This week our transition groups went to the capital Tegucigalpa to spend time with street pastor Alvin Anderson and take part in his ministry “Manos Extendidas.” (http://mehonduras.com) We went to see his feeding centres and schools in the mountains surrounding the capital, in areas with high level of analphabetic population and poverty. Later we went to a female youth prison where we participated in a church service, played soccer and spend time chatting or playing board games. The fact that the youth in the prison had about the same age as the youth from Emmanuel that we brought, made it possible for them to mirror themselves in each other, and it definitely had an impact on both group of youth. In the evening, we packed the minivan with food and soda preparing ourselves to go on the streets and hand it out to the people living there. During the night we would drive to different locations, and though it was raining and cold in the night, people came running towards the van and our group of teenagers who would have to hand out the food, chat with the teenagers living on the streets or play with the kids. The idea is that more than just food would be exchanged during the night. We want the Emmanuel youth to take home some kind of experience or touch, and we want the people on the streets to feel like they are being served by real people, in flesh and blood, who love them, and therefore the talking and chatting was an important part of the experience.
Pastor Alvin’s ministry is build on a relationship between giver and receiver, and he knows most of the youth on the street and they know him; personally. This serves as a reminder to those of us who regularly donate money to charity, but lack personal relationship with the people we are willing to serve. Receiving a needed bowl of food from a dear friend, or from a big robotic organisation, is not the same thing. Loving your neighbour is more than just distant acts of charity.
The reason we went through all of this and bringing the Emmanuel youth to the streets, is that we want to show them how reality is on the outside, and what sort of consequences might come, if they are not serious about managing their life well, when they will one day leave the comfort and safety of orphanage Emmanuel.
The trip definitely made an impact on the youth, and during our evaluation with the youth, one had the comment: “If I hadn’t gotten to Emmanuel, I would have been out there on the streets with the rest of them, or somewhere worse.”
- We wish to build leaders to change the society.
Pastor Alvin’s ministry is build on a relationship between giver and receiver, and he knows most of the youth on the street and they know him; personally. This serves as a reminder to those of us who regularly donate money to charity, but lack personal relationship with the people we are willing to serve. Receiving a needed bowl of food from a dear friend, or from a big robotic organisation, is not the same thing. Loving your neighbour is more than just distant acts of charity.
The reason we went through all of this and bringing the Emmanuel youth to the streets, is that we want to show them how reality is on the outside, and what sort of consequences might come, if they are not serious about managing their life well, when they will one day leave the comfort and safety of orphanage Emmanuel.
The trip definitely made an impact on the youth, and during our evaluation with the youth, one had the comment: “If I hadn’t gotten to Emmanuel, I would have been out there on the streets with the rest of them, or somewhere worse.”
- We wish to build leaders to change the society.