A Vision for Guacutao

The Sister Church sponsorship programs - there are currently five of these - are run a bit differently than the general Manna4Lempira program. The next five posts, starting with this one, will spotlight one of the sister church locations. As an introduction, here's a bit of general information about how these programs are different from the Manna program, and also a map of the locations of these sponsorship centers.

With only one exception (Camalote), the sister church programs are run out of the local public schools, rather then meeting in a church. This means that every child who is registered to go to school in that location is also registered into the sponsorship program. The local pastors teach the Bible lessons at the school, as part of the weekly scheduled classes, and the meals are cooked and distributed as a school lunch program.

Because of the rugged terrain and lack of roads and vehicles in some areas, most of the elementary schools in Lempira are small, and the sister church programs tend to grow by adding additional schools from the same community into the program, gradually encompassing a small network of schools and pastors at each program location.

Now, we'll turn the spotlight onto the program in Guacutao!

When you want to learn more about the Sister Church program at Guacutao, Michelle Spanos is a great person to call. That’s why Trish suggested I do just that. Michelle is a member of Edgewater Alliance Church in Edgewater, Florida, which serves as the stateside big sister to Guacutao.

The relationship between Edgewater Alliance and Guacutao began in 2016 when a team from Edgewater went down to hand out backpacks and provide a medical clinic. Edgewater’s goal is to send 2-3 teams per year and to be sure each of the children receives an annual checkup.

Michelle said, “Our heart is to come alongside Pastor Lorenzo, who heads up the program in Guacutao, and help him reach the children with the Gospel. We were recently able to help him get a motorcycle to use in his ministry, and we’ve assisted in two church roof projects and helped with painting some churches.”

Pastor Lorenzo with Michelle Spanos

The sponsorship program at Guacutao is made up of four “feeder schools” in the area. Leading the program at each school will either be Pastor Lorenzo, or the pastor of a church he's planted. You see, Pastor Lorenzo has planted five churches in the area, and supervises a total of around fifteen churches. Pastor Lorenzo has already graduated from Pastor Training School. Edgewater wants to make sure the people who come alongside him in church plants get training, as well.

Michelle was just there with a team in January. The children in Honduras hadn’t started the school year. The team noticed a group of people clearing an area behind one of the schools. At another site, they noticed adobe bricks drying in the sun. The most recent team to visit reported back that a new restroom had been built at one of the schools and there is now a new junior high school building!

Three years ago, only one out of five Guacutao kindergarteners would have been expected to complete the sixth grade. Now there are very different expectations. Thanks to the Sister Church Program, getting an education is a reality. Previously, there would not have been the need for a junior high school in this area. Michelle pointed out that the school with the new building is the poorest of the four schools associated with Guacutao.

Michelle also talked about how much fun the teams from Edgewater have building relationships with the children. In January, they were able to introduce the children to the fun of playing with a frisbee. When the next team visited, they took a few more frisbees for the kids. Michelle is now considering taking a frisbee golf set on her next trip. She was quick to point out that she would be giving it to Pastor Lorenzo and allowing him to use it with the children. She understands the importance of the relationship he is building with the children in his local community. Michelle also talked about the possibility of one day helping Pastor Lorenzo build a field for sports (mostly soccer, of course), if that would be a benefit to his ministry.

And, as Michelle said, “Lord willing, it would be great if the school system could put in a high school  in this area, at some point in the future.” Currently, any local students who wish to attend high school have to hitch a ride to a neighboring town, or move to that town, to attend school. When pondering why the emphasis on education is so important she said, “We want to get these kids reading so they don’t take our word for it. They can read the Word for themselves.”

 - posted by Christi