Spreading the Love

A few weeks ago Katie and I had the opportunity to meet with some of the teachers and administrative staff at a local elementary school to discuss ways we could partner together.  We are really excited about finding ways for Rescue Atlanta to partner with other organizations and schools in our community. It is a way that we can spread Christ's love in a tangible way and bless even further than beyond the walls of our ministry.  One of the ways we are working with them is by helping to provide an outfit to children in the school who need a new or gently used set of clothing. An email was sent out to the teachers asking them to identify students in their class who may need the blessing of a new outfit of pair or shoes. This school is in the general neighborhood of our ministry and many of the families are below the poverty line. Some of the kids from our ministry attend their school.

Last week I received the name of 34 children who were in need. On Saturday, Katie and I put together bags. We had some leftover drawstring bags so each child received a bag with a small school supply kid, a pair of socks and underwear, pants, a long sleeve shirt, a jacket or hoodie, and a pair of shoes. We labeled them with the child's name and teachers name for easy distribution.

Yesterday I delivered the bags to the school. The faculty and staff were so appreciative. There were handshakes and hugs all around. Here are some pictures from the delivery:

We would love to continue to bless the children of our community who are in need. Our greatest need in this area is for children's underwear and socks, and boys clothing. As well as children's shoes sizes 4 and up. As your children grow, consider donating their outgrown clothes and shoes to this effort.

I'll close this Valentine's Day post with the follow letter from God to His Daughters. I read this in our middle school class this past week and challenged the girls to remember who they were in Christ and that they needed to wait for a man who would remind them of the following. I also challenged the guys to be the kind of man who God desired for His daughters. They were pretty rowdy in the beginning of class but you could have heard a pin drop as I read this. Some of the girls faces expressed that they understood every word of this letter in a very real way. I encourage you to share it with the women in your life. I found it online with no trace of an author to credit:

My precious daughter,
I will never leave you,
I will never forsake you,
I will be faithful until the end,
You are more than just "my daughter"
You are my princess,
My beloved, my delight,
I rejoice in you,
You are beautiful,
You shine with light,
You have dove's eyes,
I rejoice in you with singing,
I will quiet you with my love,
Hold you in my arms,
Never let you go,
For you are never alone,
You never have been alone,
I've been with you all along,
Your whole life,

I understand your pain,
My sacrifice wasn't for nothing,
Let me tell you I understand your confusion,
I understand your anger and frustration,
I understand your tears,
And I care,
Very much,
For you,
Everything that is important to you,
Is important to me too,
My love for you will never end,
I will not leave you for another,
I will not abandon you ever,
No matter how far you go,
My love will never end.

I have examined you heart,
I know everything about you,
When you sit down or stand up,
I know your thoughts,
Even when you are far away,
I see you when you travel,
Or when you rest at home,
I see the tears that fall from your eyes,
I see the heartache in your home,
Believe me I know the lies,
I know the temptations,
But I am here,
I know what you are going to say,
Even before you say it.
I go before you and follow,
I place my hand of blessing on your head,
Such knowledge is beyond comprehension,
It is too wonderful for you to understand,
You can never escape from my Spirit,
You can never get away from my presence!
If you go up to heaven, I am there;
If you go down to the grave, I am there.
If you ride the wings of the morning,
If you dwell by the farthest oceans,
Even there my hand will guide you,
And my strength will support you.

You could ask the darkness to hide you,
And the light around you to become night,
But even in darkness you cannot hide from me,
To me night shine as day,
Darkness and light are the same to me,
I made all the delicate, inner parts of your body,
I made your heart,
I know what makes you hurt,
I know what makes you cry,
I know what makes you tick,
I know when breaks your heart the most,
And I know how to comfort you,
I know how to make you smile,
I know how to love you,
I know how to be a daddy who loves,
Such a beautiful daughter like you,
You long for acceptance,
When you were already accepted into my family,
You are fearfully and wonderfully made,
I love you more than you know,
I will fill your heart with the love and peace you long for,
I saw you before you were born,
I knit you together in your mother's womb,
Even then I loved you,
And I was proud of you,
And I thought of you as my beautiful daughter, my princess,
Everyday of your life is recorded in my book,
Every moment was laid out,
Every moment that would bring you joy,
Every moment that would bring you pain.

My thoughts about you are precious,
They cannot be numbered,
They out number the grains of sand,
And when you wake up in the morning,
I am still with you,
I love you more than you know,
You are beautiful to me,
Even though you feel something is always wrong,
Just look into my eyes,
See how I see you,
A beautiful princess,
With beautiful eyes that shine with my love and my light,
I love you,
And I will say it again,
I love you,
My princess, my beloved,
My precious daughter,

I love you,
I love you,
I love you.

Don't give up,
For I see the brokenness in your families,
In your friendships,
I see the pain in your eyes,
Your beautiful heart,
That used to be so filled joy,
Is now crushed beneath your burdens,
But you're still beautiful to me,
So beautiful to me,
I will heal you and restore you once again,

My precious daughter,
I will never leave you,
I will never forsake you,
I will be faithful until the end,

Faithful until the end...

Your loving Father and Daddy, Prince of Peace, King of Glory,
-Jesus.


Thanks for sharing the love.
For His Renown,
Morgan Paddock