A SPRING OF HOPE, INC.
WEST PALM BEACH, FLORIDA

launched in April of 2002 as a handful of teenagers wanting to share some joy and life to the less noticed seniors in the Waco community. However, before a few years had passed, we had grown in size and perhaps at least a little in skill. We were singing weekly in nursing homes and retirement centers around central Texas and loving it. The contagion of faith is never contained within our expectations. Soon we began to dream of having a place local to so many of the needs we saw in the east Waco area. We wanted to reach honest hearts and communicate to all who would listen the message of the overcoming triumph of grace. We keep finding such brothers and sisters. From January 2007 when we all committed to a mortgage on an old retail place, it’s never ceased expanding. In prisons around Texas, at Teen Challenge centers abroad, to youth of troubled backgrounds, and still every week to the elderly, hope is springing up! 😉 Learning to LIVE and give the faith we profess–and doing so only by the power of God’s Spirit–that is still what all our efforts are about. It was ten years this past April since a handful of eager teenagers marched into Meadowlands Terrace to hold our first music service. We sang that day to wonderful folks who’s faces and personalities cling to my memory still. They were seniors from all walks of life—WWII vets, retired politicians, business people, cotton farmers—reminders of a not so distant era in our country’s history. The outreach ministry (SHM) that many of us feel privileged to share in today began in those old folks’ homes. We wanted to bring some sunshine of hope and joy into those dingy homes and I think we did. However, I’m sure they had a greater influence on us than we on them. Maybe the nostalgia of these memories explains some of my excitement concerning our current new nursing home team. The current group is full of new energy and purpose, contributed by the recent batch of young people to assume the responsibility of its mission. Daniel and Dara Saylor and Brian Claborn coordinate and oversee this team (comprised of around 18 enthused young people) and it’s varied activities. Certainly, it is time more than anything else that can prove how durable our efforts are in this field. However, I just love seeing in our Wednesday services the sun-burnt faces of so many guys, given the chance to come here and work to support their mission. So much possibility and promise invites them out of the broken patterns of their past and into the narrow but good way of life. Last Sunday, a real inspiration to all of us who’ve labored in this field was to see one who came to us from this arena baptized as a committed and true brother. : I still can’t take for granted the wonderful new auditorium we now meet in. We dream and plan for so long that when we actually succeed in such an endeavor, one can’t help feeling elated with gratitude for God’s truly gratuitous provision. Boy, does that AC system work! The ceiling is flat black with the trusses visible, at least if you can see past the lighting. The floor is several shades of grey concert. The chairs are of three different makes and color. The platform is just stained plywood. However, we are happier with this auditorium that we cut and shaped out of a 70 year old warehouse shell, than if we were meeting in some red-carpeted chapel with stained glass windows. We have yet to finish the offices behind the stage. Pablo has quoted Daniel 3k to cut out and replace our current dangerous ramp with one at the appropriate grade. The new bathrooms will add 8 facilities to our current restroom accommodations. They should be complete within 3 weeks. Bro John V. has offered to help us finish and paint the entire exterior of both buildings soon. The windows will need extensive caulking and minor trim work before we’ll be ready for paint. We are not the same but differences aside