While I can sit here and write that we have become a Christ-based organization because of our love of Jesus, that would not be the truth. The foundation is a Christ-centered organization because of His love for us! Often, we fail to see God's presence in our lives, but I sit here trying to explain how God has worked His plan to be where we are.
You see, I do not know GIVE's start date; only God knows. For He placed that work in my grandfather's heart, and He is the one that has placed it in my heart to continue it. Proverbs 16:9 reads, "The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." Even when I was away from Him and lost, He was near me, making my path straight again. Failure after failure, and one earthly desire after another, He has brought me back home after creating tears and tears in the heart of the people I love.
I tell those who know my story that my walk with Jesus can be described as the path of someone that goes from unemployed (and not seeking), part-time, to full-time. This also has been the path for GIVE. From 2011 to 2015, I was not seeking Jesus, and even though I prayed (sporadically) for Him to allow the foundation to begin, it was not time. In 2015, I started my walk back to God, and I began to search for refuge; I began my part-time (lukewarm) walk with Jesus. Two years later, and after the start of a successful business, the foundation was born. In 2017 we began the nutrition program; in 2019, we expanded to the education program.
In 2019, I was baptized, new creation, dying to self, and accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior. Looking back, I was buried in 2019 but never died to self. God called me, and I did not respond.
What happens if you lose it all?
That was the question I was asked not long after my baptism; I knew what that meant but was not sure how it would all come to pass. In 2021, I died and lost it all; my desires changed, and I found life, grace, peace, and love. In 2021, I became a full-time Christ-follower, imperfect as I am (and that's okay). During this year, the foundation was close to shutting its doors. But Matthew 25 was the answer to our prayer and petition on how we are to go. Specifically, Matthew 25:35-36, "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me..." God has provided the resources for us to continue His work, but we now can see what we were missing. In 2021, we realized that GIVE was missing its most important program, THE HOUSE. A youth ministry that will provide a space for the youth to hang out and hear God's word.
Just as in my life, GIVE has gone through the process of bringing Jesus as the cornerstone of everything we do. Trials are needed to rely on His grace and give Him glory for all that we can do. While we knew that this foundation did not belong to us from the start, we had not publicly proclaimed who's it was. This foundation belongs to God and we are tools to reflect his goodness and faithfulness. GIVE has died and is now a new creation, proclaiming Jesus Christ as King. This foundation is a Christ-centered organization because in Him we find all that we need.
Scripture
Colossians 3:17 -
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed,
do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God the Father through him."
Isaiah 40:31 -
But those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.
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