A Sliver of Hope in Honduras
By Greg Dill
I had the distinct honor of embarking upon a journey to Honduras with a group of remarkable people last week. The Bible speaks about their being twelve disciples from whom Jesus personally set aside and taught and who would later become mouthpieces to the world proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. I had no doubt that these dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ that I had the privilege of working alongside in labor for Christ, were a true reflection of these same disciples that walked alongside Jesus for several years. Each one had a special and unique gift that God tapped into in order to serve those in need. The love and service that they displayed toward others could only come from the Holy Spirit that dwells within them. We had eleven ordinary people with a heart and passion to serve and share with those far less fortunate than ourselves. We had everything from an auto body repairman to a real estate agent… from a graphic designer to a flight attendant… from a car salesman to a stay-at-home Mom. And yet each one served in ways not of their own, but in ways that would only benefit those that they were serving. As one of the people that helped serve on this team, I wish to share with you what I witnessed and never thought I would ever see in my entire life. I pray that my words will be of encouragement and help spur you, dear Christian, to action.
I never thought there were places in such dire need and hopelessness as Honduras, especially in this enlightened, technologically advanced, post-modern, 21st century society we now live in…a society of cell phones and wireless internet… a society of heart transplants and genetic alterations…a society capable of sending robots to Mars and submersibles to the farthest depths of the oceans. And yet there exists a place like Honduras in which millions of people still have no running water, electricity, shelter, or food.
Honduras is a goldmine of ministry opportunities needing and waiting to be tapped into… a harvest in which the workers are indeed few. I saw before my very eyes, the Bible come to life like never before. There was darkness, despair, and utter hopelessness. I saw men, women, and children living and working amongst the lowliest of animals while rummaging through diseased infested garbage. I saw children living in orphanages because their mothers and fathers had abandoned them. I saw a corrupt government withhold the opportunity of prosperity from the very people they are supposed to help serve and protect.
Just as there was evil, there was also light, joy, and salvation. I saw a young girl be healed of a fractured arm. I saw a teenager accept salvation in Jesus Christ. I saw a single pot of food provide sustenance to hundreds of hungry people. I saw new homes being built for homeless people. I saw a church that provided hope to people who have none. And I saw Jesus in the eyes of many children. But, that’s not all.
I saw Christ in a man named, Rey. A man who has a vision to educate, clothe, feed, house, and provide hope to hundreds of men, women, and children who are stuck in a cyclical and self-deprecating lifestyle of working in and living in a trash dump.
I saw Christ in a woman named, Maureen. A woman who now lives amongst the poor in a seedy town of Suyapa in which gangs once ruled and murders occurred almost on a daily basis. She, along with many others have helped build new schools, women centers, and businesses in the community to help bring hope to a people who desperately need it.
I saw Christ in a man named, Don David… a man who also lives amongst the poor… a man who helped transform an entire community from a trash dump to a neighborhood now thriving with families and small businesses.
And lastly, I saw Christ in Bob Beams, who’s passion for the Honduran people has spurred my own heart to continue serving not only the people of Honduras but other people groups both globally and in my own local community.
And although I would love to give more details, here is a list of things that were accomplished while serving just one week in Honduras:
Gave haircuts to over 100 women and children, six temporary homes were built, materials and training were provided for 46 more temporary homes, helped pour concrete on the new church floor, 500 pounds of school supplies were given, a movie projector with speakers and screen and Christian movies were given, classes were taught in several subjects to about 100 students for 5 days, worshiped with the local church, visited a new orphanage (new for us) to hold children and see if it can be a future service location for us, helped decide a plot of land would not work for a future development due to toxic waste, learned about “missions” up-close and personal, visited a local justice project and encouraged and prayed for the workers and with their clients, encouraged the school teachers and gave gifts to them, shared thousands of hugs and hundreds of kisses, had our hearts broken a thousand times, saw the world as larger and as smaller, each of us gained 10 more close friends within our group.
On a more personal level, a few things in particular truly broke my heart. For instance, I saw a 6-year old girl at the dump working amidst a heap of trash that was four times her size. She was blindly sticking both of her hands on up to her elbows into the trash with the hope of pulling out something of value. She repeated the process until finally finding a piece of plastic to salvage. This girl, the same age as my daughter, shouldn’t be working in a trash dump rummaging through garbage. No. She should be prancing through the house with a little Disney Princess outfit trying on her Mommy’s make-up and asking her Daddy if she looks pretty. She should be playing jump rope or hopscotch outside with a pretty pink bow in her hair, not digging through disease-infested junk.
When visiting a local state-run orphanage there was an excited 3-year old boy who wrapped his tiny little hands around my index finger and pulled me over to the shoe box. Why is he so jovial I asked myself? He then proceeded to pull out the shoes and motioned for me to put the shoes on his feet for him. After doing so, he then pulled me to the front door because he was now ready to go home with me. Imagine the look on his face when I had to say goodbye.
I don’t think I ever wept more in my entire life than in the past 8 days of my life. What I experienced was truly life-changing. My perceptions of life have genuinely changed. My complaints and gripes are now meaningless and priorities in life forever rearranged.
As you can see, the need is great. And the workers are few. But, God is indeed working in a land where darkness seems to be so prevalent. Jesus gave us the Great Commission not as a choice, but as a command. Will you help become a part of God’s great plan to not only save people from eternal torment but to help them have a better life while on earth?
