"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." - James 1:27 (NIV)

I have a dream. It doesn't have a lot to do with the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, but it does involve the purchase of a website. Some time ago I bought the "Digital Advanced" version of "The Story of Your Life" by Matthew West, and in that there is a video of the making of the song "One Less." West describes the shared experience of adoption as "a hug and a punch," because while these stories warm the heart it reminds us that we are called to care for the widows and orphans. At Eastpoint Church we have long made the argument that in today's society the widows and orphans can easily refer to single parents and their children.

And so I bought this domain name gutpunch.org with the intention of creating a social community where organizations such as the Single Parent Pantry, Inland Northwest Baby and really anyone looking for help in caring for these individuals can network together and create a pool of resources to greater impact our larger community. Just to give an example, I have a kitchen table in great condition collecting dust in my garage that I could sell, but rather than go through the hassle I'd rather just give it to someone who needs it. Deb Farnsworth at the Single Parents Pantry knows this, but maybe a single mom has connected elsewhere and needs it... This site would be the place to solve that issue.

My grand vision is that eventually this site will become a 501c Non-Profit organization with staffed grant writers and networked contractors that can help us build transitional living facilities for those in need. I know there is government money for this, but not enough to do what we need to do. So this is a future goal. I'd also like to open a local computer center with an attached child care facility where single parents can come and study online to get their degree and enhance their marketability. We could also hold workshops much like Launchpad does, but targeted specifically to single parents.

One thing I am not looking to do is create a dating service, there are plenty of these online. I would however like to offer free relationship and pre-marital counseling because we all know a two parent home is going to be more successful than one. My sister-in-law has two kids, a girl and a boy, and as good of a mom as she is there are things only a father can impart to a child.

However as I go through school and am now unemployed looking for a way to transition into a new career I don't have time to develop it. I keep telling myself I will one day, but right now all I have is a domain name.

So if you find this vision compelling and want to get involved, please let me know. Obviously I could use the help, though I will admit I'd be just as happy to sell the domain (or give it away if I knew how) to someone who will bring this vision to life. Because this has absolutely nothing to do with me.