(Not) Worthy

"I'm not worthy," she told me. "I have a dirty heart." Hearing those words come out of her mouth made my heart sink. Then, with tears in my eyes, I looked at her and said, "Yes, you are worthy. That is the beauty of receiving Jesus. It doesn't matter what we have done in the past or what we've said. He wants to give you a new, clean heart." She leaned her head against my shoulder, and I could see the tears starting to form in her eyes. She isn't one to cry, but the Pastor's offer to come forward for prayer, receive the Holy Spirit's anointing, or be set free, was an inner conflict that she was battling. I quietly started to pray. As the Pastor made his last "call" for people to come forward, I looked at her and asked, "Do you want me to go with you for prayer?" She looked at me, nodded her head, and immediately got up out of her seat. She left that service at peace. The love of the Father had saturated her. I knew that from this moment forward, little by little, she would be different. She would be changed, and she would be free.

Sunday night marked the beginning of an intense and exhausting week and a half. It was like a roller coaster. I ran classes in the LC, translated numerous conversations, consoled one of our girls upon receiving some bad news, and helped my Director interview our girls over an incident that took place Monday night.

We also had five more beautiful girls enter our care. But, by the end of the week, they were reintegrated back with their families. (Because we are the first Home within the DR to do the work that we are doing, it will become pretty common to have girls pass through our care for a few weeks at a time until their families are located.) The time these girls spent in our care was joyous, and they thoroughly enjoyed classes in the LC. Even though their time was brief, it was hard to see them go.

I honestly don't know how I made it through this week except through the Father's supernatural energy. Almost every night resulted in a late night at the Home, which meant arriving at my apartment at 11 PM or 12 AM. I would wake up tired, but as soon as the day started to unfold, I would receive the energy needed to get through it. It was another simple reminder that my God "shall supply all" my "needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:13)

Things to PRAY for:

• Please pray for our girls. Pray for them as they sleep at night and go about their day. Pray for the inner battles that they are facing to be gone in the name of Jesus! Pray for their hearts to be open and for them to have a love encounter with our Heavenly Father.

• Please continue to hold our staff up in prayer!

• We have a volunteer arriving within the next week and another one in August—yay!! But, even with that, we are still short-staffed.

• Pray for the area we work and live in—for the darkness to be brought into the light. But, unfortunately, it is a pretty unreached area, and there is a hidden "spiritual oppression" here.

• We are still praying for another nighttime security guard. But, while looking/interviewing, a local security company will help us "fill in the gaps.

PRAISES & BLESSINGS:

• For those who sent me e-mails this past week with prayers and notes of encouragement: thank you! They were a blessing, and the timing could not have been better :)

• We now have a third house mom!! This is a tremendous answer to prayer, and we cannot wait until she starts.

• This past week I also had to revamp the LC schedule. I honestly believe the Father "downloaded" the new plan to me while I was sleeping. The transition into the new and improved schedule has been pretty "painless."