In a very dark time, you helped to share the hope we have in Christ.

Last November, two record-breaking hurricanes devastated parts of Nicaragua just weeks apart. 

Steve Holtrop, your Resonate regional mission leader for Central America, remembers the jarring scenes from Hurricanes Eta and Iota all too well. In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic that was already stretching communities thin, the category 4 hurricanes blew roofs off houses, swept land away, and flattened rainforests.

“Many [people] lost all of their belongings and their livelihoods,” said Steve. 

Organizations and churches rushed to help with the important work of recovery and relief efforts—to provide food, clean water, shelter, and medical care. But thousands of people had also just experienced trauma. They lost more than the basic necessities needed to live; they lost many seemingly small things that bring joy on a daily basis, such as favorite fruit trees that grew in their yards. For many people, it seemed like God had abandoned or punished them. People needed more than just physical care; they needed to heal spiritually and emotionally. They needed hope.

In a very dark time, you helped to share the hope we have in Christ.

Through your support of Resonate, you were part of a movement to facilitate trauma-healing workshops in communities affected by the hurricanes. These counseling workshops help people address the trauma they’ve experienced and the pain they feel. Rather than turning away from important relationships with one another and God, the workshops help people come together and bring their pain to the cross.

Through his work with the Nehemiah Center, your Resonate ministry partner in Nicaragua, Steve helped to coordinate the efforts of several denominations, ministries, and believers to meet this need in the areas ravaged by the hurricanes. With your support, they were able to train 44 local Christians to lead trauma-healing circles in communities that were hurting.

God was at work. Being able to share about their pain helped to lift a burden from people’s shoulders and to start them on a process of healing.

“Many people have asked about my home and belongings, but this is the first time I’ve been asked how I feel,” said one man. “For the first time, I was able to talk about my struggles, feel that someone cared, and experience God’s hope.”

Thank you for helping to make this work possible!