LIGHThouse

Part 1: Children…really God?

Lord Jesus, please show me this week what you want me to do with my life, I prayed as I stepped into the Mission Emphasis 2011 convocation at Liberty University. Boom…Boom…African drums resounded along with the shouts of joyful children worshiping God. The Children of the World Choir sang out:

Joyful, joyful, we adore Thee,
God of glory, Lord of love

I was captivated. Their colorful national dress and big white teeth smiling through their dark faces entranced me.

Hearts unfold like flow’rs before Thee,
Op’ning to the sun above.
Melt the clouds of sin and sadness;
Drive the dark of doubt away;
Giver of immortal gladness,
Fill us with the light of day!

LIGHT, yes Lord, Shine your LIGHT today, I prayed as I sat at the top of the vine center that held nearly 10,000 college students.

The speaker that morning happened, by no coincidence, to be the president of Compassion International, Wes Stafford. I was fascinated by Wes’ testimony, growing up in a small African village and then how God lead him to work with Compassion, which now sponsors over a million children! He said, Children are the most numerous, weak, needy, disrupted, suffering, overlooked, and quite possibly the most receptive of the world’s population groups! He entreated Christians to “Consider the facts…People are much more likely to accept Christ as their Savior when they are young. Absorption of biblical information and principles typically peaks during the preteen years…Habits related to the practice of one’s faith develop when one is young and change surprisingly little over time.” He said, “Anyone who wishes to have significant influence on the development of a person’s moral and spiritual foundations had better exert that influence while the person is still open-minded and impressionable – in other words, while the person is still young.”

Children…really God? After I heard that message I knew God was calling me to work with children.

Part 2: Lighthouse

I started praying about where God wanted me to go. Within a few weeks I felt God put Uganda on my heart. My initial feeling, Uganda...I don’t know if I want to go back there, why not Ethiopia or Nepal? I had previously taught Bible at Heritage International School for a year. It was a difficult place for me to live BUT the more I prayed the more I was sure.

Ok, Lord, what do you want me to call the street children’s ministry? I waited…quietly, ever so quietly, Lighthouse, came to my mind. Ok, Lighthouse, it is. I started to write out a purpose statement and mission statement: I purpose to offer a lifeline of hope to the street children of Uganda from spiritual, economic, social and physical poverty and equip them to become responsible, fulfilled Christian adults by launching Rewnzori Lighthouse Children’s Ministry, August 2013.

I was so excited I stayed up all night and made a PowerPoint and wrote all about how I was going to start it.

Part 3: Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth…

About a week later, I felt like God told me that I could not expect to go half way around the world to start a ministry if I wasn't doing that very thing right here in Lynchburg. This was my Jerusalem. I could not expect to go to Samaria or the ends of the earth if I was not doing the very thing right where I was. I prayed, Lord, help me to start an inner-city ministry for the children of Lynchburg.

“Julie, I had dream last night” I told my sister one spring morning. “I saw all these little black inner-city children at a park. I said to myself in my dream, this is so easy!”

“Hmmm, that sounds interesting” Julie said.

“I think I’m supposed to look for a park!” I told her.

That day I actually went to go look for a park and found one. I started reading the kids bible stories but I was too busy to be consistent.

Late August, about the second week of school, a student in one of my classes stood up and announced, “I’m part of a ministry called Lighthouse in downtown Lynchburg. We are looking for people to get involved. We are also looking for someone to start a ministry for the inner-city children.”

Oh my!! I am supposed to start that, I thought to myself. It's called Lighthouse, the same name God told me. AND it’s a ministry to the inner-city children of Lynchburg just like God put on my heart.

Lighthouse is a small NGO that has a food pantry, clothing closest and a Saturday night church service. They wanted to start something for the kids also. I talked with the guy in charge and told him I felt called to start a ministry for children. The next day, my sister, Julie and my roommate, Emily and I went door to door around downtown Lynchburg telling people about Lighthouse Kids Ministry. We started Lighthouse Kid's Night that very Sunday with about 20 little black kids! We've been doing it ever since and average nearly 50 kids every week AND our main pick-up point is the PARK!

I feel that God is calling me to be a LIGHT to the children of the nations...Lynchburg, Uganda, Nepal (Isaiah 49:6)