Global Networks -Team #3 Trip Report This report covers the Global Networks trip to Honduras from June 17 th through the 25 th, 2016. Team #3 consisted of US team leader Rod Wagner with team members Gwen Edland, Sandra Spencer, Tia Spooner, Sam Lewis and Chris Lamott. We were also accompanied by Victor Lopez (Honduran coordinator), Edguardo (driver) and a local team from San Pedro Sula University consisting of ten medical and four dental graduate students. Friday June 17,2016 The USA team members arrived in San Pedro Sula around noon. We were held up in Honduras customs for over three hours waiting on people in line to move ahead. While waiting in line we had several people receive healings and one man named Buddy from Tampa, was healed and was lead to the Lord Jesus. Once through customs we traveled by van and arrived at the Kingdom House around 3 p.m. We unloaded our baggage then reloaded our baggage along with medical supplies and food into the proper vans for travel to hotel in Copan Ruinas. We were unable to leave the Kingdom house until after 5pm due to storms. We made a quick stop at the local Wendy s restaurant to grab some eats. After driving across Honduras in several thunderstorms we arrived at the hotel Buena Vista around midnight. Tons of baggage to load on the plane. Even more to load on the vans in San Pedro Sula before heading out to Copan.
Saturday June 18, 2016 We started the day with a good breakfast at the hotel arranged by the Copan mayor. We drove the fifteen minutes at Cobañas and arrived to find the school compound full of people waiting on our brigade. We estimated over five hundred people waiting there for us. It was crazy all day as the needs of the people were everywhere and no one wanted to move and lose their place in line. We had several healings occurring throughout the day. The crowds spilled out into the street when we arrived. There were wall to wall people waiting on our services. The line for Pharmacy was just as long. This is the line for dental services. We had a total of 331 people served based on our forms, but we had many missing forms due to the craziness of the day. We saw an additional 121 students from the Cobañas school. The doctor s separate count showed a total of 400+ not counting the students. So our final numbers for Saturday were adjusted to 521 for people served with 15 salvations. That evening we drove to Pastor Tomas's church just outside of Ruinas near the Guatemala border with most of our team members. The American team members gave a brief testimony and asked the people to come forward for prayer after the service.
Sunday June 19, 2016 We returned to the school in Cobañas. Crowd control was much better today as the school had locked the gates and not allowed the people to come into the compound. Because we had better control we were able to capture all of the medical forms today. We again had a few minor healings and one young girl was delivered from a demonic spirit. A man ( Buddy ) we had met in the customs line at the airport and was led to the Lord (see Friday above) came to the brigade with his father. They drove several hours from Santa Barbara to come visit us and to receive medical services. Buddy is now living in Tampa, Florida and had come to visit his family in Santa Barbara. He had not been back to visit Honduras for over two years. The people gathered in an orderly line outside of pharmacy. Photo of Buddy We had one mother come to us with her demonized teenage daughter. The daughter was not able to speak and the mother was seeking our help. Two of our female members, Sandra and Tia took her back to an unused room to pray for her. There were two of us brothers who prayed to provide cover by the door. After prayer the demonic spirit left her and her eyes returned to a bright color. She then said she was hungry and the mother began weeping. Her mother commented that her daughter had never been hungry when under the demonic influence. One of the typical medical stations at the Cobañas school. Sam our pharmacist helping treat a lady. Sam is also a RN back in Tennessee. The total number of people seen on Sunday was 275 with 7 salvations. Later in the day, it was reported that the ignition key to the number one van was missing. We had to take the team back to the hotel by multiple trips using van #2. After a short time to change clothes and refresh, we drove back into Cobañas for dinner and night service. We were escorted to a small room where they had prepared dinner for the team. As we were eating the Copan mayor stopped in. We were able to minister and share God s love to him. The Lord healed him of foot pain he had been suffering from for some time. God is so good. After dinner, we walked over to the Cobañas central park area where a stage was setup for the evening service. Victor had arranged for a worship band from Guatemala to come and play. The Copan Mayor came to the stage and gave a welcome message to the people. Then the band began to play praise and worship music.
Bob Simpkins, President of Global Networks, gave the evening message. He spoke from Acts 17 where Paul addressed the Athenian crowds about their worship of Idols. This was a great message as Copan is covered with idols and many of the Mayan peoples are still worshiping idols. Bob then gave an alter call and no one came forward, showing that many of the people are still held in fear by the enemy. We then called for anyone to come forward who wanted prayer, many responded to that call. We went through the crowds laying hands on many and praying for them. Bob, bringing the Word of God as Victor translated English to Spanish. The Mayor of Copan, greeting the people and introducing the mission s team. Group photo from the stage with most of the US team. The band the drummer was amazing to watch him perform. The crowds to the left of the stage
Monday June 20, 2016 We arrived at pastor Tomas's Copan church just outside of Ruinas near the Guatemala border. It is an open church with dirt floors and no walls. We had one team member from San Pedro, Kenzie who accepted Jesus Christ as her Lord and personal Savior during the morning brigade. A local video team from TV18 showed up to interview Victor and myself. As they were filming and had a microphone stuck in my face, I was facing the dental station. As I was collecting my thoughts to the questions being asked by the reporters, the dentist was pulling several teeth from an older woman. As I watched one tooth being laid upon a paper towel and the dentist going in for another, the question asked by the reporter was why are you here!! Several thoughts flashed through my mind, but my final answer was to share God s love with the Honduran people. We are there to be his hands and feet of mercy. The local TV channel 18 crew who came to interview us. We placed tables around the church for the doctors and dentists. We had several healings occurring that day with one young man brought in that was covered in scabies and had red eyes. During the interview his mother said that all of the males in his family came down with this sickness. We prayed and broke the generational curse over him and immediately his eyes began to return to white. The church cooked a traditional Honduras lunch called pupusas. They were hand patted and cooked on a wood fired tortilla stove They were delicious!! Ah, good hand made Pupusas by the church ladies. They were really tasty. I had to have seconds. The total number of people was 187 with 4 salvations. After the brigade we drove back to the hotel to change clothes and have dinner. After dinner, we arrived back at pastor Tomas's church for evening service to find all of the church members worshiping the Lord on their knees with their faces planted in the dirt floor. Sandra gave the word and shared her powerful testimony. We then gave an altar call for those who wanted prayer. We had two women delivered of demonic spirits during the prayer time that night.
Tuesday June 21, 2016 Tuesday, we had no medical brigade scheduled. So we stopped in at the San Rafael coffee shop in downtown Copan Ruinas to purchase some coffee for our friends back home. Some of the team assembled in small groups and ministered to each other. Victor and Sam drove to Cobañas to meet up with a locksmith to get a key made for van #1. The team then returned to the hotel to wait on Victor and Sam with the Van. Several members grouped together and sang praise songs in broken English and Spanish it was an awesome time of fellowship with our new Honduran friends. After getting the #1 van running again, we loaded up at the Hotel around 2:30 p.m. and headed for Kingdom House in San Pedro. The sign outside the San Rafael Coffee shop in downtown Ruinas. Fellowship back at the hotel. The view of the mountains as we drove from Ruinas back to San Pedro. Beautiful country.
Wednesday June 22, 2016 Wednesday we left the Kingdom house and drove up into the mountains of Santa Barbara to Concepcion Del Norte. Upon arrival we were blessed with the most amazing greeting we have ever seen. The school children were assembled and applauded as we arrived then they followed up by launching fireworks. They had already fully prepared the area for our medical brigade by erecting a large tent with two smaller tents for pharmacy and evangelism. The children lined up to greet us as we arrived. View from inside the tent as we began the medical serivces. The school children were serviced first. View from the dental stations. Later that morning a rain storm came up the mountain and totally drenched us. After the rain cleared the ground became a sticky muddy mess. Did I say sticky? The volcanic soil made our shoes double or triple in size as the mud accumulated on them. After the rains we continued with the brigade and had even more people show up. What amazed me was there were no large groups of homes in this area. Yet the people came in the hundreds, seemingly from out of the woods. We were on a mountain top with hundreds of people who walked or rode horses for several miles around. It was a humbling sight... we learned that this area had not seen any missions teams or medical brigades in eight years or more. The rains are coming you could see it climb the mountain and had us in its sights. Gwen and Sandra being helped across the muddy and sticky field.
The panaramic view of the mountain top medical brigade site. The pharmacy tent is left, medical and dental center with a line of people waiting for services on the right. The Santa Barbara church had staked out the foundation for their future church building next to where we held the brigade. When it is built, it will be the Lord s light house on the mountain for all to see. We drive back to the Kingdom House for the night. The total number of people was 256 with 111 salvations. Thursday June 23, 2016 Once again we returned to the same area in Santa Barbara. However this time we set up in a home settlement just up the road from where we were on Wednesday that had several buildings to cover us if it rained. We had a smaller number of people than on Wednesday, but still had well over 100 people show up. The Evangelism tent. Gwen did a excellant Job of telling the people why Jesus died for them, and why they needed to know Him. Some children waiting on services. A little girl from the area. This man had a broken wrist after his horse died under him. He was so happy after receiving a brace and sling.
The local mayor, Miguel Angel from this area, Concepcion Del Norte stopped by and was introduced to us. We showed him around the brigade and many of the people greeted him and said hello. We were able to minister to the mayor and the Lord healed him of neck pain. We had a little time to assemble the team for a group photo on the mountain top. Photo lineup with the local mayor. Group photo of Team #3 on the mountain top. The total number of people served by the brigade was 136 with 107 salvations. Thursday night we attended the evening service outside under the stars in the same location. Sandra spoke on what the Lord had given her to share that night. After the service, the team laid hands on the pastor and his family and prayed for them. We also prayed for the people as they came forward. Evening outdoor service begins Sandra with Victor interperting into Spanish God s message. The team prayed for the pastor and his family The people came forward to receive prayer from the team. After the service concluded we drove back to the Kingdom House for the night.
Friday June 24, 2016 Friday was our last day and we only had to travel a short distance in San Pedro Sula. We set up the brigade inside a small church. We were still getting setup when I noticed a man who had come inside the church and was talking with one of the doctors and kept pointing to his back. This was before we had officially opened and no other people were inside yet. I approached and asked the doctor what was going on and he replied that the man was suffering from kidney stones and was in severe pain. I offered to pray for him and he agreed. After prayer I asked him how he felt and he held his hand up with his finger parted less than an inch signaling the pain was much better, but he still had a little. I prayed once again and this time he bowed his head and started weeping. We placed a chair for him to sit in as the local pastor came over to minister to him. He was definitely touched by the power of God and was in no pain any longer. Praise God. The church where we held our medical brigade. Gwen giving the Lord s gospel under the canopy. Sandra and Chris ministered to this lady who had physical and spiritual problems. By Friday almost all of our medications were exhausted. The team was flowing much greater with the Holy Spirit s power today as we had many more people healed and touched by God s great Love. The total number of people served was 203 with 166 salvations. Back at the Kingdon House we debriefed on what God had done this week. The Honduran team members were highly affected by what God had done throughout the week.
It was wind down time for the teams as we prepared to come home. Two mighty ladies of God, wearing their Honduras Missions shirts!! Saturday June 25, 2016 We left for the airport mid-morning and departed Honduras at 1 p.m. As we waited in the Atlanta airport for the Nashville flight, several reflected on the week they had just experienced. Many talked about returning again to Honduras in the near future. It was obvious that all who came wanted to return again. We all left a piece of ourselves in Honduras and felt God s pull on our hearts to return again soon. We took a group photo with all three US teams assembled before we departed for the airport to return home. The total number of people seen by the doctors and dentists for team #3 for the week was 1,578 with 410 salvations. With all three teams the numbers were 5,380 served with almost 900 salvations. Praise God for His mighty love for the Honduran people. Rod Wagner