God has given us a clear direction on where He wants us to be!
It has been almost a year and a half since we first met with the board of Forgotten Children Ministries to interview as full time missionaries. Since that time we have been sharing our call with churches, Sunday school classes, and individuals. We are very thankful for the opportunities that God has given us to share with you and we would ask that you would continue to pray for us. Building our support base before we go is very important and Forgotten Children Ministries will not allow us to go until this is done. The last thing that they want is for us to have to come home due to lack of funds. We realize that this takes a great deal of faith from our supporters and we thank you for your continued support during this process. We also realize that we are living in tough economic times but we know that our God is bigger and greater than any economic issue.
After spending this past week in Honduras we were amazed at Richie and Lori Womack, the only current missionaries serving in Honduras with FCM, and the work load that they have. We are very much looking forward to being able to help and serve along side this amazing couple! We feel so blessed that God has called us to serve in Honduras full time and we know that we must wait on the Lord to raise up both financial partners as well as prayer partners to join us on this journey of rescuing the perishing. Would you prayerfully consider joining us?
For more information on Forgotten Children Ministries please view their web site at www.forgottenchildrenministries.org
If you are interested in making a donation there is a "Donate Now" button in the upper right hand corner of the Forgotten Children Ministries web site. If you would like to send a donation directly to FCM you can do so by mailing it to: Forgotten Children Ministries, P.O. Box 24085, Chattanooga, TN. 37422, noting Brian and Stephanie Foster in the memo portion of your check.
If you would like us to share about Forgotten Children Ministries with you or your Sunday Schhol class or church, please contact us at sfoster120@yahoo.com.
We thank you in advance for your prayers and financial support. God bless you.
In Christ,
Brian and Stephanie
Brian was able to get on the computer a couple of days to post some updates from our trip. I thought I would TRY to recap the week as well. I say this every time that I go, but Honduras is always so hard for me to leave. As we drove through the impoverished city, I sat quietly in the back seat of the truck trying to take in everything that was happening around me. Children were begging for money, the corrupt police were out in force, people were selling all kinds of who knows what just so they could survive for another day, houses with billboard signs as walls and a refrigerator door as their front door and kids walking around huffing glue so they wont feel their hunger anymore. I still have days where I wonder why all of the above is so hard for me to leave. I guess this is one of those things that I cant over think and I have to realize that God, and only God, has put a passion for this country in my heart.
We arrived in Tegucigalpa on Saturday and met our missionary friends Richie and Lori Womack at the airport. We spent the rest of the afternoon settling in, buying groceries and having dinner with our friends. On Sunday we headed out to Monte Redondo to attend church at Noah's Ark Baptist Church and then we headed to the Farm to see the boys. We spent the day hanging out with boys, meeting some new ones, having lunch and of course playing soccer! We spent most of our day just talking and catching up with the boys!
On Monday morning we headed out to Monte Redondo (Grace Farm or Finca Grace) and on the way into the village Richie dropped Lori, Christy and I off at a house across from the church. The Mother of the home had been away for several days with the youngest daughter who has been struggling with anemia and was hospitalized. The oldest daughter Ziamarah, who just turned 16 in December, was left in charge of the house and the rest of the children. A Uncle has recently been trying to marry her off to an older man so that the Mother would have one less mouth to feed. Lori thought it would be a good idea for us to head over and teach her how to make jewelry, starting with earrings so that she could go down town or into the village and sell them to make some money so that she could be somewhat self sufficient and possibly even go to school. So we sat down for part of the afternoon showing Ziamarah and a friend of hers how to make earrings. Hopefully a trade that she can develop and grow! Please keep Ziamarah in your prayers. Pray that this innocent girl will not be forced into marriage and that God will provide for her needs. We walked to the farm to meet up with Richie, Gordon and Brian who were working on a house for three ladies all who are in their 90's and the other is 106! They were recently kicked out of their home, so the ministry built a new home for them. Brian, Gordon and Richie were adding the final details of framing and installing windows, doors, trim work and grading the property for a garden. We helped some in the kitchen and then headed back to Cerro Grande.
Tuesday and Wednesday the guys had errands in town and then they finished the house for the ladies. Some of the boys helped out as well which is always a great thing to see. Lori, Christy and I taught an English class with the staff ladies. It was fun to watch them laugh at themselves as they tried to speak English and put sentences together. It was encouraging to talk in simple phrases with them during the rest of the week. We also started writing the annual sponsorship letters with the boys. It may sound simple enough. But think how difficult it is to sit down with your own kids to write thank yous...now times that by 50 and you have quite a task on your hands! Even still it was great quality time with the kids. On Wednesday Brian and Richie took a little girl named Nellie Alana to a Baptist Medical Clinic in a nearby town. This little girl had missed close to a year of school due to urinary issues. By God's providential hand, they were able to meet with a Honduran doctor and get the referral she needed to see a specialist.
Thursday was an amazing day. The house was finally complete and we were able to move the ladies into there new home. After being evicted from there previous home these beautiful ladies were overwhelmed to finally own their own house. As Richie handed them the key they wiped the tears from their eyes. Can you imagine being 106 and finally owning a house? What a blessing!! Please see the pictures in our photos of the ladies in their new house.
Friday we went to the Farm to say good bye to the boys. The above are just a few highlights from our trip. It was great to see how much the boys have grown as well as to meet some of the amazing new kids who have just entered the ministry. I know in time that they will feel at home just as the others have. Please pray for FCM, the boys and the staff. The enemy is alive and well in Honduras and does not want to see these amazing kids succeed. We know that our God is bigger than the enemy and ultimately His work will be carried out in them.
Thank you for your prayers! God bless!
Brian and Stephanie
