Sun-Stopping Faith

Joshua was a man who dared to pray audacious prayers.  He knew that he served a big God; a God that would answer on his behalf.  Joshua did not shrink back or cease to press on because things were difficult. He pressed on and prayed on.  He prayed prayers that were powerful; prayers that invited God to come and do something amazing.  

In Joshua 10:12-14 we read that Joshua and his army were fighting against the Amorites, but night was quickly approaching.  If darkness fell, Joshua and his men would be at a disadvantage and possibly be overtaken.   So, knowing that God had told him the Amorites would be destroyed by his hand, he did what came naturally to him; he prayed.  He prayed a prayer that might seem almost ridiculous, but he did it knowing God would show Himself faithful.

Check out what Joshua 10:12-14 says:

On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel, 

Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel: 

        "O sun, stand still over Gibeon, 

       O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon."
         So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, 
       until the nation avenged itself on its enemies

He prayed a pray that stopped the sun, the SUN!  He needed more daylight to defeat the army that God told him he would defeat, so he asked God to stop the sun.  And God did!

Why is this significant?  I know that God is telling me to do the same.  I know that this venture (home for Hope) is from the Lord, and in that, I know He wants to do some amazing things through this ministry.  He is asking me if I am willing to pray sun-stopping prayers and watch and see what He will do.  Am I?  

If I am, it means I will get uncomfortable in my prayers. Asking Him to do things that I know are impossible with man, but completely possible with God.  It means I am stepping out of my comfort zone in prayer and seeking Him for the unbelievable.  I am ready!  

Sun-stopping prayers are still answered today, we just don't take the time to pray them.  I know God is expectantly waiting for us to begin to pray those sun-stopping prayers for Home for Hope.  He wants to bless His daughters beyond their imagination!  To show them, through this ministry, that He loves them more than they could ever know!  

Would you pray with us?

CPA Needed!

Does anyone know of a CPA that would be willing to help us out to formalize a 3 year budget for Home for Hope?  If you do, please leave me a comment with the information.  :)  Thanks ahead of time!

An Exciting Day!

Challen and I were beyond blessed today!  We got the opportunity to visit two homes that are in the ministry of restoring lives and helping those who are homeless, to become self-sufficient.

The first place we visited was Wiseplace, in Santa Ana.  We sat with the executive director for many hours as she was patient enough to answer our questions and help us to understand what we were getting into.  We toured the facility and ask close to a million questions (or at least that is what it seemed like).  Being there and seeing the work in action reinforced the passion in my heart to serve those in need.  Though not a faith-based program, the director herself is a Christian and God is using her to minister to the needs of these women.  It is an impressive ministry and such an incredible blessing!

From Santa Ana we hopped on the 5 South and headed to Tustin, about 6 miles down the road.  There, we walked onto the Village of Hope campus.  Words cannot begin to express how in awe I was: at God for all He has done there and at the amazingness of the facility.  This campus is Christ-centered and fully funded by donations.  To give you and idea, there income last year was 19 million dollars...what a crazy amount of money!  I cannot even begin to express to you how impressive this ministry is.  You will have to check it out for yourself at www.rescuemission.org

All in all, it was an AWESOME day and I am inspired and motivated all over again to continue this work and see where God leads us!  Please pray for us as we finish up our 501(c)(3) paperwork and submit it to the IRS for approval.  This will be the next step in the process.  Once that is completed we can begin to receive donations and look for a piece of property to begin God's ministry!

Chugging Along

We accomplished many things yesterday.  Here is what we did:

*Challen and I sat down yesterday and worked to finish up the tax exemption paperwork the IRS requires for us to be a 501(c)3 non-profit.  We have been putting it off because we thought we were very unsure of what we were doing.  But, yesterday we actually answered every single question!  Now, all that we have left to do is to create a budget (projected) for the first three years that we will be established.  That will be quite challenging, but we have a few other homes that are willing to show us their yearly budget so we can get an idea of what we would spend money on.  

*We also sent the information to our graphic designer who is working on a logo for us.  I am excited to see what he comes up with! 

*There are also two women’s homes in Orange County that have agreed to give us a tour and to answer questions that we have.  On July 29th we have appointments with these 2 homes to check out how things are run!  I am very excited to see this ministry in action!  

Continue to pray for us as we move forward, one step at a time, in the ministry that God has given to us!

Slowly, but Surely

Yes, it has been way too long since I have updated, but that is because nothing much has happened lately.  But last Tuesday, Challen and I spent the day working on paperwork.  We also got an awesome friend of mine who is a graphic designer to work on a logo for us.  Things are slowly but surely coming together...

We also wrote our mission and vision statements.  Do you want to see? :)  Well, here it is!  Enjoy!

Mission Statement:

Helping women and children Overcome, Persevere, and Excel through Christ-Centered programs. 

Vision Statement:  

At home for H.O.P.E. we are committed to meeting women and children in their place of need by providing them with spiritual, physical, fiscal, educational, and psychological resources.  All services will be provided with an attitude and atmosphere of love.

It's REALLY Official

I know I have not updated y’all in a while, I apologize!  Things have progressed quite nicely since my last post.  On October 22nd California approved Home for H.O.P.E and it became official!!!!!!!  We really are a nonprofit organization in California now!  How cool is that???? :)  

I received the official paperwork stamped and signed by the secretary of state of California and it was pretty exciting!  I can hardly believe that it is real...seems like I have been praying about this for so long, and thinking about it for even longer, that it does not seem possible.  But it is!

Now that is is real, there are a gazillion things (in the form of paperwork) that have to be filed with various people, that is is a tid-bit overwhelming.  Lots of deadlines to meet with  paperwork and forms, but all very exciting!  Let the games begin!!!!!

Being Official

The articles of incorporation were sent to me yesterday for approval.  I read them over and I sent them right on back! :)  They are now back in the hands of legalzoom ready to be  sent, along with all the other necessary paperwork, by courier to the state government for approval.  Oh boy!  Oh boy! 

Today we also got our domain name secured for our website.  When it is all finished and ready to be published, the site will be www.homeforhopeav.org.  Cool, eh??? :)   I think so! :)  Our website is being worked on this week thanks to an old friend of mine.  I am very thankful for his generosity.  I also have another friend of mine working on a logo for us. He volunteered to do it for me, since that is what he does for a living.  I am excited to see how that turns out.  

Tomorrow I am going to the bank to open up a bank account for our new organization... just so I can be ready when all those donations start coming in... :)  What a week!  Exciting stuff is happening!  Can’t wait to see what’s next!

And We Move On

Today brought us good news!!  The name Home for H.O.P.E. was available and we snatched it up!  The articles of incorporation are being written as we speak!!!!  Within 10 days all the necessary paperwork will be finished and sent off to the state to be approved!  By the end of October Home for H.O.P.E. will be an established, official nonprofit organization in the state of California!  

I can hardly contain myself!  Oh, the mountains that lie ahead, but I am excited to climb them!  We are moving on!  I can’t wait to see where God takes us!  

Same Old, Same Old

I know you have not heard this before, so I thought I would share. :)  We submitted a new name to leagalzoom today (again). :)  After waiting to hear from House of Hope for 2 weeks, we decided to move on and try to find another name.  We succeeded in coming up with a name that still portrays the meaning that I feel God intended, while changing a few little words.  The new name we submitted was “Home for Hope”.  

I had expected to hear from legalzoom today, but since i didn’t, I will most likely hear from them tomorrow.  I am excited to see what they say... it could be the start of the ministry we have been waiting for! :)

When We Feel Weak

Prayer is such an phenomenal thing!  I cannot actually believe that an all-powerful God would respond to my heartfelt pleas.  That is so astounding to me!  Who am I that He could be so gripped by the cries of the inner things of my heart???  

Today was a special prayer day, as all Tuesdays are for me.  I have been setting aside these days to truly seek God and wait on Him for leading and guidance for every step of this thing.  As of late, I have felt like I am praying and there seems to be no response at all.  Though I pour out all my hopes, my dreams, my frustrations, my depravities there seems to be no answer.  Silence from God can be some of the loudest ringing in my ear.  Especially when I want so badly to hear from Him!  

I very often feel like maybe I am not hearing from Him about all the specific prayers I pray regarding Hope House, because maybe I am the one who is wanting it to happen and God isn’t.    I prayed so specifically today that I would have confirmation from Him if I am to pursue this thing.  I needed to know that I am not the one forcing this by any means. 

 My other very specific prayer request was regarding the name.  I got a call from legalzoom today and they said that the last name choice I have chosen is available if I would like to proceed with that name.  I did not know how to answer.  Do I wait to hear from House of Hope?  Or do I proceed with the name choice that is available?  I also wanted to know if I was to purse a name with “hope” in it at all.. maybe I was wrong about all of that to begin with...

I signed up for Beth Moore’s new Bible study on Esther.   I am always pretty excited to start a new Beth Moore study, but tonight, I was so captured by the things that came out of her mouth.  It was like God was standing right in front of me, looking me right in the face, and speaking directly to my very soul.  He answered both of the prayers that I specifically prayed today; there is no doubt about it.  

In response to my, am-I-to-do-this-thing-prayer, He answered YES! In all of my questioning and pleading, I know I have told God that I am so not able and not equipped to do such a thing as this.  I also told him that I am scared-to-death about doing this.  Would you believe it, but that He used MY VERY OWN words to remind me tat HE is using me and I will be used.  He said (through Beth Moore) “There’s no place God can’t go, especially with a willing, scared-to-death, ill-equipped vessel”.  How do you like that?  The very words I threw out there before Him, rationalizing why I could not be the one He would use, He threw right back at me as if saying, “Oh sweetie, but you are the one.”  Now, let’s be honest... that is still scary!

With that out of the way, God moved on and addressed my second prayer.  Of all the topics for Beth Moore to talk about last night, she camped out on hope for a good 10 minutes.  I mean really?  She gave the greek word and a very distinct definition and how hope applies to our lives and should be a very integral part of the Christian life.  Did she discuss, faith and love  and  all of the other characteristics that make up a Christian life?  No!  :)  It was all about hope.  God is our HOPE! :)  He will be the hope of every single woman and child  who comes through our gates.  

“There is something He is calling us to; it is going to be a call to courage and it is going to be a call to perseverance; we are going to think we are the last person equipped to do it.”~ Beth Moore  

I couldn’t have said it better myself!