Stories - Page 40 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?

Food Homeless Labor Recovery
AMAZED AT GOD’S PLAN

I’m always amazed at God’s plan. When I was young, I saw my mom go through abusive relationships, homelessness and other hardships. She walked through and overcame tragic challenges. Two seeds were planted in me: a drive to succeed and a heart for mothers. I had my own vision of success, and I used it to become a fairly affluent businessman. But my idea of “making it” was not fulfilling. God had a different plan. He softened my heart for people and showed me what fruitfulness really looked like. His plan involved a change of location and a ministry I never expected. I started teaching about God’s love on the streets and loving people that didn’t have anybody. I spoke at the Western Carolina Rescue Ministry in Asheville and I was offered a job. I was a businessman and I hadn’t worked for anybody in years, so I turned it down. God was trying to teach me something though, and when the opportunity kept presenting itself, I took it. At WCRM, we walk alongside people and invest in them to help them find purpose in God. Although we served hundreds of people a day and provided food, clothing, shelter and the Word, God wasn’t done. My thoughts kept going back to mothers and their children. Women’s recovery is one of the toughest ministries and the rate of success is low because they suffer continuous trauma. Most women that have a substance issue lose their parental rights. Funding goes to the children and the mother has no support to get help. It’s a vicious cycle.… Read More

August 24, 2020
Children Labor Unique Ministries
MOMS IN THE MAKING

Infertility affects so many couples but is rarely discussed. My husband and I married in 2011 and a year later, we tried to start a family. But we couldn't get pregnant. We got tested, and were told we’d never be able to conceive. We were devastated. Several months later, I invited six other women who were struggling with infertility into my living room. It was so refreshing to have honest and transparent conversation about what we were experiencing. Afterwards, we prayed and all felt a close connection to each other and to the Lord. While infertility was very difficult, I felt renewed since I was now focusing on Jesus and not finding my life's worth in becoming a mom. I started writing down my thoughts in a blog called In Due Time. I was amazed how many people started reading it and how quickly the group in my living room transitioned to an online presence called Moms in the Making. So I ended up leaving my job in corporate finance and making this a full-time ministry. I wanted to encourage women on their journey to becoming a mom by sharing the hope and truth of God's Word. One of our first endeavors was to put on a faith-based infertility conference. We announced it through our social media pages. When it came time for the conference, we had 160 women from 33 states as well as someone from Africa and the Bahamas. We were so grateful for this response. This has now turned into an annual conference. So many infertility groups might… Read More

August 17, 2020
Children Church Activities Verbalizing the Gospel
THE GOOD NEWS CLUB

I first learned about the after-school Good News Club in a letter. At first glance, I thought it was junk mail and threw it away, but the Lord prompted me to pull it out of the trash and read it. At the time, my church was meeting in a public school on Sunday mornings, and we would pray that the Lord would give us direction on how to impact the children in that school. As I read the letter, I knew this was it. I literally jumped out of my chair and said “Oh God, this is the answer!” Good News Clubs are an outreach of the Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF). With this program, a local church adopts a school and holds a Good News Club after school to share the gospel to children in their own classrooms. How exciting is that! I presented the idea to the church and they were totally on board with the project. When we made contact with CEF, the director was brought to tears, saying they had been praying for more clubs to start specifically in our little area of Southern Illinois. I’ve been working with CEF and the after-school Good News Clubs since 2015, and have since been asked to be the Coordinator over the Southern Illinois chapter. We now hold 16 clubs in our area. Seeing these children come to Christ and working with the local churches so excites me. These clubs are the key that unlocks the doors for the local church to go into the public schools and reach the… Read More

August 10, 2020
Adoption/Foster Care Children Special Needs Unique Ministries
INTO HIS ARMS

‘There’s a 10-day old baby girl and she has a disease,’ I was told. ‘I’ll take her,’ I said without hesitation. Just hours later, the social worker was at our door in Guatemala, holding a bundle wrapped in a blanket. She explained the baby was abandoned due to her diagnosis. She was left with nothing, not even a name. And this baby girl wasn’t expected to live very long because she had Hydranencephaly. She only had about 3% of her brain and an enlarged head due to an abnormal accumulation of fluid in her brain. The days that followed were filled with MRI’s and hospital visits. Then, I stood as a 19-year-old before the judge, asking if I could adopt her and give her a name. ‘Her own family didn’t even want her,’ the judge told me solemnly, ‘She’s probably not going to live, and if she does, she won't have a normal life. Why would you even bother?’ I told her I cared because her life matters, and the value of our life isn’t decided by the number of our days. I named her Emma Leigh---Emma means ‘whole and complete’ and Leigh, (my middle name I share with my mom) means ‘healer.’ There were surgeries, court hearings, lost paperwork, and so many medical appointments. But these were never a burden. I just wanted her to be loved here on earth. Just 31 days old, Emma Leigh passed from my arms into the arms of Jesus. She was born into a completely hopeless situation, but she died being loved. Most children in Guatemala like Emma Leigh… Read More

August 3, 2020
Children Hospital Prayer
GOD CARRIED ME THROUGH

I went into marriage expecting I would need a lot of medical intervention in order to have children. I had been told my chances were slim. Five months into my marriage, I began thinking about my options, but before I could start, we found out I was pregnant! Throughout the pregnancy, I had a feeling of gloom and doom because I kept seeing warning signs that something wasn’t right. At 25 weeks, my water broke. I was in shock and thought, “my pregnancy is over” because I didn’t think a baby could survive that early. Days later, my son was born. He fought and battled, and I found myself in a place of hopelessness, wondering every day if my son would live to see tomorrow. I could truly feel that we had literally hundreds of people all around the U.S and even around the world praying for us during this time. I found myself spinning with God and had to really rely on the prayers and faith of others. We were told if our son made it through, he would go home with a trach tube. 110 days later, we walked out of the hospital with our son---no trach, no oxygen assistance, just us and our baby. Despite all we went through with our son, I knew deep down I had a desire for another child. I wanted to fully experience pregnancy in a way I didn’t get to. I knew it would take trusting God to go through it again. To our surprise, we found out we were pregnant… Read More

July 27, 2020
Adoption/Foster Care Children Labor Unique Ministries
THE LA LA LAND KIND CAFE

We need to care and be kind to one another. I was blown away when I learned how America has failed older kids in the foster care system. Once foster kids reach the age of 18, they "age out". How can we possibly allow the most vulnerable kids---those without parents---to be released into the world with no help? Many of them have nowhere to go or live. A shocking number become homeless, turn to drugs or alcohol, or even prostitution. I ran a fairly successful restaurant at a young age, but I found that having a packed restaurant and making money wasn't making me happy. I wanted to find purpose in my life so I started volunteering with a number of organizations. That’s when I learned about the plight of older foster kids. I felt led to do something. Initially, I started the We Are One project, where we tried to provide everything these kids would need to become self-sustaining adults: housing, mentorship, job placement and therapy. But it didn't work because the kids couldn't get or keep a job. Without a job, their life deteriorated. Employers didn't want to hire kids without experience, and they did not have the patience to teach the kids the skills they needed. If no one was going to hire these kids, we set out to do it ourselves. So I started the La La Land Kind Cafe. We took an old home and transformed it into a coffee shop. We offer organic coffees, teas and delicious treats that our customers love. We hire… Read More

July 20, 2020

Browse all categories

Adoption/Foster Care 38

Church Activities 60

Financial Help 18

Loss Of Loved One 38

Loving Your Neighbor 67

Mission Work 52

Overcoming Obstacles 117

Prison Ministry 12

Senior Citizens 22

Special Needs 47

Unique Ministries 166

Verbalizing the Gospel 76

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