New Hope for One Life Children
Written by Lauren Benson
We have a faithful God who is constantly at work around the world. At first, we may only notice a gentle prodding as the Holy Spirit guides us, but the more we step out in faith, we learn to recognize His voice amid all the noise. This is how our One Life Director in Southeast Asia, Ed, came to know the Lord and entered a lifetime of ministry, sharing the Gospel through sustainable community development and overseeing the care for vulnerable children in three countries.
Ed was not always a follower of Jesus, but he felt something guiding him to learn more about who God is. After years in a gang, he turned to Buddhism and practiced as a monk, but his questions about life and God were left unanswered. When Ed decided to learn how to play the guitar, his tutor followed what can only be described as a Holy Spirit-prompting to share the Gospel with Ed. As Ed began to understand the Gospel message, the Holy Spirit captured his heart, and Ed jumped into his new Christian identity like the Apostle Paul.
Today, Ed is the One Life Director for Southeast Asia, where he oversees all the One Life site leaders in that region. He and his wife, Fang, also oversee a One Life site that is appropriately named ‘New Hope.’ Here they have intentionally loved and raised children who are not their own. Currently, they care for more than 20 beautiful girls. Many of them are HIV-positive and rescued from trafficking or abandoned at the Thai border. Orphaned, these girls have grown up in Ed and Fang’s home, learning that they matter and are worthy of love.
Fang spends her entire day mothering and nurturing these girls as if they were her own. These children, who could have easily slipped through the cracks in society, have grown up to have marketable skills, such as hairdressing or online marketing, enabling them to live independently and have careers. Through One Life, they have been given a family and introduced to the Gospel message through Ed and Fang’s discipleship.
Please lift up One Life in your prayers today. Each of our site leaders has their own unique testimony that led them into this ministry. They need prayer warriors to intercede on their behalf as they work daily in the trenches with these children.
If you are interested in learning more about One Life child sponsorship, 19 children like the ones at New Hope are waiting for sponsorship today. Learn more at http://www.onelifechild.org.