girls' home update!

We officially broke ground on the girls' home one month ago!! It was the BEST birthday present ever! Reynaldo and his crew are working hard six days a week to hopefully have the house finished in January 2013. Our goal is to be able to bring the girls to live in their new home by the start of next school year (February 2013), so that it will be an easier transition for them. They are SO excited!!

[Reynaldo, me, and Carlos]

When I left Honduras a week and a half ago, they were finishing up the foundation of the house...

...and while I'm gone they are adding the walls!!

We still need about $6000 to finish the house. Would YOU prayerfully consider being a part of what we're doing at Zion's Gate Ministries? To make a tax-deductible donation:

1. Online Donation:

www.WorldOutreach.org 

Click DONATE & select Cassandra Schott #135

(choose one-time or monthly gift)

2. Mail Checks to:

World Outreach Ministries

P.O. Box B

Marietta, GA 30061

(designate for Cassandra Schott #135)

growing in faith

As many of you know, I have been working with Nidia starting up our girls' ministry here at Zion's Gate Ministries. So far, we have begun focusing most of our efforts on the older three girls (Dania, Fanny, and Jennifer). We meet with the girls every Tuesday to pray and discuss a devotional, and on Thursday afternoons we meet with the girls in IHNFA (a government orphanage) and our girls teach the girls there. In the beginning, the girls were very shy and hesitant to participate in our Tuesday meetings, and even more-so at IHNFA on Thursdays. They always were embarrassed to pray out loud and fought about who would lead the study.

[Dania, Fanny, Jennifer, & me]

Until one Tuesday afternoon when we met in Fanny's house...

I was leading the study that day and we were talking about prayer. Prayer is not some big scary formal thing, it is just having a conversation with God. You do not have to use fancy words or a certain format, just talk to God like he is your best friend. We also talked about how prayer is not only for asking God for things when we need help, it's a way to praise Him for everything He has done in our lives and all He has given us. At the end of our conversation, we had a time to share prayer requests. Most of their requests were for school, health, family, and provision. When we got around to Fanny, she said she wants to learn how to pray. It was such a sweet and innocent request at the time and I do not think she knew what the Lord had in store for her!

A few weeks later, Dania stayed the night at the property during the week and I was able to spend some time with her one morning reading a devotional and talking about it together. The devotional was about how sometimes God allows bad things to happen but He always has a purpose. Dania began to open up about her father's suicide for the first time. The next day, we had our meeting with the girls in Los Pinos and Fanny volunteered to pray! As we read the devotional, Fanny related it to the situation with her grandma and family. Her grandma, Mina, got sick and was in the hospital. Mina's daughters (Fanny's mom and aunts) are constantly fighting and plotting against each other. But with their mom being in the hospital, God was using the situation to bring them closer together in unity as a family.

Fanny ended up sharing this message during one of our nightly meetings as a family, at IHNFA, and even at the hospital with her grandma, mom, and a few of her aunts. I am so proud of her and excited to see what God has in store for her in the future as she continues growing in faith!

MY DREAM!!

A few months ago, the Lord layed on my heart the desire to build a girls' home here on the property at Zion's Gate Ministries. It is a dream that has been stirring in my heart for awhile now and I feel like God is calling me to begin taking action!! This month, Nidia and I started meeting with the girls in Los Pinos twice a week for a Bible study, spending time in their homes, and praying with their moms and other women in the community. God is breaking my heart more and more for these girls and the home situations they are living in.

[with Fanny, Dania, Amalia, Sandra, & Nicole]

I have been working alongside Tony's ministry with the boys now for 8 months and have learned so much. The idea is to take the same ideas and principles and apply it to the girls' home. I want to be able to provide basic needs--food, education, and a safe home environment--but more importantly a community of faith, discipleship, and spiritual development. This will also add a new aspect to our ministry as a whole at Zion's Gate Ministries when we host World Race, Passport, and other missionary groups! The women will be able to pour into our girls as the men work with our guys.

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I truly believe the Lord has spoken to my heart to start something new January 2013! So the challenge is...$10,000 IN FOUR MONTHS!!! This should give us a good start to laying the foundation and building a house of bricks or concrete blocks. Please prayerfully consider being a part of this ministry by making a financial donation! WE CANNOT DO THIS WITHOUT YOU!!

entertaining angels

One Saturday morning a few weeks ago, an older man wandered onto the property. I was in the kitchen making breakfast when Luis came running in and asked me for an extra plate of food and some juice to give to a guy he met outside. As I brought the food out, I saw Luis running down from the house with a box of brand new white Nike shoes. He took them out of the box and placed them on the feet of his new friend. 

"Don't forget to show hospitality to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it!"

--Hebrews 13:2 [NLT]

I love seeing the FAITH of these street kids begin to take ACTION!! There are so many ups and downs in our everyday life at Zion's Gate, but seeing these little breakthroughs is truly a blessing!! We can have peace knowing that the seeds we are planting are beginning to take root in these kids hearts and lives. As leadership here, we have been talking lately about how WE can't do anything to change these boys...only God can! And he IS!! To Him be the glory!!

Henry is back!

Two weeks ago, Henry returned to Zion's Gate to begin working full-time on the property. For the past ten months, he has been living in Los Pinos and every time I saw him and asked how he was, he would look down at the ground and tell me he was fine. I knew he had been without a job for quite awhile and he was moving around a lot living with different friends or family here and there, but nothing had been stable in his life. 

[Burger King]

When I was here in October 2010 on the World Race, Henry was always around. He was staying with Tony on the weekends, and we saw him almost daily in Los Pinos. He was learning english and had a somewhat stable job working as a street sweeper in Los Pinos. He was always fun to be around and liked to joke with everyone. He enjoyed practicing his english with us and playing soccer and even duck-duck-goose. He was finally enjoying a childhood he never got to experience growing up.

[Molly, Henry, & me]

Last week, Molly and I had the opportunity to take Henry out to eat at Burger King. He talked to us in english and tried to teach us new words in spanish (especially words that we had to roll our "r's"). We weren't very good students! On our drive back up to Los Pinos, he wanted us to teach him "Old McDonald Had a Farm" and "BINGO". We sang kids songs and laughed the whole drive up the mountain. By the time we got into Los Pinos it was late and very dark. As we drove in, he recognized some men that could potentially be dangerous so he decided to stay in the car with us until we got back onto the paved road to leave because he wanted to protect us.

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Please join us in prayer for Henry as he tells us he really does want to change. He has a special place in my heart because one of my teammates on the World Race led him to Christ. Although he fell away for a time, he is getting back on track and joining us every morning for our Bible and prayer time before work. Pray that God continues to tug at his heart and draw Henry closer to His.

my heart.

The other day at the beach I was laying out having some quiet time while soaking in the sun. At one point, I got up and walked down to the water for a few minutes to cool off. On my way back up, I noticed something small and dark against the contrast of the light-colored sand. As I reached down to pick it up, I realized it was a smooth, flat stone in the shape of a heart! I looked around and there was nothing else in sight--no other rocks, shells, or even seaweed had been washed up on shore. Just this perfect little stone. I have no doubt God placed it in that specific spot at that moment just for me to find it!

The more I thought about it, I heard God speaking to me about my life. I have been out being tossed around by daily struggles, drowning in the ocean of busyness and now God has thrown me ashore and given me this time to relax and just BE with Him. I feel like He's asking me to let my heart rest in His hands. The little heart stone was just laying there under  the warm sun. An amazing reminder for me to rest in His SON. I don't ever want to forget about this perfect, timely example. I need to take the time daily to REST in Him during all the crazy and busy days in Honduras.

Alex has been a huge inspiration this past week as she gets up at 6:00am every day when her husband leaves for work to have quiet time before she starts the day. It made me think, "I could do that!" I wake up early every morning anyway to get Luis up for school and when he leaves, everyone else in the house is still asleep until at least 7:00am. I NEED to start doing this!! Please pray that God will give me strength to get up and focus on having intentional time with Him every morning before I start my day.
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Also, during my time in the states, baby Genesis has been sent away to stay with some extended family members that I have never met. Please pray for good health and protection for her as well as favor when I return to Honduras to be able to get her back. I am currently in the process of obtaining residency in Honduras, and then I will be ready to start the paperwork for adoption as soon as I get final confirmation from the Lord.

parable of the sower.

We have been working outside a lot on the property lately digging out the big rocks to allow for the grass to grow. One day last week as I was working, the Lord reminded me of the Parable of the Sower. I shared it last night during our family meeting because it is something we can all relate to. I challenged us all to think about which type of ground we are, and how we should strive to be the good soil to produce fruit in our lives.

[Luke 8:5-8, 11-15]

"A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds of the air ate it up. Some fell on rock, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown...

...This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. Those on the rock are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked out by life's worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop."

As I was reflecting on my life, I realized that I have been through different phases in my own life of each of these types of ground. At times, I have heard the word of God and Satan has come along and taken it away from my heart. I have received the word of God with joy but fallen away when things get tough. I have heard and then as I continue along in life, get choked out by the things of this world. I have also heard, retained and persevered to produce fruit.

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I wish I could say that I am currently living my life in the good soil all the time, but that would not be true. Please pray for me to not get so caught up in everything that is going on and be able to spend more intimate time with the Lord daily. He is really all that matters. What he has called me to do here in Honduras is just a small part of His great plan. I do not want to let myself or my own fleshly desires get in the way of what He wants to do here. I want to seek after more of Him and follow Him in obedience.