Last Days Ministries : Training Your Children For Christ

This brochure was a major tool in raising my children. Parents: What really matters?

What are you training your children to value?

All I can do is post this but even if you read it, the work is in the day to day loving of your children and pointing them to the Lord.

Last Days Ministries : Training Your Children For Christ

Going around paying school fees

Cynthia with the HeadTeacher and her teacher, Little Benjamin of Ituti gets a ride to school with Frank!

Is anything more beautiful?

I think of this song we danced to many years ago....

How Beautiful

and the words were How beautiful is the Body of Christ.

We danced in our white worship Israeli folk dresses which had very full skirts nearly ankle length.

They made beautiful circles flowing around us when we twirled and worshipped our Lord Jesus.

All of the sisters in white, smiling, twirling, a twinkle in our eye, just holding back a laugh of celebration.

It was the Year of Jubilee!

and the pictures here are the expression of that joy. How BEAUTIFUL is the Body of Christ!

Here we are with our youngest brothers and sisters in the Lord. We are only separated by time and space, but we are one in Spirit. More hands and feet (TGD Team) of the Lord provide a tangible expression of the Father's Love to these helpless young children who have done nothing to determine their circumstances. Is it their fault they were born there and is it our merit that we were born here? And yet it has made all the difference. They live in poverty and everywhere around them they can see hopelessness and despair. Everywhere around them they hear of the dying and the sick. And now, someone has come to tell them----"There is someone who is helping you today!" And now, someone has come bearing gifts. And now, they look around and wonder, "How can this be?" and let them praise their God in heaven who has chosen them in His mercy.

I pray the work continue to expand that others feel the joy and the hope that is possible with so little from us but so profound for them. They will never forget this joy. 

Where does Frida go to school?

I see this and I think, "Where does Frida go to school? What kind of school is this?" At least there is wood, I suppose. There are schools in her area. Maybe she needs to go to a better school?

And Benjamin.....same thing. Is he in a mud hut school? Such a sweet cute little boy.

Whoa! Where are you??

United States 31

Netherlands 14
Russia 10
Kenya 8
Germany 7
Sweden 2
Ukraine 2
China 1
Colombia 1
France 1

Here is the page views from my Stats page---how fun is this? Someone in Russia is checking my webpage and someone in Columbia! I bet it is Shelby in China, or maybe someone Jinling or Julie knows? and who is in the Netherlands? I know who is in Germany--and I love you guys! Congrats on the beautiful girl! and France? Who is in France? Welcome all! Thank you for perusing here. All donations are completely appreciated---or as Steve's late father would say, "We're accepting Christmas presents even now." ha ha!

Paul and many others rejoicing today!

PHOTO ALBUM WITH NEW DELIVERIES!!!
http://picasaweb.google.com/stephanietexasrivers/January2011Delivery#

Cut and paste the webpage address above to see many more photos of our precious children!

Wow! a Cow!

Thanks to David and Cyntreva, Sharon's sponsors, who donated a COW!! PRAISE GOD!

Letter from Joseph O. who works for TGD Kenya

This email from Joseph really made me happy. They are doing such an amazing job. Together, we are all doing a great job! We could not do so much for those children without the TGD Team. God is honored.

Stephanie,
The Lord is doing a new thing in Kenya through you and your family. I have had a passion for the children ever since I was a teen, and I now see why. The kind of synchrony the Lord has put between you and the TGD team is creating the whole difference. I was sponsored through my entire high school education by someone never had a chance to meet, through a program known as Save the Children Fund. You might have had about it because it's a global organization, but I just knew it just as that - Save the Children. My sponsor was a Mr. A.O. Finland or something like that. Am telling you all these because all of a sudden I've found myself not only working with orphans in their homes but also at school, like it was today. Seeing these children, as orphans as they are, having an assurance of good life and education, reminds me of my days in school (am not an orphan though for both of my parents are alive).
Facial expressions and lifestyle in general in has changed in the life of these orphans. Smiles, laughter and ululations and celebrations mark every entry in an orphan's home by the TGD crew. You'll see for yourselves when you come over.
That's why each passing day sees me serve with renewed passion in my programming (and now the orphan program) endeavor.
As you change the world, we flank you.
God bless you and your family as you change the world through this noble course.
Regards,
Joseph O.

Still need a sponsor for Silas and Trophosa

Two new girls---FULLY SPONSORED!

Zanaibu

Sharon 2

Lately

Working for TGD has been such a joy this last month. With the orphans getting supplies, I can't express the joy of it. The team members are just loving it, too. What joy to see the faces of these children! My Kenyan team is PUMPED! and I think it is truly fun to just go buy all these great things, important things, and be part of the shopping and giving.

They've made videos and I've favorited some on myYouTube account.

Steve tells me of someone who is interested in doing more for the orphans. I am so excited! I pray I can represent them well.
and I have the great joy of sharing a teaching on Love Languages with a group of moms. and I pray I represent TGD well there, too. I suppose I am most interested in representing Jesus and the eternal value of loving others, however, and TGD promotion takes a back seat.

I am just not a marketing girl. Oh I was so discouraged this summer. Donations went WAY down right when we were in crazy need. It was a humbling time, a low time, a time of waiting and worrying and trying not to worry and worrying a little more and trying not to cry. I was looking in faith at Jesus and I was trusting Him, knowing that time would pass and it would be a memory---SURE ENOUGH! Time has passed and all worked out eventually. We have recovered from the costs and looking back over the year, people were VERY generous. God was really moving on hearts and people were responding and joining Him in this work. What a blessing!

At Christmas, my hands burned with pain. I went to the doctor and he said Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I have had to cut back so much typing! I have not been able to write! and when you are in pain....well....you can't think. But I have been able to cry out to the Lord. Not good prayer but good dependence.

I'm in Houston now, planning my daughter's wedding in July. It's a great joy. What a difference between her life and those in Kenya. Oh I thank the donors for making those children feel like the bride of Christ. Hallelujah!

Prayer that they would return to the Lord

Jeremiah 24:7 I will give them a heart to know me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people and I will be their God if they will return to me with all of their heart.

Before picture

I love these girls. Here is a before picture. Scroll down and see Shaline smiling, smiling. Thanks to sponsors making a difference in their lives. These girls are full orphans. Mary has extended family who don't want to take care of her. The Aunt took the infant child and abandoned Mary. God cares for them just as God cares for us. He hears the cry of the wounded, the lonely, the broken-hearted. He heals, strengthens and redeems. Then He sets us up to give to the world so His Kingdom grows on earth--Hallelujah! God will use these girls mightily to care for others in the future. They shall no longer be called outcast, but Overcoming!

Gladys and Frida rejoice!

303 page views last month on my blog.

Thank you for visiting this blog! Be sure and visit the youtube page on my channel: stephanietexasrivers .
I am so pleased with the progress the TGD Team has made towards supplying the orphan children with plenty of fun stuff!  If you roll the cursor over the photos at the right, you can speed through the slideshow! Give it a try!

Be sure and check my videos with the link at the right

Go to my YouTube account through the "Check out my videos..." link on this page. I've loaded up videos that Frank and Joseph O. made from the TGD Team visits to the orphans. Hallelujah! They've made short clips of most of the children and will be adding on clips to make each child a movie over time. How cool is that? I bet the children will LOVE seeing the result.

Orphans receive supplies and uniforms

Shaline has been one of my sponsored children since I first felt that we should try to help the children in a dependable manner. I brought Todd White, of Austin Stone Community Church, and his wife, Patsy, in January to take photographs of orphans. At that time, we had over 100 children show up and several had parents but all were interested in getting sponsors. I went to Pastor Joseph's church, my favorite, where they had a dancing presentation, scriptures, and plenty of Jesus singing. There he showed me several children who were full orphans, Mary and Shaline being two of them. I went home with Mary on my mind continually because she only smiled when she was dancing. Other than that, she had not smiled at all. And Shaline never smiled.
Now LOOK AT SHALINE! She is radiant!
It is such a wonderful opportunity to give to those who don't have anyone fighting for them. Pastor Joseph had arranged for some widows in the church to take the girls in. I began to support the widows and orphans through the giving of my children, Kevin and Laura, each giving $50 a month and so four girls from that church were supported with $25 a month to their guardian widows. That wasn't enough for all expenses because Mary has some sort of eye allergy that gave her headaches. We investigated her vision first and found it was good. Thankfully, she gets treatment now and doesn't come home missing school. She made progress in school.
Now we have donors for every child, some still at only $25 a month and needing another sponsor, but some have $50 a month! This is a huge amount in Kenya. Not giving a family all they need, but it goes incredibly far there to people who have survived on nearly nothing. Schooling and uniforms are a status symbol to these children and they may be the only ones in their area with a mattress! ( I gave some pillows to our TGD students and they got sore necks because they weren't used to them---but LOVED them anyway! Yay!)

Frank is doing an amazing job leading the team through all the administration and management hurdles and we are all thanking God together. It is a great day of rejoicing and thankfulness in Kenya!

Orphans receive school uniforms

Orphans receive supplies

From: The Berean Daily Verse and Comment

Matthew 5:3


(3) "Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.



New International Version Change Bible versions

The word "poor" has a wide variety of meanings and applications in both testaments. The Old Testament uses five different words from the Hebrew language, while the New Testament uses two from Greek. However, these seven are translated into a large number of English words. Besides describing destitution, they appear in contexts indicating oppression, humility, being defenseless, afflicted, in want, needy, weak, thin, low, dependent, and socially inferior.

Of the two Greek words translated "poor" in the New Testament, penes designates the working poor who own little or no property. People in this state possess little in the way of material goods, but they earn what they have through their daily labor. A form of this word, penechros, describes a poor widow who may be receiving a small subsistence from a relative or social agency. Penes is used only once in the entire New Testament (II Corinthians 9:9), and its cognate, penechros, is used only to indicate the poor widow of Luke 21:2.

This, therefore, is not the word used in the beatitude in Matthew 5:3, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." Here, "poor" is translated from ptochos, which literally means "to crouch or cower as one helpless." It signifies the beggar, the pauper, one in abject poverty, totally dependent on others for help and destitute of even the necessities of life. In Galatians 4:9, it is translated "beggarly."

At first "poor" simply indicated to be in material need, to be in poverty. Gradually, its usage spread to other areas besides economics to indicate people in weakness, frailty, feebleness, fragility, dependence, subservience, defenselessness, affliction, and distress. The poor were people who recognized their utter helplessness before what life had dealt them. They recognized that nothing within their power solved their weak state, thus they would eagerly reach out to others for assistance in rising out of their situation, as a beggar would.

Eventually, the word took on spiritual overtones because some began to perceive that these afflicted people often had no refuge but God. Thus David, a person we would not consider as defenseless, nonetheless says of himself in a situation where he felt only God could deliver him, "This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles" (Psalm 34:6).

To grasp how Jesus uses "poor" in this beatitude, we must contemplate the mind of a person who finds himself in poverty. One who recognizes his poverty takes the necessary steps to be poor no longer. He may seek advice on how to resolve his dilemma, get or change jobs, curtail spending to only necessary items, pay off his debts, and/or get rid of financially draining liabilities. In other words, he tries to change his circumstances. God wants His children to have this recognition of poverty regarding true spiritual things, and possess the drive to seek their enrichment from Him.



John W. Ritenbaugh

From The Beatitudes, Part Two: Poor in Spirit