Members of surrounding communities are invited to a Mexican Fiesta Food Fundraiser, on Thursday, April 20, 2023, to benefit a Morrison, IL, missionary family. Dine-in or drive-through at Emmanuel Church, 202 E. Morris Street, Morrison, IL, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. A free-will donation will be collected for Ben and Kelita Johnson and their four youngsters.
Kelita Johnson asks, “Who doesn’t love yummy Mexican food for a good cause? Paula Rodriguez and her team will be making a mouthwatering meal you won’t want to miss! Help us spread the word, and please plan to join us.”
Included are an enchilda, a beef taco, and a burrito; beans; rice; green and red salsa; dessert.
“This will also be a ‘see you later’ party, as we leave early May for a month-and-a-half of training and then, shortly after, move to Honduras. We can’t wait to spend the evening with you!
“We will be moving to Honduras to work on the mission field there. We will be working with a ministry called GiveHope2Kids, which is all about helping abandoned children find a loving home, get a good education, and heal from the trauma they’ve faced.”
Contact Kelita at 779-250-0580. Below is a Summer 2022 blog post written by Kelita Johnson.
Sweet Summer Time! We are less than one year from our projected date of moving to Honduras [in 2023]. This is a sobering and an exciting reality for all of us. As we face varying levels of excitement and sadness, the Lord keeps reminding us of who He is in this season. We are leaning into Proverbs 3:4-5, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight.”
[Here are] some exciting developments. We have decided to partner with a sending organization called Cornerstone International. We are in the application process of joining, but should be officially onboard with them in the next few weeks. This partnership means a lot to us, because it is a strategic way we can be supported and trained in ways we wouldn’t be without them. We are not naïve to any of the difficult circumstances that lie ahead for our family, and we want to be as prepared as possible. As we join with Cornerstone we will be receiving specific counsel and training for all facets of becoming full-time missionaries. This is also so important for our children and their futures. They have already been such a source of encouragement and we are so grateful!
Another big decision we have made is to attend a four-week missions training intensive in Colorado. Missionary Training International offers a highly recommended program, which we feel is essential for our family and our success on the field. This is not just training for Ben and me, but specifically for our entire family, even little Thaddeus. We have been counseled by several trusted voices to make this a top priority and to not be daunted by the cost. As you already know, we are raising funds for our launch and also ongoing, monthly support, but this decision to attend training adds $15,000 to our fundraising goal. We know this training will directly affect our longevity on the mission field and give us tools necessary for our family and our ministry in Honduras. With great faith, we are trusting the Lord will supply the needed funds for this training and our other expenses.
[Here is w]hat we were up to this summer. In June Ben was asked by Jason and Sarah Furrow (who we will be working with) to come to Honduras and help host two U. S. teams. This was a neat experience for Ben, because he was able to get first-hand experience of what his job will be once, we live there….The teams helped construct a group home on the ministry’s second campus in Roma (which is near La Ceiba.) This guest house will also be our home! How cool that Ben got to be there, helping raise the walls and see the structure take form.
In July, our whole family plus four people from our home church and my dad went to Honduras and furthered the construction process of our future home. We also were able to spend a few days up the mountain, at the GiveHope2Kids’ first campus in Urraco. This campus contains the five children’s homes, the school, and the community building. It’s so encouraging, being in Urraco and seeing how the visions and dreams of the Furrows have become reality. Fruit trees are abundant, coffee bushes cover the hills, and orphans and foster children grow up nurtured in a safe, familial environment. We are so excited to see how the Lord uses finances, teams, and lots of blood, sweat, and tears to raise up the second campus, like He did the first. We truly hope you can some day see both of these campuses.
After the team left, our family was able to drive up to Las Brisas (where we used to live) and spend the day with our precious friends…. We always enjoy our visits to Las Brisas and consider the people there our family. We are excited to continue growing our relationships with those in the village, once we live there full-time. Though we won’t live in the village, we will be close by and hope to make regular visits. How amazing that the Lord has allowed us to move back and still be close by those we love so much in Las Brisas.
Thank you so much, to those of you who so generously invested in our summer trip to Honduras, and for all the prayers leading up to our departure and while we were gone.
Two days after arriving home from Honduras, we headed off to Colorado. We had an amazing three-day family reunion with my mom’s family in western Colorado. After that, we traveled through the gorgeous mountains and spent a week in the Colorado Springs/Castle Rock area. We had a rich time of seeing friends and sharing details about our upcoming move. We were also privileged to attend two churches and share our story and future plans.