Alpha Class Begins in Honduras

I apologize for being a little tardy on this report. I wanted to get through my trip to Danlí, Honduras first, so I could include it. I arrived in Tegucigalpa Friday (April 10) and was met by Jesús Paguaga, one of our native instructors. Jesús and I went to Valle de Angeles (Valley of Angels); a small resort town north of the capital. We want our visiting teachers from the United States to have an opportunity to do a little sightseeing and enjoy some relaxation as a small reward for their hard work and visiting the town of Valle of Angeles is how we accomplish that. Jesus and I spent the night there and headed to Danlí the next day (Saturday, April 11). We arrived at the Hotel Grenada around 11:00; I met with Nery Irías, our director at 12:00 and with the students at 1:00. I was able to see the dormitory, which is a room rented in the house of one of the members of the El Zarzal congregation. The room is very small, but functional. This is a different room than was being considered in February when I visited. Though very small, this room is larger than the previous one and considerably cheaper to rent. All the meals are taken at the church building. One student, Oscar Morgan, lives with his family at the church building where his wife serves as the cook and he serves as security and takes care of the upkeep of the facility. Changes are being made so as to move the students into a dormitory in the building itself, which will further reduce costs.


On Sunday morning (April 12) I worshipped with the El Zarzal congregation and was privileged to preach. There were around 50 people in attendance, counting children. One of the sisters of that congregation suffers from high blood pressure and with the heat of the day in a building with no air conditioning, she suffered a seizure. She was rushed to the local hospital and the last word I had before I returned home was that she was much better.


On Monday morning (April 13) I met with the faculty that was present (one faculty member lives in Tegucigalpa and usually comes to Danlí the evening before his class). We discussed some changes in the schedule and the great responsibility that the teachers have; more so than the students. At 7:30 we began with the first chapel of the new Bible Institute of Honduras, and I was again privileged to deliver a short message to begin the new session. On Mondays, the students are currently studying The Life of Christ, which covers the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke). Jesús Paguaga teaches that class and does a fine job. I returned to the school during the lunch break and later in the afternoon.


On Tuesday morning (April 14) I attended the chapel service and brother Nery Irías delivered the message and it was an excellent lesson on the responsibility of the students to work hard and responsibly. He made the point that a lot of people the students do not know, and who do not know the students, are making sacrifices so they can be there to study and they should not take that for granted. After chapel, Cesar Tábora began his class on Acts, which is the class scheduled for Tuesdays. On Wednesday, Nery Irías teaches Pentateuch I (Genesis and Exodus) and on Thursdays Luís David Argeñal teaches How We Got the Bible. After greeting brother Cesar, Jesús and I left for the airport.


Honduras is experiencing their hot and dry season and along with that comes the problem of wild fires. The fires in Honduras that are currently plaguing the country are in remote areas. The good thing about that is that few dwellings are threatened, but the bad part is that the fires are difficult to fight because of limited access. Not possessing the firefighting equipment and personnel we have in this country makes it very difficult to address the problem and the result is a significant amount of smoke over the whole country. On our way to the airport Tuesday we learned that there was a possibility that the government would close the airport because of the smoke. However, that action had not been taken yet and I was able to leave on schedule, arriving home in Hugo at 11:00 p.m.


On Thursday (April 16) I left for Denver for a meeting of the extension staff with the elders of the Bear Valley church of Christ and some of the Denver faculty on Friday (April 17). We discussed some changes in the extension program which will result, I believe, in many great things to come in the future. In spite of a spring snowstorm, I arrived back home on Saturday evening about 10:30.


On Sunday (April 19) I made our presentation on the work we are doing with Bear Valley to the Broken Bow church of Christ, Broken Bow, Oklahoma and also preached to that congregation. That evening we made the presentation to the Blossom church of Christ, Blossom, Texas. I am very much indebted to both congregations for allowing me the privilege of sharing this great work with them.

God bless,

Donnie Bates