The images and stories of the destruction and despair in Haiti have been overwhelming.  Yet, amidst the tragedy, I have been reminded that there is hope.

A young girl, Abby who is just six years old was moved with compassion to do something to help.  Here is a portion of her story as told by her mother:

“Our pastor mentioned that a special offering was going to be collected for the people of Haiti the following Sunday and he challenged many of the children to participate as well.  Our daughter, Abby, personally took that challenge and come Wed night, she decided to host her own violin concert for our family where the admission cost was going to be donated to Haiti.  She made her own sign and hung it up in the kitchen.  So we each paid $1 (we have 2 other daughters) and enjoyed a wonderful performance.  Now ...

As I sat this morning watching my son’s basketball game, I was struck by how life goes on, even in the midst of great tragedy. 

We have to go to work, our kids have to go to school, meals have to be made, and errands have to be run . . .  life goes on.

But, as my life goes on, I cannot get the heartbreaking images out of my head.

-The little girl with cute braids and glasses trapped and screaming from fear and pain

-The fifteen-day-old baby with severe head lacerations

-The mother standing by the school where her son had last been, crying out his name

-The mass graves being filled with bodies that no one has claimed, and no one even knows their names

So, while my life goes on, for millions of Haitian people, their lives have come to an unbearable, screeching halt....

Have you seen the news?  If you are like me you can barely stand to watch.  The images are heartbreaking.

I try to imagine what it would be like to lose everything in one instant – your home, belongings, necessities and even the ones you love. 

What makes the situation in Haiti even worse is that the people there already live in severe poverty.  Now they have lost what little they had.

Preliminary reports indicate that hundreds of thousands are feared dead – and that does not include all the injured, wounded and displaced.

To read more about what World Help is doing to help the people in Haiti and meet these incredible needs, click here.

Please pray with me for the people of Haiti.  Pray that God can use us to provide hope in the midst of great desperation.

Over the holidays I was doing some work in my office when my 7- year- old son walked in.  I was watching a new causelife video that we have produced to get the word out about the need for clean water. 

As I was intently watching and critiquing the video, I did not realize that my son was also watching it, but with a set of fresh, young eyes. 

He saw the pictures of people in desperate need and listened to how the lack of clean water affected every area of their lives. 

He turned to me and said, “Mom, is that all it takes?”

I said, “Is that all it takes for what?”

He said, “ Is that all it takes to give someone water – only $15?”

When I said yes, he quickly stated, “Well, I can do that!”

He had ...

As a little girl, I heard my dad tell the stories of his travels to Romania.  I heard of the great persecution that the believers there faced during those difficult times.  He told me stories of smuggling Bibles in, meeting in secret and armed soldiers standing guard at each church service.  He was detained at the border many times – sometimes for hours – and followed by the secret service.

He told me about a church that the government wanted to knock down.  The night before it was scheduled for demolition, the church members locked themselves in the building and prayed all night.  The next morning, the soldiers left and the building was saved.

The story I remember most was about my dad’s close Romanian pastor friend.  During the years of Communism, his wife was diagnosed with cancer.  The bone marrow transplant surgery that she needed was only ...