Serving At The Crossroads

Letter from Lisa Armstrong

Lisa Armstrong is a young, American nurse and missionary who runs a rural, mountain clinic an hour and a half from La Entrada. Fellow Man International, (www.fellowmaninternational.com), whose ecumenical mission is to work with those who are impoverished in body and spirit, sponsors her work. Members of our team had met and gotten to know her during previous visits. On our recent trip her medical, cultural, social and linguistic knowledge, experience and skills were of great value as we developed the clinic plans with our Honduran colleagues. Subsequent to our trip, she sent us the following email:

Dear Paul,

Thank you so much for your letter. It was very special to meet all of you. I had a truly wonderful time while your group was here. I wish that I had words to express my most profound gratitude for what you are doing for the Honduran people. I have seen so many projects that have been dedicated to the "good" of the poor but have so often been disappointed when I found them to be self-serving, self-glorifying and dependency oriented.

It has been so refreshing and inspiring to see your group work hand in hand with the people of La Entrada in the hopes of simply providing adequate support to help them realize their dreams for their own people. Not many are willing to work so selflessly. I have a friend who is a singer/songwriter whose name is Bryan Sirchio. He sings a song called "Being a nobody for Jesus". Thank God for people like you, who are willing to be a "nobody", quietly working behind the scenes to help one's fellow man, all for the glory of God. I feel it is an absolute privilege to be of assistance to you in any way that you might find helpful. Please know that I desire to help because I believe in what you are doing. My church provides an adequate salary for me so there is no need for compensation. I have already had my cup filled just by knowing your group and seeing the hope in the eyes of those you intend to serve. It fills me with joy to share with all of you and to know that perhaps together the "least of these", those who would come last, might have the chance to be first for once and to know that Jesus is alive through these works.

May God bless you abundantly as you bless his children. If there is ever anything that you need, please do not hesitate to contact me.

In His Service, Lisa Armstrong