February 2005

Dear Friends,

We’ve often used Jeremiah 1:4-8 in Bible studies in which we have tried to build self-esteem. People in poor rural communities often have to overcome self doubt in order to do things. They think others are better than they are. They haven’t had the opportunity to study past the third or fourth grade, and this adds to feelings of inferiority. Verse 6 says “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.” Verse 7 says, “Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee.” It is hard to think of a prophet not being prepared for the task at hand. This simple reflection helps us all to accept the role that is presented to us in a variety of life situations. We are reminded that the Lord has special plans for all of us.

She has such a clear vision of her tasks and such a strong commitment to her community that little could be said to change Maria Teresa’s mind. In a way, we were glad for her strong words of direction and purpose. Gloria and I had just returned from our six-month home assignment in the United States, and as we got started this year we were looking for some direction and sound footing ourselves. The clarity of her message inspired us. We too are looking for the special plans that are being laid out for us to work on during this year.

Clearly, many threads in our mission presence in Honduras are constants this year, such as the very successful scholarship program for young people, the mission teams coming to work on the housing projects, and extending the work of Heifer Project. Programs are reaching community groups throughout the country with the hope of a better life by receiving an animal that provides either milk, meat, honey, or eggs. But we feel that in the future our role will be to bolster the capabilities of others—both community people and our fellow Honduran co-workers in the program that we serve. Our message will be that they are capable of implementing the tasks at hand, of reaching out to people in new ways, and of making the Heifer Program even better in Honduras. They will be the ones who are called, and “shalt go to all.”

This will be a year of transition for us as we lay the groundwork for others to pick up what we have been so involved in in recent years. By year’s end we hope to have new leadings about our mission involvement. I know that we will remember the passages from Jeremiah at different times during the year and that we will be capable with the tasks at hand.

Interpretation assignment in the United States

We felt so fortunate to have the six-month period during the second half of 2004 to visit churches and interpret our mission work to congregations. Everywhere we went people were eager to hear what we had to say. Our most successful “minute for mission” compared our mission work as a tree of life. Leaves represented problems in the country or challenges. When leaves (past experiences) fall off, they help fertilize new growth. The toots and trunk are values on which our programs are based, and the fruit are the success stories that we can share, such as the words and enthusiasm of Maria Teresa.

Now back in Honduras, it is our first time living in an empty nest. Thank you for continuing to support us and for lifting us up in your prayers and for holding the Honduran people in your light.

Yours,

Tim and Gloria

The 2005 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 58