HOPE
It’s such a small little word for such a significant thing. It seems like there should be a few more syllables and perhaps an accent placed somewhere. The word is overused to the point of being totally useless & trite and sometimes seems far from each of our experiences. Our world is broken, we see it every day. The needs are vast and the solutions seem few. This is the world we live in and as a global community it seems that our hope source has dwindled to a tiny stream. In fact, hope is so lost in the shuffle of our modern experience, that when we come face to face with it—it stops us in our tracks. Why do you think so many people watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition? It’s all about deserving people being given a dose of physical hope. Why do I love the movie Hoosiers and watch it at least once every year? It’s about a group of Indiana farm boys that together work to realize their hope of beating those big city ball players. And why is the story of Narnia a classic? It’s all about the hope of Aslan. His life-saving sacrifice followed by his triumphant return.
HOW ENLACE DOES HOPE
And over the last few years, the hope in El Salvador has not only stopped me, but has me packing my bags! In these communities, there is dignity present. There is joy. And mostly there is hope. When a mother is able to provide clean & healthy water to her child, a hope is born that she would have never known previously. When a father is able to provide a library where his kids can study and do better in school, again a new hope is created. And when a church partners with their community & listens & acts out of love & selflessly serves, another kind of hope is begun! Dave McGee, Enlace’s Communications Director, sent me this in an email and I love the nuts and bolts description of some of the hope growing via the work of ENLACE. He said:
ENLACE is all about helping illuminate the opportunity lying just below the surface. Henri Nouwen explained this concept beautifully in his journal about ministry in Central America called Gracias. He said:
It’s a beautiful blend of empowerment and practical training. And after 14 years, it’s working! In a war-scared country like El Salvador, this is the hope for communities in generations to come. I know that sounds awfully esoteric and lofty—and I guess it is—but it’s true. And that amazes me! That I truly believe that ENLACE, through God’s power, can and will bring restoration to an entire country one person and project at a time. Ooo, I have goose bumps I am so excited!
WHY I FEEL LIKE I WON THE LOTTERY
God is working—God is restoring—and I get to be a part of it! Earlier I said that hope seems to be dwindling in our world, but in my life I have found a hope that has changed my perspective, changed my heart and is changing my address. While I know there is a lot of hard work before me, all of the sacrifices seem like cake in comparison to what God has done and is doing. And I know some of you are non-believers or atheists or agnostics or blissfully ambivalent, but I firmly believe that Christ is the ultimate source of all hope. And He is leading me to El Salvador. Crazy, but true. And crazier still, I cannot wait to go and see His face shining through the villagers! I can’t wait to see Him create miracles—to restore people—to show the wealth that is within the hearts of the villagers there. Yes, I will be part of an organization that is working on “eliminating poverty in sustainable ways”, but so much more than that, I am going to become a laborer of hope. I am going to El Salvador because I have felt the hand of God in my life and He is guiding me to go and share life there. I believe that I will be able to bring some gifts to that place and I believe that El Salvador will richly gift me back. And I believe that you should come along with me!
I have been approved by both ENLACE’s El Salvador & US leadership and I have signed my affiliation agreement. This means a few things. First that I definitely get to go. And while I had a good feeling that all was going to work out, I am absolutely exuberant now that I have signed the form, have a legal title (the contract calls me “the project operator”—how cool is that?!) and can begin the next step: fundraising.
It’s such a small little word for such a significant thing. It seems like there should be a few more syllables and perhaps an accent placed somewhere. The word is overused to the point of being totally useless & trite and sometimes seems far from each of our experiences. Our world is broken, we see it every day. The needs are vast and the solutions seem few. This is the world we live in and as a global community it seems that our hope source has dwindled to a tiny stream. In fact, hope is so lost in the shuffle of our modern experience, that when we come face to face with it—it stops us in our tracks. Why do you think so many people watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition? It’s all about deserving people being given a dose of physical hope. Why do I love the movie Hoosiers and watch it at least once every year? It’s about a group of Indiana farm boys that together work to realize their hope of beating those big city ball players. And why is the story of Narnia a classic? It’s all about the hope of Aslan. His life-saving sacrifice followed by his triumphant return.
HOW ENLACE DOES HOPE
And over the last few years, the hope in El Salvador has not only stopped me, but has me packing my bags! In these communities, there is dignity present. There is joy. And mostly there is hope. When a mother is able to provide clean & healthy water to her child, a hope is born that she would have never known previously. When a father is able to provide a library where his kids can study and do better in school, again a new hope is created. And when a church partners with their community & listens & acts out of love & selflessly serves, another kind of hope is begun! Dave McGee, Enlace’s Communications Director, sent me this in an email and I love the nuts and bolts description of some of the hope growing via the work of ENLACE. He said:
For the church, a need can frequently be turned into an opportunity by
maximizing what is available, not focusing on what is missing. The church is a
continuous reservoir of resources (from Ron’s
blog). ENLACE has worked primarily with churches of less than 100 members
located in impoverished, rural areas of El Salvador. Many of the church leaders
believed they did not have the financial or human resources to become effective
agents of change in their community. As soon as they looked at their church more
closely and began to partner with their community, they discovered a wealth of
skills and resources within their congregations. Churches already had, or could
develop quickly, great fundraising skills and could pool resources together
effectively. They also had a deep commitment to stewardship and compassion which
made them an endless reservoir of resources to transform their communities.
ENLACE is all about helping illuminate the opportunity lying just below the surface. Henri Nouwen explained this concept beautifully in his journal about ministry in Central America called Gracias. He said:
The true skill of ministry is to help fearful and often oppressed men and women
become aware of their own gifts, by receiving them in gratitude. In that
sense, ministry becomes the skill of active dependency: willing to be dependent
on what others have to give but often do not realize they have.
It’s a beautiful blend of empowerment and practical training. And after 14 years, it’s working! In a war-scared country like El Salvador, this is the hope for communities in generations to come. I know that sounds awfully esoteric and lofty—and I guess it is—but it’s true. And that amazes me! That I truly believe that ENLACE, through God’s power, can and will bring restoration to an entire country one person and project at a time. Ooo, I have goose bumps I am so excited!
WHY I FEEL LIKE I WON THE LOTTERY
God is working—God is restoring—and I get to be a part of it! Earlier I said that hope seems to be dwindling in our world, but in my life I have found a hope that has changed my perspective, changed my heart and is changing my address. While I know there is a lot of hard work before me, all of the sacrifices seem like cake in comparison to what God has done and is doing. And I know some of you are non-believers or atheists or agnostics or blissfully ambivalent, but I firmly believe that Christ is the ultimate source of all hope. And He is leading me to El Salvador. Crazy, but true. And crazier still, I cannot wait to go and see His face shining through the villagers! I can’t wait to see Him create miracles—to restore people—to show the wealth that is within the hearts of the villagers there. Yes, I will be part of an organization that is working on “eliminating poverty in sustainable ways”, but so much more than that, I am going to become a laborer of hope. I am going to El Salvador because I have felt the hand of God in my life and He is guiding me to go and share life there. I believe that I will be able to bring some gifts to that place and I believe that El Salvador will richly gift me back. And I believe that you should come along with me!
I have been approved by both ENLACE’s El Salvador & US leadership and I have signed my affiliation agreement. This means a few things. First that I definitely get to go. And while I had a good feeling that all was going to work out, I am absolutely exuberant now that I have signed the form, have a legal title (the contract calls me “the project operator”—how cool is that?!) and can begin the next step: fundraising.
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Got your card in the mail today and we're pledging $25 a month for you. We know it's not much but we want you to know how much we believe in the work you and this organization is doing.
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