Bench Mark

 

 STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: Picture Praise, 5/28/12

In Burkina Faso, West Africa, this young women, Rebeccah, is taking the time to meditate on the Word of God written in her own language of Jula. She is one of the girls at the Dorcas House, a transformative center for girls. 

At Dorcas House, the girls are able to develop and grow as they live in community with 20 other young women (ages 15-25), study the Word of God, learn to read and write in French and Jula and acquire technical skills like sewing on a treadle sewing machine and gardening.  God has provided for this center since the idea came to a group of Burkinabe women called UFAC (Union Femine de l’Alliance Chretienne). Partnering  with them, I was able to see God raise up a simple yet beautiful center for 20 girls per year.

We were visited by a group of women from Pennsylvania for two weeks of special activities. One of the women, Cindy Long, brought a lot of laughter and creativity to the team. In the year following her visit to Dorcas House, Cindy went to be with the Lord. Her family’s desire was to donate funds to Dorcas House in her memory. This bench was built with those funds...as well as seven other benches located throughout the four acres of the center. The benches are placed strategically so that as the sun travels across the sky there is always a shaded place to sit and think, laugh or read the Word of God and pray.

I love seeing how the family of God joins together even across the ocean to see God’s hands of mercy and love. Each one of us is called to that place of meditation as we align our hearts with God’s heart..it reaches to the ends of the earth.

photographer: Amy Nehlsen, Burkina Faso. She is currently stationed in the US, but will be doing a camp with the girls called "Run the Race!" in Burkina Faso as this photo is published. Find out more about Dorcas House at www.wix.com/dorcashouse/faso.

Touchpoints

STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: Picture Praise, 5/21/12

This photo was actually taken by my daughter, at 12-years-old, while we were visiting a Bedouin family in a rural village in Northern Jordan.  We were privileged to take our children out to this family’s tent to help them ‘move’ out of their summer tent and into their winter one. It was a long day, a huge project, but an interesting view of the life of these simple people.
 

What blessed me through this experience was seeing how my children interacted with these simple people and how my daughter was able to use her camera as a way of keeping the day interesting. She had fun with the Bedouin children, painting finger nails, taking their pictures, just being with these children in their home.  The picture she took reminded me of the ways we touch others lives, just by our presence, and the way this family impacted ours in their simplicity and their genuineness. 

In our fast-paced lives, it is easy to forget those less fortunate and even easier to take for granted the luxuries we afford.  I was encouraged by Proverbs 31:20, “She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy.”   Romans 12:9 says "our love should be genuine" and verse 16  says to "live in harmony with one another, not to be haughty, but associate with the lowly."  I am reminded of how children, given the opportunity, can easily cross this chasm between the poor and rich just by being with one another and sharing the common experience of living.  

photographer: Kelly Nutter's daughter, Middle East.

The Word

STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: Picture Praise, 05/14/12

This photo was taken at the Guatemala school of Alpha and Omega in the small village of Patzún, Guatemala. We stopped to visit the missionaries that work with this school and church project.

photographer: Judy Stewart, Guatemala. "My husband and I serve in Guatemala with CAM International (soon to be Camino Global) in the area of Member Care. We have the awesome privilege to "come along side" the 34 family units that live and work here in Guatemala City and in rural areas of Chimaltenango, Antigua, Panajachel, Santiago, Huehuetenango and Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. We're here to "cheer them on" by attending Graduation services, School plays, sporting events for the missionary kids, being a listening ear and even when they get sick, by offering care in the midst of trials and disappointments that life brings."

Wings of the Dawn

STORY BEHIND THE PHOTO: Picture Praise, 05/07/12

This picture was taken at sunrise in the quaint ancient city of Antigua, Guatemala. We had a professional photographer with us who suggested we get up before sunrise and drive to Antigua. We had never been to the city that early in the morning, and it was breathtaking to watch the sun rise over the mountains and light up the Volcano Agua.

photographer: Judy Stewart, Guatemala. "My husband and I serve in Guatemala with CAM International (soon to be Camino Global) in the area of Member Care. We have the awesome privilege to "come along side" the 34 families that live and work here in Guatemala City and in rural areas of Chimaltenango, Antigua, Panajachel, Santiago, Huehuetenango and Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. We're here to "cheer them on" by attending graduation services, school plays, sporting events for the missionary kids, being a listening ear and even when they get sick, by offering care in the midst of trials and disappointments that life brings."