Why I Do What I Do

May I share a story I rarely tell?  When I was a child, my parents and I lived in rural Mississippi. Our nearest town was Ovett, which was about ten miles from our home. We had no motorized transportation. I remember riding to Ovett with my father when I was about eight years old in a horse drawn wagon. This particular time we took some shelled yellow corn to be milled into corn meal for my Mama’s cornbread and other uses.

Until that day I had never seen or shopped in a general store. My eyes were wide and searching all the new things I was seeing. I noticed a hatchet on a shelf. I picked it up and admired it while Papa was in another part of the store. I chose to put the hatchet in my overalls pocket and took it outside and hid it in our wagon.

As we left Ovett in our wagon, Papa saw the hatchet and stopped the wagon. He asked me how and where I had gotten it. Then he told me I had to return it and apologize to Mr. Dennis, the store owner, a wonderful man of Lebanese descent. I panicked at the thought of having to confess my sin, repent to Mr. Dennis and return the hatchet. I was broken and humiliated. Papa never mentioned it again. He didn’t need to.

Upon graduation from high school, I desired to attend college and get equipped to achieve good things in life. There were 12 in my graduating class. The academic quality was not good. I went to Mississippi State, but upon arrival I was assigned to remedial courses. I chose instead to join the United States Air Force. I could attend college classes while serving in the USAF and have academic funding after serving for four years. The USAF was my only “sponsor” through my B.S. and M.B.A. degrees from Louisiana State University.

In 1955, I went to the Philippines for 18 months in military service. In 2001 I found myself again in the Philippines, this time as a minister of the Gospel. I ministered in a church near a huge city dumpsite in Lapu-Lapu City on the island of Cebu. At that garbage dump I saw little girls and boys scavenging through the trash of a city with a population of about 225,000 at the time. It broke my heart to see them all smudged with dirt and soot, wearing tattered and dirty clothing. But all had bright smiles on their faces.

GOD SPOKE to and through my heart and said, “Ras, you will spend the rest of your life seeing to it that these children reverse the cycle of poverty from their heritage.” I felt He also said you will send them to school because education is important for their future. Just as I needed a sponsor to get an education, so do they.

That was in 2001. Today, our sponsors help us send almost 900 children to school, feed them and provide Christian pastoral spiritual care through 24 carefully chosen and proven pastors and churches. To God be the glory.

This is part of the story of “Why I do What I Do” and without you Partners, Sponsors and Friends, we would not be able to do this. Thanks and God bless you.

I humbly ask for your prayers as we are no longer satisfied with 900 children and 24 pastors/churches. God has spoken and His vision for us now is to increase to 10,000 children and 240 pastors/churches. Please add this new vision to your prayer list. Put a note on your fridge and dashboards: 10,000 children. 240 Filipino pastors. 10 facilities to care for widows and orphans. Transformation of a nation. Pray. Fear not. Only believe.

Thank you, thank you,
Ras Robinson

If you feel led to respond, contact us at fcm@fullnessonline.org . Are you led to give to this? Go to http://fullnessonline.org/donate

Update — Homes for Widows and Orphans

GOD’S WORD ON HIS GREAT VISION:  “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.” James 1:27 (NLT)

AND THEN GOD SPOKE TO ME: “I have called you to build and operate ten homes for widows and orphans in the Philippine Islands. Build them among the 24 pastors and churches on four islands who care for the nearly 900 sponsored children and in new places on other islands where I will show you.”

PROGRESS REPORT… Our Partners, Sponsors and Friends have made possible this ministry to poor children since we began in the Philippines in April 2001. They are now making possible this Great Vision from God (it did not come from Ras).  It is a wonder and sign of your tender and caring heart. We (Bev, Kathy Bohlin and Ras) pray for our Partners, Sponsors and friends almost daily. As we pray, we have come to love you and so appreciate your part in God’s work through FCM.

Donations so far to this Great Vision have ranged from $5 to $5000. One businessman has invited many of his partners and business friends to donate to this Great Vision, offering to match their gift up to a certain amount. It is our belief that God Himself will put in your heart just how much you are to donate.

When we were ministering to children and doing evangelistic events in Peru, God spoke to some to give $5000 and to one man to give over $30,000. We sent more than 100 poor children to school and worked with pastors who cared for them. During our ministry in Peru, we saw over 3,000 souls saved and complete six weeks of discipleship classes.

Two attorneys (one in the Philippines and one here in America) and a social worker in the Philippines have volunteered to advise and help FCM in this big undertaking. Please pray for them and their practices to be blessed. They are godly believers.

Blessings and love,

Ras and Bev Robinson with Kathy Bohlin

Caring for Orphans and Widows

“I have called you to build and operate ten homes for widows and orphans in the Philippine Islands”

GOD’S WORD ON THIS VISION:  Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. James 1:27 (NLT) 

During the first week of October 2013 I was in the mountains of Colorado recovering from a heart procedure. I ask the Lord, “Is there anything you want me to do in the Philippines that I have not yet done?” He immediately replied, “I want you to build 10 homes in the Philippine Islands for the purpose of  “Caring for Orphans and Widows.” Some of the orphans will be chosen from among the 900 children you already care for and others will be among the 10,000 children I am giving you. The children now live on city dumpsites, under bridges and some sleep on pieces of cardboard on sidewalks beside city streets.

The Philippine widows will be chosen based on their love for children, their character qualities and abilities. They will care for the children and operate the homes in exchange for their room and board with a small stipend of  blessing for them.

The oversight will be with the Board of Directors of Fullness in Christ Ministries and with an Advisory Board of Filipino Pastors and Business and Governmental Persons.

If you are stirred in your heart or feel called to this great vision to help with building and operating 10 Homes in the Philippines go to this link and give from your heart Caring for Orphans and Widows.

For additional information, address your inquiries to Kathy Bohlin (kathyb@fullnessnetwork.net)

Partners for Transformation

Romans 12:2 instructs us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. The Amplified Bible says, “be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude]….”

From the beginning, the vision God gave us was the transformation of the nation of the Philippines – one child at a time. Through that vision, God has touched the lives of hundreds of children, youth and their families in the past 13 years. Many of you have been part of that through your prayers, your financial support and as sponsors for children. The ministry to the sponsored children and their families will continue. In fact we are expecting a great increase as God will give us thousands more children in many more locations across the Philippines.

Now, beyond that ministry of sponsoring children, God has spoken concerning a “New and Bigger Vision” to transform the nation. We invite you to join us and “Think Big, Believe Big and Act Big.”

God has said this is the time for raising up “Partners for Transformation.” Many of today’s prophets are saying a great revival is coming to Asia. The Philippines will be part of a great transformation in Asia. It is time to prepare a new generation.

We are asking you to consider being a “Partner for Transformation.” The vision is a three-part vision. It includes what we do now with the education and disciple-making of poor children. But these words from the apostle Paul speak to us today: “… he (Paul) withdrew from them and took away the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. This took place for two years, so that all who lived in Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.” (Acts 19:9-10 NASB). God wants to do this again in Asia, including the Philippines.

The elements of this “New and Bigger Vision to Transform a Whole Nation” are 3-fold: 1) Homes for orphans and widows, 2) centers for training in computers and technology and 3) centers for improved and comprehensive food distribution with instruction in healthy nutrition. Much more can be said about each of these elements and will be expounded upon in the weeks ahead.

In Luke 5, Jesus instructed Simon (Peter) to cast his net. When he did, the catch was too much for him to handle. It was sinking his boat. Scripture tells us he called his “partners” to come and help bring in the “big catch.” He then told them that from then on they would be fishing for men. We are calling to you. We need your partnership because of the massive catch and we have just begun to fish these plentiful waters of the Philippines.

We anticipate a need for $100,000 for start-up of the first 3 elements: 1) the first home for widows and orphans ($50,000), 2) the first center for training in computers and technology ($25,000) and 3) the first center for food distribution and training in healthy nutrition ($25,000).

We are asking you to seek the Lord about this new and bigger vision. Ask if He would have you be part of it and respond as He leads you. “Think Big, Believe Big and Act Big.”

Click on the link below to give.

Partner for Transformation Fund — For transforming the nation of the Philippines

Thank you for considering and praying: Think Big, Believe Big and Act Big.

A New and Bigger Vision

Because of you, our Sponsors, Partners and Friends, together we have over 880 sponsored Filipino children on four different islands. These children are actively pursuing education and practical Christianity. All of this started when God spoke supernaturally and personally to me in April 2001 and is made possible by you Sponsors, Partners and Friends. God told me I would spend the rest of my life seeing to it that the children I saw one day on a monstrously large city dumpsite in Lapu-Lapu, Philippines, and others like them, would not repeat the endemic cycle of poverty their parents and grandparents embraced. Education is vital to this vision and is not free in the Philippines. If you are poor, you do not get to go to school. I was 65 years old at that time.

You, our Sponsors, Partners and Friends, are feeding and educating a new generation of world-changers within the Philippines. Our budget now is over $40,000 per month for reaching 880 children on four separate islands. Shout “Glory to God” with us! You are being used by God to make these things happen. We have no words to adequately say “thank you,” but we do love and appreciate you. The sponsored children and the pastors who care for them, together with us thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

NOW GOD HAS SPOKEN TO ME AGAIN! He recently said to me, “Ras, I want you to increase your faith this way: See to it that 10,000 children on all the islands I choose will not repeat the endemic cycle of poverty they inherited. Instead of $40,000 per month, you are to believe Me for $400,000 per month in order to get this done. I will raise up Sponsors, Partners and Friends sufficient to get this done”

He further said, “You will do three additional things beyond sponsoring the children. You will start homes for widows and orphans. The widows will be cared for and will in turn care for the orphans. You will open food and nutrition distribution centers to serve the poor on all the islands where I will send you. You will start a computer and technology center to train the children and youth in the use of the latest technology that I will use to reach the world. I will raise up Sponsors, Partners and Friends sufficient to get this done.”

If you would like to be a Sponsor, Partner or Friend in this new vision, write to me and tell me you are standing with me shoulder to shoulder. If you are already a Sponsor, Partner or Friend, write and tell me first how much per month you will commit and send your first donation by going to the following link.

If you wish to make a one time donation, indicate your intentions and send the donation.

The link is: Donate Now to This Bigger Vision