Honduras Update 1: Support Raising

I am currently undertaking the most substantial task that I have ever attempted to undertake. In order to understand that and the rest of this blog, you must first know two things, both of which you may already be aware of:

1.  I am moving to Honduras for one year to share the gospel and make disciples through the use of construction.

2.  I am raising 100% of my support before I leave for Honduras.

Had you asked me four months ago, I would have told you that I was out-of-my-mind excited about #1 and that #2 was only a necessary evil that had to be accomplished before I could get on with #1.

If you were to ask me now, I would tell you that I am even more than out-of-my-mind excited about #1.  My thoughts on #2 however have changed.  God has humbled me in my outlook.  He has show me that He is in control and that I control nothing.  I want to share with you some of the attitudes that I have been broken of and some of the things God is teaching me during this process.  I don't want you to know these things so that you can see how I have matured in my approach to support raising.  I want you to know about these things so that you will see how great God is, and how small I am.  I also want to show you how expansive an impact we could have on the Kingdom if we would just believe these two truths, truths that God is making painfully evident in my life right now.


1. God is big.  I have tried to convince myself of many different reasons as to why it makes sense to raise support: 1. It's biblical.  Paul raised support.  Even Jesus' ministry was supported financially by a third party.  2.  It'll make me trust God.  It'll making me rely on his faithfulness.  3.  I get to involve others in the Great Commission.  By partnering with supporters, I allow them to share a part of my ministry.  All three of these reasons are justified, but I'm not convinced that they're the main reason why God would have me raise my own support.  I believe the reason is this:

If I didn't raise my support, it'd be too easy.  If I didn't raise my support, there would be no development, no struggle.  These points culminate into one ultimate: if I didn't raise my support, God wouldn't receive the glory due him.  If God wants to receive the glory due him in this process, then why not do it through the most unlikely of circumstances?  If I had an extra $30,000 laying around and was able to just hop on a plane for Honduras, where is God in that?  If I had a check handed to me each month to cover my expenses, nobody would see that and say "Wow, look at what God has done!"  If I've learned anything, it's that God's ways are higher.  While my means are motivated by selfish ends (to get to Honduras quicker, to not have to "worry" about support, to not look incapable), God's means are motivated by a very specific end: the advancement of his glory.

I'll explain it further this way:  if you take a look at just a few of the "Bible heroes", as we like to call them, God brings glory to himself in a similar way.  He never chooses the most popular, or the most polished, or the most well respected to accomplish his will.  In fact, it's quite the opposite.  He used a murderer and adulterer in David to bring about the lineage of Christ.  He chose a liar and a coward in Peter to build his church on.  He entrusted 12 common men, men with zero societal clout, with the task of spreading Christianity to the rest of the world.  God has a habit of accomplishing his purpose through the most unlikely people in the most unlikely circumstances so that he gets more glory out of it.  When someone looks at David, a murderer and adulterer, and sees the lineage directly to the savior of the world, they can't explain it apart from God.  So when someone looks at me,  a poor college graduate who lives in a camper, and sees what I have accomplished to get to Honduras, they too can't explain it apart from God.

2. Pray hard.  A second reason why I am thankful for raising support is because it has taught me to pray. It has taught me to pray hard.  It has taught me to physically hit my knees, grab hold of the horns of the altar, and pray hard until I have assurance that God has heard me, and even then, not to stop, but to continue to petition the only One who is able to provide.  If I wasn't up against such an unattainable task, I wouldn't be forced to rely on God for my every need.  I wouldn't be forced to daily petition God to raise up faithful partners with whom I can work to advance His kingdom in Honduras.  So, even if it appears that all my efforts in support raising are being done in vain, I can say this at the very least: it has taught me to pray.

I do not, however, think that my efforts are in vain.  I do, in fact, believe that God hears my prayers.  And I do, for sure, believe that God is receiving glory.  I confidently say these things because God has already begun to prove his faithfulness as I am well over halfway to my goal of being 100% funded.  My goal for departure for Honduras has been January.  I still cannot say if I will make my goal, but I am often reminded that it is just that, my goal.  My goal means nothing.  All that matters is that my support is raised according to God's plan.   It is not easy to relinquish control in this matter, but that is when God is glorified.

If you would like to know more about my support raising, its progress, or how you could get involved, please do not hesitate to contact me about it (trussell@caminoglobal.org).  I find joy and excitement in being able to involve more people in what God is doing here.

I can't wait to write again on the progress God is making in this journey.  I would ask you to pray alongside me that God would continue to raise up faithful partners for the spread of His gospel and the advancement of His kingdom.

In Christ...