Hope Works!

It’s the season of Advent – a time of anticipation.  I’ve been reflecting on the notion of anticipation. Perhaps the “patron saint of anticipation” is the young woman Mary. We meet her early in the Gospels — this pregnant teenager on her way to Bethlehem, or waiting out the birth of her first child in a borrowed barn.  What does anticipation look like from Mother Mary’s perspective?

She was living in some strange circumstances; immaculate conception, angel visitations, long arduous journey to Bethlehem, no room in the inn… I imagine that there were many thoughts and feelings – wonder, confusion, fear. Seems to me fear would have been the most dominant. And in the midst of all of those thoughts and feelings the strongest turned out to be hope (check out Mary’s Song in Luke 1:46-55). 

Fear is strong, but hope is stronger. 

I’m just back from Nicaragua, a place of deep poverty and despair for some… and where fear sometimes dominates. Yet, I was overwhelmed by the signs of hope. 

I had the opportunity to attend a graduation of 30 women who had completed 4 months of training that certified them to establish a village bank in their community of El Carmen. Ten of those 30 women had completed the business planning and credit review process to receive their first loan. It’s amazing what just $300 presents as possibility in the hands of a women entrepreneur. Hope Works!

The next day I visited the site of Agros’ Harvest of Hope Center that was being inaugurated as a regional hub for the incubation of profitable agribusinesses that will serve 100’s of families over the next 5 years, and 1000’s over the next decade. We met 20 of our first cohort of producers that were starting out their first months of training in the Farmer’s Academy. They had just planted their first field of Nataly chili peppers under the cover of their first mesh house. I wish you could see their faces. I’ve come to be capable of recognizing hope and dignity on the face and from the heart of a rural landless farmer. Hope Works!

The next day I visited the home of a woman named Aurora standing in the threshold of her very simple home holding her beautiful 3-year-old child. She invited me into her home and on into the kitchen. With a big smile on her face, she invited me to turn the tap on the newly installed PVC over the sink.  Water gushed forth. First time ever in her life she had running water in her home.  Hope Works!

The thing we learn about hope – from both Mary and Nicaraguan families – is that hope is both a gift and a choice.  Because of your generosity Agros is an instrument of God’s gift of hope in the lives of rural families in Central America.  Because of your generosity, Agros families face the challenges and opportunities of their lives with hope and hard work. Hope Works!

Wishing you great joy and peace this Christmas.