Amor Ministries -- Oct 4

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Abraham... obeyed and went, even thought he didn't know where he was going. Hebrews 11:8 

Saturday night Amy and I attended the Amor Ministries 30th Anniversary Dinner in Fullerton. Not only did we attend, but I had the privilege of emceeing and together with Amy introduced the founders Scott and Gayla Congdon. Thirty years ago Scott and Gayla began a ministry that would build houses in the Tijuana dump so families could stay together. After working in an orphanage they realized that many children are given up to orphanages not because they have no parents, but because the parents couldn't afford to raise them.

So what if they had a house to live in?

So Scott and Gayla began to invite churches to build homes with them for these families. They trusted God. They didn't know where it would lead them, but like Abraham, God put a promise in their hearts that would be an eternal promise, one that would change lives forever.

Saturday night we celebrated 300,000 participants from all over the world who have worked with Amor to build approximately 16,000 homes that have been built in Tijuana, Chihuahua, Cancun and Puerto Peñasco, but also on the San Carlos American Indian Reservation and in the slums of South Africa, where AIDS clinics and a partnership between Zulus and Afrikaans are demonstrating the love of Christ in more than houses.

Amy and I began working with Amor in 1991 when I was a youth pastor in Moraga, California. We built four homes in Tecate with about 60 of us. Over ten years the trip grew to 250, including 65 adults who served food, co-led teams and organized tools. In those ten years we also expanded to college trips over winter break and college/adult trips to Cancun.

Most recently, our church has spent three of the last four Memorial Day Weekends building houses. Fourth graders through senior adults have had the opportunity to be sent into a third world context to demonstrate the love of God and leave behind a house for a family. 

Amy and I have served on the board since the mid 90s. Our work with Amor among "the least of these" has changed our lives forever.

The promise to Abraham was his descendants would outnumber the dust or grains of sand or the stars in the sky. How many lives will be impacted for eternity because Scott and Gayla stepped out in faith? If you take the 300,000 participants and add 16,000 families, their families and communities, their churches and their neighborhoods that have all been touched by Amor, how many have been impacted by Amor?

When we trust God, invite others along on the journey of faith, who knows what can happen for God's Kingdom and for eternity?

Even if we don't know where we are going.

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