This August, LBW is supporting orphans in India with school supplies this upcoming school year. Some of these orphans will recieve supplies for the first time through our program Love Beyond Borders.
LBW Team
So you want to be a wife? But, what if your husband has a heart for the homeless, vulnerable and poverty stricken…. What if he decides to live on top of a BUS for 30 days.. AWAY from you and your family!!!
Marriage is NO JOKE…can you really do what Pastor Enid Stewart says and “Give back to God whom he GAVE to YOU.”
As I think about the Mobile Makeovers Bus campaign or Love Beyond Walls in general… I always think about the reason why we started this organization. We started with a deep love and compassion to take love to those who are often times forgotten… some call them “the least of these.”
People have asked my husband why would he live on top of a bus for a month… Well, here is a little secret that most people don’t know… I was the person who told my him that if he wanted to get the bus going and really get the word out about the campaign he was going to have to do something out of the box, strange, or something that was not ordinary to get people’s attention in this busy world we live in.
He mentioned that we needed a large amount of resources to make over the bus and I said, “You’re going to have to live on top of the bus or something… It has to be radical where it makes a statement.” He responded, “You’re right. I have to stand up for what we believe in…”
Afterwards, we talked about the timeframe, and how it would happen. I didn’t know that it would change so many lives and so many people would get on board and support the cause. It amazes me to see the number of lives we are changing by following Christ. People say it was selfless, but we say it’s simply doing what is in our hearts.
During the time that Terence has been on the bus, I have received a lot of questions in reference to how did I do it or why did I let him do it? And my answer is simple, “I did it because I understand the passion that my husband has because he has been this was since we have been together.”
I covered him with prayer daily, sent encouragement to him through text messages, visits, and lots of phone calls. I knew what kind of person he was from Day 1 so there are not many things that he says out of the box that shocks me. I am grateful for all of my family and friends that have helped me along the way while he has been on the bus.
I wouldn’t have been able to do all that I have done without him taking care of home before he left to be on the bus just to be sure that we’d be okay. Additionally, he has set a great example for our children by living a message of giving.
It is an honor to be on this journey with my husband through Love Beyond Walls as we serve people through the Mobile Makeovers campaign. I am grateful to have a husband like Terence who doesn’t mind going to get anything! He has proven that he will stand up for the works that is supposed to be done for Christ.
This is what a wife does to support her husband.
Cecilia
On May 3rd, I will start a journey that will be one of the longest journey’s of my life! Probably the most humbling too…. In fact, it will take over 2K hours to complete! But I feel like it is what I am supposed to do…
Why? Because I would like to advocate for children without proper clothing or closets! There are so many children facing poverty or are experiencing “family homelessness” that have to wear the same thing ever single day. Or, they don’t have the proper clothing period.
We have done community work in Title 1 Schools and have encountered so many children who literally wore the same thing every singe day because they didn’t have a choice or a washing machine….
In fact, that’s what this campaign is about… I am literally going to donate every single article of clothing, shoes, etc I own (leaving myself only one outfit), and will walk in the shoes of children across this nation and world who have very few articles of clothing in their closet. Yes, you heard that right… Every single thing I own!
I am going to wear one outfit for 90 DAYS straight to raise awareness, uniforms, and clothing for children facing generational poverty. I’m literally giving up my closet, so children who do not have closets will have one. I will write, post, and update my entire journey via social media to explain the social pressures associated with little (hoping to educate the public about what poverty does to children psychologically). Hopefully, this campaign will enlighten, educate, and move people to respond to the issue of lack.
Why do this? Simple. Over the last several months I have had many experiences that centered around children not having proper attire and experiencing extreme poverty. I have met many homeless mothers that have children who lacked necessities during their hardship/transition, spoken with struggling single fathers who could not afford to purchase basic items for their children to wear, worked in schools and have encountered children (K-5) that have to wear the same thing EVERY SINGLE DAY because their family can’t afford to purchase items for them.
I even heard a child say, “Mom, my feet hurt…” because the shoes this 4 year old was wearing shoes that were not his size (while experiencing homelessness)…
I have discovered something in all the stories I encounter that involve children and poverty… Their pains are directly tied to their caregivers, and is not their own fault. As I prepare myself over the next 4 days, I’m reminded of how Jesus not only served people, but gave up his life to reconcile humanity back to God.
Pray for #lovebeyondwalls and our journey with #closetstrike… The artwork is below!
Terence
We are excited about partnering with India Faith Ministries in India to resource many kids with shoes who don’t have any at all. This will kick off our #lovebeyondborders initiative to share the love of God with people across the globe. Thank you so much for your contribution to our #givemilesaway campaign!
Below I received an email from the kids the other day saying, “THANKS!!!” Not only did this warm my heart, but it is reminding me of how God loves every single person on this planet.
Keep praying for #lovebeyondwalls
Terence
We are approaching a historic month for #lovebeyondwalls! Why? Because in the month of April we will occupy our first office/slash storage space. Below is a picture if you have seen it yet:
Of course it is not a gigantic building, but it will be something we call a headquarters & home.
It will be a “launchpad” for the work we would like to continue doing in our city (ATL), country, and world.
It will be a place where we can get planted and grow as an organization. We ask that you do four specific things to help us get planted into our new office/storage space in the month of April (whole month).
1) Pray – I ask that you pray that God allows us to get planted, and immediately continue to reach people who do not have any hope.
2) Give – I ask that you look at our simple “wish list” and contribute in of the items on it that we need. This is ALL from scratch, so we will need your help. But, if we have to spend the first month on the floor with laptops working, we are cool with that too. LOL. Simply click [HERE] to visit our “wish list” page.
3) Volunteer – We will post the days that we will start working on the building to clean it, and make minor repairs to it. We ask that you volunteer to help get our building together. We will need help getting organized, painting, etc. Why? As we get planted, we can help more people.
4) Share our story – If you know someone who could help us move forward, share our story. You never know who “you know” that we can help, or could help us.
Thank you for reading this blog. Pray for #lovebeyondwalls as we aim to “PLANT LOVE” in the city of Atlanta! Below is the graphic for the new campaign #plantlove
Terence
Yesterday was one of the best speaking engagements I’ve ever had! Why? Because I got a chance to speak to a classroom of bright, articulate, intelligent, and hope-filled 5th graders at Cheatham Hill Elementary.
I was invited by an educator who recently learned about LBW (Ms. King), and what we are doing to raise awareness about homelessness and other issues in the city (ATL) and country. Ms. King asked me to share stories with her class that paralleled a non-fiction novel they are reading. The novel contains stories of homelessness, and the stories I’ve experienced (while homeless for three days) bring those non-fiction stories to life.
As I shared, I began to see many student(s) faces light up while they listened intently… Also, I started to see lights go off in their heads.
After I gave my talk, it then dawned on me–homelessness is connected to so many educational topics! One student asked, “Why are families broken…” another “Why are people poor in this country…” yet another “What are we so wasteful in this country…”
These bright students raised questions about sociology, psychology, economics, politics, and public health. I was intrigured and even inspired with how concerned these kids were with people who they don’t know (the under resourced).
I answered a couple of questions, and then this group of students asked if they could help #lovebeyondwalls with a project. It just so happened that #lovebeyondwalls is adopting 30 orphans in India (from the Dalit community) in the month of April.
They are in need of shoes and other small items, and these students vowed to raise the resources needed to supply these orphans with resources. It became a class project instantly.
So not only was my conversation filled with different areas of study, it became a beautiful picture of kids serving kids that do not have anything. Below are the two pictures! One picture are the orphans, and the other picture are the students that will help the children in India through our #lovebeyondborders campaign.
Terence
