The month of July is coming to a close and so we will be closing our reading of Proverbs.  We have been reading the chapter each night that corresponds with the day of the month.  Some of YOU have even joined us.  It has been a good month as we have sought God's wisdom, but it has also been a good month as we have seen the Word in action!  We have particularly seen Proverbs 17: 17 "A friend loves at all times.  He is there to help when trouble comes."

In our last newsletter, we shared with you, our friends,  many "troubles"  that we have had.  We are so very thankful to share of God's provision in this update.

We shared the need for immunizations and dental check-ups for Bykota House because while those were needed items, our monthly budget just hasn't been able to stretch. 

We also shared the need of a clothing fund because we are raising a lot of healthy, active young children that are growing like bamboo!

Finally, we shared about our need for family furlough in 2011.  We listed four major pieces of the puzzle that was needed for this to occur.

We continue to ask you to pray for the funds for our family's plane tickets, airport taxes, and travel funds.  This is a large amount but we believe for God's provision in this as well!  This is exciting to see and be a part of. 

We are also in need of a place to stay.  Once we get in the States, we know that it is not God's will for us to be homeless. We are in need of housing from the end of March until the end of November for our family in some form. 

As always, we so desire to stay in touch and we are so blessed to be living in this age of technology.  Please add me and add Bykota House as friends on Facebook and subscribe to my blog at www.hightowerministries.wordpress.com to hear more about our daily life in SE Asia.  We would love to hear from you. 

If you would like a personal visit next year while we are in the U.S., please contact us as we will soon be begin building our itinerary. rhonda@hightowerministries.net

We pray that this newsletter finds you prospering in the Lord and in every area of your life.

Serving in Cambodia,

Mark and Rhonda Benz

James 1:27 says "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

So how do I walk out this verse in my life here in the US? Let's just take part one of the three; orphans.

I have adopted an orphan, but if I examine my motives, I would have to say that was mostly selfish. I fail.

Caring for orphans in the US invites a level of government scrutiny that honestly intimidates me, and I fear the possible repercussions to my own children. I admire people who are able to foster children in the US. Once again, I fail.

So when I see a family like the Benz family, who has given up everything they knew in the US, and moved to the other side of the world to start an orphanage, Bykota House, from scratch on their own, I am humbled.

But I CAN help them. Prayer and money. And I can find out about their needs by being friends with Bykota House. I can know how to pray by checking their status each day. And I can know when they have financial needs from their updates. I can even click on the link to their website to give money electronically. How simple it becomes to help care for orphans! Being a Facebook friend means I can help!

Melanie