Honduras Missions

The Ritchie Family / Children's Lighthouse

Sunday, December 28, 2014

Drama

Merry Christmas to all our ministering saints and thank you. The Lighthouse Baptist Church took their drama on the road. IE take 35 teens up a goat path in the mountains to sing, do a play and hand out gifts to those even more needy than themselves. Did not go quite as planned. Most of it went great. The drama, singing, church service, gifts went great. But the mountain won the battle with the new kia. Ended up with a broken differental, 2 bent wheels and a blown tire and almost rolling it loaded with kids. A tire does not blow on a nice smooth level place. The LORD protected and it was just stuff damaged.  Spent the 2 days after Christmas taking apart the differental, welding it and replacing broken bolts, straightening wheels (can'


t buy replacements) and getting a new tire. But it is back on the road.

Been tight on finances so we did not do much for our kids, but it was still nice. A few simple gifts, Lisa had them decorate gingercake men and family time. Even had an older kid(now an adult) no longer living with us come and spend Christmas with us. The older ones are used to the pattern of sacrificing for others, the newest ones are still learning.


More blessings... 
Have in hand a personal invitation from the gov of Nicaragua to go and evangelize 1000 solders plus the public where they are stationed... we are going in Feb...Looking for help with expenses. Taking some of our pastors. Will be meeting up with Truth for Today Medical Missions whom we have worked with here in Honduras with great results. Think about the politics in this, The military and gov of a communist country inviting preachers (some American, some Honduran some from Nicaragua) to come in and soul win ...God works in mysterious ways...


A total of 30,000 tracts were handed out in the streets of Tegu in the month of December through our minstry. Each one placed in a hand. Many also witnessed to. And the youth of a church canvased downtown Choluteca handing out a few thousand more.










Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Compel them to come in...

Amazing what one can make with 100 blocks, and old barrel and pot a little cement, few pieces of glass and a light bulb. The entrance walk way to the church is finally finished. Been hard to do without much money or time, so one has to be resourceful and creative instead. I think most ministry is that way. Now no one has to walk through the adjacent house's driveway to come to church. And most of our church walks in. Many would buy a concrete culveret toss it down in the drainage ditch and cover it, we opted for "inviting" instead. Compelling them to come in. The bridge is a welcome sign for the Lighthouse Baptist church and now a local landmark. It doubles as a gated entry, streetlight, bus stop for community and a source for drinking water for most who live with a 1/2 mile. Our well is the only clean water source and it is now plumbed to the bridge for public filling of water jugs. The lighthouse is actually an old barrel cut to a cone shape wraped in chicken wire and covered with cement. Stick a bulb on it with glued panes of glass around it and an upside down pot glued to the top, paint and presto, one lighthouse bridge inviting all to come to church and lighting the way...
The youth of the Lighthouse Baptist church have been practicing all month for a drama/sing presentation and had their first presentation this past Sunday. It brought in many first time visitors who came to see family. They will be taking it on the road to a couple of more of our churches as well. Lisa and the Lighthouse Kids also put together the last of the Joy gift bags from the container earlier in the year to handout to children in the churches. Did not think there would be enough but Lisa was able to augment the supply with things we had and divide them so most got a little something. Most of the children we deal with it is the only thing they receive for Christmas. Even in our home it is another struggling year. Our kids learning once again how to sacrifice for others. Keep us in prayer as well. Got another email from a church a couple of days ago informing us they had a business meeting and will no longer be able to support us. I am amazed how the LORD has kept us going here, I think it hinges much on the prayers of his ministering saints...

Friday, December 5, 2014

Evangelismo...

As a treat in lieu of our normal preachers meeting I sent a total of 17 of our men from our churches to a four day Ind Baptist evangelism conference in the capital this week. All got a charge out of it. Jr took them and and handled logistics. We also sent boxes of tracts and between the services they went into the city parks and market and handed out over 15,000 tracts and were able to witnesss numerous times. Our bible students had two young men ask to help. Rather odd. Cautiously they gave them just a few to see what they would do. They did exactly what our guys were doing. Then asked for more and a repeat several more times. All they wanted was to help get the gospel out. Never seen them before or after. The guys joking later said they were entertaining angels unaware. Another man was following them around a busy market. They began to worry if he was a thief or something. He finally asked for a tract and the men led him to the LORD. One the way back the mountain road was blocked by an overturned tractor trailer who was going too fast for the curve and mountain. Almost went over the bridge and into the river. But all arrived charged up to soul win even more.


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