Teams at Bethesda play a vital role in helping Bethesda and they are a huge help to us; but, we don’t want that to be the only focus of their trip. The problem of orphaned and vulnerable children is a global problem—and there are many children in all of our own communities right now.
We take God’s directive to care for orphans seriously and want to help others see that they too can be involved in helping vulnerable children no matter where they live. While a team is here, they get to know our Bethesda children and families in a variety of ways. We also show teams some of the other child care ministries in the local community and get them involved so they can see and understand the scope of the problem, as well as the many ways they can be involved in helping to meet those needs. Our goal is that God will touch their hearts and motivate them to action by getting involved in their own local communities when they get home, as a result of the time spent here.
The Purdue team that Marty Dittmar brought as part of his mission, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, was a very effective team. The kids absolutely loved the athletes that came and were in awe of how big they were—especially the football players! We saved them a special project this time and they dug a very long and deep trench (sorry guys!) to help replace one of our old and very leaky waterlines. They were quite sore after a day of heaving pick axes and shovels. It was a job well done and although we are still fighting other leaking waterlines, the one they installed is working perfectly. They also challenged our kids to love and know God better. Thanks so much!
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Check out the ESPN article on David Blough and his experience at Bethesda Outreach!
