I know it has been a while (months) since you have received an email report from me.Prior to coming to Honduras, I was involved in two Christian ministries, among others, that required the “going out” (“Go ye…”) to effect the sharing of the Gospel; one was a bus ministry and the other a ministry to unchurched teenagers in the community. It has been on my heart for years to work outside of the church house. Ministering to the alcoholics of the street (of which there are many in Honduras), the teenager who is at risk of dropping out of school and dropping into “parenthood,” and the street vendors of Tegucigalpa, many on drugs, struggling to earn money for food (and drugs), are some of the blessed opportunities to share “Christ crucified!”
Why would I care and have a passion to go where many believers won’t? It goes back to my youth, when as a seventeen-year-old I began to use drugs and eventually became an alcoholic. I didn’t end up in a “gutter” as many do. Oh no, I was a fine upstanding “functioning” alcoholic. Although I got the job done, a few times along the way I was introduced to a set of handcuffs and the inside of the jail house. What a burden I became to God, my loving parents, and to myself. And to think that at the age of 14 I acknowledged my fallen condition and need of the Savior. I became a black sheep of the flock and wandered for the better part of 22 years. Finally, broken and empty, and not unlike the prodigal son, I cried out to my heavenly Father. There is no one like my heavenly Father. With open arms He restored me to a more favorable place than the one of my wanderings. Today, what I see in the lost, broken, and wounded of this world is what I could have become permanently if not for the Grace of God. Lost to the streets, they live day to day without the hope of Glory, which is Christ.
Not long after coming to Honduras on May 27, 2014, I was told that there is a very large land fill in Tegucigalpa where people, some with children, work to salvage whatever they can to resell for subsistence. Like so much in this country and culture, that was a new one for me. During my first visit here on a Visionary Trip with Touch A Life, I saw a man going through the garbage at a dumpster. That was a wakeup call! As time has gone on I have been introduced more and more to the realities of this impoverished and corrupt country. One being crime that is dealt with very inconsistently at best, because of a porous and corrupt legal system.
We have now held meetings for three consecutive weeks at the land fill in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. Each visit has brought us closer to the people who work, and some even live, in the dump. It is very hot there, yet they labor in the filth and dust that is ever present. We are providing food, some clothing, and a request was made on Friday for baby formula. The lady told me she has a 6-month-old baby that is in need of nutrition. I am already providing formula for another lady who’s one year old is an invalid as a result of brain damage inflicted at the time of birth. Pastor Carlos Ochoa is bringing the message weekly, and I am taking advantage of opportunities to walk the property and witness. Invariably, I focus on the youth as I reflect on my wayward condition as a teenager and God’s redeeming power through Christ Jesus. *See pictures on Instagram
Since arriving in Honduras almost 5 years ago (May 27, 2014) with no set agenda other than to obey His call, the Lord has opened countless doors to ministry opportunities, most of which have been outside the “four walls” of the church house. On our last visit to the land fill in Tegucigalpa, as we were driving back to where my truck was parked, Pastor Carlos pointed to a church we were passing by. I know the pastor there and have attended services on several occasions. He jokingly said, “That’s Keith’s church!” I smiled and said no that’s not my church. He then responded, “Your church is the street, isn’t it?” That statement really grabbed me, and I realized that’s where my heart is.
I continue to assist Pastor Carlos in his ministry work, especially at the church in Suyapa, Iglesia Bautista Providencia. I will soon report to you the “what” and “why” of an educational ministry that has developed by the leading of the Lord. Many families, especially youth, continue to be blessed with funding for food, medicine, medical treatment, medical transportation, and educational support. Being that the great majority in this country live in poverty, your support of my work and these opportunities provides much needed relief to those with so little. Muchas gracias de mi corazón! (Many thanks from my heart!)
On a final note, for now, I provide assistance to the ministry through which the Lord brought me to Honduras. Final Frontiers/Touch A Life (Jon, Daniel, Michael, Edgardo, and Pedro) was the door to my place of ministry in Honduras. I am grateful to all that those ministries and individuals have provided, and continue to do so. And I am grateful for the support of all that you give (with your prayers) to fund these efforts. Above all else, I give praise and thanks to God as “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
Thank you for your prayers and support Final Frontiers Foundation
Keith Penny P. O. Box 507
Louisville, GA 30434