Extreme Adventures of Pulhapanzak

On Monday morning we all awoke with excitement in our bones for the adventure to come. Most of the team had not yet experienced the wonder of Pulhapanzak and the anticipation was welling up in our soul! What will this day hold???

We are on our way! With moto taxis filling the streets and people beginning their day, we entered into the world of a normal Monday morning in Honduras! Buenos dias Honduras!

The ride to Pulhapanzak is an adventure in of itself! The long winding rode is nestled between the beautiful Honduras mountains and hills with coffee plantations scattered along the hillsides; it's a wondrous view to behold. We enjoyed conversation, music, site seeing, and Mario "Andretti's" driving on the way!

We finally arrived at the Pulhapanzak waterfalls. First on our adventure tour... the zip line canopy!  We enjoyed 10 cables zip lines over the river until we arrived at the magnificent waterfall. Zip lining can be scary! But the hardest part is always the first step and for many, climbing the ladder, standing on the platform, and zipping over the river for the first time is the hardest part - even though it's only a few feet over the river.

We are all excited to take the plunge off the ledge over the 140 foot drop over the waterfall. Not one hesitated to take the leap! It took our breath away and left us all speechless wanting more. If time could have only stood still for a moment.

After zip lining over the waterfall, it was time to journey through and behind the waterfall. Words cannot describe this experience but one of team members took live footage and we hope to share that footage on this blog in a couple days. As innocent as this waterfall looks, it is truly a extreme adventure that has to be conquered with much caution. Traveling through a river of water falling 140 feet and beating against the very rocks you are standing on is exhilarating but also dangerous and blinding. We held on tightly to the cables attached to the rocks, held our heads down, breathed through our mouths as our feet guided us through the waterfall and our eyes only able to capture the water encircling us. After our grand feat, we spent the next 30 minutes jumping from the cliffs into a pool of water near the bottom of the waterfall. 

After our adventures at Pulhapanzak, there was still much to experience. We drove over to a hilltop restaurant at Lake Yojoa, one of the top 10 places to see in Honduras.  This was our view over-looking the lake while we enjoyed fresh fish and traditional cuisine of Honduras.

Pull it from the lake, slap it on the grill and stick a fork in it! The meal was wonderful and the experience is unforgettable. 

As we headed back to Quimistan, we wished could do it all over again! Our hearts and our stomachs were full! The sunset on the way home was a perfect ending to such a wonderful day. Thank you Lord for keeping us all safe and gifting us with such a great experience and day that we will carry in our hearts and minds forever, Amen!!!

Our devotion this morning was out of Joshua 4. Just as priming is an important part of painting so is God's spiritual priming in our lives. Sometimes we think we're ready to plunge right in to the mission  God has called us to but there is purpose in His priming. Everyone's season of priming and preparation is different. We experienced priming today on the zip line. The 10 small zip cables may have seemed repetitive, mundane, and maybe even a bit boring but it was in preparation for what was to come... The great leap over a 140 feet waterfall! During the time on the small cables, we learned to trust in the cable, the harness, the process, and our guide. By the time we arrived at the waterfall we no longer doubted that we would get to the other side safely. Every single person that was fearful climbing the first ladder and jumping off the very first ledge, jumped off the ledge over the giant chasm without blinking. In this same way, God knew this was exactly what Joshua needed in the dessert before entering the promised land. PRIMING!!! He needed 40 years of God building his faith and trust so that he accomplished God's mission. From the first time Joshua set eyes on the promised land, his heart was willing to walk in obedience but God knew the work that needed to be done in Joshua. Also GOD was building an army ready for battle to follow Joshua into the unknown.