TREE OF LIFE MINISTRIES
Finding the Need, Meeting the Need, Revolutionizing the Nation
TREE OF LIFE MINISTRIES November/December 2010
Coming to a Close, Preparing for the New!! As the calendar comes to an end, so does the school year for Plan Escalón, with preparations for the New Year. Considering all of the changes that we were facing in February, it has been a successful year. With additional classrooms, we started the year on a brand new schedule, allowing all students to receive classes during the same hours instead of a split schedule. Also implemented this year was a revamped mentorship team consisting of 12 of our senior leaders who were each designated a team of disciples, which were made up of the other 63 leaders and donating graduates. It has been exciting to see how God has been aligning and preparing every area of the ministry for the next level of growth that is ever upon us. The vision statement has even been refined and designed to keep everyone in TOLM inspired and on the mark. Each of us is destined to be a revolutionary for the Kingdom of God in these last days. May we each live up to this calling.
Bible School students minister door to door sharing the Gospel and praying for needs. Pg. 3
A tribal village is given provisions of food, clothing, medicines, school supplies and seeds for crops. Pg. 3
November/December 2010
Students Reach Out To Others Honors Awarded We are pleased to report that after tallying all of the grades for the year, 18% of our student body ended up with grades at a 90% and above, these marks qualified them for the “Honor Roll” and they received special recognition, along with a certificate, during our awards ceremony, with the seniors receiving the medallions during at the time of their graduation.
Fusce urna
The school year is always concluded with a recognition ceremony for the student body. Those students “graduating” from Junior High to Senior High were recognized and presented with a certificate of completion. The male and female student of the year, were revealed, along with the teacher of the year and leader of the year. As mentioned earlier, those students with a 90% or above also received special recognition and those that had a 95% or higher received a gift, along with their certificate. The weekend’s events also included a church service to end the year, in which the senior graduates are sent off with a word of encouragement and prayed over. Between our Computers class graduates and our Business Marketing graduates we had 64 graduates total.
The final “Life in Action” of the year, for a group of students, was an eye opening experience as they answered the call for help, from another ministry that is attempting to get their orphanage up and running. They have a 14-‐acre compound that has been abandoned for two years and they want to start housing and educating young people by February of 2011. Calling it a mess was an understatement, however these 38 boys and 4 leaders made a serious dent in the clean up of this facility that had been neglected of care. There is a saying that mentions that cream always rises to the top. It is this principle of life that these boys demonstrated. We have always believed that Escalón students are the “cream rising to the top”, and they proved this to be true. There was no complaining, no crying, they just put their hands to work. They demonstrated the traditional idea, “whatever it takes, to get the job done”. They cleaned a dormitory, which will house 75, the medical clinic, dining hall and kitchen, along with the laundry area. At least four of the seven acres that made up the grounds, including the area in front and around the building that will be in immediate use, were cut down and cleared, along with limbs from fallen trees, and finally the basketball court was cleared of weeds that had all but covered it. 3 power washers, 20 machetes, 2 wheel barrels, 6 shovels, 8 brooms, 2 squeegees, 4 rakes, 42 pairs of hands and not a person sitting idle. It was a sight to see what could be done in the Name of Jesus and for His Glory. These young men knew they were doing this for their King, and it was unto their King that they did it. You can imagine that it was a quiet ride home since they woke up at 4:30 am in order to make the 2-‐hour drive into San Pedro, then having worked hard all day until close to dark. Each one of them made us proud.
2
November/December 2010
LIFE IN ACTION Bible School Students Minister Door to Door & Tawanka Indians in the Mosquito Coast Receive Provisions of Help & Putting into practice what they have been learning all year, the Bible School students, worked with our ministry evangelist, seeking out a “needy” community that not only had material necessities but also spiritual. That is to say, that they had never received a tangible touch of love from the Hand of God. These students invested an entire day reaching out to these precious people, ministering the Grace and Unconditional Love of God. Starting the day by splitting up into small groups of two to three people they went door to door and ministered in every home, sharing the Word of God and the Good News of the Gospel. Ending with prayer, then invited them to come to the central location where they held a service: preaching, ministering through puppets, and music. The day’s events were concluded with provisions being handed out to everyone that was present. These provisions included food, clothing, shoes, school supplies and toys. Many were ministered to and received with thankful hearts even in spite of the abundance of mud and rainy climate. Also, during the first week of November, a team traveled to the Tawanka Indian tribe in the Mosquito Coast to deliver provisions. This was the area mentioned in earlier articles, which had been hit by unusual flooding during their crop season. Their harvest was wiped out, leaving them without food and also affecting the sowing of future crops. This village was surprised, to say the least, to receive such blessings. Everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, received a gift in one form or another.
Children Blessed By Gifts Imagine the joy and excitement that each Tawanka child had as they were given their very own backpack with notebooks and school supplies inside. Never before had they been blessed in such a way as this. The gratitude was was ever apparent in their faces.
Each Family Received: 25 lbs. of rice 10 bags of fortified soup mixes 25 lbs. of corn 25 lbs. of red beans Along with 25 lbs each of rice, bean, and corn seed, to sow for future crops and nourishment. Everyone received an abundance of clothing, along with the necessary pills for parasites. Also, the community was blessed with enough medications to last for at least six months.
3
November/December 2010 The last order of business for the year was the week of interviews, in which over 360 applicants sat through information workshops, to inform them of everything from the scholarship system to the different career degrees offered. The youth themselves also have to take an entrance exam, if they had not come earlier in the fall to apply and take it at that time. The last thing that they do is then wait in line, some for hours, until they sit before the interview panel in which they are asked a list of questions that help determine if they are candidates who meet the standards for admission. These standards come down to basic family size, income, and whether or not there is schooling available in their area. Many come in who are orphans or one of their parents has either abandoned them or is not living. Many of them live with grandparents, aunts and uncles. Young people with these criteria are usually immediately approved. This is what Plan Escalón is here for, to meet the needs of the youth of Honduras that otherwise have very limited choices. As the year comes to and end of course we reflect over the progress of the last year, we are thankful for the successes. Nearly 28,000 received Jesus this year. We pray that God continues to grace us for the vision that He has mandated to us. SEEKING out the needs of a generation lost and aimless, PROVIDING them with the answers that bring peace, And CAUSING A REVOLUTION body, soul and spirit.
BIBLE SCHOOL GRADUATION 2010 This year there were 5 Bachelors Graduates, 20 Associates Graduates, & 23 who received a one-‐year Bible certificate. Our stateside president, Dr. Steven Johnson was our honored guest speaker. Angela Henry graduated with her Associates, & gave thanks to her family for their patience and support. She graduated with the highest GPA. Congratulations Angie!!!
Graduating pastors from the mountains.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Guy, Angela, Dakota & Jeweliza Henry
Joseph, Jeanna, Josiah, Jesse & Jewelayna Brusherd
© 2006 Tree of Life Ministries. All rights reserved
Founded by Rev. Thomas & Wanda Shaw in 1988, 2084 W. Thompson Rd, Fenton MI 48430, 810.750.5433 Email: [email protected] 4
TREE OF LIFE MINISTRIES November/December 2010
Coming to a Close, Preparing for the New!! As the calendar comes to an end, so does the school year for Plan Escalón, with preparations for the New Year. Considering all of the changes that we were facing in February, it has been a successful year. With additional classrooms, we started the year on a brand new schedule, allowing all students to receive classes during the same hours instead of a split schedule. Also implemented this year was a revamped mentorship team consisting of 12 of our senior leaders who were each designated a team of disciples, which were made up of the other 63 leaders and donating graduates. It has been exciting to see how God has been aligning and preparing every area of the ministry for the next level of growth that is ever upon us. The vision statement has even been refined and designed to keep everyone in TOLM inspired and on the mark. Each of us is destined to be a revolutionary for the Kingdom of God in these last days. May we each live up to this calling.
Bible School students minister door to door sharing the Gospel and praying for needs. Pg. 3
A tribal village is given provisions of food, clothing, medicines, school supplies and seeds for crops. Pg. 3
November/December 2010
Students Reach Out To Others Honors Awarded We are pleased to report that after tallying all of the grades for the year, 18% of our student body ended up with grades at a 90% and above, these marks qualified them for the “Honor Roll” and they received special recognition, along with a certificate, during our awards ceremony, with the seniors receiving the medallions during at the time of their graduation.
Fusce urna
The school year is always concluded with a recognition ceremony for the student body. Those students “graduating” from Junior High to Senior High were recognized and presented with a certificate of completion. The male and female student of the year, were revealed, along with the teacher of the year and leader of the year. As mentioned earlier, those students with a 90% or above also received special recognition and those that had a 95% or higher received a gift, along with their certificate. The weekend’s events also included a church service to end the year, in which the senior graduates are sent off with a word of encouragement and prayed over. Between our Computers class graduates and our Business Marketing graduates we had 64 graduates total.
The final “Life in Action” of the year, for a group of students, was an eye opening experience as they answered the call for help, from another ministry that is attempting to get their orphanage up and running. They have a 14-‐acre compound that has been abandoned for two years and they want to start housing and educating young people by February of 2011. Calling it a mess was an understatement, however these 38 boys and 4 leaders made a serious dent in the clean up of this facility that had been neglected of care. There is a saying that mentions that cream always rises to the top. It is this principle of life that these boys demonstrated. We have always believed that Escalón students are the “cream rising to the top”, and they proved this to be true. There was no complaining, no crying, they just put their hands to work. They demonstrated the traditional idea, “whatever it takes, to get the job done”. They cleaned a dormitory, which will house 75, the medical clinic, dining hall and kitchen, along with the laundry area. At least four of the seven acres that made up the grounds, including the area in front and around the building that will be in immediate use, were cut down and cleared, along with limbs from fallen trees, and finally the basketball court was cleared of weeds that had all but covered it. 3 power washers, 20 machetes, 2 wheel barrels, 6 shovels, 8 brooms, 2 squeegees, 4 rakes, 42 pairs of hands and not a person sitting idle. It was a sight to see what could be done in the Name of Jesus and for His Glory. These young men knew they were doing this for their King, and it was unto their King that they did it. You can imagine that it was a quiet ride home since they woke up at 4:30 am in order to make the 2-‐hour drive into San Pedro, then having worked hard all day until close to dark. Each one of them made us proud.
2
November/December 2010
LIFE IN ACTION Bible School Students Minister Door to Door & Tawanka Indians in the Mosquito Coast Receive Provisions of Help & Putting into practice what they have been learning all year, the Bible School students, worked with our ministry evangelist, seeking out a “needy” community that not only had material necessities but also spiritual. That is to say, that they had never received a tangible touch of love from the Hand of God. These students invested an entire day reaching out to these precious people, ministering the Grace and Unconditional Love of God. Starting the day by splitting up into small groups of two to three people they went door to door and ministered in every home, sharing the Word of God and the Good News of the Gospel. Ending with prayer, then invited them to come to the central location where they held a service: preaching, ministering through puppets, and music. The day’s events were concluded with provisions being handed out to everyone that was present. These provisions included food, clothing, shoes, school supplies and toys. Many were ministered to and received with thankful hearts even in spite of the abundance of mud and rainy climate. Also, during the first week of November, a team traveled to the Tawanka Indian tribe in the Mosquito Coast to deliver provisions. This was the area mentioned in earlier articles, which had been hit by unusual flooding during their crop season. Their harvest was wiped out, leaving them without food and also affecting the sowing of future crops. This village was surprised, to say the least, to receive such blessings. Everyone, from the youngest to the oldest, received a gift in one form or another.
Children Blessed By Gifts Imagine the joy and excitement that each Tawanka child had as they were given their very own backpack with notebooks and school supplies inside. Never before had they been blessed in such a way as this. The gratitude was was ever apparent in their faces.
Each Family Received: 25 lbs. of rice 10 bags of fortified soup mixes 25 lbs. of corn 25 lbs. of red beans Along with 25 lbs each of rice, bean, and corn seed, to sow for future crops and nourishment. Everyone received an abundance of clothing, along with the necessary pills for parasites. Also, the community was blessed with enough medications to last for at least six months.
3
November/December 2010 The last order of business for the year was the week of interviews, in which over 360 applicants sat through information workshops, to inform them of everything from the scholarship system to the different career degrees offered. The youth themselves also have to take an entrance exam, if they had not come earlier in the fall to apply and take it at that time. The last thing that they do is then wait in line, some for hours, until they sit before the interview panel in which they are asked a list of questions that help determine if they are candidates who meet the standards for admission. These standards come down to basic family size, income, and whether or not there is schooling available in their area. Many come in who are orphans or one of their parents has either abandoned them or is not living. Many of them live with grandparents, aunts and uncles. Young people with these criteria are usually immediately approved. This is what Plan Escalón is here for, to meet the needs of the youth of Honduras that otherwise have very limited choices. As the year comes to and end of course we reflect over the progress of the last year, we are thankful for the successes. Nearly 28,000 received Jesus this year. We pray that God continues to grace us for the vision that He has mandated to us. SEEKING out the needs of a generation lost and aimless, PROVIDING them with the answers that bring peace, And CAUSING A REVOLUTION body, soul and spirit.
BIBLE SCHOOL GRADUATION 2010 This year there were 5 Bachelors Graduates, 20 Associates Graduates, & 23 who received a one-‐year Bible certificate. Our stateside president, Dr. Steven Johnson was our honored guest speaker. Angela Henry graduated with her Associates, & gave thanks to her family for their patience and support. She graduated with the highest GPA. Congratulations Angie!!!
Graduating pastors from the mountains.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year Guy, Angela, Dakota & Jeweliza Henry
Joseph, Jeanna, Josiah, Jesse & Jewelayna Brusherd
© 2006 Tree of Life Ministries. All rights reserved
Founded by Rev. Thomas & Wanda Shaw in 1988, 2084 W. Thompson Rd, Fenton MI 48430, 810.750.5433 Email: [email protected] 4
