The Homes of Hope Story

Book excerpt: Daddy, are you going to build a house for the bus people too?" My daughter's question deeply touched my heart. . . . During my many trips to Baja, Mexico, I had been continually struck by the lack of adequate shelter and sheer human need in the basics of life. All of us are created in God's image, and therefore all have great value. I knew it was not God's intent for people to live in ramshackle shelters made of scrap wood, tarps, and cardboard. . . . I soon realized that God didn't intend our home build to be a one-time occurrence. He was calling us to something much bigger.As a teenager, Sean Lambert left college in 1979 to join Youth With A Mission (YWAM), now one of the world's largest mission organizations. His first overseas mission was to Thailand, where he assisted thousands of Cambodian and Laotian war refugees. His experiences there taught him how to minister to people by addressing both their spiritual and their practical needs. After Thailand, Sean joined the staff of YWAM Los Angeles, was married, and with his wife, Janet, began mobilizing hundreds of youth each year in short-term outreaches. In 1990, Sean and his daughter Andrea traveled with a team to Tijuana, Mexico, to build a home for a poor family. Andrea's plea for a family living in an abandoned bus led Sean to mobilize a second group to build a home for the poor. Since 1990 the Homes of Hope vision has continued to expand. The Homes of Hope Story gives a behind-the-scenes account of how God has led Sean and Janet in engaging the poor and how thousands have joined with them in discovering the joy of giving. It's also an insightful guide to leadership, chronicling both the successes and the failures in the journey of founding a ministry and trusting in God for its growth.