How could fruit ever grow in this?!
The locals living around the old smokey mountain dump site area have started to grow corn and other plants near the top of it. Seriously, its the strangest thing to see towers of decaying trash with corn,plants and even some little yellow floweres growing out of it!
But I've seen much more fruit come from the area...
When we "accidentally" started a ministry back in January 2008 we were what you would say totally unprepared! In many ways actually. I think that's why we know God gets all the glory,because He chose in His grace to use us to serve his beautiful people that live in the poorest of poor of conditions when we did not have a clue! Because we never planned to stay long term we didn't bring a team, plan on training a team or organise for any short term teams to join us. I remember so clearly within weeks we had a couple of hundred children coming along and still it was just Ron and I! (quite ridiculous! :)
We prayed - Lord if you want us to stay here, provide us with a team. From that day it was like our eyes were opened and we saw the potential in the people who were living in the dump site and cemetery communities.Amazing potential in the people we came to serve. At first we trained some mothers to help with the feeding programs. Then the teenagers to help in the children and youth programmes.
3 years later we have a team of 55 local people from the dump site and cemetery communities. I can't even express properly how in awe we are of their hearts. The team now includes pastors, youth leaders, kids church teachers and assistants, volunteers for children and youth programmes, music teams, feeding ministry, maintenance. Honestly its incredible what the Lord has done.
Each of them have a story of pain. Each of them has a heartache. Each of them have grown up and live in conditions unimaginable to most.
BUT
Each of them have a calling. Each of them are filled with love and compassion for their own people. Each of them have God given gifts that can be used for His glory and to serve others. Each of them have a hope and a future.
Just wanted to thank God for hearing our prayers and giving us a team - a family. My heart leaps as I think of each one of them from the youngest to the oldest. I Just wanted to honour them for their commitment and faithfulness in bringing hope to hurting people.
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| childrens ministry |
Some random pics of our team.... please pray for them.
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| pastoral team |
"I am the vine, you are the branches....
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| feeding program |
he who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit...
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| music |
...for without Me you can do nothing.
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| youth leaders |
"By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples"
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John 15: 1-8
