Aslan Newsletter of December 8, 1999

Dear friends:

Christmas is very nearly upon us, so I begin with a prayer for God’s special blessing upon you and your loved ones during this wonderful season. The heart of Aslan is the heart of a child – all too often the broken heart of a neglected, overlooked and abused child. At Back-to-School shopping a few weeks ago, Lynn Ann turned around to see one of our teenagers crying silent tears. LaRonda* had made the mistake of wanting to carry the new clothing Aslan purchased for her to the bus. At the time her mother was carrying LaRonda’s and her sister’s clothing. When LaRonda complained, her mother punched her hard in the stomach. Mom was threatening to hit her again, when Lynn Ann stepped between them and calmed the situation. You might wonder why the big tears rolling down LaRonda’s face to the floor were silent ones. More than likely, she’s been warned in the past that "If I hear you crying, I’ll give you something to cry about!"

Several days ago, I was setting something out in front of our office when a young man came riding up on a bicycle. He smiled and shyly asked, "How do you join Aslan?" I told him that I simply needed to get his name, phone number and mother’s name and we’d come by the next week to get him started. Charles* gave me this basic information, and then his face suddenly became very serious. He looked down and said, "How much do I have to pay to get into Aslan?" You should have seen the smile on that young man’s face when I told him there was no charge! Charles’ heart that afternoon was undoubtedly as broken as LaRonda’s, but had just found a glimmer of hope.

Nineteen ninety-nine has been an amazing and wonderful year for Aslan. Please do not ever forget that it is your support and the support of many other wonderful individuals, churches, and organizations that make this ministry a reality! Without you there would be no Aslan, and this would be very, very sad for so many children.

Merry Christmas!

Craig Bogard

P.S. As you celebrate the birth of the One who came to heal the broken hearted – please remember to pray for all of us at Aslan. Our work continues to reach more and more children like LaRonda and Charles each and every day. We need your help to make this possible! We promise to continue faithfully serving these children so that one day their hearts might be healed.