Most of my ministry this week was done in the Colony Kennedy
(La Kennedy) in a community of about thirty people which is located right on
top of a dump site. This was our first
full week of ministry and jumping into everything on the property and with teaching,
but the entire past couple weeks I have felt pushed by the Lord to do street
ministry. This was even more evident to
me when I was put into the first group to go to La Kennedy. Initially, we had planned to do two groups of
six and then switch after a group had been there for two days. After the first day, Tony realized that
wasn’t going to work.
Our first day down there was a lot of formalities, getting to know each other, and letting the community decide whether or not they wanted us to continue to return. The people who live there are wonderful and incredible, but there is also a very evident aspect of danger that is present. If outsiders go down there unwelcomed, it is very uncertain what will happen. Almost every male (about 20) in the community is doing paint thinner for the vast majority of the day, so their actions are generally not well thought out and emotions, usually anger and sadness, are strong. Because their lives are so inconsistent, Tony decided that one group needed to go to La Kennedy for the entire week, and then another group would switch out the following week. At this point, we are trying to make it even more consistent and switch out only one person at a time. So far, I have been blessed enough to go there each day because of the relationships that I have been forming.
The main people that I talk to in La Kennedy are Caesar and Jose.
Caesar is 29 years old and has lived there consistently for about a year and a half. He went to a 4-year police academy, became a police officer, and later was in the Honduran Special Forces. Because he lived with a ‘gringa’ for seventeen years while he was growing up, he speaks almost perfect English and also knows a bit of French. Caesar loves to read, and he usually picks out National Geographic magazines from the trash for reading material. He quit the Special Forces a few years ago because he thought it was too dangerous and he didn’t want to hurt people or kill people, but he quickly started getting involved with drugs and alcohol, and he has not been able to pull himself out of the rut of drugs yet. He has a 5-year-old child who lives with the mother in San Pedro Sula because of Caesar’s involvement in drugs.
Jose is 22 years old and has lived in the dump for many years (he doesn’t actually know how long). He has a huge heart and loves to smile and joke around. One of his favorite things to say is that Caesar is Jackie Chan and he is Eddie Murphy. It is so much fun to watch them joke around together, especially because their character assignments are so appropriate! Out of the four days that we went to La Kennedy this past week, Jose was sober for only one of the days. Like many of the men, he does paint thinner almost all day long.
While at the grocery store one day, Jose was a few people behind me in line and he called my name to say ‘Hi’ and shake my hand. I asked him what he was buying and he sheepishly held up a case of beer. The next day he told me it wasn’t for him, but I’m not entirely sure if that is true. However, I did teach him how to say ‘How are you’ one day while he was pretty bad on thinner, and the next day he came up to me with a huge smile on his face and he said, ‘Jennifer! How are you?’ I could tell he was trying so hard and he was so proud of himself, especially because he saw how proud I was of him. I smiled and laughed and told him I was SO GOOD. This was the first day he gave me a hug! It was so awesome to see how excited he was to learn, especially because the day after I taught him he was completely sober.
One of my biggest successes this week with street ministry was with Caesar on Thursday. We had been talking for a while like we usually do and I asked him more about what he likes to read with the intention of possibly bringing him a book from the property to borrow. He totally surprised me when he said he really enjoys reading the Bible. He quoted Psalm 91 for me and said that he thinks about it every night before he goes to bed. We talked about church and the Bible for a while before he asked if it would be possible for him to come to church with our group some weekend. Of course I said yes! It was so great to see that I was reaching someone, even if it was just by small conversations each day. I later found out that one of my teammates had prayed for me while I was in La Kennedy that day so that I would form a deeper relationship with Caesar specifically. How great is our God that he heard her prayer and answered it that same day!!
I also successfully prepared my first Honduran spaghetti (spaghetti sauce made with coca-cola) for the community on Tueday, and they LOVED it. ‘Muy rico!’ they said. People even asked me the next day when I would make it again; I was so proud!
Our first day down there was a lot of formalities, getting to know each other, and letting the community decide whether or not they wanted us to continue to return. The people who live there are wonderful and incredible, but there is also a very evident aspect of danger that is present. If outsiders go down there unwelcomed, it is very uncertain what will happen. Almost every male (about 20) in the community is doing paint thinner for the vast majority of the day, so their actions are generally not well thought out and emotions, usually anger and sadness, are strong. Because their lives are so inconsistent, Tony decided that one group needed to go to La Kennedy for the entire week, and then another group would switch out the following week. At this point, we are trying to make it even more consistent and switch out only one person at a time. So far, I have been blessed enough to go there each day because of the relationships that I have been forming.
The main people that I talk to in La Kennedy are Caesar and Jose.
Caesar is 29 years old and has lived there consistently for about a year and a half. He went to a 4-year police academy, became a police officer, and later was in the Honduran Special Forces. Because he lived with a ‘gringa’ for seventeen years while he was growing up, he speaks almost perfect English and also knows a bit of French. Caesar loves to read, and he usually picks out National Geographic magazines from the trash for reading material. He quit the Special Forces a few years ago because he thought it was too dangerous and he didn’t want to hurt people or kill people, but he quickly started getting involved with drugs and alcohol, and he has not been able to pull himself out of the rut of drugs yet. He has a 5-year-old child who lives with the mother in San Pedro Sula because of Caesar’s involvement in drugs.
Jose is 22 years old and has lived in the dump for many years (he doesn’t actually know how long). He has a huge heart and loves to smile and joke around. One of his favorite things to say is that Caesar is Jackie Chan and he is Eddie Murphy. It is so much fun to watch them joke around together, especially because their character assignments are so appropriate! Out of the four days that we went to La Kennedy this past week, Jose was sober for only one of the days. Like many of the men, he does paint thinner almost all day long.
While at the grocery store one day, Jose was a few people behind me in line and he called my name to say ‘Hi’ and shake my hand. I asked him what he was buying and he sheepishly held up a case of beer. The next day he told me it wasn’t for him, but I’m not entirely sure if that is true. However, I did teach him how to say ‘How are you’ one day while he was pretty bad on thinner, and the next day he came up to me with a huge smile on his face and he said, ‘Jennifer! How are you?’ I could tell he was trying so hard and he was so proud of himself, especially because he saw how proud I was of him. I smiled and laughed and told him I was SO GOOD. This was the first day he gave me a hug! It was so awesome to see how excited he was to learn, especially because the day after I taught him he was completely sober.
One of my biggest successes this week with street ministry was with Caesar on Thursday. We had been talking for a while like we usually do and I asked him more about what he likes to read with the intention of possibly bringing him a book from the property to borrow. He totally surprised me when he said he really enjoys reading the Bible. He quoted Psalm 91 for me and said that he thinks about it every night before he goes to bed. We talked about church and the Bible for a while before he asked if it would be possible for him to come to church with our group some weekend. Of course I said yes! It was so great to see that I was reaching someone, even if it was just by small conversations each day. I later found out that one of my teammates had prayed for me while I was in La Kennedy that day so that I would form a deeper relationship with Caesar specifically. How great is our God that he heard her prayer and answered it that same day!!
I also successfully prepared my first Honduran spaghetti (spaghetti sauce made with coca-cola) for the community on Tueday, and they LOVED it. ‘Muy rico!’ they said. People even asked me the next day when I would make it again; I was so proud!
God put us in relationship with Him just as he has put us in relationship with each other. I love that you are pursuing relationships to reveal how God is already present in the lives of the people of Honduras, and that He is already there crossing boundaries. You are just a facilitator of that reality...and you are making our Father very proud! Continue to patiently wait as the men, women, and children invite you into their lives <3
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