Living and Loving

Time has flown since my last update! Life is a busy as ever here at Shepherd of the Hills….

Lets see… After spending time in Zambales, I was able to spend four days at the end of February in Baguio City, visiting the SOTH location there and attending Baguio’s famous flower festival. The flower festival includes several parades feature flower-covered floats, musicians and dancers- some in native Filipino costumes. It was exciting to have a taste of the culture of the Philippines that I wouldn’t have seen in the big city of Manila.

Our facility in Baguio is about 7 hours away from the office in Manila, and we currently have a small house there where 18 of our teens and a few staff members are living. While in Baguio, we looked at a few properties for sale, as we’d like to expand a bit. We actually found an amazing piece of land with some existing buildings on it for about 600,000 USD. We don’t have anywhere near that kind of funds right now, but it’s an exciting dream for the future!

Back in Manila, I’ve been working in the office quite a bit, drafting business letters, creating promotional materials, and communicating with potential sponsors. We are really desperately looking for businesses and individuals willing to commit to support SOTH in 2009. If any of you reading this are able to step up, just for a small amount, it would be so greatly appreciated!

Also, if any of you would like to talk to me face to face, see the facilities here, or meet the children, just contact me via skype. Skype is free to download (www.skype.com) and It will allow you to make a “phone” call to me from your computer for free. If you have a webcam, you can chat with me via video as well. I’d love to talk to you!

I've been learning alot about the Father's heart while here. I felt like writing down some of my thoughts and feelings, and it turned out to be rather poetical... so I thought I'd share with you all:

Sometimes I feel my heart might burst because it is so swollen with love. I love loving and I love being loved…
Is this the way Your heart feels too, Father?

I see the way your people have chosen death over life, and I long for them to understand… to reach up and grasp the hand that you are ever holding out to them.
Is this the way Your heart feels too, Father?

I see the evil that permeates the world you created to be perfect, and I long for the day that we will be reunited in a place with no darkness, and no tears.
Is this the way Your heart feels too, Father?

I don’t think that I’ll ever be “tough” enough to see suffering without it knifing into my soul. I see kids on the street and I long to pull each one of them into my arms… I want to hold them until it doesn’t hurt anymore.
Is this the way your heart feels too, Father?

I am frightened by the intensity of the anger that I feel towards those who inflict the unspeakable on your children. I want to push back the darkness, I want to fight the injustice with my last breath.
Is this the way your heart feels too, Father?

Put my heart inside of Yours. I have glimpsed only tiny pieces of Your heart, and I know You are only waiting for my answer, “yes”, to reveal more. Put my heart inside of Yours. I want my heart to beat out the same rhythm that yours does. No matter how much pain it means, no matter how much sacrifice it takes, I want to be inside your heart. It’s frightening to say “yes”, but I know that my heart is safe in Your hands.

I want to cry tears for you
I want to laugh with you
May the things that break Your heart break mine as well.
May the things that bring You joy be my source of joy.
May the things that You love be those that I love.
Until You come back, or I come to You.