Greetings from Lar Batista, Brasil!

I am really glad to be writing again and let you know that we are doing well here at Lar. Our summer break is over, but we had some great moments. We got to go to the pool with a visiting team who came over Christmas and we made some good memories which will last forever.

Now we are getting back t o the normal rhythm of the family with school starting. We will have a lot of work and as usual, I count on your prayers for each child and their studies. Some of the children demand special assistance and I am working with them.  Of course every student needs prayer, but please keep Bruno Donaire, David Bruno, Beatriz, Gabriela and Geisson in your prayers as they study extra hard.

It is very important for us to know that you are praying for each one of us. We have a lot for which to be thankful!

Our children are enjoying their studies and some have been transferred to different schools, many remain where they were. Their amount of hours and work load have increased and our children are also involved in extracurricular classes offered by our local government. We are glad to see the girls learning to play the keyboard twice a week and the boys have guitar lessons, also twice a week.

Cheiyenne, Beatriz and Gustavo are taking Spanish! As you can see, their days are really full and so is mine. Each one of the extracurricular classes send home more homework but I am glad to be able to assist them! All of these classes are offered free of charge and we are taking advantage of them as much as we can. We also have some children in private English school. It is always hard for us to afford that, but God has provided, one way or another. God has blessed me for that.

We also have youth group on Saturdays and George has been leading daily devotions before School for all the children. We know that this is the most important  thing they will take from their experience here.

I hope to be able to report on the success of the children, because that is also my desire to see them doing well and also praising the Lord with their music! Please keep us all in your prayers.

This is all for now but I will be back soon! God be with you!

In Christ love,

Rute

P.S. Check some of our pictures on the right!

I feel happier and more thankful than any other point in my life. Not that it is easy here…actually quite the opposite. Battling 103 degree heat with no air conditioning, not being able to communicate with others, and tying to feel at home are all things I am confronted with daily. But the verse where it talks about when you lose your life for Christ’s sake, you find it. I feel like for the first time, in a physical sense, I have found my life. I never, ever pictured myself living here and working with an NGO. Yet, as I am here, I can’t even explain how this fits me so much better than my plans a year ago. I felt this way before I left, but it is even more apparent living it rather than just planning it.

As to making Cambodia home, I never realized how much of a “nester” I was until this trip. I cringe to think how bad I will be nesting when pregnant someday. But I moved into my new place this last week, and couldn’t unpack fast enough. It was so nice to finally unload my suitcases and set up home. Already, I have been hard at work scouring the market for the needed essentials for my new place. One of the more difficult aspects of living here is finding things. This is especially true for opening the shop. It takes three times as long as I think it should just to pick out a paint color. And the same has held true for setting up my apartment this week. But I am almost there! To give you an example of what I mean- it took me at least half an hour wandering around the market close to my house just to find notebook paper. So simple, but somehow not at all…especially when you have a long list.

So to help you understand my life here a little better, I will try to describe a typical day. Since every day is different, this is difficult, but I will do my best…

Waking up early here is so much easier. I usually get up around 6 or 7 with no alarm. (For those that know me, I know…shocking!) Once up, I spend some time reading my Bible and praying. This is so essential for me here. I cannot be here on my own strength and I am plainly aware of this. I am also excited as I put up a hammock on the roof today so I can start going up there in the mornings when it is nice and cool.

After eating breakfast, I head outside the gate in search of a moto, because whatever I am doing, I have to find transportation. Three weeks in and I actually feel like I can direct someone where I need to go. I am honestly shocked I don’t feel lost anymore, but it has been fun to learn a new city. Last week, I was especially excited as I directed a moto only in Khmer for the first time…and I actually arrived at my desired location. Sadam, chawang, trong, and chop. Those are the most important words in my vocabulary. (Right, left, straight, and stop) Well, that and thank you (ah-gwhoon) which was the first word I learned. I figured I should keep up my polite, Southern upbringing.

Most days I head to the shop and have to navigate there since most motos don’t know where it is and also don’t read maps. Searching for that bright pink exterior, I tell the guy to stop and then hop off. Once at the store, I begin the challenge of trying to check things off my master to-do list (which is about 5 pages long). We are definitely in the overwhelming, middle of a project stage right now. I am just hoping and praying it will all come together soon. Some days I just don’t know. I am also realizing my leadership skills need some work. Add to that culture and gender issues and I definitely have my work cut out for me.

But work is work. Although, design here is also full of challenges I wouldn’t face at home…like switching to centimeters instead of inches or working with very, very unstable structure. I have to be inventive in my approach due to budget, time, structure, and also finding things in the city. They want this shop open as soon as possible. Some of the top things on my list this week are: working with some shops to create two custom bamboo mannequins, finalizing some signage to take to the printers, and trying to find a hardware store. I know my dad may be shocked, but of all the stores back home I wish we had a Home Depot here the most.

My work day wraps up between 5 and 6 and I typically try to have dinner with someone here or do something fun and social. Although, something different about this culture is women typically don’t go out at night. So I try to keep my nights early (like 10 at the latest) but I am pretty sure that still doesn’t count. Compromise though, right? Eating is definitely the social activity of choice here…which I love, especially as I have been pleasantly surprised by the wide selection of food in the city. I have even eaten Italian food while I have been here. I never would have hoped, but that made me SO happy! I definitely can’t complain about the food. Plus, I really love traditional Khmer food too. Lok lak and fish amok are both amazing! Also, finding pools here is another fun thing to do. Today is a holiday for Women's Day and I have the day off. (Cambodia has more holidays than any other place!) I have spent it lounging by a pool with a new friend here in the city. She works for Nomi Network and basically has my dream job. It has been so fun learning more about what she does and how she works together with organizations like Daughters.

Anyways, I always seem to miss the memo for the purpose of these trips. My last cross-cultural experience to the Philippines ended up with a focus on building relationships with the girls at the home where I stayed. I went there thinking they would put me to work only to find out that wasn’t at all what they needed. Thinking I had learned from my last trip, I figured this one would be full of great stories of these girls as I got to spend time with them. Yet, I arrive and they put me to work, clear across the city from the center. Sometimes it is difficult knowing that I am missing precious time with these girls as I work, but it could not be clearer that I am exactly the type of person they need right now to get this store open. This trip just seems to be more about the big picture.

 And that is…what this store will mean to ALL these girls.

 Not only will it help their individual lives and their business, but they will gain so much confidence from seeing firsthand people admire and buy their own work. I feel like I got such a small taste of this before coming as I started knitting and sold scarves to raise some money for this trip. Having just experienced that, I know how important opening this shop will be for them. And the exciting thing is that I won't just be helping one girl here, but every single girl at Daughters!

 Also, I am being reminded constantly that God doesn’t just work on an individual level. He absolutely does that, but also sometimes so much more. He changes nations. He feeds the multitudes. Sometimes I just see him as the God that has changed my life…and stop there. Yet that is only the beginning. He has changed some of the girls’ lives at Daughters. I have seen glimpses of that. Yet he is also working against human trafficking at a much greater level too. So I am starting to think differently than I normally do. Why not think huge?! 

I know that my time here is a small part of what is happening. I arrive exactly at the right time to help them open the store. A few weeks later and it would have been too late. Also a few months ago, a cook came to teach the girls how to make different recipes. Perfect as they are now opening a cafe above the shop. The way that people come in and out at the perfect time cannot just be written off as coincidence. There is just no way! These connections have been happening the whole time, and I see them as pieces of the big picture. I can't wait to discover more of what God is doing here in Cambodia on a large scale...and I am so humbled that I get to be a part of it!

 First, I have to brag on Wayne Sneed (the CEO of Orphanos) and recommend a book that has changed and shaped the Roseland family over the past few weeks. Wayne gave us the book called "Family Worship" by Donald S. Whitney. It is an extremely short book of only 56 pages, but it radically changed my view of family devotions and has thus enriched our family life. Since reading the book, Ximena, Santiago and I have been able to enjoy reading His word, singing praises to our King, and coming before His throne in prayer on a daily basis as a family. It has truly changed our family dynamic and we are so grateful for the ability that we have to grow in our relationship with God as a family. As you know, we are a young family and we are continuing to grow as individuals and as this newly shaped family as well. We are excited to see how our family worship will change whenever Gustavo becomes a part of our family as well.

 Second, we are so thankful that Lindsey Dunn was able to visit us for these past few days. For those of you who don't know, Lindsey was a fellow Orphanos volunteer at Pan de Vida who lived with us for the last 5 months that we were in Mexico. It was great being able to see her for the first time in almost a year and for the sacrifice that she made to come visit us.

 Third, I had my feet knocked right out from under me and I know it was God's doing. About two weeks ago, I received a call that our biggest supporter would no longer to be able to support us. Immediately, I (the previous accounting major) began doing calculations... "Now that means that we are lacking another $300 of monthly support on top of the $600 in monthly commitments that we already needed...putting us at $900...HOW ARE WE GOING TO BE ABLE TO RAISE THAT IN 2 MONTHS?!?!?" And then it hit me...I had been relying on my own strength and had pushed my faith and confidence in God aside. He is the provider of our needs and He is not inhibited by time constraints or earthly money. And even though I feel like pulling out my hair, I rest in Him and the confidence that He will provide in His timing...no matter how frustrating it may be.

 And so as we are beginning to look at what things we are going to take with us to Ecuador, how we are going to get the Ecuadorian visas for Gustavo and I, looking into renting a house and buying a car, raising the extra $900 in monthly commitments that we need before we can go, planning fundraising meetings, and many other things like Santiago teething in the midst of everything. But I know that God will take care of those in due time. As Calvin Coolidge said, "If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you."

 So in the meantime, I rest in these words: "We will seek you first Lord, you will hear our voices, early in the morning and late in the night. We will sing you praises, giving you the glory, offering our lives to you a holy sacrifice." My prayer is that our family will continue to offer our lives as a sacrifice from the morning (which can sometimes start at 3 AM) until the point of time we go to sleep.

 Please join us in prayer for the many things that must take place before we can go to Ecuador in April. But most of all, please pray that our family will be a fragrant offering before the Lord, pleasing in His sight. Thank you.

When Chris and I were dating we went through a study by Max Lucado called Come Thirsty.  I think it is time to revisit this study and take a drink from the Father. I would recommend it to everyone!   “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.”  Matthew 5:6.  I am weak and weary and need the nourishment from the one who gave us life.   

Prayer: Lord help me to seek you first and come thirsty before you for more of you.  Lord refresh my soul so that I may bring glory to Your name.  Lord I want rivers of living water to flow from my heart!  Give me the energy and strength I need. 

"The Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones; you shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail." Isaiah 58:11

Thanks for your prayers!

Jennifer

I have been thinking of all the technology we have at hand today with the Internet, email, facebook, twitter, msn, cell phone, Blackberries,  text messages and on and on and on! We are able to connect and share information so easily nowadays!   I must confess that I am a faithful user of most of the means above mentioned, although I refuse to give in to Twitter, I guess that is a bit too much!

I got an email from a friend, from my teenage years and she told me that her mom had finally received Jesus! I was so glad to hear that and I asked her how she had finally given ear to the Lord and His message. She told me they had to move and they were getting rid of a lot of old boxes, papers and correspondence from way back when we were 14.  In 1980s. She said that in those boxes, she found a series of letters I had written to her mom, where I had told her about Jesus. She said the letters were nice, but what caught her eyes was that in each of them I had written on the outside of the envelope: "Postman, Jesus loves you!"  I smiled when Silvana told me that because I still do that to this day! I think it is an opportunity to bless someone and I enjoy doing that!

It is no surprise to you that neither I nor my friend are 14 years old anymore. That letter has been sitting in a box for 25 long years and God knew just when to use it to bless that lady's life! I was elated to hear that she has come to the Lord and encouraged to keep writing and let God work, in His time! I guess I started writting because of  Pai! My dad loves to write and so do I. I guess I got this from him.  Over the years, God has used Pai's letters to bless others and accomplish much!  I am one of his biggest fans! I have a note from him framed on my desk and it blessed me daily!

I was told recently of Ms. Edna Deakens, founder of Lar Tia Edna and her powerful communication with her friends, family and donors. She started in the 1950s, maintained and fundraised via handwritten letters for most of her ministry. She migrated to Brasil and only returned to the USA one single time in almost 40 years. Many churches that supported the orphanage then, still do! Even after 20 years of her homegoing! I cannot wait to go back to  the home when I will be shown some of her letters!

I also think of some of the letters I have read that Amy Carmichael wrote to her sisters and family in the late 1800s. Being a misionary then was no easy task! The effort involved in those letters was huge! The words she used to describe her ministry, weakness and strengths were powerful and still work as a motivating factor for many in ministry today! Her books are my companions and I love reading about her faith.

Can you imagine what the Apostle Paul would do with all these technology available to us today? How would he advance the Gospel and share The Message around the world?

All that to say, we are blessed to live in a day and time when we can have access to so much information and  means of communication! That is an opportunity to use it for good and let others hear about the Lord and what He is doing! There is no way to know how and when God is going to use what we write, but we can hold on to His promise that His Word will not return void!

It is a joy for me to be in touch with you, no matter how we choose to do it!  Even though we can get fancy in our writing, there is no replacement to good time spent together, good words that God can use to bless someone! Having said that, thank you for blessing me with your love and kindness as I serve the Lord with Orphanos! It has been a fun chapter of my life!

Running the race, keeping the faith,

Grace

*In order to protect the girls, I will not be able to publish any pictures of them or include their real names.

Thank you Lord for the peace in knowing that you do have a plan and are watching over us.  Be our protector during this time and help us to look to you for our comfort and peace.   May we all rest in the peace and joy found in Romans 5:1-5.  Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

Thank you for your prayers during this time!  May the Lord bless and keep each one of you.

Jennifer

Psalm 91

¹ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
       will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

 ² I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress,
       my God, in whom I trust."

 ³ Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare
       and from the deadly pestilence.

 ⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
       and under his wings you will find refuge;
       his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

 ⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
       nor the arrow that flies by day,

 ⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
       nor the plague that destroys at midday.

 ⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
       ten thousand at your right hand,
       but it will not come near you.

 ⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
       and see the punishment of the wicked.

 ⁹ If you make the Most High your dwelling-
       even the LORD, who is my refuge-

 ¹⁰ then no harm will befall you,
       no disaster will come near your tent.

 ¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
       to guard you in all your ways;

 ¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
       so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

 ¹³ You will tread upon the lion and the cobra;
       you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

 ¹⁴ "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
       I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.

 ¹⁵ He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
       I will be with him in trouble,
       I will deliver him and honor him.

 ¹⁶ With long life will I satisfy him
       and show him my salvation."

After our last update, we were able to celebrate New Years with Ximena's family. Gustavo (the boy that we took with us to Ecuador from the orphanage that we previously worked at) especially had a fun time with the fireworks as well as building and burning the Año Viejo. The Año Viejo is a tradition in Ecuador, where each family builds a paper mache doll to represent the past year and then it is burned to represent that the year is over. For this year's Año Viejo, we built Sid from Ice Age III with his dinosaur eggs. Also, Angie (my brother-in-law Johnny's fiancé) and I had the privilege to sing a Christmas special at the Iglesia Puertas Abiertas in Manta (Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBAk4tfYljc). It was a great time to spend with family and celebrate all of the amazing blessings that God gave us in the year 2009.

At the beginning of January, we started packing our bags to return to Quito to drop off Gustavo at the airport to return to Mexico and for us to stay at the ministry It's About Kids for a few more weeks. Due to the fact that Ximena had to have her wisdom teeth removed a few days before, she stayed in Manta with Santiago for another few days while she was healing. During that time, I traveled with Gustavo and Jonathan (my brother-in-law) to Quito to drop off Gustavo and then we headed down to It's About Jungle Kids in the town of Misahualli, Ecuador. We were able to spend time with the directors Roberto and Charmai and get to know the kids that they are taking care of. Since we were in the jungle, we were able to experience some fun adventures such as floating down the Rio Misahualli in tubes, head up the Rio Napo to a Quichua museum, and Jonathan was even able to hold a boa constrictor! It was an amazing time to see the beauty that God has created and get to know the hearts of the directors at the home.

After spending a few days in the jungle, Jonathan and I headed back to Quito to pick up Ximena and Santiago and head back to It's About Kids. We spent a few days there learning more about the ministry and getting to know the kids and then our boss Wayne Sneed with Orphanos Foundation joined us there for a few days. It was great getting to see him after 2 years and getting to share with him our hearts. It was great to receive such wise council from someone who has been involved in missions work for so long. After speaking with Wayne Sneed as well as with Ron Stiff (the director of It's About Kids), we have decided and feel a great peace about returning to work at It's About Kids.

So now we are off on a new adventure to a new place! We are going to be serving in a few different capacities in Quito. First, I will be working at the school on site called Montebello Academy, which is taught entirely in English. It is a large school of about 320 kids, ministering not only to the kids within the home, but also to 150 at-risk children in the community who are on scholarship and 150 children who help fund the school. It will be a place for me to grow as a teacher and learn more about my trade. Second, Ximena will be working exclusively with the older girls at It's About Kids. They are girls who are in their teens that we believe could really benefit from Ximena's discipleship as they go through a difficult time in their lives of finding who they are in Christ. Third, Ximena and I will also be serving as a back-up couple for Ron and Sharon as well as Roberto and Charmai at the two homes in Quito and Misahualli. We saw a need for a couple to be able to come in and stay with the kids for a few days while the directors get some needed rest. Fourth, we will be taking Gustavo into our home so that he can finish his high school. As many of you know, Gustavo has been on our hearts for years now and we really felt burdened to help him achieve his goals and dreams. So we have decided to become the home for Gustavo that he has always wanted and Ron has agreed to let him study at Montebello.

Please pray for us! We are in great need of your prayers right now. First, please pray for us as we still need monthly supporters before we can move. We currently need about $600 more of monthly support to be able to leave to the field. We are planning on leaving in April/May, so we just have a short time to raise those funds. Second, please pray for the move. We are in the process of deciding what to take and what to leave behind and it can be difficult. Third, we have agreed to take Gustavo into our home and along with that agreement, we have committed ourselves to being his family. Please pray for us as we will now be learning how to parent a teenager and a baby at the same time! Fourth, please pray for our family. Every time a major decision is made, we feel the attack of the enemy in our lives. Please pray that our marriage will be strengthened throughout this change.

Also, make sure to look at the pictures in the album on the right!

Lar Batista!
During our time at Lar Batista, we gave the children our very best. We came in and brought little gifts, candy and lots of love to go around many times! The children were happy to see us and when we finally got home after a 12 hour delay, we could still see some of the older children sitting by the gate waiting for us, even though it was almost 3 in the morning! We felt really welcome right then, all the travelling hours and effort involved on that trip were paid off. We were so glad to be there.

For the next 12 days, our team spent time and enjoyed life at Lar Batista. We had great fellowship, great food, great time playing games and talking about memories we had from the team's previous visit there.

A highlight for me was to go into the neighborhood and give food baskets to needy people. It was my intention to go into the "poor area" of town and bless the community. Our van left our gate, turned the corner and stopped! There was our first opportunity to serve our neighbor... literally! We saw very happy people, thankful for the fact that they had been remembered. As I looked into their little home I noticed the dirt floor... the poverty like few times I had seen around. It moved me to do something to help that neighbor, who loves the same God we do and is in such precarious situation. Everywhere we went I heard one more story of how hard life was, how good God is and the fact that my father would not forget them! It made me think of the reputation God has and how people see that in us.  What a privilege to reinforce the positive view people have of our Lord!

Opportunity:
So many meetings and services that we had and again and again this word kept coming up: Opportunity!
I was blessed by that word while at Lar and I helped reinforce it for the children at Lar. We are given so many opportunities and all we have to do is to grab them and make them into something great! I pray that Lar children as well as children everywhere will not let these opportunities pass them by!

After a great time at Lar and visits from several local friends, we headed up to Sao Paulo. Sine everyone on this team had already been to the falls, we opted to stay at Lar a few more days and it was indeed great.

Sao Paulo:
My time in Sao Paulo was quick and very productive! I got to visit my family, attend my nephew's engagement party, visit many friends and also visit a farm in the Country side of Sao Paulo with ministry potential! All that in 5 days! I was also blessed to go to my home church and reconnect with many friends there!

I left Sao Paulo with a wonderful feeling that no matter how long you have been away... your true friendships will be there for you!

10 Years of Ministry  with Orphanos!
I was talking to a friend about when I left Sao Paulo 10 years ago to the day we were talking. We went over the conversation we had 10 years ago... back then he asked me if I was sure I wanted to do this... to leave my life in Brasil and venture out on an adventure as a volunteer with Orphanos. Back then my answer was "ABSOLUTELLY". Ten years later we are addressing the same question again and   I can say that it has been worth it! God has been faithful and I have been able to experience so much as I trust Him to take care of me.

Back in Memphis, I have had a great time with friends, a few  birthday celebrations and  the joy of seeing my friend and mentoree, Monica and her sister Veronica being baptized on January 24th! I was so glad to see the Lord bless these two lives and  allow them to grow to love Him more and more! Could there be a better way to start the year?

 So... As I celebrate my 10^th Ministry Anniversary, I thank God for His goodness to me through your love, care and partnership! I am preparing a Dossier of these 10 years and you should have it soon!

 May God bless us all as we go into this New Year with Him!

 Love to you,

grace

As we start 2010, I look back at the many reasons we have to rejoice and be thankful to the Lord in 2009. We want the key workd of this month to be PRAISE!

Our family was greatly blessed, fed and cared for. We had a good roof over our heads even some that needed to be replaced throughout the year, we had several serious health issues, several surgeries but still, in all this, God took good care of us. God provided for all of us.

Our children did well in school, for the most part; we have a very high approval rate and will work hard so that we can have a 100% success rate for 2010.

For me a highlight of the year was Diego's coming to know Christ. It was November 27^th and we were preparing for Marta and Beto's thanksgiving service for their wedding, when Diego started asking a lot of questions. He just could not understand how God could love him when there was nothing lovable about him.  We explained to him the meaning of grace and Tio Silvio took him apart and explained heaven to him and God's unmerited gift. By the time Diego rejoined the group, he was a new person! The chance started to show in his words and actions and we knew that new life had taken place in him.

Diego made a lot of changes in his life style and he was excited to have his first Christmas with CHRIST!

Our Christmas program was beautiful and a blessing  to many. Once again we were invited to present downtown and we also presented at our church.  We were blessed to have the team from Orphanos with us, and once again, we had an unforgettable Christmas!

We were able to go with the team and deliver food baskets to many needy people n our ton and it was a blessing to see the smiles on their faces. Jorge and other boys were able to share briefly about Jesus and why we were giving them anything! It was good for us to make an impact in our town. Of the many people we visited, several came to church and enjoyed fellowship with us.

Nothing that happened here last year, could have happened if we were alone.  We acknowledge your help and praise the Lord for it daily. It is our prayer that in 2010 you will continue to pray for us and if at all possible, come see us again!

I will do my very best to keep you all posted!

 In Christ's love,

 Rute, for the Lar Batista Family

 P.S. make sure you see the pictures on the right!

I am beginning to feel as though God enjoys blowing me away with his attention to detail. And I am enjoying being in the wake of His blessing. Never have I seen such random connections, people, or opportunities woven together in such an intricate, complex, and beautiful way. This trip has not even begun and already I am so confident of God’s support in what I am doing. Financially, He has provided for my needs faster than is typical for anyone trying to raise support these days. He even provided me with double the amount of support letters free of cost. Relationally, He connected me with a place to stay my first week there…with a family from Memphis! I also have multiple contacts with others already in Phnom Penh. Emotionally and spiritually, He has provided books, prayers, and even an opportunity to get some experience ministering with prostitutes here in Memphis. All I can do is sit back in shock when I think about how much has come together, that I am leaving in 6 weeks, and I only starting looking into mission work exactly 6 months ago today. Thanks be to God who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think!

And whatever things you ask for in prayer, believing, you will receive. Matthew 21:22

This week I have heard from two of our partner homes about the Lord providing and blessing them at just the right time.  Now I get to share in excitement about the right time!  The Lord knows the desires of our heart and answers our prayers in His timing.  As this year comes to an end and I look back on what I have done for the Lord this year through Orphanos I am in awe as I write this.  There have been several moments throughout this year that I have felt and believed that God was going to do great things for our ministry.  This week God answered one of my prayers.  A lot of what I do at Orphanos is new to me.  This year I have had a lot of first that include creating and sending e-mails, teaching students about children at risk, writing grants and much, much more.  I really believe that God has placed me here not only to serve Him and help his children but to grow the ministry of Orphanos.  I love what I am doing but as humans we like to see results from our work.   Yesterday I received the news that my first grant request was accepted.  Not only will it help 4 of our partner homes but it will help us here in Memphis too!  For months now I have been waiting on the Lord to provide funding for me to market our child sponsorship program and now I can.   I am so excited.  I have a passion for what I am doing and a heart to help our homes become fully funded.  This news is so encouraging because it gives me confirmation that the work I am doing is making a difference.  At times we can get down and think "I can't see any results" and God gave me results at the perfect time.  What a blessing to receive this news right before we say goodbye to 2009.  This encourages me for 2010 and I know my desires will grow and God will accomplish great things through the ministry He has called me to do. 

Thank you Lord for allowing me to play a part in helping your children!  Use me to bring Glory to your name!

Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart! Psalm 37:4

Jennifer Ragland

Thank you!

Jennifer Ragland

It ended up being a 24 hour trip from Queretaro to Quito. We first went on a bus for 3 hours from Queretaro to Mexico City. From there, our flight from Mexico City to Lima, Peru was an 8 hour flight. It was a little difficult having Santiago in our laps all of the time, but he was a trooper and slept most of the time. We then had a 7 hour layover in Lima, which actually went by pretty quickly and then we had a flight from Lima to Quito, Ecuador. So we left Queretaro at 2:00 PM on Sunday and we arrived in Ecuador at 2:30 PM on Monday. Again, we would like to thank you so much for your prayers. Everything went incredibly well! We were never stopped at immigration or customs. It was great to see Gustavo on the flight! He kept on taking picture after picture out of the window and was so excited about everything. Whenever we first took off, he said that he wasn't scared at all, but I could see that he was gripping the armrest just a little bit!

Once in Quito, we were able to finish up some legal paperwork that we needed to get Santiago his Ecuadorian citizenship. Thankfully, it only took 3 days to get everything done and we got his Ecuadorian passport. Then we were off to spend a few days at It's About Kids. It was great to meet Ron and Sharon Stiff and get to know more about their ministry. It was also great to get to know the kids there and Gustavo especially hit it off with a few of them. We are extremely grateful to Ron and Sharon for the hospitality, as for the first few days there, I (Richard) got food poisoning. It serves me right for eating tripas (cow intestines)! As soon as I got over the food poisoning, Ximena started having an allergic reaction to something and was out for a few days as well. But God made sure that we were in the right hands and took great care of us.

After spending the rest of the week at It's About Kids, we headed off with Ximena's family to the jungle. We first spent most of the day in the city of Banos, enjoying the mountains and hot springs that are there. Then we headed off to spend the night in Shell (which is the city that was the base for the Elliot's and the Saints). We actually stayed in a house next door to what used to be the Saint's house for those of you who might have seen the movie "End of the Spear" you will know more or less what it looks like. We were able to tour the runway and hangar of the ministry "Alas de Socorro", which is the aviation ministry that the Saints were a part of. We were also able to visit a 10-story tree house and play around a bit with a few monkeys! It was great to get to know another part of Ecuador and see the beauty of the creation that God has made.

We then traveled to the city of Manta, which is where we are now. We were able to celebrate Christmas with Ximena's family and we are looking forward to New Year's as well. Due to the fact that Ximena's family had not been able to meet Santiago yet, they have truly been enjoying their time with their first grandson. They are always carrying him around wherever they go and showing him off to their friends! It has really been a special time for them.

After the New Year, we will be heading back to Quito to spend a few more weeks getting to know It's About Kids. Please continue to pray for us and God's direction into what would be the best place for us to serve Him. We are so grateful for your continued prayers and support. We will be updating again soon! And make sure to check out the pictures in our album!

December has proven to be a very busy time for us at Orphanos.

With a few major projects happening at the same time, we were spread thin for a while, thankfully assisted by the prayers of so many people and the indispensable help of our angels, the volunteers God has given us. I do not want to mention names because I do not want to overlook anyone, but we have been blessed with an army of godly ladies of all ages, who have come to be very active at the Orphanos Office. Anything from  making calls, updating our mailing list, to writing in Korean and other languages, until then unknown to them!

It is amazing what you can do, when moved by the love of the LORD and a desire to help God's children all over the world! I can only say Thank you, Obrigada, Gracias and Komapsumnida, for playing such a special role in the lives of the children God has brought into our lives.

December 7th we received  our featured guest for the Messiah, Nilma and Henri Oliveira and their sweet daughter Camilla, came to be with us for a few days.This year we featured Lar Tia Edna in the Memphis Messiah program and  they were truly a blessing to  be around. Their visit here included speaking in several school, meeting with friends of the ministry and  being recognized  at the main performance of the Memphis Messiah, at the Cannon  center! I also had several of my dearest friends join us! 

The Lord was good to us and we were blessed with an amazing  event.  Another highlight for me, was the visit of my childhood friend Sergio Souza. Sergio lives in California and got to come for the Messiah and also to see Nilma and Henri while they were here! We had the best time, we laughed and we cried and we  served the Lord together, which was great!

We were so blessed by all the Memphis City School children who got to attend the performance. It was a true blessing to see them coming to that beautiful concert hall, in their best outfits, to enjoy the performance of the Messiah. Everything was done  having in mind that this is an opportunity we have to encourage these children to be the best  they can be in their lives. Markova Reed, from  Channel 3 and Conductor James Feddeck have become dear friends of mine and it has been a blessing to work with them  one more year. Much more than music, we are teaching  THE TRUTH  and the word does not return void! 

Right after the Messiah,  I was able to wrap things up with Kards4Kids and it was indeed a huge blessing. The volunteer help I mentioned above was a great part of this program! Once again FedEx  blessed us with free shipping and we were able to send thousand of cards  to 7 homes spread all over Mexico, Jamaica, Colombia, Peru, South Korea and also Brasil! I am truly grateful  to everyone who made this possible!

Now I am about ready to head to Brasil with a team coming from different parts of the country. It is to me, a true sample of what families do for Christmas! Along with my family, we will deliver some food baskets to needy families and invite them to come see the Christmas put on by Lar Batista Children/teens.  

As you can tell, December was packed full, but I am glad God can use us in this capacity.   Here is the  travel schedule for the next few weeks:  

Dec 23rd- Jan 4th Lar Batista with team; January
4th - 12th Sao Paulo with family and friends.  

I will be posting updates as we go! Thank you for your love, care and blessing in my life!  

Have a blessed Christmas and celebrate CHRIST!  

love, grace  

We have had a very busy and very fruitful ministry year at Orphanos and we could not finish the year any better than having a team, celebrating Christmas at Lar!  I am leading a team going to Lar Batista, Brasil, which is adouble blessing, since I will be going home! Part of our preparation for this adventure, was that our volunteers worked so hard so all of our assisted homes could have a fun time opening thousands of cards, made by people who care for them all over the country and even abroad! Kards4Kids 2009 was a huge success!

As we are busy with Christmas shopping, packing, planning and getting our homes beautiful for this wonderful Christmas season,  I am  so excited to have 9 dear friends of mine join me for a wonderful Christmas at Lar Batista, Brasil!

Lar is a fun place any time of the year, but there is just something special about Christmas time there. A highlight is the return of so many alum who show up to be "HOME" for this special time. Their children embellish the campus and  it is just a great time.  

The family of Lar has been preparing for  their program for months and have already performed their program in town, since the 14th. We just cannot  wait to  see it ourselves!

I am blessed to be going home for Christmas, for the first time since 2002! Along with me are the Rea family, Perry, Brenda, Steven and Ian, from the Seattle area and  the Kischer Family, Kim, Jill, Chad and Trent. Joining us in Sao Paulo is Christine DeBoer, who has been teaching in Sao Paulo, but is originally from Canada/Seattle area. Everyone on this team has been to Lar before so it will be a reunion for us all. We will rendezvous in Sao Paulo and head home.  

We chose not to do the tourism since we have already done, so we will be at Lar, for our whole time, which is great!   I am aware that there are several surprises  for the children and I am looking forward to what God is going to teach and show us as we go to Brasil to celebrate JESUS with His children.  Please keep us in your prayers, we will  be posting more info as time allows.

Thank you to everyone involved in  this process, in prayer, making cards, funding the projects... Again, Fedex has been a Christmas Angel in getting the cards to each home!

Have a blessed Christmas!

grace

If you know me well you know this has been a very challenging year for my husband and I.  Despite all that we have been through God has never left our side and has given us the strength to overcome the hardships we have faced.  While it would be so easy to give up and become angry, I am instead singing praises to Our Lord.  He has given us everything we have needed day by day.  Although at times we have felt desperate and defeated God has shown us He has a plan and to trust in Him.  While there have been many challenges for us this year I also see the many blessings from God.  I want to sing praises to God for all the many blessings He has given us. 

Just recently we were able to spend thanksgiving with our families.  I love my family dearly and each member of my family is such a blessing to me.  I am thankful that I have a loving husband and a wonderful family.   Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect and praise God for all we are thankful for. 

Another blessing is that my surgery went very very well.  The surgery was successful and there were no complications.  I went home that same day and rested the remainder of the week.  I am feeling wonderful now and very thankful the surgery went so well.

In my last update I asked for your prayers for teaching at ECS.  I was able to teach 6^th, 7^th and 8^th grade students about Children at Risk.  The students were very attentive and asked a lot of questions.    I really believe they learned a lot and I pray that I planted a seed in the students to help and serve others in need.  I truely feel it is a  blessing to be able to share with students about the ministry of Orphanos. 

One of the biggest blessings in the past year has been working for Orphanos and letting God use me to help His children.  I am also blessed to have a loving husband, a home, and food.  Thank you Lord for all your blessing, I will sing praises for all you have done! 

May God bless each one of you and I pray you have a very Merry Christmas! 

So why all this talk of weddings?  Over thanksgiving the Sneed family went in two different directions.  Audrey and Wayne traveled to Lar Batista (Brazil) to officiate at a wedding of the daughter of the Pai (dad) at the home.  Wayne committed to do this wedding last year, long before we knew Alyson was on the way.  Since  Aly is still way to young to travel internationally Angela and Aly went east to be with Angela's family. It wasn't fun to be apart from each other as a family during such a special holiday as Thanksgiving, still individually we each had a nice holiday.  Lest anyone read unneccesarily between the lines and conclude something faulty.... we are all back home together now and doing very, very well.  But we can always use your prayers.  Satan is diligently crouching at our door waiting for an opportunity to divide and destroy.  Thanks for standing with us in prayer.

Since this is Wayne writing this blog, I'm going to write about our time in Brazil in more detail. We often don’t think about children in orphanages actually “growing up and getting married” but it happens.  And in fact when it does, it usually represents a success story in the history of the home.  Children who live on the streets rarely find love and happiness in God’s blessed institution of marriage.While Marta (the bride) is a biological child of Pastor Fragoso, she still grew up at Lar as just one of the kids.  There have been over 600 in the last 30 years who have called Lar Batista home and Pastor and Mrs. Fragoso as dad and mom.  Over the years of Orphanos involvement with Lar Batista, I've been influential in coaching and mentoring Marta as she grew to be the lovely woman she is now.  So it was natural that she would ask me to officiate at her wedding to the handsome Beto, a fine Godly man indeed.  I am honored and pleased to have a small part in this special day for them.

 The next big thing on our calender is the Memphis Messiah.  In fact, its just a few days away on December 10-11.  This is really a huge undertaking involving litterally hundreds of volunteers and thousands of kids.  Please do pray for us that the event will go smoothly, and that the Messiah of whom we sing will be pleased by our attempts to bring Him praise.  He's done so much for us (note the first paragraph above) it's only fitting we invest everything we have into the worship and praise of our Redeemer.

The Sneed family would like to wish all of you a very worshipful Christmas season.  Stay focused on the one whose birthday we caim to celebrate.

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full in His wonderful face,

And the things of earth will grow strangly dim, In the light of His Glory and Grace."

Merry Christmas!

Well, for the past few weeks we have been traveling in the Austin/Temple area, visiting friends and churches. It was such a blessing to visit so many of you and we are so grateful for those of you who opened your homes to us (especial thanks to Melissa Ford and Ashley Koonce for letting us stay at their house!). It was tiring at times to visit 2 or 3 different people in one day or drive from Temple to Austin and back, but it was so worth it to visit you and share about what God has been doing in our lives and the ministry that we believe He is calling us to. Also, we were able to visit both of the churches that support us in the area: Temple Bible Church and Grace Bible Church. At Temple Bible Church, we were able to meet with a few members of the missions committee and it was such a beautiful time. We are so grateful for their kind words and advice and we left the meeting feeling so encouraged. At Grace Bible Church, Richard was granted the incredible honor of being able to preach. He has had the opportunity to lead Bible studies and such, but it was the first time for him to preach in front of a congregation! It was amazing how God granted such peace and how the Holy Spirit truly led and guided every word that was spoken from the pulpit. The sermon was based on the saying from Jim Elliot "Wherever you are, be all there. Live to the hilt every situation you believe to be the will of God." I hope that we will be able to make that statement reality in our lives.

After our visit to Austin, we were able to spend a few days with my family and celebrate Thanksgiving/Christmas with them. We were also pleasantly surprised by a visit from Emilio and Christy Contreras, some of our closest friends from Queretaro, who came to visit us and help us on the drive to Queretaro. It was a great time to relax with family and friends and enjoy the last few days before traveling again. On Tuesday morning, we drove from Corpus Christi to Queretaro and thankfully the trip went great without any problems. Santiago didn't even cry until we were 5 minutes outside of Queretaro! We are so grateful to God for watching over us and keeping us safe.

On Wednesday morning, we were able to go to Pan de Vida to visit with the kids and volunteers. It was such a blessing to be able to see them and give them bunches and bunches of hugs! Wow...we have missed them so much over the past few months! They were so excited to see Santiago...so much so that they all crowded around and he got scared and started crying...pobrecito! But now he is starting to get used to them and they are so happy just carrying him around everywhere.

On Sunday, we are leaving from Mexico City and heading to Quito. Once we get into Quito, I will hopefully post another update on how our experience at the orphanage is going so far. Please pray for traveling mercies for Santiago as we have a 7 hour layover in Peru on the flight over. Please also pray for Gustavo as it will be his first time on a plane and that everything will go smoothly with paperwork and luggage. Please pray that just as Jim Elliot said that wherever we are that we will be all there, following the will of God and what He has for us. We are so grateful for your prayers and we continue to pray for each one of you.