In Everything Give Thanks!

 "In everything give thanks"  is a very good way to start off each day.   Ron and I were reflecting at breakfast this morning how very blessed we are.   I would have to write all day to list the many ways we are blessed but I will reflect on just a few at this time.

We enjoyed a delicious seafood lunch at Red Lobster restaurant yesterday to celebrate our 63rd wedding anniversary.   Last year, we were in the Philippines and what a lavish reception we were given that day! 

This year, the waitress took our picture on the cell phone but its too dark and bad to even post!   Ron and I reflected on how blessed we are with our birthdays coming in May and June (83 and 84) to be able to do what we do.   We have escaped the COVID-19 virus so far and so has every member of our family.    I will have a visit with a new rheumatologist on Thursday and discuss the safety of the vaccine for my immune system situation.   

About a month ago, Tatum Dotson, our granddaughter was in the hospital in Tampa, FL for a week.  Leigh Ann helped her a lot during the time she was in the hospital by keeping her dog, Rocky, and doing some laundry and work at Tatum's condo so she'd have things in good shape when she got home.  Tatum  had severe pain with a ruptured abscess on her colon.   We are thankful that the right antibiotics and good hospital care healed her and she seems to be doing well at this time.    

None of our girls in our safe houses, nor the children in the orphanage in the Philippines have had any serious illness.   Our workers are also doing well.

Several of the older girls at Casa Esperanza of Angels are in one-on-one Bible studies with the minister/house father after expressing an interest in being baptized.    They are sure these older children understand the important commitment they are making rather than just following a trend of what others do.  There is much excitement now with a minister delivering the Sunday sermon, continual Bible teaching and the tent being filled with a large number singing praises to God each week.    They had to buy more chairs!  What a good problem.  

Ronald and Gigi live busy lives with the construction of their first family cottage under construction.  I think the plans are to have about four of these to accommodate visitors in the future.   The dire need now is for Ronald and Gigi to have this first one for a home and office.    It will be some time before they can obtain funding for the Administration building that will have an apartment for them.   They have been living in a one-room laundry house for the past year and it is very cramped.   They have been willing to sacrifice to make room for all the children they have accepted.    

There is a total of 19 children between our two house there now.  The two houses have space for 17 more children but it depends on whether they are boys or girls to complete the sharing of rooms.  They are presently evaluating six or more children that possibly will come to Casa and we have been told there are many others who are abused and neglected and need a home.    Gigi is busy with the home schooling for the children at various levels of learning as some children are almost teenagers and have only been to the first grade.

When anything has to be done with the government, Ronald and Gigi must travel to Cebu another island nearby by ferry.  On a recent trip, they took this picture at some location along the way.   I wish it were possible for them to get away more often for their own relaxation as they are under constant pressure.   Running an orphanage is not an eight-hour job.   The paperwork continues after the day ends and problems arise to make it a 24/7 job.   But, the rewards of helping these precious children make it worthwhile.  

Spring is here!   Robins are hopping all over the yard and flowers and trees are in bloom.  The Bradford pear trees are so white and beautiful.    Dogwoods and azaleas will be in bloom soon.   

The COVID-19 numbers are down and we see more businesses open, people out without masks going about their daily lives with more confidence that things are getting back to a more normal condition for easy living.    We hope this continues to improve so we can put the pandemic into the history books and be done with it!

We are still not traveling to visit churches.   Ron works from his computer and phone to keep supporters well-informed to know that our work in Asia continues as before and much good is being done.   I continue to keep sponsors well-informed about the girls they support.    We are still capable of handling all of the work and are very thankful that we still have this ability.   

The bottom line of this post is still the same...we are very blessed and we are thankful to God for our lives and everything that HE does to sustain our lives and provide the things we need.   To God be the glory for everything that is accomplished.    May HE bless each of my readers...friends and supporters.

Three baptisms!

Oh, happy day for three of our girls who were baptized within the past 7 days.    Kiana is supported by SAS in the Philippines.   Marevic is one of the Casa Esperanza of Angels' girls in the Philippines.    They were both baptized on Sunday, February 20.   A tropical storm was heading into the Philippines so the ocean water was very choppy as they baptized the two girls there. 

Yesterday, Amisha was baptized in Nepal.   Notice the dirty water in Nepal where Amisha became a Christian.   

We are blessed with warm, clean water baptisms but in other countries, they put on Christ under whatever circumstances they have available.  

We are thankful for the Bible teachers who taught these girls about Christ and for the hearts of the girls for being receptive and believing in HIM.

 

  

Hoping for Spring!

Today, while millions of people are without power and see no sign of spring, I am certain spring is not far behind.    My jonquils had buds last week when I cleaned out a flower bed and the forsythia has buds.  The camellia tree is bending over with beautiful blooms. 

Many budding trees and plants will be set back with this deep freeze this week.   Here in North Georgia, we are blessed with 25 degrees and sunshine at 4 p.m.  We did not receive snow or freezing rain from this cold front but some of the cold air hit us early this morning.   We are both doing fine but staying home and working on the computer to keep our mission work running smoothly.   

Our workers in Nepal, Laos, and Thailand continue to develop their self-sustainable programs to increase support for themselves in an effort to reduce the amount of funds they need from U.S. supporters.   Ron has been instructing them for two years to begin to research ways to carry on the work without so much dependence on the support from the U.S.    This has a two-fold purpose:   1) the girls will be taught ways to sustain their lives during adult years if jobs are not available to support themselves and 2) be less dependent on us, should we die and not have successors to carry on the support of this mission work in the future.

In Nepal, they are beginning to have bee hives to produce honey for sale, mushroom farming to sell mushrooms, chickens to produce eggs and meat for their own food supply and rice paddies when enough property is available.    In Laos, they are growing beautiful gardens and making concrete fish ponds to produce cat fish for their food supply.   In Thailand, they have gardens and are planting a rice field.    In the Philippines, Ronald has a large vegetable garden and a fruit orchard producing bananas and all kinds of tropical fruits.    

We continue to provide sacks of rice for the poor Christians in the Himalayan mountain villages.  A nurse from California just donated $500 for this group of people.   They have no space to grow their food, travel outside the villages is impossible and there is very few labor jobs for the people to work and make money to support themselves.    With the COVID-19 shutdowns of some areas, there was no work and people were at the point of starvation.  The last group of Christians walked two hours from their village down the mountainside to meet our workers bringing sacks of rice to them.   Vehicles could only drive so far and then a flat bed trailer pulled by a tractor took loads of rice further up the hillside to meet the people walking down the mountain.   Walking back up to the village with a 60 kg bag on rice on your shoulder or head would not be easy but they were very happy to receive the food.   A couple of months ago when the weather started to get really cold, we also distributed blankets to different villages.   Here are some pictures of those gifts being distributed.    As a result of our benevolent work this winter, many have become Christians.  The saying, "Don't tell me what you know until you show me how much you care" teaches the people that we love them and care for their physical needs as well as their souls.   They are grateful for the love and gifts.

The second house construction was completed in the Philippines and we have wonderful house parents now caring for four girls we are supporting.  They have two girls of their own and one is a Christian girl who is a good example for the new girls.   There are other girls waiting to come but have been held up due to court proceedings that must be completed before the girls are allowed to move to our safe house.    We hope three others in the process will get to come soon as they are at risk.  Sometimes, they are roaming the neighborhoods begging for food.  They have no supervision and are often raped and abused by relatives.    

Here is the story of Flor who has been at our safe house for about a month now.    

Flor’s grandmother and the social worker brought her to the safe house and then her grandmother came back two days later and took her back home.  The grandmother thought she would lose five hundred pesos of government support (about US $10.45) per month.  The social worker got involved and made sure the grandmother would continue to receive the five hundred pesos with Flor in our care.  Flor was crying the day her grandmother took her back because she wanted a better life and she was so happy to have an opportunity to live at the safe house with other girls and go to school.  She has suffered all of her life and had no security or happiness.  

Flor is at the safe house and happy again.  When we arrived the second time, she remembered all the names of the other girls in the safe house and the house parents.  They welcomed her with open arms and it was an emotional time for all of them.   Flor’s mother and grandmother have signed a document stating that they will not come take her back home as before. Normally, we would not take in an 8 year old, but let me explain the circumstances.   Flor and her two-year old brother have different fathers but they are nowhere to be found.   Flor’s grandmother who is 67 years old was laid off from her job so they have no income now except for about U.S. $25 government income.   They cannot provide food for the four of them and she will never be able to go to school.   Flor is often left alone and she goes around the neighborhood begging for food.  There was some indication from the social worker that she has been abused by a cousin. 

As young as she is, she dreams of having a better life for herself and her family.  She wants to go to school but having a dysfunctional and poor family, she has no hope for a better future. Now she will go to school and enjoy the life she dreamed about.   Soon she will know the love of God and her life will never be the same again.

Please pray for our girls in all of these locations as they are poor and have no hope without someone helping them.   Their lives will never have any hope of being better without the love of Christians who change circumstances by giving a portion of their riches to help SAS care for them.    

May God continue to bless us with unsearchable riches in Christ Jesus! 

We are surely blessed!

We are in the middle of January and so far we have not had severe weather.   In North Georgia, we have nearly freezing temperatures often at night and early morning but many days get into the 50's in the afternoons.   If there is wind, it is still quite chilly outside but we are blessed for this good weather that is predicted for the next 10 days also.   February may prove to be a challenge but once it ends, spring will be around the corner.    

We are still waiting to get on a list to get the vaccine.   In the meantime, we are staying at home.  The virus has been really bad in the Atlanta area so we are not taking chances.    We know of many who have had a very rough time after getting the virus and they are all much younger than we are.   I don't actually think it will end but continue to linger and cause problems year after year much as the flu.   We may need a shot every year to protect ourselves.

I read that 9,000 illegal immigrants are heading to the U.S.   How many will cause the pandemic to continue?   Time will tell.

Our work continues to go well, managing it here from our cozy bedroom office.   In Nepal, many poor Christian families have been given 30 kg of rice and blankets.  It gets very cold in the Himalayan mountain villages.   The people have to walk down the mountains to the road where our workers are with loads of food in rented trucks.   They carry the heavy loads on their backs (or heads) back up the mountain to their homes.   We wonder how these people survive.   Without work and no available farm land, it seems impossible for them to have enough food.   What we are doing is very little but they are very happy to receive the help

All of our girls have been given winter clothing, warm pads for their beds and blankets.   They always have enough food and comfortable places to live.   We received information sheets for six new girls today and the houses where they live are inadequate shelters.    

Although the weather is warm in the Philippines, the kids come from such poverty, it is also a very bad situation.   Some kids roam the neighborhoods begging for food or stealing it when they can.   Fathers find money for alcohol, cigarettes and cock fighting bets but can't feed their children.    The children are not taught and grow up to be the same kind of people.   When we can take them into the orphanage and let them grow up with good things and learn right from wrong, they can become educated and responsible adults to start their families on a different path.

A girl we supported in China is now married and is giving back to help others.   Not many will do that but most will appreciate the help they are receiving.   It will make a difference in their lives

Our workers in all the safe house areas (Thailand, Laos and Nepal) are teaching the girls to have a garden to learn how to grow their own food   When possible, they are renting land to plant rice.   In Laos, they have their own fish pond to provide food for themselves in addition to their garden.   Our worker in Laos has taken supplies to the poor Christian villages up the Mekong River so they can plant gardens on the hillsides and pump up water from the river to their gardens.   There are hundreds of Christians living in poor conditions in Laos.  The communist government does not help them.

Our new house for girls in the Philippines is very beautiful and they are locating girls that need a home so we will fill the house before too long.    These girls are being homeschooled along with the children in the first house.  They will also learn to help with the garden and do house chores.

We take care of about 220 girls in Nepal, 40 in Laos, 11 in Thailand and 4 in the Philippines but these numbers will be increasing soon.  

We thank all of our supporters and sponsors of the girls.   Without the income we could not do the work.   Even without traveling full-time to raise funds, our work has been able to continue at the same pace and we are grateful for everyone's help.

May God be with you and keep you safe and healthy this new year.   

A New Year has arrived

Life is unpredictable and uncertain.    We have lost several friends in the past few months.   This week, we are grieving (but also celebrating) the life of Sue Thomas of Chickamauga, GA.    She lost her devoted husband, Alfred, in May, 2020.  She has not been the same since that time.   We know life did not mean much to her without him at her side and now she has gone to be with him in eternity.    They were a very faithful couple as they served the Lord.  There is no doubt as to the reward awaiting them.    We should all be as well-prepared for the end of life as Alfred and Sue Thomas.

A New Year has arrived and it brings with it many avenues of thought.    While I am determined to have peace and tranquility in my life, the political current take-over of our nation by the liberals/socialists is disturbing.   I hope it will not end up to be as horrible as we anticipate but no doubt our country will change with the Democrats in full power.   Their ideology does not match that of a Christian when they approve of abortion and many other things that are sinful according to the Bible.    I don't want to imply that the Republicans are on the right side because many of them are not but we had a better chance of holding to God's truth under their control.    All governments seem to be corrupt with people wanting power, trying to destroy others in the process and determined to do their will, not the will of God.  Any nation not recognizing God as the authority, is not sanctioned by God and will not succeed to be acceptable to HIM.   God allowed kings, rulers and heathen nations to flourish and America is no exception since many have turned their backs on HIM.    

As one friend stated this morning, "A simple fact from the history of God's people described in the OT, there were a lot of righteous people in Israel who were true to their God who suffered right along with the wicked. It is the reward for silence."

I know that this world is not my home and I cannot be a part of it although I have to live in it a while longer.  It is my hope that Christians will always uphold the truth (neither side of the spectrum of politicians will) and have an attitude of love, forbearance and forgiveness (all of which are difficult to maintain).  

As new chances emerge with a New Year, I will continue to try to follow the words of the serenity prayer because it helps me to realize how little I am in control of, other than my own attitude.     I don't make resolutions for the New Year but I do try to reflect on things I can improve on to make life more enjoyable and peaceful.   

A closer walk with God will give us confidence that things are going to be O.K. no matter what happens around us.   We put our confidence and trust in God, not in our government or other people.   We know that during every phase of life, God is with us if we are HIS faithful children, doing our best to serve HIM.   Because of this, I have hope, joy and peace in my life.

We have a New Year to continue to help children in the Philippines through Casa Esperanza of Angels and provide a safe and good life for teenage girls through the efforts of Save Asian Souls.   Helping others less fortunate than us is a good way to bring joy and happiness to their lives but also to ours.    

We have been blessed with good support for both of these mission works.    We have a lot of good kids that are grateful for what they are receiving.   We have many opportunities to continue to help more and more as people learn of our efforts.   The Bible teaches us to not grow weary in doing good.   We know these are good works and I will continue to work hard this year to keep our sponsors/supporters well-informed about the work and do my duty to be the best secretary I can be to help these mission works.  

Ron and I face old age together as we approach another birthday in the near future.   Ron will be 84 and I will be 83 within the next six months.   While we feel our age every day, we do not let it be the reason for us to stop.   We work toward a goal of doing the best we can do each day that God gives us.  Seeing blue skies and rainbows remind us of God's promises.  And, HIS promises are trustworthy!

Wishing all of our family, friends, sponsors/supporters and Christians everywhere, a great New Year to serve HIM.    

Anything is possible when we have a God who loves us, protects us and cares for us.

If you are a financial contributor toward our mission work, we want to thank you for your generosity and sacrifice.  Please continue to help us in the New Year.    

May you be blessed with healthy families and rich blessings, counting your joy to be in Christ and a follower of HIS.

Please pray for us, our family, our workers and the boys and girls we help through our two mission works (mentioned above).     THANK YOU!

 

Update on our work...cold weather coming for Christmas Day!

Today will be our last day to have a warm afternoon.   It is supposed to reach 60 degrees so I will finish my leaf raking in the front yard and Ron will complete some painting on the RV.   He needs warm weather to paint and this may be our last warm day until spring.    Snow may fall in the North Georgia mountains but not here in Woodstock.   It will just be very cold through the weekend.

Leigh Ann and Tatum sent us a honey baked ham and we are surely enjoying it.   I made Ron a favorite apple cake.   It fell apart when turning it out but it is still very delicious with a little whipped cream or ice cream.   I will prepare some vegetables and salad to complete our meal treats this week.    

I posted my picture on FaceBook showing my hair naturally gray now.   With over 100 approvals, I will leave it alone and not go back to hair color.   I don't feel any older but surely looking it!     

Our granddaughter moved into a new condo on Tuesday and had her 28th birthday yesterday.  She and Leigh Ann love Florida.   They have had a couple of cool weeks but its still warmer than any day we have seen since September.    They are very blessed with steady jobs and new homes they love so we are happy for them.

Things are going well in the Philippine work.   

Three of the older children have become Christians now.  We are very proud of the example these young people will set for the other children.    A younger girl asked Gigi:  "Ma'am, are you a Christian?"   When Gigi said yes, she said, "I want to be just like you when I grow up."    We set an example for young people, whether good or bad. 

A few nights ago, a tropical storm passed right over the city of Tanjay.    Ronald woke up at 3 a.m. and realized that there was flooding going on so he woke Gigi and she began getting anything off the floor of the laundry house where they are living.  Ronald said he ran out barefooted to the houses to be sure the children were O.K.   Then he proceeded to move the two vehicles to the highest point of the property.  They ended up with 6-8" of water inside where they live but lost very little.  Gigi worked tirelessly getting everything moved to tables and countertops.   What they lost can easily be replaced.   None of the other buildings were flooded since they are at higher elevation.   It was a long 12-hour clean up but they feel very blessed because it could have been much worse.

They had a big holiday party which included a lot of food and games on the 22nd. They selected three gifts for each child of equal value so every child will feel they have been treated fairly.   In the Philippines, it is traditional to open one gift at midnight so the children will get to do this and then go back to bed.   When they awake, they will have two more gifts to open. They will all have a big meal together that day.  One night, they will take the children in the van around the city and look at the Christmas lights/decorations.  They have never had a holiday like this, so I know it will be a very special holiday for these children.   Ronald and Gigi will be sure this is all done in a secular way without any religious significance about Christmas being Christ's birthday.    The children will continue to learn the truth of HIS Word.

Last week, a young Filipino couple celebrated their 5th anniversary by coming to the orphanage and presenting the children with t-shirts, balloons, toys and lunch.   There is more and more awareness and help coming from the Filipino community as they build good-will among the residents of this city.  

In the second house they built for SAS, they just added a 3rd girl who is 14.  She wanders around the neighbor- hood without supervision so she is at high risk for something bad happening to her.   We will eventually have 22-24 teenage girls in that house who are at high risk for trafficking.    I have sponsors for the three girls already.   Ronald and Gigi have located good house parents for these girls but they will continue to oversee this SAS work on their campus.  

Ronald and Gigi are very devoted to this work and are doing a wonderful job.   Check out their activities on Facebook at Casa Esperanza of Angels.     

Workers in  Nepal have completed their visits to each safe house, distributing blankets, warm mattress pads and winter clothing (jackets) to all of the girls. The major portion of this expense was donated through Carole Booker's effort to secure a gift donation from Westbury Church of Christ in Houston, TX.  The girls were very happy to receive warm bedding and new winter clothing.    

Workers in Laos have distributed rice and supplies to plant gardens to the Christian villages along the Mekong River.   

We have been supplying rice and some other supplies to Christian families in Nepal and Laos for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic which prevented people from working and earning enough to provide for their own food.    

With 2020 coming quickly to an end, we are waiting to get the vaccination so we have less chance of getting COVID-19.   When it is available for seniors, I will go first in case I have side effects.   With 6,600 new cases in Georgia just yesterday, we feel the need to stay inside away from crowds and not take a risk.

We wish all of our family, friends and supporters of our mission work, a very Merry Christmas holiday and a blessed New Year!

With much love and appreciation from Ron and Pat Brown.

As the old year comes to a close...we count our blessings.

Christmas holidays are fast approaching.    In spite of 2020 being a difficult year, where did the time go?  Maybe it is speeding away because of our old age but each week surely seems to rush by.   We have been in good health other than Ron's usual allergies that bother him.    We are not going out except for groceries.   We went to the store at 5:30 a.m. this morning and only saw a few customers and some Kroger workers stocking shelves or filling on-line orders.  

We had four beautiful warm afternoons last week so we got a lot more outside work done.   I had the front yard raked and then a couple of days later, it was covered with leaves again.    It is much too cold this week to get outside so I will watch for another warm day ahead to clean it up again.   Most trees are bare so the falling leaves will soon come to an end.   Each time I raked I thought about how falling leaves are like dirty dishes.   Before you can clean up one batch, another is ready to be done.   We surely love these trees in the summer when it keeps the house so cool.   

Today, Tatum, our granddaughter in Florida, is closing on her first home, a condo.   She has been in Florida for the past year just renting a small house.   Her job seems secure and she loves living in the Tampa/Clearwater area so she wants to invest in a home now.   We are very proud of her for saving her money and being such a responsible person.    Leigh Ann is using the rest of her 2020 vacation days to help Tatum move so they will not be coming here for the holidays.

With concerns about the COVID-19 virus and how our nation will go forward under President Biden, we just pray for the best as we move into a new year.    With God on our side, with our souls safe in His care, whatever happens in the future, will be O.K.    We will continue to try to take care of ourselves and keep praying for and thanking Him for our blessings.   They are numerous and we are a very blessed people.

A few months ago, Angelo was baptized.   He is the oldest boy at Casa Esperanza of Angels in Tanjay, Negros Oriental, Philippines   

Two young souls were added to His kingdom this past Sunday.    Arlene Grace and Arvin were baptized into Christ after a one-on-one study with one of the house fathers.  We are very proud of these young people who are learning the Bible and making the decision to become Christians. 

With these new Christians and the house parents, the number of Christians is now 10.  

Wishing everyone a safe, healthy and happy Christmas holiday.   Best wishes for a HAPPY NEW YEAR!