March 21, 2004

Dear Friend:

Several months ago I wrote to you about a young man named *Eric.  He’s one of our favorite kids, and he lives in Asbury Park in one of the worst situations you can imagine.  Life has not been easy for this young 13-year-old.  Barely a half year ago, two older boys attacked Eric with a knife while he was walking through the housing projects.  It was truly God’s grace that he didn’t lose the use of his hand (or even worse).  Eric has moved so many times over the past two years that it’s very difficult to even find him to pick him up for Bible classes.  On several occasions he and his mom have been in and out of temporary housing in welfare motels.  His clothes are threadbare hand-me-downs, and he sometimes goes days without a shower. 

In December Eric told us he and his mother were moving to Virginia.  He wasn’t even sure if he’d be around for our Christmas party.  One of the hardest things about the work of Aslan is our investing so much time in a child and then seeing them move a thousand miles away where we’ll never see them again.  We know there are other “programs” out there to help kids, but Aslan is truly different in our approach.  The unique nature of our work is shown in the enormous amount of love, care and attention we invest in each and every child.  Part of what makes us so unusual is our providing door-to-door transportation to and from each and every Aslan activity.  The caring, however, goes far beyond just getting the children where we’re going.  It comes down to how much we truly love each child and the lengths we will go to in order to express that love.  To us, losing Eric would be losing a part of our heart.  So when we found out we might lose him, we did the one thing that we knew would matter – we prayed.  Most of all we prayed that God would work out whatever was best for Eric and for his mother!

Christmas came and went, and Eric has since moved again two times.  He is, however, still with us for now.  We sometimes have to go by two different houses to try and find him for class, but most weeks we’re able to track him down.  After working in the housing projects in Asbury Park for five years now, a few of our Aslan kids there are now old enough and mature enough to have their own teen group.  We’ve seen some real spiritual growth in Eric since he’s been a part of this.  A wife and husband volunteer team – Rebecca and Josh – are working each week with these young people, and the discussion lately has been about the true meaning of Easter. 

The students were really listening last Thursday night as Rebecca and Josh shared about Jesus’ sacrifice for each of us.  At the end of class everyone wanted to join hands and pray together.  Most of the kids were too shy to do more than whisper “Amen,” but Eric really wanted to pray.  What he said was simple but heartfelt.  “Lord, thank you for Rebecca and Josh and Lynn Ann.  And thanks so much for taking my penalty on the cross.”  It was one of those very special moments when you know a child has begun to understand how much God truly loves him.  In the midst of the wreckage of his life, a 13-year-old boy had found a glimmer of hope. 

Our hearts will break if Eric does move away.  One thing we know is that for a few short years this very special young man has received a kind of love and support through Aslan that he would never have experienced anywhere else. 

Because of caring people like you, a lot of young people are finding hope in God’s love through Aslan.  Please pray for all of us here at Aslan, and please give as God opens the door for you to.  As always, we thank you for support of this work! 

Sincerely in Christ!

Craig

Craig Bogard

We have purposefully changed Eric’s name to protect his privacy.