How to Love God and Love Others - Nelson Mission Kids

We're the Nelson Mission Kids and a few weeks ago we moved to Honduras with our parents. They are missionaries and they tell us basically every day that we came to Honduras because God wants us to love people and love Him! So far we have learned that the kids in Honduras are fun, just like kids in the U.S. In this video, we share a few ideas we thought of for how to love God and love others, no matter where you live. Matthew 22:37-39 is the Scripture that our parents shared with us so we could make this video. Please pray for us to learn more each day about how we are to love God and love others! Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39) This video also includes a sneak preview of one of the Independence Day parades that will take place in Honduras on Sept. 15. Our dad got to see one of the bands as they practiced for the parade! This year, Honduras will commemorate the 201st anniversary of its independence from Spain (which was declared on Sept. 15, 1821). Honduras shares its independence with its Central American neighbors of Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. On Día de la Independencia, the streets are adorned with national symbols and many people take to the streets in celebration. We will celebrate with our Honduran friends at a parade in Siguatepeque, Honduras.

September 2022 newsletter

It is hard to believe but we have been in Honduras for over three weeks now. The past few weeks have been a whirlwind!

God blessed our travels immensely. We flew from Pensacola to Miami to Comayagua with no difficulties. We spent four days in Tegucigalpa at the Mission House - the home base of the city outreach side of WGO. While there we worked to get all of our affairs in order, from residency paperwork to searching for a vehicle. Another missionary was driving for us and translating, but at the end of each day, we were exhausted! We also got to spend time with a visiting Serve Team and experience one of WGO’s medical and evangelism brigades. At least 100 people were waiting in the rain when the event started and all were able to receive medicine, medical or dental care as well as spiritual care during their visit. 🙌 Praise God!

On Saturday, August 13 we arrived at Rancho Ebenezer, a.k.a. The Ranch!!! Words do not express how thankful we were to be back. It is such a beautiful place and we love the staff, other missionaries and children so much. Our boys picked right back up with the children they had made friends with during our visit in March. We played fútbol, four square and “ball tag” at the escuela each day. We met Bryeten and Chance’s teachers and received their school work for the first quarter. We got to attend a quinceañera and we participated in small group worship with a Honduran family who serve as Mentor Parents at the Ranch. It was an awesome week!

We are now in Siguatepeque - a city of about 80,000 residents located about two hours from the Ranch. We are attending the Spanish Institute of Honduras for four hours each day to learn the language and culture. We walk back and forth to school each day. We have purchased a vehicle but it will take about 30 days to get the paperwork in order. Thank you for the prayers! Please continue to pray as we work diligently at learning the language. We really enjoy the one-on-one learning approach, but most days our brains feel overloaded! Please pray for our boys. On top of being in a new country, their school teachers for the next 6 months are us. 😅 Please also pray for a daughter, Yese. We are so thankful for your support and we want to remind you, even though you are not physically here, your prayers and financial support have allowed us to be here. We are a team and we are all being used by God for His bigger, greater plan!

Finally, we have created a YouTube channel and will be posting videos led by the kids. They will share their experiences as MKs (mission kids) as well as Scriptures that we are all trying to learn and live out. Here's the link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClbSYAkaBfyljkHrUc2MqAQ    

We love you all!
Steve, Kris, Bryeten, Chance and Mac

Interested in a mission trip to Honduras or want to connect with us? Please email us at Kris.Nelson@wgomission.org or Steve.Nelson@wgomission.org. 

What an awesome flight crew! 💙

Shortly after arriving in Honduras, we made a quick stop in the former capital of Honduras, Comayagua. It is one of the oldest cities in Honduras and still has much of the architecture from the colonial era. Here we are standing in the city square in front of the Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepción, aka the Comayagua Cathedral, which was built between 1634 and 1711 and is one of the oldest in Central America.

Perla is one of Mac's favorites! 

Alex is another of Mac's favorites! 

Eat, sleep, play fútbol - it's what these kids do! 

Hiking around the Ranch

These sweet girls were so welcoming to include us in their Quinceañera celebration! 

On our way to Siguatepeque to start language school!

View from a lookout in Siguatepeque

Hiking in Siguatepeque

Our first Sunday in Siguatepeque we attended a wonderful church called Esperanza Viva. We are thankful to have found a warm and welcoming church to attend during our time in Siguatepeque! We miss our church families in Lynn Haven and Pensacola though! 

Our first day of classes at the Spanish Institute of Honduras! 

First week in Honduras!

 We have been in Honduras for just over a week! So far we have spent time in the city of Tegucigalpa and also at Rancho Ebenezer (where we will be serving). This Saturday we will leave the Ranch for the city of Siguatepeque, where we will take language courses for about 6 months. We are all healthy and happy, and things are moving along!

Please pray with us for all the children of Rancho Ebenezer. They have experienced much change over the last couple of years, and COVID has been particularly challenging for these precious kiddos. We are grateful for their kind and welcoming reception to all of us. 

More to come with our next newsletter, but here are some pictures covering some of the highlights of our first week in Honduras. 

Bye Florida!

Today our adventure begins! Praise God for expanding our mission field! We are ready for you, Honduras! ❤️

August Update - We're ready for you, Honduras!

It's a little bittersweet to say this, but here goes… 

Hasta Luego amigos y familiares!  

In other words, it's time to say "See You Later" to our friends and family here in the U.S.

God has answered our every prayer – in His perfect timing, including securing a wonderful new home for our dog! – and we are officially scheduled to fly to Honduras on Tuesday, Aug. 9 to start our 4-year commitment with World Gospel Outreach. 🙌 

Once we are in Honduras, we’ll start language school, begin home-schooling the boys, and spend time immersing ourselves in the culture to prepare for the start of our service at Rancho Ebenezer children’s ministry. We won’t officially be at the Ranch full-time until early 2023, but we will be able to help with planning Serve Team dates for late Fall and beyond - please let us know if you are interested in coming down! 

We will not have cell service, but will be accessible via email, Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp … Please keep in touch!  

Our emails are: 

Steve.Nelson@wgomission.org 

Kris.Nelson@wgomission.org

If you would like to support our ministry financially, please visit wgoreach.org/nelson to make a secure online contribution. Or contributions can be mailed to World Gospel Outreach, Preference Nelson Family, PMB 250, 6068 US Highway 98, Suite 1, Hattiesburg, MS 39402

We thank God for all our family and friends who have prayed for us or partnered with us in some way to help us get to this point! We are looking forward to having stories to share with you soon of how God is working in and through us to increase our faith and showcase His greatness!  

---

We were amazingly blessed with the opportunity to spend much of July traveling and seeing our friends and family in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. Here are some of the pictures and special moments from our "See Ya Later" travels... 

Seeing dear friends Meaghan and Stephan, new baby Griffin, and pal Emmett in Port Orange, FL:

Visiting Grandmomma Jane (Kris's Aunt Jane) in Daytona/Ormond Beach:

Enjoying a day on the St. Johns River with friends Robert and Angela in Palatka, FL:

 

Visiting Aunt Cindy, Uncle Earl and cousin Dylan and family in Sumter, SC. Cousins make the best friends! 

 

Hanging out with cousin Amy and family, Aunt Lynn, and cousin Kimberly and family in Winder, GA. Even more cousins to make memories with! 

 

Visiting the Georgia Aquarium with Kris's Aunt Pat and Uncle Don: 

Lunch and visit with cousins Eddie and Martha in Fayetteville, GA: 

One of our farewell meals with local family - Steve's parents Maureen and Danny, and Aunt Kathryn: