Church in Patuca

By Matt

In the ag progam we have been working with a group of farmers down in the southern part of olancho in a town called Patuca. It takes us at least 4 hours to get to Patuca, and the trip is both difficult and beautiful. We cross over a mountain range and then follow the mighty Patuca river for quite a while. In town you see a lot of boats from the travelers coming in and out of the Moskitia on the river (this is the very undeveloped, rainforest/lagoon region on the eastern side of Honduras).
The farmers are working land that is owned by Diaconia and paying it off bit by bit with every harvest.



They always ask David to preach in the local Christian Reformed Church when we go there. This time I was able to lead a bible study with the farmer group focusing on how God was the first farmer and how he has given us the responsibility to care for the land. This was all great, but the best part of being in Patuca is the praise and worship with a band of very animated Olanchanos playing ranchera music on a variety of well-worn instruments. A couple of the farmers are also in the band. Here is a short video to give you a taste:



As we clapped and praised the Lord together, I was struck to think of how fortunate I am to have experiences like this. I love this job.