“Being Born Again”

By: Michael J Miller Jr.

These four young men; Jose (1st photo), Manuel (2^nd photo), Oleman (3^rd photo), and Isaac (4^th photo) all entered the youth group this year. Many have come and many have gone because of the same drug problems, or internal issues that still haven’t been confronted or some have been married and now are raising their families. Either way these four young men knew Glenda and me since they were 4 or 5 yrs old. Some like Jose dreamed of being a part of this group for years. This is interesting because we are disliked by the majority of churches in the Barrio because we are doing things out of the “box”. Others hate us because they can’t sell their drugs to these changed kids. And the parents see the group as a threat because there comes a time when they have to confront the real problems that are going on at home. However the small children look to our older boys with their youth group shirts on as heroes and something to desire. I can only imagine that the Disciples of Jesus had the same reaction with his group of 12. All but these four were saved and needed to be baptized. These four young men professed their faith in Jesus Christ and claimed they are children of God. So we led them through a Baptism course so they would understand the meaning of their Baptism, reflect in why they need to be baptized, and also have time to think about if this is the path for them to take to renounce Satan and sin in their lives. Each one said yes and with smiles of anxiousness because they wanted to show their mothers they were serious about the faith and the Body of Christ. It was Saturday the 23^rd of November and it was a cold and windy day and the day before the Elections for Honduras. We all sat on the rocks at the edge of the river and I gave a sermon for those who have been baptized and for those who were going to be. It was a time of reflection and Praise to our God. As I looked there was only one mother who showed up. All the other mothers said they had to work or they didn’t want to participate in their sons’ baptism. It was sad to hear these words and it was tough for these young men to say these words.

After I baptized the young men we went back to the river’s edge and I gave another talk about what just happened and then went into a talk about Communion. We broke bread and gave thanks and then the sun came out and shinned on us in saying, “I’m with you.” We gave the cup of the new covenant and I witnessed that the boys were serious and in reflection. Later on they told me they were reflecting on all that Jesus has done in their lives, how He has changed them, and how two North Americans showed up in their Barrio and made a ripple effect just like the river they were baptized in. These four young men are the future for our youth group. They will be teaching, leading and witnessing the change to other children who will be coming in when they become of age. The very same thing that Carlos, Marvin, Yoel, Christian and so many more are doing with these young men. Please pray for these young men and for this group to continue to work with more and more youth and to have an impact on their lives for Jesus Christ.

The last photo I want to end with a smile on your face. Isaac who is our curious George found a monkey that was running freely in the park. Actually the monkey got into everything and stole coffee and food from us while we were not looking. The monkey took a liking with Isaac and another curious George named Glenda. She connected with the monkey. It was funny to watch as this crazy animal ran around making us laugh.

“Only in Honduras