How it all began

I had a teacher in High School who always used to ask me to give him The Reader's Digest version. I love to tell stories and I tend to be long winded, so this was his way of telling me to only give him the juicy details. So following that advice, I want to give you the highlights of how God has shaped my heart for the helpless over the years.

Since childhood I have had an intense interest in the needs of others. Over the years I can remember many moments where God showed me pain, injustice, brokenness, heartache and sadness and in those moments he taught me about empathy. He gave me a glimpse of his heart for his people. The first mission trip I went on was to an impoverished town in central Mexico. I was twelve. My whole family went with a group from our church. It was the first time I had seen poverty and hunger. I was never the same. Even at that young age I knew that my life is not about me. That trip set into motion my heart for the nations, for the poor and for the helpless.

Several years later, God used a trip to the Philippines to completely wreck my heart for the orphan child. I spent the summer after my freshman year of college in a children's home in Manilia where I got another heavy dose of reality. For the first time in my life I met an orphan; a child who is defenseless, alone, vulnerable. I held these kids and played with them and fell in love with them. This small island country in Asia is home to thousands of orphans; I finally recognized the need. It felt so big, I felt so small. But I knew in that moment that even though I am only one person, that I was going to do my part. I wasn't going to be able to sit back while these things were happening across the world. New Faith Family Children's Home was started because a 13 year old girl name Janelle couldn't sit back anymore either, she had to do something about it. Along with her parents she founded the children's home which has now been serving Philippine orphans for over five years. She didn't ignore the call to care for the orphans. Janelle was and still is an inspiration to me. She didn't ask the "what if's" she didn't feel too small to do something, she chased after God's heart and she got it! It stirred in me a passion that I am still trying to live out today. As I look deep into my heart I feel a clear call to do something about the poverty, injustice and suffering I see. I wont single-handedly change the world, but I can do my part, pursue God's heart and answer his call to care.