Alvin’s December Newsletter

by admin on December 3, 2011

Merry Christmas from the Andersons

It has become such a custom this time of year to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy/ Prosperous New Year before turning to our profit and loss sheets to determine whether last year really was prosperous or not.

Last week, after Nelly and I finished breakfast, our conversation went toward how many people have eaten around our table. At that point, we attempted to count the number of people from the 21 teams we hosted this year: 14 from North America, (including Canada), and 7 from Denmark. Then, we began counting those from Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama that have stayed with us. We are joyful that God has used us to have part in the lives of more than 600 people through our home during the past twelve months!

This morning, both Nelly and I woke up thinking about a young local man, Carlos Maradiaga, 25, whom I bought home to spend a night with us.

Carlos was about to commit suicide in his bedroom. As a waiter at his sister’s restaurant, he remembered serving our table. (Note: His sister, now 30, lived with us for one year when she was 15.) Carlos said, “Papi Alvin, just before I was going to end my life, I thought of you. I didn’t have your number, but I remembered seeing Annie on Facebook. I asked her for your number, and she replied immediately.”

I picked Carlos up the day he called and took him to eat. He had been on a four-day drug and alcohol high and had not eaten. Later, I brought him to our home for the night. The next morning at our table, he gave his life to the Lord. Yesterday, he told Nelly that his life has not been the same since then.

ISAIAH 58:10-12

“Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever- flowing spring. Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities. Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls and a restorer of homes.”

As I contemplate this verse, I am reminded of the 26-pound pumpkin I harvested from our garden this morning. I think about our activities and the people who have passed through our lives during the year and I am reminded that we would all do well to practice these verses, not just during the holidays but every day. Our actions in obedience to the Lord, and willingness to be a light in the darkness is a much better measurement of our past year’s success than any number on a balance sheet.

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Vehicle woes continue

by admin on June 20, 2011

Nissan Urvan

This is the Nissan Urvan

One of the main tools our ministry uses has become one of our greatest needs. On a daily basis we are transporting our girls from our home for abused teenage girls, others who fellowship and volunteer their time in our ministry, and our families. We bring these people to church and to the various places where we are working with the youth in Honduras. In all, we are transporting a minimum of 15 people a day and when we have mission teams working with us that number is between 25 to 30 people. Without the ability to transport all of these people our ability to meet the needs of our people is greatly impaired. Over the last 6 months we have suffered an unending string of vehicle troubles. Just this last week the motor in our van, which was recently replaced along with the transmission, burned up. Another car we use for our girls home broke down and left all of our girls stranded along side the road. And another car we were using for transporting teams also broke down with a bad fuel pump. The two cars are in the shop and we simply can’t afford to fix the van. Our desire is to purchase a new van that would seat 15 people. Eventually we would like to have 2 vans to meet the needs of our growing ministry. We are looking to purchase a Nissan Urvan or a Toyota Hiace which are both available here in Honduras. Vehicles that are available in Honduras is important for us to be able keep them maintained. Some people have asked if they could ship a used van to us. Unfortunately, in order to ship a van here it would have to be less than 10 years old and would need to be one common to the country so that parts and maintenance are available. The Nissan or Toyota van is $24,000. We are seeking those who would be willing to help us meet this need. We have had one pledge of $10,000 so we are almost half way to purchasing our first van.

You can give to this need right on this website by clicking the blue “Donate Now” button and then select “New Van” from the designation drop down list.

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A Tribute to Dixia

by admin on May 23, 2011

Dixia is Pastor Juan and Irma’s daughter. She lived with her family upstairs at Feeding Center #1. Many of you will remember her as the young girl who was paralyzed from the waist down and would sit in the doorway upstairs watching the world around her. The following was written by Randy and Judy Lundrigan about her passing early Sunday morning. Her funeral is today.

Dixia

Many of you will remember Dixia that we talked about in newsletters in the past. Dixia was paralyzed from the waist down when she was just 2 years old due to an operation she had. She would sit all day in the doorway watching the other kids play. Whenever possible one of the guys would go and carry her downstairs so she could join in the activities. She had never been to school, never learned to read or write. She had a beautiful spirit and loved God a lot.

Some time ago Dixia had kidney problems and she has been in the hospital for the past two weeks so the recent team who came never had a chance to meet her. Two of those team members would remember her from the last time they visited.

Dixie’s parents struggled to see her suffering so much and she asked why they were crying so hard? She said “I am going to be with Jesus and I am going to be able to walk and dance”. Well that is where she is now; she is not on this earth anymore. Overnight the angels took her home.

Today we celebrated her short life of 18 years on this earth. It was very emotional for many of us as the church pulled together to say goodbye to our beloved Dixia this afternoon. To see her tiny body lying in the casket was overwhelming. But to know she is in the arms of the Lord and no longer is suffering brought some comfort to us.

Lilly, the little sister of about 8 years clung to the casket and cried her eyes out, as if she did not ever want to let go. It was heartbreaking to watch.

We never know when our time is up on this earth. Pastor Alvin preached a sobering message from Revelation 21:21-26 noting we all need to be ready for that day when our life is up for there really is an eternity to face and a choice we need to make.

Your prayers for the family would be greatly appreciated.

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They are not junk

by admin on May 7, 2011

The Vision and Call

There was a man who left the city and moved to live on the garbage dump. Every afternoon he would search through the dump for things people threw away but that he felt were still useful. One day he found a vase in perfectly good condition, however, it was dirty. He took it to his house, and washed it just using clean water and his hands.

Each time he returned to visit friends and relatives he took some gift for them. They always appreciated the gift and found a perfect place for it to be used. Yet they did not know he had moved to the dump.

It was during my devotion time immediately after reading Matthew 15:30 that I was shown this story. It was January of 1979, I had been a believer for 11 months. God has used many things and more than 15 years to bring me to the reality of that vision and call.

Fifteen (15) Years and Counting

On May 26, 1996, Nelly, Annie & I arrived here in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. I had already been In mission work for 16 years before arriving here. I look back at those year in Nicaragua and Belize as training time for what we are presently doing.

While the people we minister too are not garbage, they are treated as social rejects. They are children and teens that live in poverty, have been abused and/or exploited in every way. They are the ones in youth correctional because they were never taught the way to grow with right thinking. They are the ones that live on the streets, they steal from others, they are involved in gangs, they are the ones that sell their bodies and become addicted to substances that destroy there mind, bodies, and health.

They are like the ones that people bring out and dump, thinking they are of no use. They are the ones to whom God has called us.

OSNY ISABEL

Her mother died when she was six years old. Her father and others sexually abused her since she was 10. At age 15, one year ago, she was raped by 4 men while leaving the clinic where he worked as the cleaning person. After a nervous break down she spent several months in a mental hospital and at the government family and child services. From there we took her into the Eagle’s Nest, our girl’s home. You might ask why?

Because she is created in the imagine and likeness of God almighty and thus there is a divine purpose for her life. We simply want to be instruments in the hands of the Lord to help bring about those purposes. Osny has so much potential, but as you can imagine, she needs to get beyond the healing process, as well as all the other things needed for recovery. Those of you that have met her know that the beauty of her eyes reflect the beautiful work the Holy Spirit is doing in her heart. Pray with us for Osny.

The Anderson’s in Honduras

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Alvin’s March Newsletter

by admin on March 21, 2011

Growth, Growth, and more Growth

Our excitement concerning the growth of the believers at the boy’s detention center continues to cause great joy in our lives. A few months ago the disciple class room was the smallest room in the facility the government gave us to use to minister to the inmates. And the barber class room was the largest. Now, because of the growing number of believers, we have rotated the two.

Recently, I hosted 3 teams of people, all from Denmark. The last one was a group of 13. They listened in amazement as several of the boys shared their testimony of how they came from lives of murder, drug dealing, etc to now being transformed by the shed blood and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. One of the things that deeply impressed the Danish visitors was that when they asked the young men, ages 12 – 18, what they needed most, the boys replied “Bibles”. Needless to say their desire became a reality.

Even at church, our last count of the group of children between the ages of 3 – 9 have grown to 35. Thus, out growing their meeting room. (As well as an increasing number of babies that has been pushing our need for more nursery space).

By the time you receive this letter, we will be hosting a team of 12 from Michigan. It is our plan to have them remodel the area used for trade school on the second level of our facility. Chad Baron, our new administrative assistant has designed an excellent floor plan to meet these growing needs.

New Website

Speaking of remodeling; Chad also has remodeled our website. We deeply appreciate the compliments some of you have given. You can visit it at mehonduras.org

Education: A door way to opportunity

Classes began two weeks ago. Public school education in Honduras is free, however, the parents must purchase all their children’s school supplies. Education is one of the greatest hardships that most parents face in raising their kids.

Our belief at Manos Extendidas (Extended Hands) is: Education is a doorway to opportunity. It is for this reason, through our child sponsorship/assistance program, we assist over 150 children each year with school supplies, including complete uniforms, pencils, notebooks, and back packs.

As important as obtaining an education is, year after year the teacher’s union strikes have been crippling the public school system. Either delayed pay or discontentment with wages are the major reasons for the strikes. Last year the children missed a total of 4 months of classes due to strikes. Pray with us that God will move in the hearts of those responsible for these set backs in the future of the lives of the children.

The Anderson’s in Honduras.

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Ore Creek Team

by admin on March 16, 2011

We would like to say thank you to the team from Ore Creek Christian Church in Michigan for spending a week with us here in Honduras. While here they ministered in a variety of places and ways. They visited the feeding centers, juvenile detention center, Tiny Houses, the hospital, and the public schools. They also provided the funds to build a house for needy family and themselves built a new Sunday school room and a nursery in our church. Needless to say they had a very busy week!

As always, we were blessed by their selfless desire to come alongside the ministry of Manos Extendidas and serve here in Honduras.

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Car Troubles

by admin on March 8, 2011

One of the most essential tools of the ministry of Manos Extendidas is a vehicle for moving around a large number of people. Four times a week we transport a minimum of 13 people to church. That is a low number on a normal week. Often times we have teams visiting us from other countries such as the US, Canada, and Denmark. With a team the number of people we need to transport is usually between 20-30. For this purpose Alvin has a 15 passenger van. Or should we say, had a 15 passenger van.

A Dieing Van

The van was purchased in the states 2 years ago. Unfortunately, a vehicle designed to be driven in the states does not last long in the harsh conditions of Honduras. In January, the van decided to die. This is after putting nearly $19,000 into repairs over the last 2 years. Alvin took it to a mechanic who thought he had it fixed. However, it was still running a little rough but the mechanic said it just needed to be run good to get the crud out of the lifters. So Alvin took it out early one morning on the highway and ran it at 60MPH for about 3 minutes… until the transmission blew up. There were pieces of the transmission laying all over the highway. That was last week.

Dieing Rentals

This week we had a team of 12 people come in from Michigan. They flew into San Pedro Sula which is about 4 hours away (around 200 miles). Alvin rented a van for the week to transport the team. At 3 am, just as they were starting the 4 hour drive back to Tegucigalpa, the rental van died. After some time they were able to find taxi with a van to drive them back. The rental car company had no more vans so they gave Alvin a SUV and a car for the week. The next day the car died.

Help Stop the Madness!

I could go on with more stories – like the story about another rental van 2 weeks ago that blew the head gasket. The point is we need a new van and we need it soon. As a non-profit organization in Honduras, Manos Extendidas can purchase a new van tax-free. A van to meet our needs would cost $25,000. The ministry does not have that kind of money. So we are prayerfully asking God to provide someone who can help us out. Or maybe there are several someones who together could provide the funds needed. It doesn’t even have to be a gift but could also be in the form of a loan. If someone were able to provide the money upfront, the ministry would be able to make payments over a period of possibly 4 years. That is how the last van was purchased. You may ask, well why don’t you just borrow the money from a bank in Honduras or finance it through the car dealership? A loan of this type carries an annual interest rate of %16!

If you would like to help with this need please send us an email through the contact page on this site. We can then provide you with instructions for giving. All gifts are tax deductible.

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Alvin’s February Newsletter

by admin on February 21, 2011

Some of you receive Alvin’s newsletter in the mail. For those that don’t you can now start reading them here on our website. We will also start sending out an email newsletter soon. If you would like to receive the email newsletter please sign up here.

Baptism

The chilly cold water did not detour the 17 believers from going into the river to be baptized. (Though it was sooo cold pastor Marcus got really sick as result of being into the cold river. He washelping me with that service). The group consisted of members from each of our three congregations in the city. All of them had accepted Christ months previously and have shown faithful fruit since their conversion.

One of those baptized was 16 year old Osny. For the time, she is the newest of the girls at the Eagle’s Nest, our home for abused girls. Her mother died when she was 6. Though she lived with her aged grandmother, Osny has worked and put himself through school until last year when she was abused at different times, by various men, including her birth father.

She and many other Honduran kids are about to begin a new school year; and they will need our help.

School Begins

It is estimated that in Honduras, 326,944 children between the ages of 5-17 are part of the bread winners for their family. Their work rages from working on farms, on the garbage dump, cleaning windshields at traffic lights, or selling tortillas, fruit, vegetables and other items daily, to assist their families in obtaining money for food, shelter and education. Of this number, 257,311 are boys and the remaining 69,633 are girls. 76,583 of these boys work half day and go to school the other half. Among the girls, 33,459 work and study.

While much of this is illegal, it makes the difference between family survival or perishing, although their efforts produce an income of $1 –$3.00 daily!! Such a lifestyle exposes these kids to physical and sexual abuse, accidents, low self esteem, a life of poverty because of growing up illiterate, and substance abuse.

Nelanie in The USA

Annie is settling into her “different” inviroment in Arknasas. She will be finishing high school there. There are several reasons for moving her to the USA, one of which is she hopes to have her track ablity developed and discovered. Before leaving Honduras she gained the title of being the second fastest female runner in the country, and the fastest teenage female runner. Please help us to keep her before the Lord in prayer. Life in the USA is a challenge for any teen, and for her, after having grown up in another culture, it’s going to take a while for her to properly adjust to things in the Northern world.

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A Brand New Website

by admin on February 8, 2011

Thanks for checking out the brand new website for the ministry of Manos Extendidas. We hope you find it helpful and easy to use.

You have made it to our news section which is a brand new feature of this website. Because the site is new there isn’t much here yet. But I promise you, this is where you will find regular updates. We’ll be sharing stories about what is going on in the ministry as well as information about recent team visits. If you are a member of a team coming to visit us this year, you might just find your picture here in the news section.

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