The start of something beautiful (a little background)

I distinctly remember in 11^th grade, age 17, standing in front of my friends and declaring I would never help a homeless person because it was “their fault” that they were in that situation.  I recall acknowledging the need of the “less fortunate” of the world, yet feeling no desire whatsoever to be part of the solution.  So how do I find myself now committing to serving 1 year (at least) at an orphanage…?

God changed my heart. 

In His great love and grace He has removed my “heart of stone” and replaced it with a pliable, teachable heart (Ezekiel 36:26) to begin to see people as He sees and love as He loves.  He brought me to the realization that His love for us goes beyond circumstance, ethnicity, social class or age, and that there is nothing we could ever do to earn His love.  Love is His nature, not a response to what we have or haven't done.  And that is the wonder of His unbroken grace.

For the last 2 years God had been placing the desire on my heart to serve at an orphanage, however I’d just dismissed it as a phase.  Yet as of March 2012, God made it clear that this was not just a phase but rather direction serve Him in Ecuador.  As I literally searched Google for orphanages in Ecuador, His peace fell as I came across an incredible opportunity to serve at the launching of an orphanage in the Amazon Rainforest of Tena, Ecuador, through the Bless An Orphan ministry.

Bless An Orphan is an organization started by founders Marshal and Karissa Washburn, that is preparing to take in ~50 orphans when the doors open this August (2012).  With thousands of orphans abandoned on the street or in terribly abusive situations, this is the first area our ministry will address.  We seriously acknowledge that although we can attempt to meet physical needs, if God’s power isn’t at the center of this ministry, we are simply placing a band-aid on an infectious wound.  Our goal is to share the life-changing message of Jesus Christ with this community, so God can provide the only true restoration that is desperately needed.  Just as Jesus is the only hope for myself, He is the only hope for Tena.

Additionally, with great excitement, we anticipate the grand vision of Bless An Orphan to exceed the orphanage.  Since woman abuse is another prominent problem in Tena, we pray to establish a woman and teenage pregnancy shelter shortly after we arrive in Ecuador.  Furthermore, God has placed big desires in our hearts to see this ministry eventually involve a church, widow’s relief center, school, medical clinic and birthing center, and a farm to provide self-sustaining resources. 

Although we are starting as a small team, we come to Ecuador with limitless dreams and an even bigger God.  We know God will use the little we can offer to make His name huge in Ecuador… and we stand in confidence, because “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).