The Project

I just found out my project assignment for EMI. It consists of a missions base and training center near Danli, Honduras. Here is the description from EMI:

Marlon and Trisha Muñoz have been partnering with Commission to Every Nation (CTEN) and Extreme Missionary Adventures (XMA) since 2006 to share Christ with remote villages in southern Honduras along the Patuca River. By hosting about 15 short-term mission teams per year, they have been able to build relationships with the indigenous people by serving them. Although the Munoz family has graciously used their home for years as a base camp for the visiting mission teams, they have slowly outgrown the capacity of the home, and they need a more dedicated space to host teams in order to continue being effective and expand their ministry.

The Munoz family has acquired a 63-acre parcel of land about 25 minutes outside of Danli, Honduras. They are hoping to develop this land to serve several functions. They would like to host visiting mission teams and have space to store all of the service-related tools and equipment. They would also like the property to serve as a place where local churches could hold events like baptisms, conferences, and youth camps. In addition, they plan to provide educational development for locals, including pastoral and missionary training, medical training, and other vocational training. They plan to build a home on the new property and raise their family there so they can continue being intimately involved with the ministry work.

The EMI team will design a master plan for the site. They will also provide a detailed design for a multi-use building that will house the mission teams. There is a small pond on the property, and a seasonal creek runs along one of the boundaries. The land generally consists of sloped rocky terrain with intermittent flat spots, and it is vegetated with pine trees. There is one large flat area of 12 acres that is currently used to grow plantains as a cash crop. The ministry would like to drill a new well to provide water. They would also like to investigate connecting to power lines on the adjacent property to provide electricity, although they are also very interested in using solar energy combined with diesel generators. The logging road used to access the site is in bad shape, and the ministry would like help with ideas to improve it and maintain it.

Funding Faith

I have just been worrying about my funding for Costa Rica, but every time I went to pray about it none of my prayers seemed right. When I had first applied for an internship with EMI I wasn’t sure about picking Costa Rica as my first choice because it cost more than any of the other locations. My mom told me “If that is where God wants you then He will provide for it." So I picked Costa Rica. While I was worrying about the money and what I should pray for I realized that I couldn't expect my bank account to go untouched. In the often quoted words of David “I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing.” So I prayed, “God, would you provide enough so that I can cover the rest?” And I started thanking Him for what He had already provided. When I sat back down at my computer I had a support update from EMI. I was suddenly at $3,910! Thank you, Father and thank you all His people! I'm not sure if my bank account will cover the rest, but I know that God is taking care of it.

If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will call out and not be answered. - Proverbs 21:13

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. - James 1:27
She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. - Proverbs 31:20

The Beginning

I have been studying civil engineering at Washington State University and will graduate with my B.S. degree in December. Over the past few years a conviction to serve the poor has developed in my heart. Verses such as James 1:27, Proverbs 31:20, and Proverbs 21:13 made an impression on me and accumulated in my mind. However, I was unsure of how to serve the poor, or what purpose God could have for me in studying civil engineering. Then I found an intersection of my passion and my skills: Engineering Ministries International.

Engineering Ministries International (EMI) is a non-profit Christian organization that provides technical design assistance, free of charge, to other Christian organizations all over the world that are serving the poor. EMI serves both local and international ministries by designing hospitals, orphanages, schools, ministry centers, water systems, and the like. To learn more visit emiworld.org.

I have recently been accepted as an intern with EMI and will serve in their Costa Rica office from January until July, 2012. Although I am not yet sure of all the details, I do know that I will be working with a team to design a facility for another ministry. My responsibilities will most likely range from basic office tasks to engineering design, drafting in AutoCad, and report writing. I will be living with a host family and anticipate improving my Spanish speaking skills.

I would really appreciate your prayers. Pray that I will be focused on God; enjoying Him, humbly serving Him. Pray also for my host family, the whole EMI Costa Rica office, and the ministry that we will be serving. Pray that I will be able to do excellent engineering work and for graciousness and the ability to laugh at myself in a new culture. For sporadic updates on my time in Costa Rica and current prayer requests, visit my blog: www.costaestherica.blogspot.com.

My travel, language studies, and living expenses for 6 months will be $8,500, which I need to raise by December 20^th. If you would like to support me financially you can donate online at https://emisecure.org/donate.html (Once on the donation page select “Interns” from the first dropdown menu and “Esther Lynch” from the second). All contributions are tax-deductible. Thanks so much for any contributions and prayers.