March 2020
Dear Luke 9:2 Ministries Supporter,
We hope that this letter finds you and all the members of your family both healthy and safe in this tough and scary time. As we are sheltering in place, we hope that God will use this time to bring you closer to Him, to deepen your trust that he has a plan for you, and that you are confident it is a plan for your good. God assures us of this in Jeremiah 29:11 when He says, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
As the world scrambles to address the new corona virus and we can no longer go in the stores and purchase anything we need or want, we might forget that there are people who cannot afford to go in stores even in better times. These are people who often live without basic food and necessities as a way of life. Today, as we are being asked not to go to our doctors unless we have a severe medical emergency, we need to remember that there are people who can never go to the doctor no matter how severe their medical emergency, simply because they cannot pay for that help or that help is too far from where they live. Luke 9:2 Ministries exists to serve people who have nowhere else to turn. With the additional worry of COVID-19, the need is even greater for the people of Honduras.
Unfortunately, we have had to cut back some of the services we offer due to health warnings and various travel bans. We have checked with Dr. Jorge Ponce, the in-country doctor we support through this ministry and so far, he is well. But, he is working even harder than before to support the 21 communities Luke 9:2 Ministries serves. We have been unable to send people to do the critical water trip we do in early spring, which brings clean water to communities to eliminate the sicknesses caused by parasites in their normal water supply. Unfortunately, due to health concerns, we cannot hold the Pastor Training session this quarter as we have done for the last four years. Also, we are waiting to see if it is possible to send a medical team in September that follows up each year on all the work done by the January medical team.
You have been a supporter of Luke 9:2 Ministries either by packing pills, praying for our endeavors and/or making a contribution. We need your support now more than ever – especially your prayer support. In no particular order, we are asking you to pray for the health of Dr. Ponce as he continues to serve in Luke 9:2 Ministries’s name, for the health of the people of Honduras we serve, for the volunteers that we depend upon to sign up each year to serve with us, for the pastors we are training to not be discouraged, knowing we will be pursuing the training as soon as we feel it is safe to send our instructors again, and for the Board – that we make the right decisions in balancing the needs of those we serve, all of whom are impacted by this new threat.
We deeply appreciate you and all that you have done in supporting Luke 9:2 Ministries. God bless you and keep you healthy and safe.
Beth Ann Yakes, MD
Chairman, Luke 9:2 Ministries