We try to update Milk Project sponsors on a monthly basis. But some things don't fit in a neat, quick email. (Just like life, right?) I heard recently on a podcast about the term TTWWADI (pronounced Tee-tee-waddy) which is an acronym meaning That's The Way We Always Did It) There are practices and things we do in The Milk Project that are now sort of tried and true, but just like the rest of the mission of late, we are always in the throes of coming up against TTWWADI, versus what needs to change or be done different. TTWWADI as a concept of course seems stilted, or counterproductive, but of course there is comfort in doing things the way they have been done...it is comfortable, easier, known. The unknown or new is scary.
I'd be lying if I said I didn't wish we could just say TTWADI some days. To just have "the usual," but growth, change, and maturity doesn't come in quantity just doing what has always been done, as scary as that can be.
May God grant us all the faith, the strength, and the Holy Spirit powered desire, to get out of the boat of normal and walk with Him, keeping our focus on Him and not what we want to do or see. Amen y amen
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But, God is doing a good work. Sometimes, I have to repeat that back to myself, because of unpleasantness, whether in real life, my mind, both or whatever. We are still searching for candidates to fill the farm manager position. We interviewed someone this week, a nice guy but didn't speak English, which is going to be one of the key qualities we need for this position. He was telling us he lived in Gulfport MS for a bit and came back last year. I asked him how the process of getting to the US was (he left during the pandemic when he lost his job here and was in danger of losing his house, etc.) and he told me he used a coyote, and that it took 39 days to get across the border. He shared a little of the harrowing details. I asked him if he would do it again. "Never" he said. Marvin has been busy this month trying to get around to more of the churches to get to know the pastors, and the communities better, doing some evangelizing via house visits. We will be spending more money this year on spiritual development...of the pastors, the church body, trying to develop new Sunday school teachers, increasing impact in the communities...all part of our push to do better discipling the people we are trying to reach, including more conferences and training. That part is exciting, also somewhat daunting, but finishing the office building is less exciting and just more daunting. Mostly related to how hard it is to fundraise for something so clearly needed. We have been blessed with some help, but not nearly enough and that is...stressful. Also stressful is just how expensive everything is related to finishing the building. You would think the main construction would be the worst of it, but every other step really piles on. The stucco is still not finished...they are working on it however. Then, what flooring to pick? The above were two options...an epoxy finish or just polishing the concrete. Both options are quick...but not in the budget. The epoxy is CRAZY expensive. So...we will have to see how to take more time, and more hands away from the other projects going on, to put in tile. Traditional, fine, but just another delay because that will take several weeks to put in. And then, the staff look to me and I can just palpably feel their disappointment at another delay, another constraint. Plus we will have to find a welder to make the main doors, because buying premade doors...also too expensive to make it work...and the list continues to mount. I'll be glad when it is done...but right now just lamenting how long we are still from that point, and I'm not even going to try to guess at this point when that will be.
God is doing a good work.
I've been repeating it, and I'll be repeating it more to myself in the coming days. When it feels good, when it doesn't, when it is scary, and when it feels right. I wish I could say I will keep up with all this blogging! New year, and lots of new things and new opportunities. The title for today's blog is French...a little idiom saying you are living to work (subway, work, sleep) A common sentiment, albeit depressing. Unless you love you work.
He will also be overseeing how we integrate the Milk Projects and churches better...and just yesterday we hired a new position...clinic greeter/evangelist. We have struggled and tried different approaches over the years to more purposefully reach those coming to the clinic spiritually. Thankfully, even though that effort has had limited success and stumbled through different volunteers and church visitors, etc., we have not lost the fervor to see that be done better. So, there will be a bit of a Venn diagram for this new position...a greeter that helps patients get to where they need to go and just helps organizationally, and then getting to know, praying for, and even seeing for those close enough to see about Bible studies in the future. This time though, being a full time position, it will help us be able to supervise, encourage, and see where this goes. 22,000 patients last year in the clinic, not counting family members, people stopping by just to get a shot or pick something up...that is something we just can't continue to do the way we have been doing.
Honey processing means we pulp the coffee and dry it. Rather than the normal process of pulping, fully washing the coffee over a day or more, and then drying. Using all that water may be normal, but the process mucks the water up quite a bit going back into the ecosystem, not to mention just using all that water. So we get a better tasting process, and do a better job of just looking after things as well. We still have roughly 200 pounds from 2023 harvest to roast and get out there, but after that...everything will be this new process everyone will be drinking soon enough!
I'll leave you with a cool picture taken from the drone of the farm in Sampedrana. Lots of work will be coming there in the next months to do road improvements, and we are also doing some investigation and praying about other options for the future bringing things from the US possibly to help speed that process as well! Progress on the office building seen from the air! The stucco progress is all on the inside, and the other side of the building. They seem to be saving the hardest two sides to do for last. It is time consuming for sure. We will equip and paint the inside of the building as soon as we can of course, and probably leave painting the outside for when a group can help. "What will go upstairs in the unfinished area?" Is a question I have heard already. My first reply is "By the grace of God let's finish the first two floors first!" But actually, I am already anticipating that down the line, we would use that for more group sleeping space, and a porch with a great view preserved of course. You can kind of see from this angle how big the building is, and how we are using as much of the property as possible.
Spoiler alert then for life...we are always learning. Never will the day come on earth where we have it all down, when it all makes sense, when it all goes according to plan. That can be discouraging. But knowing it is coming at least, helps. Sometimes. :-)
There are upcoming changes still coming... -There will be new staff in Las Botijas for the Milk Project (our director is leaving to attend church with her husband that just came to Christ through another church, and our cook needs to leave to care for her mother suffering from Alzheimer's.) -We have a consult next week with a company that might be able to drill a well for us in Las Botijas (currently the water we have, when it works, comes from several miles away) which if it looks good could be expensive, but would be a huge improvement in every sense for everything on the campus there. -there are a couple clinic staff changes coming about as well -prayerfully in the first quarter of 2024, another NGO will be helping us modernize and get our solar systems up to snuff for the clinic and apartment building to get our bill down, and provide battery backup power for the clinic during outages. Coffee ripening in Sampedrana above, first harvests up on the high farm.
Coffee ripens at different times, even on the same branch. The work here sometimes is the same. There is pruning involved, fertilizing, hard work and prayer. There will be changes and things to come in 2024 we can't even see dawning on the horizon yet. But we can be praying for those we already know, and those unknown, already, for grace, mercy, and strength through it all!
He had a chance to talk to a couple of the patients, to hear from them what this once a month (currently) clinic means to them: Maria Angela Martinez says she walks 30 minutes to get to the clinic. "Before, we had to go to Comayagua because there is no health center here. Now, we have the ease of just coming to consult in the clinic. The care has been good because my daughter Aby Perez (six months old) got over her cold." Maria Azucena Andara says "having medical attention here is good because before you would have to go to Comayagua and get up before dawn and be there two days because if you didn't get in the first day." Exolina Moren lives close, she told Marvin "Travelling to Comayagua required a lot of time and more money because you had to pay for transportation and a hotel in Comayagua to get seen the next day." Her son had pneumonia and recovered thanks to a brigade that came to Sampedrana. Marvin also shared that there were people there from Rio Blanco and El Horno...a three hour walk from the church.
Valerie and I are back in Honduras for several months! The trip to the US was good. God blessed us in that often for communication/fundraising/conference trips, the fruit from seeds planted come months if not longer down the road. But God was gracious as always to give us several opportunities to see Him working right before our eyes, which is a huge encouragement to doing these trips. What's that? Yes...there are many things about being in the USA that are easier than Honduras (driving, errands, security [sometimes], shopping for example) but it is still work for us, and brings its own challenges and changes to our normal schedule, what we do, etc. All that to say...seeing how it helps the mission to grow, that is why we do it, because overall having our place, our routine, and doing what we know more everyday here in Honduras is overall easier. But we aren't called to what is easy, or comfortable, or known. We have been so blessed though so far in these trips, and already have a bit of a handle of what the schedule for 2024 will be like...just as busy as 2023 probably!
What else? Things on the farm in Cantarranas have not been going as well as we would have hoped with the young pastor we were giving a shot to prove himself, so we will have to make a change there beginning soon.
The construction in Danli is going well...still a lot to do, but pastor Edwin has been working hard when they can get the materials they need (they waited weeks for the second floor metal to pour the concrete into) We are still praying we can find the right person to help us on the farm direction/management. We need someone who can drive, a go-getter, and that speaks English (to also help with teams) and have been looking/asking...but just haven't found the right person yet. Plus, Carlos will be leaving us at the beginning of 2024 up on the farm in Sampedrana. Pastor Juan has a new candidate we will be trying to see how he does, overall but also if he can drive up there as well! And of course in Sampedrana, with the rains subsiding, we are hoping to start getting materials up there to make more road and bridges during the dry season. Pray that all comes together because it is time consuming, and takes a lot of planning to make that happen, along with everything else going on especially. And the other big thing...the office building. Fundraising has not been bountiful for that...but we are 100% convinced it is actually a bigger priority and need than a lot of what can be seen...primarily because it is where we hope to have the most impact in what can't be seen...the faith and outreach success of all we are doing in the churches, Milk Project and farms. So, we press forward as much as we can. Have to put some plans and meetings/conferences/teaching on hold though until we can get that fully built out and finished. So...we are coordinating end of the year activities, getting materials, closing out well...and also planning and budgeting everything for the year to come...December will be just as busy as every other month for the mission for sure! Say a prayer for us to see how God would have us prioritize, and to help us cut ourselves a break when not everything gets done quite as timely as sometimes we would like. God timing not our timing! And now...for a special announcement! This will be shared via social media very soon, but blog readers are getting a special first look at this unique donation opportunity! By clicking on the donation link here, you can get a new His Eyes shirt (you pick your size when ordering), a new His Eyes coffee mug, and two pounds of whole bean Hill Climber coffee...and not just our normal coffee, but one pound of honey processed coffee, and one pound of cherry processed coffee! All for $70, with shipping included!
What is with the different coffee you say? -Normal coffee is picked, pulped, washed, and then dried. -Honey processed is picked, pulped...and then dried, no washing off of the "honey", which is the sticky part of the coffee when you pulp it. -Cherry processed is picked...and dried! Then you pulp it. It gives it a different flavor that some of us really enjoy! These are items that won't be available on the website normally, and right now we only have enough mugs to offer this deal to the first 10 people that click on the offer. We have more shirts that will be available at ICOM, and there might be some of the experimental processed coffees available...but there are only 10 mugs in the USA, so after 10 clicks, the link will be disabled. Thanks for your prayers and support, and let us know what you think of these limited type donation opportunities! |
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