Vijisha’s father abandoned her family, and her mother is mentally ill and not able to take care of her. Now Vijisha lives in a Mercy Home that is sponsored by Orphan’s Tear. She wants to serve in the ministry when she is old enough.

Dear Friends,

January was an extraordinary month for Orphan’s Tear. Not only were we riding high from just visiting thirty of our orphanages in Myanmar in December, but our total children sponsored jumped to 851, plus we received some very-needed gifts to the Orphan’s Tear Special Gifts Fund and the Dorms for Orphanages Fund. God has been answering our prayers, continuing to provide for the many orphanage buildings that we have under construction in Pakistan, Tanzania and Myanmar. Thanks so much to everyone who has been part of these many blessings.

Beyond all this, Charity and CJ McDaniel, who both work full-time for Heaven’s Family, traveled to India at the beginning this month where they visited several of the orphanages that we help there. If your sponsored child lives in India, we should be able to send you an updated photo within about six weeks. (Charity and CJ didn’t get to visit all of our orphans, and so we’re now relying on our Indian partners to take updated portraits of those children whom Charity and CJ could not visit.)

I’ve asked Charity to write this month’s Orphan’s Tear update, and her report follows. I think it will encourage you.

Thanks once again to all of you. Your love is showing!

David

P.S. We’ve already started purchasing air tickets for our November trip to Myanmar to minister at our orphanages there. If you are interested in joining us this year, please contact us for the details.

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Orphan or Minister in Training?

In Charity’s words

You may think that your monthly $20 sponsorship provides only food, clothing and school fees for the child you support. But did you also know that you are helping to train up missionaries and pastors? Former little Hindus and Buddhists are coming to the Lord as a result of the godly influence of their orphanage directors, and they are telling us that they want to serve God in ministry when they grow old enough.

It’s not, however, just the kids in the orphanages who are being influenced. Those children are reaching out to others with the gospel. The Handicapped Christians at the Children’s Care Center in Myanmar, for example, go door-to-door and share the gospel with their neighbors. The children of Faith Orphanage in Myanmar have an outreach to the inmates at a prison camp. And in India the orphans are letting their light shine as well.

One of the Indian orphanages sponsored by Orphan’s Tear. The dedicated directors are on the right.

The ladies that run the Mercy Home above were Catholic Nuns before they were saved. After being born again, they decided to still live together and devote themselves to the service of God. They’ve been running a Mercy Home for girls for seven years now. Apart from taking care of fifteen little girls, they also run a church across the street from their home, and organize kids’ clubs all across town. Hindu children flock to the kids’ clubs, learn about Jesus, and give their lives to God. Several hundred children have gotten saved as a result of their outreach!

Once every year nine different kids’ clubs join together and perform a program for themselves and their Hindu parents. I was able to attend this year, and I watched the kids sing and dance to songs about Jesus, perform Christian skits, and tell stories. The girls at the Mercy Home played the largest part in the program. It seemed as if one of them was in every single performance! Seven of the fifteen girls later told us that they want to be in the ministry when they grow up.

Kasturi Priya was a very shy girl when she first came to the Mercy Home. But today is a different story! She is very outgoing, and at the children’s program, in front of around 150 children, she performed in several action songs, participated in a skit, and told a story.

After the program I was able to spend some time with these fifteen young ladies from the Mercy Home. The love of God shown out from their smiling faces. They all come from Hindu families, and have stories of alcoholic fathers who never came home, a parent who died from cancer, a mentally ill mother, a step parent who didn’t want them, a parent that died by drowning, and so on. But you would never guess that these girls suffered such tragedies in their past by seeing how happy they are today.

Towards the end of my visit, the girls wanted to sing a song with me. I didn’t know any song in their language, so they started to sing a song in English that they had learned. Their clear, young voices harmonized beautifully, and this is the song that they sang:

I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
I have decided to follow Jesus;
No turning back, no turning back.

Though I may wonder, I still will follow;
Though I may wonder, I still will follow;
Though I may wonder, I still will follow;
No turning back, no turning back.

The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
The world behind me, the cross before me;
No turning back, no turning back.

Though none go with me, still I will follow;
Though none go with me, still I will follow;
Though none go with me, still I will follow;
No turning back, no turning back.

Thanks to Our Sponsors!

Isn’t it good to know that your sponsorship is making such a difference in the lives of these girls? Thanks so much to all the sponsors for your faithful support! And thanks to everyone who has recently contributed to the other special funds that help our precious orphans.

For the children,

Charity