international

August 14, 2014 by Tricia Goyer Leave a Comment

3 Questions About Giving Every Parent Should Ask

This summer I was blessed to travel to Kenya to meet with some amazing men and women who are using AWANA clubs (www.awana.org) to disciple children to know Jesus and know His Word.

We visited six schools, each with 200+ students. My heart was drawn to the kids who praised God with smiling faces, even though many of them were orphans and had little or nothing of their own.

It was easy to be drawn to the kids. They were quick to jump onto my lap, to hug me, and to dance around, urging me to take their photos. But my attention also turned to the leaders, men and women who gave so much of themselves for the sake of these children.

I met pastors and their wives who lived in small houses and made beds for orphans in any available space.

I met teachers, many who taught without knowing if they’d receive an income that month. They had few books and materials, but their passion for learning was contagious. I met one school supervisor named Kennedy who oversaw one of the schools in the Kibera slums.

The school was neat and clean, especially in comparison to the conditions around it! It was a single room and four levels of students met in their respective levels in each of the corners. Most of the students had uniforms and all of them were polite, welcoming us visitors.

While meeting with us, Kennedy told us his story. He’d grown up in the slums but had managed to get out and attend high school and university. He’d graduated with a degree, but instead of finding a good job, he returned to the slums to help children. He hadn’t forgotten where he’d come from.

Over and over I heard the same thing from these dedicated adults, “God called me here. He called me to care for and teach these children.” These men and women are giving their lives for the sake of others, and their example is beautiful to me. They are beautiful to me.

The children I met knew the Word of God

…because someone took the time to teach them and train them.

The children I met loved Jesus

…because AWANA is doing what it can to reach children around the world.

The children I met are impacting their community. They are taking God’s Word to their families and friends who live in the slums. They are a light in a dark place with the help of men and women like you and me who support AWANA and the AWANA missionaries who reach communities around the world.

When I returned from Kenya my heart was forever changed, and I asked myself three questions…

Read the rest of this post on ForThe Family.org by clicking here.

When I returned from Kenya, I asked myself three questions. @TriciaGoyer

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August 5, 2013 by Tricia Goyer Leave a Comment

Podcast: Living Inspired: Kim De Blecourt, Julia DesCarpentrie and Jeff Gerke

To listen to the interview: go here and click on the player in the upper right corner of the screen.

I am excited about this week’s show. Kim De Blecourt, Julia DesCarpentire and Jeff Gerke join me for the full hour as we talk about adoption—both international and domestic. Foster care and “special needs”!

More about the Guests:

Kim de Blecourt is a media veteran, experienced writer and speaker, and expert on international adoption. Kim is on staff with Food for Orphans, as Manager of Life Changing Mission Trips. Kim leads a blog ministry called Nourished Hearts to encourage, inspire, and create community around those who work in orphan care internationally. Kim and her husband, Jahn, have been married for fifteen years and are the parents of two children, Jacey and Jake. They reside in Michigan.

Her book, Until We All Come Home, is available on Amazon.

Julia DesCarpentrie is passionate about orphan care, adoption and fostering. She has been blessed to live out God’s call on her life in those areas through her work with The CALL (Children of Arkansas Loved for a Lifetime), a foster care church initiative encouraging more Christian families to foster children in need. Julia has been an advocate for the fatherless for 10 years, as both a volunteer and also serving with Hope for Orphans before her work with The CALL. She is also an active volunteer in the community and has served on several community boards. She continues to minister to other mothers and foster/adoptive families through writing and speaking with MomLife Today. Julia is the mom of five children entrusted to her care through birth, adoption and fostering. She and Branden have been married for 16 years.

Jeff Gerke trains novelists how to better do what it is they’re trying to do. He trains through his three books for Writers Digest: Plot Versus Character, The First 50 Pages, and Write Your Novel in a Month. He trains through his online video training program called FictionAcademy.com, a part of BestsellerSociety.com. He trains through the many writers conferences he teaches at all over the country every year. And he trains through the freelance editing he does for his clients. Jeff is the founder of Marcher Lord Press, the premier publisher of Christian speculative fiction. He lives in Colorado Springs with his wife and three children.

July 27, 2013 by Tricia Goyer 5 Comments

The Child God Chose for Us

Eleven years ago, I was reading a “Woman’s World” magazine, and one article changed my thoughts on how many children is “enough.” At the time, I thought three was plenty. My kids were ten, seven, and five. I was homeschooling them, and we had a very busy life.

Then I read an article about all the girls growing up in orphanages in China. I wept when I read the article and realized my heart had room for more. That night after dinner, I showed John the article and brought up the idea of adoption. At the time, John wasn’t interested. “These three are a handful. How can we deal with more?” Then there was the thought of cost. Adoption was/is expensive. I was disappointed, but I let the matter drop. I’ve learned over the years that nagging never works, and if God desires John’s heart to change, then He’ll do the change.

Years passed, and I mentioned adoption a few more times. I was still interested, and John was still not. Then around 2005, John surprised me by asking me if I still was interested in adoption. My eyes grew wide, and I exclaimed, “Yes!”

Over the years, God had softened John’s heart. Maybe it was due to the fact our kids were older and easier to deal with. Maybe it was because I was mentoring teen moms and we had their little kids around often (and enjoyed that!). Or maybe because God decided the time was right.

It took almost three years for us to fill out the paperwork for a Chinese adoption . . . just in time for the wait for a Chinese baby to greatly increase. We still don’t have that beautiful little Chinese girl I felt called to add to our home. We’re still waiting, and we know that the child God chooses to bring into our home in this way is going to be pretty special. And, like the way God works, there have been other surprises along the way.

Read the rest of this post on Somona Christian Home!

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