Day 2: Manna Packs, Chickens, and Milk

Think about having to feed your family with $4 a day. The choices you would be forced to make, eating maybe 1 good meal a day. Four dollars is the average amount a Honduran makes per day. Now insert Manna Packs, a vitamin-enriched, vacuum packed meal that makes 4 servings and costs 3.7 cents per pack. Yes you read that right 3.7 cents. A box of Manna Packs costs around $8 and can feed a family for months! Bread For A Hungry World hands out Manna Packs each Saturday to hundreds of families.

We began Day 2 bright and early at 6:30am, ate a quick breakfast because at 7 we were to hand-out Manna Packs, chicken feed, and powdered milk to the hundreds of eager men, women, and children awaiting outside the Daycare doors. With Marin, our Iglesia de Cristo preacher as our guide and instructor, one by one each person filed inside. We scooped feed and handed out packs and milk for hours. As each person walked through the doors we were greeted with open arms and a warm embrace. While each of us were there to serve, we were being loved on, served. After this we walked up with Darrell Crow to the Senior Center and met over two dozen men and women ranging in ages 60-85. Again the minute we walked in, they showed us love. We spent time talking with them, singing songs, and praying together. Spending time with them is a reminder that foundations and legacies are laid by those who come before us. And those several dozen elderly Honduran men and women have done the same in their community of Campamento.

After lunch we went to the area of land provided to Bread for a Hungry World to build 120 block homes. The blocks are made from sand, dirt, rocks, and other earth material and compressed to form a block which weighs anywhere from 12 to 20lbs. Our group for the next 3 hours organized, measured, and separated 55,000 pounds of blocks. We were a well-oiled machine working in unison. It was during this time, we met a 12-year old boy, Manuel. Manuel is working along a dozen grown men, helping to build the block homes. At no point, did I see Manuel discouraged in his living or home situation. It didn't matter his circumstances, whether past or present, Manuel came to the hill to work. And so did we because the glory was not for me, Manuel, or anyone else but God. These homes are leaving a legacy that will last decades.

Arriving in Honduras: Day 1

After a 3 hour flight from Houston and landing we taxied to a stop. The flight crew opened up both exit hatch doors and rolled up moveable stairs. As we all began filtering out the first thing you notice is the absolute beauty of Honduras. The rolling mountains, trees, blue sky, and an airport with a single runway. Seven months in the making and we were finally here. I was excited to see the initial reactions of others. We cleared Customs, with our passports stamped making it official, and began getting our luggage. We were met by Bobby Moore, Exec. Dir. of BREAD, and soon made our way to our transportation for the week, a big yellow bus. Minutes later we were on the bus for a 2+ hour commute to Campamento.

If you haven't been to Teguc, it is a metropolis of nearly 2 millon, but it is a completely different environment from DFW. Very few street signs and even fewer street lights. Two lane roads quickly become 4, with 3 lanes in one direction at any given time. Pedestrians cross the streets with little regard for vehicles and you soon realize you're in a Third World Country.

Around 5pm we drove up to Bread's Daycare, which is a facility that cares for 50 children ages 2-7, five days a week. Before we knew it we saw dozens of children in full sprint towards our yellow bus yelling "Tio, Tia". Each of us hadn't planted our first foot on the ground and we were embraced with open arms. Imagine you coming home from work and your child(ren) running to you. Now multiple that by 30. Each child wearing tattered clothes, shoes with holes, and dirt covering their faces. Yet all they wanted was to feel our embrace, to feel cared for, loved. We spent countless minutes being hugged by each child. At that moment I knew our trip was going to impact each of our lives, and this was only Day 1...

God's charge for us: Feed and love everyone, even the poorest

Go to a street in downtown Dallas or Fort Worth and you will probably see a homeless person. Looking at his/her face you can see the personal struggles they deal with daily. Go to Honduras and seeing a child who lives in the City Dump in Tegucigalpa, and I realize the struggles they deal with in a day is something I can't wrap my mind around. Some of their faces are expressionless, no hope, no love. Many of the Dump children go days without eating a good meal and longer without access to clean drinking water. A bad day at work, a "half-stocked" pantry, or frustrated because my 3G cellphone is slow, is beyond minuscule to the things I have seen in Honduras. God calls us to feed and love His children, OUR neighbors whether next door or 2,000 miles away.

This time next week myself and 25 others, the large majority from CrossPoint Church of Christ will be in Honduras helping feed the poor, build brick homes, and most importantly love each one. Envision poverty and take it three levels down. Some of these pictures grasp the level of poverty that Honduras has. It's something that until you actually experience, you can't understand it. I ask that you pray for my group. I pray that God opens our eyes to what His plans are for our group. I pray that God ignites a fire in our hearts to start change, to break the cycle of poverty. Because while one person can change the world, it sure doesn't hurt if millions more are trying to do the same thing.    

The Block Machine

In less than 2 weeks, our group will be in Campamento using the "Block Machine". The machine uses natural earth plus water to make blocks used to construct houses that will last for several decades! The machine makes block at a rate of 200 per hour. The Mayor of Campamento graciously provided land to Bread for  Hungry World for 120 plots for below-poverty families living in Campamento to have their own houses. Most of these families live in a single room mud home with no running water and bathroom facilities. The Mayor and Bread for a Hungry World are providing a hope for these families.

Darrell Crow

I met Darrell in December 2010, when we both traveled with Bread for a Hungry World to Honduras. Darrell and I immediately became friends. A few months prior, Bobby Moore, Bread's Exec. Director, had spoken with Darrell gauging his interest about possibly moving to Honduras to serve in Campamento. Needless to say, Darrell fell in love with the people of Honduras. You can ask my wife, I wanted to move to Honduras too. As 2010 became 2011, Darrell began a transition journey of about 7 months to begin a three-year commitment move to Honduras. Darrell gave up a good-paying job, eventually sold his house, spent months raising funds for support, left family and friends, and most importantly did a lot of praying that this decision be God's decision.

I was blessed to see Darrell during this past Christmas break. We sat for several hours over a Babe's lunch and I heard first-hand how Darrell is right where he belongs. Darrell shared several stories, one of a young man, who is married, who was jobless and hundreds of dollars in debt. Darrell sat down with him, set-up a plan of repaying his debts, and several months later, this young man is now debt free and has a good-paying job. This is just one of many people he is helping to break the cycle of poverty. Darrell is also currently in-charge of constructing 120 "earth block" homes. The mayor of Campamento graciously provided land that would allow for the neediest people living in the area to be able to have land and own a house. One of the greatest accomplishments for a Honduran man is to say that he has land and owns a home. I am so excited that when my group and I come this March, we will help build some of these brick homes. Darrell is a blessing to the people at Bread's Daycare, and the community of Campamento. Darrell took a leap of faith, he trusted God's plan for him. Not only will Darrell be blessed immensely but each person in Honduras that he comes into contact with.

I encourage you to visit his blog, http://www.servehonduras.com/darrell.html about his daily mission work and adventures in Campamento.

Felipa's Story

26 lives, 26 weeks

“Lord, teach me what you want me to do, and I will live by your truth.”  Psalm 86:11

First, many thanks to the very talented Kelsie Morris for designing this great logo. The title says it all. 26 people are taking a week away from each of their "busy" schedules and devoting it to sharing the love of Christ in a country that is the second poorest in Central America. 26 people, 26 weeks and counting. The next 26 weeks will flash before our eyes and we will be boarding the plane to Honduras. Planning, packing, and preparation will happen, but as I wrote in the first blog, we must pray. God's plan for our trip is bigger than we can fathom. I am truly excited what God will reveal to each of us during this time. We will see beyond a glimpse of God in Honduras, and . . . we will be amazed.