Participants:
Series Code: TDY
Program Code: TDY210026A
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00:01 As you're well aware,
00:03 we're living in unprecedented times. 00:05 Join us now for Today special program. 00:12 I want to spend my life 00:18 Mending broken people 00:23 I want to spend my life 00:29 Removing pain 00:34 Lord, let my words 00:39 Heal a heart that hurts 00:44 I want to spend my life 00:50 Mending broken people 00:55 I want to spend my life 01:01 Mending broken people 01:14 Hello, friends, and welcome 01:16 to another edition of 3ABN Today. 01:19 And as always, it's a privilege and an honor, 01:21 a blessing to have you 01:23 our 3ABN family joining us 01:25 from wherever you are around the world. 01:27 You may be watching us maybe for the very first time 01:30 and wondering what in the world am I watching? 01:31 Right? 01:33 This is a special 3ABN Today program 01:34 in which we do different versions, 01:36 different forms of the Today program. 01:38 It might be a Bible theological topic 01:41 that we break down for one entire hour, 01:43 in which we pick it apart 01:45 and pull back the scriptural layers 01:46 and study about a particular topic. 01:48 It may be a 3ABN Today music program 01:51 that you're watching 01:52 where we praise the Lord 01:53 and uplift the Lord in music and song. 01:55 It may be our newest 3ABN Today, 01:59 Bible Q and A program that airs every Monday. 02:02 That's also a special program. 02:04 And then we also do 02:05 different interviews and stories 02:07 of mission and ministry 02:09 that's happening all around the world. 02:10 And that's exactly 02:12 what we're going to be doing today. 02:13 We have a very powerful time together 02:16 in which we're going to be talking 02:18 with Brother Rick Fleck and also another Rick, 02:20 Brother Rick Bowes 02:22 from International Children's Care Ministry. 02:24 How are you guys doing? 02:25 Good to be here, Ryan? 02:27 Amen. Blessing to have you guys here. 02:29 Before we get right into our time together 02:31 in which we're going to be talking 02:32 about this powerful ministry 02:34 and what they're doing for the kingdom of the Lord. 02:36 We have a very special song that's going to come to us 02:39 from Miss Hope Velasquez 02:41 and the title of the song is "By Our Love." 03:02 Brothers, let us come together 03:07 Walking in the Spirit 03:11 There's much to be done 03:15 We will come reaching 03:19 Out from our comfort 03:24 And they will know us 03:27 By our love 03:31 Sisters, 03:33 we were made for kindness 03:37 We can pierce the darkness 03:41 As He shines through us 03:45 We will come reaching 03:49 With a song of healing 03:54 And they will know us 03:57 By our love 04:00 The time is now 04:04 Come Church arise 04:08 Love with His hands 04:12 See with His eyes 04:16 Bind it around you 04:20 Let it never leave you 04:26 And they will know us 04:29 By our love 04:37 Children, 04:39 You are hope for justice 04:42 Stand firm in the Truth now 04:47 Set your hearts above 04:51 You will be reaching 04:55 Long after we're gone 05:01 And they will know you 05:03 By your love 05:07 The time is now 05:11 Come Church arise 05:15 Love with His hands 05:19 See with His eyes 05:23 Bind it around you 05:28 Let it never leave you 05:34 And they will know us 05:36 By our love 05:40 The time is now 05:44 Come Church arise 05:48 Love with His hands 05:52 See with His eyes 05:57 Bind it around you 06:01 Let it never 06:03 Leave you 06:07 And they will know us 06:10 By our love 06:25 Amen. 06:26 Thank you so much, Hope, for that song. Wow. 06:28 Just beautiful voice, 06:30 beautiful song, beautiful words. 06:31 And I think it set us up perfectly 06:33 for the time that we're going to have together 06:35 and the topic that we're going to be discussing. 06:37 Again, if you're just now tuning in, 06:39 we have International Children's Care Ministry 06:41 with us, and we have two Ricks in the house, 06:46 Rick and Rick. 06:47 But to my immediate right is the president 06:49 of International Children's Care Ministry, 06:51 Rick Fleck. 06:53 And it's a blessing to have you here, brother. 06:54 Thank you, Ryan. Amen. 06:56 And way down there 06:57 at the very far end of this long table, 06:58 we have the director of Donor Relations 07:02 for International Children's Care Ministry, 07:04 Brother Rick Bowes. 07:05 Good to be here. Amen. 07:07 It's a blessing to have both of you. 07:08 And so, you know what? 07:10 I don't really want to take too much time 07:13 with introduction 07:14 because I know you guys are going to get into your story 07:16 and tell us how you become involved in this. 07:18 But I just want to get right into this 07:19 because there may be someone watching and doesn't know 07:21 what in the world International Children's Care Ministry is, 07:24 how it got started. 07:25 So why don't you give us a little bit of, 07:27 you know, history, how it came about 07:29 and how you became involved with it? 07:31 Well, you know, 07:33 to me, you have to go back a few years 07:35 to think about this 07:36 and God brings, 07:38 He weaves the tapestry of our lives. 07:39 It's incredible, 07:41 different people, different places, 07:42 and it all comes together. 07:44 It's amazing. Amen. 07:45 And it started out because I would have to say 07:48 when my mother was a little girl, 07:51 she used to read a comic called Little Annie, Orphan Annie, 07:54 and she'd come home from school 07:56 and what's the next thing that's going to happen. 07:58 And this little girl lived in a, in an orphanage 08:01 and it wasn't a very nice place, you know. 08:04 The head of the orphanage was Miss Meanie 08:06 and you know, you get the picture, right? 08:07 Yeah. 08:09 And so she determined in her little heart 08:12 way back then 08:13 that someday she would like to be able to help children 08:17 who needed help like that, but not like that. 08:21 She wanted to have it be in a place 08:23 that it was a home and that had love and caring. 08:28 Amen. 08:29 So fast forward a few years 08:30 and after she was married to my dad, he's a pastor 08:35 and they were called to be missionaries 08:38 in Central America. 08:40 Okay. I was born during those years. 08:42 So I get to grow up in those countries 08:45 and she sort of got a reputation 08:47 because we always had kids in our house 08:50 that weren't part of our family, you know. 08:53 And my dad would come home from work 08:56 and he's going like, who's this? 08:58 And, well, you know, their mom has tuberculosis. 09:02 I had to help her get to the hospital. 09:03 They have nowhere to go and, you know, is that okay? 09:06 Oh, yeah. And then he'd play with them. 09:08 And you know, 09:09 so she just helped people a lot. 09:13 And during that time, 09:14 she even helped people to adopt children 09:16 that needed it. 09:18 You know fast forward a few more years. 09:20 And in the late 70s, 09:22 there was a tremendous earthquake 09:24 in Guatemala City 09:26 that just devastated that country. 09:28 And during that time 09:31 Bob Falkenberg, Elder Bob Falkenberg 09:33 that many people remember, 09:36 he was the president of the union down there. 09:37 He contacted my parents 09:39 who were nearing retirement age 09:41 and asked if my mom would be interested in helping 09:44 to start an orphanage. 09:48 And she goes, 09:49 "Well I'm not interested in doing an orphanage." 09:53 And he goes, "What?" 09:55 And she says, 09:56 "Well, if I'm going to help children, 09:57 it can't be that." 09:59 And he says, "Well, how would you help them?" 10:00 And she says, 10:02 "Well, it's got to be in homes. 10:04 Children have to be helped in homes. 10:05 You can't just have an institution and, you know." 10:09 And he says, "Well, yeah, great, let's do that," 10:12 you know, so that was kind of the beginning 10:14 of International Children's Care. 10:15 That's kind of where the seed was born. 10:18 She really struggled though with that. 10:19 She said, 10:21 "I am not the person 10:22 to lead out in something like this. 10:24 You know, you got to find somebody else." 10:26 And so they started, you know, kind of having this dialogue. 10:29 During this time, she had a medical problem 10:32 where she had a tumor on basically her carotid artery. 10:36 And it was, got to the point, 10:37 doctors decided really couldn't operate on that. 10:40 And it was, made her health quite fragile. 10:46 Lord, can I even do this? 10:48 And she, you know, didn't feel like she could. 10:52 Well, it's a long story, 10:55 but the Lord did heal her of that thing miraculously 10:58 from one day to the next. 10:59 Amazing. 11:01 So she ended up going back to Loma Linda to her doctor 11:03 and she says, "I need to see you." 11:05 And so he says, "Okay, come on in." 11:07 And she goes, "I don't think I got this anymore." 11:11 You know, can you tell me what's going on? 11:12 And so they did all these tests. 11:14 He comes back and he says, 11:15 "I really don't know what to tell you, 11:17 but it's not there anymore." 11:19 And, you know, she came out of this interview. 11:24 I mean, with her doctor 11:25 and out in the lobby was Bob Falkenberg. 11:29 She goes, "Bob, what are you doing here?" 11:31 He goes, "Well, I got to see you." 11:33 And she says, "See me, what for?" 11:35 "I need an answer," he said. 11:37 "Answer?" 11:38 Yeah, you know, about starting that ministry. 11:40 And she goes, well, he says, "Are you going to do it?" 11:45 And she says, 11:46 "Well, I don't know, what happens if I don't do it." 11:48 And he says, 11:49 "Well, I have some money that's been donated. 11:51 I'm going to have to give it back. 11:52 I don't know what's going to happen." 11:53 And she goes, "Yeah, I think so." 11:57 It's like, I guess I'm going to have to do this, you know? 11:59 Sure. 12:00 And so that was kind of where it really started 12:03 and with a little bit of seed money. 12:05 Okay, we got to go for this. 12:07 She went down there and she started, 12:09 you know, investigating, looking at this. 12:11 And she was so inspired. 12:13 My mom actually wrote several songs. 12:15 And, you know, one of them talked about 12:19 as she was in a village in Guatemala 12:23 and she saw a child sleeping outside on a sidewalk 12:28 because, you know, during the day 12:29 is the best time to sleep, 12:31 during the night it's too cold. 12:33 And, but still the child would shiver ever so often. 12:36 And she said in her song 12:38 that these children just have no one to love. 12:40 They shiver from, from fear and from cold. 12:45 And her heart was touched. 12:46 It went out to these kids. 12:48 We need to help them. 12:49 And so I, during, of course, 12:53 by this time I'm an adult I'm, 12:56 you know, in the business world, 12:57 but they called me and said, 12:59 "Would you be willing to come and help 13:01 with this organization to really, 13:04 you know, help move it forward?" 13:05 That was back in 1984. 13:07 So it's been a few years. 13:09 That's how International Children's Care 13:11 grew into a model where we care for children 13:15 in individual homes. 13:16 So the idea is to have a campus with a church and a school 13:20 and industries and individual homes. 13:23 And we hire Adventist house parents 13:25 to take care of these kids. 13:26 And we have maybe 10 kids in a home, 13:29 you know, that sort of thing. 13:30 And it's just a place where these kids can thrive. 13:35 Now, you got to remember, 13:36 these kids have gone through a lot. 13:38 Sure. 13:39 And no matter what we do humanly for them, 13:42 they're going to have that hurt in their heart. 13:43 Sure. 13:44 And so, we do the best we can, 13:46 but of course, we're humans, we're working with humans 13:49 and, but many of these children 13:52 really are grateful 13:53 for what has been done through the sponsorships, 13:56 the people that help and that make this happen. 14:00 That's an awesome, 14:01 I'm just hearing everything you're saying, 14:02 there, just, it's powerful, 14:04 especially that story 14:05 of how the Lord healed her miraculously. 14:07 That's something that just, 14:08 you know, you don't hear a lot of those stories, 14:10 but yet at the same time, 14:11 it's proof that our Lord is still alive and well, 14:13 and He's still healing and still at work. 14:15 In fact, I think we had a couple of pictures 14:16 for this segment here. 14:18 I have here a note, a picture of Ken and... 14:22 Alycon. Alcyon Fleck. Okay. 14:24 If you want to pull that one up here. 14:25 And so this is your mother, right? 14:27 That's my mother and father. 14:28 Wow. Mother and father. 14:30 So this is the lady that started it all right here. 14:32 That's her. Praise the Lord. 14:33 And then also we have another picture here 14:35 of the family home. 14:37 And so, where's this at? 14:39 That's in the Dominican Republic. 14:41 Wow. Okay. 14:42 Dominican Republic. Yes. 14:43 And it's every country where we work, 14:46 we have a style of home 14:49 that kind of fits in that country. 14:50 And so, but the idea is to have like about a six bedroom home 14:56 and there's house parents and aunt, 14:58 and the children all live in this home 15:01 and try to make it as much like a real family as we can. 15:05 Amen. Praise the Lord. 15:07 So, you know, based on the general introduction 15:09 that you just gave us, 15:10 I know there's got to be aspects of this ministry 15:13 that really makes it stand out, it really makes it special. 15:15 So, you know, what would, 15:16 if somebody was going to come to you and say, 15:18 you know, what makes this ministry stand out 15:21 so different and special from many other, 15:23 what would be your response? 15:25 You know, the children that we are ministering to 15:28 are what I would consider 15:30 the ones that sort of fall through the cracks. 15:32 Many of the countries where we work 15:34 just don't have any solutions for these kids. 15:38 Sure. 15:39 So, I mean, we're not, 15:41 we're talking about children that 15:43 whose parents have died because of wars, 15:47 because of earthquakes, because of terrible things. 15:50 Or maybe they've gotten caught up in a lifestyle 15:53 that they've been separated, maybe they're in prison, 15:56 maybe there's, you know, other situations. 15:59 And so, it's just like there's nothing left 16:02 and picking up the pieces, mending these broken lives. 16:07 That's what we do. 16:08 And so, as best we can, 16:12 I mean, only God can really, 16:14 is a true physician and can really heal them. 16:17 And so that is one of our biggest philosophies 16:22 is to bring them to a knowledge of Jesus Christ. 16:25 Absolutely. 16:26 And that He is the father of the fatherless, 16:30 and He can heal that broken heart. 16:32 He can fill that hole 16:35 because there is a hole in their heart. 16:37 That's kind of the way it is. 16:38 And so the campuses that we prepare for these kids, 16:41 we call it a children's village. 16:45 You know, I've mentioned it briefly, 16:46 but it has a church, 16:49 you know, it's a center of worship, 16:50 it's a center of education 16:52 for Christian education and school, you know. 16:57 And so the schools, they learn everything 17:00 from gardening to math, you know? 17:04 And then within this, we try to incorporate 17:08 a lot of the kinds of things that Ellen White talks about. 17:11 And my mother was especially just had those books, 17:16 like line, like crazy, you know. 17:18 And it's like, okay, we've got to get, 17:19 got to teach them some vocational things. 17:21 We've got to teach them how to live, 17:24 how to be independent, 17:25 you know, from the time that they come to us 17:27 until they leave, 17:29 our mission is to help them 17:30 to become independent, you know. 17:32 And so eventually 17:34 they need to be able to live on their own. 17:36 They need to be able to go back into society 17:39 and break that chain of poverty. 17:41 Sure. 17:42 And so, living in a village like this 17:45 teaches them incredible skills. 17:47 It's amazing. 17:49 I've heard lots of these kids later on say, well, 17:51 you know, I get out in life 17:53 and I can do things nobody else can do. 17:54 I know how to fix a water pipe. 17:56 I know how to... 17:57 I know how to fix this, it's broken. 17:59 They're going, hey, Juan, can you fix this? 18:02 Yeah, sure. No problem. 18:04 Because had to do that, you know, 18:06 they just, they live together, they learn lots of things. 18:10 I mean, learning is really the key, right? 18:12 Absolutely. Yeah. 18:13 Christian learning the truth of loving each other 18:17 and also just how to live in life. 18:20 Absolutely. 18:22 This really helps them when they get out, 18:23 they're going to be on their own. 18:25 They're going to try to make a living, 18:28 you know, and during this time we provide an education. 18:32 So obviously just like everyone who has children, 18:36 not every child wants to go in the same direction 18:38 maybe that you want them to go but... 18:39 Right. 18:41 But we help them to make decisions, 18:42 hopefully good ones. 18:44 And many of these kids get an education 18:47 even beyond secondary school. 18:51 And so we have, if they want, 18:54 we try to get sponsorships 18:56 and make it available for them 18:57 to continue on to a more education. 19:00 So this could include vocational training. 19:02 I mean, we have lots of them that have become mechanics 19:05 or maybe a hairdresser or chef. 19:08 Right. 19:10 Yeah, just recently was in the Dominican Republic. 19:13 And one of our guys has become a chef 19:15 and he proudly had helped prepare the potluck 19:18 on Sabbath and I was going, 19:19 "Is this one you made?" "Yeah, I made that one." 19:21 "Yeah, let me try that stuff. That's good, man." 19:24 And, you know, 19:25 and others have become doctors, nurses, pastors. 19:28 I mean, you know, after 43 years, you can imagine 19:31 that we have a couple of generations now. 19:33 Absolutely. 19:35 And so we're seeing the fruit, 19:36 we're seeing these kids are actually, 19:39 you know, going back into life, 19:42 into society, really making a difference in paying it back. 19:45 Amen. 19:47 You know, as I'm hearing all of this, 19:48 I'm just overwhelmed 19:50 by the fact that you're following. 19:52 And it's very clear that you're following 19:53 the method of what Mrs. White calls, 19:55 Christ method alone, 19:56 in which, you know, we don't just go into people's lives 19:58 into their homes and, you know, 20:00 beat them over the head with, you know, 20:03 biblical principles or doctrines, 20:06 while those are all important, 20:08 you first need to reach the heart, 20:09 minister to their needs, mingle among them 20:11 as one who sympathizes with them 20:13 and cares for them. 20:14 And that's exactly what you guys are doing. 20:16 And that's just such a blessing 20:17 to hear everything you're saying, 20:18 I've got to get across this big table over here 20:20 to the other Rick. 20:22 Brother Rick Bowes, 20:24 you know, tell us a little bit about how you, 20:26 you know, you came in contact 20:28 and in connection with this ministry, 20:29 and how you heard about them? 20:30 I had the opportunity of pastoring 20:33 these two people, 20:34 Alycone and Ken Fleck. 20:36 When I came to this church, this is a medically church 20:38 in the Oregon Conference in Washington State. 20:41 And there were two of my church members. 20:43 They were part of my flock and just amazing people. 20:47 And as you talk to them, 20:50 number one, 20:51 they had a personal relationship with Jesus. 20:52 Number two, 20:54 throughout their lives, they'd follow the calling. 20:56 And as I got acquainted with them, 20:59 Alcyon, Rick's mom has written books 21:02 that are just dramatic, 21:04 just step-by-step following the Lord. 21:07 God led them here, God led them there. 21:10 And so anyhow, they were my church. 21:12 And as I talked to them 21:14 and they told me about the mission, 21:15 and I'd heard of International Children's Care, 21:17 but as I talked to them, it's just amazing. 21:23 And it's a mission driven organization. 21:26 It's God driven, it's prayer driven. 21:28 And as I pastored this church, mission trips from our kids, 21:34 the churches buy an elementary school, 21:36 buy an academy 21:38 and the academy kids would go down to mission trips 21:40 to the various children's villages. 21:41 And these kids would go down there 21:43 and then they would come back 21:45 and their lives were transformed. 21:46 These are teenagers and they're typical teenagers, 21:49 but they would go to these children's villages. 21:52 And you could tell their lives were changed. 21:56 I spent some time talking to some of these young people 21:59 is like, they just said, this is just life changing. 22:02 Our whole world has opened up. 22:04 And so there was a young girl in our church 22:08 who was in Pathfinders and they said to her, 22:10 all the Pathfinder kids need a project. 22:12 And so she chose a project of writing letters 22:17 to our church member. 22:18 Well, she wrote to the senior pastor 22:20 that was me. 22:21 And she said, "You got to sponsor kids." 22:23 And we had sponsored children 22:25 through different organizations for years, 22:28 but we said, you know, this is right here. 22:31 This is us. Why aren't we sponsoring kids? 22:33 And so we began sponsoring 22:35 and I became a member of the board 22:38 and for years they, 22:42 I looked at financial sheets 22:44 and we, you do what you do on a board, you know. 22:47 Sure, sure. Yeah. 22:48 This is what we're doing over here, over here. 22:51 And I enjoyed that. 22:53 They kept saying 22:55 you got to go to a children's village. 22:57 You can never really understand. 23:01 And I kept repelling, well, I'm busy. 23:04 Right. Pastors are busy, right? 23:05 I'm doing ministry, I'm running a church. 23:08 And so finally we went. 23:10 When we finally got down there, it was just amazing. 23:14 It is. It was. 23:17 I think we have a picture. Yeah. 23:18 I think we have actually a few pictures here. 23:20 Let's pull up one of Sharman with the child, I guess. 23:25 Let's see if we can pull that one out. 23:27 Yeah, this is my wife and this is our girl 23:31 and this is special when you're sponsor. 23:36 Sure. 23:37 You write letters to your child, 23:39 your child writes letters back to you. 23:41 And they report on, 23:44 well, just how she's doing academically, 23:46 this is socially, spiritually and all of that. 23:48 You see a picture of her 23:51 and you know, it just gets you in your heart 23:53 as you're exchanging this correspondence. 23:56 And this goes on for years. 23:58 And then the fact that we get to go down there and see her. 24:03 And when we got to this children's village, 24:07 all the kids were wandering all around, 24:09 you know, doing whatever, some of them were working, 24:10 some of them were in school, 24:12 some of them were playing on the athletic field. 24:13 And we saw all these girls in a clump, 24:16 teenagers, 11, 12, 13. 24:19 And we... Where is our daughter? 24:21 Where is... 24:23 Which one is her, 24:24 you know, from the distance we couldn't see. 24:26 And finally, we saw the administrator, 24:28 she drew one girl aside and she was pointing at us. 24:32 And we said, this is our girl. This is our girl. 24:35 And my wife started running and she started, 24:39 it was one of these things I could see slow motion, 24:41 you know, running together. 24:44 And you saw there on the screen, the hug. 24:47 And we stayed there for five days. 24:49 And our daughter had her arm around my wife 24:55 the whole time. 24:56 That's powerful. 24:57 And it was just a blessing. 24:59 And then this next picture, 25:00 I guess, as you speaking at the Las Palmas Church. 25:02 Yes. Okay. 25:04 There's both of you. 25:05 The two Ricks. 25:07 I had an excellent interpreter. 25:09 So it was just, it's a beautiful church. 25:12 I don't know who built the church. 25:13 Was It? Maranatha built that church. 25:15 Yeah. Beautiful church. 25:17 And to stand up there and to preach, 25:19 kids looking great, kids attentive. 25:22 It was just a great blessing, Amen. 25:24 I think we've got one more 25:26 of the Las Palmas children here. 25:29 Okay. 25:30 So what's happening here? Is this the church here? 25:32 That's, is that the church? Yes. 25:34 That's the church. Yeah. 25:35 Okay. Praise the lord. 25:37 So that day after church, we had a potluck together 25:40 and then we had a bunch of alumni kids. 25:42 So kids that are, you know, grown up. 25:44 Right. 25:46 I think we have a picture of them, 25:47 but they came 25:49 and he got the privilege of meeting a lot of these kids. 25:52 They even had their own children. 25:53 Now they're married. 25:55 They have some of their own kids. 25:57 And I know you guys have, you know, speaking of, 25:59 you know, that picture was, you know, some of the alumni, 26:01 some of the ones that 26:02 I guess had been through the program. 26:03 I know you guys have some success stories. 26:05 And so maybe we can talk a little bit about some 26:07 that stick out in your mind as far as, 26:09 you know a perfect example 26:11 of what International Children's Care is doing. 26:13 Oh, I got one. 26:15 This story is great. 26:16 Again, interwoven lives. 26:18 That's what you got to think of. 26:20 But in Congo we have a project 26:22 and it's on the island of Idjwi and Lake Kivu. 26:26 And it's in the Eastern part of the DRC. 26:31 That's called Patmos Children's Care. 26:33 Okay. All right. 26:34 Anyway, years ago, 26:36 when we were kind of first starting their 26:39 Jerome, a little girl with other kids. 26:43 She came, she lost her parents 26:45 and she came and found a new life. 26:48 She found parents. 26:49 That's just her. Yeah. 26:51 There's a picture of when she was little. 26:53 During the time that she was with us, 26:56 she got an education. 27:00 She learned about Jesus, 27:01 learned all these skills, these life skills 27:03 that you and I were talking about earlier, 27:05 you know, and well, wouldn't you know it 27:08 that she got married 27:09 and now she's a house parent. 27:12 She's a house mother in one of the homes 27:14 with her husband. 27:16 And so now that's a story. 27:18 Another story is another girl whose name is Judith. 27:21 And her story was similar where she had lost her parents. 27:26 She's, you know, went through this whole program. 27:30 She learned about Jesus. 27:32 She learned all these life skills. 27:33 She got an education 27:35 and she started working for a, 27:37 with a partner organization there 27:39 where we are helping Pygmies in there, 27:43 there's a colony of them 27:45 and they haven't had much education 27:47 or even housing. 27:48 And so, she'd been hired to work in that system 27:52 and with those, with that group. 27:54 Well, one day she was, 27:57 Judith was in a town on that island 28:01 and she saw a little boy 28:04 and this little boy was forlorn 28:06 and he's kind of alone. 28:08 And she wondered what was going on. 28:10 She could tell because of her own experience, 28:13 something wasn't right. 28:15 This was Daniel, 28:16 let me back up now a little bit, 28:18 because a little while before this, 28:20 Daniel had been on that lake in a ferry boat 28:25 and with his mom and dad and his grandma, 28:29 the boat went down in a furious storm 28:31 in the night. 28:33 And in that storm, 28:34 many people, many lives were lost, 28:37 but somehow Daniel managed to grab some things 28:40 that were drifting around. 28:41 He survived. 28:43 He somehow made it to the shore. 28:46 But he had nothing now, his family's gone. 28:50 He didn't know what to do. 28:52 He's just a little kid. 28:54 And so he tried to survive around the market there 28:58 and he would get whatever somebody would hand to him, 29:02 but nobody really paid much attention to him 29:05 until that day that Judith happened to see him. 29:07 And she actually went up to him. 29:12 Hey, what's going on? 29:13 What happened? 29:15 And as his story came out and she found out 29:19 she didn't, she wasn't married. 29:21 She didn't really, she just starting a job. 29:23 She didn't really have much. 29:25 But she couldn't do anything except take him 29:28 and take care of him. 29:29 And so she took him into her own home, 29:32 such as it was 29:34 and started taking care of him. 29:35 Sure. 29:37 My wife and I happened to be visiting there last year. 29:43 And one day we heard that 29:48 Judith wanted to talk to us about something 29:52 and that she has this little boy 29:54 and she wonders if he could be part of, 29:57 you know, the children's village, 29:59 because she can't really, 30:00 you know, take care of him forever. 30:03 And so, she came 30:05 and she brought this little boy, Daniel, 30:08 and as we were talking with the administrator there, 30:12 we said, "Well, sure, you know, he can come and live here." 30:15 Right. 30:16 But you know which home should we put him in? 30:19 Who do you think he said 30:21 Jerome would be the perfect mother 30:22 for this little kid. 30:24 Wow. We have a picture. 30:25 Yeah. Let's pull that picture up. 30:27 And that picture shows Jerome with little Daniel 30:31 and Judith on the left there in the polka dot dress. 30:34 And so they went off. 30:38 She was very solemn that day. 30:41 But he also knew that he had come home. 30:46 Sure. 30:47 He had come to a place where somebody actually 30:49 was going to take care of him. 30:50 And he wasn't going to have to wonder 30:51 what he's going to eat tomorrow or next week. 30:55 And so those are the kinds of stories that happen 31:00 when God is painting this picture 31:04 with our lives. 31:06 Amen. 31:07 You know, as I'm hearing this, this is the gospel. 31:10 This is what the gospel is all about. 31:12 It's all about making a difference 31:13 in other people's lives, 31:15 sharing the love and the light of Christ 31:17 from us to someone else. 31:18 As Christ changes us, and He's working in us 31:21 and makes us want to love and serve others around us. 31:23 And as I'm hearing you tell these stories, 31:25 wow, it's powerful. 31:27 In fact, we were actually blessed 31:29 because you're telling us all these wonderful stories. 31:31 We actually have a special guest with us 31:34 coming all the way from India via Skype we have with us, 31:38 Ms. Sharon Clinton, a chaplain. 31:41 I can say Chaplain Sharon Clinton, 31:43 because, Sharon, how are you? 31:45 Are you with us? 31:46 Can you hear us? Yes. 31:47 Wonderful. 31:49 It's a blessing to have you, Sharon. 31:50 And, you know what? 31:52 We want to take the next few minutes 31:53 just to talk to you 31:54 because we know that 31:56 International Children's Care Ministry 31:57 has blessed you tremendously 31:58 and has changed your life 32:00 and you probably wouldn't be where you are today without it. 32:02 And so I just want to just, 32:04 you know, start off by asking this, 32:05 asking you to tell us a little bit about yourself 32:07 and, you know, where you live and where you're serving 32:10 and what you're doing at this time? 32:13 Thank you so much for having me, Pastor Ryan. 32:15 It's so wonderful to meet you and your team. 32:18 Amen. 32:19 And my name is Sharon, like you mentioned. 32:21 And I've been part of Sweet Home 32:27 for about 10 years. 32:29 And at the moment I work in Spicer Adventist University, 32:35 situated in India, Pune, 32:38 as the assistant pastor, 32:41 as well as the associate professor 32:44 in the department of theology here at Spicer University. 32:48 And I live with my husband, 32:50 who I'm married to for about one and half year now, 32:53 and the Lord has been good to me. 32:56 Praise the Lord. 32:57 That's such a powerful blessing to see 32:59 where God's brought you, 33:00 but I'm curious, 33:02 you know, could you tell us a little bit 33:03 more as to how you came in connection 33:07 with International Children's Care Ministry 33:10 and how also you came in contact 33:12 with the Sweet Home Village in India. 33:13 So tell us a little bit about that? 33:16 All right. 33:17 It takes me back to the year 2000. 33:21 I was about nine years old then, 33:23 and it was in 2000, September, 33:28 in the month of September, 33:30 I think around seven or eight 33:32 was the day when I was brought to Sweet Home 33:35 by an Adventist pastor. 33:37 Now by then my dad had lost his wife, 33:42 that's my mother. 33:43 And it's been a couple of years 33:44 that my dad was on his own looking care, 33:47 looking after three little girls. 33:49 And it was quite a lot on my dad 33:52 trying to meet ends. 33:54 And looking after us 33:57 trying to find a way for us to have our schooling, 33:59 which was always his priority. 34:02 But unfortunately 34:04 he couldn't keep up with the pace 34:05 of how things were working out for him. 34:10 So I would say 34:13 it's the Lord's leading back to my dad, 34:15 not being an Adventist, 34:17 having an Adventist pastor as his friend, 34:21 it's the Lord's will. 34:22 And it was on a fine day 34:26 when my dad was almost not able to do anything 34:30 for his three little girls 34:31 that he met this Adventist pastor 34:34 who suggested that, 34:36 you know, if you can send two of your girls 34:39 to a place called Sweet Home, 34:42 which was about five hours drive away 34:44 from where my dad stays 34:47 and they said, you know, 34:48 your girls could get free education. 34:51 They could get free clothing. 34:54 They would be able to live lives 34:58 under proper schedule, 35:00 and they would have everything 35:02 that they would ever think of wanting to have. 35:04 And more than importantly 35:05 the pastor pointed out, and he said, 35:07 you know if you would like 35:09 to give your children a better future, 35:11 this home is the right place 35:14 that would give them everything that you ever want to. 35:18 So it was a battle for my dad 35:20 to leave his girls in such a place, 35:22 but yet he decided that 35:25 that's the best thing that he could do for us. 35:27 And so it was in the year 2000 35:31 that he brought us to Sweet Home 35:34 and I grew up in Sweet Home from then on 35:36 until the year 2010. 35:39 Later on, I went to Pune for my undergrad studies, 35:42 but I'm still connected to Sweet Home. 35:44 I talk to all the kids there to this day 35:47 Wow. Praise the Lord. 35:49 So tell us a little bit, 35:50 what was it like growing up in the village there? 35:52 What was life like at the village? 35:56 I would say that was a blessing. 35:59 Yes, being a nine year old, 36:01 my life was constrained about games 36:04 and enjoying all the little things in life, 36:08 but at the same time, I had strong women in life, 36:13 who pointed out the right direction to my life. 36:17 And the orphanage director, Mrs. Lily Kaligati 36:21 was looking after Sweet Home at that time. 36:23 She was a very strong woman in her own faith. 36:28 And being the little girl, I was, 36:31 she had to be a little strict for me 36:33 to get into line 36:34 of being the person that I should become. 36:37 So my life was filled with a lot of love, 36:40 a lot of protection, 36:42 and my life was filled with men and women 36:47 who played role of being the kind 36:50 of human sacrifice to them to be like. 36:53 So where I am today, what I am today 36:56 is because of all that blessings 36:58 that I have received. 37:00 Wow. Praise the Lord. 37:01 That's so awesome. 37:03 So I'm just curious. 37:04 So what inspired you to take theology 37:08 or to join in the theology track 37:11 in ministry? 37:15 That was a summer's dream. 37:18 As a child growing up, I had a number of ambitions. 37:21 I wanted to be an elementary teacher. 37:23 I wanted to be an air hostess. 37:26 I've been so much into reading. 37:29 So whatever character I could read 37:31 is what I imagined myself to grow out to be. 37:34 Right. 37:35 But it was this one summer 37:37 after I graduated my higher secondary school 37:41 that I was reading through a magazine. 37:45 Like I said, reading has played an important role in my life. 37:49 And my mom, Mommy Lily 37:52 would receive this magazine called as Gleaner. 37:54 It's a Seventh-day Adventist magazine. 37:58 And one fine day, 37:59 I picked up the magazine 38:01 and I said, let me read out 38:02 what the magazine has to tell me about. 38:05 So I've read interesting stories 38:09 through the magazine, 38:11 I left it on my bed and went along, 38:13 doing my chores and things that were assigned to me. 38:17 Then I come back to my bed that evening 38:20 to find the page 38:23 flipped to a little advertisement 38:26 that I've seen 38:27 where it says 38:29 come to Korea 38:31 and teach me Bible English. 38:36 I didn't think much about typically, 38:38 but then this was something that happened more than once, 38:43 it happened almost three or four times to me. 38:46 And I wondered, 38:48 what was the book trying to say to me, 38:51 until later on, I went to spoke to Mommy Lily 38:55 expressing that this is what is happening. 38:57 I don't if the Lord wants me to be in his ministry. 39:01 So she said, 39:03 Sharon, I know you are a very good girl. 39:06 You are a sweet person. 39:07 You have this, you know, notorious fight of who you are. 39:12 So I want you to prayerfully think about 39:15 what you want to become. 39:18 So she gave me about two weeks to pray 39:21 and ask the Lord 39:23 what His role in my life was. 39:25 At the end of two weeks 39:27 I come back to the same magazine 39:29 and I find the same beautiful advertisement 39:34 asking the world to come and teach the Bible 39:36 and English. 39:38 So then my heart was like, 39:41 I said, if this is what you want me to do 39:45 and this is where I'm headed. 39:47 So that was my first step into 39:51 wanting to get into theological studies. 39:54 And it didn't stop there. 39:57 When I came to the theology department 39:59 and I realized 40:00 there were not many women in the department. 40:04 I felt this is what the Lord wants to use me 40:08 to open more doors for young women 40:10 to come and experience 40:11 what we are experiencing as the women 40:14 in the department today. 40:16 Wow. Praise the Lord. 40:18 And it's amazing to see 40:19 how God has used this powerful ministry 40:22 to inspire you, 40:23 to encourage you to be where you are. 40:25 I mean, from a child, now you're a grown adult 40:28 and you're in ministry serving the Lord 40:30 in so many different aspects. 40:32 And so we're just so appreciative 40:33 of what God is doing through you. 40:35 And you know, just the final question here. 40:37 I'm just curious, you know, 40:39 with all that we're hearing over here in the US 40:41 in regards to the conditions and challenges 40:43 that people are facing in India 40:45 with this pandemic and COVID-19, 40:48 you know, what are some of your experiences there? 40:50 What have you, maybe some challenges 40:53 or some conditions that you've had to adjust 40:57 or work around in your ministry there in India? 41:02 One of the things that happened to our church 41:04 when the pandemic started was 41:06 not having the ability to go and work 41:09 with the online worship services. 41:11 So that was one of our biggest challenges 41:16 in the beginning of, 41:17 at the beginning of the pandemic. 41:19 But fortunately we had the Hope channel 41:23 who came forward to help us with that, 41:25 which made things so much easier. 41:28 But moving on one challenge after the other, 41:32 the second challenge was 41:34 we couldn't really get our community 41:37 to be acquainted 41:38 with the kind of worship services 41:40 that we were having because we have different age groups, 41:43 especially the retirees 41:46 and the seniors persons of our church, 41:48 they can't really understand 41:49 what this online services, what do they do, 41:53 how do they get to watch the services? 41:57 But fortunately 41:59 at the beginning of the pandemic we... 42:02 This country, India 42:04 did not have as much of a threat, 42:07 hence we pastors decided that 42:09 we would visit the homes of our senior citizens. 42:12 Help them out with how to watch our videos, 42:15 how to watch our worship services and so on 42:18 which was the response. 42:21 But then, of course, as time passed by 42:23 outreach ministry has become an issue for us, 42:26 we are not able to reach out 42:27 to as many people as we think we want to. 42:29 Sure. 42:31 With the fear of what can happen to them. 42:33 Of course, the pandemic has changed a lot of things. 42:37 So outreach ministry has become a challenge. 42:41 And then we have the ideas 42:46 of what to do and how to do 42:49 and how to reach different age groups 42:52 with the message of the gospel. 42:54 That's one of the challenges. 42:55 And of course the recent one is the loss of life 42:58 and helping the members of our church 43:01 cope up with the loss life among their own family members, 43:05 just over the telephone call. 43:07 So, these are some of the challenges. 43:10 Amen. Amen. Wow. 43:12 Well, we're definitely going to keep that in prayer. 43:13 I know, you know, I just want to make an appeal real quick 43:15 to all of our viewers at home, 43:17 keep our brothers and sisters in India in prayer. 43:20 You know, just some of the things 43:22 I'm watching and seeing 43:23 happening, you know, in the news 43:24 and just reading about it, it's just really heartbreaking, 43:26 but you know what, we know the Lord has a plan 43:29 and obviously, Sharon, He has a plan in your life 43:32 and He's been using you. 43:33 And we are so thankful that 43:35 you've had this opportunity to join us. 43:36 Thank you for sharing with us. 43:38 And we're going to continue 43:40 to pray for you and your ministry. 43:41 We know that the Lord has special things 43:43 for you moving forward. 43:45 Thank you. Amen. God bless you. 43:47 And we'll let you go at this time. 43:49 Thank you so much. Amen. 43:51 It's just powerful to see what the Lord is doing 43:53 through this amazing ministry 43:55 and I understand that you guys, 43:57 you guys have some new ventures 43:59 perhaps, maybe in Mexico, 44:00 maybe give us some updates 44:02 on what the ministry is doing moving forward? 44:04 Well, I wanted to just touch on a little bit, 44:07 the concept of industry. 44:09 Sure. 44:11 Now, there's kind of two ideas of industry 44:13 within ministries like this. 44:14 One is sort of the cottage industries 44:16 where children can learn 44:17 how to do things and handicrafts, 44:19 and we've done that 44:20 ever since the beginning, 44:22 but one of the things that we're starting to do 44:25 more recently is to do 44:27 some more commercial kinds of industry 44:30 to help provide support. 44:31 Sure. 44:33 And so right now we have, 44:36 I would say three that are fairly 44:39 in pretty good development stages. 44:41 One is in Congo in Africa 44:43 where we have a fish industry on the lake 44:47 because that's, of course, 44:48 being that it's an island on a big, huge lake. 44:50 That is, that's a really big thing there. 44:54 And so having these floating net places 44:58 where we can grow the fish and then sell them 45:01 is, is an industry that is just starting to go, 45:05 kind of got waylaid a bit by the pandemic. 45:08 But some donors helped us 45:12 with some funds to help do that. 45:14 Also we have a dairy in the Dominican Republic 45:16 that is really prospering. 45:19 Okay. 45:20 And we even have quite a few 3ABN people 45:24 who have been watching and listening 45:26 to some of the things that we're doing 45:28 that are helping us to buy cows and they can name the cow. 45:32 And, you know, it's kind of almost comical, 45:35 but, you know, they're having fun with that. 45:36 Yeah, yeah. 45:38 And another one we're doing, and we have a picture of this, 45:40 I think is in Mexico, 45:41 we have a pretty big farm there. 45:44 We've been farming about 70 acres 45:47 of jalapeno peppers. 45:50 Mostly jalapeno, 45:52 some other types of peppers as well. 45:55 And this is, this is a pretty big industry, 45:58 and we're hoping to grow 46:00 because we're in an area there 46:02 that has a lot of growth potential, 46:05 and what this is doing for us, 46:07 it's not only helping 46:08 to pay for the expenses of that project, 46:11 but they're actually, our hope is, and the plan is 46:14 that they can send money to Guatemala 46:17 or to Africa or to India or somewhere else, 46:20 you know, that they would have a surplus. 46:23 And so we work on these industries 46:25 to help find the resources 46:28 and, you know, God works in all kinds of different ways 46:31 to help us do this. 46:33 And I think the industry concept 46:35 is something that 46:37 a lot of people would prefer to do something 46:40 that is going to produce something else, 46:43 rather than just give money 46:44 that's going to be used right away. 46:46 And so it appeals to some people. 46:49 And in most of the industries, 46:50 the way we do it is that 46:52 we loan the money to the project 46:55 with the idea that they will pay it back 46:57 in a year or two. 46:58 And then that way we can loan that same money 47:00 to another place 47:01 and they can pay it back. 47:03 So it's sort of a revolving loan thing. 47:05 And it's been working, 47:07 we've been doing this now for several years 47:09 and it's growing. 47:10 So we're watching the Lord work in mysterious ways. 47:13 Of course. Wow. 47:15 That is amazing. 47:16 Praise the Lord for that, 47:18 you know, Pastor Rick, you're a pastor. 47:20 So I just want to... 47:21 I want to take, we have about four and a half minutes 47:23 before we go to our address roll. 47:25 But I just want to, 47:26 you know, let's bring this back 47:27 to the spiritual aspect of this now, 47:29 because there may be someone watching at home 47:32 who says, this is just for children. 47:33 But obviously this is for children, 47:35 this is for adults, this is for any anyone, 47:38 what is the spiritual significance 47:42 that is in connection 47:43 or tied to the work that you guys are doing? 47:45 I'm glad you asked that. 47:48 Jesus said, 47:50 hey, there's hungry people feed them. 47:51 That's right. 47:53 There's naked people, cloth them. 47:54 There's all kinds of people that are struggling 47:57 and stress and depressed. 47:59 And you got to love everyone. 48:01 The scripture says 48:02 the greatest love is loving orphans. 48:06 And so you got all these kids all over the world 48:09 and they're broken. 48:11 You talk about mending broken people. 48:13 Well, these are broken kids. 48:16 And as Rick mentioned 48:19 earthquakes, wars, natural disasters, 48:24 they've lost their parents. 48:25 They've lost their siblings. 48:27 They've lost their homes. 48:28 And when they're brought to our children's villages, 48:31 they're frightened, they're scared to death, 48:33 they're starving. 48:34 And they come into this environment 48:36 and they just get love, just tons and tons of love. 48:41 And the spirituality is these house parents, 48:45 these moms and dads in these homes. 48:47 These people are godly people. 48:49 They have a relationship with Jesus. 48:51 And so it's not just words, it's they, 48:53 they're living with these house parents 48:56 and these kids, they know Jesus 49:00 and there's texts that are emphasized. 49:04 Proverbs 3:5-6, 49:05 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, 49:06 lean not on your own understanding, 49:08 and God is going to direct your path." 49:11 This is just part of the spiritual foundation 49:15 in Psalm 23 and Psalm 103 49:19 and the Lord's Prayer. 49:20 These kids learn the Bible. 49:23 And when they go out 49:26 after these years and years 49:28 of being loved and educated, 49:30 when they go out, 49:32 they go out to change the world. 49:33 Absolutely. 49:34 And so, they are solid 49:37 Seventh-day Adventist Christians 49:39 and there's a phrase paying back. 49:41 They pay back to the organization, 49:43 they get involved, 49:45 they give money to the organization 49:46 after they get their jobs 49:47 and they pay forward. 49:49 So they're out in their communities 49:51 making an impact, making a difference. 49:53 Sure. 49:54 So thank you so much for that pastor. 49:55 I appreciate that. 49:57 Brother Rick, 49:58 what are some of the needs of the ministry, 49:59 as we're preparing to go to this address roll 50:01 in just a moment? 50:02 Tell us a little bit of some of the needs 50:04 of the ministry? 50:06 People can sponsor children. 50:09 That's really the biggest way 50:10 when Bob Falkenberg and my mother were talking, 50:14 she said, "How are we going to pay for this?" 50:15 Right. 50:16 He says, "It's simple. You get sponsors." 50:18 "Sponsors?" "Yeah. 50:20 You get sponsors." 50:21 And that's what we're doing. 50:23 And it doesn't necessarily mean that 50:24 you have to connect with a specific child 50:26 and be a sponsor, 50:28 but sponsoring in the sense that you are giving 50:30 on a regular basis or as you can. 50:33 Right now, the pandemic has created 50:34 a lot of havoc. 50:36 Sure. 50:37 Prices have gone up 50:39 and there's all kinds of need everywhere. 50:40 Amen. 50:42 It's just something that is on and on and on. 50:45 And I really believe that 50:46 God is bringing this to a close. 50:48 For sure. 50:49 We're looking so forward 50:50 to meeting with these kids around Jesus' feet in heaven. 50:53 Amen. Amen. 50:55 Praise the Lord. 50:56 If you've been tuning in with us this last hour, 50:58 then you know that we've been talking about 51:01 International Children's Care Ministry. 51:04 Jesus loves the little children, 51:06 just like the song says, right? 51:07 And as you have seen this past hour, 51:10 this ministry is doing powerful things 51:12 to reach the hearts and minds of the little ones. 51:14 And they're growing up 51:16 and becoming powerful men and women 51:18 in Jesus Christ. 51:19 You may be watching this 51:21 and the Lord has impressed upon you 51:23 to donate, to help, to pray 51:26 and maybe you want to get in contact with the ministry 51:28 further to know 51:29 other further ways 51:31 of how you might can help as well. 51:32 At this time we want to go to an address roll 51:35 which you can write down the information. 51:36 I encourage you, write it down, take down the address, 51:39 the phone number, the website, all of that. 51:41 So you can learn how you can support 51:43 International Children's Care Ministry. 51:48 International Children's Care is dedicated to the care 51:51 education and spiritual growth 51:54 of orphaned and vulnerable children 51:55 in underdeveloped countries. 51:57 For more information about them or to support their efforts, 52:00 please visit their website at forhiskids.org 52:04 That's for, f-o-r, forhiskids.org. 52:09 You may also call them at (800) 422-7729, 52:14 or email them at info@forhiskids.org 52:18 Their mailing address is PO Box 520610, 52:22 Vancouver, Washington 98682. |
Revised 2021-06-20