One… It Matters to This One…

One is still a drop in the ocean.  Truly, a drop.  But this one?  This little drop?  Well, he has already has sent ripples…nay, SHOCKwaves, out from where he has dropped in our family.  It has rocked our lives…and it is rocking the lives of others.  We have watched as the community around us and at large has rippled out from one little life.  Just one.  We’ve already seen people hear about our one and become inspired to do something, to give, to cry out, to change…just because of one (who isn’t even home yet!)
And so one drop…becomes two.  And two becomes four.  And suddenly, a downpour.
Because of one.

This was what Musing Mama wrote as she spoke about the orphan crisis, as she described how the one little orphan they are trying to bring home has affected them and how that one can become two, two become four and then it is raining all over.

You can be that one drop of rain. You can add to your one single effort with the efforts of so many others and make a difference to one orphan today.

i ask you to make a difference to this one; his name is Asher.

Asher is such a cutie and he is waiting for his forever family.

Asher will be 4 years old in a few months. He currently lives in an orphanage but there is a likelihood that he will be transferred to an adult mental institution on or soon after his 4th birthday. That is no place for a child who is described as very sweet, calm and inquisitive, whose only “fault” (if it can be called that) is having Down Syndrome.

He is meant to be with a loving family, running around in the park, asking mummy for a snack before dinner, making his big brother or sister help him build a fort, handing daddy tools to fix the bookshelf.

Asher‘s Angel Tree Warrior is helping to raise his adoption grant during this festive season. A larger adoption grant would make it easier for his adoptive family to reach him (there is also the possibility of an additional grant for those who qualify). She makes really cute car seat covers, tote bags and crayon rolls and is donating all proceeds during November and December to Asher‘s grant. Please hope over there, have a look and make a purchase.

You can also donate directly to Asher‘s grant by click on the Donate button on his profile page. Click on his name or picture to go to his profile page.

Please also share Asher‘s story and pray for him, for his daily needs and for his forever family to come for him.

syc

Racing to Love…

Does life not feel like a race? What are you racing towards or for?

Is this race of life worth the while? What have we to show for it at the end of the day?

If i may, i would like to answer that question. (This is my viewpoint of the world.)

At the end of this life’s race, i hope and pray that everyone who looks back on my life will see one thing – LOVE. They will see that i have loved to the best of my abilities. i am not born with the ability to love everyone in every situation unconditionally but knowing how unconditionally the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Father and the Holy Spirit loves me; that is what helps me to try my best to love; to love far and wide, just like God loves this whole world of human beings.

This world is so full of hurts and sorrows that sometimes it is hard to bear. (It is one of the reasons, years ago, i stopped reading newspapers.) But…

Luckily there is HOPE that conquers the fallen world we live in.  We don’t have to shoulder the world’s pain and burden.  We don’t have to mitigate the evil that surrounds us.  What we do have to do is TRUST in Jesus the savior, despite our pain and sorrow and fear.  His Love can heal the whole world and each of us is called to be a vessel of that saving and healing love. We can trust with Joy in the sovereignty and providence of Almighty God.  He has every single orphan and every person who is hungry or homeless or oppressed or afraid in His sights and has a plan of salvation for each and every one.

The above quote is from Mission Adoption’s post called Racing to Love. (i borrowed the title.)

My sweet Wesley thanks you for your contributions. Please keep them coming!

i am now on a mini-race; a race to help a boy named Wesley, Wesley whose story brings me pain, yet he survived and is even a light of gentleness in his sad situation. You can read more about him here.

Yes, there are sooo very many orphans, so how is helping just one orphan going to make a difference to the whole orphan situation in the world? Well, if you have read the Starfish story in my ‘Precious One Giveaway for Wesley’ post, then you will understand that it will make a difference to Wesley and that is what matters, it will matter to him. We can’t save the whole wide world but we can do our very small part to make it a better place, even for just one person. Then we would have shared God’s love with that person, we would have loved to the best of our abilities.

“We know only too well that what we are doing is nothing more than a drop in the ocean. But if the drop were not there, the ocean would be missing something.”  Mother Theresa

So would you join me in this mini-race and race to love Wesley? Show Wesley love by increasing his chances of finding a family. You can help him by sharing his story and the Precious One Giveaway. You can contribute to his adoption grant which would lift the financial burden of his forever family when they come for him. Click on his name or picture to contribute directly. You can pray for him; for his daily needs and for his forever family to find him real soon.

Right now, as i ask you to partner with me in loving Wesley, i would also like to THANK all the wonderfully generous donors who have contributed and i’m happy to report that Wesley‘s adoption grant stands at US$618.50 (at time of writing). Just a little under US$400 to go to meet our target of US$1000 and 12 days more to the end of the Giveaway.

i would also like to THANK every single person who has shared Wesley‘s story and this Giveaway. Spreading the word and building awareness is really half the job and this is the way we hope and pray that Wesley‘s family can be found.

Thank you all for caring.

syc.

Make Room for Joy…

What brings you joy? A promotion at work? A new dress? That new gadget? Being praised? Simply happy to be who you are? Loving good music? Your children? Time with family?

Family… family means unconditional love, family means belonging, family means joy…

i read this post from Peas and Thank You some time ago and have bookmarked it because i want to remind myself to constantly “Make Room for Joy” in our busy lives. Have a read:

Snapshot Sunday: Make Room for Joy : Peas and Thank You.

Sweet Celine waits still for her family.

Now i want you to meet Celine. She is a 7-year-old little girl who lives in an orphanage. She is fortunate that her orphanage has enough facilities to care for her (such places are few in her country). But she still lacks something – a family, a family who would love her and enjoy being with her and bring her joy; help her make room for joy and not just live day-to-day, surviving.

i see the pictures of the girls dancing (in the Peas and Thank You post) and i just know that Celine would make quite a little dancer herself but i don’t think she will have an opportunity to dance with such unbridled joy unless she is in a safe, caring family environment. Could you be that family for her? If you feel a little tugging at your heart, do head over to Reece’s Rainbow or click on Celine‘s picture or name to find out more.

Celine is blessed to have a wonderful advocate and prayer warrior at Life’s Beautiful Butterflies. She has helped raised a whole lot of funds for Celine and is continuing to do so during this Christmas Angel Tree season at Reece’s Rainbow. Please do hop over and read about her fundraisers and take part.

You can also contribute directly to Celine‘s adoption grant here. A bigger grant would ensure that her forever family can reach her without worrying about the financial burden. The region she is in is very expensive to adopt from (expenses can go into US$40,000 and up).

Do also pray for Celine‘s daily needs and for her family to find her real soon.

Thank you.

syc