Stories - Page 21 of 82 - The Christian Heart

How Everyday People Live Out Their Christian Faith

Illustrating how men and women display their love for Jesus in their day-to-day lives.
Little things that may have an eternal impact. Might these stories motivate you to use your talents?

Adoption/Foster Care Children Homeless
FROM THE TRASH TO A TREASURE

When I woke up that day, I was completely unaware that my life was about to change forever. I was in college at Texas State University and was visiting my hometown in Haiti on New Year’s Eve of 2017. I was on my way to help in an orphanage where I had been a volunteer for several years when I saw a crowd of about 20 people around a trash can. There was an infant child crying hysterically and lying naked in the trash, covered with fire ants. The people around the trash were just staring at the child. There is a lot of voodoo in Haiti and since this was the last day of the year, people thought this baby was evil or cursed, and were reluctant to pick him up. But I could see the pain in his eyes and I knew I had to do something right away, even if something were to happen to me. I picked him up, and he immediately stopped crying. I brushed him off, comforted him and hurried back home to my mom’s house. We washed him, clothed him, fed him some milk, and took him to get some medical help. The police started an investigation and asked us to keep the baby as they tried to find his parents, but no one could be found. It appeared they had left the baby there to die. The next day, a judge showed up at our house and asked if I would be open to keeping the baby and becoming his legal guardian since his parents… Read More

October 5, 2022
Overcoming Obstacles Prayer
A TRUE FRIENDSHIP

When I was 13, I started going to a new church. I was hesitant to get involved. Like most teens, I didn't enjoy being the new kid. As time passed, I began making a few acquaintances. One day, I overheard a girl inviting everyone over to her house for a sleepover. I noticed that I wasn't included, so I jokingly interjected. As much as she apologized and begged me to come, I couldn't help but feel it was a forced invitation on my behalf. But I went, and it was a night filled with typical girly activities. We had a blast! Yet, I couldn't shake the feeling of, "Was I really meant to be here?" I just started to pray and forced myself to ignore it. The next day as I was packing, I was in the room with the girl that invited everyone, just the two of us. We started talking, about everything. Before I knew it, she shared how excited she was that I wanted to come. She said she had a lot going on in her life and she just needed a real friend. So we decided to become friends. I didn't think much of it that day. But 15 years later, we are still best friends. That whole night, I'd felt I didn't belong there; I'd felt I intruded. My friend recently shared with me how that night was an answered prayer. She had asked God for a true best friend, someone she knew would be there for her forever. I had no idea God was going to use me that day or in that way. I was… Read More

September 28, 2022
Labor Loving Your Neighbor Mission Work
HOPE HEALTH CENTER

Every part of your life depends on you having good health. When most people think of health, they consider only their physical condition, but as a doctor, I repeatedly see that our spiritual condition is also a huge factor. Hope Health Center was started so that, like Jesus’ examples in the Gospels, we could address both the physical and spiritual needs of those who come to us. Our mission is to share the hope found in Jesus Christ while providing excellent whole-person healthcare to a very medically underserved community. That’s why we placed our medical clinic in the heart of our city in order to make excellent health care as accessible as possible since many of our patients don’t even have reliable transportation.
Hope Health Center came into existence a few years after our family returned from the Ivory Coast in West Africa. My wife Connie and I, with our three kids were medical missionaries there for 10 years. In that area, the medical needs were tremendous but the resources to meet those needs were almost non-existent for the poor. When God called us back to the United States after finishing our mission work, my heart’s desire was to do the same thing in the U.S. that we had done in Africa. I wanted to be a medical missionary in the States. So in 2003, we opened the doors of Hope Health Center. For eight years, I was the only doctor. Another doctor joined us in 2011. We also have a counselor since so many people we… Read More

September 21, 2022
Overcoming Obstacles Unique Ministries
MISS OVERCOMER

With all I have gone through I should be a statistic! Thankfully, the Lord had another plan. Between 2013 and 2015, my previous three decades of hardship culminated into a trifecta of even more heartache. My mother died prematurely. Six months later, I realized my 25-year marriage was coming to an end. A few months later, my father also passed away. The back-to-back devastation felt like a tsunami on my soul. All I could think about was the pain and shock of losing so many things that meant the most to me. My family was gone. My marriage was gone. My hopes and dreams seemed only a distant vapor in the rear-view mirror. I suppose those situations in and of themselves would have been a bit easier to navigate had they not occurred on the tail end of a long list of other headwinds of pain. Just when I thought I was getting over years of tragedy that included such things as domestic violence, date rape, poverty, and bankruptcy, a series of the unthinkable capstoned a huge mountain of pain. But during my darkest moments, God reminded me that I still had a purpose. He let me know my long list of heartaches was not something to be ashamed of. In fact, it was because of his grace and mercy that I was able to overcome each devastating blow. As such, he wanted to use my rolodex of reversal as a resume of empowerment, and a platform of hope, to help other women overcome. Read More

September 14, 2022
Overcoming Obstacles Verbalizing the Gospel
DISCOVERING JESUS AGAIN AFTER 9/11

We were awakened by an explosion that shook our building. We ran to our terrace on the 24th floor, just six blocks from the World Trade Center. Above us was thick, black smoke coming from the North Tower. Right from our terrace, we watched as a second plane came roaring overhead and struck the South Tower. The impact hurled us backward into our living room and knocked us unconscious. When we came to, we ran down the stairs, barefoot and wearing pajamas. Soon after, the towers fell, covering us with dust as we desperately searched for a clear air pocket. We were unsure if we’d survive the day. After waiting in Battery Park, a boat finally rescued us. As we sailed across the Hudson, I could see at least fifty boats approaching the area where my husband and I had been just minutes earlier. These boats were rushing to rescue the thousands of people who had been trapped by the burning, falling Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. I felt grateful that my husband was by my side during what might have been our last moments on earth. But as I prayed to God, asking Him to spare us, I also felt utterly alone. I had abandoned my faith years ago, so why would He answer me now? The boat dropped us off in New Jersey, filthy, traumatized, and with little understanding of what had just happened to us and our beloved city. Only two things were clear: we weren’t going home any time soon, and we had no idea where to go or what to… Read More

September 7, 2022
Loving Your Neighbor Overcoming Obstacles
LOVING AND SERVING OTHERS

I live with pain every day of my life, and yet my schedule is packed full. If I’m not helping a young mom, I’m running errands with a vision impaired friend, or sending cards of encouragement. People ask, “How do you keep going when you have so much pain?” I tell them if I stop, I will give up. I do fight discouragement because of my pain and limitations. Some days, I feel useless. But God gives me strength to press on. Any good I do or happiness I give to others is only because of God’s grace. I suffer from severe arthritis throughout my body. Chronic pain is hard, but it has made me a more caring, compassionate, and praying person. I’ve also learned there is more to Kingdom building than physical work. Every morning, I send out a large group text with an inspiring message and then pray about who might need a special word. When someone is on my heart, I send a specialized message. Often, they respond with, “That is exactly what I needed.” A day a week, I am the eyes of a friend who is losing her vision—I take her on errands, do her mending, or we just sit and play Quiddler. Throughout the week, I stop by some homes to give the moms a break. I entertain the children, cap strawberries, or do whatever jobs can be done sitting down. People know they can come and talk, and I have the time to give them a listening ear. Sometimes I say, “I commit to praying every hour… Read More

August 31, 2022

Browse all categories

Adoption/Foster Care 38

Church Activities 60

Financial Help 18

Loss Of Loved One 38

Loving Your Neighbor 66

Mission Work 52

Overcoming Obstacles 115

Prison Ministry 11

Senior Citizens 22

Special Needs 47

Unique Ministries 165

Verbalizing the Gospel 74

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