A little boy stands alone on top of a hill. He is four years old and living by himself with barely a roof over his head. Abandoned by his family, he doesn’t even know his name.
A small and shy little girl plays alone. Both of her parents are drug addicts and are unable to take care of her.
Today they both have a place to call home at Hope House. There are big brothers and sisters who come play with them and give them warm hugs.
Hope House is a children’s home and accredited learning center run by Grace International School parents Thomas and Lenora Bush and currently houses 58 hill tribe children. It is also a place where Grace students go on a biweekly basis to pray for the children and do fun activities with them. They also work with the children to host events such as Hope House’s annual Christmas Carnival where those in the community come to enjoy. Grace students participate in this as part of The Blessing Directive ministry and is led by secondary English teacher Bob Flaa. He says that the club is a way to “get the kids to shift their focus from themselves and be a blessing to others.” He wants the students to be able to serve others as a part of their week and has been impressed by their commitment in taking the time and energy to invest in the lives of these hill tribe children on Friday afternoons. Each child at Hope House is assigned a Grace student buddy and with each visit the bond between the child and their special Grace friend is strengthened into something irreplaceable.
“The kids really look forward to The Blessing Directive,” Lenora says with a smile. “They would always ask if the Grace students were coming this week. They hug and play with each other. They may not be able to always speak the same language but they have fun and bond. That is a wonderful thing to see.”
Hope House and The Blessing Directive shows how the ministry efforts of parents, teachers, and students at Grace International School come together to powerfully extend blessing and love to children who need it. Because of Grace placing great value on ministry, hill tribe children are able to experience the greatest love of all—Jesus Christ.
