All posts by Matt Bullen

Before our devotion this morning I shared an amazing little providence that happened to me this morning. First, I need to lay a little groundwork. 7 years ago I went to a Tres Dias men’s retreat weekend a discouraged Christian and God radically transformed my life. I have been walking in that grace every day since. The prayer warrior assigned to me that weekend was Coy Reese. He has since become a dear friend and mentor. Coy has sent me a scripture verse every single day since that weekend 7 years ago. He has never repeated a verse in 7 years. I told you in my last post that God laid the verse Proverbs 14:12 on my heart very strongly yesterday during the gospel presentation at Amparo De Ninos and that I was compelled to speak up about it. Well, I wasn’t able to check my email yesterday to see which verse Coy sent for the day but when I checked my email this morning, the verse he sent me yesterday was Proverbs 14:12. Thank you Lord for confirming your word to me in the chapel yesterday. Amazing.

Our P from the ministry of Jesus this morning was Pleasure. We not only need Christ’s Presence, Passion, and Power. We need His Pleasure. We need His joy or our works will not bring the glory to God that He deserves and we will become weary and tire of the work if we are not bathing in the joy that Jesus has and wishes to share with us. Hebrews tells us that, “For the JOY that was set before Him, He endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of God.” He also tells us that His goal is to share that joy with us on this earth and forever in heaven.

John 15:11 “These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full.

John 16:24 “Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full.

John 17:13 “these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.

Matt. 25:23 “His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful slave. You were faithful with a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’

Remember the first question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism? “What is the chief end of man?” and the answer, “The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” I used to wonder, “What does enjoying Him have to do with bringing Him glory? Then I saw these verses and realized that genuine praise (glorifying God) always erupts from joy in Him.

Psa. 9:2 I will be glad and delight in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

Psa. 33:1 Sing for joy in the LORD, O you righteous ones; Praise is becoming to the upright.

Psa. 43:4 Then I will go to the altar of God, To God my exceeding joy; And upon the lyre I shall praise You, O God, my God.

Psa. 98:4 Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth and sing for joy and sing praises.

1Chr. 16:10 Glory in His holy name; Let the heart of those who seek the LORD be glad.

Psa. 149:5 Let the godly ones delight in glory; Let them sing for joy on their beds.

Joni Eareckson Tada says it so well…“God happily shares His gladness, His joy comes flooding over heaven’s walls filling my heart in a waterfall of delight, which then in turn always streams out to others in a flood of encouragement, and then erupts back to God in an ecstatic fountain of praise. He gets your heart pumping for heaven. He injects His peace, power, and perspective into your spiritual being. He puts a song in your heart. I want to know God like this! Shove me under the waterfall of the Trinity’s joy, which splashes and spills over heaven’s walls. If He’s always in a good mood, I want to catch it”

Today we went to our home orphanage Amparo De Ninas in Bogota. I have written many blogs in the past about this place and the impact it has had on my life and my family. My precious Goddaughters Ginary and Heidy live here and though they were with us for three weeks last month I still couldn’t wait for them to jump into my arms and kiss my cheeks and call me Papi and I was not disappointed. We had a beautfiful day here. We ate and sang and played for hours. Another thing happened to me that I totally did not expect. A darling 14 year old named Marianna insisted on reading me a little book in Spanish. The cutest thing was after every paragraph she would stop and explain the story to me in “little kid” Spanish so I could understand what was going on. She has a smile that could melt cobalt. I asked her how long she had been at the orphanage and she said two months. I asked her where she was before that and she looked away and said quietly, “A place with lots of bad things.” I told her that the past is past and the future is what matters. We talked alot about Jesus. Another neat thing today was the fact that Ginary and Heidy have become so confident in my love that it doesn’t bother them any more when I spend time and share with other girls. They know that Papi is about his business of ministering and helping other girls like them. They just stop by once in awhile and kiss me on the cheek and give me a squeeze and an I love you and a knowing look and then they are off playing with the rest of the girls. The rest of the day I was in business meetings with different elements of the child welfare in Bogota. We are aggressively exploring different options and opportunities to help the children of Latin America. Toda gloria a Dios.

After breakfast this morning, before the devotion, we opened the floor for sharing about what God was doing in the hearts of the team. Several spoke up and their were tears and some wonderful stories of “Sacred Moments of Grace” as we have spent two days now in the fields of the fatherless.

The P from the ministry of Jesus that we looked at this morning was Power. Sometimes we think that we cannot imitate the ministry of Jesus because He was God in human flesh and to a degree of course this is true. He was the messiah. We are not. However we err if we think that we have to do ministry without the power that Jesus had because His power was from the Holy Spirit and He promised to give us the same Holy Spirit and the same power.

Remember when Jesus came back to His home town of Nazareth and they asked Him to read the scripture in the synagogue? The passage that He opened to was Isaiah 61:1 “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;” Jesus power on earth came from an anointing of the Holy Spirit. Acts 10:38 says, “You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”

But was that power only for Jesus? Or can we, in asking Jesus to come and live His life through us, expect to have His power as well. Jesus told us in Acts 1:8 “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” and again in Luke 24:49 “And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”

Indeed, we need not only Jesus presence and passion but we need His power also. As we minister today in the orphanages and we see the seemingly endless needs and feel the weight of actually making a lasting diffference in the lives of these children let us cry out to God in our spirits to give us that anointing afresh. To work through us and to anoint our lips and also the ears of the hearers. Shine through our smiles, our hugs, our kisses, our words with supernatural power. Bring life where there is death. Bring light where there is darkness. 1Cor. 2:4 “and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, 5 so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God.” 1Cor. 4:19 “But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I shall find out, not the words of those who are arrogant but their power. 20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in words but in power.” 1Th. 1:5 “for our gospel did not come to you in word only, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake.”

Then I assured the team that though we are tired, we don’t speak the language very well if at all, some of us are sick, and we all generally feel a helplessness and weakness to really do anything lasting here, that weakness is exactly what qualifies us to have His power. “God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Opposite of how the world thinks, God’s power is perfected in weakness. 2Cor. 12:9 “And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” 2Cor. 4:7 “But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;”

We prayed and headed out to Amparo De Ninos in Madrid for a day of love and ministry to 100 boys ages 7 to 20.

A personal blessing to me today was sitting on the bus with my dear brother Shoby John and hearing stories about his family in India. Many brought tears to my eyes and put a longing in my heart to do more for the Lord. Great preparation for a day with God’s little lambs.

Amparo De Ninos is housed in a beautiful old monastery out in the country. The bridge was out so we had to park the bus and walk to the orphanage. As the little boys started pouring out of the gates to meet us I had a moment of Dejavu. The first little boy to come out and greet me today was Diego. He is the first little boy who greeted my daughter Beverly and me at this same institution on the first day of our first visit to Colombia almost two years ago. He was so glad to see us. They led us into the cafeteria and we gathered in a big circle around the room and each team member and then each boy introduced themselves and then it was time for lunch. After lunch we went out to the beautiful green fields surrounding the orphanage and played soccer, American football, frisbee, and many other games. Our team gathered and brought all of the sports equipment and games and we left them with the boys. My girls and I really enjoyed reconnecting with old friends and making many new ones. It was a delight to see the director of the orphanage, Magnolia, again. We met in her office for an hour or so and she told me that everyone of the 100 boys there are ready for Padrinos (Godparents) and/or adoptable. She pleaded with me to keep coming back and to tell everyone about Amparo and try to bring as many people as we can to adopt her boys. Then she grabbed my arm and said, “Matt, when is Orphan Hope going to have a vacation program for MY boys?” I promised her that we would look into it and try to help her and the boys as much as we could. It broke my heart to see how desperate she was for us to help them.

As the afternoon waned we gathered the boys together. Half of them (14-20 years of age) gathered in the chapel with Nep and us men and the little boys met upstairs with Dona and the ladies. The ladies shared the gospel with the little boys and gave each of them a Bible. Nep had a serious man to man talk with the older boys. It was awesome. He challenged them to follow Christ and to be good men. To find their identity as a good man who respects other men, women, authority, stays away from drugs and violence, and is kind to the younger boys in the institution. He dealt with all of the temptations and struggles that young men face without pulling any punches and God was stirring many hearts. As I listened from the back and watched the boys I began to feel a stirring in my soul that I should share my testimony and specifically the verse of scripture that God used to convict my heart and bring me to Himself, Proverbs 14:12 “There is a way that seems right to a man but the end thereof is the way of death.” I resisted for awhile feeling that I shouldn’t inject myself into the message but the feeling got stronger and stronger. Finally there was a long pause like Nep was waiting for the Lord to give him the next thing to say. I knew this was for me and I spoke up and asked Nep if I could share and would he translate and he eagerly said yes. I told the boys how 28 years ago I was a 16 year old young man sitting in a chapel very similar to this one and listening to a message very similar to this one and I was not at all interested until I heard that verse and that verse went straight to my heart like an arrow. I realized in that moment that I could be wrong and that the man giving the message could be right. My way could be the way of death and God’s way could be the way of life. I shared with them how I decided that night to follow God’s way and that 28 years later I am still walking with Him and His way truly is the way of LIFE! Nep then invited the young men to bow their heads and close their eyes and he asked me to lead those who were serious and wanted to choose God’s way in a prayer and he would translate. We prayed then and asked God to come and convict, cleanse, change, and walk with these young men for the rest of their lives. One of the men who came forward and prayed was a university professor who was there helping the boys with their education. After the prayer we gave each of them a Bible and a Spanish/English dictionary. They were elated. Later as I was snapping photos of the crownd, one of the older boys jumped in front of my camera with a big smile and placed his new Bible over his heart waiting for me to take his picture. It moved me to tears. We quickly hugged our many friends goodbye and headed to the bus. Some of the little boys followed us all the way to the bridge before turning back with a last wave. Another miraculous day in the fields of the fatherless.

I am always amazed at the way God orchestrates every little detail of these trips. He brings the team, each and every one. He causes all of the events to work together to show Himself mighty on behalf of us and the children. At breakfast this morning I visited with a man who decided to go the day before we left and now his life is changed. His sweet spirit has blessed me several times already and then to find out that he got in just under the wire. Amazing.

I gave our devotion this morning and the second P was Passion. Jesus ministry was characterized by passion and compassion. Jesus passion was people. His antagonists, the pharisees, were concerned with popularity, position, prosperity, power, and protocol. Jesus on the other hand is seen over and over again in the Gospels seeing and meeting needs, feeling compassion, speaking kind words, touching and being touched, and speaking truth in love. We determined that we would imitate this in our ministry to the children today with His help and grace.

We had a imaravilloso! day today. We were back at Santa Maria for the second day. We enjoyed hours of games and crafts. Part of the day I had a sweet group of girls gathered around me asking question after question about my life and my family and helping me with my spanish. The cutest thing was when I would use the wrong Spanish word or mispronounce it and they would burst out laughing and then for fun make me say it again wrong and then right so I wouldn’t forget. It was very fun. It was wonderful to see the team enjoying their time with the children. Some of the ladies had brought puppets and they had a cd of children’s Christian songs and they had the puppets sing the songs. It was really cute and the kids loved it. Due to a gift from one of the ladies mother, Shoby was able to take the director of the foundation that oversees Santa Maria shopping and purchased many items needed by the orphanage. It is very exciting what God is doing here. Once again as the day began to draw to a close we gathered all 200 of us together and my girls sang some worship songs, one in English and on in Spanish. It was beautiful and many of the girls said that they sounded like angels. Then Nep and Dona came and did a really neat skit. The first half of the skit was how not to have a relationship with a boy. It was really cute and yet very instructive. The girls saw acted out before them how girls and boys who have no respect for God or themselves behave and the consequences of broken relationships and sin. The second half of the skit was how a Christian husband and wife treat each other and how they have time together in God’s word. As they talked together over God’s word they got closer and closer together and their words were sweeter and more tender until finally they were cheek to cheek and all the girls let out a sigh and a clap as they confessed their eternal love for Jesus Christ and each other. It was fantastic. Then they shared the gospel and invited the girls who wanted to confess Christ to stand. There were many. They came forward and the team prayed with them. Suddenly, Nep said, “Adults too can come and trust Christ. Are there any workers here who want to confess their faith in Jesus Christ.” A young kitchen worker in her uniform and hairnet bolted to the front with tears streaming down her face. Dona motioned for me to join her to pray with this young woman. It was a joyous moment as she wept out her needs before the Lord. As we were praying everyone else was done and so the team began handing out Spanish Bibles to all of the children and the Beach Family had brough Spanish/English dictionaries for them as well. When we finished praying there were no Bibles left and the young worker asked me, “can I have a Bible too… for me?” I went off to see if I could “steal” a Bible somewhere but with no success. Suddenly she came running up to me with a Bible she had gotten from someone and had me sign it. It was wonderful. We said our tearful goodbyes and headed to dinner.

Another amazing providence showed itself as we were attempting to order dinner for 30 people with 1 translator. Some college kids at a nearby table came over and started translating for us. They spoke excellent English. Chris, our Vice President, started up a conversation with one of the young men thanking him for helping us. Chris told him what we were doing in Bogota and it turns out the young man and his friends attend a Christian college nearby and have translated for mission groups before. He said they would love to help us on the next trip and that he and his friends and even their professors at the college are always looking for service opportunities like this. Amazing. We exchanged contact info with them and will be in touch.

My precious daughters and I are in Bogota with 30 Orphan Hope International team members! Our largest and most ambitious trip to date. God has given us a great group and I am already enjoying the way they are coming together to love and serve the orphans of Colombia.

We met for breakfast this morning at 7:30 a.m. and as we were wrapping up I gave our morning devotion. This week I wanted to focus on the theme of doing ministry as Jesus did. Asking Him to come and live His life through us. Minister to these children through us. I will address 6 P’s of Jesus ministry this week and this morning we started with Presence. The first gift that God gave us to demonstrate His love was His presence on earth in the person of His Son Jesus. Emmanuel… God with us. He could have written us a message in the sky but He chose to come to where we were and for 33 years to become one of us and live with us… John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” He gave us the gift of His presence and today we asked Him to use us to give these lonely, love starved children the gift of His presence in us. James 1:27 says, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress…” Another blessing today is that we will also get to receive the gift of His presence in them. Jesus said in Matthew 25 that when we serve them we are serving Him. Mother Teresa called these children Jesus in disguise and so they are.

Today we visited Santa Maria Orphanage in Madrid just outside of Bogota. It is home to 135 girls ages 8 to 18. We had a wonderful day seeing old friends and meeting many new ones. There were presentations by the girls, songs, drama productions, and such. We enjoyed visiting and sharing lunch with them. We toured their “house” and they assured us that it was our house as well and that they wanted us to be at home. As the afternoon was drawing to a close our dear sister and advisory board member, Dona Reyes, in Spanish with her husband Nep translating in English, gave her testimony of her life in Venezuela as a girl and the hurt and pain that she had suffered and the bitterness and revenge that had hardened her heart and then how meeting Jesus Christ and receiving His grace and love had healed her wounds and changed her heart. There were tears and sighs from many of the orphan girls. When Dona invited them to trust in Christ and to recieve by faith His love and grace many, many girls responded and prayed with Dona and Nep calling on the Lord to change their hearts and heal their hurts. Rebekah, Beverly, Brooke, Jana and I sang, Here I Am To Worship in English and then Jesus Messiah in Spanish for the girls and then it was time to go. We will return there tomorrow and share more of Jesus love for these precious children.

Christmas Day 2010 was a day of miracles for the Bullen family. First of all, everyone of the original 7 Bullens were there (an increasing miracle as the years go by). Luke with his precious wife Misti and their beautiful baby Joy, Levi home from the Navy, Rebekah, Beverly, Brooke and of course Lisa and I. However, added to the mix were some very special people. Jana, Levi’s fiancee and a precious addition to our family, Tanya, a blessing that we have claimed as our own, Heidy and Ginary, our delightful Goddaughters from an orphanage in Colombia, Adrianna, an official of the Colombian government staying with us for the month of December, and Anoop, an Indian man with whom I have the privilege of working! 15 total! What a day it was. 3 continents were represented at our humble Christmas dinner. Amazing! Thank you Lord for making our home place where you dwell and where you draw your “other sheep” to yourself. Each one had a Christmas stocking with their name on it (thanks Brooke) filled with goodies and gifts. I would say it was magical but I think supernatural would be more appropriate. To God be the glory.

On December 10, 2010 one of the biggest miracles of my life transpired. I was standing in the international arrivals terminal at George Bush Intercontinental Airport with my wife and four girls when out walked my two Goddaughters from Colombia who had come to visit us for 3 weeks over Christmas. The story of how this moment came to be is strewn throughout this blog and some of it is hidden deep in my heart never to be shared this side of heaven. It would be impossible to list the number of prayers, tears, hours, phone calls, emails, meetings, pieces of paper, plane flights and heart-stopping setbacks that preceded this moment but suffice it to say it was significant. There were many times that we were told it was not going to happen and yet we continued to believe that “the setting for a miracle is difficulty and the setting for a great miracle is impossibility.” As I am writing now the girls are back in the orphanage in Bogota and our vacation with them is over but the list of little Christmas miracles that we have experienced over the last 3 weeks are still shining in our minds and in our hearts. Here are a few of them… Hearing Heidy in the morning say from the top of the stairs in English, “Good morning Daddy, I love you.” then she would run down the stairs and jump into my arms… Taking the girls shopping and Ginary walking up with two blouses and asking me which one I like the best and then smiling and putting the one I chose in the basket… Seeing them enjoy horseback riding, ice skating in the Galleria, making cookies and peanut brittle and fudge, picking out a Christmas tree, wrapping gifts, singing Christmas carols, shopping in Old Town Spring especially the old fashioned candy store and toy store, riding the rides at the Family Fun Center, playing video games with the girls and laughing their heads off, watching Spanish cartoons on Mom’s computer all night long (oops) and many many more. Christmas day was amazing. Seeing them enjoy our new grand baby Joy on her first Christmas. Watching them open their gifts was incredible. My favorite part however was Christmas Eve as we gathered around the fire with our hot chocolate and egg nog and listened as Heidy read to us the Christmas story out loud from the Spanish New Testament and then read Max Lucado’s John 3:16 gospel tract out loud in Spanish as we remembered why Jesus came. What a miracle moment it was.

December 2010 will live in my memory as the month of Christmas miracles. God showed Himself mighty in so many ways this month. It started with two officials of the Colombian government flying into Houston on December 3rd to meet and learn more about Orphan Hope International. We enjoyed 3 days of meetings and learned much about each other and how we can cooperate together to help the children of Colombia. The Holy Spirit was strongly felt in all of the meetings but it was the third day that will stand out in stark relief in my mind. We had been discussing many processes, programs and plans for our future work with orphans in Colombia when both of these officials with tears in their eyes looked at us and said, “The greatest thing that Colombia needs from Orphan Hope is the spiritual element. Luis (our Director of Operations) has been telling us how his life was changed through Tres Dias and we want you to bring that to all of our institutions in Colombia (about 30,000 children).” I felt the blood drain from my head and the hair stand up on my neck as I looked at the other board members in the room to make sure I had just hear what I had heard. Their wide tear filled eyes assured me that I had indeed heard correctly. We went on to talk about how Orphan Hope brings something that other organizations don’t bring and that is spiritual transformation through Jesus Christ. We talked about how reaching the children of Colombia with this message could ultimately impact the future of a nation and the world. It was a miracle moment and the beginning of a string of Christmas miracles that we were to enjoy as 2010 came to a close. To God be the glory!

Hospitality has always been a passion of the Bullen family. The Bible says some have entertained angels unaware by being hospitable. Mother Teresa called those in need of hospitality “Jesus in disguise.”

In the last three years and especially the last few months, God has taken it up a notch for us. On July 3, 2008 a tortured, frail, and frightened African girl was dropped on our doorstep (Jesus in a beautiful but tortured disguise). Jan. 15, 2010 an abused, distraught, oppressed young woman was dropped on our doorstep… (Jesus in a beautiful but painful disguise). Until last week we had a homeless mentally ill young woman living with us that Jana brought home… (Jesus in a distressing disguise). Now we have three Colombians, two of them orphans, staying with us for the Holidays …(Jesus in a beautiful, love starved disguise)… We have a Sikh young man from India coming to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas with us this year too… (Jesus in a lonely disguise)…

Then yesterday I get a text from a sweet young woman named Hannah in New York who is like a daughter to me saying that her friend from Bible College is flying from NY home to Mexico for Christmas but that she has an all night layover in Houston and Hannah knew we would help her out. She flies in tonight at midnight and leaves tomorrow midday (same time “coincidentally” as I will be at the airport picking up my son Levi coming home for Christmas from the Navy)… (Jesus in a stranger disguise)… I responded that of course we would love to have her (because we don’t have enough Latinas in the house as it is LOL)…

Then I was reminded of page 86 of the book Radical… “Bullen how are you going to impact the world?” “I am going to disciple the nations” Then I realized that if He wants to God can bring the nations to my door one or three or four at a time if He wants to… I looked from the text message from Hannah, laughed out loud at God and then looked to some of my family standing around and told them of our guest coming the next night. We all laughed and shook our heads at (or should I say with) God and then we said laughing, “Well this year we are the Inn at Bethlehem but we will make room for Jesus” We all stopped stunned and looked at each other. “Wow” we said, “That’s powerful. May there always be room at the Bullen Inn for Jesus.”

God is moving mightily among us here at OHI. On December 11, 2010 at 6:00 pm we will host Share the Hope, a gala dinner and auction to promote the ministry in Colombia. Please mark your calendars for this important event! More details to follow…

This morning we had breakfast with the board of Fundacion Tayakai, our partners in Colombia. It was a wonderful time of fellowship, dream building, organizing, and good old fashioned communication. We have many miracle projects that have come out of our meetings this week that we have to get started on. I will use my last post to tell you all about them and how you all can help. But for now back to this day. After our breakfast we took a tour of some beautiful old buildings near where we were having breakfast and when we came back to the breakfast room the Goddaughters were waiting there for us. Such a joyous reunion ensued that it is hard to put into words. I can still feel the arms tight around my neck and feel the kisses on my cheek. We spent the rest of the day touring old town Bogota with the girls and generally having a marvelous time. We stopped in a restaurant and had a late lunch and enjoyed wonderful fellowship. Our two translators, Alexandra and Nep, were absolutely wonderful. Finally it was time for the girls to return to the orphanage and we said our sweet goodnights. The board sat up very late strategizing and talking about the new developments God has sent our way through this trip. This entire trip for me has been a miracle. I know I keep using that word but I literally saw the hand of God everywhere building a team between Orphan Hope International, Fundacion Tayakai, and ICBF. At the same moment the spiritual warfare with the forces of darkness was intense and at the same time the fingerprints of our Father were on everything. It was amazing. I hesitate to use a very personal instance to show what I mean but I think it will illustrate very well what this whole trip was like. At one point in the trip, we were in a meeting that could literally make or break our future ministry in Colombia from man’s perspective. I was suffering horribly with my Systemic Lupus and had been the entire trip. My kidneys were aching fiercely and I had been passing blood all day. I am sitting in this meeting and each of us is sharing and I am praying like crazy that I can make it to the end of the meeting and I get a text from my wife alerting me to a turn for the worse in a situation where we are helping an abused girl and my daughters are out on the streets looking for her. About five minutes later I get a message on my phone from my bank alerting me that my direct deposit paycheck didn’t go through and automatic payments are being cancelled and my account is in the red. It was pure grace alone but I literally chuckled, looked heavenward and smiled, and went on with the meeting and God gave us some amazing things in that meeting. I know a few stories from some of the rest of the board that happened that night that are as astounding as well but I will leave those for them to tell someday. My point is that God is mightily at work in Colombia and Satan is not happy about it but he is ultimately powerless to stop it so his only recourse is harassment and as long as we remember where it is coming from and that greater is HE that is in me than he that is in the world, we can smile and go on. Praise Jesus!

One of our strategies for this trip was to scout out a new orphanage to visit on the mission trip in January. The previous day when talking with ICBF they told us about an orphanage in the mountains outside of Bogota and so we went left out of the hotel on this morning headed for this new orphanage. As we wound our way up into the mountains the scenery became wilder and more beautiful. We came to a police checkpoint and after several minutes of sitting there with the police talking back and forth with our driver, Sandra went to go see what was going on. Apparently our van did not have an updated inspection and since we were traveling through a secluded area the police were afraid that the van might break down and there would be a whole van of Americans stranded in the mountains of Colombia. Not a good idea. Sandra told them of our mission and that we had an appointment with this orphanage and we really needed to get through. She is very persuasive. So the police decided that they would let us through and that one of the officers would escort our van to the orphanage in a prisoner transport van that they had nearby. So we set out again for the orphanage with our police escort with flashing lights leading the way. We hadn’t gone two miles when sure enough the van broke down on the side of the mountain. We all piled out laughing and shooting pictures like total tourists while Sandra went and negotiated with the officer and some of the men tried to see what was wrong with the van. It had thrown a serpentine belt and was not going anywhere. Finally, the police officer agreed and we piled into the prisoner transport van and headed for the orphanage once more. I can only imagine what the children thought when we pulled up to the orphanage, lights flashing, and the new people who were coming to tell them about Jesus piled out of a police van. It was hilarious.

We spent some wonderful time with the children and officials in this beautiful, breathtaking little town called La Calera. The views were stunning and the needs were great. We too soon had to leave because we had a big dinner planned with the officials from several orphanages in Bogota for that night. As we drove away from one of the locations some cute little boys were peaking through the fence, waving and asking, “Are you coming back tomorrow?” Of course we couldn’t but we will visit them again in January.

That night we hosted a very nice dinner with the officials of two orphanages in Bogota and shared our presentation and answered many questions. There was much support and excitement from all in attendance and even a few tears as we talked about the children and about Jesus and about many things. It was a fantastic evening and I believe all felt the presence of the Lord and all sensed that we were on the cusp of something huge for the children and the people of Colombia. We went to bed exhausted but praising God that we were so blessed to be a part of this work.

First, let me say that this trip was dedicated solely to meeting with different parts of the Colombian government to establish official relationships with them and Orphan Hope International and our Colombian partners Fundacion Tayakai.

Much preliminary work went into making this trip possible. I want to give a personal thanks to our entire team who worked very hard and sacrificed greatly to make this trip a reality.

We arrived Wednesday, September 15, 2010 at 9:00 pm and were greeted by Sandra, Antonio, and Chris Dinkler who was already in country on business. We arrived at the hotel, spent some time in prayer where we asked God to be our vanguard and to go before us and prepare the way. Then we bedded down, ready for a big day the next day at ICBF, the department for family welfare for Colombia.

The next day, Thursday, September 16, 2010 we arrived at the national headquarters of ICBF around 8:00 am all decked out in our suits and ties and the ladies in business attire. I know that we were all praying hard as we walked into the building. Our party included Orphan Hope board of directors David Richardson, Chris Dinkler, Bill Byrd and his wife Sandy, Shoby John and myself. Also included were Antonio and Sandra of Fundacion Tayakai, Alexandra Vanegas, Orphan Hope Assistant Secretary and Translator, and Nep Reyes, Orphan Hope Advisory Council Member and Translator. Our first meeting was with the adoption leg of ICBF and the Assistant Director of Adoptions led the meeting. She and her team introduced us to the inner workings of ICBF. This presentation lasted about 2 hours and was very informative and helpful. We had prepared a 30 minute powerpoint presentation of our ministry and had also brought bound printed copies of the presentation because we were not sure if we would be allowed to present and we wanted to have a leave behind for them. As God began to open doors and open the hearts of the officials we were meeting with the opportunity arose to give our full presentation and we did so. We shared about our vision for mission trips, padrino plan, adoption awareness and someday adoption agency, safe houses, and English program. We also were able to share that it was the love of Jesus Christ that filled us and overflowed out of us for the children, people, and nation of Colombia. At the end of the presentation the Assistant Director of Adoptions for the whole nation of Colombia said, “Well, I want to say that I love it. I am very impressed and I think your vision is the same as our vision. We welcome your ministry.” We couldn’t have been more excited and relieved to hear that. We broke for lunch praising God for His help and blessing.

When we returned from lunch another segment of ICBF began to present their inner workings. Suddenly an official stepped into the room and said that the General Director, the highest ranking person in ICBF wanted to meet with us. Word had already reached her about who we were and what we were doing. We all trooped upstairs to the executive conference room and there we met the Director of Protection who oversees all of the orphanages in Colombia and then in walked the General Director and we all sat down. Just as the meeting was getting started in walks Marley one of the Goddaughters who we have been on many trips with and soon to be adopted by our dear friends and Orphan Hope Advisory Council members Curt and Tonya Currie. As it turns out Marley and the General Director are friends. So the General Director turns to Marley and says tell me about these people and Marley starts to cry and says, “They have the love of God and when they come to the orphanages they bring this love and they have changed my life.” Wow! What a way to start the meeting. Then for the next several minutes we each get to tell our story and how we became involved and we were briefly able to present our ministry. When it came around to Bill and Sandy Byrd, they began to cry as they told about what God did and is doing in their hearts and nearly everyone in the room had tears in their eyes. It was a wonderful meeting. The General Director asked us if we were a Christian ministry and we said yes and then she further asked us if we were an Evangelical Christian ministry and we said yes. When we were all done answering her questions and presenting the ministry she smiled and said, “We are very excited about all that you are doing and want to do in Colombia.” “I have three points that I want done in reference to this ministry.” “1. I want you to work with my office at the national level on all of your programs. 2. I want to send a delegation from ICBF to Texas to meet with all of you and see your community and find out about you. 3. I want us to draw up a legal 3-way agreement between Orphan Hope, Fundacion Tayakai, and ICBF to clarify how we are going to work together to make your vision a reality.” She also told us that she would communicate with her counterpart in the U.S., Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to let her know that we would be working together on these issues.

Needless to say we walked out of the meeting without touching the ground. God has opened for us a very large door to be able to minister to the children, the people, and the government of Colombia and this was just the first day!

Almost minutes after our fifth trip to Bogota in June we began planning the launch of an organized ministry to take the lead in organizing and promoting what God was leading us to do in Colombia. Two weeks after we arrived back in the states we had a meeting and chose the name Orphan Hope International. We formed a board of directors which included David Richardson as president, Chris Dinkler as vice president, Bill Byrd as treasurer, Shoby John as secretary, and me as spiritual director. We elected two officers, Sandra Patricia Forero as vice president of Colombian affairs, and Alexandra Venegas as assistant secretary and translator. Many nights were spent at Bill and Sandy Byrd’s house hashing out all of the details of organizational structure of the ministry. Sandy always fed us like kings and we always had fun fellowshipping with one another so that made the chore very enjoyable. We also added and continue to add advisory council members including Luis Escobar, Curt and Tonya Currie, Dave and Gail Beach, Nep and Dona Reyes. God continues to send us wonderful people with varied talents and gifts to assist us in blessing the children of Colombia. We have established a website at www.orphanhopeintl.org and we have a presence on Facebook as well. Our vision statement reads, “Positively transforming the lives of orphans and those who minister to them through Christ-centered Mery Missions, Padrino Program, Adoption Awareness, and Haven Homes. You can read all about it on our website. We have also helped to establish an alliance partner organization in Colombia called Fundacion Tayakai. Tayakai means Me in a native dialect of Colombia. It brings attention to the fact that these children are people. Through these two entities we hope to greatly impact the nation of Colombia for Christ in the years to come and rescue many sweet little children and bring them to the savior. To God be the glory!

Here are some of the reasons we are so passionate about this…

Facts and Statistics

It is estimated there are between 143 million and 210 million orphans worldwide (recent UNICEF report.) The UNICEF orphan numbers DON’T include abandonment (millions of children) as well as sold and/or trafficked children. The current population of the United States is just a little over 300 million… to give you an idea of the enormity of the numbers…

According to data released in 2003 as many as eight million boys and girls around the world live in institutional care. Some studies have found that violence in residential institutions is six times higher than violence in foster care, and that children in group care are almost four times more likely to experience sexual abuse than children in family based care.

Every day 5,760 more children become orphans

Approximately 250,000 children are adopted annually, but…

Each year 14, 505, 000 children grow up as orphans and age out of the system by age sixteen

Each day 38,493 orphans age out

Every 2.2 seconds another orphan ages out with no family to belong to and no place to call home

Studies have shown that 10% – 15% of these children commit suicide before they reach age eighteen

These studies also show that 60% of the girls become prostitutes and 70% of the boys become hardened criminals

Another study reported that of the 15,000 orphans aging out of state-run institutions every year, 10% committed suicide, 5,000 were unemployed, 6,000 were homeless and 3,000 were in prison within three years…

An estimated 1.2 million children are trafficked every year; (THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2005)

2 million children, the majority of them girls, are sexually exploited in the multibillion-dollar commercial sex industry. (THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2005)

WHY COLOMBIA?

There are many reasons and ways that God has clearly led us to minister in Colombia. Here are just a few:

In 2010 Colombia had 577,000 orphans. (Children on the Brink) Note: For a little perspective, Orphan Hope International makes approx. 4 organized trips to Colombia per year. We minister to approx. 500 orphans per trip. At that rate it would take us 289 years to just see every orphan once. Colombia, is just one country in Latin America. Latin America is just one of three regions of the world, along with Asia and Africa, where the orphan problem is rampant. Asia and Africa have a vastly larger orphan problem than Latin America.

Colombia has been under the scourge of a 40-year civil war. This, along with the drug trade, has caused violence and consequently a rise in orphans in this country.

Girls, especially orphans, are abducted into child soldiery and sexual slavery and are sometimes forced into armed service by their parents as a form of ‘tax payment’, as happens in Colombia. (THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2005)

In Colombia, for example, girls as young as 12 are reported to have submitted sexually to armed groups in order to ensure their families’ safety. (THE STATE OF THE WORLD’S CHILDREN 2005)

Interpol estimates there are 35,000 women and girls trafficked out of Colombia every year for the sex trade, with estimated profits of $500 million, making Colombia second only to the Dominican Republic in the West. It is beyond comprehension the horror that these women and girls face as they service on average 40 clients per day. (Interpol)

1.2 million children are trafficked every year world wide; this is in addition to the millions already held captive by trafficking.

The average age of a trafficked victim is 14 years old.

One can only imagine what will happen to the sweet, pretty girls that we meet in the orphanages when they are turned out into the street at 18 years of age. This is why we have made safe houses one of our four main priorities is so that these girls are not on the street and vulnerable.

Here is what God says about orphans…

God Loves Orphans…

Deuteronomy 10:18 “He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.”

Psalm 10:14 The unfortunate commits himself to You; You have been the helper of the orphan.

Psalm 68:5-6 A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, Is God in His holy habitation. God makes a home for the lonely;

Jeremiah 49:11 “Leave your orphans behind, I will keep them alive; And let your widows trust in Me.”

Hosea 14:3 “For in You the orphan finds mercy.”

God Defends Orphans…

Deuteronomy 24:17 “You shall not pervert the justice due an alien or an orphan, nor take a widow’s garment in pledge.

Psalm 10:17-18 O LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear. To vindicate the orphan and the oppressed, So that man who is of the earth will no longer cause terror.

Psalm 146:9 The LORD protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, But He thwarts the way of the wicked.

Proverbs 23:10 Do not move the ancient boundary Or go into the fields of the fatherless, 11 For their Redeemer is strong; He will plead their case against you.

God Commands Care For Orphans…

Deuteronomy 14:29 “The Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance among you, and the alien, the orphan and the widow who are in your town, shall come and eat and be satisfied, in order that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.

Deuteronomy 16:11, 14 and you shall rejoice before the LORD your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite who is in your town, and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your midst, in the place where the LORD your God chooses to establish His name. 14 And you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter and your male and female servants and the Levite and the stranger and the orphan and the widow who are in your towns.

Deuteronomy 24:19-21 “When you reap your harvest in your field and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow, in order that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands. “When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow. “When you gather the grapes of your vineyard, you shall not go over it again; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow.

Deuteronomy 26:13 “You shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and also have given it to the Levite and the alien, the orphan and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed or forgotten any of Your commandments.

Job 22:9 “You have sent widows away empty, And the strength of the orphans has been crushed.

Psalm 82:3 Vindicate the weak and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and destitute.

Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.

Jeremiah 7:5-7 “For if you truly amend your ways and your deeds, if you truly practice justice between a man and his neighbor, if you do not oppress the alien, the orphan, or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place, nor walk after other gods to your own ruin, then I will let you dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers forever and ever.

James 1:27 Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

God Opposes Harm Of Orphans…

Exodus 22:22-24 “You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. “If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to Me, I will surely hear his cry; and My anger will be kindled, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

Deuteronomy 27:19 ‘Cursed is he who distorts the justice due an alien, orphan, and widow.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

Job 6:27 “You would even cast lots for the orphans and barter over your friend.

Job 24:3, 9 “They drive away the donkeys of the orphans; They take the widow’s ox for a pledge. 9 “Others snatch the orphan from the breast, And against the poor they take a pledge.

Psalm 94:6 They slay the widow and the stranger and murder the orphans.

Isaiah 1:23 Your rulers are rebels And companions of thieves; Everyone loves a bribe And chases after rewards. They do not defend the orphan, Nor does the widow’s plea come before them.

Isaiah 10:2 So as to deprive the needy of justice And rob the poor of My people of their rights, So that widows may be their spoil And that they may plunder the orphans.

Jeremiah 5:28 ‘They are fat, they are sleek, They also excel in deeds of wickedness; They do not plead the cause, The cause of the orphan, that they may prosper; And they do not defend the rights of the poor.

Jeremiah 22:3 ‘Thus says the LORD, “Do justice and righteousness, and deliver the one who has been robbed from the power of his oppressor. Also do not mistreat or do violence to the stranger, the orphan, or the widow; and do not shed innocent blood in this place.

Ezekiel 22:7 “They have treated father and mother lightly within you. The alien they have oppressed in your midst; the fatherless and the widow they have wronged in you.

Zechariah 7:10 and do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise evil in your hearts against one another.’

Malachi 3:5 “Then I will draw near to you for judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers and against the adulterers and against those who swear falsely, and against those who oppress the wage earner in his wages, the widow and the orphan, and those who turn aside the alien and do not fear Me,” says the LORD of hosts.

Will you help us?

Today we headed out to visit a transition home for young people ages 18-21 who have aged out of the orphanage. We were very excited because we were going to see some of our dear friends who once lived at Ciudadella orphanage in Madrid but have since moved to this new place. We were also going to surprise them by taking them out to lunch and to the mall to buy each one an outfit of clothes. It was wonderful to see each of them. So many precious friends. Names like Yuli, JLo, Susan, Natalia, and on and on. Sweet girls and some boys as well that we have built a relationship with this year. We were very interested to see this transition home because we hope to have our own like it next year. After touring the house and hearing some of the young people share about their lives there we loaded everyone up and went to a pizza place that one of the girls worked at. We had a wonderful feast as 18″ pizza after 18″ pizza kept coming until we were all stuffed and we had 3 whole pizzas left. The young people from the transition home were overjoyed when we boxed up the extra pizza and told them they could take it home to eat later. They rarely get such a treat. We rolled… ahem I mean walked out of the pizza shop and gathered on the street corner taking group photos and visiting while we waited for our bus to pull around. About that time a little street family consisting of a little hunched over mom and a little hunched over dad with big scars on his legs from some sort of injury, and a dirty but cute little boy about 7 I would guess very politely came over and asked if we could help them out with any money so that they could feed their boy. As some were reaching in their pockets for pesos, one of the orphan girls from the transition home walked over with a smile and handed the family the box full of left over pizza and said, “God bless you.” My heart stopped for a minute and I saw the same amazed expression on the faces of the rest of the team as it soaked in what we had just witnessed. The orphan giving her food to the poor family. There is something very poetic, ironic, and tragic in that exchange and also something very spiritual that changed something deep inside my heart right there on that street corner. We have so much here in America that we don’t even know how to give out of sacrifice. It was humbling to say the least. Back at the transition home we said our tearful goodbyes and headed for the airport. Another successful trip into the fields of the fatherless transforming the lives of orphans and team members alike. To God be the glory.

Once again, I am writing three months after the fact from memory.

This was to be our last day at Amparo De Ninas and our last day to be with our girls. Lisa was up most of the night sick from the stress of having to leave the girls today and was so sick this morning that she couldn’t get out of bed. Sandra, who is a doctor, gave her some medicine and she finally fell asleep and slept all day. We left her and went to the orphanage. There was plenty of games and crafts and then the girls called us all together and some of the girls did a synchronized cheer/dance for us in their matching sweat suits. It was really cute. Then they called us into the room where they did the presentation for us on the first day. Many of the girls were wearing traditional Colombian costumes and they demonstrated many traditional dances for us. It was wonderful. Our Goddaughter Ginary was one of the dancers and she did very well. As the meeting broke up, we were all pulled into a huge congo line and danced around the large room several times. It was so fun. Then they called us all to the front and presented each of us with a bag of Colombian coffee and a manilla (woven Colombian bracelet). Ginary and Heidy presented me my manilla. They had woven one each for Lisa and I. I now have six manillas on my arm that I have received from different trips and made by different girls. I was given the very first one by a girl named Yecena. She looked at me very seriously and said, “Never take this off” and I haven’t. Now I have 6 of them that I never take off. Many times God has used these Manillas to cause people to ask me what they mean and then I have been able to share about the orphans of Colombia and the love of Jesus for orphans that He has poured into my heart and consequently pours out to these children.

Finally it came time to leave. I kissed and hugged my girls goodbye 5 or 6 times and then walked to the big steel gate and out into the dirty little potted alley that leads out into the street. This was the hate part of my love/hate relationship with this little alley for I was leaving my girls for several weeks or maybe months. I felt the hot tears rolling down my face and dripping off of my beard as I walked to the bus. Antonio was standing at the door of the bus and he reached out and gave me a big hug. I climbed into the bus, sat down and wept out my complaint to God that I could not take my girls with me. He heard me and brought to my mind many scriptures of comfort and hope. I know that He is working on behalf of me and my girls and He has a plan much bigger than I can imagine.

The night I originally sat down to write about this day my blog software crashed and I never got to write about day 5 and 6 so here goes from memory 3 months after the fact.

Our morning devotion centered around Power Through Weakness. I encouraged the group that when they “see” and “feel” like Jesus and then inevitably feel absolutely powerless to “do” anything about the great need around us that we must remember that God delights to do great things through weak people. He loves for His treasures to be carried in jars of clay. He is the one ultimately doing the work. We are to simply be obedient and His power will flow through us to the world.

We went on a wonderful walk to a large park in Bogota with the girls from Amparo De Ninas today. It was really fun walking through Bogota, a city of 10 million people with 80 orphan girls, our team of 30 and some nuns and staff. The most memorable part of the walk was when we came to a large intersection in the city with no crosswalk or lights and Sister Hilma stepped out in her long flowing white robes and raised her hand in the air towards 4 or 5 lanes of speeding traffic and they all came to an immediate stop and then all 120 of us crossed behind her. It was like Moses at the Red Sea. Unfortunately on the way home Sister Hilma road in the bus and so when we got to that same intersection I tried doing what she had done… I nearly got ran down… everyone finally got across but I was cursed at in Spanish by more than one driver and nearly hit more than once. It was hilarious. I guess if I was wearing the habit of a nun or priest it would have worked better. Ha ha.

I so enjoyed the walk and visiting with the girls and seeing Lisa, Heidy and Brooke walking hand in hand and sometimes with Heidy’s head on Brooke’s shoulder. It was so sweet.

When we arrived at the park our little friends from Pro Nacer Boys Orphanage were there and we had a wonderful time playing games and sitting on the grass visiting. Sister Hilma came over and sat by me and we talked for a long time about the children and about my Goddaughters. She was very sweet. My ninja friend Oscar was there and we had a few more go arounds too. As I write this I miss him. He is such a cute boy. When it came time for lunch we had catered box fried chicken lunches for everyone and the children loved it! We had a wonderful lunch and then some more fun and games.

On the way back a very pretty 17 year old whose name escapes me at the moment took my hand and asked if she could walk with me. I said, “Sure” and we walked the entire 4 to 5 miles or so back to the orphanage hand in hand. Between her English and my Spanish we were able to communicate very well and we talked about everything under the sun. She shared with me her story and how that she had never had a father or any other men in her life. She had lived alone with her aunt from birth until she came to the orphanage. I began to see why she wanted to walk with me. She had seen me with my daughter Brooke and my Goddaughters, Heidy and Ginary, and she longed to have a father. I shared with her many things about life, about good men and bad men, about values and morals. She was very open and had such a sweet heart. We laughed and joked about many things as well. After building some rapport I asked her, “what do you think of Jesus Christ?” Her answer brought tears to my eyes. She replied, “He is my Father, and He is the best Father in the whole world.” We talked much about Him after that and she promised me that she would never lose faith and that she would always trust her Father and follow His path and not the path that the world offers. I know that I will never see her again on this earth because she was scheduled to be moved out of the institution shortly after we left but I was so grateful that the Lord let me stand in His stead and hold her hand for that 4 miles and for a brief moment in time let her feel what it was like to have a daddy. I believe that I represented Him well and I hope she will never forget because I know that I never will. To know that there are 577,000 children in Colombia just like her is what makes me keep going back again and again. Though I will never be able to hold the hand of or share Jesus with each of those 1/2 million orphans, I’m reminded of the old man walking on the beach where thousands of starfish have washed ashore and as he stoops to pick one up a little boy says, “Hey Mister, you can’t save all of these starfish” and the old man smiles as he tosses the starfish back into the sea, “saved that one!”

Another sweet memory comes from our arrival back at the orphanage. We were so hot and tired and so we broke out some frozen yogurt pops. I was teasing Heidy and Brooke and they were laughing and teasing back. Suddenly Brooke reached out with her yogurt pop and wiped it on my glasses as if she was poking me in the eye. I jumped back and laughed and the shocked look on Heidy’s face was priceless. She could not believe Brooke would do that to me or that I wasn’t mad. She laughed and laughed as I stood there with yogurt dripping off my glasses and then she got the most pitiful face and said teasingly, “Papi pobre, Brooke usted es una hija mala al papi.” (Poor Daddy…, Brooke!, you are a bad daughter to Daddy) Then she took my glasses and ran off to the office and when she returned they were all washed and clean. It was too sweet.

Sometimes I dream that I am not able to rescue my sweet Heidy and she ends up on the street and I am searching and searching for her and when I finally find her she is gaunt and diseased and then I wake up weeping and begging God to help me to help her and all of them. I’m reminded of a quote from Bob Pierce, founder of World Vision, “God, let my heart be broken by the things that break Your heart.”

The butterflies were swarming in my stomach this morning when I awoke because I knew I would see my sweet Colombian daughters today. We had our usual breakfast and then I shared in our team devotion a fourth aspect of Jesus ministry, His touch. We explored several of the places in scripture where Jesus touches men, women, children and heals them, comforts them, and blesses them. He also allows others to touch Him. When we go to Amparo De Ninas today, one of the ways that we will be able to imitate Jesus is with the hugs and kisses that these girls so desperately want and need and which we can gladly provide. We may not heal leprosy or raise the dead with our touch but we can heal hearts and bring hope to lonely souls.

The reunion with our daughters was beyond words. Their little arms around my neck and their kisses on my cheek and their “I love you Papi” were more healing for me than I can express. For me today, they were the hands and feet of Jesus. It was wonderful to see our other little friends at Amparo today and to make many new ones.

The girls had planned a really nice presentation for us and they presented each of us with a bouquet of silk flowers.

Sitting there in the presentation with little Heidy between Lisa and me, holding her little brown hand as she leaned on Lisa’s chest, I was once again amazed at how God has brought this whole Colombia connection into our lives in the last twelve months and the supernatural bond that we feel with these people. God is so good. After the presentation it was time for lunch and we enjoyed sitting around the tables as one big family.

Next it was out to the court to play some games and make bracelets and visit. It wasn’t long before we were all sitting in the shade just getting to know each other and enjoying each others company. Then it was off for a tour of the grounds and facility. We saw where they make clothes and bake and many other things. When we went into the dormitories and saw where our girls sleep it was so sweet to see their pictures of us prominently displayed.

Later there was lots of dancing and fun.

And then it was goodbye for today. But tomorrow we are going to spend the whole day together in the big beautiful city park and have a cookout so goodbyes this time were not too sad 🙂

We enjoyed a very nice dinner on top of the mountain and after a few hours of sleep, we will be ready to go again.

Bless the Lord oh my soul and all that is within me bless His holy name. What a wonderful day we had today! We started out the morning with our team devotion. This time we explored some of the many places in scripture where it reveals that Jesus not only “saw” and “felt” but He also “acted.” We determined in our hearts to imitate Him in this as well today. Our visit today was at ProNacer, a Christian orphanage in Bogota proper with fifty two boys in a very small three-story house in a rough part of town. The staff and leadership of this orphanage are devout Christians who teach the Bible and Christian values to the children diligently. The Spirit of Christ was evident everywhere there and He really made our day bright and beautiful. This was my third visit to ProNacer this year and it was so exciting to see the recognition and excitement in the faces of all my little friends as we walked in. We spent most of the day at the public basket ball court across the street from the orphanage playing every kind of game imaginable. The Kamas brothers have done a wonderful job of managing the games on this trip.

I had to stay on guard all day for sneak attacks from two little ninjas who insisted on testing my martial arts skills left over from my youth 🙂

The ministry provided each boy with two pairs of tennis shoes and we are going to provide a bus to take the boys to the park on Thursday where we and the girls from Amparo De Ninas, where we will be the next three days, will meet up with them for a cookout.

When most of the boys had tired from the ball games they sat down on the grass at the edge of the court and began to make bracelets with the brightly colored string our team had brought them. The intricate patterns were stunning. Many members of the team received bracelets from their little friends before they left.

Once again many hearts were touched and much love was exchanged on both sides. One sad note today was some information that we learned in talking with the staff. They have fifty two boys here of which forty five are eligible for adoption and yet they have only had three boys adopted from here in the last three years. I know the whole team would agree with me in saying that these were some of the sweetest, most respectful, well behaved boys we have ever met and we committed to spreading the news about ProNacer and helping these little boys to achieve their fondest dream… a family of their own.

The personal highlight of my day happened as I was standing in the street next to my Colombian friend Sandra and her cell phone rang. Somehow my Goddaughter, Ginary, had heard that the ministry team was in town and she called Sandra to ask, “Where is my daddy?” Teasing her, Sandra said, “I’m sorry Ginary but your family wasn’t able to make this trip.” Ginary replies, “I understand, it will be ok.” Without another word Sandra hands me the phone and I say, “Hello daughter! I’m coming to see you tomorrow!” Needless to say, there was much excitement on the other end of the phone line and many “I love you’s” and she just kept saying over and over, “bonito, bonito, lindo, lindo” (beautiful, beautiful). I then handed the phone to Lisa and she and Ginary got to exchange “I love you’s.” We will be spending the next three days with them and I can hardly wait to get there in the morning. Lord, give us your eyes, give us your heart, and give us your grace to help these dear children.

Today my sweet daughter Beverly turns nineteen years old. Last year on this date, on her eighteenth birthday, she was here in Bogota with me and we had a party for her at Sandra’s house with a big cake. As we sat at dinner all of the team who was there last year reminisced about Bevy’s B-Day party and asked me to tell her Feliz Cumpleanos! Happy birthday Beverly. Missing you today.

On the bus ride back to the hotel, my sweet daughter Brooke wrote a poem entitled, Kissing the face of Jesus. I wanted to share it with you.

Kissing the face of Jesus

How many times have I longed?

To see my Lord, to sing Him songs?

To stand before Him, to give Him love?

To live with Him in His home above?

How many times have I cried?

He said He was here, I felt He lied.

“Lord I want to see you, to touch you”

And then I learned what I never knew

I found Him right were He said

In his tiny home, in his tiny bed

A little child, across the world

He warmed my heart, which once was cold

I found what I sought in the least of these

Now to my heart he holds the keys

Jesus’ true face, without pride or care

A find like this though humble is rare

This is why I write this rhyme

I will never cringe at the dirt or grime

When I kiss the cheek of mi amigos y amigas

I am kissing the face of Jesus

Brooke Danielle Bullen

In our team devotion this morning before leaving for the orphanage we talked about the fact that Jesus not only “saw” but He felt deeply. In over twenty instances the gospel writers give us a peak into the heart of Jesus and how He felt in different circumstances and so I encouraged the team to remember when they feel the pain, loneliness, sadness, joy, and love of the orphans around them that it is the heart of Jesus that they are feeling and to let down the walls and embrace the emotions as Jesus did.

We returned to Ciudad De La Nina today and were greeted by old friends and new friends that we met yesterday. The sun was out so there were many outdoor games and activities going on throughout the day. It was such a joy to see the team members who were on their first trip here surrounded by children laughing and playing and talking away. Love is a universal language for sure. We had so much fun sitting around visiting and listening to each girls story. Some were quite heartbreaking and it was wonderful to comfort them and encourage them to trust in God for their future.

Lunch time came and we brought out four hundred hamburgers with french fries to give the kids a treat. It was so fun seeing them dig into their food. The happy chatter around the tables was more than thanks enough.

After lunch, Kylie Novak and the other teens on our team broke out the craft making supplies and the girls crowded around to make beaded and string bracelets. One sweet girl named Jenny brought me a bracelet she had made and as she tied it on my wrist she firmly told me never to take it off 🙂 I now have six bracelets that a Colombian orphan girl has placed on my arm with the same firm instruction. Two of them I haven’t removed in almost a year. Every time I come back they come up to me and pull up my sleeve to see if I still have the bracelet on my arm. They are a constant reminder that Jesus has other lambs that are not of this fold and He must bring them also so that they will be one fold with one Shepherd and He has told me that if I love Him I will feed His lambs.

Oh! It was so good to be back today with all of our little friends at Ciudad De La Nina (City of the Girl) Orphanage in Madrid. So many hugs, so many smiles, and a few tears as we were reunited once again. This is my fifth trip to Bogota in the last twelve months and I rejoice and praise the Lord that He has chosen me and my family to participate in His work with the orphans of Colombia. We have a wonderful team that God has once again hand picked for this particular trip. It is a special joy for me to have my sweet wife of twenty five years, Lisa, and my sixteen year old daughter, Brooke, with me as well. Our day started with breakfast and delicious Colombian coffee. Before we boarded the bus for the orphanage I was blessed to be able to give a devotion for the team. This whole week I will be exploring with the team in these devotions some different aspects of Jesus approach to ministry and serving people. Today we explored the fact that Jesus “saw” and then felt compassion. As I have shared in my last four posts on Compassion, over twenty times in the New Testament it says that Jesus “saw” someone and then felt and acted. So today I shared with the team that Jesus wants to relive His life in each of us and so when we go to the orphanage we need to give Him our eyes and let Him “see” through us the needs of these dear children and then we will feel His heart and know His will for us and why we are here.

First thing after we arrived, one hundred and sixty girls gave a presentation for us with some dances and some songs and then I was privileged to share the gospel with them. I told them how that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit had in eternity past enjoyed the supreme love and supreme happiness of their perfect relationship in perfect holiness and how that they wanted to share that wonderful love and happiness and holiness with someone else and so they created man and woman to walk together with in the garden in the cool of the day. But man and woman wanted more than just a childlike relationship with God. Their pride and lust lead them to try life on their own without God and this painful, sinful, corrupt world is the result. But God was not satisfied to let man and woman and their offspring go their own way and so the Father sent the Son to become one of them and to live their life and to feel their pain and to give His life to undo the damage that their pride and lust had done and purchase them back to Himself so that once again they could join in that beautiful familial relationship of love and happiness between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. And now by faith when we believe and confess with our mouth this wonderful gift we are restored to that childlike relationship with our loving Heavenly Father and we are left here for now to share His love with those around us and one day in Heaven we will spend the rest of eternity enjoying that supreme love and supreme happiness and supreme holiness as one big beautiful blood bought family. I then invited them to pray with me and ask the Father to restore them through the death of Jesus back to the family of God.

We spent the rest of the day visiting and taking photos and having a wonderful time. It was rainy today so we spent most of our time inside. At one point Shoby John, one of my dear friends on our team came up and said, “Hey, let’s sing” so several of us gathered around and sang praise and worship songs until our voices gave out. The Colombian girls loved it! It was so cute to see them stand there soaking up the multipart harmonies and the passion of our worship as we lifted our voices to the Lord. After every song they would say, “Mas, mas” (more, more) It was a day to be remembered forever. We will go back there tomorrow for a big cook out and more fun and games. Thank you for your prayers and support.

In the midst of the battle and heartache, our brothers and sisters with whom our hearts have been woven together in the trips to Colombia were a constant source of encouragement through their many cards, emails, and phone calls. Their unwavering love and understanding was incredible.
Also, God was moving in the heart of our friends Bill and Sandy Byrd to go with us in June. Bill would call me every few days with a question or just wanting to talk about the trip. It was a joy to see their excitement. Bill also blessed Lisa and I with an unexpected but very badly needed blessing when he and Sandy paid our way to go on the upcoming trip. It meant the world to us. Bill is the president of South East Texas Tres Dias and is now on the board of directors of Orphan Hope International and is our treasurer. Another dear friend whom some of our team was working on during this time was Shoby John. He is another brother we originally met through Tres Dias.

Shoby and his daughter Hannah committed during this time to come on the trip. Shoby is now on the board of directors for Orphan Hope International and is our secretary. Even in our pain we could see that God was causing all things to work together for our good and the good of the sweet children of Colombia.

Well, there is no Easter Sunday without a Good Friday. We arrived home on Monday, April 19, 2010 tired but full of joy and hope that our sweet Colombian girls were coming home soon. Our beloved African daughter, Mercy, unbeknownst to us was very fearful of the Colombian girls coming and had been working for weeks behind our back to try and sabotage our adoption of them. When Lisa came home so excited about finally getting to meet and spend time with Heidy and Ginary, it was more than Mercy’s fears and insecurities could take. She could not imagine competing with two more girls for our love even though we tried desperately to assure her that God had made a parents heart to always expand proportionately with the number of children He gives them so that they never have to share the love their parents have for them. She panicked and four days later ran away from home. Child Protective Services and the police became involved and brought her home. Over the next five days she ran away two more times and was eventually placed by CPS in a group home. Court dates and much legal wrangling ensued and we ultimately had to let her go forever. The heart breaking phone call came shortly thereafter from our adoption agency informing us that our adoption of Heidy and Ginary had been cancelled and that due to this incident with Mercy we would not ever be candidates for adoption again. We, of course, were devastated. We had spent thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours trying to save these two precious girls and Mercy but God is the keeper of the accounts and he knows! We are at His disposal and we receive from His hand good things and bad things with the same joy. The one resounding message that continued to ring through my heart as I received this dreadful news was, “My son, I don’t want you to just help two or three girls, I want you to help them all.” Through the pain and tears I bowed my heart before the Lord and replied, “Yes, Lord. I believe, help my unbelief.” Already, unbeknownst to me, God was beginning to move the hearts of key people to go with us to Colombia in June 2010.

Our last day here was filled with several blessings. First, to the explain the blessing at lunch on this day I need to rewind back to my second trip in September 2009 for a second. It was on this trip that I met and developed a relationship with Antonio, Sandra’s husband. He and I became close partly because of our love for the orphans and mostly because we are the two men who Heidy looks up to as Dad. She owns a big piece of Antonio’s heart as well as mine. God has used this little girl and her sweet spirit and her innocent, tender love to draw both of us into this ministry. Also, after the September trip Antonio was so moved by his time with us and the girls that he became Godfather to a precious girl named Lorena. He also fell in love with my other Goddaughter Ginary and stood with her in my place at her baptism in the fall of 2009. So God was tying more and more heart strings between he and I. As we were standing in the airport to go back to Houston from the September ’09 Padrino trip, Antonio mentioned to me that Sandra and he were thinking about starting a foundation to build a safe house and help the girls who were aging out of the orphanage. I told him that we would support and back anything they wanted to do. Sandra says that the decision to go ahead with Fundacion Tayakai was made in that conversation. Ok, fast forward to April 2010 Padrino trip again. We are all sitting at lunch talking about the newly formed Fundacion Tayakai and how we could help. Significantly, most of the current members of the board of directors and the advisory council for what is now Orphan Hope International were sitting at this lunch. As we talked a plan formed to develop a U.S. ministry to support Fundacion Tayakai (Tayakai is a native Colombian word meaning “me”) and so was born what is now Orphan Hope International. We all had witnessed the hand of God mighty upon each of us in drawing us together on that day, at that table, for those sweet children. It was a truly momentous lunch for all of us. Second, that night we all gathered in one cabin and had our closing devotion for the trip. I shared what I had been studying from the life of Jesus about how He loved and cared for the needy. We were all moved by His example. After my devotion we were each given the opportunity to share a testimony of what God was doing in our hearts on this trip. Each Padrino (Godparent) and each Ahijada (Goddaughter) shared and there was not a dry eye in the place. One of the testimonies that touched me the most was from Lida, David’s Goddaughter. She told us that she had been watching us and learning from us on the last four mission and Padrino trips that she had been on. She had seen us be the hands and feet of Jesus and she had decided that when she was grown that she wanted to give her life to orphan ministry too. Words can’t describe how smitten each of us were with her words. It was beautiful and we determined to press on. We thought that was enough supernatural working of the Holy Spirit for one day but He was not done yet. We were all getting ready to bed down when Alexandra came to the door and said that Heidy and Ginary needed their “parents.” We went to investigate and discovered that they were in a sisterly squabble and needed some parental guidance 🙂 Over the next two hours with Alex’s help we had the most precious, honest, meaningful conversation, first with Ginary alone and then with Heidy and Ginary together. It was Mom and Dad pouring their hearts out to their two daughters and their two daughters pouring their hearts out to them and to each other. It was absolutely precious and God tightened the cords of our hearts even more that night for these girls and all of the children of Colombia.

I was so engrossed with enjoying my time with my wife and Goddaughters on this trip that I didn’t write in my journal every day like I did on other trips but I will recap here. Every day except one we stayed at the club and swam, ate, talked, bowled, and generally had a marvelous time. One day we went to the mall and took the girls shopping. Lisa had a great time helping them pick out all manner of clothing articles from shoes to coats. It was so wonderful being a family. It never ceases to amaze me how universally needed and craved love is. In the next post I will share our last night together on this trip.

When I awoke this morning and realized that my wife and I were staying at a nice country club in beautiful Colombia with our two sweet Goddaughters and that we were going to be here for 5 days just hanging out, eating, swimming, and many other activities, I had to pinch myself twice. God is good. We went to breakfast and I wish I could show you the sweet photos of the girls hugging and holding on to Lisa but alas it is illegal to post on the internet pictures of Colombian orphans. In all of my visits here and all of my time with my Goddaughters I have never been able to sit down with them with a translator and just talk. I speak some Spanish but we have to limit our conversations to easy stuff that I can understand. This morning however I was able to sit down with Heidy and our sweet translator Alexandra and have a real Father/Daughter talk about some personal hurts and struggles that Heidy was going through and I was so blessed to listen to her heart and to share my heart and we cried together. She was just sure that when I knew her a little of her story that I would not want her anymore for a daughter. I was able to assure her that I loved her not for what had or hadn’t happened to her or not or what she had or hadn’t done but because I chose to place my love upon her and to commit myself and everything I have and everything I am to being her Papi. And then I was able to tell her again about her Heavenly Father Who taught me how to love like this and about His extravagant love for us. It was the sweetest time. We spent the rest of the day just hanging out and enjoying being a family. I will never get over hearing their little cute voices calling to Lisa and saying, “Mami, benga” or “Mami, mida” (Mom, come here or Mom, look). It was a treasure of Grace that I could never have imagined in a thousand years. God had to think up such a precious gift and dump it on me. Thank you Lord.

So in February and March of 2010, between the third and fourth trip to Colombia, the Bullen family is in the midst of an all out war. At the same time we are working hard on the mountains of adoption paperwork, I am pastoring, Luke and my girls are leading worship, Lisa and I are counseling dozens of people, I am working 115 miles from home on a new project, I am speaking at two Tres Dias weekends, our family is ministering to these two sweet but troubled girls God has sent us, and my dear brother Chris Dinkler calls me and says, “hey we are planning a Padrino trip to Colombia in April, you and Lisa gotta come.” My heart sinks because I know that there is no way Lisa and I can go. Other than the busy schedule and huge financial struggles that we are going through, Lisa has never been to Colombia or out of the country for that matter and she has emphatically stated on multiple occasions that her entire role in this orphan ministry is to stay home and pray! Well one day a plane ticket shows up in the mail with her name on it. I thought she would be so mad but instead she strutted through the house waiving it in the air telling everyone that she was going to Colombia to see her girls! It was awesome. Now I just had to pray for my way there. We prayed and prayed and just in time the money came in for us to go with some left over to spend on the Goddaughters while we were there. I was so excited that Lisa was going to be able to meet our two sweet girls that she had heard so much about. I had now been in Colombia twice with my daughters Rebekah and Beverly and once with my daughter Brooke and now I was going to get to take my bride. What a blessing! We were delighted that our friends and fellow soldiers Curt and Tonya Currie, David Richardson and his sister, Charlotte, Chris and Julie Dinkler, Luis Escobar and Alexandra Vanegas were also attending. Lisa and I arrived at the airport about 2 hours early and we sat in the terminal and enjoyed a nice lunch. I was giddy like a little child on Christmas morning waiting for the ok to go check under the tree. On a Padrino (Godparent) trip Padrinos are able to take their children out of the orphanage and have them with them for the week. We were going to be staying at the Country Club in Madrid. We met up with our friends and flew to Bogota. After we collected our luggage we walked outside and there were Sandra and all the Goddaughters waiting for us. They jumped into our arms and there were many hugs and kisses. Heidy and Ginary presented Lisa with a beautiful colombian corsage and a sweet letter that they had written for her. Once again I discovered that there were new depths of my heart still to be touched by these wonderful children. The first time I heard Heidy call Lisa, Mami (Mommy), in her sweet little sing song voice and saw the radiant look on her face I felt as if my life and all the struggles were more than worth it. I looked up to heaven in that chilly Colombian night sky and said, “Lord, I can go to heaven now. Hearing Heidy call Lisa, Mami, is reward enough. I don’t need anything more.” I can’t explain how deeply this touched me but once again I knew that I was in the right place, doing the right thing, and that nothing short of death was going to stop me.

If I have learned anything in the last few years it has been that “there is no victory without a fight, there is no sunrise without a night, there is no purchase without a cost, and there is no crown without a cross.” We came home from out third trip in January to all out war at home, which frankly, always excites me because you only get shot at if you are in the heat of the battle. This war had been building for some time. It actually started back when we took in our African daughter, Mercy. So let me rewind a little back to July 2008. Three weeks after Mercy came to live with us my two sons and I were all laid off from work on the same day. I was unexpectedly laid off from a six figure income job that day and was consequently out of work for almost a year and financially we have never recovered. But the three of us getting laid off was not to be the height of the spiritual warfare for that day. We came home, gave the bad news to the girls and mom, and decided to go to dinner and forget our fears and worries. On the way home from dinner an old man who was off his medication tried to run my wife off the road in our little, safe, gated community where we live. She pulled over and the boys and I got out to see what was going on and he accelerated to about 30 miles an hour and just missed me and hit my oldest son Luke sending him smashing head first into the man’s windshield and then he flew over the car and landed on the pavement as the man sped away. My heart sank to my feet as I watched all of this just a few feet from me. But God! Even though the man’s bumper, fender, mirror and windshield were dented and shattered Luke jumped up off the ground with no broken bones and only a small scratch on his head. The first responders who arrived shortly after and saw the damage to the car could not believe that he had even survived much less was unharmed. That day we knew we were in a war. Over the next several months our entire family’s lives were wrapped up in ministering to Mercy. Here was a girl who had been beaten, had horrible scars all over her body from being tortured, was passed around and rejected over and over again, had been on the run from the guerillas in Liberia, had ingested caustic soda and destroyed her esophagus. Had lain in a hospital bed in Africa for two years begging to die and when we met her was 13 years old and only 48 pounds. Now she was healed physically but spiritually and emotionally she was desperately sick. We poured our lives into her and then 11 months later God sends me to Colombia for the first time. Fast forward now to February 2010 and the war we came home to. Within a week of our third trip to Colombia another abused and broken orphan girl was dropped on our doorstep and a legal battle with her abusers ensued. Because the people had formerly been a significant part of the church I was pastoring, the legal and spiritual battle overflowed into my church and split it to pieces. At the same time the abused girl was an emotional, spiritual, and physical wreck and for the first 3 months she was with us my entire family spent nearly every night praying, singing, and reading scripture over her as she fought with her attackers in horrible nightmares all night long. Of course, during the same time my health was severely attacked and our finances continued to take hits from every side. But with every fiery dart God would also send a little miracle to assure us that, like the 3 Hebrew children, He was with us in the fiery furnace and in the end when we could come out our clothes wouldn’t even smell like smoke! We would pray for money to come in for the orphans and then the phone would ring and someone would donate the exact amount that we were praying for. God continued to send us people to help as well. It was a surreal time in the Bullen family. One day in February, in the midst of all of this, I was down to my last $20.00 without taking something to the pawnshop. I put the $20.00 in my gas tank and said, “ok Lord, I’m in your hands.” That afternoon I was offered a job starting the next day. I was so excited and thankful. The next morning I left to go to my new job and was in a car accident half-way there. It was kind of a freak accident where my car just started sliding and I couldn’t stop it. I had to call my brand new boss and tell him and then be towed to the mechanic. As I was sitting at the mechanic waiting to find out how bad the damage was I received a call that my oldest son Luke (the one who was ran over by the car) had had a car accident that morning at the exact same time as me and that his car had slid off the road and spun end for end into a field “barely” missing several trees and power poles and had landed in the only spot that it could have landed without destroying his car. Later that afternoon I learned that my father had had a very similar car accident that same morning at the exact same time as Luke and my accident. All of us were unharmed and only my vehicle had any major damage. Thankfully my Christian boss understood and I am still working for him today. These are only a few of the things that happened between my third and fourth trip to Colombia and all it did for me was solidify that I was in the right place, God was at work, and the devil was really mad about it. All, wonderful things to know. We survived February and March. The sun began to shine again and in April we went back to Bogota for a fourth trip. But that story is for another post. Here are some quotes from Christians whom God used to change the world that really encouraged me during this time.

“A radical willingness to risk, sacrifice, and suffer is the attitude of authentic ministry.” – John Piper

“Affliction is often that thing which prepares an ordinary person for some sort of an extraordinary destiny.” – C.S. Lewis

‎”Pain and suffering have come into your life, but remember pain, sorrow, suffering are but the kiss of Jesus – a sign that you have come so close to Him that He can kiss you.” — Mother Teresa

‎”God had one son on earth without sin but never one without suffering.” – Augustine

Monday was our last day in Bogota. Two things have really blessed me as a Godfather on this trip. First, Ginary has taken close to fifteen hundred pictures with my camera this week and all but about ten were worth keeping! She really has an eye. In the orphanage she designs and makes clothes and the social workers say that she has a gift for it. She is totally illiterate and yet very intelligent, sweet, and always joyful. My wife and I look forward to helping her overcome the academic challenges. Second, Heidy brought us a large folder this morning stuffed with gifts that she had made for us. She is, by the way, an incredible sketch artist and she gave us four, four foot by four foot sketches that she has done and they were stunning. I can’t imagine the hours that she put into them. There were also some little notes and letters to the girls and such that were just precious. We took the girls up to Mansarrate which is a beautiful church on a mountaintop overlooking Bogota. We enjoyed riding the cable car up there and doing some souvenir shopping. Then we went over to Amparo De Ninas for lunch. The girls were once again very excited to see us and we thoroughly enjoyed visiting with them for several hours. I was able to meet with the officials there and get a very encouraging update on the process for my two girls. I, for the first time in this whole ordeal with them, am beginning to feel that I can allow myself to hope that we will bring them home someday soon. We gathered the children together and distributed their gifts. Each girl received her red bag with a pair of sunglasses, tennis shoes, Spanish New Testament, and a doll. They were so excited. One little girl was weeping profusely and when David asked her what was wrong she told him that she was from a very poor family and that she had not been at the orphanage very long and that this was the first gift she had ever received in her life. We finally came to the hardest part and that was leaving for the last time this trip. It goes without saying that it ripped my heart out to hug and kiss my girls goodbye and then drive out of those iron gates knowing that I won’t see their beautiful smiles or hear their sing-song laughter or hold their little brown hands again for several months. We were all crying when we left and like me, I heard many a team member promise themselves that they would be coming back here soon to visit “their” girls. None of us can explain what happens in our hearts when we are with these dear children but I think Chris Dinkler said it the best that I have ever heard when he said, “The next time someone tells me they want to see Jesus I’m going to tell them, ‘I can give you the street address where He lives…’” We have truly been among the “least of these” the last eight days and like the old song says, “turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”

Today was our “free” day. We had planned to stay at the hotel today and rest but Antonio mentioned that he had a friend that was a member of a big country club and that we could go swimming there and the Goddaughters jumped up and down and begged to go so… we had to stop at the store and get swim suits for some of us and Chuck and I found out that XL in Colombia is not the same as XL in the states. We had a wonderful time playing in the water and then had a really nice lunch. After lunch we walked over to the little coffee shop at the club and it soon became obvious that another providence was in the making. The friend of Sandra and Antonio that is a member of the club is in the oil and gas business here in Bogota. Allen, Antonio, David, and I were standing around talking with him and Antonio told us that he was excited about helping with the orphan ministry and especially a half-way house for the girls that have aged out of the orphanage. David, who has been desperately praying about what to do when his Goddaughter Lida ages out March 1st and has no place to go, asked about getting a job for Lida and the man, Julian, said, “No problem, I can put her to work in one of my gas stations.” David had to turn away as the tears began to flow. The rest of us knew right then that this was why we came to the club today. What a blessing that God is raising up powerful and influential people daily to help in this work! We came back to the hotel and gathered for a small Sunday service in the breakfast area. I shared from 2 Corinthians 5:14 “For Christ’s love compels us…” and talked about the fact that the motivation for this trip and for everything that we do is to be found in the truth that Christ first loved us and because of that wonderful love we can now love others. Love is the motivation. I then opened it up to testimonies and nearly every person in the room from the Goddaughters to team members shared how that love shown to the children and received from the children had impacted them this week. There were a lot of tears and we all teased about the dust and smoke in Bogota that makes us all cry all of the time. It was a precious time. Each of the Goddaughters shared their hearts with us and it was absolutely precious. After dinner we were able to video chat with Chuck’s family and my family and it was so sweet for Heidy and Ginary and Lida to get to talk to our families. Heidy and Ginary were very excited to talk to their Madrina (Godmother), there other sisters who couldn’t come, and they were very happy to meet Chuck’s family as well. We talked and laughed and joked and loved on each other. I don’t know how it could have been sweeter. Tomorrow we spend our last day at Amparo De Ninos. It is bitter/sweet as I look forward to one more day with my friends there and also one more day with my girls. Bitter because when we leave tomorrow night, I will have to leave my beautiful girls there. I have a love/hate relationship with the dirty, potholed alley that leads to the orphanage where my girls live. I love it when I arrive and I hate it when I leave. When we turn onto it upon arrival my heart rate quickens pace and I feel a surge of love and energy shoot through my chest. When we turn onto it out of the orphanage gate to leave I feel that my chest is caving in and I inwardly cry out to God in anguish that He will help me to help these children. I and my daughters have shed many tears on that road. I am praying for the day when they can come home with us forever or we can come home to them in Bogota, whichever God desires. Please continue to pray for us and thank you so much.