The work continues-- in Bangladesh.

 I was in the village in  Bangladesh taking  new photos of children who are in our sponsorship program.  Those in the picture here are the "neighbors" who spent their day watching what we were doing. Technically,  I guess they were on their side of the "street"and we were  doing some different, out of the ordinary things.  Just having an  American woman  in the village was out of the ordinary.

The twenty children in sponsorship in this village are mostly orphans and half orphans ( one parent). They each have a tragic story that cannot be solved with  funding alone.  But funding provides  food and clothing and school-- all things that make misery easier to bear.  The kids have  hope for a future that they would not have without it.  They have a pastor who ministers to them, teaches them and walks the walk of faith in front of them in their own culture and environment.  A foreigner can certainly come in and draw attention.  But the faithful  Bangla believers are the ones who show the way to the Lord.  We help.   We love to be part of it.  But the Bangla pastor will be the one who will reach this family and disciple them, if they are willing.

There are thousands of villages  like this one throughout  Bangladesh.  Most of them do not have a sponsorship program for the  orphan children.  Most do not have a pastor, either.  The twenty children we are helping here are one drop in the bucket-- well, maybe twenty drops. But maybe among these twenty children at least a few will become pastors and spiritual leaders to others who need to here. We hope that everyone of them will become a faithful witness for the Lord in whatever path they follow in life. Supporting and educating these twenty are worth what it costs-- so worth it. They are worth the sponsorship  money we raise.  They are worth the trip that  I make.

Sincerely Liz!

It was a special joy to me to  have my son and his family along with us on a trip to  Nepal. Taking a two year old and a pregnant woman on the long air travel and the hard ground travel in a country like  Nepal  might not seem like the best idea. Why did we do it?  Well, I love them and I wanted them to see the work that we do.  And-- my daughter in law is a professional photographer. We will be using the spectacular photos she took on this trip for literally years to come.

See her web site at www.sincerelylizinc.com.

This is the littlest short- term missionary who has ever made the trip with us.  If she can do it, so can you.

What doth hinder thee from joining a mission trip?

See for yourself what the Lord is doing in another country and be a part of it.

To the Ends of the Earth

Taking the gospel to the ends of the earth includes cities and valleys, mountains and remote villages.  It includes places that are physically difficult to travel and  politically difficult to reach. At  Allow, we are doing the best we can to cover the places the Lord has put before us. In  October 2014, we  took our medical team to some villages that required driving through creek beds-- not dry creek beds, but VERY wet ones.  In the rainy season, these people would not be accessible at all.   But on this day, the doctor for their  physical needs and the Scripture for their spiritual needs came to a village where visitors  are rare.  What will happen with the seeds planted on this day?  Only time will show us and maybe not even that-- but we did our jobs that day.  It was long and hot and busy.  My back was aching and I was dead tired at the end of the day.   But it was one of the best kind of " tireds" that there is and I hope to have many more of them.

Sunday Cook with her Great Grandmother, Lila Koerner.

Pictured here are two women who are very important to me.  They are the oldest and the youngest members of our family.  My mother will be 95 in  December and my youngest granddaughter is not yet three.  As I spend this evening catching up some blog posts,  I am thinking about the long travel which will soon be upon me and the days I  invest yearly for this ministry the Lord has given.  Days with these two and all of our family are very precious and fleeting. Please pray for me as I seek the best balance among all the needs  of others in my life and the simple pleasures of sharing their lives. 

Medical Clinics in Nepal 2014

As I write this entry,  I am preparing to return to Nepal, less than a month since  the trip to  Burundi, Africa.  I am feeling a significant sense of urgency.  In actual fact, everything is on schedule, but  the departure day rushes towards me.  The medical clinics are a very important part of our ministry. It is perhaps the most effective, focused evangelism that we do.    As the people wait to see the doctor, our team has teachers telling the gospel  story with a flip chart of  Bible pictures.  Pastors move through the people-- meeting them, talking with them, building relationships that will bring them back  to the church later on. They pray with those who are open to that-- and many are.  At night,  the big screen goes up and the  Jesus video is shown over and over to people who  sit fully  focused on the story. We bring medical care to people who might-- because of distance and inability to pay-- never see a doctor.  Their  spiritual needs are just as great as the physical needs and for those who are ready to receive it-- the need is filled. The churches  grow after the medical clinics have some to their  village. Seeing the doctor, gives  a Hindu a reason to step into the church.  He meets the pastor and he gets some needed care and medicine from the doctor. At the end of the day, we have distributed a lot of vitamins, acetaminophen, antibiotic ointments and antacids. Most of the complaints are not life threatening-- but we usually do screen some  conditions that need  serious or ongoing treatment and we refer them to places where they can receive help with at least the first step in the process done.  Medical clinics are busy and tiring, but very satisfying to know that the Lord will multiply and use the investment  for His glory. 

Allow Ministry in Burundi, Africa

Burundi is a small and very poor country in southern  Africa. It has been a part of  Allow ministry for many years, but it is time now for  Michael and me to step up our involvement.   We sponsor children in a school for the  deaf and a school for the blind. We fund individual teaching sessions for Timothy  Bible  School in order to invest training in pastors.  And-- there is a delightful ministry called, "Rainbow Center," that  looks for foster grandmothers to care for orphaned and abandoned babies.  We sponsor the babies which greatly enhances the chances of a woman accepting them for care.
The weather in  Burundi was cool and very comfortable during our visit in  September 2014.  We enjoyed getting to know the  Burundi partners and the  American missionaries live and serve on the compound. We saw all of the  schools and other ministries in  progress  and updated our sponsorship records.  A member of our team  taught a session in the Timothy Bible School and three men  traveled to a more remote village area  to teach and preach for three days. Many  needs were apparent, yet the partners made good use of the resources they had.  It was a joy to see and learn of the growth over recent years and the vision for the future. Please pray for this little nation.  It has suffered war and poverty. It is land locked and surrounded by all kinds of threats-- but the  Lord is drawing out a people for His Name from  Burundi.

Sharing the Word with Guatemala

Guatemala is a regular destination for  Allow.  In June 2014, a team  traveled to the Central  American country and invested another week to serving and discipling.  After making trips to  Africa and  Asia, it is amazing to think about how close this country is to the United  States.  We built a kitchen to be used by the  Elder Home on the mission compound and also for preparing meals for the feeding centers.  We helped care for handicapped children. We taught God's Word in the orphanage and in churches and in the villages. 

Children of Ghana

Allow  The  Children has expanded to the west African nation of Ghana.  We made the initial trips in  January  to see whether there was something compatible with  Allow.  There WAS.  We found a  school ministry, managed and funded under a local  church. Like  our other ministries, there are strong believers  working who know how to reach and minister to their own people. Allow stepped in and funded  some remodeling of the small kitchen to enable better nutrition. Better food means better attendance.  We  provided uniforms for the children who  were not able to buy them.  We  provided books and consumable materials.  And-- we have set up a  sponsorship program to give some ongoing  financial help to this  school.  In return, we are expecting to see some educated and  gospel grounded Ghananian believers rising up from among  beggars and street venders and vegetable sellers.   

One of our board members and two members from his church traveled to Ghana in  June 2014.  They  taught and preached, worked on a building project, visited in homes and distributed gifts and school supplies to the children. 

New staff missionary for Allow

Allow The Children welcomes  Jannah  Cooter to our missionary staff.  She can paint and teach in the same day, with barely a break between the two!  Jannah will be helping  with the office work, and also with trips into our ministry countries.  She will be working on our projects, teaching the children, managing the sponsorship program and  helping with all of the tasks that make this ministry happen.

Jannah's words:  I cannot express my excitement and thankfulness to be an official Allow The Children missionary. I'm so grateful that Mrs.Cook asked me to volunteer 4 years ago. Many of you have supported me spiritually and financially as I have gone on mission trips that made my love for Allow the Children grow & I am beyond thankful! Please pray for me as I continue to learn in the U.S. office as well as out of the country & as I begin raising support for my ministry.

We are now in our new office!

What a blessing!   After so long a time of searching and prayer, the Lord has led us to just the right place. We are just delighted with our new building.  We completed the renovations and move in  April 2014.  The best thing about it is that we have space to work.  No more stepping over boxes and  packing stuff up against the walls.  It is a beautiful, comfortable place to work.  The best thing about it is the wonderful location on Timberlake  Road.  It is a busy road where many people might see our sign. It is easy for our sponsors in this local area to drop by is also convenient to our church and the post office and supply stores. The best thing about it is that we have settled the "home base" issue and now we can get our minds back on the ministry fields.  The best thing about it is that the  Lord gave it to us in answer  to our needs. Thanks and praise to Him. Thanks so much to all of the volunteers who donated labor and many items to make this office ready for us.  Now we are ready  for company!   Please stop  in to see us.

Carine, a little girl in Haiti.

Carine is almost 5 years old.  She was found sitting in the rubble of the 2010 earthquake in  Haiti. No relatives were ever found for her.  Someone brought her to a children's home where her needs could be met.  Carine sleeps in a clean, safe place. She  goes to school. She hears of the Savior who loves her. But the children's home, like most of Haiti, struggles in deep poverty. The children have very little above the necessities and sometimes, they do not even have that. Carine has very little clothing.  There is not much food.Water  for drinking or bathing must be carried in.  In  February, 2014, I visited  Carine's children's home with my daughter in law. The home is coming into Allow The Children's program.  Life will be getting better for Carine and the other children soon.  This is what we do-- well, it is one of the things we do.  I am excited to see it unfold once again. We need  sponsors for 21 children-- people who have been blessed of God enough so that they can bless others in return.  As the support comes in, we can provide meat and fruit for meals.  We can buy shoes and medicines, school supplies and maybe even a few toys.  We pray that the children will grow up to become strong, committed believers, ready to serve the Lord and to be witnesses among their own people.

The school ministry program in Ghana

On the west coast of the continent of Africa, we found a  beautiful and gracious people,  a faithful pastor and a ministry of children in  need.  A local church provides basic education for children of any faith in their community.   These are children whose families cannot pay the fees for the government schools.   Many of the families cannot buy a  school uniform or basic consumable supplies.   Most of the children would go without lunch, if the school did not provide that as well.     AND—this project is bringing the gospel to many children who would not otherwise come into the church.  Now  Allow  The  Children has the privilege of joining this project.   We hope to get children sponsored and run projects for school uniforms and supplies.   We want to  help them to provide good nutritious lunches.  They need equipment for the kitchen, charts and maps for the classrooms. Pens and pencils and paper-- so many things.