More Transitions and Transformation

Dear Friends,

Time seems to be passing at record speed. Does it feel that way in your part of the world? I feel as though time is this speeding roller coaster going faster and faster and I am hanging on with a white knuckled grip.

Though time is barreling ahead, life has been wrought with more and more transitions and transformations. I have officially resigned from my service with Hospital Loma de Luz having spent nearly a third of my life under their leadership. God clearly told me when I left for Honduras almost nine years ago that this starting place would be a training ground. It has trained me well.

I am still a foster mom and substitute family with child welfare here in Honduras. I have had boys in my home for three years now. God continues to lead and grow this vision of a family style home where children can live and grow in a loving Christian environment, receive an education and learn life skills and a trade, and return to wherever God will send them as strong Christian adult leaders.

As most of you reading this already know, our official name was taken from the Pool of Bethesda in the Bible. This place like the Pool of Bethesda is and has been a place of healing, mercy, and restoration. Here at Bethesda Home for Boys, I have watched discarded children transformed out of poverty and darkness into His glorious Light. They are changed. They have a hunger for His word. They are learning God’s word and they believe it and they act upon it. Their powerful prayers continually undo me and when we study the Bible and pray together each night…His presence is always there in a powerful way.

What has brought transformation to these ones? I started seeing tangible change when we implemented nightly Bible study and prayer. No plan. No agenda or formal teaching material. God laid it on my heart to open His word, read it together, and talk about it. His word is living, and active, and sharper than a two edged sword. I’ve seen His word bring conviction and correction. I’ve seen His word demonstrate love in a time of great need. I’ve seen His word bring comfort to these boy’s lives. It truly has been a healing balm and a light for this new road He has brought them to. They know He is their source and their hope and that with Him all things are possible.

After each of us take turns reading from a chapter in the Bible each night, we share which verses spoke to us, or which verses we like and why. Hearing their thoughts each night is a great measuring rod of how deep God has taken them. I love it when one of the boys will randomly come looking for me with their Bible in hand to share a verse of Scripture that has just leapt off the page to him.

Next to unconditional love, giving these boys boundaries and responsibilities has brought about transformation. They work diligently in our home doing their daily chores and also help with the farm work. We do everything from planting, to harvesting, to shucking corn and shelling our own beans.

I am humbled and honored to be a part of what God is doing in the lives of these boys he has brought to this home. He is about restoration here. He has surely made something beautiful out of brokenness. I know that God is going to use these boys to shake this nation. Instead of Honduras being the most violent nation in the world, we will see it turned upside down and full of His peace, love, and presence.


Bethesda Farm Project:

Our farm continues to grow and expand. We have planted another 400 and some odd cacao trees (cocoa) bringing our total to over 1,600 trees. We are harvesting a little at present but once the trees grow more and more we hope that this will help sustain our home. We have just planted 40 pounds of frijoles (beans) and 20 pounds of corn. We also use this to help feed us. The beans will be a huge blessing as they are currently hard to find and when you do find them they are really expensive. Beans are a staple here.

Before the rainy season set in we would daily go up to our farm and work or sometimes just to watch the monkeys and toucans play. There is such a sense of peace there. We also enjoy running through the orchards and picking oranges, mangoes, or pineapples and eating them on the spot.

We are waiting for God to provide the funding and laborers to finish our house on the mountain…All in His perfect time. We are blessed by the workers who care for our land and help maintain all that He has given us.


Praises:

*So far the road that was built up to our new farm and property is holding up well under frequent torrential rains.

*We have been blessed by a year full of teams and individuals that God has sent to serve with us.

*God has surrounded us with a community of friends with servant’s hearts who encourage us and walk this ministry out with us.

*Bethesda Home for Boys has received it’s federal non profit status but we are awaiting final approval for the state exemption.

*Our boys are finishing up the school year. All are excelling in their studies. We are thankful for the people who lead them in Bible studies and who mentor them.

*Students from the agricultural college in La Ceiba will be mentoring and teaching our boys how to plant a garden and how to maintain it. We are so grateful for this opportunity.

*The current downpour of rain reminds me of God’s goodness in holding back the water and clearly keeps it from passing our gate.

Prayer Needs:

*Continued safety and spiritual growth of our boys.

*Full time longer term volunteers for our home. Areas of need are Mentorship/Leadership, Administrative, Maintenance, and Construction.

*Newer reliable vehicle. Roads here are rough and harsh on vehicles.

*Additional monthly supporters. If you would like to sow into the lives of one of our boys, we could use your help in praying for them, in providing food, electricity, education, clothing, etc. for them. I am amazed at how God continues to provide for us!

*Small work teams: To help with shoring up our new property (by putting in retaining walls and culverts) and finishing the unfinished house on our farm.

How to Reach Us:

Lisa Bradley’s email: jlisabradley@gmail.com

Facebook: Lisa Graham Bradley or like our page at Bethesda Home for Boys.

Blog: lbradleyinhonduras.blogspot.com

How to Support Us:

Financial donations can be made payable and sent to my mission board, International Gospel Outreach. Please be sure to include a note that states your gift is for “Lisa Bradley” or “Bethesda Home for Boys”:
International Gospel Outreach
PO Box 1008
Semmes, AL 36575

Urgent Need

This November will mark 3 years that I have had the privilege of being a foster mother here in Honduras. I have been honored to be mom to boys that were discarded and given up on. There are presently nine of them living in my home. Its not been easy...in fact it's the hardest thing I've ever done but yet it is the most rewarding. I've had a front row seat in watching as God has transformed lost boys to loved boys. His infinite love and involvement in their lives has astounded me. We are very thankful for what He is doing in and around us.

One of our most pressing needs currently is for reliable transportation. The vehicle we presently have is old, has high miles, and has seen better days. I've also been left stranded 2 times in the last 3 days. This vehicle was meant to serve as a "bus" of sorts to transport our boys locally to and from school and church while at the same time being suitable to climb the steep mountain where we will be living. We desperately need a vehicle that we can count on when we have to go to the city to buy groceries, to child welfare, or even family visits so far away.

Would you please consider in helping us raise $30,000 so that we can buy a newer, more reliable, and safer means of transportation? This would go a long way in getting us a large enough for ten 4x4 rugged diesel vehicle that is needed for the terrain where we live. If you are interested in donating towards this need, please make your check payable to my mission board, International Gospel Outreach, and mail your gift to them at:
International Gospel Outreach
PO Box 1008
Semmes, AL 36575

Please be sure to include a note with your check stating that your gift is for "Bethesda Home for Boys-Vehicle Project". We greatly appreciate your consideration in helping us meet this very urgent need.

We have been blessed to have an incredible young lady serving with us for a season. I wanted to share her latest blog. It is below. I love to see how God works through others and seeing my boys through their eyes. Please take the time to read Marie Miller's blog which is copied below:

Breaking chains, breaking hearts, and break throughs.
My heart is both full of joy and breaking to pieces this past week. As I spend more time with the boys, they're opening up to me and I'm able to see more clearly what they struggle with now, and how their painful pasts play a role in the way they think and understand things. But before I dive into that, here's a picture of the boys & their friends playing soccer on the beach! 95 degrees and no rain this weekend!


Playa at La Casa de Ninos
I don't even know where to begin. There is SO much to say, most of which I don't even know how to put into words even if I had the time to write it all down.

I post pictures of me and the boys like this one below, and I know everyone has the impression that I'm


teaching and helping take care of 6 Honduran foster kids (the 7th boy is the oldest & is really independent & has his own responsibilites). And this is true--they are foster kids that my friend Lisa is raising and I am living with them and coming along side her to love them and help them grow both spiritually & in their education.
And they have so much LOVE in their hearts for both me and Lisa. I am always greeted with a hug good morning & good night from them and countless hugs or someone snuggled up next to me while I read, etc constantly during the day. And they LOVE to learn more about God and are excited to read the Bible aloud during our twice daily scripture time. Hearing them read the Word moves me in a way I can't even explain. The Holy Spirit is alive and working in this home and I can hear it in their voices and see it in their eyes.
But everything is not so "happy go lucky" around here all the time. These children come from homes (or the street/dump in La Ceiba) having grown up in a childhood saturated with abuse, drugs, alcohol, gangs, violence, being threatened, and some of them in near-death situations more than once. These children are all between the ages of 11 and 15 years old.

I haven't really gone into detail about any of the boys' stories yet, because I wasn't quite sure what to share, or how to explain it after I shared it.

Below is a video that another woman my age made after her time here about a year and a half ago with the boys. Please do watch the video, but know before watching it that it's not easy to hear Melvin's story, and it is especially heartbreaking to know that he is not the only one who grew up enduring what he has.

Melvin's Story

Melvin's story is just that--HIS story. Each child here comes from an equally heartbreaking past and has different struggles and brokenness because of it. Melvin's brother Jose, like the end of the video said, was stabbed over 35 times by a complete stranger because a guard ordered the druggie to kill him, after hearing who he was and the crimes he was involved in. Jose did not know either man involved in this. He was literally walking down the street in the middle of the day when this happened. Long story short, Jose was left lying there to die in the street, lying in a pool of his own blood, but God rescued him and an ambulance just happened to be parked around the corner when he stumbled down the block & was then rushed to the hospital. This is especially moving because the healthcare system here is very inefficient and you almost never see an ambulance, so the fact that there just so happened to be one around the corner is truly a miracle.

Each of the 6 boys I'm here with have a different story. A different past. A different pain. But they are loved by the same powerful God that sought them out and pulled them out of the ditch (literally), a horror-movie status abusive home, a garbage dump (literally), a community run by gangs instead of law enforcement, and one boy out of a life that was completely dependent on cocaine and would do anything for it.

God did not forget about them. These are not just some statistic numbers on a world map. These are His children, and He fights for their lives. He cares for them. He provides for them. And even when they turn away (or run away from Lisa's house...) He protects them.

Just this past week, four of the 6 boys said they were running away and packed bags to go because something trivial upset them. And unfortunately, that is the response of many Honduran men here. They leave when they are upset--many Honduran men have a wife and a few kids and one day decide they've had enough, and leave. Not long after, they've met someone new and started a new family wanting to have nothing to do with their original wife & kids. And these boys see that everywhere. Some of them are that "first family".

God is molding and shaping their hearts and minds into something more beautiful every day. And when they make crazy decisions, say ugly things, and act out in anger or violence--God brings them back. He somehow uses Lisa and I to show them grace after they've chosen something extremely harmful to themselves or to others. And although the hurt and the anger happens, the grace overflows and overwhelms it, no matter how extreme or how deep the wound is.

One of my best friends referred to Lisa's boys as "the lost boys" one time when I asked her to pray for my trip while I was figuring out the details of getting ready to go to Honduras. (And yes, this is a Peter Pan reference to these kids growing up on the street without any parents & could literally do whatever they want, especially since they weren't in school.)
And today I'm reminded of how perfect that is--they were lost. Forgotten. Neglected. In the spiritually darkest areas of one of the most dangerous cities, in THE most violent country in the world.
And their Father searched for them, sought them out--to find them.
They are found.

They are no longer the "lost boys". They are children who have come home & know their true Father. The Father that will never leave them or move on from them. He is here to stay with them.
They are found.

Please pray for their hearts and minds to continue to heal & grow stronger in their faith and love for everything that is good, and not be drawn back into the unhealthy life they used to have that still has a power over them sometimes. It is incredible how strong the pull can be to something they know is unhealthy and incredibly dangerous--and yet the enemy uses this and twists it in their minds to make it tempting to go back.

People talk about "spiritual battles" or "spiritual warfare" in church. And it's one thing to learn about it or talk about the idea of it.
But it is another to feel it. And to see it right in front of you.

We went to church last Sunday night and it was me, Lisa and all seven boys sitting in the refreshingly cool (70 degrees maybe?) night time service at a church a few minutes away from our house. Churches here are kind of built like a simple, big open square with cement floor and windows without glass, but just metal bars in the window to keep people from robbing or vandalizing. Which means if someone is outside the window, you can hear their entire conversation because there's no glass--it's like there's an open door there. Now that you've got a mental picture, back to my thoughts on spiritual warfare.
As I'm listening to the sermon, I feel like someone is watching me. And I shake it off & think I'm just being paranoid. But then I look to my right and see three men standing outside, just standing there. Not saying anything--but just looking at me. And I realize there are more men creeping in the shadowy window, some drunk and some not, just standing there. Looking at people and making comments that I luckily didn't hear what they said. The windows are close enough to the rows of seats that they are two feet away from the person at the end of the row while they stand there. And this is a small town--everyone knows everyone!! Everyone here knows who I am, and I know almost no one in Balfate (most of my friends live in La Quinta just down the road), since the second day I go here. These men have absolutely no problem with creeping on women and making very crude comments about them, WHILE the pastor is preaching to the congregation. Once I noticed them, I didn't look back that direction for the rest of church, so they didn't think I noticed or was encouraging them. Just like the men in the streets--just keep walking and don't acknowledge them as they try to get your attention. But we were in a church, not the street. (Side note--there's not always people creepin in the windows, but it's also not uncommon for them to be there.) And I saw the spiritual warfare in a new light (which seems to be a continual pattern recently. God is doing big things in my heart this week!! He is so good. :) ) These people are gathered in this place to learn about and worship God, and they are literally surrounded by evil. Evil thoughts, suggestive comments, inappropriate actions, and basically people mocking the fact they're holding a church service by them even doing these inappropriate things. And even though I felt we were surrounded by darkness, I also believe we were covered in light and the church was filled by God's power, His presence, and His protection.
He is here.
Honduras is not just the most dangerous country in the world right now, but I believe it is also one of the most spiritually darkest places too. Which means when God works here, He shines.

And he makes waves and shakes the sickly foundation this country has built itself upon. One person at a time.
Tomorrow I'm going with Lisa to the dump in Ceiba. Please pray for our safety and that God would use us to continue to break the bonds of the suffering, violence, and drugs in that area.

As some of you might have seen in the media lately, Honduras is a very unstable country right now. And that is an incredible understatement of the reality of how bad it is here. My next blog post will be about the upcoming election on Sunday (PLEASE KEEP THIS IN YOUR PRAYERS--IT IS CRUCIAL FOR THE INSTABILITY OF THIS COUNTRY AS A WHOLE), and the drug/gangs that are more powerful than the police force at this point.

To see Marie's entire blog, click here:

http://mariemilleradventures.blogspot.com/2013/11/breaking-chains-breaking-hearts-and.html

Transitions and Transformations

The word transition continues to be a huge part of my life right now. There are so many changes taking place almost on a daily basis that I can hardly keep up. I have found myself on this narrow path that He has led me to and is leading me through. The world may not understand this road but deep in my heart I am sure that I am right where He placed me. How can any of us know that we are on the right road? Peace. There is a peace that passes all understanding and that’s where I am. I find myself in a place of complete awe in the Lord and all that He is doing around me and in a place of full reliance on Him.

So what has God been up to in this little part of the world? A lot. Most of you know my heart for children and youth. In a country were 37% of the population is under the age of 14…I see why God chose to place me smack down in the nation of Honduras. A nation that statistically is the most violent in all of the world. A nation where corruption, gangs, and drugs are prevalent.

I am still serving full time with Hospital Loma de Luz. God opened the door for me to step out of the role in hospital administration and enabled me to continue in the job I originally came to the field to do, that of visitor coordinator. I have other duties within the hospital as well, but this is my main task.

The dump ministry continues to grow and transition as well. Right now I am doing a whole lot of wound care. Not being a medical professional this has been a bit challenging with some of the children and adults who come to me. Infected insect bites, gun shot wounds, and even a heel that was barely hanging on to the foot are just some of the things that have had to be treated from my bag of donated over the counter medical supplies. God quickly graced me with the ability to see things that in the past would cause me to pass out. Loving people by touching their physical needs has opened the door to strong relationships and even more so has opened up their hearts to Jesus. I am so thankful to continue to be a part of the lives of the people who live in this community built around the garbage dump. In the midst of the trash, stench, and dirt is God’s heart.

From the ministry in the garbage dump, God began to stir my heart towards the adolescent boys who are growing up and making bad decisions to join a gang. One was even a pastor’s son! One day this pastor’s son began to cry as I ministered to him about bad choices he was making. Through his tears he asked me to help him. He was willing to change but would have to leave the dump in order to get away from the gang. I had no answers. I could find nowhere, no one to take him in. Most facilities are full and have waiting lists. I kept coming across the same thing. Another young man from the dump somehow got my cell phone number and would call me desperately seeking help to get away and out from under the gang….and I again felt helpless. God began to stir my heart to do something for these wasted and broken lives.

God began to clearly define things in my heart and at the time I just really didn’t understand it or know what it was for. He kept reiterating to me, rescue, restore, reconcile. Over the years the picture became clearer. This was what God was calling me to do. This was His will for my life and for what He clearly designed me for. I could see how God shaped me and prepared me for what is ahead of me….even in some of the most difficult places of my life.

It started with a ten year old boy named Carlos. He showed up at the dump. He was sleeping in cars and porches. Adults and children would come to me and say he was abandoned and that I should help him. I would try to talk to him but he would run away. One day I saw him standing in the door of a child molester (in the dump). I yelled to him from my truck. I told him that I was going to the mall to eat lunch and invited him to go along with me. He jumped right up into my truck and off we went. I heard his story. I did what any Christian or any person would do for that matter. I took him home with me. Of course I was told that I couldn’t keep him and that I would have to take him to child welfare. I really didn’t know what to think about that, but it sounded like the right thing to do. So, with a bit of a heavy heart, I took him to child welfare. Long story short, child welfare without my even realizing it at the time made me a foster mother and placed him in my custody. Most things like becoming a foster mother within child welfare in Honduras takes a lot of red tape and is a long process. I was a bit surprised by what God did but was so thankful.

Not long after receiving Carlos I met a wonderful young lady who works with street children in the city of La Ceiba. Through her ministry efforts, I received my next two boys who were both street children. A friend of mine called me some months later telling me about a street child she had met and took home….but her husband wouldn’t let her keep him. She asked me if I would consider taking him in. I kind of halfheartedly told her that I would come meet him. I did and knew the minute I laid eyes on him that I was supposed to take him. More similar stories such as this, two years later, and I find myself today with 8 boys….8 boys that God went walking through the highways and byways and found. Because of His great love for them, He rescued them. He has restored them and reconciled them to Himself. I can clearly see the plans He has for their lives. I can see their giftings and His calling for each of their lives. I am overwhelmed at how they were all discarded and given up on and how encouragement, love, and hope have transformed their lives. My boys are between the ages of 11 and 17. Most are in the first and second grade as they never have been to school. Five minutes ago, I had four little boys at my feet excitedly telling me that they have passed to the second or third grade. Hallelujah!

With no extra support of any kind, my boys and I live on the financial support I receive from my friends, my family, and about 3 local churches. Child welfare here in Honduras has not and does not offer financial support to me. I do not see and cannot fathom how we are financially making it. My food bill jumped to $1,000 per month. My electric bill has tripled. My washing machine and dryer have broken down due to the sheer capacity of laundry to be done. All of this is a testimony of God’s provision. His heart is so towards the broken, the poor, and the orphan. His word is also full of promises to those who love and serve these that are close to His heart. I have witnesses it and my life is living proof of this. We have never missed a meal and somehow make it month after month.

Even more proof of God’s provision is the 40 or so acres of land He has given us. Yes…given us….free. With all of these things God began to stir in my heart, there was this vision of a farm. A farm that was supposed to help teach the boys responsibility, provide food for our home, and to help the boys with inner healing. God over and abundantly brought this to us. We were given clear title to the land even after we were told that the title could not be put in my name. We have miraculously seen God knock down or solve every obstacle that has stood before us with regards to this land. And, He continues with His provision. My home church graciously is helping us with the first project of getting a proper road constructed from the main road up to the property which is about 1 km up a steep mountain. The road work is going on right now. I do not have words to adequately express what my eyes behold when I see all that He is doing. It is just that….it is what He is doing….not my will….not my plans….certainly not my intellect…it’s all Him. I am completely undone by His love, by His heart, and by His provision. I am so humbled to be a part of these little lives that He has placed in my home and so humbled to have a front row seat to their transition and transformation.

So where are we now? We are likely right where many of you are….in the midst of transition and transformation. We need help. I am confident in God to meet every need. I am going to call our home Bethesda Home for Boys. It is something else that God placed on my heart. It is and has been a place of healing and restoration as the pool of Bethesda was in the Bible.

So….this is just the short version of what has been happening. I hope to soon introduce to you each of my boys and tell you a bit of where they have come from. I post almost daily on Facebook. If you would like to keep up with us on Facebook, my screen name is Lisa Graham Bradley. I have a blog that I am trying to update more frequently. It is www.lbradleyinhonduras.blogspot.com. You can email me with questions or suggestions any time, jlisabradley@yahoo.com and should you want to attempt to skype, my screen name is jlisabradley.

I am eternally grateful to all of you who have walked out this calling to the nation of Honduras with me over the years and who still continue to walk it out day by day. Blessings upon blessings to each of you.

How you can help:

Pray:

*Pray for open hearts to God’s working in each of our lives

*Pray for LOVE to continue to be lived out here among each of us….even on the hard days.

*Pray that God’s light would continue to shine brighter and brighter here in Honduras

Go:

*We need help in the area of construction. Even if you could advise from a far…..It would be a huge help.

*We need house parents and/or house moms. The vision is for small family homes on our compound with a mom or a couple leading and loving each small group of boys.

*Agricultural help-We have cocoa trees, mahogany trees, pineapples, oranges, lemons, avocados, bananas, and more. A young farm just starting to produce. Again, even if you could advise from a far it would be a great help.

*Tutors-Since my children are older and in elementary grades, we really need help tutoring. We tutored two of our boys so well that they both were bumped up a year in school!

*Administration-We need organizational and administrative help as we are just starting out and there is much to document and keep in order with running a farm.

Current Needs:

*It will take $26,600 to bring electricity up to the home site.

*I am still working on obtaining more quotes but it will likely take the same or a little less to finish the house that has already been partially constructed.

*I have two wonderful farm workers that came with the land. Their salaries are $3,828 each (I have two at present) per year. These men are from way up in the mountain above our property. They are humble and already very protective of us.

*I have two Honduran women who help me with cooking and cleaning for the boys and their salaries are $200 per month.

*Food for my 8 boys is currently costing $1,000 per month.


If you are able to make even a small donation to the needs of Bethesda Home for Boys, your gift would be greatly appreciated and utilized to offer a better life for a child who previously had no opportunities in life. Donations should be made payable to and sent to:

International Gospel Outreach
PO Box 1008
Semmes, AL 36575

Be sure to include a note stating that your gift is for Bethesda Home for Boys-Honduras. IGO gives 100% of your donation to us and you will receive a receipt for tax purposes.

Thursday, September 5, 2013

What follows is about the dump through the eyes of a recent visitor named Karen Ramos. I love to see and hear what people take away from the dump and wanted to share this with you too.

The Dump
Have you ever been to a dump? Years ago, I went with my cousin Erin in Atlanta to take some junk to the local dump. The place was full of worthlessness. Nothing there had value and very little could have been re-purposed.

A few days ago, I traveled to the dump in La Ceiba, Honduras. In the shadow of the dump lives a community. A few concrete houses were there but the majority of homes were made from wood slats reinforced with string, cardboard, and rusted sheet metal. It is in this community that Lisa Bradley ministers. She took another volunteer and I from house to house introducing us to families in the community. Everyone knew who she was and why she was there. She loves the Lord, and she loves the community. As Christians, we are not meant to shy away from the needy nor avoid the poor. Christ calls us into these areas to be a light to a dark place and to bring healing to brokenness.



Walking to a home to visit a sick boy near dump


Where is God calling you? Where is God calling me? I am challenged with this question and thrilled by it at the same time. God calls us to places of worthlessness and He brings His worth. Where there is no value of human life, God gives value to each individual. And when we have little left to give, God re-purposes us so that we may be a healing light to the world.




Lisa loving on little boy in La Ceiba dump



Waiting in line for a feeding program at a local church



Enjoying the meal provided by church

New Birth

I have found myself to be very delinquent in communicating via newsletter and blog. Thank you so much for your grace in this area. I am happy to have been able to keep most of you up to date on Facebook and via personal email. I will do better! Time is precious and none of us never seem to have enough time to do the many tasks on our overloaded to do lists do we?

Since my last publication, many transitions have taken place. One that I would like to update you on right now is my passage into grand-motherhood. Yes, I am a grandma! I like the Spanish word abuela better than grandma I think, or maybe even abuelita. What my new precious granddaughters will call me has yet to be determined....we shall see.

Alaina Marie Bradley was born on July 1, 2012 to Phillip and Kristina. Phillip is now in the Coast Guard and he and his family are stationed in Texas.

Madison Fae Bradley was born on October 2, 2012 to Zach and Lora. Zach is still in the Air Force and he and his family are stationed in Georgia. I've yet to meet Miss Madison face to face yet but hope to do so in November.

I am so thankful for new birth in many arenas of my life. Praising HIM for safe deliveries for moms and babies, for beautiful healthy girls, and so very thankful to God for expanding my "tent". More updates to follow real soon. I promise!

*Note...The first two photos are of Alaina and the last two are Madison.

Stopping For The One

God wants to use us to bring light and transformation to the place He has placed us. It really doesn't matter where you find yourself. You may find yourself at home surrounded by family or you may find yourself in a foreign land surrounded by people with great needs. His purpose for us is to love HIM with all our heart, soul, and mind and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.

I've learned a lot lately about what love looks like. Love is driving an hour, to a place not many people would go, and be willing to open my home to a young man from the garbage dump who needs daily outpatient medical treatment. In loving this one, he gave his life to Christ. He desires nothing more than to leave behind his sinful old life, and daily seek and walk with his God.

Love is being presented with a second young man with similar infection issues needing similar treatment. Love is again opening your home to the one in need before you. When you walk in love, even though you are being pulled way out of your comfort zone, there is a peace that passes all understanding and His love ebbs and flows naturally from you to the one God chose to encounter..through you.

Love is also looking into the sad eyes of a 9 year old boy and 5 year old girl who just lost their mother. Love embraces them where words fail. If you can look on the bright side of death and loss, little Oscar will be able to go back to school now. He solely was responsible for the care of his mother.

Love has no boundaries. Love suffers long and is kind. Love does not envy or behave rudely. Love does not seek its own. Love bears all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails. May we all be consumed by His fiery love that challenges and enables us to stop for the one.

Would you pray for Jonathan and Oder as they rest and recuperate. Pray for healing and continued growth in the Lord and for transformed lives. Would you pray for Oscar and his family that they would be comforted in the loss of their mother.