This sermon, preached by Rev. Dr. Alice Z. Anderman on Epiphany Sunday, January 8, 2006, describes First Congregational Church's Honduras Mission Trip that took place December 27, 2005 through January 3, 2006. The mission team of 31 traveled to San Buenaventura, Honduras and worked with members of the Evangelical and Reformed Church of Honduras building a playground, constructing a building with a clinic on the first floor pastors' apartment on the second floor, doing a medical clinic, painting a mural, and teaching children and English classes. The texts for the sermon are Isaiah 60:1 - 6 and Matthew 2:1 - 12.

It's good to be back from Honduras and worship with you today. Last Friday, January 6, was Epiphany. We celebrate Epiphany today in our worship service, for it is the closest Sunday to Epiphany. According to the church calendar Epiphany, January 6, follows the 12th day of Christmas. The word epiphany means to show forth or manifest. We remember on Epiphany that the light of Christ shows forth in the entire world. The message that Jesus was born in Bethlehem, is for all people. The love of God in Jesus Christ embraces people of all races and cultures. From the very beginning of Jesus' life the dividing wall between races and cultures was broken down.

We experienced Epiphany in Honduras this last week. We experienced the light of Christ showing forth to the world. We experienced the light of Christ shining in the lives of our brothers and sisters in San Buenaventura. We experienced the light of Christ shining in us. We experienced the light and love of God as we worked together, as we broke bread together, as we prayed, sang, and worshipped together, as we talked with each other, as we laughed and played with each other.

Do you remember what happened on Epiphany? Do you remember the story of the visit of the magi to the Christ Child. We just heard Matthew tell the story. Wise men from the East, foreigners from the learned class in Persia, observed his star rising and followed the star until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star stop over the house in Bethlehem, they were overwhelmed with joy. They entered the house and saw the child with Mary his mother, and they knelt down and worshipped him and presented him with gifts. They were filled with joy because they, foreigners from the east, found Jesus, the Messiah.

Like those wise folks of old, God leads us, sometimes to unfamiliar places, on a search for Jesus, and when we find him we too are overwhelmed with joy. God lead our mission team to San Buenaventura, where we found Jesus in that faraway Bethlehem. We found Jesus in the extravagant hospitality of our Honduran family. We were welcomed with hugs and words of welcome in Spanish and English. The yellow school bus with the words Iglesia, Evangelica y Reformada, on its side was waiting for us at the airport to take us to our Honduran home. Our Honduran friends helped us load our many suitcases on the bus. When we all aboard the bus, Anthony said a prayer thanking God we were all there and asking God to be with us. Then Maria Elena passed out sandwiches and soda for us to eat as we traveled to San Buenaventura. People from the church were at the church when we arrived and welcomed us with hugs and tears of joy. We shared our hugs and joyful tears. Our rooms were all ready with beds made up for us (beds that members of the church gave up for the week we were there.) Upstairs in our dinning room there was a poster with the words Welcome, Waterville Church. Every meal was a feast. Loving hands prepared it for us. We felt Christ's presence with us and were aware that we are all united in God's love. And we were overwhelmed with joy.

We found Jesus as we worked together throughout the week. We learned much from each other as we worked side by side on the playground, the house, the medical clinic, the mural, and with the children. Sometimes we were the teachers; sometimes we were the learners. Sometimes we were the caregivers; sometimes we received care.

All week as Jim Roy and his team worked, children helped and played. Children tried out the playground from the time they could craw up on the two platforms in the center tower. Children measured the wood and hammered in nails. There are very few playgrounds in Honduras. Now our sister church has one.

Many of us, Hondurans and Mainers, worked on the house. The first thing we needed to do was to move the block from the big pile in from of the house, up to the second floor. We formed a big line made up of young and old, men and women, Hondurans and Mainers from the pile of blocks to the second floor. For about two hours on our first morning of work, we passed blocks along the line to each other, up the steps, and onto the roof, where some stacked the blocks right in the middle. We sang and moved as we moved the blocks. At times we were like dancers, rhythmically moving in time with each other.

Our medical team, headed up by Dennis McCann, our doctor, and Jackie Kulik, our nurse, cared for young and old alike. They treated babies, gave children vitamins, and helped the adults with their particular medical needs. Cosi and Molly, our translators, helped patients tell the medical staff how they felt and what they needed. Others tended our suitcase pharmacy and made records of those who were treated. Almost everyone in the church came to the clinic.

Children and sometimes parents as well loved Vacation Bible School. They learned about God's love through sharing, making crafts and music together. It was in the sharing of the tasks and in the joy of being together, that we found Jesus with us. And again we were overwhelmed with joy.

We found Jesus in the smiles and laughter of the children. One day when I was up on the second floor of the house, putting broken pieces of cement block in the holes of the cement block laid up in the wall, I heard singing and clapping, and kazoos and tambourines, shouts and laughter. I looked over the growing wall and saw a parade of happy children and adults, making music with their handmade kazoos and tambourines. Children led the parade carrying a banner covered with hand prints with the children's names on their hand prints; the parade wound around the church, the Christian Education Building, the playground in progress, and the clinic and pastor's house. Everyone, kids and adults had a wonderful time. God was in the midst of all of it. And I was overwhelmed with joy as I watched them.

We found Jesus in the natural beauty of Honduras. An awesome waterfall, almost next to the church, is a tourist destination for both local and foreign tourists. The fall, with an incredible drop, is surrounded with lush tropical vegetation. Most of our group walked over to the falls. Some adventurers in our group climbed to the bottom of the falls, and then followed a small slippery path, that included at least one swim through a pool, to an area behind the falls. Wherever we stood, at the top, at the bottom, or behind the falls, we were awed by the power and beauty of the fall.

Usually every morning at least one group of people would take a walk. We saw beautiful tropical flowers, banana palms, coconuts, papayas, lovely trees and shrubbery as we walked up and down the hilly streets and roads of San Buenaventura. We were filled with awe and wonder as we looked at the tiny flowers and fruitful trees. We felt close to our Creator as we looked at the big powerful waterfall and the tiny fragile flowers.

We found Jesus in our efforts to cross the language barrier. We tried to learn and speak each other's language. Sometimes we spoke with our hands, sometimes with our smiles, sometimes with our hugs. English/Spanish classes were really popular.

Everyone was proud when they could say even simple phrases in each others' language. Our translators did a terrific job teaching the classes and translating for us. Through conversation, verbal and non-verbal, we learned about each other and shared our God's love. And were overwhelmed with joy. We found Jesus in our singing and listening to God's word, in our worship together. What spirited, joyful, enthusiastic and emotional singing filled the church when we worshipped with our brothers and sisters in Honduras! We could feel God's presence with us as we sang, as we prayed, and as we listened to God's word even if it was in Spanish.

We found Jesus in our partnership between Waterville and San Buenaventura Churches. The song Unidos or Together describes our partnership. The song starts out, ³Together, together in your name we gather. Together we're united. We hold hands as we struggle. We walk into the world singing God's song of love. The glory of Jesus will ever shine in splendor. The whole world will be joyful because you are our God. Together we are partners in Christ and we are united in the love of God.

The mural that Tina and Abby painted on the wall of the Christian Education Building is a picture of a globe with our Maine/Honduras logo in the center. Around the globe are people of all colors holding hands. We hold hands as partners in Christ. Together, together, we hold hands together, we work, and play, worship and pray in Jesus' name. We found Jesus in each other and were overwhelmed with joy and filled with the light of Christ.

Arise, shine, for your light has come and the glory of the Lord is upon you. You shall see and be radiant, your heart shall see and rejoice, and when you find Jesus in each other and what you do together, You will be overwhelmed with joy! Amen