Move over Ebenezer Scrooge! Today’s post is filled with visits from the ghosts of Sowers4Pastors past, present, and future. More specifically, it’s talking about the ministry in 2020, 2021, and 2022. So, grab a candle and don your Victorian nightshirt and sleeping cap. Here we go!
Teams
In early 2020, Sowers4Pastors had seven teams visit. Then COVID hit and everything changed, and all the other teams scheduled that year were canceled. 2021 brought thirteen teams, which was a definite improvement. The ghost of Sowers4Pastors future is proud to report that there are already twenty-five teams on the schedule for 2022!
School Construction
You won’t be surprised to learn that school construction projects came to a screeching halt in 2020 that lasted throughout 2021. Projects were canceled due to lack of funding and lack of urgency, since school buildings weren’t being used. Schools are getting ready to begin meeting regularly in person in February of 2022 and Sowers4Pastors is hoping that will mean that construction projects won’t be far behind.
Roofs
Some churches backed out of roofing projects in 2020 and 2021. Other churches saw the time as an opportunity to complete a project. Fourteen projects were completed in 2021. That momentum is expected for 2022, also.
Feeding Centers
During 2020 and 2021, pastors were out delivering food personally. Since schools and Sunday schools are now reopening, the ghost of 2022 anticipates that normal feeding center activities will resume soon.
COVID hit shortly before the first round of Pastors Training School was scheduled to begin in 2020. That ghost of 2020 took a lot of hits! Training School was canceled for that entire year. In 2021, two 3-day pastor training conferences were held. In 2022, they are expecting to partner with two different pastor training groups. First, the school run in partnership with Seeds of Salvation will start up again. Additionally, Sowers4Pastors and 61 Isaiah will be partnering with an indigenous ministry that has been training pastors for over 30 years. They have agreed to help Sowers4Pastors get teachers. In exchange, Sowers4Pastors and 61 Isaiah have agreed to help the other school become accredited. Accreditation won’t happen overnight. It is probably a ten-year commitment. The long-term plan is to offer all levels of training, so pastors who have completed sixth grade, ninth grade, twelfth grade, or college can each get training suited to their abilities.
Bible Sales
Bible Sales are up in 2021 and Sowers4Pastors is getting prepared for 2022. They recently ordered $18,000 worth of Bibles to be sure they won’t run out or be faced with shipping problems in 2022. The increase in coffee prices means that more people have the funds necessary to purchase a Bible. The end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022 is also the time that Sowers4Pastors will be giving out Bibles to the children in the sponsorship program. It is their tradition to do that every third year. Some children will receive a Bible at their Christmas party. Others will get them with the backpack distribution. Allen projects that they will give away 6000-8000 Bibles.
Hurricane Relief Efforts
At least in the area near Gracias, anyone that qualified to receive relief has received it.
Motorcycles
The Motorcycle Ministry helped provide thirty pastors with motorcycles in 2020. That number doubled in 2021, with sixty pastors gaining new, reliable transportation. The ghost of Sowers4Pastors future is unable to speculate what 2022 will hold. The need is great, but the cost of motorcycles is skyrocketing. The ministry is working hard to raise enough support to keep up with the need.
Radio Station
Something new in 2022! Sowers4Pastors and 61 Isaiah have been working on setting up a partnership that is now coming to fruition. Sowers4Pastors has committed to help 61 Isaiah's radio station broadcast more hours of each day. They are also working to expand the station's sending power, to reach more people with the Gospel message. (More on this subject later.)
Sponsorships
2020 and the first part of 2021 saw an increase in the number of child sponsors. Unfortunately, some sponsors are currently experiencing their own financial struggles and are dropping out of the program or decreasing their number of sponsorships. Please join Sowers4Pastors in praying for new sponsors to fill in the gap. They are anticipating an extra large batch of new children added to the program in 2022, which means an even larger need for additional sponsors.
Sponsorship Program Correspondence
When schools and Sunday schools closed, getting letters from sponsored kids became almost impossible. It meant going door-to-door to drop off letter writing supplies and collect the letters. Multiply that effort by 5000 children and you can see why it wasn’t always possible. Things are returning to normal and many more sponsors received letters at the end of 2021. Things are expected to continue to improve in that regard.
Thank You!
Sowers4Pastors wants to thank all of their partners for your support in the past, present, and future. Allen said, “Thank you for sticking with us, praying, financial support, packing containers, and helping with backpack drives. We are excited to be hosting teams again and having them come down. We’re excited about the way things seem to be getting back to normal in our area. And, of course, thank you to God for seeing us through this.”
In the words of Tiny Tim, “God bless us, every one!” And like Tiny Tim, may we all rise above our own suffering and hope that people who see us will think of Jesus.
-posted by Christi
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