Yesterday was the last day of planned ministry for the 2011 Grace Point Mission to Honduras. Part of the team led a final day of VBS with the third and fourth grade students at the school in Villa Linda Miller. Marvin, a Micah graduate and current university student, assisted the team in every possible way – leading music, leading in prayer, translating everything done by the team including the Bible story told by members along with its message of salvation in Christ and finally presenting the gospel himself using a story telling folding cube. Some children indicated decisions to invite Christ into their lives.

While VBS was taking place, the rest of the team spent the morning working at the site of Ana’s home removing more earth for the retaining wall. The wall is coming along. It is over six feet wide at the base and after rising to a height of five meters it will be sixteen inches wide at the top. Such a massive structure is needed because Ana’s home site is where the the debris and fill were dumped during the construction of Villa Linda Miller and it has been necessary to dig down to undisturbed earth to lay the base.

By mid-afternoon the team had gathered with Brian Wiggs to do Night-strike ministry alongside a garbage dump by the river. There we joined the street kids for soccer, team members Spencer Raibley and Seth Heimbaugh shared testimonies, food was served, feet were washed; most of all - people were loved. Many of the Micah boys themselves have come from this place.

About transformation – In the last entry I recalled that Bob George had said the day building a home for Grandma Gloria was transformational. He didn’t stop there – he added that the week has been one of transformation. The site for Ana’s home was the dump heap, but now will support a home in answer to Ana’s prayers. Transformation. We visited the dump and saw the ministry to the people and, especially, the children of the dump which has resulted in the the first high school graduating class since starting the school for the children of the dump at AFE. These students are now preparing to take their equivalent of the SAT’s. Transformation. Seeing the Micah boys thrive today and knowing the lives of loss, rejection and abuse they have formerly known living on the streets is another monumental story of transformation. None of this should be surprising because isn’t God all about transformation? He’s the One who “has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. (Colossians 1:13-14 NIV) And isn’t He the One who promises to complete the good work the He began in each believer’s life? (Philippians 1:6) Finally, Paul tells us of the day (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) a trumpet will sound and those who have died in Christ will rise first while those that are alive and remain will join them in the air to be with the Lord forever! Now, that is transformation!