And Jesus said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.” - Mark 16:15

I invite you to a transformational journey of body and spirit. In February 2019, I and some of your brothers and sisters are returning to Honduras to visit with our friends at the LAMB Institute in Tegucigalpa. Come and see. The LAMB Institute is a multifaceted ministry including a school in a marginal community in the capital city, a group home for children, a micro -loan program for small business start-ups, a soccer program to counter gang membership, and an antisex trafficking effort. Founded in 1999 by Suzy McCall, the LAMB Institute is now led and staffed by Hondurans with Suzy, an ordained priest, serving as the spiritual director for the ministry. This will be the third team from Good Shepherd to make this journey and it will be my sixth visit to LAMB. I anticipate having my body and spirit challenged. I anticipate laughter and tears. I anticipate making a difference and coming home different.

Some wonder about the value of such trips, questioning whether they are worth the expense, whether they have lasting value, and whether we should not instead focus on local or national missions. When thinking about those questions, I think about the friends that I and others have made with whom we remain in touch. I think about how I know something of the lives of Ariel, Jose Luis, Angel, Amanda, and Wendy. I think of the hopes and dreams they have shared and the photos of their families. And I know that a North American taking time to come and see them means a lot. We work together and we share, but it really is being present that seems to matter most. Is there lasting value? We are building relationships as well as lasting structures.

Some are called to serve locally and some beyond the local community. The Spirit speaks to others to leave the land they know. Saint Paul said that he was commissioned by the one Spirit to be an apostle to the Gentiles as others were commissioned to serve the community in and around Jerusalem. There is no competition here where serving beyond our local community means something proximate will be shortchanged. Our faith is in a God of abundance who will provide for the work to which we are called, whether that is locally, nationally, or abroad. I encourage you to find your place for serving the world outside of the parish and to pray for the guidance of the Spirit in that endeavor. For those who feel called, for those who are wondering, I invite you to come and see what God is doing among our Christian brothers and sisters in Honduras.

Inquirer’s meetings will be held Saturday, May 19 and May 26 at 10am.