Fifty-five pounds

The lesson I did at House of Hope yesterday was based on Mathew 6:26-27: 
"Look at the birds. They don't plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them.  And aren't you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?" 

Later, I realized how hypocritical this lesson was coming from me, especially at House of Hope. Most of the time I spend thinking about House of Hope is filled with worry:

 "What in the world am I going to talk about?"
and then after I finally figure out what to talk about:
"How in the world am I going to say that in Spanish?"

Or:

"How am I going to fill an hour and a half of time for 50-70 teens and kids?" 
And then I think,"We should do a craft--they love crafts,"
which leads to:
"Where am I going to find the time and money to prepare crafts for 70 people each week?"

I have been trying to plant and harvest and store (Matthew 6) in an effort to solve these problems on my own, but I have been failing.
But, I know in God's eyes,
this ministry is valuable,
that the women and kids who come each week are valuable,
that I am valuable.

And this past week, I was reminded that God will take care of me, and these women and children, in this ministry. This reminder arrived in the form of a 55 pound box on flight UA 1421 with my mom on Thursday evening.

I had emailed a friend from our home church just 2 weeks before to ask her to help with the "Where am I going to find the time and money to prep crafts for 70 people each week?" dilemma.  In those 2 short weeks, she and a group of women from my church bought and prepared 20 different crafts (each for 70 people!) for me to use at House of Hope.  And since then, they have made 20 more! This will provide crafts for the women and children at House of Hope for almost a year.  I am so thankful for this hands-on, touchable reminder of God's provision and love.

We were able to do one of the crafts yesterday, and here are some pictures: