It’s funny how ordinary moments can sometimes spark extraordinary ideas.
A few years ago, Lukas and Suzy were on their way back to town after a long day of ministry in a remote Honduran village. Their team had left the village with just enough time to make the journey back to town before dusk. Evening would bring not only pitch darkness, making it impossible to navigate the treacherous mountain paths, but also swarms of disease-ridden mosquitos—and perhaps even bandits.
Crawling down the mountainside in four-wheel drive, the couple knew the rugged terrain was testing the outer limits of their 1982 Toyota Land Cruiser’s capabilities. But it still came as a sickening shock when they heard the sound of snapping metal. One of the two vehicles in their caravan lurched to a stop, the driveshaft broken in half. No amount of pushing, lifting, or pulling could budge the damaged vehicle.
Then it started to rain. As the drizzle turned into a downpour, a few men stayed to guard the broken vehicle; the other ten people squeezed into the four-seat working Land Cruiser. Lukas jammed the truck into first gear and drove to the nearest village to call for help. There, a new friend from the local church invited them to rest in his home while they waited. Everyone crowded gratefully into the small adobe house, rain pounding on the tin roof and a wood fire burning brightly in the corner. As the bedraggled guests settled themselves on the cement floor, their host offered them hot, sweet coffee. By this time, the sun had slipped below the horizon. Sipping coffee and praising God for the warmth and safety of their fellow believer’s generosity, Lukas and Suzy watched, unafraid, as the darkness came swiftly, silently on.
In God’s providence, he came to the area where Wild & Free Supply’s workshop is located. He’s been one of their most fastidious and responsible employees over the last few years, as well as a faithful student at TMAI. Eduardo was just married earlier this summer, and he and his wife are looking forward to serving the church in Honduras—especially now that he’s graduating from the local TMAI training center.
In many ways it was an ordinary scene, but it impressed itself upon Lukas in an extraordinary way. Humbled by the generous hospitality of this brother in Christ, he had a realization: “Even if you live in a tiny mud hut in the middle of the jungle, with no running water, no bathroom, and a small wood fire in the corner of your hut, you can still minister the love of Christ and offer weary, rain-soaked, stranded travelers a shelter from the elements, hot coffee—and bless the socks off them!”
It got him thinking: What could he do with the resources the Lord had given him?
That’s the question (and the story) that led to Wild & Free Supply, the company Lukas and Suzy founded in 2015. Wild & Free specializes in handcrafted, premium-leather goods, but the company’s real mission is to provide jobs to men and women in Honduras who are doing gospel ministry—especially locals who are working their way through seminary or serving in local church plants.
In Honduras, flexible work with livable pay is hard to come by. But Wild & Free Supply pours their resources into providing on-the-job training, regular work, livable pay, and flexible hours so that employees have ample time for church ministry and theological education.
What does that mean? It means men like Hiloy have a job that enables them to provide for their families and devote time to ministry in the local church. It means that Mario had the opportunity to take time off work to finish seminary; he’s now serving as a leader in a local church plant. And it means that Eduardo[1] has been able to study at TMAI’s training center the last few years; he’s scheduled to graduate after this semester.
We can’t show you Eduardo’s face, but we thought you’d be encouraged to know why we’re protecting his identity. Eduardo was in sixth grade when he quit school and started working to support his mom and sister, and it didn’t take long for him to get involved with the local gang. But in his early twenties, he heard the gospel and believed. With an open death threat for his defection from the gang—and his new loyalty to Jesus Christ—Eduardo was forced to flee the city where he grew up. In God’s providence, he came to the area where Wild & Free Supply’s workshop is located. He’s been one of their most fastidious and responsible employees over the last few years, as well as a faithful student at TMAI. Eduardo was just married earlier this summer, and he and his wife are looking forward to serving the church in Honduras—especially now that he’s graduating from the local TMAI training center.
Here in the United States, Lukas and Suzy want to help Christians think about ways to leverage their consumer spending to advance the gospel of Jesus Christ. What if buying a gift for your loved one could also help provide church leaders in developing countries with new job skills, sustainable work, livable pay, and the ability to pursue a seminary education? What if you could use what God has given you to equip leaders in the Honduran church for faithful gospel ministry? What if you could “bless the socks off” your brothers and sisters in Christ with simple, loving generosity?
Lukas and Suzy know what it’s like to be on the receiving end of that kind of generosity. They also know our Lord’s judgment that “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” And they know that whether Christians are giving or receiving, the net result is always praise and thanksgiving to God. For those of you who support TMAI, please know: your gifts to TMAI—along with the efforts of Wild & Free Supply—have made it possible for men like Hiloy, Mario, and Eduardo to receive top-notch theological education in their home country of Honduras. Thank you for your prayers, the creative ways you support the ministry of TMAI, and for “blessing the socks off” pastors-in-training around the world through your generosity.
For more information about Wild & Free Supply, visit their website at www.wildandfreesupply.com
[1] Name changed to protect his identity
