Sweet Equity

When you put in the hard work required to earn something, it's called 'sweat equity'. When you work at building relationships that allow you to help people who then help others, I call that 'sweet equity', and that's what we have with Mark and Susan Schuler.

We've known the Schulers for about 4 of the 8 years they've been living and serving in Roatan as missionaries. After 2 years ministering to the people in the poor community where they live, several families came to them and asked if Mark would be their pastor.
They started church in their home with a few families. 5+ years later they are bursting at the seems with 50-80 in their living room 3 times a week! Two years ago they opened a Kindergarten in the mornings and this year started a "high school" in the afternoons for grades 7 - 10. They also do Bible studies, English classes and tutoring for anyone who wants to attend. With all of this - and more - taking place in their home, they've needed a church - and now a school - for quite a while. This is where the 'sweet equity' comes in!

Of the 12 acres ALF purchased for affordable housing, we set aside enough land for the Schulers to build a church/school. What a privilege to be able to bless such humble and dedicated servants!

Although the land was a donation, this relatively small and very poor church have a lot of work ahead to raise the money needed for building. But the 'sweat equity' began a few weeks ago as they began clearing the land of their future church home using only machetes - Honduran lawn mowers!

There is nothing sweeter than investing in the lives of other people... especially when those people are servants who use what they are given to help others!