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This prayer is an offering, something we believe is very powerful and helps us connect deeper to God's work.
We invite you to join us in prayer. You can pray this prayer aloud with us, and you can continue this prayer with us in the comments. The power of collective prayer is unbeatable: Dear Heavenly Father, With hearts full of gratitude, we come before You, lifting our voices in thanksgiving. You are the source of all goodness, the giver of every perfect gift, and we are in awe of the ways You provide. Thank You for the hands and hearts You have moved to support this mission. Thank You for every donation, every prayer, and every act of kindness that has made it possible to bring healing and hope to the children of the Bajío region. We receive these blessings with joy, knowing that You have already provided everything we need. Thank You for the doctors, nurses, and volunteers who have answered Your call to serve. Thank You for the families who entrust us with their children’s care. Thank You for the doors You have opened, the resources You have poured out, and the love that surrounds this work. We rest in the certainty that Your provision is abundant, that every need is met, and that Your grace sustains us. May this mission continue to reflect Your heart, bringing light to those in need. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
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Before my relationship with the Lord, I always felt, “I am not good enough”, always wanting to please others and fear of failure always fueled everything. I was never satisfied with my position, seeking the next best thing, blindly. Though I was kind to people from a young age, I was always seeking acknowledgement. I thought that I could “punch my way through it” in every challenge, being in control of everything but chaos. I sought out situations where I could be the center of attention both personally and professionally, driving the nicest car, and living in the most prestigious residence. I always bragged about it overcompensating for my insecurity. I was stiff necked, prideful, empty and lost. After my father passed away in 1989, I wanted to stop my superficial lifestyle, so I was determined to settle down and eventually married in 1991. My wife and I raised two children in the Jewish faith out of commitment to my Father, a Holocaust Survivor, but still had no personal relationship with God. After my first child was born, I went critical after battling the disease for almost ten years, resulting in emergency surgery at the Cleveland Clinic in 2003.  My illness brought me to my knees and after my 14-hour emergency surgery. On the third day after my operation, I was reading the book of prayers that my friends and family prepared for me and was listening to spiritual uplifting music,“The Angel's Blessing”, a song about Raphael, the Angel of Strength. My sister had returned to her hotel and my wife had gone home to be with our children. I was all alone, in pain and agony. Shortly afterwards, I became occluded (blocked blood vessels or closed off) and all attempts in correcting the issue failed. I no longer could receive fluids intravenously including my pain medication which was unbearable. I still break out in a cold sweat thinking about it but the Intravenous (IV) monitor at my bedside was sounding faintly at first, then almost deafening, accelerating to almost a steady tone. I was in trouble and in agony physically and mentally. It was then that a Resident Physician entered my room and without any warning abruptly lowered my ICU bed and conducted a difficult PICC line procedure, a procedure in which a thin flexible tube central catheter (PICC line) is inserted into a vein in the upper arm and threaded into a large vein near the heart. That was it! I had reached my end. I finally had given up fighting, turned off music, closed my prayers, turned off my light and started to cry out to the Lord, “Please God, I can’t do this anymore, please take care of my family and show them your mercy”. With that all my life flashed in front of me and two “people” posing as nurses showed up in my room although there is no record of that visit recorded by the Cleveland Clinic. The first person was Raphael, and the second person was indistinguishable. These were real images not imagined. The 2nd indistinguishable person standing by Raphael’s side, with a stern voice said, “Mr. Sturm, it is not your time, you have work to do. Turn on your light, listen to the music of Raphael. Your faith has saved you and you will serve Me for the rest of your days. You will lead your people in believing in me”.  The angels told me during that time that I would form Save a Life – Save the World Foundation and serve Jesus the rest of my life, leading many to Him. With that I returned to consciousness and made it through the night. Three days later, in an effort to check messages from family and friends, I struggled to the Cardiac Care Unit (CCU) waiting room where the terminal was located. It wasn’t long afterwards that I experienced the first of a succession of divine miracles. I was sitting with my back to a family that was in duress that I had never met before. I heard a voice inside my head, saying, “turnaround and help this family”. After three contentious exchanges with the oldest of three daughters and their mother, the oldest daughter’s patience was exhausted. She said loudly, “ok smarty-pants, what do you think is going on”? I had been granted insight from the Lord and He prodded me to share it with her so I said, “Your father is Jewish and all of you are Christian, and he has been coded and all of you are praying to understand what your father is praying about as he is fighting for his life”. With this, all of the family’s attention was directed at me with an IV pole at my side and tubes everywhere. All of the colors in their faces are now white as snow, and the demeanor of the conversation with the family changed. I said to them, “I don’t know how, but I know what your Husband and Father is praying right now, do you want to understand”? Of course, their answer was Yes! I replied, “If I go back to my room and gather my prayers, would you like for me to conduct a prayer service so that you understand”? Again, Yes was their answer. I struggled but made it back to my room only after passing by the nurses station where I asked for a nurse to help me copy prayers, assemble booklets and provide me with a blank envelope. With the nurse’s help and protest, I proceeded in a wheelchair back to the CCU waiting room, ran the prayer service from the New Testament that I never studied before but had insight like it was part of me, miraculously. Nearing the conclusion of the service, I handed the oldest daughter the sealed envelope and told her that she would know when to hand it to her father, because he would live through the night. Several weeks past while in the Cleveland Clinic and my strength had returned. I went back to CCU waiting room to again check my messages. While deep in reflection of the beautiful messages sent to me, there was a great commotion at the entrance. It was the oldest daughter and her sister who yelled, “Where have you been, where have you been? We have been looking all over for you”. Due to HIPPA, they couldn’t know anything about me and vice versa. Again, the oldest daughter spoke, “How did you know, how did you know? My father lived through the night just as you related and a couple of days later, I was sitting on his hospital bed and as were talking, God prodded that I should hand him the sealed envelope. I helped my father open the envelope and he carefully reached inside. As he read the contents, he removed his oxygen mask and a gigantic smile was on his face. My father said, “How did you know”? She indicated that exactly what her father was consumed by when he was about to take his last breath, was in the envelope; Psalm 46:1 --"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble". The other verse that, as a Jew, he or I couldn’t have known was John 14:6 - Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me. That day, her Father asked for Jesus to come into his life and be his Lord and Savior. After a month in the hospital, I returned home to Virginia equipped with an Ileostomy and no large intestine for a 6-month recovery. During that time, I was like I was going through my own version of “A Case for Christ” by Lee Stroebel, doubting everything only arriving at the conclusion that Jesus visited me in that hospital room, that He was the son of God, was crucified for the forgiveness of my sin and rose on the third day and sits to the right of his Father in heaven protecting all his disciples. I committed myself to serving Him at that moment in time. Before I returned to the Cleveland Clinic in May 2004, I was baptized. The same family who I conducted the prayer service for was in the waiting room while I had a second 12 hour operation. In 2010, Save a Life – Save the World Foundation finally earned its 501(c)3 status.  In the heart of Mexico’s Bajío region, a Christ-centered mission is changing lives—one child at a time. Save a Life – Save the World Foundation is dedicated to providing life-saving medical care to children who would otherwise have no access to treatment.  Guided by faith and the unwavering belief that every child is precious in God’s eyes, this foundation exists to answer the call of Jesus: to care for the least of these. At the helm of our mission is Bob Sturm, a man who knows firsthand what it means to be saved. Having faced a near-death experience—by his own account—Bob’s journey led him into a relationship with Christ. It was through these profound encounters that he found his calling: to form Save a Life - Save the World Foundation and through it everyone can make a difference in people’s life, even if that difference impacts just one person. God made it extra clear that human beings are precious to him and children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring are a reward from him, and one of our most valuable blessings! It became his undeniable calling to help rescue children from the brink of death and give them the future God intended for them. He is committed to act on every misery within his reach and to save human lives in jeopardy. Our specific purpose is to make a difference in the lives of marginalized Mexican children. Bob was called to Mexico for a reason; to serve children facing health issues, turning potential tragedy into triumph. You can read Bob’s full story and testimony at this blog post here. A Mission Born from Faith Save a Life – Save the World isn’t just about medical care. It’s about healing bodies and souls through the love of Christ. With a heart for the under-served, our foundation reaches children in the Bajío region—many of whom suffer from critical conditions without access to the doctors, hospitals, and treatments they desperately need. (You can read more about this region at this page here.) One of the foundation’s key initiatives is SMA Missions, based in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. This branch is dedicated to providing free medical care to underprivileged children, ensuring that families without resources are not left to face medical crises alone. And now, their work is growing in a powerful way: a brand-new free clinic is set to open by the end of this year (or early next year). This clinic will serve as a beacon of hope, offering medical assistance to those who have nowhere else to turn. This is Your Invitation Bob’s story is a reminder that God often calls us through our own trials to serve others. His mission is a testament to what faith in action looks like. But this is not just his mission—it can be yours, too. We invite you to be a part of this Christ-centered movement to bring healing and hope to these children. Here's how: ● Pray: Lift up these children, their families, and the medical teams in your prayers. Pray for healing, provision, and God’s hand over this ministry. ● Give: Your donation can be the difference between life and death for a child in need. Every contribution helps provide essential medical care, treatments, and life-saving surgeries. ● Get Involved: Whether it’s spreading the word, volunteering, or partnering with this mission, your hands and heart can be part of God’s work in the Bajío. Jesus called us to be His hands and feet—to love, to serve, and to heal. Will you answer that call today? Donate Now | Learn More Here are all the ways you can help, regardless of your income:
*Disclaimer: While this organization proclaims a bold faith in Jesus Christ, we prioritize children as our mission, and we happily work together on the same team as any other organization or group who prioritizes the well-being and health of children. We openly accept working together as a team for the betterment of those in need. |
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