Dear sweet precious obedient children of mine,

The next time mommy asks you to please be nice and smile pretty for a picture and you decide you know better... it just may be used against you for the whole wide world to see. ;)

And one more thing you need to remember, I think you are absolutely adorable no matter what face you are making.:)

One of our jobs here at Eagles Nest is to raise orphan awareness and along with that financial support for the orphans living in our home. When we first came here I knew this would be part of our job- but what I didn't realize was how personal I would take it. Because you see, before coming here to Eagles Nest  and meeting the children- they were simply just another statistic... one of 147+ million orphans around the world. But now that I know them, now that I have looked into their eyes, held them in my arms, heard their stories, seen their unique personalities, heard first hand their dreams, belly laughed with them and heard their prayers- everything has changed.

In David Platts book Radical he wrote: “We learned that orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they’re not real before you hold them in your arms. But once you do, everything changes.”

Boy did he ever hit the nail on the head. If it takes me the rest of my life I will advocate for these children letting others know they are out there, they have feelings, they have dreams and that they matter.

Eagles Nest orphanage is run strictly on donations. We provide holistic orphan care- raising the children  as our own for as long as we have them in our home. They receive a Christian education, medical care, clothing, nutricious meals, and 24 hour care. They are read to, prayed with and tutored in their homework. We work with them to have them develop their God given talents and strengths- making them feel like they are special and that they belong in a family- even if it is bigger than most. :)  But we can't do it without the financial support of others.

Over the course of the next few weeks I am going to be highlighting the children in our home in efforts to raise financial support for the children.  Some of them have partial support already which is greatly appreciated, but we have a ways to go. If you are interested and would like to sign up to provide monthly support of $33 a month you can click here. We want for you to get to know the child you are supporting through monthly updates and more. :)  Also, we would really appreciate it you could help us get the word out on facebook and blogs in efforts to raise enough adequate support.

Today I am going to highlight these five children... and there will be more to come. Thank you again for helping us, help them.

This is baby Alex. Alex is 5 months old and precious beyond words. He has the sweet lips and he loves to be snuggled.

Meet Dulce. Dulce is the newest child in the home. She is almost always smiling and when I pick her up she pats me on the back. She loves to have those sweet cheeks kissed!  Dulce is 8 months old.

Meet Lizzy. :) I have shared Lizzy's story on here before. Lizzy was found in a heap of garbage when she was just a tiny baby. We don't know her exact birthday but she is around 9 months old. Everyone who meets Lizzy instantly falls in love.

Meet Raul. Raul takes his time warming up to people. The first couple years of his life were mosstly spent sitting in a corner all alone. He was severly malnourished when he arrived at Eagles Nest orphanage but since then he has come a long way. He is cautious of strangers but when he decides to trust you, you have a friend for life. Raul is 3 years old.

Meet Flori. Flori is 3 1/2 years old and has absolutely the sweetest personality. I adore her nonstop giggles and grins.  Flori doesn't know a stranger and everyone who meets her instantly falls in love. When I asked Flori what her favorite thing to do was- she said 'eat'. :)

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27

This past week was a full one. Our family got hit with some sort of stomach bug and it pretty much went through all of us except me. That may be one of the disadvantages of having a larger family... lots of us to go through.  In the midst of sickness we held a Ladies Retreat at Eagles Nest. It was a lot of work but a lot of fun. :)  It was so neat to see these ladies who have so very little laugh and enjoy themselves, get a chance to get away, and be refreshed.

We held 3 classes, ate meals together, played games, did crafts, sang, shared testimonies and praised the Lord together.

 These precious womens lives have been anything but easy and it was such a blessing to be able to encourage them, embrace them and give them this much needed break. Thanks Claire for all of your hard work- I am learning so much from you and so thankful for this privilege of serving along side of you. :)

I am so thankful for the fact that

everyone smiles in the same language. :)

The heart of worship

Because our church services here are in Spanish- I do a lot of 'observing'. It's a comfort to me to know no matter where we live, no matter what language is being spoken- He understands our songs of praise.

Sitting in worship today witnessing child and after child who has been through the unspeakable~ povery, disease, loss, and abuse of every kind sing songs of praise, made my heart worship in a way I had never experienced before. I watched them sing without hesitation regardless of who was listening, I saw hope in their eyes and I witnessed their raw and beautiful faith... the kind of stuff that leaves you knowing you will never be the same again.

One thing I know for sure- worship has nothing to do with song preference or the color of the carpet. It doesn't take state of the art sound equipment, plush seats, or the latest Sunday school material to come face to face with Jesus. He will meet you right where you are, just as you are... and it has nothing to do with what you have to offer...and everything to do with what He has already done.

We meet in a school room, we sing with our voices and we use what we have on hand... and it is enough- because He is enough.

As the offering plate made it's way down the rows, the gift of giving took on a whole new meaning to me as I witnessed those who have lost so much give all that they have in joy, in faith, and without worrying about tomorrow. It makes you stop and take a much deeper look at your own level of faith.

Today I met with Jesus in a way I never have before... and I stand in awe.

Looked out my back window today and saw this.

 A beautiful reminder of how God always keeps his promises. :)

Speaking of keeping promises... a few of you asked me to email individual pictures of the child or children you purchased shoes for in honor of someones birthday, Christmas, etc. If you have not received an email with pictures yet could you please email me at blockamy@hotmail.com so I can keep my promise. I had many emails and I don't want to forget anyone. Thank you again!!! :)

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People have asked us what, so far, has been the hardest part of going into full time mission work.

It isn't the fear of safety, it isn't the fear of walking away from a good career, it isn't the fear of walking into the unknowns.  The answer, hands down without batting an eye, is asking people for financial support. I am assuming many of you understand considering I have actually had person after person say to me "I would love to do what you are doing, but there is no way I would ask people for their money."

Because you see, we live in a world of self- sufficiency. We are told if we can't do it on our own than we shouldn't be doing it at all.

The thing is, this is the worlds reasoning- not Gods.

God is all about team work, relationships and the body working together for His Kingdom. He realizes that the poor and the orphaned cannot afford to 'pay us' to do the work we are doing here- so He uses people like you and I.

"You may say to yourself, "my power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.' But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth."

Mother Teresa once said when referring to the poor, sick and hungry that "Each one of them is Jesus in disguise". In other words, when we serve- we are really serving Him. And when we give, we are really giving to Him...

But let's be honest- do we really live like that is true?

I read the other day that "more money is spent each year on chewing gum than on world missions."

Think about that for a minute..

We spend more on something we put in our mouths, chew for a while and spit out- than we do on bringing Jesus to those who need Him as much as we do.

"So because you are lukewarm- neither hot or cold- I am about to spit you out of my mouth." Revelations 3:16

Do you know what breaks my heart about this the most?  How many of you have ever stepped into a wad of chewing gum that someone carelessly spit out- not once caring about the person who would come along and step it in? Isn't that in essence the same thing we do to kids like Norma...

and kids like Walter...

when we are willing to spend more on a pack of gum- than we are on His Kingdom?

When we first started on this journey into full time mission work, I admit it was hard to share with others what we were doing because we didn't want them to think we were asking them for their money. Trust me, you can sense it when people distance themselves, afraid it is going to cost them something.  But what we've come to realize is that this has nothing to do with us- and everything to do with them... Those who are partnering with us are not giving to us- they are giving to God. We are only responsible for the part He asked us to do. The rest is between them and Him. Once I realized that, the weight of the world was lifted off our shoulders... and put back onto His -where He intended it to be all along.

We are so grateful for our incredible partners who daily choose Him over ordering pizza, upgrading their cell phone or a package of gum. I hope you don't ever get tired of hearing how much we appreciate you- because we want you to know we couldn't do this without you.

If the Lord has laid missons on your heart and you'd prayerfully like to consider being on our team- please click here for more information.

"Make known among the nations what He has done" Isaiah 12:4

I am only one, but still I am one.

~Helen Keller

I was reading through 1 Chronicals the others day and I have to admit, it took everything in me not to skip over the list of names and move on. Name after name of individuals who felt to me to be nothing but a name on a page. "Just another face in the crowd" as the saying goes. What the Lord reminded me though is that is not at all how He sees it. 

While God is interested in the nations- He is also interested in us as individuals. Each one of us is uniquely created for a reason- only often we struggle to see our purpose because we are too busy believing we only have worth when we can see it in numbers, power or recognition. 

The thing is, what we often view as insignificant and unimportant- the Lord is actually using to accomplish His purpose. While a simple smile, a listening ear, a sincere compliment, or a gentle touch may not seem like a very big deal~ God can use them to change the course of someones life. 

Because after all, "little is much when God is in it."

Do all that is in your heart. Go then; here I am with you. 1 Samuel 14:7

Blessed by you...

I wish there was some way to tell you how thankful we are for those of you who gave so selflessly. I wish you could have heard their laughter and seen their excitement- because you would have been blown away. Prior to giving the children their new shoes we held a meeting with their parents (those who had them anyway). We wanted to let them know that the children would be getting new shoes from some very generous donors, and we also wanted to use this opportunity to invite them to church. We asked that the parents allow the children to actually wear the shoes... which to many may seem odd. But the thing is, receiving a new pair of shoes is a BIG deal here. Such a rare occurance that they cherish them so much they actually don't want to wear them and get them dirty. We asked though that they allow the children to wear the shoes because so many of you had given for that very purpose. One mother spoke up and explained that she wanted her child to understand the value of this gift and to take good care of them. She also asked that we tell the givers how much they appreciated such a generous gift. 

So thank you.

Thank you for your beautiful hearts and for being willing to reach out to those in need.

Because of you- they saw Him.:)

P.S I have a ton more pictures (341 of them to be exact) but I didn't have time to download them all on here. Some of you asked for pictures sent by email so I will be working on that over the next couple of days as I can. Thanks again!!! :)