Christmas and End of the Year

These two :)  They make my heart happy!

C and her now three year old son W are moving out!  I can hardly believe it, but its been almost three years that they have lived with us.  They moved in February of 2012 and have been PDE staples ever since.  Its going to be so weird to not have them around all the time.  Although I'm pretty sure we're going to see a lot of them!

C is still working towards her forestry degree at the local university and working part-time at Pizza Hut.  She came to know the Lord at PDE, got involved in the local church, and became part of our family.  She is a sweet mom and loves her son fiercely.  We are so proud of her and how far she has come!

We have helped other girls after they move out and they all continue to be part of our family.  But Carolina is special because we consider her our first "graduate" who actually made it to the point that we are really excited to see her step out on her own.  We really think she is ready and we want to support her however we can as she makes this transition.

Over the last three years she has been saving up to have some money to get started, but we want to help with the security deposit on her apartment and some basic furnishings.

As you think about Christmas this year, would you consider putting one of these things on your list and send us money to help her get out on her own?  These are approximate costs.
Security Deposit ($100)
Bed ($150)
Stovetop ($60)
Dorm Size Fridge ($150)
Dresser or Closet ($100)
Kitchen needs ($100)
Linens ($30)

In the same way, please keep Puerta de Esperanza in mind for your year-end giving.  We still need monthly funding badly, but one-time gifts could help us to get through until I can make a support-raising trip next fall.  Here's all the information you need!

Give to account number #92413 Puerta de Esperanza.
Make checks out to Mission to the World with #92413 in the tagline and mail them to...

Mission to the World

P.O. Box 2589

Suwanee, GA 30024-0982

Or give online at... https://donations.mtw.org/donors/login.php

Slaves to the Red Tape

These past few weeks have been especially frustrating for me in regards to Puerta de Esperanza.  We continue to see the Lord doing great things in the lives of the girls involved and we have received lots of interest from new girls who would like to come and live in the home.  It seems like God really wants this ministry to continue and expand and we see the girls growing in Him.

And yet.

There is this thing called the government.  And its a mess.  Recently they disbanded the social services arm of the government and fired everyone associated with it.  That just doesn't sound like a very efficient way to get anything done?!?  They are opening a new area that will only have a central office in Tegucigalpa, the capital 7 hours away from here.  It appears that for the moment they are a bunch of politicians sitting in an office making decisions without a real sense of what life is like on the ground level for those of us really working with children-at-risk.  All that to say, its frustrating.  Everything is changing.  The requirements for our home, the way the girls enter, the services we are able to provide... it will all be different.  And yet... how different?  In what way?  What changes?  No one seems to know yet.

Where does that leave us?  A standstill.  We are currently stuck with our hands tied waiting for things to all get ironed out.  In the meantime we are not able to move in any new girls or put anything new into process.  We could optimistically assume this will happen quickly, but its not likely.  It looks like we'll be frozen this way for a few months at least.  It is so frustrating to know that there are needs that we are able to fill, but we cannot act because of this hold-up.  But we must submit to the authorities here and wait on them to tell us what and when and how.

So will you pray with us that God will show us what PDE's ministry needs to look like in the meantime?  We have two girls in the home right now, one who will soon be moving out.  We have four other former PDE girls in the area with whom we are still actively involved.  We are constantly making new contacts with young pregnant girls who fit the description of those to whom we feel God has called us to minister.  So... could it be new Bible studies?  Outreach?  Sunday lunches?  Rides to church?  I know that God has something in mind for these months when I feel like we are stuck.  Please pray that He will show us what it is!

Truth

Sometimes all I see are baby steps... one of the girls makes a simple decision to walk into her room instead of lashing out in anger, she chooses to patiently sit with her son while he finishes his lunch instead of yelling at him from across the room, she chooses to listen to advice instead of getting instantly defensive...

And then there are the breakthroughs... and they are few and far between.

Yesterday I think we had a breakthrough.  And I contribute it only to the work of the Holy Spirit because there is no way anything else brings such humility.  As I walked into the house yesterday, one of the girls was almost in tears as she looked up at me.  She was making lunch, but had sadness written all over her face.  She made eye contact long enough to tell me that she had something to tell me, but she was sure it would make me mad.

I've been lying to you.

Honestly, my first response was gratitude.  Thankfulness to the Lord that HE worked in her heart to bring her to a place of repentance and honesty.  You could see in her eyes that she was truly sorry.  And she knew there would be consequences, and there are, and we talked about them.  But I just kept telling her that I am so proud of who the Lord is the making her to be that she could be honest, even when it would be hard.

The truth is, I knew she'd been lying... although I hadn't known long.  And I'm so glad it came to light through her confession instead of through a confrontation that could have ended in anger and defensiveness.  Isn't the Lord good?  And she is willing to concede to the consequences and really take this opportunity seriously and try to take advantage of what the Lord is providing and fight for a better future.

Keep praying with me over these girls as we see the Lord grow and change them and mold them into the women that HE wants them to be.

A's Birthday

C has been working hard to save up money to be able to celebrate her son's third birthday.  Culturally, birthday parties are a big deal and involve a meal, cake, a piñata, and candy bags for each child... not a small affair.  It was a time for C to be able to invite her family and her mom's neighbors to celebrate with her her son's life.

We all gathered at her mom's house, where C lived up until coming to PDE.  One thing that really impacted me is that C invited Y and K who have never lived at PDE with her.  They still spend time with their PDE family and she has quickly come to realize that they are sisters because this is a family, whether she has ever lived with them or not.  And I love that :)

The kids all had a great time and A was terrified of the candle on his cake!