#james1:27

[theproctors127]

2015 Hope House Van Campaign

We often times take many things for granted like food, water, shelter and transportation.  Our everyday life would be transformed if we would be willing to see how poverty turns the world upside down for millions in the world today.  Many times we find ourselves with callused eyes to the world around us, so we can continue living our routine lives. 

I want to share with you about Hogar Esperanza (Hope House)located in  San Pedro Sula, Honduras and  a major ministry need they currently have.  Many of the things we take for granted can sometimes be very difficult to obtain in other parts of the world.  Hope House (HH) is the resident of eighteen children ranging from newborns to twenty-four year olds that are fully dependent on HH for their every need.  These children have been rescued from severe poverty and abusive situations and now at HH they are receiving the care they need.  The most important thing they are receiving besides their physical needs in the greatest hope anyone could receive, and that is the Hope of Jesus Christ!  IF you wish to know more about HH please visit their website at http://hopehouse.info/ourstory.html

Currently transportation for Hope House is a struggle, because their current fifteen passenger van is in need of major repairs.  These repairs would only prolong the life of the current van, but the expense of the repairs is much greater than the value of the van.  We are launching the “2015 Hogar Esperanza Van Campaign” as an effort to raise funds to purchase a new van for HH.  The challenge is a great, but with God all things are possible as we have seen His mighty hand at work over the years at HH.  The “2015 Hogar Esperanza Van Campaign” is to raise a total of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) by July 1, 2015.  We would appreciate any and all donations toward our challenge as this van is the only transportation HH has to get children to school, medical treatment, food, and ministry supplies.  You can make a donation using our 100% secure online giving site at https://www.egsnetwork.com/gift2?giftid=EE9BEAC9E63347A  Please understand that all donations are tax deductible and tax receipts are mailed at the end of the year.  Thanks in advance for your donations and please like our ministry FB page to keep track of the progress of the campaign.

Restoring HOPE!

Bryan Proctor, Orphan Advocate 127 Worldwide, Inc.

[myheartofworship-blog]

Thoughts...

"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." James 1:27

So just a quick thought...something that spoke out to me during our college ministry's Sunday morning service. We're in the book of 1 Corinthians and yeah, I know that isn't where the verse above came from, but it's a verse that popped into my head while our pastor was speaking. He was talking about Paul and what it means to be a servant. To be a servant is to get down, to humble ourselves, and do the "dirty work", the work that no one else wants to do. A conversation I had with my mom just yesterday came to mind...

We were talking about my future career as a nurse and how badly I want to work at TCH (Texas Children's Hospital). My mom works there now and I'm really hoping I can join her as soon as I graduate. I remember that my words to her were literally, "I just want to go straight to TCH. I don't want to have to work anywhere else, especially a nursing home. No one ever likes working in a nursing home. It's really tough..." You can imagine the amount of guilt I felt as I heard God speak to me this morning. How can I be so demanding, so selfish, so conceited to think that I'm deserving of a better job, a more high-esteemed job?! Christ came to serve, not to be served. In the same way, I am studying, I am working, I am LIVING to serve...not to be served --- that includes being "socially" served. I don't work so that I can have a higher paying job or a job that is of comfort. God calls us to places that are not of comfort.

Now, I'm not saying that I'm not going to strive toward a career at TCH. My parents were afraid of this when I shared my heart out to them after church...striving for excellence is also something that God calls us to. Having goals and dreams is not wrong. What I'm saying is that if God doesn't put me in a hospital right away, especially TCH, and the job He brings me to is a nursing home...? I'm going to do it, not with a grumbling or complaining, and especially not with a prideful heart; I'm going to take what He has given me and make the best of it. I will choose to blossom in what seems like a crack in the road rather than just grow in it. I will get on my knees (metaphorically) and be a cheerful giver of my time to be one who humbly washes the feet of others. It truly was a great message this morning and brought conviction but at the same time inspiration. 

There's no need to fear about the future, because wherever God takes me, I will choose to serve with a cheerful and humble heart, just as Christ did. Life is not about comfort; it's not about who makes the most money; it's not about who has the best job; it's not even about reaching and fulfilling our dreams or the dreams others expect of us...God calls us to a life of discomfort, a life of servanthood, a life where we get down and dirty, plowing the fields HE has places us in. We are the servants, the supporting roles of the best story ever told. This life is not our own and it isn't our choice of where we serve. God calls and we follow; we serve where HE sees us best fit! 

[christieyfc]

Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders Let me walk upon the waters Wherever You would call me Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander And my faith will be made stronger In the presence of my Savior

Hillsong United “Oceans"

[cryofamissionary]

Commission My Soul

Friday December 7, 2012 "Abandon all to be Your voice, Your hands, Your feet; my life a living sacrifice. Spirit empower me to set the captives free my life is an offering. Commission my soul with a fire uncontrollable. I'm ready now, to save the lost. Open my eyes to the reason I'm alive oh Lord, I'm ready now. I'll follow you." -Commission My Soul by Citipointe Live This song came on my iPod earlier this week and it couldn't describe my hearts cry or this week any better. I have been empowered to set the captives free. The captives are these children. The 184 angels I was able to meet this week. To come here I literally had to abandon all I knew, all I was comfortable with for 10 days to come to a country where I didn't know much about. There have been days where we haven't had heat or our Internet connection has been extremely spotty or the driving scenarios have just been flat out wacky. But it's all for Him and what He has called me to do and it's all been completely worth it. From the two beautiful girls who ran up and wouldn't let me go to the boys who sang to us at the all boys home to playing duck duck goose with the kids at the "jungle" home to teaching Phil's kids how to jump rope and yo-yo (or being one-upped by them) and ending with sweet little Johanna that didn't want to let go of me in her goodbye hug. Those are just a few of the many God encountering, God-ordained moments on these trips. Our team has grown quite close as well, as we are a smaller than normal group. From long bus rides to "Indian Stand Offs" to missing flights at the airport it has been quite an adventure. Our team was quite a mix of the generations. We had grandmas and grandpa and moms and dad and then us "young ones", the young adults on the trip but even with our age differences I think that it has caused us to form quite a unique and fun group. Our bus rides were quite unimaginable, whether it was Phil's constant commentary, the strange stares from the Indian natives, the traffic jams (the 5 minute ones and the hour long ones and all the ones in between), the beating on the side of the bus that somehow sent signals to the bus driver when backing up, or the random conversations that took place, there was never a dull moment. And given the chance to I would do this all over again, even all the traveling. It's all worth it...every single moment. "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and blameless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." -James 1:27

[prettyisasdoes-blog]

[prettyisasdoes-blog]

I want to know what you do . . . .

I've always been conscientious about remaining "unstained by the world". I have sheltered myself, unnecessarily at times, from situations or people I felt would tempt me to do wrong. Much of that at one time was out of fear -- fear of getting in trouble somehow. Now, I fear less, but must still work carefully to remain unstained. 

James says, "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world." (James 1:27). 

Many individuals are good about providing for orphans, widows, and others who are afflicted, who cannot provide for themselves. However, we as a species are not good about remaining "unstained". I want to know what you do to remain "unstained". Or, is remaining pure difficult for you? How do you measure "unstained"? What do you think is unnecessary or "overboard" when keeping oneself "unstained"?