Show me the right path, O Lord;
Point out the road for me to follow.
     -Psalm 25:4 NLT

How many of you have learned more about a road by traveling down it rather than by consulting a map? As many of us jump in the car with the family and head out for our annual summer adventure, are we willing to take a new route or do we need to know exactly where we are going first?

Here at Five Talents, there are so many great things happening that we are reminded to pray for guidance and wisdom from the One who can show us the way. Just a month ago we started out our fiscal year and it certainly is lining up to be the best year in our history.

There are so many great things to tell you about...where do I start? How about with the Business as Mission (BAM) team that just came back from Myanmar? They certainly took the "road less traveled" out to Myanmar, one of the remaining relatively unspoiled countries on earth. There isn't a great deal of infrastructure there yet but things are changing quickly. Hope is in the air! Our BAM team successfully trained a number of trainers who are now able to go out and train micro-entrepreneurs.

This embodies the concept of "paying it forward" and is what our organization is all about. The value of a curriculum that has been adapted to the context and culture is worth its weight in gold. As a result of their efforts, many clients and beneficiaries will be better prepared to follow the path put in front of them as they open up small businesses.

As for things happening closer to home, our Five Talents family is in the process of interviewing candidates for the position of Development Associate. This person will help build on the excellent foundation now in place so we can reach more and more donors with the great stories of what we are doing here. I dare to say there is no other organization out there that does what we do in the places that we do it with such total excellence, care, and efficiency. We hope to be able to reach 40% more clients this year. I love thinking about where that particular path will lead us.

For all of us, whether we walk the old dirt paths or we blaze new trails, friends remain important. Our organization could not exist without the solid support of you, our friends and donors. Even though there is a great deal of uncertainty out there regarding the economy, we have been truly blessed by your generosity.

Many of you have decided to walk alongside us and set up monthly pledges. Whether you've decided to give us $25, $50 or $100 a month, the fact is that each dollar here makes a difference in someone's life. In Myanmar, even a loan as low as $20 has the ability to transform the trajectory of an individual's life.

Imagine that.

Throughout this fiscal year and well into the future, may the Lord continue to show Five Talents, its beneficiaries and its donors, the path that leads towards transformation.