Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit IV

Eileen and I had the privilege of attending the Christian Alliance for Orphans Summit this past weekend. It was nothing short of life-changing. We were blessed to be in the company of so many brothers and sisters with the same passion for the fatherless. We were instructed, motivated, disturbed, burdened, and called to action. We should have known we were in for it from the theme, which was "Be doers of the Word, and not hearers only..." from James 1:22. On Friday we saw a heart-breaking video of children in Africa dying of thirst, accompanied by a powerful and moving song from Karl Moraski, about the faces of the forgotten. Then Kay Warren stepped up to the podium and described so vividly what so many of us have already experienced. She talked about how she went through a stage in her life when she did not know one orphan, and had never met anyone with AIDS, and how God moved in her heart to have compassion for people she had previously not had compassion for. It was amazing! It was as if she was telling us what was already in our hearts, but we had never really articulated before. It was heart-wrenching and very emotional. She talked about what God does in our hearts, transforming us, making us "Seriously Disturbed, Dangerously Surrendered, and Gloriously Ruined." It was that way the whole weekend. We left there convinced we would always be involved in Adoption and Orphan Care Ministry. We just aren't sure where and how! We are praying that the Lord will soon reveal this to us as we continue to seek His will for our lives. This video comes from Loving Shepherd Ministries, one of the many ministries represented at the Summit this past weekend.