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One of the simplest ways to love your neighbor is through meeting a need they have.
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Gratitude
We love serving the people God has called us to as a family and we count it a great honor.
There IS hope and His name is Jesus. Let us not forget the battles people are facing everyday. Let us be gracious, let us be kind, let us be people of compassion and generosity.
Actively express thankfulness.
According to one study, couples that expressed gratitude in their interactions with each other resulted in increases in relationship connection and satisfaction the next day--both for the person expressing thankfulness and (no big surprise) for the person receiving it. (In fact, the authors of the study said gratitude was like a "booster shot" for relationships.)
Of course the same is true at work. Express gratitude for employee's hard work and you both feel better about yourselves.
Another easy method is to write down a few things you are grateful for every night. One study showed people who wrote down 5 things they were thankful for once a week were 25 percent happier after ten weeks; in effect they dramatically increased their happiness set-point.
Happy people focus on what they have, not on what they don't have. It's motivating to want more in your career, relationships, bank account, etc. but thinking about what you already have, and expressing gratitude for it, will make you a lot happier.
And will remind you that even if you still have huge dreams you have already accomplished a lot--and should feel genuinely proud.
Read All 7 Here
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“The missionary heart: Care more than some think is wise. Risk more than some think is safe. Dream more than some think is practical. Expect more than some think is possible. I was called not to comfort or success but to obedience….There is no joy outside of knowing Jesus and serving him.”
—Karen Watson, martyr, March 15, 2004
4 Years ago a Journey was started.
Four years ago today Connect Global was created to bring sustainable solutions to people in need throughout the world. We set out to find friends with whom we could partner to deliver real solutions to real problems in a sustainable way.
Some of you have joined us. Some of you have come along the journey to visit foreign soil with us. Some of you have faithfully and financially sent us along the path. Many have found long lost friends they never knew they had; All while bringing sustainable solutions to those in greatest need.
These solutions have changed from place to place. Different problems require different solutions. Even while adapting our methods to the needs of each friend we visit, our priorities have never wavered.
There is one solution that we have found to fit every need. In fact I would personaly say that this is the most sustainable solution of all: The Good News of Jesus. Simply put, we are blessed to be a blessing. We have received grace, now we can freely give grace. We have received favor, now we can freely give favor. We have received life, now we can freely give life.
All that we have is because of the kindness of God through Jesus and we are freely asked to simply give it all away. Each person receiving this can simply pass it on. No other methodology is more simple, more duplicatable, more sustainable or more impactful.
Around the world as well as around the corner there are people just like you and me. People in need of sustainable solutions to the problems they face. People in need of life. People in need of grace. People in need of you and me. Our birthday wish at Connect Global is that these blessings of life and grace would simply be passed along.
To all who have joined us; we offer blessings. To all who have financially given to Connect Global along this journey, we are deeply moved and honored by your support and friendship.
You have blessed us beyond measure and there are countless lives that are better for it.
Please join us today in wishing Connect Global a happy fourth birthday!
-Travis Moffitt
"To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair."
◄ Isaiah 61:3 ►
Our family has now been in Honduras for 12 days. We have been getting settled in and becoming acquainted with our new town and with some really great new families.
Each time we have traveled to Honduras over the past 10 years we have been in awe of the natural beauty as well as the beauty in the love and the grace that surely abounds here.
We have chosen to focus on the beauty and not the ashes. There are families here serving others, there are business leaders improving the community, and there are churches concerned with outreach and not just warehousing believers.
Yes, there is still crime and hurt and disease but there is also peace, and love and good people willing to do what it takes for light to defeat darkness.
Our intention here is to highlight the good going on in this community and embrace solutions rather than dwell on the problems.
Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we integrate with this community and pray that we would be successful in our pursuit to exchange beauty for ashes.
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1. In Haiti...You never Know
Julio Jn Gilles and Javier Mendoza in Madeline Haiti
This has become a familiar response while traveling through Haiti with Julio. I take this in a very positive way. He is keeping a gentle attitude about things that are out of his control. We try to control our schedules as best as we can. We cross all of the t's and dot the i's but in Haiti, as in life, sometimes you just never know. That means don't sweat it and be content with where you are. Stay motivated, but realize that as much as you would like it to be, not everything is under your control.
2. Compassion trumps Convention
“Pastor Julio’s compassion defies convention by providing much needed access to quality education for a group of children who will one day raise themselves out of poverty, and change the nation of Haiti. ”
Allowing things to stay "the way they've always been" is not only unacceptable it simply has no power in the eyes of Julio Jn Gilles. A son who grew up without his mother, practicing voodoo, and having no consistent place to lay his head at night, Julio knows first hand how for millions of people Past Predicts Future. Julio however had a different path because of the compassion of a missionary who saw it more fitting to send Julio to seminary than voodoo rituals. It's now the compassion of Jesus Christ that propels Julio's mission in life. He provides food for the needy and education for over 150 students every year. It is his compassion that allows the neediest ten percent of his student body to still attend school despite their inability to pay tuition. Pastor Julio's compassion defies convention by providing much needed access to quality education for a group of children who will one day raise themselves out of poverty, and change the nation of Haiti.
3. Challenges will face Everyone but not everyone faces their challenges.
Julio Jn Gilles is restoring dignity and hope to the nation of Haiti.
Everyone has challenges but it's how we deal with our challenges that determine who we are. Our own personal challenges always seem like mountains to us because we see them up close. Not to say that our challenges aren't really challenging they are. I'm saying that there is always someone who has overcome a bigger challenge than us, at some point in history. Pastor Julio has helped me realize that how big or small a challenge seems, is largely in the eye of the beholder. We have the ultimate choice to either face our difficulties head on, or allow them to bury us in over our head. For someone who has faced dozens of challenges, Pastor Julio Jn Gilles in Haiti, has overcome and is overcoming them in a huge way. He leads a growing church that is near capacity every week, 6 grades of school, is raising a family of five, and finds joy in the fact that at one point in his life could not fathom a future for himself.
Pastor Julio Jn Gilles
Pastor Julio Jn Gilles In Haiti displays an evident passion for God, and has compassion for people.
Pastor Julio Jn Gilles is a Haitien Pastor with a wonderful motivation to see his nation positively changed for good. From the voodoo rich culture, to hundreds of years of governmental corruption, to know the historical challenges still facing haiti, one can almost resolve to think that the country is beyond restoration. To hear Pastor Julio, however, is a different story. He recognizes the hurt that his nation has both endured and inflicted upon itself, and yet he remains dedicated to seeing positive change within his lifetime.
Growing up poor after his mother passed away when he was three, his father raised him to practice and partake in the country's voodoo religion. He struggled through school and was constantly living homeless and hungry, until one day a Christian missionary took him in and gave him a bed to sleep in and food to eat. The missionary helped restore his dignity and gave him hope for a future. That relationship led Julio to seminary and now some two decades later he has become a well respected Husband, Father, Pastor, School Director, and a Friend to everyone he crosses paths with.
He has now made it his mission to restore dignity and hope to Haiti through his five children as well as through the primary school and church that he and his countless friends have built in Cap Haitien.
Please keep Pastor Julio In your prayers and consider partnering with him financially so he can confidently continue the amazing work he is doing.
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“A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. ”
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Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. (Galatians 6:9 NIV)
Ten years! That's how long Javier Mendoza and I have been working in Cusuna, Honduras.
Some times it seems like we took our first trip only yesterday. I still remember the first time a seven year old Julio put his little hand in mine. I remember sitting behind Jorge Amador on the 8+ school bus ride getting my Spanish lessons. I remember the first time the children ran along side the bus as we drove into town.
The memories are fresh and clear and now coupled with the new memories of a 17 year old Julio lifting me up on his shoulders. Or watching Pastor Adonis (a 12 year child on our first trip) now pastor the Church of God in Cusuna. To see the children of my once young friends now serving God and full of the same Garifuna joy is simply amazing.
Pastor Adonis singing in the church in Cusuna
Not only amazing but also fulfilling. It is literally the fulfillment of 10 years of hard work. On this last trip we witnessed 2 especially amazing events. First, we watched as Pastor Adonis lead this outstanding congregation in worship. This is so significant because Adonis is the first Garifuna pastor at this church. Cusuna has been called the center of the Garifuna world.
The Church of God is the only evangelical church in Cusuna. So for this congregation to now have a Garifuna pastor is the fulfillment of a long-term dream. And the results are evident. You can see the new sense of life and joy in each church member and leader as they are being lead by one of their own people. I'm certain the exponential impact into the Garifuna people will be felt for decades to come.
Secondly, we installed solar panels and a battery system on the Aquaponic system. After three years of building Aquaponic systems in the most remote places it was truly a profound moment to simply watch the sun move the water. Solar power has become the new equalizer in the developing world and we are quickly taking advantage of this sustainable power source.
Today, this food producing system is now even more efficient and productive thanks to the power of the sun. It was a miracle to behold.
A final thought on these last ten years is how humbled we are to have not walked this out alone.
While Javier and I have been the ones physically going, we have had such amazing friends and family partnering with us every step of the way. From our amazing wives to our ever supportive parents to the friends who have spent countless hours praying for us and those who have put their hard earned financial resources to work on our behalf. We have never been alone.
I am proud to say that we have not given up and as promised, we are reaping a harvest. And that harvest fuels us for the next ten years and more to come.