my children and MY children

My children, in Ghana, are on my heart today. Working on a presentation for a talk I am giving at church in a few weeks is proving to be a tear filled event. Recognizing the difference between my children on Lake Volta (as they have become my heart and passion in so many ways) and MY children that I birthed makes me feel so utterly sad and angry. Because in my two sons I see childhood. I see joy and very few worries. I see giggles and hugs and kisses. I see enjoyment in a lick of ice cream or drink of tea. I see trust in their eyes that I will protect them or that Daddy will keep them safe. I see children who have no adult responsibilities... as it should be. They are CHILDREN.

For a long time I set out to give my children the childhood I never had. I mean I guess I still want that. But as we get closer to meeting our children in Ghana. That becomes less of the focus. Less me and more others. The life my boys have... it is the life all children should have the opportunity to have. They should ALL have a family and education. They should all have a safe place to sleep at night and plenty of food, time to play and be fun, goofy little people. They should have children's responsibilities like learning to read and write and learning manners and that actions have consequences... but not the consequences of disobeying your slave master or having to dive to the bottom of a lake to untangle nets at 4 years old without the knowledge of how to swim. Those are big nasty consequences no person should know let alone children who have absolutely no control of the situation. And I get angry and frustrated for my children. I get angry that so many children don't know childhood. That so many children are forced to grow up without a family and home. That so many kids have no advocate. And it motivates me. Now I am their advocate. They have made an impression on me I can never shake. And I want them all to be like my children. I want them all to be in a loving home with loving people around them being educated and playing soccer and having access to good medical care. I want them to grow up with the tools to succeed and make an impact on the world.

And all of that makes me know my heart is going in the right direction. Because I really really want this face:

to look like these faces:

The good news is that they CAN! With your help, more and more of these children will be rescued from slavery and placed into loving homes. Homes where they get an education, food, medical attention, protection and most of all... a family. That is what The Village of Life is all about!

Photo Credit

If you can, please consider donating to the school fund or my travel fund. You can make a very real difference in the lives of OUR children. The world is so much bigger than our own lives. And our impact can be so much greater than just our lives too. Make an impact on these beautiful children. Because we are not just responsible for our children when we get right down to it. Our world is a community and God commands us to take care of all of the orphaned children.

Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. James 1:27

Update!

So far I have collected about $850 of the auction funds! Today I deposited half of that into The Village of Life School Fund! I am so blessed and excited to be a part of this and humbled by how my friends are stepping up to help us raise funds for our trip and to build this school. It is a testament to how God can use ALL of us for this trip. Keep praying, keep finding ways to be involved and know that I appreciate and love you all.

Quick Recap of Auction

Hi! Just wanted my bloggie friends to have a quick recap of the auction.

It went very well! We raised about $1200... half of which will go to my personal travel expenses (and makes me about 300 shy of my plane ticket) and half will go to the school fund! Yea :)

If you bid and did not win OR you just want to make a donation, there are donation buttons on the right hand of this page. One for my travel fund and one for the school. If you want to split up your donation, you can deposit into my travel fund and leave a note via paypal and I will make sure half of it gets into the school fund.

Thank you all so much for your support. I will get back to my blogging ways soon. Today though, I am super busy with appointments and mailing loads of goodies to people and... you know that kind of stuff.

Take care!

Auction over

Will contact winners soon.

Auction info

So we are really getting down to crunch time in this auction! Very fun stuff if you ask me. The Auction will take place on Thursday June 16 at 5:30pm CST and will end on Friday June 17 at 5:30pm CST. This should allow anyone wanting to participate the ability to do so! I will have the items/pictures/description/bid info in TWO locations.

One place will be right here on my blog. I have tons of friends who have no desire to do the facebook thing and that is A-Okay! But I still want you to participate. I will post each individual item in it's own separate post and you will be able to bid in the comments section. I will check in periodically to update to the current bid price so that you know what is going on over on facebook too!

The other place will be on facebook. Go to that link and "like" the Going Going Ghana Auction community page and you will be all set to bid. Same basic principles over there as on the blog. There will be a photo with the item description, photo and bidding info and you will bid in the comments.

Some items will have free shipping as the donors have provided it with their donations. Others will have a shipping cost and I will be sure to point that out in the auction info. If you live local, you will be able to pick the item(s) up from me or have me drop them off to you.

I will be accepting payment via paypal, money order, or cash (for locals only). Sorry kids not messing with checks from people I may not know. Once your item is paid for I will ship it to you (or the donor will) as quickly as possible. If someone falls through on a payment (which won't happen because you all are awesome!), I will go to the 2nd place bidder and offer the item to them.

ALL proceeds will be divided 50/50 to go into my personal travel fund for our trip to Ghana and into The Village of Life school fund.

If there is ANYTHING at all I missed, let me know! This is the first time I have ever done something like this but even if I have forgotten something, I will update this post as necessary or I am a pretty reasonable person and we will solve any issues that arise. Sound good?

Thank you all for your help and support. Can't wait to get this party started :)

Rock Star Lessons!

ROCK STAR LESSONS

RockStar Lesson's with Muncie's own resident rockstar Andy Whitten

With over 25 years experience with the guitar and piano, Andy brings a love of music and a love of seeing each student develop his or her talents and abilities. Your rockstar can study guitar from beginner to experienced. Lessons range from worship styles to blues and rock and roll.  Acoustic or Electric. 

Rockstar Piano studies can include a chord based worship approach or a start at the beginning learning the fundamentals of music and theory. 

Rockstar Drum lessons available with a focus on rhythm, hand/foot coordination and a self discovering approach to learning hand drums or drum set playing. 

You could even bid as a band to have Andy sit in on your band's rehearsals and have professional coaching on setlist flow, stage presence or songwriting!  

Andy has studied Music Theory and Performance, as well as bringing a 15 year plus professional teaching experience to the table, Your Rockstar Lessons await! starting bid of $100 retail value $240 

Necklace and Earring Set

This simple and lovely set features mocha faceted swarovski crystals paired with a delicate gold plated chain. Earrings to match! Measures about 22" 
Starting Bid: $20
Shipping NOT included
Donated by Gina
Urban Lily