I just returned from a visit with Osmany, Jennifer and Rebeca Hernandez in Siguatepeque, Honduras.  While there they took me out to the village of Pane where they  have been focusing a lot of their work over the past couple of years.  When they began their work in Pane there were no Christians and the people were very resistant to any evangelism.  Over the previous decades many other missionaries had tried to crack this resistance but each had given up with no results.

The Hernandez's felt God leading them to try a different approach.  They, in partnership with Memorial Baptist Church of Jefferson City, Missouri, decided to invest the time, energy and money to show the Paneans that they truly were concerned about all of their needs - spiritual and physical.  They helped them improve their homes and school, conducted medical clinics, worked on economic improvement, taught them about health, hygiene and the importance of sanitation, and helped build latrines for many of the families.

After a year or so the Paneans slowly began to open up to spiritual needs.  There are now around one hundred Christians and thirty-two of these are meeting weekly for Bible study.  The Hernandez's and XMA are partnering with these new Christians in the construction of a church building.  The local Christians, and even some of the villagers who have not accepted the Lord yet, are providing the land and labor to put in the foundation and lay the brick walls.  Grace Baptist Church of Jonesville, Louisiana, in partnership with XMA, is providing the materials.  By the time you read this Jack Colclasure will have led a volunteer team down to build trusses and put on the roof.

It's exciting to see how God is working in Pane.  I'm proud of the work the Hernandez's, our church partners and volunteers have done.  As a Ministry Partner with XMA you have also played a vital role in reaching Pane with the Gospel.  Thanks for being a part of what God is doing through XMA!

But the job is not finished yet.  The Hernandez's are looking for more partners to join them in prayer and meeting the spiritual and physical needs in Pane.  Their first need is for us to join them in praying for God to call out a strong, loving pastor to lead these new Christians as they continue to grow in their faith and reach their community.  They also need volunteers and financial support for projects such as:

·         Medical and dental teams

·         Evangelism teams for Pane and surrounding villages

·         Funding and possibly volunteer help to build thirty-five more latrines at $100 each

·         Funding and help building and repairing homes for desperately needy single mothers.

·         Discipleship, health, agricultural and vocational training assistance

Come join XMA and the Hernandez's in this Adventure with a Purpose!

Randy Pierce