Praises and Updates

Over the past couple of months, we’ve shared a lot of prayer requests. It’s exciting to share some praises.

Praise #1

The church construction project in Quelecasque is up and running again! You might recall that construction came to a screeching halt when they were unable to get a wood order delivered, due to coronavirus travel restrictions. The wood needed for construction will not be a part of the finished church building. Instead, they needed wood to use for construction-y type things like supporting the second level cement floor until it dries. (No, really. I’m pretty sure “construction-y” is a word.)

This was a good day to be getting information from Trish instead of Allen or Russell. Trish never assumes that anyone knows anything about construction. She explained it like this, “The problem with pouring cement in the air is that you must put something to support it underneath it dries.” It makes sense to me! She went on to compare the process to a child building with LEGOS and using spaghetti noodles for an upper-level floor. If the noodles are wet and cooked, you’re going to want some support. If the noodles are dry, they will work just fine!

This prayer request was answered in a most surprising way. Do you remember that the crew was working to get rid of a bunch of downed trees on the property, some time ago? Somewhere along the way, someone had the brilliant thought that downed trees could be cut up and used to support the wet cement. The Quelacasque pastor also scrounged up some wood locally. Allen and Russell came up with a plan where they will pour that deck of the second floor in smaller sections. That way, they won’t need as many supports at one time and they can reuse the supports. The building project is up and running and the men are still able to get out there.

What have we learned from this? God has a sense of humor. And Trish should write a "Construction for Dummies" book.

Praise #2

There were some concerns about the threat of fires and bad air quality. The rainy season came early this year, starting around May 1st instead of in the middle of the month.

The rainy season is now in full swing. As Trish said, their 10-day forecast is the same for each day. Thunderstorms! This is fabulous - the fire risk is almost non-existent because everything is sopping wet. The air quality has improved and everyone is breathing a sigh of relief.

Of course, life is rarely simple and Trish did chuckle when she said they are now under a weather alert for flooding and landslides! She doesn’t feel that their area is in significant danger. They live in such a steep area that they are used to flooding when it rains. Because of this, they don’t tend to build in danger zones.

The bottom line is: You can cross rain off the prayer list!

Looking Ahead

Honduras is about one month behind the U.S. in regard to coronavirus restrictions. The government is beginning to talk of reopening things--even the schools. While there is no definite timeline, it’s nice that things are far enough along to begin thinking about sending kids back to school. The news is filled with stories of teachers going out and giving assignments to their students in the preparation for returning to school.

Ditch with electrical lines, photo by Ben

Backpacks

Sowers4Pastors is getting some good responses from people regarding backpacks. Even with the current food situation, the ministry has decided to keep plugging away at this important program. Allen is sending out empty backpacks now, so be sure to contact Sowers4Pastors to get your supply. The need is great!

Silver Lining

You know that the menfolk have been using this time to accomplish things around the property. Recently, they were able to run a powerline underground to the new building. That’s a very good thing. They no longer have to make do with extension cords. The men dug a long trench by hand, put down tubing, and ran the electrical lines through the tubing. This project would not have been a high priority, but it’s wonderful to have all of the buildings set up with the new electrical system.

Made in the Shade

Improvements are also being made to the coffee farm. The farm’s elevation is not very high so it’s important to make sure there is enough shade for the coffee plants. Farms at higher elevations don’t have the same concern. In the past  Sowers4Pastors coffee farm used the existing trees on the property. Then they started putting in banana and plantain plants to create shade for the coffee.

Now, Melvin, who normally works in the office on administrative tasks, has helped facilitate a new solution. Melvin took it upon himself to plant and nurture 400 guama trees. Guama trees (guamo in Spanish) are fast-growing, provide a lot of shade, and put off nutrients into the soil. Coffee likes to be paired with guama.

Melvin gave the 400 trees to Sowers4Pastors as a gift. The current big project on the property is planting a lot of guama trees!

 - posted by Christi