Impacting Bogota

First of all I have to apologize once again for my absence for a few weeks. Between starting the semester, moving, and work I have been crazy busy! I'm not making excuses just being honest.

We have been able to move into an apartment just this week! Thank you Jesus! With a very gracious gift from a friend we were able to put furniture into the house to make it livable. We were able to get a washing machine, refrigerator, beds, sofa/cama, curtains, and the odds and ends necessary for living. The apartment has a 3 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms and an office. This has been such a blessing to Oscar and I and confirmation from God that The Road to Bogota Ministries is where it needs to be. It also told me God has plans for me to be in Bogota for an extended period of time. Dave and Gail from OHI are also staying with us when they are in Bogota, which is quite frequently. Its nice to get some ministry advice from someone more experienced and honestly its nice to spend time with fellow Americans that are here for the same cause and speak a little English. The idea is to make the extra room here available for families that are in the processes of adoption to try and cut some prices where we can. The price is high but with God's help we will find a way to lower costs and help His children find families. Thats another reason we have 2 sofa/camas; to house a few more people. This is a house of ministry and in Jesus name the people coming in and out of this house will be impacting Bogota in such a way it will spread to other cities and after other countries. I remember getting the opportunity when I was in about 5th or 6th grade to go to a camp with TBarM. I remember the counselor telling my mom one day I would impact lives and possibly many lives. At the time I never dreamed of this. I still don't understand why God has been so good to me. People ask what my work is and sometimes I just smile and say, "I work for the King." Often times my work is just laying in the grass and talking, playing soccer, playing Uno, or something as simple as listening. My job here is to love. I was given a Fathers heart a few years back and I understand why I have that now. I am here simply to love His children and through that these children are finding hope and faith in the Father. Again its such a blessing to witness this and be on His front lines first hand. As I have been studying this week I came upon a passage that really made me thing. In Luke 17:7-10, Jesus tells His disciples a story on being a servant. Jesus says to His followers, "Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink?' Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'" As I have been reflecting on this passage I am not as "awesome" or "radical" as people have told me. I am simply doing as my Master has told me. He told me sell all I own and come to Bogota. He reveals new work for me day by day. He deserves the glory not myself; as His Word says, "I am an unworthy servant doing my duty." I am taking a class now in seminary based on being and building servant leaders. As leaders we should be the greatest servant and see ourselves as the least among people. Its been a big confirmation in my life because here I often put myself last and do it lovingly.

Now I'm sure everyone wants to here about the kids. They are still just as great. Last week I had a little 8 year old girl jump into my arms and tell me, "I don't know you but I want to." My heart just crushed and I held her for quiet a while after that. Its such a blessing to have them come running to me knowing I am there to just love on them at the least. I get to spend great time with Sofia, the God daughter of my parents, and her best friend Laura, the God daughter of great friends of mine. They together are too much but such a blast. A few weekends ago we were able to take the girls out of the house for some time with us. They got to see a movie and loved it. Sofia had never seen an elevator or even been on one. Needless to say that occupied her and Laura for about 20 min going up and down the emergency elevator in the move theater. The next day we took them shopping. Both of these girls really don't have much, so we bought them what they needed. Now both of these girls are very selfless so after the yes its ok to buy necessities when they are needed talk, they got going. Sofia got shoes, a backpack, and all the girly lotion, shampoo, etc. she could need. She was a little embarrassed but so grateful. She told my Godmother, "my mom has never spent 100,000 pesos (aprox. $50) on me. When Chris paid 500,000 pesos (aprox. 250) for things I needed I was embarrassed because this is the first time anyone has ever taken care of me like that or even loved me like that." Now I have to put on a tough guy front with these girls and I won't cry in front of them, but many nights I go into my room and cry and pray for their hurts. I have often asked God to take their hurts and put them on me. Its very hard to see these girls hurt and if I could take their hurt and pain and see them smile, I would gladly do it. That afternoon I went into my room and cried at just those words. That same day we took them bowling. Something else neither of them have been able to experience. That was such a great time seeing those girls learn to bowl and laugh and joke as they threw it down the gutter over and over. I have also got to spend a lot of time with my Goddaughter Louisa. I now understand the statement, "when tough little boys grow up to be dads they turn into big babies again." Now Louisa isn't my daughter but I love her as I would imagine loving my own. I was blessed with the opportunity to help her learn to walk. I spent weeks of walking her around the house and even a day at Santa Maria with her holding my finger. About two weeks ago, I showed up to the house and she came walking with arms wide open up to me, showing all 8 of her teeth! I wanted to cry but I scooped her up as she gave me slobbery kisses. She is defiantly spoiled rotten already. She knows when I come I will either have a lollipop or a little chocolate for her and she looks for it. She also loves the phone so she now has a princess Blackberry and its great fun watching her "talk" on it.

I will be leaving to go back to Texas for two weeks next Sunday and honestly I have mixed emotions about it. I can't wait to see friends and family and I know I have to meet with certain people and also raise funds and awareness so I can continue living here. I am working with a foundation but they cannot pay me and I live completely on faith and other peoples donations to my ministry. On the other hand, I will be without my children for 2 weeks. Thats hard for me but I know Oscar will be taking great care of them and keeping me updated! Thank you Jesus for internet! Until next time friends, God bless you all and thank you for your prayers and financial support!


From His Front Lines,

Chris

Moving

A blog is coming soon, I promise! I am in the process of moving/assembling furniture and hanging curtains. I definately was not made for this but God is working in me! I will have internet in the house soon, I pray and then I can blog more frequently. Other that that all is going well here in Bogota and I will update more hopefully by this weekend! Thank you all for your support and prayers! Can't wait to see many of you when I make it to Texas next weekend!

The Road to Bogota Ministries

These past few weeks have been a blur and very, very busy! I think where we last left off I was begging to plan the trip for OHI to visit. Never did I realize how much work was put into organizing these trips. I spent countless hours making sure everything was perfect and even though we had a few things come up the trip was a success. The week before the trip was full of nothing but phone calls and emails and searching the web to make sure we had the perfect restaurants and routes for the bus. Was everything flawless? No not at all but it was part of the "elastico" experience. For those that don't know what that is, it's something only learned in Colombia and your next chance to learn about this will be in June. Keep following and I will get you the dates when I have them. :) Some of the OHI veterans said this was the best they have experienced in their years coming here which was a sigh of relief. Overall the trip was a success. We completed our task of bringing God's light into these homes and not only changing the lives of the children but those who serve them as well. The kids were so excited "the gringos" were here to visit them. A lot of them were excited to meet my mother, who got to spend a life changing week here in Bogota. I was very excited to see my mother after being gone for nearly 4 months but I was more excited for her to experience a week in my ministry. When I left I was very unsure about what exactly I was supposed to be doing and who I was working for/with. I knew I was coming with God and that was it. When the board of OHI arrived they were very impressed with the work of "The Road to Bogota Ministries." I haven't even thought about forming my own ministry but in just doing what God has told me I had formed my own ministry without even knowing it. I have have no idea how to run or organize a ministry but God has taken care of all of that. I just love His children and share His light with them. Now I'm looking at what it takes to make this all official when I get home. I have even been advised by the board that this is a prospering ministry and it needs to be set up and established with more than just a name. They are grateful to be working on the same team as me and vise versa with them. We have both physically and spiritually seen how God is moving here in Colombia and we are very grateful to be a part of the action.

The kids are great. Absolutely precious. Everyday with them is a new adventure and I never know what to expect from them. Some days they just want to play all day; other days we have Bible studies and they ask any question they can think of about a relationship with Christ. We are experiencing a growing interest in Christ now that started with a group of 4 or 5 girls that were just curious. The Bible study in Santa Maria has grow into probably a group of about 10 girls. Every time we visit they ask for study materials or promise cards. These were cards we found that give God's promises with a scripture that we began giving to the girls. Now its something we have to bring every week for the girls. We also have about 12 new girls in the young mothers/expecting mothers class in San Miguelito.  After working with this now bigger group for a few more weeks we have also experienced a growing interest in a relationship with Christ over just religion. We even have a handful of them saying they weren't there when we distributed Bibles and they would like one to study daily. Today I purchased another box of Bibles to distribute to these girls. Oscar and I are seeing lives changing daily and every week we begin seeing new women with more confidence and more strength. We are very grateful to be His hands and feet here and without the support we receive from home this would be a tough journey. Thank you all for your prayers and financial support. With this team we have back in the States this ministry is developing strength day by day and is making a name for the Kingdom! Glory be to Him! Oscar and I are merely vessels of His love that He is using to change lives! Be sure to view the photos on Flickr and if you have not yet been added please send me an email! I will be adding the photos from our trip as I have time, there is a lot to upload but they are getting there! Also The Road to Bogota Ministries is working on a video so be on the look out for that! Love you all very much!

From His Front Lines,

Chris

A New Year in Bogota

Just less than a week ago I sat in my room as we welcomed 2012. Normally, I'm spending time with my family but this year was different, as a matter of fact it was very different. I was staring down Carrera 68. This particular street is full of bars and clubs and as I watched the partying in the street I asked myself, "what am I doing in Bogota, Colombia." As I thought about it, God made it very clear. I am here following my heart as I search for His. I couldn't be more blessed than seeing my children here in Bogota to end 2011 and begin 2012. Already my heart has been stolen left and right by these children. Today I spent the morning with Luisa. She is 12 months and so close to walking. She can take one or two steps and then falls into my arms. The best part of this morning was when I walked into her room of the nursery. She was the only one awake and standing in her crib. As I peeked around the door her eyes lit up and a smile of new teeth appeared. It was absolutely priceless. I had a great morning loving on her and seeing her laugh. When it came time to leave I even got besos, full of slobber but absolutely precious! There is also another little one in Santa Maria that has stolen my heart. Her name is Nicole and she is 6 years old. She is now the youngest and Santa Maria and doesn't mind being "my baby" there. I am greeted by a little one pushing her way to the front to hug me and tell me she loves me and its amazing every time. We also had a group of girls accept Christ as their savior this week in Santa Maria. The months of relationship building have started to bear fruits. We also have another young lady that is very against religion but now has many questions and our conversation this week brought her to tears. I feel in my spirit she is very close to finally breaking down but the Lord will do it all in His time. I have been building relationships with the older girls of this house. These are typically the girls that are overlooked because they are to old to be adopted and in their eyes everyone just loves the "chiqitas" more. We spend a lot of time chatting with them and playing sports or having lunch and other things. It has been very humbling to have some of them share their stories with us. One of them in particular really breaks my heart. I was talking with Cristina Monday and I asked her how long she has lived at Santa Maria. Her answer was only 4 years. In my mind I thought, "only?!?" Then she followed that by saying she has lived in institutions for 17.5 years. Cristina is 18 years old. She also shared that she has 2 younger sisters that have been adopted and live in Atlanta but she wasn't able to be adopted because of her age. Hearing that my heart absolutely broke. She is a beautiful girl that does so well in school, despite her rough life. Institutions are all she knows. She has graduated high school and will be attending a tech school for 2 years to learn English and pursue a career as a flight attendant. I have been helping her with her English and she is beginning to have more questions regarding a relationship with Christ. Other than that I have been extremely busy helping plan the upcoming mission trip for OHI. They will be here next Saturday and we are very excited. I am excited to share my work with the team so they can see my everyday life here as well as see my mother. This has been the longest I have ever been away from family and yes its rough but the Lord gives my new strength everyday. We have a week full of great fun and quality time with the children. If you won't be here next week I highly encourage you to take a look at coming in June. The need here in Colombia is great and the children are absolutely amazing! You will be welcomed with opened arms and leave with memories that will be impossible to forget. Check out our website at www.orphanhopeintl.org Also to see pictures of my work here in Bogota find me on Flickr and I will add you to view the private photos, they are great fun to see! The Flickr page is Theroadtobogota. Until next time, thank you all for your prayers and support! From His Front Lines, Chris

Flickr has been created

As I mentioned in my last post the photos will now be posted in a private group by invite only. Now in order for me to invite you please send me an email with your Flickr user name (if you dont have one just your email) and I will add you to the group. Thank you all for taking the extra time to view both sites. On the blog I am limited to the number of photos I can upload but on Flickr I am not. This morning I uploaded 100 new photos of my first Christmas here in Colombia as well as many more of the children and the Christmas celebration with them. Thanks for all you do and God bless!

Send your emails to: chris.poole@orphanhopeintl.org

From His Front Lines,

Chris Poole
James 1:27

Merry Christmas from Bogota

First and foremost I have to apologize for being absent for so long. The Christmas season here was very busy for me. I'm gonna try my best to catch yall up on events. Second I have been asked to no longer publish photos on my blog. Its for the protection of the children. Many of them are in protective custody for various reasons and I would never want to put them into danger. I am however able to post them to a private photo sharing web site that requires a user name and password. I think this will be better anyways because it gives me the opportunity to post more than 3 or 4 pictures and you are able to see more activities and more smiles. I am in the process of setting this up now that I have a few weeks off of school. Once it is up and running I will let you all know and you can email me for the name and password.

Since my last update I have been able to experience many different things. One thing that still sticks in my mind is I was finally able to spend a night in one of the homes. I slept in one of their beds and showered in their showers. I have to admit it was a very eye opening experience. That night I could hardly sleep because I was freezing (wearing sweat pants and the same sweatshirt they have). The next morning I took a freezing shower. When I say freezing I'm not sure if you can imagine it because I never knew water that cold existed. These kids do it everyday. I don't have much here but I am very thankful for the things I do have.

Second I saw a group of girls graduate high school. Even in their circumstances they did something that many people don't do. I watched them receive their diplomas with smiles on their faces and with faces proud of accomplishment. They girls received flowers and a graduation ring for their hard work. I was able to be a part of the ceremony by giving the girls their rings. It was very humbling to see some of my new friends in tears thankful for my help. I was a very proud brother that day, seeing my sisters receive diplomas and tell us their future dreams and where they will be studying now.

Third, I was able to be a part of a Christmas celebration for the children here. I was a part of giving gifts to approximately 600 children. The smiles were unexplainable! My heart was full of joy being able to experience that! They girls and boys that were a little older all received brand new clothes and the younger children brand new toys. We had games and skits for them and an incredible lunch. It was very humbling to see this. The kids were so excited to receive something despise their circumstances. I also saw many tears that day for some of the children were spending their first Christmas without their families. I was able to share with them that this is also my first Christmas without my family. As I shared my happiness with them I was able to see smile emerge from behind eyes full of tears. We also shared gifts with my "princessas". It was small but all I could do. It was bracelets, lollipops, and pony tails but the girls absolutely loved it. They then asked where my gift was. As I thought about it I quickly answered, "your smiles are more than enough for me." They are a large part of the reason I came back to Bogota and their happiness is all I need. I also bought a case of 24 Bibles to give to my class of pregnant mothers for Christmas. They have been asking for weeks now for complete Bibles and I finally found a company here willing to help my ministry. The young girls were more than excited that I remembered this seemingly small request and many of them said that was the best gift they have received.

This has been my first Christmas away from home. Honestly it doesn't even feel like Christmas to me. Tradition here is so different. I really miss my family but God has provided me with one here in Bogota. I am very blessed with the family I received. I prayed for friends and guidance here and the Lord provided me with a family. We were able to have 3 of the girls from the foundation spend the weekend with us to celebrate Christmas. This was the closest thing to Christmas any of them have ever had. Most of them don't have good memories of their families and have lived in institutions for more than 5 or 6 years. I once again was humbled to spend my first Colombian Christmas with some of my sisters here in the foundation. I would love to keep writing but we have promised hamburgers and ice cream for dinner and my name is being called in the kitchen. Thank you all for your love and support! and Merry Christmas!


From His Front Lines,

Chris Poole
James 1:27

Location:Bogota, Colombia

Sorry for the dela

I am working on my next blog. However without wifi at home and my final for school next Friday things are a little hectic! It will be up soon! Thanks for the support and God bless you!