As I sit here today, I sit here amazed! I am not amazed at myself, nor anything in which I might be able to boast. My amazement comes from realizing that we are already three years into being an organization, Abogar International Ministries, and it’s been so incredibly evident that this ministry is from God’s hand and heart, and not my own!
March 1st, 2015 marked the three year anniversary of the day in which I obeyed God’s direction and command in my life and set out to create an organization, Abogar International Ministries, which has and will continue to fight on behalf of beautiful, precious, incredible children of Latin America who are orphaned, homeless, abandoned, and rejected. While God has blessed me with a generous portion of patience, these three years have for sure been filled with significant trials, setbacks, and challenges! However, the victories, successes, joys, smiles, hugs, and love we’ve seen far outweigh any of them!
As we are embarking on our fourth year as an IRS approved tax-exempt nonprofit organization, we have set some pretty amazing and lofty goals for this year; goals that invite for God to continue to be at the helm of this ship, guiding and directing us. One of those goals is that I would move here to Guatemala, to serve as a missionary; living in God Bless The Children Home with 23 precious children, a Christian married couple (David and Cinthya) who are the house parents, and a few other staff members. I am representing Abogar, as well as God’s heart for these children, by being here. I also will be using this time to be learning the language, learning dynamics that make this home run well, and learning ways we can be ‘building’ homes throughout Latin America to give Christ-centered homes, family, and education to the precious and needy children!
Another lofty goal that we have set for this year is to raise our full budget for the first time since Abogar started. This is important to us, not because of the money itself (~$36,000), but as a matter of stewardship over what God has and is calling us to. As Abogar International Ministries has completed its third year as an organization, statistics show that most nonprofits will not make it to the five-year marker. I write now, asking you to please prayerfully consider becoming involved in helping us to grow and not be another statistic. While finances are tremendously important to the success of running an organization, it is my deepest conviction and desire that we have even more prayer supporters than financial donors! Don’t hear me wrong here, we love the financial help and support!! Please give and give generously, as you feel in your heart to give! Visit www.abogarim.org/support/ to do so. But also be committed to pray with us, for us, and on behalf of the children and ministry that God has given us!
There are also other ways to be involved to help us to grow! While we have a very low budget, we could really use some legal help, hopefully pro-bono and from a brother or sister in the Lord. We want to continue establishing Abogar with a sturdy foundation. Of course, Jesus Christ is our foremost foundation, but upon that we want to ‘build’ Abogar well. Abogar would also be tremendously blessed to have someone be willing to volunteer to help us with our visibility, marketing, and social media presence. If you are looking for a short-term experiential way to come involved, please consider getting a group together (college, high school, work, church, etc.) to take part in one of our nine-day long Xposure Xperiences (http://abogarim.org/x-posure-trips/). We can be flexible with dates, but it would be awesome to have teams come visit while I am living here in this amazing children’s home!
Tonight, as I sat with 12 to 15 different little kids climbing all over me, I was reminded of God’s precious and patient love for me, especially when I was a dirty, unwanted, unloved, and smelly little child. It is God’s great love, not any human’s, that has transformed my life. This we at Abogar believe to be true for all these children as well. While I can be a bearer and vessel of the love and light of God, it will ultimately be His love that will draw these kids to Himself. While some see the food, clothing, and material toys, gifts, and things as the best way to be reaching these children, I find myself very convicted that it is indeed the great, life-transforming, eternity changing, destiny altering, darkness defeating, hope inspiring love of God that is the ultimate and greatest gift we shall ever share with these kids! I praise God that these children have this beautiful home, family, and education; but if it were not Christ-centered it would so miss the mark!! I praise God for this home, God Bless The Children Home, and for the work and ministry of Abogar International Ministries as well… both believing that without Christ at the center we have very little of great value to give! May we continue to love with the love of Christ, to see the lives of a multitude of children who are orphaned, abandoned, neglected, and abused changed by His great love to know Christ-centered homes, family, and education!!