Church Project - Praise and Prayer
As of today, Russell, Allen, and the crew have done every possible thing they could come up with to do on the church building project at Quelacasque. That is, they’ve done everything they can do until the lumber that has been ordered and cut can be delivered. Please pray for divine intervention because there is no way for this lumber to get to the construction site under the current travel restrictions. Everyone would love for the project to continue and be completed in a timely manner. The crew would love the work. The pastor would love to know that his congregation will have a place to worship together when the restrictions are lifted.
Sowers4Pastors' Honduran Staff - Praise and Prayer
One project they are tackling is the roof on Russell and Iris’ house. The house has a metal roof, but the long-term plan was to put clay tiles on top of the metal. The inexpensive tiles are made locally, in the same village where most of the crew live, which means that Russell was able to get his hands on the necessary supplies. This is the sort of project that would normally have been put off indefinitely. Just because it was low on the priority list, don’t think that the project is without its benefits. The tiles will keep the house cooler. It will also be much quieter, particularly during the rainy season. The crew members are also doing maintenance work on the coffee farm and organizing items in the bodega and other storage areas.
The North American Office Staff - Praise
Sowers4Pastors had already slated this time to get a lot of office work done. With no teams scheduled, there were already plans for Kelsea to update sponsorship information and information about the children in the Manna and sponsorship program on the Sowers4Pastors website at this time. This monumental task should be completed within the next few days. While Kelsea wouldn’t have been out and about much anyway, the lockdown has certainly removed possible distractions.
In the meantime, Kim Hall has been creating a profile document for each of the children in the Manna 4 Lempira program, while waiting out her time of quarantine. (Denise completed this task for the sister church sponsorship programs before she returned to the U.S.) These documents should be ready to be made available to the sponsors soon.
It’s the end of the dry season, which is the most stressful time for the coffee plants. This is also a time when there is a huge risk of fires. There have already been some serious fires throughout Honduras. This is also a time when many farmers set deliberate fires to clear their fields. Air quality is always a concern during this period. Since the coronavirus causes respiratory problems, bad air quality is a special concern this year.
Supply and Demand - Praise and prayer
The Sowerses are still able to get to Gracias. Currently, only grocery stores and pharmacies are open. Iris was in town on April 14th. She said there is starting to be more of a depletion of supplies than normal. Iris spoke to the woman running the store and was told that she is starting to get worried about the inability to keep the store stocked.
Honduras does produce much of its own food. However, many types of food are processed and packaged in San Pedro Sula, which currently has the country's largest outbreak. This could easily affect the availability of staple items like flour, corn meal, rice, dairy products, and chicken.
In related news… The Sowerses would really appreciate your prayers that the local banks would open, and that they would be able to withdraw some cash. They pay their employees in cash and had not planned on the banks being closed such a long time. Please pray that they will be able to make timely withdrawals in order to keep the crew members working.
Feeding Centers - Praise and Prayer
The feeding situation has become much more challenging for the pastors with feeding centers and sponsorship programs. We are seeing successes, but it is much more difficult than in normal circumstances. Additionally, some pastors who don't normally run feeding centers are going to Sowers4Pastors to request food. It is anticipated that the food supply will be depleted faster than usual, this year.
Trish said, “We are trying to get our food to do a bigger job than it would normally be asked to do.”
The food used at the feeding centers is assembled into packages by groups of people in the U.S. They schedule an event, donate the money for the purchase of the ingredients, and then come together to package the food that is sent out to be used. Now, groups of people are unable to congregate for an event. Plus, the need is greater all over the world, not just in Honduras. Sowers4Pastors anticipates problems with the food supply again this year - potentially worse than last year, when some feeding centers had to be closed for a while. Please pray for the distribution of food and for the ministries in the US which supply the food.
 |
| Confirmed Cases, by department: Lempira has 5 from https://covid19honduras.org/ |
Although there have been a few isolated cases of Covid-19 in Lempira, there have not been any major outbreaks. The Sowers family, staff of Sowers4Pastors, and the Hall family are all safe and healthy. Please pray for continued health and for some relief from the cabin fever they are all feeling.
Pastors Training School - Prayer
Pastors Training School is completely closed until travel restrictions are lifted. Please pray that it can continue soon. Also, remember to pray for the pastors who have had to postpone this needed training.
Schools - Prayer
Some private schools, like Ben’s, are sending out assignments over the internet, for the students to complete at home. For public school students - and especially those in the very rural villages - that isn’t an option. Since the school year had just started before the schools were closed, it is likely that most students will fall behind a year in their schooling. As many of you know, it's always a challenge for the children to get an education in Honduras, even in normal times. Please pray that the children will be able to continue their education soon!
The Backpack Project - Prayer
As you may remember, 8,000 backpacks were distributed by Sowers4Pastors this year. It is their intention to have a backpack trip to the U.S. in the fall of 2020, if it is permissible to do so. They are assuming the challenge will be greater this year. With so many people out of work in the States, there are new economic challenges, and people may not feel that they can afford to fill a backpack. It is understandable that people will be concerned about helping those most affected in the U.S., and this may also lessen the giving toward helping Hondurans. Since the children who receive our backpacks have already lost a year of school, Sowers4Pastors wants to help get as many of those children back to school next year as possible - and they are depending on God for miracles toward this end!
Your prayers are greatly appreciated, as Honduras weathers this challenging time!
- posted by Christi
No comments:
Post a Comment