Carlos Paz: Rus Rus Prayer Report #1

Carlos Paz

Thanks for continuing to follow our blog. As Karen was unable to make the trip due to Winter Storm PAX, we'll post prayer reports from Carlos Paz, MAG's Director of Pastoral Ministries, to keep you informed of the happenings with our ministry down in Honduras. Carlos is already in Rus Rus after leading MAG's East-West Team in a week of VBS and outreach for the children and youth of Rus Rus and Mahbita, a neighboring village. Here's Carlos' first prayer report for the upcoming medical brigade and evangelistic outreach:

February 15
I hope all of you are doing fine after the heavy storm and cold you have had to endure. The weather in Rus Rus, Honduras has obviously been pleasant in comparison.

Hospital Rus Rus and our Cessna 206.

Dave Pulzetti and I have stayed busy doing some small projects at the hospital getting it ready for the arrival of International Health Service's (IHS) medical team and the hundreds of people that will descend on this village starting Tuesday of this coming week. I've been teaching the Bible to youth, adults and soldiers. Yesterday we had a good number of people attend the study I've been leading on the Gospel of John. What a joy for those interested in learning!
 
I am grateful to God that the all fourteen members of the medical team have managed to work things out, despite the recent snow storm that cancelled most of their flights. They all appear to be coming. Several of them are already in Honduras. Westley Wiles, our missionary pilot, will begin to fly them in to our village on Monday. He will make about 5 or 6 flights to the town of Puerto Lempira to haul them, their medicine, supplies, and personal gear back to our airbase and hospital in Rus Rus.

We will soon be very busy interpreting the Miskito language into Spanish, and then Spanish into English so the doctors and nurses can hear what the patients have to say and then interpreting English to Spanish, Spanish to Miskito, in order for the patients to hear what the doctors and nurses are saying. It's a rather time, energy, and labor intensive process. 

In the evenings I'll preach and teach to everyone in the compound having ears to hear. People can be in the village with no lights and very little to do except wait for the next day in the dark. We have the privilege to invite them to an evening service, in the light, and share God's Word with them. We also have literature to share as they return to their villages.

Westley Wiles, our pilot.

Please continue to pray for those already walking from far away to receive medical help and spiritual hope at our clinic, and pray that they will be hungry to learn about God's love and grace. Pray also for Westley, our pilot, who is making all the flights to make this event possible; and for his wife, Denise, who is single-handedly cooking and caring for us and the entire medical team. Thank you! Prayer is where you can make the big difference.

Grateful for you!

Carlos

Peace

PAX
Did you know the snow storm crippling the south at the moment is named "Pax"? Did you also know that in Latin Pax means Peace? Although Snow Storm Pax is reeking havoc here in the Southeast there is a certain peace that comes when all gets cancelled and everyone hunkers down and settles in where ever they are to weather the storm. Pax has reached Graham, NC. And, instead of packing up and leaving for Honduras, I too am hunkering down and settling in to the fact that I will not make it to Rus Rus this time.

All Flights Canceled
Yesterday I received word that my Thursday morning flights from Raleigh-Durham to Atlanta to Honduras had already been cancelled. Last night there was at least a 5 hour wait to even talk to the airline to try and reschedule cancelled tickets. Flights available were quickly moving into next week and growing astronomical in price. Anyone on the IHS Medical Brigade who was flying through Atlanta had cancelled flights! IHS is sending 8 medical teams for this brigade throughout Honduras. There were over 2200 flights cancelled just in Atlanta! The team members have all been working to reschedule their flights via Texas. But, those of us in North and South Carolina and Georgia just don't even have a place to fly out of as all the airports close to home are closed and driving anywhere is just out of the question in current weather conditions.

Prayer
Please pray for the IHS teams who are scrambling and working hard to get to Honduras and specifically Rus Rus. This is a very experienced medical brigade who have been doing this work for years. They will not be crippled by my absence. However, they do need the team members to be able to get to Honduras! Pray they will be able to run a successful time of much needed medical care all over Honduras. Pray for our missionaries, Wes and Denise, as they make many, many flights and ground preparations that make the medical work possible and the love of Christ known. Pray that the people who come for care to Rus Rus will see the love of Christ in those who are helping them and respond with changed lives that glorify God.

"To Be Certain Of God..."
The Lord put a quote in front of me yesterday that feels very appropriate in this time of dealing with uncertainty and changes. It's from Oswald Chambers: 

"To be certain of God means that we are uncertain in all our ways, we do not know what a day may bring forth. This is generally said with a sigh of sadness; it should be rather an expression of breathless expectation. We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God. Immediately we abandon to God, and do the duty that lies nearest. [God] packs our life with surprises all the time." 

Am I surprised by this sudden change of plans? Most assuredly. Is God surprised? Not at all. His plan has not been interrupted at all and I can count on that.

My suitcase waiting to be packed

So for now, I'll put my suitcase away....but not too far away! There will be another trip to Rus Rus, Honduras for me. For now I'll hunker down and give thanks for a warm home, food to eat, a loving husband, two furry lap warmers named Tucker and Tanner.......and a snow day right here in the "warm south"!

Pax!

To Pack or Not to Pack....That is the Question

The Weather Forecast for Our Departure to Honduras

Well, this was the weather forecast as of yesterday for our time of departure for Rus Rus on Thursday very early morning. Our little town, Graham, is 20 minutes east of Greensboro so you can see we're smack dab in the thick of things for this storm. It's getting even worse today as they are predicting up to 12 inches of snow in "The Piedmont Triad" region of which Graham is part. Even if we can make the drive to the airport, will the airport be open? And if the airport is open, will any jets be flying?

We are thinking through all of the possibilities. Atlanta is already "in it" so driving down there would not be beneficial. How long will it take the southern states who are not typically as well-prepared for such storms to get airports open and airplanes flying again? Who knows? We're flying from Raleigh-Durham to Atlanta so both affect our ability to travel. The weather maps are already indicating weather delays are in effect at both airports. There are many considerations including travel once we would get to Honduras. Once the multiple IHS medical brigades get going down in Honduras (our Rus Rus team is one of eight different medical teams) Wes, our missionary pilot, will be overwhelmed with flights already committed for those teams which may preclude his ability to come and get us into Rus Rus if we have to travel later into the weekend. So. What happens now? We prepare. We pack. We wait to see if or when we can go. So pack I will! Please pray for wisdom as we make decisions concerning this trip. 

In the mean time, I guess we'll hunker down, get our bread and milk and enjoy a good snow day! Yee Haw!!! Maybe we'll hang out a sign up sheet for the use of our shovel!

Alamance County Bread & Milk Alternative 
Keith just returned from his "bread & milk" run with some alternative emergency food. There are advantages to living in the South! One of which is close proximity to Daily Donut!

 EMERGENCY FOOD

Now that'll keep us alive should the power go out! That is a full-sized, raised donut covered with maple icing and topped with real bacon. But if that's not enough, Keith purchased the monster Apple Fritter (a small portion of which is visible on the left) in case of a "worst case scenario."

Thanks for your prayers! We'll keep you posted as we know what's happening!

Nine Days Until Departure For Rus Rus

Exciting Happenings in Rus Rus!
While I have my list out and am making my piles to pack for my own trip to Rus Rus, there are already very exciting things happening there! Carlos, our Director of Pastoral Ministries, has a team in Rus Rus right now doing VBS and ministering to the teens in the area. Last year when I was in Rus Rus the school building was very neglected and was not being used for lack of a teacher. It was pretty much a mess with animal dung on the floor and very much in disarray. BUT, this week it is being used to teach children about the God who loves them and created them! Here's a picture:

Carlos leads the 1st day of VBS.

I understand there is hope of a new teacher coming from the government this week to register children to start school. That would be a wonderful blessing for this village to have school for the children again! That is something we can be praying for.

Speaking of prayer requests, would you pray for the MAG team? Various of us are battling with different odd physical ailments as we go about our efforts to serve where God leads.

9 Days until Departure!