It all started with 4 Canadians getting off the plane in El-tari airport Kupang. One of the first things they must have gotten a hold of is our remote control, and set our pace in the “fast forward” mode! Their name tags read: Felicia Vandervelde , Dan Shulenberg, Jake…. and Anna…… Together they formed the first Canadian “Wings to Work” team! If you have not heard about these trips, they are short term mission trips where young and not so young people get the opportunity to share and be actively involved with the mission (aid) work done amongst the people of West Timor Indonesia. The main motivation behind these trips for the team is to get to know, encourage and show Christian love to fellow brothers and sisters. On the more practical side the team is also assigned to a “building job” where the team works closely together with the locals and the New Hope orphans. Working alongside the locals is such a testimony of brotherly love which is much more important and valuable than to be getting the job done! A lot of time is also spent in getting to know and hanging out with the New Hope orphans, volleyball and soccer are sure to be icebreakers! One of the biggest challenges for the teams usually is facing the cultural differences, from small things such as having rice for breakfast to spending a night (or two) in a far off village at one of the Reformed mission posts. Although very primitive a definite highlight of the trip was visiting and experiencing a bit of life with the members of the mission post in Phili. We enjoyed the always beautiful mountain views on the way there, which somehow are more beautiful seen from the back of a cattle truck. Upon arrival the congregation members were called together in no time, and introductions were made, supper was discussed and decided was that a not so happy little pig was to show up roasted for our supper! Even though the killing process (which you tend to “skip” in Canada) was a little grueling to watch, the meat did taste delicious! Our stomachs filled, tents pitched and soon we all drifted off to………………no we didn’t, the ground was VERY hard, and it was VERY cold! Dan and Jake obviously from experience had chosen the better spot and slept soundless in the car. Oh well,nothing a cup of coffee and a beautiful sunrise can’t fix in the morning! It being Sunday we had the privilege and joy of worshipping together our mighty and gracious God. The worship service was conducted in the house of our host family, because it got a little bit tight inside, some of us ended up sitting outside, but even that couldn’t take away the eagerness and expectation to hear the word of the Lord preached. After time spent in fellowship and having enjoyed so more food, decided was to start a hunt for young coconuts. On the way we made a stop at a grapefruit tree, (some of us didn’t get any further!) and enjoyed the most delicious grapefruits ever! We also discovered a cashew tree, and them being in season we were fortunate to bring home a whole sack of UN -cracked cashews, ever tried opening one? The full sack still sitting at our home would explain enough I would say! One of the items never missing on a trip into the villages is a bag with medication, there is always a shortage of simple over the counter medication in the villages, and always an over the limit amount of minor wounds and illnesses untreated. Upon our return from the village gardens, we conducted a health clinic which was well attended, a lot of vitamins, pain relief, anti biotic and de worm medication was distributed. Another item always present on such trips is a bag full of 2nd hand clothing donated from Australia to be distributed amongst the congregation members. After this, time came to say our farewells which involved a lot of nose rubbing, another interesting experience! We headed back for the city of Soe, where we enjoyed a much more restful sleep in one of the local hotels. Early next day we headed for the most beautiful and refreshing waterfalls of Timor in Oehalla. A quick lunch there, and back to Kupang, stopping on the way at the local market to get a go at the art of bargaining. A couple more hours on the road, and we were all very happy to see “home sweet home” again! A would be highlight of the trip was a night at the moonlit beach to witness turtles coming ashore to lay their eggs. This egg lying apparently happens only at specific times in the year, and that at a very irregular base. Most people here that live close to the beach have had a taste of turtle egg, it is not a delicacy, but added protein to their diet. This seemed unreal to the team members, as most westerners know that turtles are almost extinct! On the night it seemed most likely for turtles to come ashore according to the locals, we headed for the beach in the afternoon for a bbq at the beach, where after we would head out with a boat that would bring us to a small Island where turtles are known to come ashore. While we enjoyed the fish, the sand flies feasted themselves on us! But nothing small like a sand fly could take away the excitement of witnessing a real life session of “national Geographic’s”! How disappointed we were when the boat which was supposed to take us to the island failed to start! After several attempts and the now so much more annoying sand flies bugging us, it was decided to head home and have another try the following night at a different beach. The next night the team with a couple of the young people headed out again very optimistic, but to their great disappointment no turtle came within sight. To look at it from the positive side, a good reason to visit Timor again!
The remaining days were spent on the building site, where the New Life centre started to take shape, refreshing dips in Air Sagu and Tilong were thoroughly enjoyed, volleyball, a few day trips which included more barbecued pork and in no time the end of the trip was in sight. A huge dinner was cooked up for the farewell evening with “Beer Butt Chicken” prepared by the Canadians as “special” on the menu, and special it was! The festive mood of the farewell evening was soon replaced by the sad realization that return tickets for the team were booked for the next day. The New Hope children had a hard time to control their emotions, and more than a few shed a couple of tears! It is always so encouraging to have visitors over who are not just here to do the sightseeing, but really want to get to know the people, and be on the same level with them. We truly felt that communion of saints meeting together!
Save the Turtles……?
Things went from 5th to 4th gear for a couple of weeks, but soon we were headed to the airport again, this time to welcome Rev. Souman and his daughter Esther who planned to stay in Timor for little less than 1 month. Rev. Souman would spent most of his time teaching at the Reformed Theological College while Esther would joined in with the activities of the Australian Wings to Work team. This team of 15 Aussies aged 50+ to 4 months old stayed with us for 11 days and did loads of things! I won’t go into detail of the activities done by the Australian team, as one of their team members already wrote a beautiful summary of their time at New Hope which was published in the Australian mission news. During their stay, we also had the Harapan Baru (New Hope) family drastically extended with 8 new children arriving from Rote, Sumba and Soe! This made live go over in super fast forward for a while,trying to get them all settled in and ready for school! Just as this was sort of happening, Meldi complained about a very sore right side, and our suspicions were right……appendicitis! She had a very bad case of it, the doctor told her she should not have been a day later! She ended up staying in the hospital for a week, and is still taking it easy now. Having spent a week in Kupangs hospital I once again was made aware of how fragile life really is. On a daily bases people were brought in with all kinds of major and minor illnesses and diseases. The care was simply shocking. Children died because of diarrhea, others because there was no space for them, and most of them were turned down simply because their wallets were empty. There is no comparison to a Canadian hospital, dried blood everywhere, the supposedly “sterile” surgery room did not even have a tap to wash ones hands! One would be very unfortunate without family in the hospital for lifting the patient, bringing the patient to the surgery room, washing the patient, administering medication is all expected to be done by the family members of the patient, while the nurses hang out in the staff room! A high tolerance of pain, is also required, as this is simply “part of life” according to the hospital staff. During Meldi’s ultrasound examination the doctor told her quite bluntly that she had a tumor! This news of course both shocked Meldi and us as we expected an infected appendix. After the examination was done, and Meldi was wheeled out of the room, we asked the doctor how bad it was, oh he said, it wasn’t a tumor, that was her full bladder ! The story that really broke our hearts though is that of a lady in the ninth month of her pregnancy, being told that her baby would not survive the delivery. She told the doctor that the baby was still moving, but he simply repeated that the baby would not survive, and that he would be back the following morning to induce her, and deliver her dead baby! Apparently the cost of a caesarian section was too high for the government health plan for the poor! Sitting beside Meldi’s bed observing the hospital’s circumstances I could not prevent my mind from wandering back to the “Turtle” discussion we had. How important really is the fact that turtles, panda’s, and what all not are becoming extinct in comparison to a human life that is lost? Just recently I read a post on an internet site which seemed very right, noble and “Christian” saying the following:………………………………..Although I agree with most of it, the last part about “Saving the world” did not go down right. How deceiving it is to get caught up in trying to save the world. Daily the world warns us of the dangerous effects of global warming, thinning ozone layer, dying of the rain forests etc, and truly we have to take care of our surroundings, but as Christians we know that we can NOT save the world, for it is destined to be destroyed, to be replaced by a new heaven and a new earth where only SIN will be extinct! Instead of getting caught up and worried about a world that is dying, let us busy ourselves through our words and deeds, passing on the New Hope that is found in Him!
By the way, while we were on a short holiday in Bali together with the Soumans, we headed to the beach one day where a coca cola truck pulled a lot of interest that day. Our curious side gaining the better of us, we decided to check it out, and sure enough the beach goers could sign up to be part of the “saving the turtle” project! 140 baby turtles were about to be released into the ocean, Moses and Grace helped 2 of them make it safely into the water!
At the end of this New Hope update I like to request your prayers for Meldi who is still recovering, and also for the New Life project that has just taken shape, which hopes to provide a safe haven for unwed mothers to deliver their babies who have no other way to turn to.
Until next time,
Femmy Dethan
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
“Lost generation”…..?
This heading in the Monday newspaper caught my attention. The article was about a couple of junior high school girls being caught naked in a rented room together with a bemo (public bus) driver! Based on this one incident it might be a bit much to refer to a whole generation, but sadly I must admit that we also have seen signs of a lost, or perhaps a more appropriate word “confused” generation. In a previous New Hope update I have mentioned about the rapidly widening of a culture gap between the older generation build on the foundations of modesty and respect and the young generation quickly adopting to western lifestyle exposed by the media. Instead of demanding respect from their young ones, the parents tend to give in to all the wills and wants under the mum of “loving them”. Another popular response to the misbehavior of their children is : It’s just a phase, we all went through that! There is some truth to the last statement, but as parents we have to be there to guide them through this difficult phase. Unfortunately in Timor there is not much support from the churches and media on how to deal with teenagers in an appropriate and biblical manner.
What triggered me to write about this topic, is that one of the New Hope girls Santi, was
a victim of this “lost generation” phenomenon. On her daily walks to the market Santi met this
handsome guy who had begun to take an interest in her. Karlos is his name, he works and lives at
the rice mill right behind our house. Without our knowledge the two of them started dating, and
he would walk with her to do the daily groceries, accompany her on trips into town, and meet
over the fence when we were not around. One of New Hope’s household rules is that the
children are not allowed to date for as long as they are still in the school benches. Once they are
allowed to date, they have to be open about their boy/girl friends and bring them home to be
introduced to us.
Since Santhi is not in school any more, but works full time at new hope in the kitchen
and office she was allowed to date, but she should have informed us about her relationship. I often sit down with the girls and talk together about the danger of dating in secret, it would not be the first time if a girl get’s raped and then left pregnant without the father taking responsibility. It appeared that Karlos also had a hidden agenda. One evening Pastor Ed made a comment on a new ring Santhi was wearing, just joking around we did not think anything of it, but when she got all flustered and red in her face, we had our suspicions. Upon further prodding, she opened up about her relation ship with Karlos. She said she had wanted to talk to us sooner, but was too embarrassed to do so, since Karlos was a member of the Roman Catholic church. Naturally this was a concern to us, and asked her how she thought to go about this, she responded by saying that she had already told him that she would not leave our church, but that he would have to join her. He put her at ease by saying that all churches are the same to him, and he would not have a problem with going to a protestant church. Well, we said, if that is the case he should show that he is serious about that, and we would like to see him in church this Sunday.
The following Sunday proved that Karlos was not at all of the opinion that “ all churches are the same” for he had answered Santhi that he would go to his church, and she could go to hers! We expressed our concerns towards Santi and asked her to make a prayerful decision regarding Karlos. At this time we did not forcefully want to end the relationship without her involvement in the decision. In most such cases the parents would use their power to end such a relation by imposing threats, often resulting in an elope. We really wanted Santhi to understand the difficulties of such a relationship and be aware of the impact it would have for her future. And so we left the decision up to her so far, but would watch her and make sure she would not meet Karlos unaccompanied.
Another rule at New Hope is that the children are not allowed to posses
handphones. When Santhi came home from the Kupang a week later, Albina ran to the front to
meet her, to find out what was so important for Albina to greet Santhi I followed her to the front,
just in time to intercept a handphone exchange! Santhi confessed that it was Karlos handphone
who had lent it to her to call her friend. The phone was kept for safe keeping, and as we went
through the files, we discovered just what this young man had on his agenda, for the phone had
at least 6 pornography videos saved on it. As I was going through the files, a text message came
in from Karlos asking his sweetheart to please not delete the video’s! Obviously he had wanted
her to watch these, and get attracted to the idea he had in mind. Thankfully the Lord in His time,
opened up Karlos deceptive true identity to us, preventing lots of possible harm done to Santhi.
That afternoon we sat down with Santhi and showed her what exactly Karlos was about,
and how dangerous this kind of a relation ship was. Santhi was devastated and in tears, not being able to stand the sight of him she decided it better to go back to her village for a few months. She has been in her village for about a month now, and has opened a small kiosk (store) to keep her busy during the days. As for Karlos, we have not seen or heard from him at all, he is one of the many young men not being guided and monitored by his parents. They are being deceived by the media, influenced by friends, no spiritual guidance they have become addicted to smoking, drinking, drugs and pornography. Yes it does seem as if this generation is lost, but before we “write them off” as lost there is still hope. Hope through our Lord Jesus Christ with whom nothing is impossible.
What can we do?
Spread the good news, reform, educate! Even though there are some positive elements in the
change of society in Indonesia today such as transparency, openness and room for discussion
people have to be taught the biblical bases of this. At the same time do we have to make parents
aware of the dangers of today’s society. We are very thankful that the Lord has opened the way
of media for us to use to work out our calling. Through our radio station Sahabat FM we have
direct access to peoples living rooms and work floors. People in all levels of society are reached
with the good news, Sahabat FM also hosts dialogs with health experts to educate the people on
important health issues, and raise awareness of the dangers of transmittable diseases,
opportunity is also given for the local people to express their thoughts and opinions on
government issues, church issues and the likes.
The latter has already resulted in several cases of corruption being brought to light. To
approach this “lost generation” the Sahabat team is working on a new program/call in show where our Reformed pastors will speak on different aspects regarding changes in the culture nowadays, and give room for parents and teenagers to call in and discuss and ask questions about the problems they face. Please pray for this new generation and their parents to receive wisdom to deal with all these changes. Please pray as well for the New Hope children that they may receive courage to stand out as children with Hope. Please remember also the work of Sahabat FM, that despite the challenges they face from the secular media, they will not be ashamed of the gospel!
Femmy Dethan - nee Bouwman
What triggered me to write about this topic, is that one of the New Hope girls Santi, was
a victim of this “lost generation” phenomenon. On her daily walks to the market Santi met this
handsome guy who had begun to take an interest in her. Karlos is his name, he works and lives at
the rice mill right behind our house. Without our knowledge the two of them started dating, and
he would walk with her to do the daily groceries, accompany her on trips into town, and meet
over the fence when we were not around. One of New Hope’s household rules is that the
children are not allowed to date for as long as they are still in the school benches. Once they are
allowed to date, they have to be open about their boy/girl friends and bring them home to be
introduced to us.
Since Santhi is not in school any more, but works full time at new hope in the kitchen
and office she was allowed to date, but she should have informed us about her relationship. I often sit down with the girls and talk together about the danger of dating in secret, it would not be the first time if a girl get’s raped and then left pregnant without the father taking responsibility. It appeared that Karlos also had a hidden agenda. One evening Pastor Ed made a comment on a new ring Santhi was wearing, just joking around we did not think anything of it, but when she got all flustered and red in her face, we had our suspicions. Upon further prodding, she opened up about her relation ship with Karlos. She said she had wanted to talk to us sooner, but was too embarrassed to do so, since Karlos was a member of the Roman Catholic church. Naturally this was a concern to us, and asked her how she thought to go about this, she responded by saying that she had already told him that she would not leave our church, but that he would have to join her. He put her at ease by saying that all churches are the same to him, and he would not have a problem with going to a protestant church. Well, we said, if that is the case he should show that he is serious about that, and we would like to see him in church this Sunday.
The following Sunday proved that Karlos was not at all of the opinion that “ all churches are the same” for he had answered Santhi that he would go to his church, and she could go to hers! We expressed our concerns towards Santi and asked her to make a prayerful decision regarding Karlos. At this time we did not forcefully want to end the relationship without her involvement in the decision. In most such cases the parents would use their power to end such a relation by imposing threats, often resulting in an elope. We really wanted Santhi to understand the difficulties of such a relationship and be aware of the impact it would have for her future. And so we left the decision up to her so far, but would watch her and make sure she would not meet Karlos unaccompanied.
Another rule at New Hope is that the children are not allowed to posses
handphones. When Santhi came home from the Kupang a week later, Albina ran to the front to
meet her, to find out what was so important for Albina to greet Santhi I followed her to the front,
just in time to intercept a handphone exchange! Santhi confessed that it was Karlos handphone
who had lent it to her to call her friend. The phone was kept for safe keeping, and as we went
through the files, we discovered just what this young man had on his agenda, for the phone had
at least 6 pornography videos saved on it. As I was going through the files, a text message came
in from Karlos asking his sweetheart to please not delete the video’s! Obviously he had wanted
her to watch these, and get attracted to the idea he had in mind. Thankfully the Lord in His time,
opened up Karlos deceptive true identity to us, preventing lots of possible harm done to Santhi.
That afternoon we sat down with Santhi and showed her what exactly Karlos was about,
and how dangerous this kind of a relation ship was. Santhi was devastated and in tears, not being able to stand the sight of him she decided it better to go back to her village for a few months. She has been in her village for about a month now, and has opened a small kiosk (store) to keep her busy during the days. As for Karlos, we have not seen or heard from him at all, he is one of the many young men not being guided and monitored by his parents. They are being deceived by the media, influenced by friends, no spiritual guidance they have become addicted to smoking, drinking, drugs and pornography. Yes it does seem as if this generation is lost, but before we “write them off” as lost there is still hope. Hope through our Lord Jesus Christ with whom nothing is impossible.
What can we do?
Spread the good news, reform, educate! Even though there are some positive elements in the
change of society in Indonesia today such as transparency, openness and room for discussion
people have to be taught the biblical bases of this. At the same time do we have to make parents
aware of the dangers of today’s society. We are very thankful that the Lord has opened the way
of media for us to use to work out our calling. Through our radio station Sahabat FM we have
direct access to peoples living rooms and work floors. People in all levels of society are reached
with the good news, Sahabat FM also hosts dialogs with health experts to educate the people on
important health issues, and raise awareness of the dangers of transmittable diseases,
opportunity is also given for the local people to express their thoughts and opinions on
government issues, church issues and the likes.
The latter has already resulted in several cases of corruption being brought to light. To
approach this “lost generation” the Sahabat team is working on a new program/call in show where our Reformed pastors will speak on different aspects regarding changes in the culture nowadays, and give room for parents and teenagers to call in and discuss and ask questions about the problems they face. Please pray for this new generation and their parents to receive wisdom to deal with all these changes. Please pray as well for the New Hope children that they may receive courage to stand out as children with Hope. Please remember also the work of Sahabat FM, that despite the challenges they face from the secular media, they will not be ashamed of the gospel!
Femmy Dethan - nee Bouwman
THIEVES……
A gang of robber’s n thieves have been roaming the neighborhood for the last few months, leaving the Noelbaki’s residents feel rather unsafe especially at night. Somehow this gang must be working together with some of the locals, for in almost all incidents, government funds had just been received by the schools or offices, the injured had just received his wage, or had other funds stored temporarily at his home. While the residents were dreaming sweet dreams in a peaceful sleep, the robbers turned cupboards and desks upside down and inside out, taking with them any money found, hand pones electronics etc. Others were rudely awakened staring at a machete or gun pointed at their throat, not able to move, they lamely watched their house turn into a disaster. Even though both are traumatic, worse is that in some cases women and young girls were raped, leaving them scarred for life. Even though my husbands’ foster dad (who lives with us) is the “ kepala dusun” head of the village, the New Hope residence also got “visitors”. At about 3 o clock midnight, JIthro one of the New Hope boy’s woke up, cast a look at the clock, and through sleepy eyes figured it was already 5 o clock in the morning. NO use going back to sleep, he figured he would start early with his morning chore, leaving him some time to study yet before going to school. First a trip to the washroom for a splash of cold water on his face, on his way back, he saw 2 guys wandering around in a relaxed manner, inspecting the wash machine. Because they seemed so at ease, and thinking it was already 5 o clock, Jithro was not alarmed at all. He guessed that they were early morning visitors, waiting for Pastor Ed to get up as often happen. When he looked more closely however, he saw another guy trying to break into the New Hope office! That set the alarm bless ringing, and he called out;” Pencuri, Pencuri!!!” (thieves). I tell you, it works better than an alarm clock! In no time the New Hope household was on the chase! The burglars not wanting to be caught, took off their sandals and made a run for it, one of them even threw a huge stone at our boy’s missing their heads by a hair! Unfortunately they got away, but we are thankful that no one got hurt. In the following weeks many more cases were reported, and drastic measurements had to be taken. A schedule for night patrol was made and thanks to their alertness, four robbers were caught in the act. Through rigid investigation their network was uncovered, and safely locked away behind the bars. Millions of Rupiahs, hundreds of hand phones and a large amount of other electronics were found and restored to their rightful owners.
What is the cause of this wave of violence? Some say it is the time of the year, just before the harvest is ready, people are running out of rice, and therefore take to robbing. Others say it is a “gang” of people who are copying the ways of life in the big cities like Jakarta and expecially Surabaya where violence is a normal day to day occurrence. Either way, ultimately we know that it is human sinful nature going against God’s commandments. When the burglars were caught, they were locked up in the prison cell just across from the New Hope residence, at the local police station. They attracted a huge crowd of very angry Noelbaki residents, who would have loved to get a go at them with sticks and machetes. Our New hope children were also caught up in the excitement, and the boys were all talking about how they would teach them a lesson “IF” they got a change. Considering the terror that these gangsters have caused, it is understandable for this kind of emotion to be brought to the surface; does this however show a Christian attitude? When we sat down with the New Hope children to have a talk about revenge, they were all quiet when this question was asked. They knew the answer but….. it seems so right to “teach them a lesson”. Pastor Ed explained that indeed those kinds of things cannot go unpunished, and that it is the function of law and order to give place to that. This was the beginning of a long discussion we had, and from criminals we ended up talking about their upcoming exams. Jack and Domi will the Lord willing graduate from Senior and Junior high school this year, and have been preparing themselves for the upcoming national exams. In Indonesia, unless the school is certified, teachers from other schools will come in to take the examinations. The latter being the case at the school the New Hope kids attend. On the evening of the first day of their exams, I asked them how the exams went. Surprisingly I got all very optimistic answers such as : Oh, no problem, great, easy!! The reason I was so surprised was that predictions had it that only 40% would be able to pass the exams. Just jokingly I said: “you must have been cheating”! At this comment, the self assured look on their faces dropped, and they started to feel rather uncomfortable. I pressed a little further, and then they acknowledged that the teachers had been giving them the answers!! Obviously the no. 1 rule during examinations anywhere is: “no cheating” needless to say that I was surprised with their admit ion. Talking about this with their older “siblings’ who had gone through the examinations previous years, they all admitted that this is indeed very common. They also warned them that sometimes the teachers from other schools will purposely give the wrong answers, so that the school will have very low accreditation. When we explained to them that in this way they could never be proud of themselves whether they passed the exams, since the answers came from someone else, and the other way around, if they failed the exams, they would never know whether this is due to the wrong answers given or not? With tears in their eyes they promised that for the rest of the exams they would find the answers themselves!
We often hear people say; “little children, little problems, big children, big problems”. With 20 teenagers under our roof, we can identify with the feeling, it is definitely challenging at times for both children and the parents. It is so easy to let our emotions take control of our actions or to not take the time to explain problems and solutions from a biblical perspective with the excuse that: “We don’t have time” or “don’t know what to say”. We should however be aware that this is no valuable excuse for the Lord, who has given parents the task and responsibility to “train up our children in the ways of the Lord”. He also knows that we are limited in this task through our weaknesses and shortcomings, but that does not provide way for not talking and explaining to our children of how the Lord wants us to live a life pleasing to Him. It is a challenge, but at the same time realize how beautiful it is to see a child grow in the Lord. Please pray for the New Hope children that the Lord will continue to work in their hearts, please pray also for us parents, that we may receive wisdom, strength and patience to continue our task of raising children to His glory!
What is the cause of this wave of violence? Some say it is the time of the year, just before the harvest is ready, people are running out of rice, and therefore take to robbing. Others say it is a “gang” of people who are copying the ways of life in the big cities like Jakarta and expecially Surabaya where violence is a normal day to day occurrence. Either way, ultimately we know that it is human sinful nature going against God’s commandments. When the burglars were caught, they were locked up in the prison cell just across from the New Hope residence, at the local police station. They attracted a huge crowd of very angry Noelbaki residents, who would have loved to get a go at them with sticks and machetes. Our New hope children were also caught up in the excitement, and the boys were all talking about how they would teach them a lesson “IF” they got a change. Considering the terror that these gangsters have caused, it is understandable for this kind of emotion to be brought to the surface; does this however show a Christian attitude? When we sat down with the New Hope children to have a talk about revenge, they were all quiet when this question was asked. They knew the answer but….. it seems so right to “teach them a lesson”. Pastor Ed explained that indeed those kinds of things cannot go unpunished, and that it is the function of law and order to give place to that. This was the beginning of a long discussion we had, and from criminals we ended up talking about their upcoming exams. Jack and Domi will the Lord willing graduate from Senior and Junior high school this year, and have been preparing themselves for the upcoming national exams. In Indonesia, unless the school is certified, teachers from other schools will come in to take the examinations. The latter being the case at the school the New Hope kids attend. On the evening of the first day of their exams, I asked them how the exams went. Surprisingly I got all very optimistic answers such as : Oh, no problem, great, easy!! The reason I was so surprised was that predictions had it that only 40% would be able to pass the exams. Just jokingly I said: “you must have been cheating”! At this comment, the self assured look on their faces dropped, and they started to feel rather uncomfortable. I pressed a little further, and then they acknowledged that the teachers had been giving them the answers!! Obviously the no. 1 rule during examinations anywhere is: “no cheating” needless to say that I was surprised with their admit ion. Talking about this with their older “siblings’ who had gone through the examinations previous years, they all admitted that this is indeed very common. They also warned them that sometimes the teachers from other schools will purposely give the wrong answers, so that the school will have very low accreditation. When we explained to them that in this way they could never be proud of themselves whether they passed the exams, since the answers came from someone else, and the other way around, if they failed the exams, they would never know whether this is due to the wrong answers given or not? With tears in their eyes they promised that for the rest of the exams they would find the answers themselves!
We often hear people say; “little children, little problems, big children, big problems”. With 20 teenagers under our roof, we can identify with the feeling, it is definitely challenging at times for both children and the parents. It is so easy to let our emotions take control of our actions or to not take the time to explain problems and solutions from a biblical perspective with the excuse that: “We don’t have time” or “don’t know what to say”. We should however be aware that this is no valuable excuse for the Lord, who has given parents the task and responsibility to “train up our children in the ways of the Lord”. He also knows that we are limited in this task through our weaknesses and shortcomings, but that does not provide way for not talking and explaining to our children of how the Lord wants us to live a life pleasing to Him. It is a challenge, but at the same time realize how beautiful it is to see a child grow in the Lord. Please pray for the New Hope children that the Lord will continue to work in their hearts, please pray also for us parents, that we may receive wisdom, strength and patience to continue our task of raising children to His glory!
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Vision and Mission
"New Hope" Organization is an NGO in Indonesia - Timor founded by Mrs. Femmy Dethan, the wife of Rev. Edwer Dethan in 2003. The vision of New Hope Ministry is to help the children of Indonesian who have lost their parents. Many Indonesian children lost their parents because of political unrest, sickness and or national disaster such as Tsunami or earthquakes.
Many of these children end up workng on the streets - some work as sellers, others work on the road (eg. cleaning roads) some others become 'prostitute' in the city of Kupang or sold to the big cities of Indonesia such as Surabaya or Jakarta with a promise of a big salary. Most often, in the end, they are forced to be prostitutes. In short, many of these children are forced or deceived by others to work and abandon schools.
It is the "New Hope"'s vision to bring 'New Hope' to those who are living in hopeless situations - by giving them shelter, education and health care. But most important is to teach and raise them in a 'New' environment Christian household. In this way they will experience the love of Christ and see the "NEW HOPE", the REAL HOPE that is provided by the Lord Jesus Christ for them, so that they may trust that they are in HIS HANDS.
It is our vision to bring these children up in God's direction. The children would be adopted as the children of "Yayasan Harapan Baru" (Timor New Hope Foundation) - under new hope provision. Presently "Timor New Hope Foundation" have adopted 22 children from West Timor island, Rote Island and the surroundings area.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Resolutions...
It's that time of the year again when you reflect back on a year gone by and make plans for the next year to come. Usually these plans include improvement and finding ways of doing things more effectively. It is no different at New Hope.
This coming year, the Lord willing, one of the New Hope children, Michael, hopes to graduate from High school. One could say that with graduation his childhood
comes to an end and he is at the step of adulthood.
The question is ‘where will this lead him...?’ Well, before i answer this question let me tell you this story. Can you imagine strangling your own baby? Or flushing one through the toilet? Deserting your baby after you have just given birth to him/her out in the woods? Just thinking about such things gives one the shivers doesn't it?
Unfortunately this is reality in Timor and surrounding islands. It happens on an
almost monthly basis- and doesn’t include the illegal abortions that take place daily and babies that are never found!
Obviously it is Satan who drives people to such desperate acts when these mothers simply have no other way to turn to. You have to understand that parent/child relationships in general are not very personal; often there is a lot of fear of the parents.
In most families there is no room for discussion. You simply obey and agree with whatever the parents say, even if you do not agree. When young people start to date they will keep it a secret for as long as possible in case the parents do not agree and force the relationship to end. If a couple wishes to marry they need the approval of the parents, grandparents, brothers, and uncle's because they are the ones who will pay for or receive the dowry. Often couples will elope and start
a life together elsewhere without being able to get married. Sexuality is never discussed, contributing to a high rate of teenage pregnancies.
Imagine a 17 year old girl who becomes pregnant by a boy who is disliked by her family. Where should she go? Facing the family means that she will likely not see her boyfriend again. They might punish her physically or send her away. So far the
government has done nothing to help girls in such a situation; there are no shelters or funds available to help her have her baby. Without a legitimate father, the midwife will not want to examine her or help her with the delivery! In their desperation and no where to turn abortion is an easy way out. And if they don't have money for that they may end up killing the baby themselves.
These are the facts that we face in the New Hope Ministry. Seventeen years ago a young lady was about to kill her unborn son whose father was without a job. She was afraid to tell her parents because they would never approve of her boyfriend,
moreover her pregnancy. From friends she heard that by taking certain traditional medicines she would start menstruating again- or in other words abort the baby! She did drink the concoction made for her by a witch doctor but it was not successful.
Michael was obviously being protected by the Lord. He was born and has been a member of the New Hope family for three years already.
Michael was born in Rote, a small Island divided from Timor by a three hour ferry ride. He never knew his father who left him and his mother when he was just a baby. Michael’s mother was very confused and worried throughout the pregnancy but thankfully her brother, a devoted Christian, was always there for her. He advised her to love the unborn baby and through his support she decided to keep the baby.
Michael’s mother decided to never marry but instead focus on raising her child. She turned to God and became a very strong Christian lady. Since then she worked hard by selling small dried fish to support his elementary schooling. However when
he reached high school her income was not enough to pay his school fees. Through her brother she heard about the New Hope ministry. With her limited funds she made the trip to Kupang to ask whether we would take in Michael as one of the orphans.
Michael has been a big challenge for us. Since the first day he came to live at the New Hope Home he always wanted to appear different than the other kids. He is one of the shortest amongst the children and was always trying to prove his strength. He is very quick minded and can be quite naughty but if you prick through that ego he has a big heart for people. Helping him is a matter of knowing how to deal with this kind of character and understanding his background. Pastor Ed is thankfully very
good in reading someone’s character and seems to have a knack in knowing how
to approach the different children and to deal with them accordingly.
Michael has been with us for three years and next year will be his last year in
school. We have had a few talks with him about what he aspires to be in the future. One of them is being an announcer in the Reformed radio station Sahabat FM. He already has some experience presenting the weekly New Hope program here. Another
interest is to be a language teacher which requires four years of schooling at the Reformed Training Centre.
Needless to say, Michael has a lot of thinking and considering to do in the next few
months. And not just Michael- but it also made the New Hope board aware that we have to brainstorm and pray about the new direction of New Hope in the future. Besides providing education, health care and all the other daily necessities, we have to
consider the level of independence of the orphans going to university or other further education.
Discovering the history of Michael and his mum, reading stories in the newspapers and attending funerals of girls who died because of illegal abortions,
it has become New Hope's vision to start a ‘New Life’ project where we open our doors to these women and their babies. 'New Hope Radio Station (Sahabat FM)’ will be hosting a program called 'Hope Centre' where those women who find themselves in a difficult situation with nowhere to turn to can call in anonymously with their questions.
For follow up they will be referred to the ‘Hope Centre’ where they will receive help. If funds allow we hope to print literature against abortion, give talks in schools about abortion and provide shelters for these women to have their babies.
New Hope will provide for all daily necessities, healthcare and medical assistance needed for the delivery and most importantly spiritual support and guidance to rebuild their future, not just here on earth. If the mother decides to keep the baby we will help her become self supported. If she decides to give the baby up for adoption we will take the little one into our New Hope home.
In order to do all this, we will need more rooms at a different location. New Hope's current location, being a home to 22 children is full to capacity. Rather then making it into a mass orphanage we prefer to open up a new location on the property already bought by New Hope which will be taken care of by another Christian couple. The idea is to have some of the older orphans move to the new location and take in the new young ones at our current home as well as provide the ‘New Life’ project.
As you can see New Hope is on the threshold of a new phase for which your prayer and support is greatly needed and appreciated. Please pray for wisdom and guidance of the Lord for the board to plan and make these steps. We thank you for your prayers and generosity and pray that our Gracious Lord will bless you and be with
you in the year to come, until Maranatha!
This coming year, the Lord willing, one of the New Hope children, Michael, hopes to graduate from High school. One could say that with graduation his childhood
comes to an end and he is at the step of adulthood.
The question is ‘where will this lead him...?’ Well, before i answer this question let me tell you this story. Can you imagine strangling your own baby? Or flushing one through the toilet? Deserting your baby after you have just given birth to him/her out in the woods? Just thinking about such things gives one the shivers doesn't it?
Unfortunately this is reality in Timor and surrounding islands. It happens on an
almost monthly basis- and doesn’t include the illegal abortions that take place daily and babies that are never found!
Obviously it is Satan who drives people to such desperate acts when these mothers simply have no other way to turn to. You have to understand that parent/child relationships in general are not very personal; often there is a lot of fear of the parents.
In most families there is no room for discussion. You simply obey and agree with whatever the parents say, even if you do not agree. When young people start to date they will keep it a secret for as long as possible in case the parents do not agree and force the relationship to end. If a couple wishes to marry they need the approval of the parents, grandparents, brothers, and uncle's because they are the ones who will pay for or receive the dowry. Often couples will elope and start
a life together elsewhere without being able to get married. Sexuality is never discussed, contributing to a high rate of teenage pregnancies.
Imagine a 17 year old girl who becomes pregnant by a boy who is disliked by her family. Where should she go? Facing the family means that she will likely not see her boyfriend again. They might punish her physically or send her away. So far the
government has done nothing to help girls in such a situation; there are no shelters or funds available to help her have her baby. Without a legitimate father, the midwife will not want to examine her or help her with the delivery! In their desperation and no where to turn abortion is an easy way out. And if they don't have money for that they may end up killing the baby themselves.
These are the facts that we face in the New Hope Ministry. Seventeen years ago a young lady was about to kill her unborn son whose father was without a job. She was afraid to tell her parents because they would never approve of her boyfriend,
moreover her pregnancy. From friends she heard that by taking certain traditional medicines she would start menstruating again- or in other words abort the baby! She did drink the concoction made for her by a witch doctor but it was not successful.
Michael was obviously being protected by the Lord. He was born and has been a member of the New Hope family for three years already.
Michael was born in Rote, a small Island divided from Timor by a three hour ferry ride. He never knew his father who left him and his mother when he was just a baby. Michael’s mother was very confused and worried throughout the pregnancy but thankfully her brother, a devoted Christian, was always there for her. He advised her to love the unborn baby and through his support she decided to keep the baby.
Michael’s mother decided to never marry but instead focus on raising her child. She turned to God and became a very strong Christian lady. Since then she worked hard by selling small dried fish to support his elementary schooling. However when
he reached high school her income was not enough to pay his school fees. Through her brother she heard about the New Hope ministry. With her limited funds she made the trip to Kupang to ask whether we would take in Michael as one of the orphans.
Michael has been a big challenge for us. Since the first day he came to live at the New Hope Home he always wanted to appear different than the other kids. He is one of the shortest amongst the children and was always trying to prove his strength. He is very quick minded and can be quite naughty but if you prick through that ego he has a big heart for people. Helping him is a matter of knowing how to deal with this kind of character and understanding his background. Pastor Ed is thankfully very
good in reading someone’s character and seems to have a knack in knowing how
to approach the different children and to deal with them accordingly.
Michael has been with us for three years and next year will be his last year in
school. We have had a few talks with him about what he aspires to be in the future. One of them is being an announcer in the Reformed radio station Sahabat FM. He already has some experience presenting the weekly New Hope program here. Another
interest is to be a language teacher which requires four years of schooling at the Reformed Training Centre.
Needless to say, Michael has a lot of thinking and considering to do in the next few
months. And not just Michael- but it also made the New Hope board aware that we have to brainstorm and pray about the new direction of New Hope in the future. Besides providing education, health care and all the other daily necessities, we have to
consider the level of independence of the orphans going to university or other further education.
Discovering the history of Michael and his mum, reading stories in the newspapers and attending funerals of girls who died because of illegal abortions,
it has become New Hope's vision to start a ‘New Life’ project where we open our doors to these women and their babies. 'New Hope Radio Station (Sahabat FM)’ will be hosting a program called 'Hope Centre' where those women who find themselves in a difficult situation with nowhere to turn to can call in anonymously with their questions.
For follow up they will be referred to the ‘Hope Centre’ where they will receive help. If funds allow we hope to print literature against abortion, give talks in schools about abortion and provide shelters for these women to have their babies.
New Hope will provide for all daily necessities, healthcare and medical assistance needed for the delivery and most importantly spiritual support and guidance to rebuild their future, not just here on earth. If the mother decides to keep the baby we will help her become self supported. If she decides to give the baby up for adoption we will take the little one into our New Hope home.
In order to do all this, we will need more rooms at a different location. New Hope's current location, being a home to 22 children is full to capacity. Rather then making it into a mass orphanage we prefer to open up a new location on the property already bought by New Hope which will be taken care of by another Christian couple. The idea is to have some of the older orphans move to the new location and take in the new young ones at our current home as well as provide the ‘New Life’ project.
As you can see New Hope is on the threshold of a new phase for which your prayer and support is greatly needed and appreciated. Please pray for wisdom and guidance of the Lord for the board to plan and make these steps. We thank you for your prayers and generosity and pray that our Gracious Lord will bless you and be with
you in the year to come, until Maranatha!
Friday, January 2, 2009
Yitro, Our First One
Yitro was born in a small poor village about 3 hours south of Soe. When he was only 2 years old his father died, leaving him and his 3 brothers orphans. His mother worked hard to support her family and was able to send Yitro to primary school ( grade 1-6), after that she could no longer afford to care for him, so she sent her 11year old boy to go into the towns and look for work to help support the family. You need to understand that this is not a rare but a normal occurrence in Timor. If the father of a family dies, the mother and the children, must fend for themselves or be cared for by other family members. Most of the time however the extended family is also suffering financially, so they end up on their own. Well.... Yitro took the long trip into Kupang, and ended up in the suburbs in a town called Bolok. Here he found a job working for a farmer selling apples, earning just enough to buy himself a bowl of rice every day. The evenings and nights he spent with children in the same position as himself. They would sleep on the ferry at nights, and go about their work during the day. These children are forced to grow up very fast and often get into trouble (just imagine 20 12 yr old Canadian boys living on their own), many take up smoking, drinking, and drugs, and never get an education. When we met Jithro, he expressed his desire for an education and a better future. He was in tears when we asked him to stay at New Hope.
1. Jithro has just graduated from Junior High, and is now in his first year of Senior High school, which he enjoys immensely. Every morning at 5 o' clock, Jithro swings his legs over the side of his bed, and begins the day with prayer and personal devotions.
Depending on today's shower schedule, he will go over to the kitchen to check what his morning chore is for this week. The chores vary from cleaning the washroom, mopping floors to cooking rice porridge for breakfast. When the New Hope home looks spotless and the stomach filled, he quickly changes into his school uniform, packs his bag, and set's of for a 20 min walk to arrive in time for his first class of the day which starts at 7 o clock. The school is out at 1.30, and Jithro should be back home at around 2 o clock. By this time his stomach is rumbling, and all sit down for a lunch with ..... you guessed it.....RICE as the main filler. Another check at the “schedule wall” to see if he is on dishes duty for lunch or not, and then off to enjoy an hour of siesta!!! By 3.30 he better be up, or he will find himself and his bed soaked with water!! Did you know that that's a really good way of getting someone out of bed without having to call a hundred times??? It's time for homework! Just before 5 o clock the banana's or another snack depending on the season come around, and then it's... chore time again! Then another shower to get all the dust and sweat washed away, and some of the kid's will have to get ready for Catechism or bible study, depending on the day of the week. They all should be back and gathered around the picnic tables at around 8 o clock, in time for supper consisting of ....yes, more rice!! following the meals we have evening devotions which they all take turns in leading. More dishes after that, finish up on homework, and then the lights go of at 9.30. Unlike schools in Canada, the children in Indonesia go to school 6 day's in a week, despite that and their busy schedule they always find time to play soccer, voleyball, play the guitar and socialize. It is amazing to see these children grow in knowledge and faith. Over the past 3.5 years Yitro has grown from a shy, uneducated little boy, to a smart young man who aspires to become a Pastor one day just like his 'Father” Pastor Ed.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
GET INVOLVED
HOW?
- By Prayer. God says: "Rejoice in the Lord always. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." (Philippians 4:4,6) We understand that we have been given a heavy responsibility. The work that we do puts us in direct contact with true suffering, and the weight of this suffering would easily devastate our resolve to carry out our mission if it weren’t for the power of prayer. Through prayer, God gives us direction, comfort, and the will to continue building his kingdom.
- By giving your time and skill to the orphans. You may contact New Hope Board - if you want to take live and take care of the orphans for short term period. By being a big brother or a sister with the orphans you can share the 'word of God' in your walk and talk. You will be amazed of how this can turn be benefit for the children and as well as for you. Please email the new hope board canada - timornewhope@yahoo.ca - if you want to participate in this.
- By being involve with "WINGS TO WORK" team. Every year, the new hope organization send a team to Timor to build orphanage building and share the Gospel with the orphans and believers in Timor. If you are interested, please contact New Hope board for more information about this activity.
- Financial Support. "Timor New Hope" is a non profit, non government organization. The organization runs solely on donations and sponsorship provided by individuals and groups from Canada and Australia. 100% of monitories donated got toward the running cost of the home, and future extension cost of the home, and future extension costs. All promotion and advertising work is carried out on a voluntary basis. And increase in donation and sponsorship allows for and increase of children taken into the New Hope home. The running costs of the home include: schooling and books as well food and health care.
If you have any question or would like more information please contact us at:
timornewhope@yahoo.ca
If you want to support "NEW HOPE ORPHANAGE"
Please send cheques to:
New Hope Canada
c/o Deanna VanPykeren
7176 South Chippewa Road
Wellandport, ON
L0R 2J0
Please write the cheques to 'Smithville Canadian Reformed Church', and include on the memo line "New Hope"
If you have any questions please don't hesitate to contact us!
On Behalf of the New Hope Board Canada,
Deanna Vanpykeren
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Mepri
MEPRI is from Rote. His Father passed away when he was younger and his mother developed a mental illness. He lived with his grandfather til he was taken in to New Hope. Mepri was quite the trouble maker to begin with but with so many more children at the orphanage he has become a mature role model for the new arrivals. His career ambitions over the past few years have gone from policeman to pastor. It will be exciting to see what his future holds.
Friday, December 26, 2008
Sunday, December 14, 2008
New Year Resolutions
New years resolutions....
It's that time of the year again, when you reflect back on a year gone by, and make plans for the next year to come.
Usually these plans include improvement and finding way's of doing things more effectively.
It is no different at New Hope, this coming year the Lord willing, one of the New Hope children, Jack, hopes to graduate from High school. One could say, that with graduation, his childhood comes to an end, and he is at the step of adulthood. The question is, where will this lead him...? Well before i answer this question let me tell you this story.
Can you imagine strangling your own baby? or flushing one through the toilet? desert your baby after you have just given birth to him/her out in the woods? Just thinking about such things, gives one the shivers doesn't it.
Unfortunately this is reality in Timor and sorrundings islands. It happens on an almost monthly bases. Not to mention the illegal abortions that take place daily, or the babies that are never found!
Obviously it is Satan who drives people to these desperate acts, but it is also because these mothers simply have no other way to turn to. You have to understand that parent/child relationships in general are not very personal, often there is a lot of fear of the parents.
In most families there is no room for discussion, you simply obey and agree with whatever the parents say, even if you do not agree.
When young people start to date, they will keep it a secret for as long as possible, because the parents might just not agree, and force the relationship to be ended. If a couple wishes to marry, they need the approval of the parents, grandparents, brothers, and uncle's, because they are the ones who will pay for, or receive the dowry.
Often couples will just elope, and start a life together elsewhere without being able to get married. Sexuality is something never talked about, that together with the above mentioned costums, it is no wonder that there is such a high rate of teenage pregnancies.
Just try to imagine a 17 year old girl, who got pregnant by a boy who is disliked by her family, where should she go? To face the family means that she will likely not see her boyfriend again,they might punish her physically, or sent her away. So far the government has done nothing to help girls in such a situation, there are no shelters or funds available to help her have her baby. Without a legitamite father, the midwife will not even want to examine her, or help her with the delivery! In their desperation and no where to turn, abortion is an "easy" way out, and if they don't have money for that, they will actually end up killing the baby themselves.
These are the facts that we face in the new hope ministry. Seventeen years ago; a young lady was about to kill her unborn son whose father was without a job.She was afraid to tell her parents, because they would never approve of her boyfriend, more over her pregnancy. From friends she heard that by taking certain traditional medicines, she would "start menstruating again", or in other words; Abortion! She did drink the concoction mixed together for her by a witch docter, but it was not succesfull. Harry was obviously being protected by the Lord. He was born and has been a member of the New Hope family for 3 years already.
Harry was born in Rote', a small Island divided from Timor by a 3 hr ferry ride. He never knew his father, who left him and his mother when he was just a baby. Harry's mother was very confused and worried throughout the pregnancy but thankfully; Harry's uncle who is a serious Christian was always there for Harry's mother. He adviced her to love the unborn baby, and through his support and she decided to keep the baby.
Harry's mother decided never wanting to marry again, but in stead focus on raising Harry. She turned to be a very strong Christian lady. Ever since she worked hard to support his elementary schooling. However when he became of high school age, she no longer could afford to pay his school fees with her meager income she made from selling small dried fish. It was through Harry's uncle that she heard about the New Hope ministry. With her limited funds she made the trip to Kupang to ask whether we would take in Jack as one of the orphans.
Harry has been a big challenge for us. Since the first day he came to live at the New Hope home he always wanted to appear different than the other kids. He is one of the shortest amongst the children; and he does not like that one bit. He always wants to proof, that even though he is short, it does not mean that he is weak. He is actually very quick in mind. He is naughty but if you prick through that ego, he actually has a heart for people. You just have to know how to deal with this kind of character, and understanding his background definitely helps to deal with him personally. We all have our weaknesses, and we don't write him off just because he is naughty and difficult to deal with. Pastor Ed is thankfully very good in reading someones character and seems to have a knack in knowing how to approach them and deal with them.
Harry has been with us for three years – and next year is going to be his last year in school. We have had a few talks with him about what he aspires to be in the future. There are a few things that he's got his mind on, one of them is being an announcer in the Reformed radio station; Sahabat Fm, he already has some expierience there presenting the weekly New Hope program, and he rather likes it.
Another pull is to be a language teacher, for that he could study for 4 years at the Reformed Training Centre, and upon graduation receive a degree in teaching.
Needless to say that Harry has a lot of thinking and considering to do in the next few months.
And not just Harry, but it also made the New Hope board aware that we have to brainstorm and pray about the new direction that New Hope will have to take in the future. Besides providing education, health care and all the other daily neccesities, we have to start thinking about how to make these orphans independent.
Seeing the history of Harry and him mom; reading these horrible stories in the newspapers, having been to funerals of girls who died because of an illegal abortion, it has become New Hope's vision to start a "New Life" project where we open our doors to these women and their babies. 'New Hope Radio Station” will be hosting a program called 'Hope center' where those women who find themselves in a difficult situation with nowhere to turn to, can call in anonymously with their questions. For follow up they will be referred to the "Hope Center" where they will receive help.
If funds allow, we hope to print literature against abortion, give talks in schools about abortion, open up shelters where we provide a safe place for these women to have their babies. New Hope will provide for all daily necessities, healthcare, and all the medical assistance needed for the delivery, and most important spiritual support and guidance to rebuild their future not just here on earth. If the mother decides to keep the baby, we will do our best to help her being self suppportive, and if she decide to give the baby up for adoption, we will take the little on into our New Hope home.
In order to do all this, we will need more rooms at a different location. New Hope's current location being a home to 22 children is full to capacity, rather then making it into a mass orphanage, we prefer to open up a new location on the property already bought by New Hope, which will be taken care of by another christian couple.
The idea is to have some of the "older" orphans move to the new location, and take in the new ones at our current home, and also open the "New Life" project.
As you can see, New Hope is on the threshold of a new phase for which your prayer and support is greatly needed and apreciated. Please pray for wisdom and guidance of the Lord for the board to plan and make these steps. We thank you for your prayers and generosity, and pray that our Gracious Lord will bless you and be with you in the year to come, until Maranatha.
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