GRAINS of SALT
Vol. I, Issue IV, November 2007

“Your love has given me great joy and encouragement because, you brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints.”
--Philemon 1:7

CENTER LIGHTS THE WAY

BANGLADESH – Until the Light of Hope center opened its doors nearly two years ago, there was no hope to be found in this mostly Muslim area. Located in the heart of one of the country’s poorest areas, starvation, poverty, and death are the norm.

“The needs here are seemingly endless and it can be overwhelming at times,” said the center’s founder. “But Jesus focused on one here and one there. That’s what we do too. If we can help even a few it’s worth it.”

There is only room for 16 girls in the small space rented by Light of Hope. Besides a hot meal of rice and vegetables, the girls can shower and put on clean dresses. They also receive some schooling, which includes Bible stories and songs.

Even though they cannot live at the center, the girls know it is a safe haven where for a few hours each day they do not have to think about the dangers and trials of their everyday lives. And for Mala, one of the center’s most recent additions, the trials have been many. Mala was brought to the shelter by one of the other girls named Rina.

“Except for the rags and the dirt, she looked pretty healthy,” the Light of Hope founder said before going on to tell of Mala’s plight.

Her parents died two weeks before she came to us, she added. They worked as servants for a very rich lady for the past year. Mala told us that she was told by another servant boy that her parents had been given poisoned water to drink to cover up the murder of yet another servant by the same lady who employed them all. Mala found both of her parents wrapped in white sheets at the graveyard, ready for burial.

Mala’s brother, who works at a towel factory, could not take care of her, so she went out to the streets where she asked a beggar woman if she could live with her. This woman taught Mala, along with her own four children, how to beg. She allows Mala to stay with them in their shanty as long as Mala gives her the money earned from begging.

Many of the other girls, too, beg for a living when they are not at Light of Hope. Rina has been deemed “the guardian angel of the beggars,” by the center’s founder. Although Rina must too beg to help support her family, she is constantly looking out for other girls who she feels have a greater need, and then she brings them to Light of Hope.

The girls often come and go, said the center’s founder. But they are not forgotten.

“We continue to pray for them, knowing that we have had some impact in their lives.”

The last one to leave was a young girl named Nasima. Nasima was ordered by her older sister to stop coming to the center, telling her, “If you keep going to that place, you will become a Christian!” As if that were the worst thing that could happen to Nasima.

SALT MARKS ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Huddled around two tables, inhaling the aroma of brewing coffee and freshly-baked goods, seven of us gathered at Panera Bread in Waldorf, Maryland, last October for our first official SALT board meeting.

We weren’t exactly sure how to go about Serving as Advocates for the Lost and Troubled, but what we did know was that God was asking us to step out in faith and obedience and give it a try.

Since that day, SALT has raised more than $5,000 for the four international children’s homes we assist. In addition, SALT has provided over 100 pairs of shoes, about 300 outfits, numerous toys, books and Bible study materials, pots and pans, dishes, and we’ve even funded the building of a retention wall in Vietnam and a new septic system in Kenya.

We cease to be amazed at how God has blessed these orphans and their caregivers, but none of this could ever have been accomplished if it had not been for people like you, who share our desire to change the lives of children in jeopardy.

We are thankful and truly humbled by the generosity of our families, friends, neighbors, fellow church members and even strangers who have reached out with financial contributions or the donation of needed items.

We have witnessed God’s faithfulness in every sense. From the arrival of a check to cover the cost of our state registration, to Chip Watkins, a Washington, D.C., attorney who is taking care of the SALT legal matters at no cost, to the Kenyan customs agent who, for no other reason except for the grace of God, changed his mindset from wanting either a bribe or to confiscate our bags filled with donations, to a mindset of not only letting us go, but providing his name, address and phone number and asking for our assistance for the orphans in his village -- God has blessed SALT.

May the grace of God enrich your lives because of your willingness to serve others.

Thank you from all of us at SALT.

Kristine Millen, Vickie Elsesser-Vu, Wanda Johnson, Becky & Steve Barclay, Amy Scheffler, and John & Cyndi Scheffler.

LOOKING FOR STOCKING STUFFERS??

Stuffing your child’s stocking with an original SALT T-shirt means you not only give a great gift for someone you love, it ensures you are making the lives of children less fortunate a little bit better.

Children’s sizes S/M/L are only $10 each. Adult sizes S-2XL are also available for $15 each or two for $25.

To order, send a check, payable to SALT, to the address on page 2. Include $2.50 for postage and allow two to four weeks for delivery.

HOW TO SUPPORT SALT

To make a tax-deductible contribution, make checks payable to SALT. If you wish your donation to go toward a specific ministry, please designate the country on the memo line of your check. Mail to:

SALT
41261 Queen Arbor Court
Mechanicsville , MD 20659

“Ye are the salt of the Earth..."
-- Matthew 5:13

www.saltkids.org