I have a TEENager!!!

Saturday one of my "newer" boys turned 13 which means that I now have my very first teenager.  We celebrated his birthday with his younger siblings and with our other 8 boys per his requests.  He wanted a pizza party so we happily made it happen.  

This sweet child is not allowed to enter 7th grade this year or any school for that matter due to lack of resources in the local public schools.  I've learned that if you miss multiple consecutive months of school, you have to wait until the next school year to start over.  This has become his fate.  Please pray for him - pray for his self confidence and patience.  Pray for him to remain confident in his God given abilities.  He is probably the smartest kid at Casa Hogar Douglas - he graduated from 6th grade with a 4.0 last year.  

We as believers know that his story is not over yet.  This is not the end.  The trauma of his past does not have to define him as a human being.  Pray for healing.  Pray for restoration.  Pray God to move in his life and for him to respond.  Our God is greater.  Pray for an army of warriors to rise up to fight on his behalf.  Good has to be stronger than the forces of evil around here.  Pray we out-number the bad with a whole lot of good.  Would you join us?  Fight today with some prayer.  

Welcome Summer

Here in Monterrey, the daytime highs are now officially into the 100's.  We have no air-conditioning.  It's hot.  Seriously H-O-T.  But Back2Back has a pool open on their property so Sammy and I have started bring our boys to swim on the weekends.  Joy abounds. 

If you live in the Cincinnati area or are coming on a mission trip here to Monterrey anytime soon and have access to used or new boys bathing suits - we could sure use them here at our Monterrey Back2Back site.  Boys sizes 6, 8, 10 are most needed.  Pool toys and goggles are also as good as gold around here.  Contact 513- 754 -0300 for our Mason, OH office and they can help get the suits here.  Gracias!

He still moves stones

Something that I'm learning is very important in my line of work and ministry is to find small victories and to celebrate them.  Development is challenging and has many setbacks but what is so critical is to remember how far these precious children have come and to give thanks.  So today - I give thanks to God for some incredible achievements in my boys' lives.  

Sweet Angel has honestly grown to LOVE to read.  He picks up a book and refuses to put it down.  He read every single Captain Underpants book I had in Spanish in 10 days.  And then he read the entire Stink series in a week.  And I have to praise God that this reading practice is helping to give Angel words - he is communicating verbally which is HUGE for him.

Below is one of our newer boys - Arturo.  He is currently in 4th grade and this is his first year ever in school.  He was incredibly nervous to read to me when he first moved in with us but has since become a very good little reader.  He loves the Clifford books.  I do believe that God is going to fill in a whole lot of gaps that this precious child missed out on in his childhood.  

Above are 2 of my boys who got STRAIGHT A'S this past quarter in 6th and 7th grades respectively.  They are both super smart but struggle a bit with self confidence.  Mikey could not believe that he got 1st place for best grades in his class.  He said for days, "I can't believe that I got 1st place.  I never thought I'd ever get one of the top 3 places.  I never thought I could get such good grades!"  Here's the thing though - I knew all along that he could and was thankful for the opportunity to tell him that.  I wanted to scream at him, "like HELLO!! you are sooooo smart!!"

And above is probably the best image of them all.  Sweet little Alex who is now in 1st grade read to me for the first time a few weeks ago.  I can't tell you how many thousands of times I've read books to him over the years.  And now he is reading to me!!!! That's about as beautiful as it gets folks.... beautiful. 

Be encouraged friends - God is moving and He loves these children.