This is the second installment of the "Meet the Sowers4Pastors Staff" blogumentary. Since all the staff members discussed in this segment are new, this is more of a story of how they got here.
If you’ve been paying attention, you know that the #1 goal of Sowers4Pastors is to… Say it with me! All together now! EMPOWER PASTORS. More specifically, the goal is to empower Honduran pastors. That’s why it works out so well for them to be based in Honduras. That main goal isn’t just something to fill up space in a mission statement. They mean it! That’s why it is beyond exciting that Sowers4Pastors has brought in some Honduran ministers to serve in leadership staff positions. Now for the backstory of how this came into being…
You already know about Rachel and Brandy joining Sowers4Pastors.
When Allen and Trish first approached Rachel and Brandy about the ministry, they originally asked if Rachel and Brandy knew of someone who might be interested in joining Sowers4Pastors. They really didn’t dream that Rachel and Brandy would join them. Well, maybe they dreamed it, but they didn’t really think it would happen. After all, Rachel and Brandy already run a ministry in another city and Brandy is in the military. You could have knocked them over with a feather when Rachel and Brandy said they would completely reconfigure their lives and move to Gracias. Before it got to that point, Rachel and Brandy mentioned that they knew of a couple from their church that might be a good fit.
In Tegucigalpa (the capital of Honduras), Rachel and Brandy attended a mega church. In order to develop more of a sense of community, the church divides up the congregation into smaller groups. Alejandro and Secia have been serving as associate pastors, in charge of 500 people. Those 500 people are broken up into many small groups. In Allen’s words, they have a “plethora of people under them.” When Rachel first thought of the couple, she didn’t know if they would be interested in moving to Gracias. (Insert suspenseful organ music here: Bum-bum-bum!) Unbeknownst to Rachel, Alejandro and Secia had already spoken with other members of ministry in their church to express that they were feeling called to missions!
The couple came to Gracias several times to see the ministry. They spent time with everyone and saw the pastor training school, since that is of special interest to Alejandro. It seemed like an excellent fit for everyone involved and the couple decided to commit to working with S4P. Alejandro is bilingual. Secia seems a little shy about speaking English, but she understands a great deal. Trish jokingly laughed that Secia will likely begin speaking more English when she hears Trish’s attempts at Spanish. Trish was happy to report, “They fit in with us because we’re kind of goofy and they aren’t overly serious people!”
Alejandro and Secia both have extensive Bible training. Alejandro also worked for the Honduran government, managing logistics for their projects. The chance that those logistics skills will be used by S4P is probably hovering at around the 100% mark!
Trying to figure out the exact time frame for moving to Gracias was simplified because they have a 3rd grade son (as well as a six-month-old daughter). Alejandro and Secia enrolled their son in the bilingual school where he joins RJ, Abby, and Nathan. The school year began this past week, so they packed up and moved to Gracias in time for school!
There is another Honduran joining S4P right now, also from the capital. Esdras is currently working on his master’s degree from a Bible school. The program is done online for two out of every six weeks. That allows him to be active in the ministry for four weeks at a time. Everyone is enjoying his cheerful demeanor as well as his strong work ethic. Like Secia, he doesn't speak much English, but understands a bit. He was also the youth leader of a program a few towns away, which he started himself! Did we mention he's only in his mid-twenties? Talk about initiative!
These are exciting times and none of us should be surprised that S4P is putting its mission of empowering pastors into action. The breakdown of their staff was already almost 50% Honduran, but the Hondurans had previously been mostly support and administrative staff. They are happy to be moving into an era of having so many Honduran missionaries on the staff.
The couple came to Gracias several times to see the ministry. They spent time with everyone and saw the pastor training school, since that is of special interest to Alejandro. It seemed like an excellent fit for everyone involved and the couple decided to commit to working with S4P. Alejandro is bilingual. Secia seems a little shy about speaking English, but she understands a great deal. Trish jokingly laughed that Secia will likely begin speaking more English when she hears Trish’s attempts at Spanish. Trish was happy to report, “They fit in with us because we’re kind of goofy and they aren’t overly serious people!”
Alejandro and Secia both have extensive Bible training. Alejandro also worked for the Honduran government, managing logistics for their projects. The chance that those logistics skills will be used by S4P is probably hovering at around the 100% mark!
Trying to figure out the exact time frame for moving to Gracias was simplified because they have a 3rd grade son (as well as a six-month-old daughter). Alejandro and Secia enrolled their son in the bilingual school where he joins RJ, Abby, and Nathan. The school year began this past week, so they packed up and moved to Gracias in time for school!
These are exciting times and none of us should be surprised that S4P is putting its mission of empowering pastors into action. The breakdown of their staff was already almost 50% Honduran, but the Hondurans had previously been mostly support and administrative staff. They are happy to be moving into an era of having so many Honduran missionaries on the staff.
- posted by Christi
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