It's that time again, we're going back to Russia. Rewind: We went over spring break to two new orphanages, and had an absolutely wonderful experience and I just realized that I never got to update about that trip! I will post soon, because God did some AMAZING things there and I am excited for where He is leading us.
Ok, so back to present time -- we're going back to the orphanage that we started sponsoring in 2007, and we cannot wait to see all of our sweet kids! We've heard that there has been a lot of turn over there in the past year or so and that means there will be a LOT of new faces that we haven't gotten to meet. We were able to 'drop in' over spring break and say hello to some of the children we've grown to love, and I can't wait to see them all again in June.
One of the main things that the Lord always teaches me during this time is trust. Honestly, most of it deals with finances, and getting the funds to be able to go do to this ministry. It is always such a character builder -- and each trip, the Lord really teaches me more and more about honestly trusting in Him.
This year I did a '$10 for Hope' challenge on Facebook. I created an event and my goal was to see if I could get 250 people to commit $10 for Russia Missions (Each team member was asked to raise about 2,500 for trip costs and costs and ministry expenses). Though I did not make it to 250, many many people gave and the Lord has provided the amount of money I need to make this trip. He is GOOD!
In the meantime, I have encountered a few great stories, and I wanted to share some of them with you because they really encouraged me.... they are from completely different ends of the spectrum, but both impacted me in a huge way.
#1) One night I was at our college bible study, and we were about to get started when a young friend came up to me and said that she had received my '$10 for Hope' invite on Facebook. She said that she had a lot of friends going on mission trips this summer and that the Lord had really laid it on her heart to give to the ministry that was going on... she asked me how much more money I needed (which at the time was about $1,500). She then told me that she had gotten some grants for her school this semester, and she still had a good amount left that she felt called to just 'give'.... she went out to her car and handed me a check for $400. I couldn't believe it. I think I was in shock at the moment... and even now, I think of how sacrificial it is for a college student to give $400. I still am amazed at the sacrificial heart of this sweet girl, and how she chose to give that money instead of use it for the million other things that could have come up... Man, I pray for a sacrificial heart like that.
#2) During the whole '$10 for Hope' thing, I would get things in the mail pretty often, because that is how most people would send their donation. A few days after I got the check mentioned above, I checked the mail and received a envelope from a childhood friend. She is married, and also has a little boy who is very young. I have kept up with this friend only through Facebook, and I have been excited to see that she is growing in her walk with the Lord, but we hadn't talked that often. I opened the envelope and there was 9 one dollar bills, and 4 quarters taped to a piece of notebook paper. Quarters of hope. On the notebook paper it said, "Sorry about the change, money is really tight right now. Hope this helps." At that moment, tears ran down my face. I couldn't believe the sacrificial heart of this friend. That $10 was a huge sacrifice, and I could feel the weight of what that meant to her and her family. Again, I pray for a sacrificial heart like that.
So, in both cases, I saw a great example of sacrificial love. Each sweet friend sacrificing in a different way, but bringing glory to God in an amazing way and reminding me what this whole thing is about.... showing Christ to others. They both did that for me, and I am grateful.
Our team will leave for Russia on June 13th, and I cannot wait! We need about $4,600 total for each person to reach their fundraising goal -- and I know God will provide!
All I have to do is remember those quarters, and how those and so many other $10 donations added up to get me to the fundraising total I needed.
