Funny Song

SCC Song...

One more quick post this morning. I just found this song this morning. It is from Steven Curtis Chapman. It was written about a school shooting in Steven's home town but it reminds me of his daughter "Maria" who passed way to be with the Lord a few months back now. It is playing in the background.

Let's all remember to continue to pray for this family, especially with the Holiday season coming. I cannot even imagine the emotions that they must deal with every day of their lives.

-Bill.

Decision Update!

Hi all, I'm back again. I now have some direction. In my last post I hinted to the fact that I feel I have been called into some sort of ministry work. Well, long story short I have come full circle back to China, Orphans and Bring Me Hope. I feel that God is calling me to play a larger role in this organization and after several "LONG" phone calls with David it has all been confirmed.

I will admit that I didn't see this opportunity as a "Mission" but then I remembered the verse that says, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." - James 1:27 (NIV). I have read this verse for years now but I never thought of it as a calling but then I realized that all of God's work is a calling. From the secretary at a church to the man in the mission field in India. In God's eyes there are no small tasks that bring glory to his kingdom.

Isn't it nice to know that God's ideas and definitions are so much greater than our own?

I will ask for prayer during this time as the Deceiver has tried to make me feel unworthy of service. We all have sin in our lives and we all struggle with it. I have been so focused on thinking that I must be perfect to do God's work but I was reminded by a friend last week that if I was truly perfect I would most likely not be on this earth anymore but be sitting next to our Saviour in Heaven. I don't think God is done with me quite yet - I hope!

So here's the sales pitch - sign up to go to camp. It WILL change your life forever. BMH Camp - click here

More to come... Bill

PS - Martin, if you are reading this, thank you for being such a good friend. I appreciate your comments and encouragement more than you know.

Hi Everyone, I'm back.. for now?

First off, Hello to everyone out there who had followed my blog. I have to apologize for not writing in such a long time. A lot has been going on with me and decisions that I am trying to make. In short I believe that God is calling me into the ministry. I am not exactly sure what that means. It could be church work or possibly mission work. As you all know I have a very strong heart for those in China, along with my family. Ever since the trip to the camp a change took place in my life. A verse that has stuck with me since is Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." Never before has this verse meant so much to me.

I use the analogy of wearing a mask to describe how this verse effected me while I was in China. The short of it is that when I was there, surrounded by strangers, I felt as though I was wearing a mask and I could do things that I wouldn't normally do. There was no fear of rejection or judgement simply because I didn't know these people and did not think that I would see most of them once the camp was over. The realization that I took from this was that, it wasn't that I couldn't do something but that I wouldn't do something out of fear, pride or whatever the excuse would be behind the circumstance. God spoke to me on that trip and has been speaking to me ever since. He has let me see that the life that I have been living was not furthering the Kingdom and in the end that is all this life is ever about.

I would ask for prayers during this time as God reveals to me the exact path that I am to follow. In the meantime I have decided to jump in and volunteer whenever and where ever I can. I would challenge all of you out there to do the same. There is so much more to life than money, work, television... and the list goes on. There is always someone out there in a worst situation than we are and we can help and make a difference.

I will apologize again for not writing for a while and will make it a goal to write more and let everyone know what is going on in my life and the life of my family.

Abby's 5th Birthday Party

Hi all. I haven't written in a little while - sorry about that. Got a little busy with everything.

Today we celebrated Abby's 5th birthday with the family. It was a fun day - High School Musical Theme. Those of you who do not know, Abby is very into HSM right now. Corbin Bleu (spelling) is her new boyfriend or so she will tell you. We all had a lot of fun and ate too much. Two cakes - one to celebrate Deb's birthday also which was back on Thursday. Next weekend we celebrate Abby's actual birthday at Disney. She is getting to eat breakfast with Mickey at "Chef Mickey's". Here are some pictures below of the party. I am going to upload some video clips as well, maybe in a separate post.

Beijing Olympics with kids

Hi all,

Here is a link below to an NBC coverage clip of David bringing 5 of the orphans from the Beijing camp to the Olympics. There is a short commercial before you play the clip.

http://video.nbcsandiego.com/player/?id=286883

Videos from Camp

These are videos from the Zhengzhou Camp for all four weeks.

Video Week 1:

Video Week 2:

Video Week 3:

Video Week 4:

Things may be changing... ??

Well, things may be changing around our household. Those of you who followed the trip to China know that I was paired with a boy named Billy for a week (Lu is his Chinese name). I was able to make a special bond with him and at the end of camp he made a statement to me that has not left my mind (or Debbie's) which was "Why has no one adopted me?" This has not left either one of our hearts and minds ever since he said it. 

We thought we would dig into his situation a little more and found out that he is new to the system (not sure why) and that they are getting paperwork ready for him to be put onto a list. Thank you Rosa for helping with this. We found out that he is actually 12 years old contrary to what I was told in China. He just celebrated his 12th birthday in July. Debbie and I have been talking, debating, or whatever you want to call it about whether or not we could try to adopt this boy and if we should. We know for certain that God has put him on our hearts but we just are not 100% sure for what purpose. I told Debbie the other day that we should first find out his situation before racking our brains on what we should or shouldn't do. Then pray really hard and hope for a fast answer, that is if we do not already have it and are just not open to hearing it.

Now we are at that point. There are still some questions out there but we do know that it is at least "possible" that we could adopt him. I really miss being over in China without all of the distractions and "spoiledness" (not really a word) that I have here in the States. This question would not have been nearly as hard over there but for some reason I get home and things become difficult again. God clearly calls out that we are to take care of the "widows and orphans". Why is this so hard? I am so worried about what this would do to our family structure and the room/bathroom situations. It's funny, I shared a bathroom with 8 people in China and I am worried about Abby and Jadyn having to share a bathroom with just one. Plus there is the fact that Abby would have to move into Jadyn's room. Growing up there were times when we four boys would share a room but the room was never as small as they make bedrooms these days. Just another part of the "spoiledness".

I guess I am just writing this all now, because I have not posted in a while and wanted you to know why. This has consumed a lot of our conversations, along with watching the AWESOME Phelps win all those medals. I would ask for your prayers at this time while we go through the emotions and decisions that will have to be made. Also about how this will all play out physically, mentally, monetarily, etc... One thing that hasn't changed is the cost of going through an adoption - correction - it has changed, it's more now and takes quite a bit longer. At 12 years old he will not have much time left to either be adopted or finish his growing years in an orphanage. He is a very bright boy with dreams for the future. I do believe whatever happens God will watch over him.

Bill

Friday Morning

Friday is here. I have been home for 5 days now. Sorry for not posting anything much since. I have been very tired and trying to adjust back to US time. I also got a cold that kicked in by Tuesday. I want to thank everyone again for following the journey at camp and for the prayers. The family and I really appreciate it. 

I have to admit that it was a little hard coming home and going back to work. It is like coming down from such a high and back into the grind. It is so easy to lose sight of all you have learned. Debbie and I are talking and praying a lot about what God would have us to do for the future. We both feel such a strong connection to Billy, my buddy from last week and for China in general. I am not sure if any of you were able to see the latest Steven Curtis Chapman (and family) interviews over the past few days but they were amazing. That family is truly an inspiration. I just read an article this morning about a building that the Maria fund will be putting up. It happens to be in Louyang which by coincidence ( or God's plan) is where one of the large group of kids came from for the week two camp. It is so easy to see God's plan when you trace things backwards. I wish we had a better glimpse of them before they happened or at least looked and listened more to hear from him. In the last few days I have seen a lot of things that would lead me to believe that there is a plan that I am not fully aware of, or willing to accept yet. Pray for us that we will see a clear path for what God wants us to do.

Well, Olympics start tonight. It should be a very good show. One thing I can say from experience is China likes to go big with things so this should be BIG. 4-1/2 hours and counting... 

Bill

Monday morning - I'm home!

I just wanted to do a quick post and let everyone know that I got home. It was 4:00 am Sunday morning. I want to thank all of you for your prayers and for the calls to Debbie and being there for her and the rest of the family. I do have a small cold that was kind enough to wait until I got home to kick in. I went to bed at 10:30 last night and woke up at 9:45 this morning. I am still a little tired and may crash again.

Thank you again to everyone and please continue to pray for the following two weeks of camp.

Bill

Friday afternoon

Hi all,

It is 6:00 pm Friday night. My last post left me at finding some of the others. I went down to the cafeteria and made the rounds talking to a few people like little Sarah, Tilly and Katie and Steve. I was also able to meet one of the new translators for next week. Here name is Yvonne. She was at the Beijing camp last year. She came over to me in the cafeteria and introduced herself and just started talking about camp and asking questions. I think the conversation lasted about 20 minutes and when I was ready to leave for lunch she asked if I could get a picture with her. It was really kind of cool that she would want that after only a 20 minute talk. She is studying technology. She said that the men say that the women would not be able to do this and the 3 out of 10 people in the class are girls. She spoke perfect english, probably better than me. She is going to be staying for the rest of the camp. I am a little envious. Part of me wishes that I could stay for the next two weeks also.

Me, Chris and Bob went to the Cafe to get some lunch. I got a Hawaiian pizza. It was okay. Also the Cherry Coke is a favorite here. Not sure why though. I couldn't really taste a difference. It is 10 qui in the cafe and 2.5 at the store. 10 qui is about $1.25. Qui is the same as Yuan (RMB), just slang, I think. As soon as I was finished it was time for the second group to leave. That was Kate's and Byron's. that group did pretty good or at least the kids did. I am not sure about the volunteers. Kate had asked how to say "I love you". Both of her kids said it back to her which was cool. I was even able to get a hug from the boy with her. They just love the affection. Byron was a basket case (sorry man if you are reading this. Go and take that bubble bath and maybe get a manicure,  j/k).

Sorry I have to stop here in the middle but it is time to go to the ceremony for the translators.

Okay back to Byron... Really man, you are amazing. I am so moved the a young guy like you was so moved and touched by these children. It gave me so much joy to see you show your heart the way you did. Love you Bro.

Probably less than 30 minutes later the last bus came. This one had Alan's kids on it. This one was really rough. One thing you new for sure during craft time and lunch time was if Alan was in the room you could hear his boy calling for him "ALAN!!!" It was so funny. Well, we heard this sound one more time but there was no laughter. There were only tears. You could see this little boys hand reaching out the window towards him as the van was pulling away. Tears running down his face. Alan is such an amazing guy - Ladies out there he is single and would make the most amazing father. I am going to miss him quite a bit. 

This van also had Joy on it. Joy is the little girl that I have already talked about with the burns on her face. I cannot remember if I had written about the experience that I have had with her at camp. It has not been much in quantity. The first interaction I had with her was just before one of the assemblies when she came and sat on my lap. Today when I went to find the rest of the kids still here I ended up finding Joy, literally and spiritually. While I was having the conversation with Yvonne Joy had come up to me and sat on my lap, face to face and then put her head on my shoulder for probably 10 or 15 minutes. I almost thought for a minute that she had gone to sleep. Then she popped up and asked in Chinese if I could come back with her to the orphanage. I wasn't sure what to say. I asked Yvonne to let her know that I would if I could. She made the AWE sound like she was upset about it an then gave me a big squeeze and a kiss on the cheek. I don't know how common it is for that to happen but I had not seen it in the time that I have been here. Well, it gets even better (no tears, just Joy). I made it a point to be there when she left. She made the rounds giving hugs to everyone there and then when she saw me she jumped up into my arms and gave me an enormous hug. There was a translator standing close by that she asked again if I would come with her. I simply said "I wish". She did the AWE sound again and the another big hug and kiss on the cheek. It made me feel so special that she would do that without even knowing me. I will be honest that when David told me she would be back at the camp this year I was scared. I didn't know how I would be able to handle looking into the face of this child. God knew though. When she jumped up into my arms and never even saw scars, just Love and Joy. I have to tell you that this camp with change your life. You can read all of these blog entries and maybe shed a few tears of sadness and joy but I don't think anyone can truly understand what this is like without being here. It is a life experience and one that has changed me into someone that I never thought I could be. Follow God's plans and do those scary things and I promise you that God will meet you there.

After the last batch of kids left and the MAN group consisting of Adam, Byron, Chris, Kyle, Jay and myself went out to get some cokes, ice cream, etc... This is the same group that was crying their eyes out 30 minutes ago. Oops did I type that out loud, sorry guys. We ended up walking down the street and came to a river. Across the bridge on the other side of the river was an old amusement park that had closed down long ago but they still had some paddle boats. We decided to give it a shot. It was pretty cool. We went up he river a little and watched some of the local fishermen and then back again. It was a nice diversion and a good chance to see more of REAL China. 

We had a ceremony for the translators tonight. It was a time to say goodbye. Andrew was there with me. I got to see Sarah before she left. She had to take a group to Xian and wasn't going to be back until tomorrow night. She must have given me 10 hugs and thanked me over and over again for spending time with her and Billy. She was just incredibly sweet. She was taking Alan and Kate and the rest of the MN group. The ceremony was to just recognize the translators and the work that they did here. They would call out names and you would both go up together and get the award. When they called Andrews name I YELLED out ANDREW and then we both jumped up and ran to the stage like a scene out of Rocky. It was great and got a lot of laughs. After the awards a cake food fight broke out. It was crazy. I tried to get photos while running away. We all then headed back to the bunkers to have a meeting where we could just talk about the week and what we have learned or taken out of this experience. It was a good time of sharing with a few tears here and there. Then we said our final goodbyes. It was hard to see Andrew leave. I have spent so much time with him this week and he is such an inspiration. I let him know that he is going to be a great dad some day.

Well, that's about it. Camp is done but the work will never be over.

James 1:27 "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world". 

We have all been called. Who will step up and Answer?

I'm out from ZhengZhou China,

Bill

Friday is here.

OH MY GOSH!!! It is 9:18 am and the first group which included my two have already left. What can I say... I'll back up again and start at the beginning.

I woke up early (6:15) and posted photos to last nights blog. Then went upstairs and gather up gifts for the boys and one for Sarah. When I was gathering the gifts several of the other boys were in my room watching me ad wanted something. I ended up giving 4 or 5 beach balls to them. They all said "Thank you" in english. 

Just a word of advice. If any of you ever come to camp with me don't get too close in the morning. My last shower for the day has been at the pool around 4:00 pm. Then when I get back I get clean clothes and use them for the next day (including sleep just in case someone needs to come into the office in the middle of the night).

So, I went out the building and waited for Andrew. He came out about 5 minutes later. Billy came up to me and said "Good morning Bill", "Good morning Billy, how are you", "I'm fine, thank you very much" and then a big hug. Bob was walking with Andrew and then came over to me and grabbed my hand to help him walk to breakfast. Billy was very calm this morning. He new he was going to leave. Normally he rides on my back to breakfast but not this morning. On the way to breakfast he saw that I was carrying gifts. He told Andrew "All gifts are from God". WOW, this boy is just amazing. At breakfast he was sitting by himself until Sarah came in. He didn't really want me to sit with him which was fine. After Sarah came in though they called me over and wanted to get photos. If the camera makes it back from the trip you will see those later today. They wanted them of my group and Kates. Breakfast went fast and we were motioned to get ready to leave. We walked to the bus area and took a couple more photos. I gave Billy his gift there. He pulled it out of the bag and then QUICKER than you ca see put it in his backpack (protective instinct). I wanted to get a photo but that wasn't going to happen. Oh well. The bus showed up on time and was loaded rather quickly. We said our goodbyes.. wait for it... wait... Okay he is in the seat and looking out the window TEARS RUNNING down his face. OH   MY   GOSH! I COMPLETELY LOST IT!!! I ran up to the window and put my hand against his. He just looked at me with tears in his eyes. It just wouldn't stop... I think I grabbed whoever was next to me and just gave them a HUGE squeeze. TEARS everywhere. Sarah came over and gave me a hug with TEARS in her eyes. I will see her again soon. I think she just feels so many emotions for these children and especially Billy. I gave her my camera. I showed her ow to use it at breakfast but I am sure if she has a problem Billy will help. He figured the thing out in a couple of minutes.

David got on the bus and went and gave the kids hugs, Billy is also his favorite. He attached to both of us this week VERY STRONGLY. Then I saw them talking through the window. David came - Another BIG HUG and then he said to me, "Billy told me that Jesus Loves you" meaning me. WOW, just incredible. He looked out the window and me and David with our arms around each other and smiled and took our picture. I gave him the sign for Love and pointed to him - He did it back. I cried some more... and more... and more... This was terrible. There were still two kids missing and the bus was loaded and waiting for them. This was just torture for them. Other people were trying to put their hand up on the window with him and he would wave them off. Selfishly I LOVED seeing that. He only wanted me and David to do it. Andrew came back over to me and gave me a bunch of hugs. I think Mike got some good photos so I will see if  I can get them. The bus finally pulled out the gate as we all followed and waved. This was so the opposite feeling of the kids leaving for church camp. To know that this may be the last time I will ever see this boy. Did I do enough, say enough, show enough... All I could do is let him know that God loves him and so do I. I had to go and take a minute by myself.....

I came back and found Chris. Tears were still in his eyes. I gave him a HUGE hug. If you haven't  noticed there is a pattern here at camp - can you see it yet? That leads me to the office where I am typing this now. I could go to sleep or maybe explore like some of the others but I don't feel like I am done yet. I think I am going to go off and find the rest of the kids that are still here and try and have some fun with them. Hopefully that wont make things worst for me but if it does and also makes the kids happy then it is 110% worth it. I love these kids so much and I want to see some of the other off that I have been talking about and be there for Kate, Alan and Byron and some of the other volunteers. Again, selfishly, I was glad that our group left first so that I didn't have to think about this all day. 

Off to find my silly hat and go play with the kids....

Love you all. Thank you for the prayers. Pray hard for Billy and Bob.

PS - I know some of you are probably thinking "What about Bob?" He actually wanted to go back. He was not sad at all. He did have a smile on his face when he saw me but he just doesn't have the capacity to understand. He is a SPECIAL boy created by God. He will be a prince one day in Heaven. I truly believe this.

XOXOXO