Girl!

It's a girl!

As Hubby and I opened the envelope, we learned about our new sponsored child through Compassion International.

Our second sponsored child turned eighteen years old and had just graduated from the program (she will continue her high school education and wants to go to college!). When Compassion notified us about her graduation, it also meant our sponsorship for her had come to an end. It was a sad time but we were also excited for her completing a milestone, and about meeting a new child.

We would like to stay with children from the same country as our two previous sponsored children, but did not request a specific child. We asked Compassion to give us a child who had been waiting for sponsorship for a long time so we would find out about him/her when the packet came in the mail.

On the same day I witnessed one hundred new sponsorships in a matter of hours (see previous post), we received the packet - our child is a five-year-old little girl whose birthday is only one day apart from Hubby's!

We are excited to get to know our new sponsored child in the years to come!

Children

Over the weekend, I had a chance to volunteer with Compassion International and a great team at a local church to encourage folks who came to see the passion to considering sponsoring children.

There, I had the chance to meet a sponsored child from Kenya who was there to share his testimony with the audience. He is now an adult and is traveling around the US to share his testimony on how the sponsorship turned his life around. Thanks to his testimony during the event, many folks came to our booth, ready to sponsor a child. We were literally quite swarmed! At the end of the night, exactly one hundred children were sponsored! How amazing!

My favorite story of the night came almost at the end, when the crowd had dissipated and a 10-year-old boy walked up to me and started looking at the many photos of children on the tables. He was part of the passion play and still had his makeup on when he came over. At first, he didn't have any questions. But as he looked at the photos, he began asking many great questions about sponsorship, writing letters etc (he even asked if he could meet the child!), and he became increasingly excited about possibly sponsoring a child. After getting his answers, he was ready to make a commitment (by doing extra chores at home to start with!) and I asked him to talk to his parents. His mom told him that if he found a child with his exact same birthday, they would sponsor the child.

With the help of a couple of his buddies, he found her! The girl from India had the exact same birthday. He was very excited about it, and his countenance was beautiful (which had nothing to do with the makeup). He was going to make a difference in his new friend's life.

It was an incredible testimony. This boy had such faith that he was not thinking at all about having to do extra chores to help someone he had never met. He was not afraid of making the commitment. He received the calling and he went with it with confidence and joy.

It might be said often, but volunteering is not all about giving; volunteers are often blessed in unexpectedly marvelous ways. That night, I was blessed beyond measure to meet a young man who was once a sponsored child, and to see one hundred families made commitment to sponsor children, to make a difference in their lives. I didn't know the stories of all one hundred sponsors, but I know the one about this 10-year-old boy who is going to make an eternal impact, one child at a time.

Shoebox Stories (2/2)

Here are more great stories for this year's shoebox collection!

• A lady came by the OCC kiosk at church and asked how she could help. I explained the needs and she wrote a check. She then reiterated her desire to help with anything - she had time because she had recently been laid off and was now pouring her energy on various ministries. When I looked at the check later, I saw that she made a very generous donation.
• Three ladies who had just run the Race for the Cure came straight to church to drop off their packed shoeboxes.
• The elementary school at our church chose Operation Christmas Child as one of their service projects.
  
• The entire 6th grader Sunday School class packed a bunch of boxes. 
• A lady told her family, neighbors, co-workers and friends about OCC, and she brought to church 29 packed shoeboxes!
• Our Girls in Action packed shoeboxes. The leaders' goal was 8 boxes. The girls packed 15 in about 30 minutes!
• The Acteens packed over 30 boxes. They wanted to do it after hearing a former shoebox recipient from Russia speak over the summer and being deeply touched by her testimony.
  
• A lady packed her boxes and also dropped off a big bag of stuffed animals for other boxes!
• Remember the 36 empty boxes I gave our middle school teacher? She and her students packed over 170 boxes! And two of the girls raised funds to pack - coincidentally - 36 of them just by themselves!

I was - and still am - utterly amazed!

Shoeboxes Stories (1/2)

I hope you have had a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas!

It's been a very long time since my last post, so I am making a final push before we welcome the new year. :) But the real motivation is to share with you some of the many wonderful things that happened during the weeks before Thanksgiving when we were collecting shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child (OCC). Enjoy!

• Our church was very supportive of Operation Christmas Child and did a great deal of promotion! 
• Since early Fall, I was collecting empty shoeboxes and a friend was wrapping them with Christmas paper. We hoped to have a steady supply of wrapped shoeboxes for our church members to take and fill. All was well until shortly before the packing party in early November, when I was having trouble getting shoeboxes. My contact at a local store who had been collecting empty shoeboxes for me told me her boss began tossing the boxes without explanation and would not allow her to save any shoeboxes (thankfully, she was not in any trouble with her job). Just as I was running out of boxes, and three days before the packing party, a couple of Sunday School teachers donated 80 shoeboxes to the packing party! 
• From our church, a lady who is blind packed 12 boxes. She started packing after last Christmas!
• I collected empty shoeboxes at work, and the response was wonderful! My colleagues dropped off boxes; one even made a monetary donation on the spot as soon as I told him why I was collecting shoeboxes.
• My friend who owns a salon collected a box full of donations from her customers.
• The packing party was well-attended. We had young children, singles, newlyweds, expectant parents, parents and grandparents!
• We did not have enough donations to pack all 80 boxes at the packing party, and at the end, we had about 36 boxes left. But the next day, a teacher from our church's middle school told me they were once again going to pack 150 shoeboxes and needed as many shoeboxes as possible. I gave her all 36 boxes. 
• On the same day, the Sunday School teachers who donated the 80 boxes led their very excited 4th Grade Sunday School class downstairs to the OCC kiosk to drop off their packed shoeboxes. Seeing the excited children coming with their boxes in their hands brought tears to my eyes. I could just see how excited the children receiving these shoeboxes would be.

More stories to come!

Shoeboxes!

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! So sorry, it's been a long time since my last post. This semester has been quite busy, but there is much for which to be thankful!

Before Thanksgiving, as usual, Hubby and I dropped off Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts. This year, with the effort of many from our church, middle school, and friends, neighbors and co-workers, we dropped off 520 packed boxes on Sunday!

This is the most we have collected so far! I can't express with words how thankful I am to you for packing a box or donating your time, money, filler items etc. Your response has been amazing!

I have told Hubby and several friends that I was secretly praying for 500 packed shoeboxes this year so that 500 children would receive gifts and hear the Gospel this Christmas season. For a while, it was an unrealistic goal. But God never took this number away, and I saw before my eyes how He accomplished this goal by raising up His people to get involved. With God, all things are possible!

Thank you once again for being a big part of Operation Christmas Child. There are many great stories to tell and I hope to share some of them with you soon!

Shoes

I got new shoes on sale last week.

The pair of black shoes I wore most often to work was wearing out quite badly. It did not help at all that the shoes were not the right fit (they were wide, instead of regular) so they were loose. But at that point, I had been having a lot of trouble finding black dress shoes for a while, so I bought them anyway. As soon as I tried on the new shoes which were the right size and fit and were better made, I could tell the difference. My feet have been much, much happier.

Nonetheless, many people around the world do not have shoes. They do not have the luxury to buy what we consider necessity.

There are so many stories about children who cannot go to school, not only because their families cannot afford tuition, or they have to help in the farm, but also because they do not have a single pair of shoes that they absolutely need to walk the many miles to school. One way.

The black shoes I got were already half off; and with the sale going on in the store, I got another pair of shoes on the clearance rack for an even deeper discount. With the shoes, I got two shoeboxes.

What is the best way to use the shoeboxes? Fill them up with school supplies, hygiene items and toys! Operation Christmas Child collects shoeboxes filled with gifts for children around the world who might otherwise not receive a gift this Christmas.

I remember a story: one year, a child received a shoebox from Operation Christmas Child. Inside was a pair of shoes about which she had been praying. Overwhelmed with joy, she could now go to school, knowing that someone somewhere loved and cared about her; and so did God.

Shoebox Recap

I hope your new year has been going well! Before the year goes by too quickly, it is time to do some recap - on Operation Christmas Child!

My last update was in October, when we were in the middle of it. There are many great stories to tell, and below are some highlights -

•  We had a booth at church and many took interest in packing shoeboxes or making individual donations. Many involved their families, friends and Sunday School classes. Almost 1,000 brochures were distributed in six weeks!
• When a mother-daughter duo dropped off two boxes, they told me that one of them was packed by their non-believer friend who insisted on packing a shoebox for a child!
• At our packing party, we processed and packed a few dozen boxes (not to mention we had a lot of fun!).
• Our church middle school kids packed over a hundred shoeboxes in just a couple of weeks!
• Our church tennis league did a tournament to benefit Operation Christmas Child. In a very short amount of time, we put together the details for the tournament. It was great fun that day and we raised over $600 and collected over 12 packed boxes and many donations that helped pack a few more dozen shoeboxes!
• Our AWANA kids packed over 40 boxes! 
• My friend from my Bible study class got her high school students involved and they packed over 60 boxes!
• At the drop-off location, we were even able to help raise funds for a summer missions trips for college students by dropping off our boxes. For each box they were to collect, a dollar was donated towards the missions trip funds.

I remember a week before collection deadline, as I walked to the booth, I saw piles and piles of packed shoeboxes that had been dropped off. What a sight to behold!

And remember the number 300 (see last update)? Merely a week before collection deadline, we had about half the number. Just as I was wondering how the goal would be reached, it was when the teacher called me to tell me about the 100+ boxes from our middle school kids.

By the end of collection, 379 packed shoeboxes were dropped off and over $1,900 was raised through church and the tennis tournament. It amazes me to look at these numbers!

I am very thankful to everyone who participated in Operation Christmas Child. Because of you, many children around the world got to know someone overseas cared for them, and that God loved them. This was not at all about me setting goals, but I cannot tell you how much I was blessed throughout those few weeks. It was such a privilege and joy to be a part of this, to see God's hand move and to see God's people give generously and willingly.

Shoebox Time!

Operation Christmas Child is going at full force!

In July, I attended a banquet and was challenged to double the number of boxes packed from last year, so more children will receive shoebox gifts and hear the Good News. Last year, we had about 140 boxes; to double it, it would be about 280. This was not about numbers, because every shoebox gift is precious. Yet, it was about stepping out in faith, and trusting God and His provisions, since packing these many boxes was something I absolutely could not do on my own. And along the way, I had the help of friends at church who came on board with promoting OCC with much enthusiasm.

Now we have a booth at church and people are very responsive! Various Sunday School classes, Bible study classes and other groups are participating, and donations have been coming in! Even when I went to a couple of Target stores this afternoon to ask about empty shoebox donations, I got great responses and took home a few dozen boxes.

Packing a shoebox is easy - find an empty shoebox (wrapping it with Christmas wrapping paper is optional), decide whether to fill it for a boy or girl (and what age range), and fill it with age-appropriate toys, hygiene items, school supplies and hard candy. If you can, enclose a $7 donation to help cover shipping costs too. It is a fun and easy project both adults and children would enjoy. Children can also do a coloring page and tell the recipients about themselves, and/or write a letter!

OCC has offices not only in the US, but also Canada, UK, Ireland, Germany, Australia, New Zealand - and Hong Kong! So if you are in those areas, please visit their website and look for the icons towards the bottom.

Will you pack a shoebox?

Give This Christmas Away

Operation Christmas Child shares the love of Jesus through Christmas presents and the Gospel message. You can help share God's love by participating in this wonderful and fun project! For more about the project, visit their website or my post from last year.

Shoebox Blessings

In seven weeks, I witnessed firsthand how God worked in His amazing and mighty ways through Operation Christmas Child (see background here).

I thought I would pack a couple of shoeboxes this year; but I was also curious to see if a few others might want to be involved. However, since I was still relatively new to the town where we now lived, I was content with the idea of having a few people involved and perhaps packing a couple dozen shoeboxes.

It turned out my ladies' Bible study leader at church had wanted to involve the group in something and she had heard of OCC. So I had a group of ladies with whom to work! A few of them then got their Sunday School classes and the school where they worked involved. One of them also received donations in large quantities from her dentist, hairdresser and neighbors! My own neighbors also generously donated shoeboxes from their closets, and a local shoe store saved 30 boxes for the project!

While all this was unfolding, I learned that another lady from Bible study happened to be on the Missions Committee at church and she suggested linking OCC to the church-wide missions event which would happen to take place right before National Collection Week in November. We were able to set up a shoebox packing party, and the Missions Committee included OCC as one of the many exhibitors of the Ministry Fair (see pictures below). During the church-wide event, we had a booth that attracted a good number of visitors who expressed great interests in packing shoeboxes. I gave away all the brochures!

Despite the short time frame, over 100 shoeboxes were packed/collected and nearly $500 were donated through the ladies at Bible study. That was much bigger than the two shoeboxes I was going to pack. We even received help to drop off the shoeboxes at the collection point during National Collection Week.

While the results are great and well beyond my expectations, I am thankful to those, many of them children themselves, who participated in the project. Whatever they donated - empty shoeboxes, filler items, money, time - I see their beautiful hearts for others as many went out of their way to help. To think that many children around the world will be receiving Christmas presents and hearing the true meaning of Christmas as a result is, of course, even greater.

This project is not about me or what I wanted to do; I am simply thankful to God for allowing me to be a part of His awesome work.

This was the booth at the Ministry Fair at church. On display were some of the packed shoeboxes.

More boxes (but not all)!

From Empty Shoeboxes to Christmas Blessings......

I stumbled upon Operation Christmas Child - the "shoebox project" - about five or six years ago. I remember packing toys, school supplies and basic hygiene items in the empty, ordinary shoeboxes that year. Knowing that the shoeboxes would go to children who might have never received a gift in their young lives, and who had never heard the Good News and the true meaning of Christmas, made this project very special to me. Since that year, I have been packing shoeboxes every November. Some years, I did it only with hubby; some years, I had friends who came alongside the project. This year, several Sunday School and Bible study classes, and the missions committee at my church are supporting the project, and my neighbors and a local shoe store have donated dozens of empty shoeboxes!

I would like to invite you to participate too. If you have empty shoeboxes that you no longer need, you can easily turn them into Christmas blessings to children around the world. All you have to do is to fill the shoeboxes with toys, school supplies and hygiene items. You could also include a picture of your family and a letter before dropping off the shoeboxes to the collection centers around the nation during National Collection Week, November 17-24. Through these shoebox gifts, children will not only receive presents, they will also get to hear the Gospel and learn about the love of Jesus Christ.

If you are interested in participating in Operation Christmas Child, you can find more information online and also by watching the video below. Packing shoeboxes is easy and a fun family project that young children can participate. You are also welcome to make a monetary donation online to help offset shipping costs if you prefer to do so. If you have shoeboxes or filler items you would like to donate, please let me know and I would of course be more than happy to pack the boxes!

Blessings!

90th Birthday

I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior on November 18, 1990, at the Billy Graham Crusade in Hong Kong. I had been attending Christian schools since the first grade so I knew many Bible stories and how to pray to God. Hearing Reverend Graham share the Gospel, however, I came to understand the meaning of the Cross and the way to have a personal relationship with the God about whom I had been learning at school. I still remember very clearly that after I became a Christian, I felt such joy and peace in my heart that it transcended all understanding.

So I am indebted to Reverend Graham for sharing the Gospel with me, among many others, and I have been a beneficiary of his ministry over the years. He has been a blessing to so many people as he faithfully brings the Good news around the world. Now we have an opportunity to bless him - he will be celebrating his 90th birthday in two weeks! Send him a message to help make his special day even more memorable!

Surrendering the Secret

Before my relocation, I had been a volunteer with A Woman’s Place Ministries, a crisis pregnancy/women’s resource center in Tampa, FL. Although I had never been pregnant, God, by His plan, wanted me to be involved in the ministry.

Because of it, I got to know many women facing unplanned pregnancies. While I mainly met with women who decided to carry their babies, I had also met women who had gone through abortion in the past. Often times, guilt and shame so overcome these women, especially Christian women, that many of them keep their abortion secret and suffer the pain and heartache alone.

Earlier this year, Pat Layton, Founder and President of A Woman's Place, published Surrendering the Secret, a Bible study on post-abortion healing. Now, a giveaway is taking place for women to have a chance to receive the Bible study materials for their churches or their own groups and share this message of hope.

You might know someone who has gone through abortion. Through entering this giveaway, you can help unload her burden and heartache and help her walk towards God’s Truth and freedom.