Her husband is in his late 20’s / early 30’s.
He is a coffee farmer (like most men on the mountain).
He is an alcoholic.
When he is drunk (which is more days than when he is sober) he is abusive – physically, sexually, emotionally etc.
She had been married to him and living alone with him since the age of 12.
Knowing these details was heavy – thick, full, harsh, dark weight covered us. Lightness came only from knowing Jesus is the hope that cannot be extinguished. Hope (aka Jesus) was running after her daily. Love (aka Jesus) was pursuing her even when she didn’t know it. Life (aka Jesus) wanted to sweep into her soul and pick her up in a new, transformative way. Not to polish up her life like a fairy god mother but to bring her into new life, love and freedom only found in the one try King, our savior.
More than 300 dollars were venmoed to Cait in less than 24 hours for the purpose of loving this girl and her family. (The power of pooled generosity… wow.) This money was able to provide months worth of food, toiletries and supplies for the family living in a half corrugated metal half sticks and mud house on the mountain.
Under our local pastor‘s wisdom and suggestion, we didn’t present the food and supplies first but waited til the end of our visit to give it to them. He said it would be the most food they’d ever see at once and they wouldn’t be able to listen to what we had to say if the food was in their sight first thing.
Cait, our local pastor, a teenage girl translating, myself and two other girls on our squad trekked to her house and kept the food out of sight til the end of our conversation.
We sat introducing ourselves and asking questions to the 16 year old, who by the roles of life pressed on her, looked 30 years old. She was so quiet yet her posture didn’t just seem shy – oppression was visible on her. It was thick in the space of her house.
After conversations back and forth we led into the Gospel and each shared what Jesus means to us. We asked if she believed in Him or knew Him personally. She didn’t but said she wanted to.
(All I ever desire to be is authentic so I won’t leave this part out) I am the least bit interested in pressuring people to invite Jesus into their heart and life. When she was so quiet and slow to speak about saying yes to invite Him on the throne of her heart, I read it as her not actually wanting to. I voiced this to the local pastor, translator and my friends. My friends said they read her body language similarly and we all made sure to tell her we serve a patient God and she did NOT have to pray a prayer of inviting Him fully into her heart if she wasnt ready yet. (Thanks God that I get to serve with people who are less hungry to see the change before their own eyes and more hungry to have authentic change even if they’re gone for it).
Our local pastor explained to us in English that (he’d been to her house and talked with her and her husband separately many times before this moment) she really did want to make her relationship with Jesus official and that this community’s culture is just hard to read because excitement is not showed visibly. Women‘s voices are not supported… crushed actually. He said it was already different that she would speak aloud in front of him, a man who was not her husband. The oppression she faced didn’t escape this moment…
but oppression doesn’t have to leave for Jesus to come in. He’s right there in it, already eager to unveil Himself amidst the bondage.
So, we adjusted our cultural lenses and shared the Gospel again to her. She said she believed and wanted to make Jesus King of her life and lead her family in His love. Normally a moment like this is one I’m openly excited about but I didn’t want to overwhelm her with my American-appropriate response. We prayed with her and celebrated in a more restrained way.
We gained a sister. I wouldn’t say that if I didn’t believe it. Although I hesitated to believe her first words of wanting to accept Jesus, I believed her last ones with a deeper understanding of the cultural context.
Thank you God! This is good news. In the joy of this, there is still such a heaviness. She didn’t think she could pray out loud – she’s not supposed to by her husband. So, we encouraged her that praying in her head is just as good and God hears those too. All the while, we’re praying there’s change to come outside of her so that praying aloud or using her voice in front of her husband to speak of God’s love to her family would eventually have no repercussions, and even be encouraged. Even if generations away, we pray with hope and expectancy for the community on the mountain.
Strongholds crumble. Fear bow at the name of Jesus. Generational chains break. Please God. Do your thing. Have your way in this place, in these hearts.
We delivered the food and gave the gentlest of hugs as we said our goodbyes to make the trek back up the mountain to our camps site.
More money came in for her family and Cait was able to give it to our local Pastors wife to spend on the family since we were leaving in two days. I am so grateful to serve under leadership who is in it for the long haul. The work done on that day will be continued for years to come through our local pastors. Hallelujah!
Pray for her situation. For her heart. For the heart of her husband. For God to do a holy work in her family and continue to for generations. The enemy is claiming things he can’t.
Ephesians 6:12
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.
Colossians 1:13
He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son
Acts 26:18
To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.
John 10:10
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Your girl,
Sierra
