The Joy of Giving

The pilot banked hard left, came in low and fast, and before we even had time to be worried, the American Airlines jet was taxiing down the runway in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We disembarked, cleared customs, and searched for Harold Krauss, the missionary who was to meet us. As we drove through the city, I discovered that Honduras look pretty much like every other developing country I ever saw. Those who have money have a lot, and those who don’t, don’t have any. The already tiny middle class is sliding inexorably into poverty.  The “have-nots” outnumber the “haves” about 1000 to 1.  Hondurans are gentle, friendly people; cheerful for the most part, accepting the fact of their poverty without being defeated, or made bitter by it.

Take the case of Francisco and Tierza, a couple to whom Harold introduced me. Francisco is pastor of a small rural church outside Siguatepeque. Francisco’s church is desperately poor. They pay him nothing . . . nada.  But that’s OK. Francisco doesn’t do it for money. He does it for the love of Jesus.  They survive because Tierza is a potter. Francisco makes regular trips into the mountains behind their tiny home, and returns with his oxcart (yes – oxcart, complete with oxen) loaded with a particular kind of clay, and with firewood to heat the kiln. Tierza shapes simple but graceful pottery, and fires it in an old kiln that her Xicaque ancestors would have recognized instantly. Its not nearly enough, but the goats and the garden help. They manage, somehow.  

Francisco walks everywhere. He has no vehicle, so visits to congregation members, or to the hospital, or to pastors meetings, all have to be done on foot. He preaches the saving work of Jesus Christ every Sunday, and from all accounts is a pretty good evangelist. But he is very limited, because he has not a single reference book; not a concordance, or a bible dictionary or a commentary of any kind. You see, a good Concordance or a Study Bible costs about $35.00 US. That’s a month’s income for them.  Think about what you make in a month, and ask yourself how many books you would buy if every one cost you a month’s salary.

Helping folks like Francisco and Tierza is where the joy of giving finds it fullest expression.
A small motorcycle, a couple of good books, and a decent dress for Tierza, would transform their lives. And it would be so easy for us.  We can experience the joy of giving at its most basic, and most satisfying level. There are a thousand faithful CAM pastors like Francisco scattered all across Central America. You can help. Will you?