They celebrate deliverance in the tents of the godly.
Psalm 118:15
Our Passion
We have spent the last several years walking alongside local and expat global servants in the MENA region. Through our experience we have seen restoration and resilience increase when they have proximate access to spaces of neutral pastoral care that is both rooted in Christ and understanding of their unique context. This is how we strive to serve the for the glory of God and the nourishment of his church among the nations. It is our passion to meet each unique person where they are and together remember our first love and the joy of our salvation.
Our Hope
House of Asher is a rest stop along the journey of cross-cultural service that provides space and time for refreshment and remembrance. We pray each person leaves having been touched by the love of the Father and are refueled by it as they go back out to love the nations they serve. We pray they are deeply reminded of his home and heart. That is, an environment and culture of love, hope, and understanding. A home free of condemnation. A home that is rooted in heaven and blooms within our hearts wherever we lay our tents. The ultimate home we can always come back to.
Therefore The Lord longs to be gracious to you, and therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you. For The Lord is a God of justice; how blessed [happy: ash’reh] are all those who long for Him.
Isaiah 30:18
Behind the Name
Many years ago Lord gave us a curious dream as we were discerning the where, what, and how God was calling us to the nations. (Hang with me now.. it was a real dream!) It was about a baby boy named Samuel who was alone in the freezing dark. When we found him and brought him into the warmth he smiled so shockingly big that we laughed out loud. He had a warmth that filled us, too and we just knew his name needed to change to Asher. Surprisingly, soon after we found Asher we found ourselves at the hospitable home of a family of Arab descent. Sobriety struck and we knew he was supposed to be fostered by them for a time. We left Asher with a sense of sadness, but also with peace and anticipation that it would not be the last time.
This was uncommon for her, but when Katie woke up the two names immediately came through the haze. Samuel. Asher. Asher, she knew, meant something like, “happy” or “blessed one”. Samuel, she couldn’t quite remember. She immediately looked it up where she found: “God has heard”. A balm. Tears welled along with hope. We suspected this was related to future ministry and began to chase after it, come what may.
What happened next involves many tales, trials, and even wanderings in the lands of the ancient tribe of Asher, now Lebanon. Things got topsy turvy and soon enough, we forgot about this dream. In fact, we are certain the Lord was teaching us to cling to him rather than the dreams and visions even he himself gave us. A deep mercy. Through many timely provisions, redemption stories, and beautiful moments. Through many unexpected moves, roundabouts, painful goodbyes, and losses. He never left us. The Lord truly became our home and we became his.
When we eventually gained our bearings and started thinking about pastoral care and a house of respite for global servants, the Lord reminded us of Asher’s smile. We realized that perhaps God had given us this picture to come back to once it was time and that yes, maybe the dream was about ministry, but maybe it was also about him and us, and, our fellow sojourners, too.
We have been the child that has been fostered by the hospitable Arab people. We have been the frigid, lonely, malnourished, and Heavensick child that has desperately needed the reminder that “God hears”. And we have been the abundantly blessed child, joyfully found and brought back into the warm, secure, and abundant love of the Father time and time again. House of Asher represents all of this.
