These past 2 weeks have been crazy busy and just now I have had a few days to sit and ponder and breathe again. I like times of rest but am discovering more and more how I really would rather just "be" with people even on my times off, which is a little bit of a switch as an introvert. I guess I am becoming a extroverted introvert ;-).
About 2 weeks ago I went to a global forum on Human Trafficking that Not for Sale hosted near Orange County, CA. It was a 3 day event. Very inspiring and moving. They showed us a just released documentary called the "Dark Side of Chocolate" I have shown this to several here so far and its moved me to be a more conscientious consumer. It was also a challenging time for me to see so many people I know who I did my "Investigator Academy" training with just at the beginning of this year, doing some awesome things in South Africa and also locally. I had to ask myself ... "what am I doing?". Of course we have done lots of raising awareness, research, and training but I am ready to get out there and get my hands dirty. I feel so anxious to begin work with the kids in the red light district here and now that things have calmed down a bit, we are praying and organizing what program we can offer. So far, we have had 2 others besides our school staff who want to go down and begin offering some sort of classes/workshops for the kids. Also, on a positive note, our base leader's wife came and told me that her mother's small group in Germany gave a donation to help out and she wanted to give that donation to us for the program and also that she wants to help us in any way she can. This women's group also prays on a constant basis so we will have prayer support. Its definitely an answer to prayer. So, please pray with us and that we get others excited to do the same and also to have wisdom as to what and how to approach the kids.
On another fun note, I have been on 2 house builds these past weeks and though this is ministry I have not been required to participate in, I enjoyed it so much. Its a new side of ministry I am realizing I love to do, which really is something I don't need to add to all the rest of the work I enjoy and participate in .... still, it was so much fun. The 1st build was a total God appointment as I didn't realize until I got to the build that the family we were building for was the one I was able to take the mother to drug rehab some months ago. The grandmother is raising the kids while the mother is getting better, but just being with them and knowing what they and the mother has gone through, touched my heart intensely. It was a very fun (I got to help put on a roof) and emotional build. I pray and know God will restore their family soon and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to participate in the restoration process, even the small amount I could.
The 2nd build was a lot of fun as well. I got to help build with a team from Minnesota. They were amazing and so giving and hard working. The team made me miss being home in the midwest. In addition I got to go to Ensenada to visit several families they had previously built for and to talk and update the team on the progress of the families by helping translate, etc. It was a huge blessing to me to see this side of our ministry and also to see how staff are following up with the families. These communities are being infused little by little with God's love and His divine call on the lives of individuals who are reaching out helping hands to lift them out of the poverty cycle.
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