A deep value and a main focus of Abogar International Ministries is to establish and maintain great partnerships with other organizations who are doing good work amongst the population of children in need throughout Latin America. One such partnership that we have been very blessed with is with Paradise Bound Ministries (www.paradisebound.org), located in Chimaltenango, Guatemala. With a holistic approach to ministry, not only reaching the children in need but also the communities all around with the Gospel, with discipleship, with homes, with medical clinics, etc, Paradise Bound Ministries is committed to seeing God glorified as they live out the love of God through their many ministries.
Layla Love
As I am right now spending time with Paradise Bound Ministries (PBM) here in Chimaltenango, Guatemala I am being blessed with the privilege of participating and observing with a team that is working here in the Open Doors Children’s Home. The team I have joined is comprised of three mothers and their daughters. While here there is also another team that is a work team; helping to improve the PBM facilities and compound. So much is being done for the children and ministry here, and it really blesses my heart.
While some may look at the two teams here and think, “That work team is having a greater effect.” I believe that God’s view is a bit different than that. The work team here is full of great people who really desire to help out and are doing great work. And yes, the fruits of their labor may be more readily visible. However, though the Children’s Home team may have far less visible results from their labors of love as they are here, the long-lasting fruits and results are just as important.
With 16 children in the Children’s Home, 9 of them being under 10 months old, there is a lot of immediate attention that must be made; bathing, clothing, feeding, holding, changing diapers, playing with, and teaching these precious children. While they each have such challenging and heart-wrenching stories, each one of these precious children is in need of specialized attention and care. The significance and weight of just holding these kids and loving on them cannot be overstated. Holding just one of these children, giving them the special love and affection that they miss out on by not having a mom or dad, invests in their maturation and sense of worth. Seeing the smiles, hearing the laughter, feeling the little weight of a child pressed against you while rocking them gently to sleep does such a tremendous thing in my heart as well as in each member of the team. The work team has also been making trips into the Children’s Home to love on the kids as well, and they are getting the double blessing of seeing their work accomplished as well as investing love into these precious children.
The focus for both teams is ultimately the same… Let’s glorify God by working and helping where and how we may, to see God’s love able to be poured out upon these children and into the surrounding communities! The need is great, and the workers are few, but little by little so much is being accomplished to see Paradise Bound Ministries able to have an even greater impact for the glory of God.
I personally would like to challenge you to consider joining a team to volunteer with Paradise Bound Ministries, whether a work team or a Children’s Home team, or go to their website www.paradisebound.org and consider sponsoring a child and supporting the ministry!!
