Our First Fundraiser = A Lesson in Faith

Last night was a lesson in faith. We needed it. During the planning of this trip at some point all of us have wondered how we are going to afford $890 each. Most of us are in school and those of us who are working make pretty much just enough to get by. We hoped that we would have the faith we prayed for. The kind that was so convinced God would provide but with such a long time before the trip we often got sidetracked by worry. We’ve all assured each other that God would come through for us but often would question ourselves about that very same statement later on. Last night we had our first fundraiser. It was a small fundraiser that provided dinner to some college students we knew. We didn’t expect much, after all we weren’t enlisting our parents friends we were enlisting people like us who also are in school or just started working. We were warned that these dinners usually only bring in around $150 and that we may not even make back what we spend on food. So we planned to get the supplies for the food with our own personal money. We got together early that afternoon and put together a dinner for an estimated 50 or so people. When we got to the location we setup and prayed before everyone got there. As we went around praying so many of us prayed that God would prove our faith wrong and show up and provide for us. Well show up He did. We actually ran out of some of the food because we had such a good number show up! As for providing financially, we made over $300, double what they thought we would make! I love when God shows up like that. It was like He wanted to reassure us that yes, He would provide and yes, we are supposed to go. 2 Corinthians 5:7 is such a simple verse “We live by faith, not by sight” but such a hard one to actually apply. However, God is showing us more and more each day that our attitude during this whole trip should be one that makes that verse known to everyone around us. Faith… Will you help us by praying that God would continually give us a stronger faith in our personal walks? We could definitely use your prayer to remind us that if it is His will, nothing can stop us.

Sarah Ashley's Story

When I was about 14, I took a powerpoint class, and our assignment was to make a slide of everyone in the class including their career goal and an interesting fact about ourselves. When I was asked, I said that my career goal was to be a missionary and my interesting fact was that I wanted to adopt 42 children over my lifetime. I am not sure why I said 42, but when I said that I felt surety in my answer. Soon after that I even named and mapped out the rooms of my first 12 children! At this time in my life, I knew that God was calling me into mission work. Living in a hut, serving Christ in another land, fascinated me. From the moment I first heard about Amy Carmichael in the 3rd grade, she was my role model; she was the topic of many of my reports and projects for school. I loved how God had used something she hated about herself, her brown eyes, to rescue girls in India and, ultimately, lead them to Him.

I have always known God was calling me to be a missionary, and in ninth grade, I learned that I did not have to go overseas to be one. During high school, I went from wanting to be an author of teen and preteen books, to wanting to be a director of a girls’ camp, to wanting to become a fashion designer and be a missionary in Hollywood. Even though I still have those dreams and am actively pursuing them, God has also given me the desire to be a missionary in another country. This past year, God has taken me from desperately desiring an amazing relationship with Him to being fully surrendered to His will for my life, holding nothing back. He has my whole heart and my life is not my own. My soul’s purpose on this earth is to bring His name glory. I have my class on Sunday to thank for this change in me. As a class, we have been reading through some books that have really challenged me and somewhat changed the way I view Christ and some of His teachings. This change has prompted me to really examine my life and see if He truly is my number one priority, not just something I add on at the beginning or end of each day.

When I heard that our class had the opportunity to go on this mission trip, I was ecstatic because I had been wanting to go on another one since my first mission trip to Belize in 2008. This trip to the Dominican is an answer to prayer; I believe that this is God’s way of bringing me back to a dream that I once held but pushed aside in the business of life. As I look back on my life, I am noticing that conversations, experiences, and desires have been leading up to this moment in my life. I truly believe that God has been preparing me for this trip, and that He will use this trip to prepare me for future ventures. I am excited to be a part of God’s plan to love these children!

John 14:12-13 (New International Version):

“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father. And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father.”

Katie R.'s story

First of all, I’m not  blogger. But I’ll give it a try :]

I was raised in a christian home, went to church, knew every story, every verse. and every song. I asked Jesus into my heart about a hundred times, I’e prayed so many prayers, and re-dedicated a billion times. Then about a year ago I realized all of that really meant nothing. i believed in God, but he was not the Lord and leader of my life. We tag-teamed it. I would let Him lead on Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, or whenever I was at church, and then It was my turn during the week. This is such a hard way to live life and follow God at the same time. Actually impossible. In January of this past year I did some serious re-evaluating of my life. I wanted to live my life Completely sold out to Christ. I completely changed how I lived my life. Changed what I did with my free time, the music I listened to, my schedule, and even my best friends. It was incredibly hard. But something I needed to do in order to live for Christ. I knew I couldn’t have both things.  I started waking up really early to do devotions, changed my work schedule so I had time to go to church, and started surrounding myself with good Christian influences.

I have been on so many missions trips in my life but only one that had really made an impact. In March of 2010 I went to Haiti. It was one of the hardest and most heart-breaking things I have ever done. I saw a life extremely different to the one I live. Everything about it just broke my heart. I fell in love with every person there, and even more in love with God. It was in Haiti where my passion and desire for missions, and kids started. After that trip I knew god was calling me to missions. To give up my life and everything I have, for Him. Even if that means leaving the comfort, my family, my friends, and all my material “necessities”. God has changed my life in so many ways. I am able, ready, and willing, to go wherever the Spirit leads me. I am continually surrendering my life to Him everyday, and truly learning what it means to live in the Spirit.

It’s awesome to watch the girls in our class as they go through similar things. To see how we can pray for and encourage others because we know exactly what they’re going through. All of the girls have incredible hearts for God, and missions. This trip will be such a great experience for us and to just let God use us and work through us. We all know that it’s nothing we can do and not for our Glory, but for the Glory of God!

"So you cannot become my disciple wihtout giving up everything you own"

Luke 14:33

Caitlin's Story

When I was in 10th grade I went on my first overseas mission trip to Ecuador. Until that point, I had planned on becoming a veterinarian. That trip changed my life forever! I had always heard of people changing their plans and becoming missionaries and thought “that will never be me”. HA! I remember sitting during worship on night thinking “God what are you talking about? Me a missionary? I love my family, I love animals, and I have this plan all worked out. I don’t want to go away and never see my family and friends again!” But after a few months of fighting with Him and gaining wisdom from family and friends, I knew I did not have a choice. Each summer for the next three years, I took a short-term overseas mission trip to Peru. I fell in love with missions. My passion continued to grow stronger and I could not imagine how I would live without it. In fact, I began to see how God was preparing me for travel even before I was born. During my parents 1st two years of marriage they were in Japan because, my dad was in the military. My parents raised our family traveling all over the United States camping with mainly necessities. More importantly, my family had a very strong Christian background. I grew up in my church and realized I was desperate for Christ at 9 years old. I remember sitting in my pastors office talking to him about my salvation and he asked me if I had prayed the prayer I said yes, of course, did not want to give him the wrong answer! I remember closing my eyes and saying, “Lord, please come into my heart”. I know I did not realize at that time how that would alter my life forever but I knew I needed Him. I continued to grow and learn about God’s love and His sacrifice for us. In high school, I really began to understand that being Holy (separated) was the only way we as believers were ever going to make a difference in this world. (Something I still struggle with today.)

Sadly, my last mission trip overseas was the summer after my first year of college. I remember flying home and upon return bursting into tears on a friends shoulder because I did not know why I had returned to the States that year. Since then anytime, I became interested in a mission trip or researched an opportunity God shut the door. Looking back, I feel as though it was to get me through college because He knew if I left again I was not coming back. I finished school last summer and immediately found a full time job, which I love! But, I never gave God the opportunity to open a door for me long term in between school and a career. However, God works in many ways and this will be my first overseas mission opportunity in 5 years! I am very excited to spread God’s love to the orphans in the Dominican as well as the workers who spend day in and day out with these precious children! This is the re-beginning of many mission opportunities to come!

My heart is to reach those who have never felt the love of Jesus and who are longing to fill that void in their life! God has called us to be a “living sacrifice HOLY and PLEASING to Him”! Romans 12:1-2. A living sacrifice that is what I want to be called!

Kristen D's Story

Ok I'm not really good at this so please forgive me in advance.  This past year I have completely given my life to Christ. Yes I grew up going to church, but it never really clicked for me. I have learned so much and my # 1 prayer has been for God to use me. When I started attending this college age class it was perfect, it's what we were learning about. Completely trusting in God with everything and letting the Holy Spirit take control of your life. When Courtney mentioned this mission trip to the Dominican, I was excited and yet so worried about finding the time to take off work and money. So I've been praying about it, and I recently got back from a mission trip from Alabama. It was so amazing to be one of God's tools in his big project.  I was working so hard in the dead heat, cleaning, sweating and getting up at like 6 everyday. And it was so great because I did it all for Him.  I want to go to the Dominican and do it for HIM! I want to show Christs love to these children. God wants to use us and in the process he wants to transform us. I truly believe this and when we go out into the world, out of the comfort of our lives, homes, work and churches and see life in other places, and show the LOVE of Christ it will make a difference.  I am so excited for God to use all of us and have us all  grow closer together and even more excited for us to grow closer to HIM!

Courtney's Story

About two years ago I felt challenged to read through the New Testament daily from Matthew to Revelation without stopping. I had heard the majority of the stories over the years but hadn’t really read them back to back. During this process God started revealing to me a love for three people groups: the poor, orphans and widows. He also showed me how it was my calling as a Christian to care for these groups. I felt like I helped two of them, poor and widows. I would feed the homeless on Thursday nights and minister to widows throughout the year with an organization I was involved in. However, I realized very quickly that I did little to nothing for the orphan, probably the most vulnerable group of all of these. I then began praying for this group. During this time God really started to grow in my heart a passion for this group of people. He also started to grown an awareness through me in a college age Bible Fellowship class I taught. At the beginning of some of my lessons I would ask the girls in my class “If you knew God was behind you 100% and could do anything what would you do?” I thought this question would be for their benefit and help them to look beyond their own power and rely on God but little did I know it would also be used by God for my benefit. Through the answers to this question I started to ask myself what my own personal answer would be. The reply I quickly felt was something to do with orphans. I began to personally answer this question every week with “I’m not sure exactly what but something to do with orphans and raising awareness for them”. I also realized a couple of weeks into this question that several of the girls in my class also had a passion for reaching young children. At a Tree (college –age) service a few weeks later I approached a director of score and asked him if it would be possible to setup a mission trip specifically for the girls in my class. He said yes, would we be willing to go to an orphanage in the Dominican as he had just spoken with several of the orphanage directors and they were in great need of people to just love on the children.

I knew immediately that God had a plan. This trip is a result of the prayers of over 20 girls. However, those prayers weren’t “God send us to the Dominican” those prayers were “God if you could have us do anything with you behind us 100%, what would it be?” I know that God has great plans for me and for the girls in this class. I hope that you would also be willing to open your heart and ask God that same question “If He would have you do anything, what would it be”? Thank you so much for visiting our blog and I hope through reading these posts you learn more about us, orphans, the Dominican, and the God who has tied it all together.  I also hope that God reveals to you the reason we are doing everything.  Not to point to ourselves or any organization but to point to Him.  We hope that we are able to be a living example of Matthew 16:24-25 "Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it."  That is our goal with this trip and daily, to lose our life for His life!