Well, Ohana A Z does an incredible job of ministering to foster Children all over the valley. And their primary focus is on foster care group homes. But then they also do incredible events throughout the year. So their most recent event, what you just witnessed there on video was, uh, foster care prom. And so they came down, um, the girls got dresses, the guys got dressed up, the girls got their hair done. Um, they had just had an awesome party just to know that they are valued and that God loves them. And so if you were here with us at Mission Grove, um, at Easter, you are a part of, um, generosity where we gave and gifted, uh, several smart TV S and laptops and you guys brought in gift cards and gift baskets as they just launched the Anchor house, which is a transition home for girls aging out of the foster care system. And so that, uh, that home is, is up and, and going. And so it's I'm super excited today because I have, uh, just a good friend, also a former staff member here at Mission Grove. He was, he helped to start. The church was a bal pastor working at the church, working in foster care and the needs kept growing within that ministry. And so he actually transitioned out from a staff position here and now works fully with Ohana and loves on um Children and their family as incredible and their kids are spunky and energetic and I love it. And uh and so can you just give me a warm mission grove? Welcome back to our friend Kevin Dey John also he looks great. Right? Like we didn't even we didn't even notice the dark shirt with dots today but like who's who here? Right. Right. Right. Right. There we go. Even it out. Yeah, we were even on fame vacation and ran into each other in another country last week. So and now we look the same. I tried to, I tried to grow this out too so I can get my John beard on here. So it's good. I appreciate that. Appreciate it. So one more time, let's give it up for Kevin. Thank you so much for. Well, thank you, Mission Grove. It's good to be back. I always love being here and it's fun to be up here on, on stage um here at a comedy club, which is awesome. It's cool to see what God is doing here at Mission Grove and just love the idea that you guys have been been able to be empowered and be partners with us uh with what I get to do at Ohana A Z and so John, thanks for the the introduction. Uh You guys got to see that video. Hopefully you got to see me dancing in it, which I mean that was probably a highlight. I'm just gonna say um but that is, that was a, a great event, one of the things that Ohana uh that we we do and I share with everybody uh that that comes on board and say we want to create a family like environment um for all the kids. So we have 13, actually 14 now different homes with the Anchor House um that serves teens in foster care. It also serves um kids, teens and adults with special needs, some cognitive disability or autism. Um and they need more severe uh help and you know, hands on. So we have quite a range of what we're doing. Our primary hub right now is through housing and we're hoping to expand that and get into other areas. Um The Anchor House as John mentioned, is focused on, you know, young women who have aged out of foster care and now need some stability. I'll share a little bit about that, but we actually have two of our very first young women moving in tomorrow. So that's super exciting. And thanks to you all, they get to feel that sense of family like environment uh there. So, so in addition to a family like environment, we also strive to create some normalcy. And so that's why we, we did that prom because, you know, any kid really, unfortunately, with the pandemic normalcy was taken away for so many of us. But the reality with kids that are in foster care is they don't get to experience a lot of normalcy on a, on a day to day, week to week, month to month basis. So the, the prom was just fun. It was exciting. I think some of our staff had more fun. Then the girls, they were coming up, they're like, this is better than my prom, you know, so they, they loved it and it was just a great time. I was a little nervous, you know, bringing that many kids, one together teenagers and then kids that have been, you know, through trauma and thank God nothing wild happened. So that was a huge praise. Huh? I was super stressed going into it, but it was good. We survived that. And then the other aspect of what we wanna do is create a sense of family or a sense of faith and community, right? And so we really want to promote and allow our kids to experience, you know, getting together and going to youth groups. There are several churches that we've been able to partner with that are a little closer to where we're at where the kids get to go on a Wednesday night or on a Sunday or Sunday evening. And so it's been an awesome to see the, the larger community, the larger body of Christ be connected and to be involved in what we're doing. And so that's fun. And, and again, it's a huge blessing and privilege uh to be here to get to share more with you all uh today. And so as John mentioned, I've, I've been doing foster care and kind of now have been transition fully in it for a little while. In total. I've been working about six years um in foster care in some form or fashion. Uh And when people ask like, what is it like um working with kids in foster care? I go, it's a little like a battle, right? I mean, it's like parenting, parents, parenting is a battle, right? You get into it, it's, it has its good days, but it has a lot of rough days, right? And I think particularly on this day today is June 6th, right? And so if you know your, your history today marks the 77th anniversary of D day, right? So where the allied troops on June 6th, 1944 went to one of the largest battles in our history. Um And they went to the beaches of Normandy and just thousands upon thousands of troops landed on that beach, right? Because we were in a dire situation as a country in the middle of that war after five years where Hitler and the Nazis had pretty much you know, had rain over most of western Europe. And so, you know, our leadership said, hey, we need to do something drastic. We need to have this battle so that we can turn the tide of the war, right? And because of that victory, because of that day, right, it really did change things. It was this experience um all those years ago where there was a victory and that victory really ensured the the victory of the war overall, right, especially in that area. And although it was a particular day, the war didn't end on that day, right? But that victory was significant. And so those troops all those years ago experienced this reality of this already reality through that victory, but a not yet fulfillment of the end of the war. And so that's a type of reality in which we as Christians experience, right? Christ has already gone and fought the greatest battle on our behalf. He is victorious. And so we get to experience that already reality of being forgiven of being adopted into his family, of all that comes along with that. And yet we're not yet experiencing the fullness of it. We have to wait for that reality. And so when I think about working uh with kids in foster care, I think it's somewhat like that, that battle each and every day I have to be reminded that the victory, the battle has already been won by what Christ has done Right. And what we get to do is just take that reality and bring it into the life of a young teen or a young adult and, and to show them something that maybe they don't know about yet. Um, but the, the day to day grind of it without that hope, without that reality, it would seem, um, pretty hopeless. Um, there's a lot of challenging days in the midst of that or another example that I've used is, is an example of, of running. So I used to run long distance in high school and in college and being in a foster care, it's kind of like running a marathon, right? I ran a marathon once and it was awful like I was way underprepared and, you know, you're in that moment. I thought my hip was gonna fall off. And some lady that's seven years old is like encouraging me running by me and I'm like, this is bad. This is not great, but it feels like that some days um working at Ohana and I gotta remember that again. The reality is already, but not yet. And I just finished reading this great book. It's called Run The Mile. You're in um by a runner named Ryan Hall. He is the US uh world record holder or the US record holder in the half marathon. And it was encouraging reading it because this guy had a career in running and yet said, yeah, running is, it's still awful. Like, even if you're paid to do it, running a marathon is still challenging. So I was like, ok, I'm good company. At least here. Like, it's just hard and it's like that is the reality. I think sometimes I've, I've worked with people or, you know, people that have wanted to get into volunteering, helping out fostering whatever it is. I think they, they just see the rose colored glasses and they forget the reality of foster care is just challenging, right? It isn't a sprint, it's not a short walk, it is a marathon. And I loved in his book, uh run the Mile You're in by Ryan Hall. He says he early on in his career, he was challenged because he kept trying to seek like acceptance and adoration and accomplishments like in his own strength. And it came to a point where as he was training and running, he said it really wasn't fun anymore. And he's a Christian and he writes from that perspective and he shares it wasn't until he realized that all those things that he was striving after and running after that, he already had them. All right. He says, if I was seeking acceptance, I already had that completely in God through Christ. If I was seeking accomplishments, right? God is already accomplished and given me everything that I needed. And he goes on and he talks about that and he says the reality was that had already won he'd already run the race and he said from there, it just alleviated the stress, the anxiety, the burden and it brought back the joy of being able to run and to use his gift to glorify God. And so I think for whatever it is, if it's something that you guys are facing, if it's a battle, if it feels like you're in the midst of a marathon, I mean, if you're a parent, it feels like both those things at the same time, it's just difficult, but yet Christ has already won on our behalf, we're already completely loved and accepted. And so one of the mottos that we have at uh Ohana is love moves and hope heals, right? And so we use this as a reminder of this reality of what God has already done for us and the, the difficult days for us to be able to be filled with his love first and foremost, and his hope so that we can go out and bring that to the kids that we're working with. In the first part. I'm gonna break it down for you this morning. I'll, I'll give you three different points under love moves and three different points under hope heals. And I'll, I'll bring us back first and foremost and use some scriptures that point to who Jesus is and the reality of what he, what he's done and our place and position because of that. I'll share a little bit from the book of Ruth because I think the Book of Ruth is a great story of just heartache, but also commitment and relationship and individuals that were committed and were able to show and demonstrate love and also to bring about hope. And I'll share with you some stories, some practical stories of Ohana, uh some of our staff and some of uh those young women moving in to the anchor house here this morning. And so hopefully, it gives you a picture not only again of what we're doing at Ohana, but ultimately the reality of what God has already done for you. And I love again, what Pastor John Mission Grove are you guys are doing here of, of taking this year and focusing on being empowered, right? And so hopefully it's an encouragement to you as well of wherever you're at, you're empowered to love and you're empowered to bring hope um to where God has you and those people in your life. So the first part of the first point here in love moves, love moves when imperfect. Sometimes I hear people say, hey, I wanna get involved, I wanna go do something, maybe that's within foster care or maybe it's something, you know, just that God's put on your heart. But too often I think we think, hey, I gotta figure it out first, I gotta have all my stuff together and then I'll go do that thing or, and then then I'll get baptized because then I'll God will approve of me. But the reality is we're all one big hot mess, right? And we're not perfect. And it's just like you gotta sit there for a second and accept that reality because it is what it is. But it also brings great freedom, right? For us to go into act. One of the verses that I love that has been impactful in my own life comes from Philippians chapter one verse six. Uh Here, Paul is talking to some Christians in the early church. He's saying how he prays for them. And there's a point in that prayer he says, and I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in, you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ, right? It's not, hey, I'm sure of this. If you get your stuff together, uh then you'll be approved and loved and accepted. He says, no, I'm sure that it's God through Jesus who's began the good work. It's God through Jesus who will bring it to completion, right? Whether that is upon his return or upon our death and we meet him, but he is faithful, right? And he will do his work. I remember I had a college professor kind of pray and speak that over me and it just again alleviated that stress or that anxiety or that burden that I had to prove something to God or to others. And hopefully that helps you as well to have that sense of freedom to know. Ok, it's Jesus who's perfect. We don't have to have it together. We can continue to be a hot mess and make mistakes and our position and our status is not gonna change. That's an already reality. That's never gonna be taken away from us. Another verse, um that I love comes from Hebrews, Hebrews 415 here. The author of Hebrews is speaking about Jesus as our great high priest. And so it could seem intimidating. He's a high priest, Jesus is perfect and how can he relate to understand? But the author of Hebrews says, for, we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. But one who in every respect has been tempted as we are and yet is without sin. So we don't have a God, we serve that doesn't understand the challenges and the difficulties, the battles or the, you know, the long races and the hurt and the pain. But he gets it later. Uh That author writes through that, through that relationship, the gift that we have in Jesus, we can go confidently and boldly to the throne of grace. And so my encouragement, if you're feeling imperfect, like you're in good company, right? Because we're all there. And, but yet Jesus is the one who is perfect. He is the one who we have the freedom to go to at any time and share that and he gets to alleviate that anxiety, those fears and empower us with his love so that we can act so we can move into a position or a place where others are hurting and struggling. The next part of love moves is love moves during heartache. And nine, Naomi's heartache. I don't know if there's a story in the Bible that begins with such heartache as the book of Ruth does the first five ver first five verses, there's so much loss. It's easy to just kind of read it. It's a short story. It's four chapters and then kind of miss the significance of it. My best kind of comparison is if you've ever seen the movie up. Um If I watch that movie in the first, I don't know, three minutes or whatever it is, I always will start crying. It's like, what did they do to me here in this movie? It takes you from this young couple and the love that they have and the hopes and dreams that they have of exploring together and then they grow old in different circumstances. And then you have Carl that's left alone by himself after the loss of his sweet wife Ellie, right? Just go home if you need a good cry. Watch those first three minutes. But it's like it, it captures all of those things, right? It captures the love that they have, but it also captures the grief and the heartache that they have. And so thinking of that, that's the kind of stuff in those first few verses of Ruth that it captures and verse three it says, but a leek, the husband of Naomi died and she was left with her two sons. These took moab wives and the name of the one was or a and the name of the other Ruth. They lived there about 10 years and both Meillon and Killian died so that the women so that the woman was left without her two sons and her husband talk about some heartache. She's left with nobody. The husband, they had gone and went into that area because it was a great famine. They were starting their family, their Children were married and yet now here she is alone later in Ruth. She says, don't call me Naomi but call me Mara, which means bitter, right? She's in this position of just deep sorrow and loss because of what's happened to this uncertainty of how she will continue, who will be there to protect her and to provide for her. Her whole world is upside down. And so I imagine thinking in this last year in the pandemic, it doesn't take probably too many people to think through of the loss and the heartache and just the uncertainty that everything that has created. But how does love move into the heartache? How do we step across the street or go next door or send that text message or pick up the phone to whoever is hurting because of the great loss that they've experienced just to provide some of that comfort. And so I'd encourage you, you don't need to be perfect. And when you see someone in a hurt and sorrow, it's as simple as we'll see is just being committed and being there for that individual. The third part of love moves is love moves with courage. And so I want to share a story of Pima story uh with you, there's a picture here. So the bunny, that's me. You know, I have dance moves. I have bunny, you know, just whatever you need, I can bring it. So that is us. Um that is our Easter event. So again, we love to celebrate, we love to create some normalcy. So every year we do an Easter event o at the park, we have a big picnic, um just have fun with our kids and our staff. And so Pima is one of our staff. She's there in a pink shirt at the bottom and that's a maya at the top. That's one of our other staff. Both awesome, amazing ladies who love God and who really get uh the heart of what we're doing. And so part of my role at Ohana is working with our staff um hiring our staff, but also when we get an opportunity to open another group home, sometimes it takes a little convincing saying, hey, uh you want to come and work over at this house. Well, this particular house that we got to open this year in January, uh, was a home for 10 teen girls. Uh, now think about that 10 teen girls coming to live together in one house. That of itself sounds like a bad idea. It doesn't sound great. But we said, ok, we saw there's this great need. We worked with the state and so we had this opportunity and so I talked to these two girls and, um, and said, hey, they were already staff for us. They were working with some of our special needs kids and adults and they each were pretty reluctant, right? I mean, this house is, it's categorized as what's known as significant trauma. And so these girls that are moving in obviously have experienced a high level of trauma and most of them have experienced a high level of sexual trauma, um either from a family member or someone outside or being sex trafficked. So it's pretty horrific. And so you can imagine bringing all that together in one space, um can create some tension and some behaviors. And so Pima was a little reluctant, um to say, hey, I'm gonna jump right into that. She's not very tall. She's sweet. I don't know. I think most of my kids are taller than her now. Um, but she is bold and courageous and as we talked through it, she said, ok, I'm gonna give it a shot, I'm gonna go in there and although I'm a little frightened, uh I'm gonna, I'm gonna go, you know, give this a try. And so sure enough, Pima gets in there and the Maya is there, they're doing awesome. But within the first, I don't know, week, week and a half, Pima is like sharing with this later, we do a leadership academy to help build up our staff and just share more about Ohana and share just, you know, principles, the leadership principles that are centered in Christ. And she was sharing, hey, did you know, in the first week, um one of the girls, you know, they're, they're getting in some fights and I had to step in and one of the girls got a frying pan. I'm like, what? OK. And she's like, yeah, and I had to step in there and stop her from hitting the other girl and I go, oh, that's awesome. Good job Pima. And she goes, yeah. But while she didn't hit the other girl, she missed and hit me right in the head. I'm like, oh, like we gotta laugh about it now because she's safe. It's ok. But these are the kind of things. But she said, you know what I learned from that experience that like, genuinely, she's like, I love these girls. She said, although they're hitting me with frying pans, like I get to sit in moments with them that I wasn't anticipating and she's like I can sit down with them and do homework, I can sit down with them and, you know, work on art. And as we went through the Leadership Academy, part of it is we use strength finders and we talk about the things that each of our staff are really good at. And she goes, I didn't realize that I'm really good at pointing out like in developing and helping other people with what they're good at. And so for her, that courage enabled her to go beyond that fear and to extend love. And she's been able to be there and just be a faithful person through that house. And what's even more remarkable is Pima herself was also in foster care. And so I know with that it even brought it a greater sense of fear and uncertainty and anxiety. But with Pima, my good friend and um the founders of Ohana Ryan and Sarah Centers, they were able to adopt her several years ago and able to bring her in and have been such a huge support for now to be able to see her, a girl that was in foster care who's just shy and just excluded herself. Now to be able to step in and help and love with the love that she's been given to help other girls. Um It's just been a remarkable story that we get to experience. And so it's not just only the the girls that we get to serve. But the staff that we have um that are an amazing testimony of who Jesus is and what he's able to do. So that is how love moves, right? So love moves when you're imperfect, right? Love moves in the heartache and love moves with courage and the hope heals part of it. I wanna share with you is that hope heals in the darkness, right? Think about again this last year. Just think about where maybe an individual, you know, that is just in darkness or without hope. It is in Christ. Ultimately, that we find hope. It's in Christ, that he comes to us in our darkness and provides a way or a path that we didn't think was possible or imaginable without him. A couple of verses that I love and hold on to is one is Romans 58. It says, but God shows his love for us in this that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. So it's his love in action. But that also gives me a tremendous amount of hope because God didn't leave us in our darkness. He didn't leave us in our sin. He didn't leave us in our alienation from him. But he chose to act again. He didn't wait for us to figure it out. But he said, while we were still sinners, he chose to move and have Christ die for us. And later Paul speaks about that so we could be reconciled. So we could have a part in this already, not yet reality in which God has invited us into. So we also could go into the dark places where people are without hope and to bring that hope. Another verse is Ephesians two, verses 12 to 13. It says, remember that you were at the time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ, Jesus, you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. He gives us that hope. That is all what God is about is where there is no hope where there is darkness, where things seem impossible. He comes in to speak and to move and to act. So that's something that we try to hold on to. If we're not doing this, if we're not actively engaged in the heartache and the darkness, then those individuals be kept there. Part of our already, not yet is to move and to act. And so I'm grateful for your support and the opportunity to be able to do that. The second part of hope heals is hope heals through relationships. Ruth's friendship with Naomi is incredible and we uh believe in the power of friendship so much that we encourage our staff. You need to build a relationship with these kids. Healing comes through the relationship. We're starting when getting a mentor program uh going in Ohana because we believe in the power of relationship that somebody to walk alongside of them, somebody to be present somebody to be there is where the healing takes place. And this is a popular few verses. But it is a true testimony remarkable of a commitment in what is able to happen. But Ruth said, do not urge me to leave you or to return from following you for where you go. I will go and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people and your God, my God, where you die, I will die and there I will be buried. May the Lord do so to me? And more also if anything but death parts from me or parts me from you. And when Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more. Ruth's commitment to Naomi in the midst of her darkness, in the midst of her heartache provided the healing provided the hope that was to come. The faithfulness that Naomi demonstrated eventually led her to meet Boa and eventually led them to be able to be married him as this Kingsman redeemer. And to change the reality for Naomi and Ruth and eventually to come together and have a son. And that son would be obed, who would have a son named Jesse would have a son named David. And then Ruth gets to be mentioned in the genealogy of Matthew as somebody who is there as an example that paved the way for our Savior Jesus Christ to come and give us the ultimate hope to give us the relationship with him and to extend that relationship to others. So that commitment, that power of just being present and being committed is tremendous, of showing up. Because so many days I know in the reality of our staff, it's just challenging and difficult. But to continue to persevere and to remember that that presence will bring hope and healing and to bring a future for these kids. The next part of hope heals is hope heals. Even in the midst of uncertainty, we have the Anchor House which you guys have been a tremendous blessing to help get up and going. We have two young adults moving in tomorrow. These adults need that committed relationship in this home. We have a family, uh Their names are Mitch and Renee and their three young daughters. So they're committed to be there and provide stability and relationship uh for these young women that are moving in. Uh But these young women, their stories have been filled with uncertainty, especially in the last couple of years. They're both 18, soon to be 19 year old women. Um And in some sense, they both had typical ordinary lives. And I learned that it wasn't until about the ages of 16, that each of these young women actually uh went into foster care. So for one of the young women, she had a loss, she had a loss of her dad. Her dad passed away when he was 16 years old. And through that, her mother got remarried and her mother's husband was abusive and it was a situation that obviously was unhealthy and put this young woman into foster care and she just bounced around for the last 23 years. And now she's been in this large apartment complex and she says there's just a lot of like drug use, it's really unhealthy and she has a lot of hopes, but there's so much uncertainty and she's hoping to have a place that's more family like and more relational. And she has aspirations to finish up high school. She has aspirations to get her permit to keep working full time to get her fingerprint clearance card because she wants to work in a day care because eventually she would love to go be a pediatrician. And so this house with your support is able to provide some certainty and stability for a young woman that's experienced nothing but uncertainty and brings healing through that. The other young woman similar 16 um her, her parents um just become really unstable. Um Again, there was some abuse. This young woman had some challenges and was hospitalized. Um and her parents um they were adoptive parents and they chose not to bring her back into their home. And so this young woman at 16 then released and just again, bounced around in the last few years has just been completely uncertain for her. She currently is living with a boyfriend's family and they are asking her to leave and she doesn't have a job and doesn't really have a sense of uh hope for a future, but she has aspirations, right, finish school, get her permit, get a job. And so for her particularly that hope needs to be provided that relationship and that stability in this uncertain time. And so I appreciate you guys and your support. I think there are, you know, some practical steps and four ways to be involved. That's something that you guys choose to continue to be empowered and have this partnership. Um But practical ways that your love can take movement and your hope can provide healing. I think you can follow us and pray. You can look at Ohana a z.org or look us on Facebook or Instagram and just see the events and the things that are going on and just be prayerful. Obviously, we need lots and lots of prayers. We need that reality for both our staff and these kids of what God has already done for them, even though we are not yet fully experiencing it. Um You could donate. Um Part of what we do is special events every now and then. Our next event is July 27th. Uh We're doing a back to school event. And so I know we'll have opportunities to donate. We're gonna do some shoes for our kids, backpacks, school supplies. So it's a way that a practical way to be able to do that or give money to that if, um, you know, or buy online and send it to our office a lot of different opportunities. Uh, some of those events also re, uh, require volunteers to be able to help and, or become a mentor. I, I know we're about 30 ish minutes most of our homes south of here. Um But if it's something that you know, it's on your heart, I'd be happy to talk to you more of what that looks like. And then I saw that young adults group, right? There's plenty of young adults. I don't know if you need a job but you can always apply and work because we're always hiring um or if you know somebody but my heart is always to find the right people, right? It's easy to kind of get somebody and, and be a body, but we need people who get the vision like Bema and Amaya do because these girls need this hope. Uh They need this love. And so again, I appreciate you guys and just the practical steps that you've taken in partnership with us. Um and just encouragement. This is a huge encouragement for me and something that I just need to be constantly reminded of. So I appreciate it. Um And just this time, so let me just end with a prayer for, for you and a prayer for these girls. Um And then I know um John will come back up for us. So, so Father God, thank you uh pray and um just pray a blessing upon those that are here at Mission Grove. Um Thank you for their faithfulness, Lord, the love that they've demonstrated um to me and to Ohana and to each other, the hope that they bring uh Jesus. I am in awe just of how you choose to work through the body of Christ um through simple imperfect human beings, just like those of us here present. Thank you for the relationship here that exists. And lord, we particularly pray for those two young women uh that will be moving into the Anchor house tomorrow. We pray that in the midst of the uncertainty and the heartache that they've experienced. Lord, that they would know the reality that exists, that they are truly beloved and daughters of God that you have chosen them, that you've accepted them, that you've forgiven them. And so we pray that truth would penetrate their hearts and their minds. We pray for the reality of Renee and Mitch and their family and the others that are involved that they would be just a tangible expression of your love and your hope. We love you Jesus. We thank you for your faithfulness and we pray this in your name. Amen.