By praying for orphans, you are defeating indifference, hearing the cry of the oppressed, and preparing your hearts for a risen Lord!
“Have you given up anything for Lent?”
I’ve heard this question asked a lot this year. Even a DJ on a secular radio station made reference to her out-of-control craving for chocolate now that she’s given it up for Lent.
I personally have only fasted from a specific food or habit for Lent a handful of times, but I do love the concept of intentionally preparing the heart for a celebration of Christ’s resurrection. It helps us come closer to appreciating the victory over the grave in a way we miss when the season just comes and goes with little more thought than an Easter egg hunt and a Sunday morning service.
That’s why the challenge I caught from Pope Francis resonated with me, despite my Protestantism. In his annual Lenten address, he urged the church to fast—not from carbs or candy—but from indifference.
He said, “Indifference to our neighbor and to God also represents a real temptation for us Christians…whenever our interior life becomes caught up in its own interests and concerns, there is no longer room for others, no place for the poor. God’s voice is no longer heard, the quiet joy of his love is no longer felt, and the desire to do good fades.”
He continued by saying, “We end up being incapable of feeling compassion at the outcry of the poor, weeping for other people’s pain, and feeling a need to help them, as though all this were someone else’s responsibility and not our own.”
So, thank you for your commitment to pray for the precious children The Boaz Project serves. In giving of yourselves in this way, you are defeating indifference, hearing the cry of the oppressed, and preparing your hearts to make room for a risen Lord!
In March, please express praise and thanksgiving for the following:
1) The children of Agape Fellowship Home in Bangalore were given the opportunity to dance at an evangelistic outreach in their community. Over 8,000 people heard the gospel message that day!
2) David Mercier has been able to make several trustworthy, helpful contacts to assist him as he wades through the legalities of his stay in Russia and the preparations for the Russian Christian Foster Home.
3) The Kraus family has adopted their son from Ethiopia and they will be able to bring him home soon.
Please remember the following requests in prayer:
1) We continue to seek the Lord’s guidance, wisdom and provision for the Russian Christian Foster Home which will provide a family for children who are currently in state-run institutions.
2) Two of our homes in India continue to struggle with housing issues. Ask the Lord to provide the perfect location and the resources necessary to live there.
3) Megan and Joelle are wrapping up their time at Daya Vihar Girls’ Home. Please pray that effective closure takes place for them as well as the children and house parents to whom they have been ministering for ten months.
Thank you, faithful friends, for defending the orphan in prayer!
-April