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Dear Seth Barnes,
It worked! Do you remember when you were sitting in your garage, with not much more than a vision from God? A vision of a generation that would become wrecked for the Kingdom of God. A vision of a journey. A journey that would lead to abandonment, brokenness, dependency, and empowerment. A vision that would call forth the greatness of a generation. A vision that would mobilize that generation, to live out Kingdom dreams on this earth. A vision that would change the world… MTV Hits is playing throughout the restaurant. Katy Perry is emotional. The environment has the capability of drowning out any conversation of real value. Stacey Nicole Compton and Michael James Sanders sit across from each other. The television, instead of capturing attention, is making them nauseous. Instead of giving a second glance to half naked pop stars and less than talented rappers, they are deep in thought. That morning, Stacey and Michael were reacquainted with a dear old friend named Brokenness. Before being dropped off at the mall for their day off, they accompanied Tony on a trip to drop off two young girls at their home in Los Pinos. The girls, Nicole and Sandra, had spent the last few days with the entire B Squad. For the first part of the drive, the girls laughed and played with Michael and Stacey, but as they got closer to Los Pinos the girls’ smiles disappeared. Nicole climbed into the back and retreated into the fetal position. Sandra took off the red and white polka dot headband given to her. It was as though she were removing the hope of a better life and accepting the reality that awaited her. For the remainder of the drive, Michael and Stacey listened to Tony tell stories about the girls’ life. Brokenness listened alongside them. They arrived in Los Pinos, one of the poorest and most dangerous colonies in Honduras. The girls walked as slow as possible up the long dirt stairway that leads through the slums. There is an old green door that marks the entrance to the girls’ house. For Michael and Stacey, it is just another door that they are free to walk through, but for the girls, it is a symbol of their confinement. After long hugs goodbye, Michael and Stacey walked back through the old green door, and back down the long dirt stairway, leaving the girls in the home they dreaded returning to. “Puedo tomar su orden? Estas listo para comer?” Michael and Stacey struggle to understand the waitress, and also to come to a decision amidst the endless menu choices. Their friend brokenness joins them at the table; they realize that although they may struggle to decide what to eat, Nicole and Sandra will struggle to eat at all.
“I think that most of the world’s problems could be solved through access to good education“, Stacey remarked. “I spend a lot of my time wondering how my life can make the greatest impact for the Kingdom. Is it through discipleship, or education? Or feeding programs? Or access to clean water? Or fighting human trafficking? I want to know that I spent my life in the best way possible“, Michael replied. “If God’s plan for your life was to adopt Nicole and Sandra and be Jesus to them, would changing just two lives be enough?” Stacey asked. “Absolutely”, replied Michael.
Dear Seth Barnes, it worked. We are wrecked for life.
~Michael James Sanders and Stacey Nicole Compton
Sandra on the lower left, and Nicole upper right 🙂
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