I cannot describe what my heart feels after today! We spent the morning worshiping with Pastor Samuel and Return Ministries. We sang and then fed the kids the rice and beans that we had prepurchased. This is the only meal many of these kids could receive in the next couple days. The kids grabbed my hands, played with my watch, and traced my veins with their fingers. They jumped all over Travis and just wanted him to pick them up And hold them. We did the hokey pokey and played ring a round the rosie. They love the simple things! This afternoon we drove a ways And visited the village of some of the orphans. We delivered the bags so many of you donated to. Pastor Samuels wife told us that the people were ecstatic! The adults clapped when we told them we were giving them vitamins! It was more than humbling to see how the smallest things made them so happy! We are eating dinner now and resting a bit for tomorrow. Some of our luggage still hasn't made it! Please keep praying that we get it for supplies. Thanks do much!
-Kristen
Our life...One day at a time...
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Saturday, March 10, 2012
We made it!
We traveled all through the night and have made it to adOnai hotel. Everyone is obviously worn out, but still excited! We have a busy day tomorrow so we are taking the rest of tonight to recOver. Pray for the 10 bags that didn't make it here with us! We really need the medical and craft supplies in those bags! What a beautiful country with beautiful people uganda is!
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Pray for US!!!
1. Pray for good health and safe travel as we travel to and from Uganda.2. Pray for the families of team members while they are gone.3.Pray for widows and orphans as they will be ministered to.4. Pray that the Gospel will be shared and well-received.5. Pray that needs will be met and God's kingdom will grow.
We are so excited y'all! We need you to pray for us while we are away! Thanks for your love and know that we appreciate your support! We can't wait to share this journey with you when we return!
Peace and Love~Kristen
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
9 days...
Until we leave for Uganda....WOW!!!!!
We have been on this journey for quite some time now and it seems so surreal to me that our trip is in 9 days! That means we leave next week! :) :) :) I wish you could see my face as I type this because I am grinning from ear to ear. I cannot tell you how incredibly blessed we feel that the Lord has called us to this journey. It may only be for a short time, but we know that God has us traveling to Uganda for a purpose- His Kingdom's purpose.
We met our fundraising goal!!! We are so thankful for those who supported our decision to go to Uganda and gave to us financially. We pray many blessings to you in return! We have also been blown away by the amount of generosity that so many people have shown to us and to the Children of the orphanages we will visit. We have received so many clothes, school supplies, medicines, and dollar donations that I could never show my appreciation enough. Even my students in my classroom have gotten their parents to donate scissors and glue- its just awesome to see my sweet students reaching out to other children they don't even know! We literally put the word out there for items we needed and within minutes and hours, someone on our team posted to our facebook page that the need was met. That's incredible!
My dear husband asked me tonight if we had any plans for Friday night- I said...um yes...PACKING! and a little house cleaning of course. We'll be ready after this! :)
I will try to post next week a list of things to pray for each day while we are gone. Your prayers are the most important to us! I'm also hoping to at least post a couple of times while we are there to keep you updated!!
Thank you for being a blessing in our lives-
Peace and Love~
Kristen
We have been on this journey for quite some time now and it seems so surreal to me that our trip is in 9 days! That means we leave next week! :) :) :) I wish you could see my face as I type this because I am grinning from ear to ear. I cannot tell you how incredibly blessed we feel that the Lord has called us to this journey. It may only be for a short time, but we know that God has us traveling to Uganda for a purpose- His Kingdom's purpose.
We met our fundraising goal!!! We are so thankful for those who supported our decision to go to Uganda and gave to us financially. We pray many blessings to you in return! We have also been blown away by the amount of generosity that so many people have shown to us and to the Children of the orphanages we will visit. We have received so many clothes, school supplies, medicines, and dollar donations that I could never show my appreciation enough. Even my students in my classroom have gotten their parents to donate scissors and glue- its just awesome to see my sweet students reaching out to other children they don't even know! We literally put the word out there for items we needed and within minutes and hours, someone on our team posted to our facebook page that the need was met. That's incredible!
My dear husband asked me tonight if we had any plans for Friday night- I said...um yes...PACKING! and a little house cleaning of course. We'll be ready after this! :)
I will try to post next week a list of things to pray for each day while we are gone. Your prayers are the most important to us! I'm also hoping to at least post a couple of times while we are there to keep you updated!!
Thank you for being a blessing in our lives-
Peace and Love~
Kristen
Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Uganda Update/Needs
We are so close to meeting our fundraising goal for our trip to Uganda...praise the Lord!
We have begun conference calls with our team every Tuesday night. Pray for these calls as we are planning and discussing the needs of the ministries we are serving.
Travis and I are so excited and as we add things to our "packing corner," the reality of this opportunity becomes more and more real. Thank you for your prayers and your sweet support. I wanted to include in this post some items that our team has determined that we need for the children we will be ministering to. Some of the items are things that we will use for Vacation Bible School and then some are simply donations that the orphanage needs. If you can donate anything, please let me know and I will be happy to pick them up from you! What a blessing we can be to these children, even from here! The simple things mean the most to them!
1. Underwear (children and youth sizes for boys and girls, bras too!)
2. Knee Socks- the kids have to wear them to school. We have found them online at Landsend.com so far, but if you know of another place, please let us know!
3. Twin Sheets (any color)
We have begun conference calls with our team every Tuesday night. Pray for these calls as we are planning and discussing the needs of the ministries we are serving.
Travis and I are so excited and as we add things to our "packing corner," the reality of this opportunity becomes more and more real. Thank you for your prayers and your sweet support. I wanted to include in this post some items that our team has determined that we need for the children we will be ministering to. Some of the items are things that we will use for Vacation Bible School and then some are simply donations that the orphanage needs. If you can donate anything, please let me know and I will be happy to pick them up from you! What a blessing we can be to these children, even from here! The simple things mean the most to them!
1. Underwear (children and youth sizes for boys and girls, bras too!)
2. Knee Socks- the kids have to wear them to school. We have found them online at Landsend.com so far, but if you know of another place, please let us know!
3. Twin Sheets (any color)
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| Recently purchased mattresses! |
4. Crayons/ Markers
5. Glue dots
6. Please ask the grocery store for paper bags and then after you unload your groceries, save the bags for us!
Thanks everybody!! :)
Peace and Love~
Kristen
Friday, December 30, 2011
So excited!!!...
We went to our Christmas Eve service this year, which traditionally ends in candlelight. Our pastor made many references to light and how the wisemen followed the star to Bethlehem. God used light to lead them, but Jesus was the ultimate light to a dark world. I had never thought about how many references to light there are in the Christmas story. When he finished sharing, we lit our candles and walked out into our courtyard where a nativity was set up. One of the children sang Away in a Manger and it was so peaceful. I watched the manger scene as "Mary and Joseph" held the baby. My mind kept wandering to these children we are visiting in Uganda. Do they have someone to hold them tonight? Do they know that Jesus came as an innocent child, light to a broken and dark world, to save their sweet hearts? Do they know that they have hope and a future?
Last night, Travis and I dialed in at 8:00 to a conference call with our team members traveling to Uganda. It was so great to hear all of their voices and to "meet" them. We began discussing some logistics and things that we are going to be doing. I think that call truly made it real for me. I can't wait to see and meet these children that have been so heavy on my heart this season. I can't wait to wrap my arms around them! I know that we will only be in Uganda for 9-10 days, but my heart is already forever changed. What a blessing to be able to go and serve!
We have almost met our fundraising goal! Thanks to friends and family who have supported us financially and in prayer. Your prayers are so important to us and to these children!
Here is a short video about Visiting Orphans....
163 Million reasons to GO!
Peace and Love,
Kristen
Sunday, November 20, 2011
Anniversary...
#4!
This week, Travis and I celebrated our 4th anniversary! People often say that we are still "babies" when it comes to marriage. That may be so, but we feel like the past four years have flown by and that we've been married for quite a while. In December we will have been "together" for 10 years! In honor of our anniversary, I'm adding a few wedding pictures!
Travis and I have always been curious about Hot Springs, North Carolina. When I found a deal to visit there on LivingSocial.com, we decided to give it a go for our anniversary. Hot Springs is located right on the Appalachian Trail and is near natural hot mineral springs. We stayed at the Iron Horse Station Inn. It was quaint and cute! We enjoyed their restaurant and live music. We slept late and relaxed (something we haven't done on a weekend in a long time!).
Hiking is something we LOVE to do and with the Appalachian Trail being so close, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to hike a short ways. We hiked up to Max Patch Bald, which is a summit on the AT. It is around 4600 feet in elevation and has a 360 degree view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Standing there and turning around, I couldn't do anything but praise God for being the master Creator. The view was incredible. I am so thankful that the same God who created the view we saw is the same God who knew Travis and I would be meant for each other. We know that no matter what trials we face, we are united by a God who loves us, created us, and desires our worship!
This week, Travis and I celebrated our 4th anniversary! People often say that we are still "babies" when it comes to marriage. That may be so, but we feel like the past four years have flown by and that we've been married for quite a while. In December we will have been "together" for 10 years! In honor of our anniversary, I'm adding a few wedding pictures!
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| First Dance :) |
Travis and I have always been curious about Hot Springs, North Carolina. When I found a deal to visit there on LivingSocial.com, we decided to give it a go for our anniversary. Hot Springs is located right on the Appalachian Trail and is near natural hot mineral springs. We stayed at the Iron Horse Station Inn. It was quaint and cute! We enjoyed their restaurant and live music. We slept late and relaxed (something we haven't done on a weekend in a long time!).
Hiking is something we LOVE to do and with the Appalachian Trail being so close, we couldn't pass up the opportunity to hike a short ways. We hiked up to Max Patch Bald, which is a summit on the AT. It is around 4600 feet in elevation and has a 360 degree view of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Standing there and turning around, I couldn't do anything but praise God for being the master Creator. The view was incredible. I am so thankful that the same God who created the view we saw is the same God who knew Travis and I would be meant for each other. We know that no matter what trials we face, we are united by a God who loves us, created us, and desires our worship!
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| Just a small part of the view! |
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| Tried to take a picture of our selves--was quite windy! |
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| It snowed this week on Max Patch :) A little was left for us to enjoy! |
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| A view like this is nothing but empowering.... All for now....... Peace and Love-- Kristen |
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