WHAT DOES CHRISTMAS MEAN FOR A PERSON MOTIVATED BY FAITH?

Christmas calls us to remember the hope brought to us by the Son of God. For team members of a faith-based organization, this hope takes shape in an alternative vision about what the world should look like. In a world filled with violence, fear, injustice and oppression, Jesus offers a vision of peace, love, justice and emancipation. 

It is precisely in the condition of hopelessness that the story of Christ matters. In the midst of the despair we sometimes feel while reading the news, Christmas offers hope. The actions of one courageous person can ripple out. They can inspire transformational change in the way people see poverty and their relationship to it, and their responsibility to take action for justice.

For Agros, Christmas also calls on us to recommit to realizing this alternative vision. Our hope is active and messy, and it calls for concrete action. The boy of Nazareth, devoted to a promise, dedicated his life to connecting authentically with every human being he met, to concretely alleviating suffering, and to the belief that everyone could take radical, counter-cultural action for justice, as He did. He is a constant reminder of the work each of us can do to improve the suffering of even one family like our own.

What does this mean for Agros International? In our mind, it means at least two things:

1. Every decision we make must come from the lens of helping our families, not our bottom line. We are about working closely with poor landless families and restoring their hope and opportunity, not giving hand outs. Our programs aim to empower and provide true emancipation to these families by building vibrant communities, where agriculture businesses can flourish along with a sense of purpose and solidarity .
2. Good intentions aren’t enough. We must use Jesus’s hands-on, active commitment to realizing justice as our guide. Everything we do should be done with excellence, with rigor, with skill, with all of our minds and with all our hearts. Without hope and perseverance, our mission is only a dream. Without a clear strategy and metrics to measure our outcomes, our promise to families & you is only smoke. At Agros we are committed to realizing justice and while we recognize that our mission is complex and hard to achieve, we are making continuous improvements and adjustments to our operations and model to increase our effectiveness. We are certain that the efforts of our staff and donors are valuable, as we firmly believe that they emulate Jesus’ teachings. 

Today we are reminded of the story of a boy named Jesus – born in a small village to refugee parents – who created a life anchored in faith and devoted to transformational change. His vision provides hope to Yaris and Carlos, parents we met in Nueva Esperanza in Nicaragua, who can now provide three nutritious meals a day to their son. It gives meaning to Juan in Bella Vista in Honduras, who feels pride in being able to send his children to school.

With Christmas at our doorstep, as the year comes to an end, we are inspired to remember our hope and renew our commitment to realizing Jesus’s vision.  

Thank you for believing in Agros, for believing in our mission, for walking alongside the hundreds of families in our villages in Central America, and for your prayers, contributions and trust.

May God bless you abundantly!