Day 7 was so full, it felt like we lived a three days. We began by going into our boys’ compound called Chipata. 

They were eager to share the Evangecube, as we shared with them. It’s a unique fold out cube that tells the story of Jesus Christ and His redemption for our lives.

They carefully shared what they had been taught while they eagerly helped clean up neighbor’s courtyards and porches.

As we walked in the compound, curious children followed us–children carrying children, because the median age is 16 years old, due to AIDS and preventable diseases.

They asked for simple things, like an apple. They look happy but their lives are difficult and often alone.

This very little one walked along this path by himself with no one to protect and nurture him. A boy wearing cast off girl clothing.

His eyes said to me “I’m alone. No one cares.”

She asked for an apple and found a mirror to peer at her sweet face.

As we wrapped up our time in the compound, other curious boys slithered into the group wanting a taste of Camp LIFE and a sneak peak at what it has to offer.

The Chipata Compound has a Lifeway Christian Academy school that we were able to visit. It’s a work in progress but a school the compound is proud to have.

It looks meager according to our standards but the sponsored kids are getting a very good, Christian education.

Proper foot care is important to many children who have no shoes or ill-fitting shoes.

We then headed to the Tree of Life Children’s Village where the CEO of Family Legacy did some vision casting on the pristine property God has given them.

Much of the grounds are under construction with big plans to touch many more children’s lives.

Here stands Hudson in front of a future cabin for Zambian boys to stay in when they come to Camp LIFE, instead of being bused back and forth everyday.

Our day ended with a glimpse of what was to come the next day–a room full of boxes and boxes of shoes. These school shoes we would give the children the next day–their last day at camp.

Our day was full and our hearts were full in eager anticipation for the next day to come. It felt like Christmas Eve.

One thing that has nagged me most about not blogging lately is that I haven’t finished telling of my Zambia 2012 experience. So today I will continue onto Day 6 – Faith. I didn’t take many pictures this day except for some morning and afternoon shots.

The faith conversations with the boys stand out most in my memory from this day.

They learned about the “Shield of Faith” from Ephesians 6:11-17 “Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

This was the day we asked the boys several times how they knew they were Christians. Their answers ranged from, if they do good things, or help others, go to church, don’t fight, think good thoughts, or by simply by telling people they are Christians… All these answers are good but in and of themselves they’re not correct.

I found myself reinforcing Romans 10:9, 10 all though out the day, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” That’s all. No works, no good deeds. With each good answer the boys gave, I would give the correct answer, “Have faith and confess, Jesus is Lord.”

As I would repeat this simple but profound verse, I could see little lights going off in their eyes. Truth was revealed. The weight of good works was lifted.

In addition I shared verses like Ephesians 2:8, 9 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” We prayed together and individually throughout the day, reinforcing that God gives us a shield of faith to live out our Christian walk. This faith is not only for when we initially believe but it reinforces our spiritual lives as we live out difficult circumstances…

Our day ended with saying goodbyes at the buses and the boys appropriately wearing their “Amen” stickers on their foreheads. Their spirits were lighter knowing that by faith they are saved and they have a shield of faith for their difficult lives.

Monday, Day 4, over 1,000 orphaned and vulnerable children were bused to the Legacy Center and gathered into their groups with our Zambian partners and given a much cherished banana, while they eagerly waited for 100+ American counselors to arrive. In the meantime, we took a bus tour of the Capitol City of Lusaka and another small tour of the Bauleni compound to give the Americans, who recently arrived, an idea of where the children live daily.

I was excited that we were going back to Bauleni because that’s where our sponsored kids live, as well as the kids we had from Camp LIFE 2011. Our bus pulled up to a field full of uniformed school-age kids on their way to a government school. (School uniforms are the tale-tale sign a child is in a government school).

As we parked, my eyes were peeled, searching for our sponsored and 2011 Camp LIFE kids. Sure enough, before I exited the bus, I spotted Enos from Camp LIFE 2011 and yelled for him through the open bus window. He came running, we hugged, I asked him about some of the other boys, and I reminded him of the “I love you” sign in sign language, as I taught him last year.

Before I knew it, Enos vanished, but my heart was full in being able to remind a young boy that he is still valued. My heart was also amazed that out of thousands of children in the Bauleni compound, I was able to see a boy I shared Christ with a year ago. God is good!

Enos – Zambia 2011 Camp LIFE

Enos going to school - Zambia 2012

As we walked through the compound, I took pictures of the cultural living.

Outdoor cooking is a must in Zambia, as the typical home does not have a kitchen. Coal is sold everywhere. Sugar cane (pictured above) is also sold everywhere. Zambian kids chew on sugar cane for a snack.

Two little ones playing in the laundry buckets. This is how laundry is washed.

A little sweeping helper

Roller skating on a portion of a skate with a little help from his friends

Children carrying children

Snaps! The children all want their snaps taken. Their faces truly melt my heart.

One of our villa mates buying street food.

The much anticipated time arrived! We were bused to the Legacy Center for Camp LIFE to begin. Hudson and I would finally meet our new group of 10 boys. Here they are full of the same anticipation and the beginnings of admiration for Hudson, as seen in the background.

I will tell you details about of each boy in my next blog post, as these boys need prayer and sponsoring.

The day was spent getting to know one another, Hudson played a much anticipated game of football (soccer) with the boys, and we sang Zambian chants with the boys. Watch this video of a break dance chant! Fun, fun!.

The boys loved touching Hudson’s hair and taking snaps!

Large group worship was amazing for the boys, learning musungu (white people) camp songs and hearing a very engaging message about putting on the Armor of God from Ephesians 6:10-18.

Thompson, one of our Zambian partners, leading the boys to large group worship as they chanted, “One, two, the armor of God!”

Here is a Camp LIFE song video of large group.

As we said goodbye for the day, each boy received a cross sticker and a sweet (tootsie roll). They had fun putting their stickers on their foreheads.

Hudson is saying goodbye the Zambian handshake way. We’ll see you tomorrow sweet boys! God is good!

After our rewarding and emotional visits with Gift, Kenneth, and James, we headed to our new accommodations at Mulunguishi Village, a complex of homes where many expats live. This would be our home away from home as we served at Camp LIFE.

This is a typical home at Mulungushi, but not the one we stayed in. These homes are over 40 years old and need maintenance work, but they have approximately four to five bedrooms, two and half baths, living, dining, kitchen. Twelve of us stayed in a home comfortably. Although these accommodations are not up to “American standards” and one may or may not have water or electricity at any given time, they are a far cry from the homes of the orphaned and vulnerable children of Zambia. So there’s not too much complaining among the Americans.

The grounds and foliage are beautiful in Mulungushi

Zambian sunrise

 After we settled into our home away from home and met our villa mates–a family of four with a 13 year old son who hit it off with Hudson, a family from my neighborhood in Houston (not planned), and their friends from Portland, Oregon, we headed to the Legacy Center for a welcome dinner and orientation.

In preparation for Camp LIFE, we were challenged to read and pray Isaiah 61:1&2 placing our name within the verses, “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon Ellen, because You, Lord, have anointed Ellen to preach good news to the poor. You have sent Ellen to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor…to comfort all who mourn.”

The next morning, Day 3 (Sunday), we headed back to the Legacy Center for a church service with the children from the Tree of Life Children’s Village and a delicious lunch on the back veranda.The sites on the roads to the Legacy Center are always interesting and different from what we commonly see in America, besides the fact that they drive on the left side of the road!

 The Legacy Center, where Camp LIFE is held, and the Tree of Life Children’s Village, where approximately 250 orphans live, are on 130 acres of pristine land in the hills of Lusaka, Zambia.

To start the week off at the Legacy Center with the children from Tree of Life Children’s Village leading church worship was truly amazing.

 As I worshipped with these children, I wept because the spirit was sweet and so telling of God’s redemption in their lives.

It was at this service that God confirmed in my heart why He allows suffering in this world, why we in America seem so blessed and the Zambians seem so economically cursed… Besides the fact that we live in a sin cursed world, the guest pastor began to preach making these enlightening statements:

“God uses the visible (us) to shed light on the invisible (Jesus).”

“God did not create you to be religious–You are the holy place. When people see you, they must see Christ.”

“You must be the physical address of Jesus.”

Psalms 68:5 says, “A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.”

“If we are to shed light on the invisible (Jesus), then we must be the father to the fatherless. We must be the hands and feet of Jesus.”

The answer to my deep question is that Jesus did not die for us to live religious, wealthy lives, but for the redemption of this world. He uses us to share that redemption with others. God does not fix all the suffering in this world, because He wants us to show His compassion in the flesh–to use the visible (us) to shed light on the invisible (Jesus).

As Isaiah 61:1&2 says, we are to “preach the good news to the poor, bind up the brokenhearted, proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor…to comfort all who mourn.”

 After that deep experience, we had a delightful afternoon with delcious Mexican food made by a Swedish culinary school and softies (soda), on the back veranda of the Legacy Center (still under construction).

Family Legacy also brought in vendors from the local market for us to purchase souvenirs from. Hudson enjoyed learning the fine art of bartering.

We ended day 3 doing what we would do every night of camp in our home away from home–making eight peanut butter and jelly sandwiches each, for our portable lunches with our Zambian partners the next day. Our deep questions were answered and we were ready to preach the good news to the poor–peanut butter and all!

Twenty-six Americans piled into a bus bearing gifts for their sponsored children. It felt like Christmas morning, excited to give and receive.

We were bused to a locale that had several buses going to the various compounds our children were in. Hudson and I had our own bus with a Family Legacy staffer and a Zambian Discipleship Leader (DL), headed to the Bauleni compound.

A Discipleship Leader (DL) lives in the compounds and works with the Lifeway Christian Academy, making sure the sponsored children are in school, getting tutoring, being prayed with and loved on, and sending and receiving letters to and from their sponsors.

As soon as our bus arrived within the compound, a muzungu (white person) alert goes out and kids come running from every direction.

As we walked through the compound to the first sponsored child’s home, the children and the poverty touched our hearts.

The median age in Zambia is 16 years old. The average life span is 38 years old, due to AIDS and preventable diseases. Therefore, children literally run the streets without much adult supervision. They are often taken advantage off and prostituted.

The boy with the red Armor of God shirt went to Camp LIFE this summer because that is the theme shirt this year. When the children attend Camp LIFE, they will wear their shirt for weeks after camp. As you can see, he’s very proud to wear his shirt and see Camp LIFE muzungus.

Upon our arrival to Gift’s humble home, no one was home but the neighbors said we could take the food drop bags in the home. As I walked into their approximately 12×12 foot dwelling, I immediately took note of all the past and present Camp LIFE certificates hanging on the wall of Gift and his siblings. I looked through them trying to find the picture of Gift with my son Zach from last year. Gift was in my son’s Camp LIFE group for Summer 2011.

The mother came home first and I mentioned that I didn’t see “Uncle Zach’s” snap (photo) among the Camp LIFE Certificates. She pulled Uncle Zach’s crumpled picture from a secret place and said she often hides it from Gift because he’s ruining it by carrying it around too much, showing his friends and saying, “My muzungu.” It’s been a year and he still cherishes Zach’s snap.

Gift’s mother and Elizabeth the DL

As we waited for Gift to arrive, we gave the food drop bags to his mother. She was so appreciative and kept thanking us for giving to her family. She said they had literally just run out of food and had nothing left in their home to eat.

Upon Gift’s exciting arrival, we gave him his sponsor’s backpack of which he dove into. His sponsors sent a backpack full of school supplies, toiletries, clothing, and toys.

We also found out that Gift’s real mother is there in the background. She has a one month old baby. The one Gift calls his mother is his Aunt. Family in Zambia is complicated. However, Gift’s biological mother was truly touched by the outpouring of blessings on him. She wept as she watched her son being blessed.

Gift is 11 years old and his greatest dream was to go to school. Because of some dear friends of ours sponsoring Gift, his dream has come true this past year.

We brought him a new “snap” of Uncle Zach. Hudson tried to read the message that Zach wrote on the back of the “snap” but he began to weep. It was just so humbling and overwhelming for a 13 year old American boy to take in. Gift hugged Hudson and kissed the snap of Uncle Zach. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house. The DL, Elizabeth, read and translated the message to Gift. He was truly touched and full of thanks.

The mood lightened a bit when we gave Gift a pack of bubble gum. But the reality of poverty was realized again when we had to tell Gift to unwrap the piece of bubble gum. What we take for granted here in the USA is a true luxury to a young boy in Zambia.

Gift loved his “Smile, God Loves You!” t-shirt. And this memory of personally giving to Gift and his family will forever be deeply etched in our minds and hearts. His name sums it up: Gift. He was more of a “gift” to us than he will ever understand.

In the midst of these visits, God began to answer the questions of “Why so much suffering?” Why are we blessed and they are so seemingly cursed?….” God began to reveal with each child…

The next sponsored child we would see, was our Kenneth. We maneuvered through the compound with more “muzungu” alerts. The children are so curious and want their snaps taken so they can see themselves on the camera.

Kenneth was not home either but the word went through the compound that the muzungus were here for him. As we waited, I took snaps of these children carrying children.

Kenneth opening food drop bags

Finally, Kenneth arrived with his older brother and a younger aunt but couldn’t get in their locked home because the grandmother was visiting someone sick in a village. We went inside a neighboring home. Kenneth is a complete orphan, having lost both his parents. His brother drives a taxi to support them.

I was glad to see that Kenneth’s home had a door and a locked gate over the door. Many homes just have a piece of fabric over the doorway, allowing for many nighttime atrocities.

Kenneth then dove into his backpack, adorning his head with a Texans football cap.

I was so pleased to sit and watch Kenneth and pray with him, that I neglected to get as many snaps. It was just good to see how our monthly support is helping a very shy, orphaned boy.

Our last sponsor visit was with James (more affectionately called “Jamesie”). As we walked the compound streets to his home, I saw these precious little ones. My heart broke for them. Their eyes seem to say they’ve seen and experienced too much. They look almost like an older man and woman finding comfort in one another.

I knew we were getting closer to James’ home, as I saw his house last year while we served an older woman who lives next door to him. My eyes were peeled searching each child’s face, looking for him.

I saw him before he saw me. He had the same shirt on that he wore last summer. I called his name, he turned, saw me, and leaped into my arms, screaming shouts of joy! We laughed and giggled. We all said it was a good thing I wasn’t carrying the eggs for the food drop.

SUMMER 2011

SUMMER 2012

Our visit with Jamesie was vibrant and full of joy! This child has personality plus! Unfortunately his home was padlocked shut. He told Elizabeth, his DL, that his dad leaves early in the morning and comes home late at night, leaving him to run the streets and stay with his Aunt whose home we went to in order to open food bags and sponsor gifts.

James’ twin sisters enjoyed the outpouring of loveAs well as his little sister. I so wished I could clean her up and put a precious outfit on her.

James was especially thrilled to receive clothes, toys, etc. from his sponsors, but especially a Bible and bubble gum that we had to tell the kids to unwrap as well.

Backpacks, bubble gum, and a soccer ball–every Zambian boy’s dream. These boys were able to live that joy today.

Again, God began to answer the questions of “Why so much suffering?” Why are we blessed and they are so seemingly cursed?….” God began to reveal with each child…  To be continued….

Friday, June 22, was a delightfully busy day in Lusaka, Zambia. I’m so thrilled we decided to come on the Father’s Heart sponsorship trip. We’ve been able to experience the Capitol City of Lusaka and many of its modern amenities along with 24 other Americans, easing our way into the Zambian culture.

This post is a recap of a previous post but with “snaps” (what Zambians call “photos”).

For the first two nights, 26 of us Americans were able to stay in this complex of homes called Falls Way Village. Very nice even for American standards.

Our villa, where 7 of us stayed very comfortably.

Each villa had its own patio/pool, of which we had no time to enjoy. In addition, the temperatures were lows of 50s & highs in 70s–Zambia’s winter.

We were able to enjoy a modern mall and eat a delicious meal with some new American friends

Slowly the juxtaposition of the very rich and the very poor came to life. The middle class in Zambia is virtually nonexistent. One is either very poor or very rich. I believe the percentage of middle class is about 15%.

On our first stop, we visited a home of kids “in waiting” to live in the Tree of Life Children’s Village (legally Family Legacy’s “orphanage” but no one calls it that). Tree of Life is truly a sanctuary for the mistreated, diseased, malnourished, and abused orphans of Lusaka.

These children have been rescued from the streets of Lusaka. Each has a heartbreaking story of redemption. As new homes are built at the Tree of Life Children’s Village, these children have safe homes “in waiting” with “House Mothers” to care, nurture and lead them. They will eventually move into The Tree of Life (more on that later).

The children greeted us with song, and then each chose an American to tour their modest, but clean homes, and meet their very caring House Mothers.

A little peanut of a girl chose Hudson and me.

Opposed to living on the streets, she now has her own bunk bed with stuffed monkey in a safe home.

Then off to our next adventure!  We packaged food into large bags for Saturday food drops the 26 Americans would give to their sponsored kids.

Hudson filling a food drop bag

But the greatest part of my day was a surprise visit to Bauleni Lifeway Christian Academy where lo, and behold, my sponsored child, Kenneth goes to school. A Lifeway Christian Academy is a Christian Family Legacy school just for sponsored kids within a compound, this one being the Bauleni compound.

Here are some pictures of children throughout the Bauleni compound.

Children having fun with with a broken down stroller

It’s very common to see children carrying children. These are going to fetch water.

As I learned of the news of visiting the Bauleni school, tears formed in my eyes because we were not scheduled to see Kenneth until Saturday. While we rode in a bus, Hudson and I prayed that Kenneth would be at the school, as half the students go in the morning and the other half go in the afternoons.

My heart worried that I may not recognize Kenneth. But as we walked in the doors and I eased into a classroom peering at each child’s face, a class stood to attention and greeted us very formally.

There he was, shy, bright eyes on the far right!

I had no formality about me, as I immediately recognized Kenneth, ran to him, and sloppily hugged him. He was shy, I was a mess. God was good to give me this special surprise. Even my Hudson had a hard time choking back the tears.

Many kids do not got to school on Friday, as they treat it as a holiday because it’s the end of the week. But not Kenneth, he was in school on Friday with only check marks on the white board for good behavior and no X’s for bad behavior. He wants to be a doctor someday so he’s off to a good start! I’m proud of him like he’s one of my own.

This school had the privilege of two American teachers spending two weeks in the classrooms doing inservice training with the Zambian teachers. They made great strides equipping the teachers on teaching and behavioral strategies. (Contact me if you’re a teacher and would like to do something like this.)

This is my teacher friend, Tia (from The Woodlands, TX), who made great strides in moving the children from                                              rote learning to application learning

The younger class of children

They were so excited about showing us what they were learning

A little friend sitting in front of a wall of portraits.

After such a treat, we also had the privilege of meeting with the Superintendent and Deputy Superintendent of the 15 Lifeway Christian Academies (more schools opening in the future). God has truly sent these two well-educated, Zambian men to Family Legacy to find quality teachers and provide excellent Christian education to the orphaned and vulnerable of Lusaka, one child at a time.

See, I told you we had a delightfully busy day. Tomorrow I will blog about our visit to Kenneth’s home, as well as two other boys who are being sponsored by our dear friends–a deeply humbling experience.

Today my younger son, Hudson, and I attended our final meeting and we are pumped about going!

Check out this very special video our dear friend, Cameron, made of my trip with my older son, Zach, from last year. Please view and let it break your heart for what breaks God’s heart:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=023_8jeVx9w.

BUT WAIT! We still have some opportunities for YOU to participate in bringing healing, hope and joy to orphaned and vulnerable children in Zambia!

First of all, you can participate in Shoes Today, School Tomorrow, Hope for the Future. 

To attend school in Zambia, a child MUST have a pair “school shoes.” In a country where most people are surviving on less than $1 a day, purchasing new school shoes for 1 child is nearly impossible, let alone more children. With an education, these children from the bottom of society can go on to become the doctors, lawyers, teachers, politicians… of Zambia. Instead of being viewed as a burden, they can now have the opportunity to break out of the cycle of poverty with a life-changing education.

But this is not a reality if children cannot walk through the door of a school with the “right” pair of shoes.

For only $20, you can provide a pair of shoes to one of the Zambian children attending Camp LIFE  in our group this summer. We will take pictures of the shoe fitting experience and share them with you! What a great reward of $20 well spent!

100% of these funds will be used to purchase the shoes in Zambia. In fact, I will bring the monies with me, as Family Legacy will buy the shoes there.  Currently, they have 7,000 shoes on order for all the kids coming to Camp LIFE.

If you are interested in participating, you will need to give the $20 to me personally. Checks made payable to Family Legacy.

Kennedy, me, and Pamela (my Translator)

James, me, and Pamela (my translator)

Zach, Gift, and his Translator

Because we are traveling two days earlier, our costs have increased by $1,000. If you would like to contribute to this portion of our trip, we would gladly show you pictures and stories of our sponsorship visit with these three boys.

Just this week, we found out that Family Legacy received enough funding to build a Community School in these boys’ compound. Last year when we were there, they had a make-shift cinderblock school. This year they have a real school! Because they are now in a “real” school, they cannot attend Camp LIFE  when we are there, as they will be preparing for their end-of-year exams.

However, if we go two days early, we can have a special visit with these boys through the Father’s Heart Sponsorship Program.

If you would like to participate in funding this portion of our trip, you can make a donation HERE.

BUT WAIT! (I know! I sound like an infomercial. But I promise this is for a wonderfully, eternal cause!) There is one more opportunity to participate in bringing healing, hope and joy to these kids.

1. Zambia, Africa is a beautiful country and its people are beautiful as well.

 2. Although Zambia has never experienced a civil war, underneath its beauty are 12 million people, half of who are under 16 years old (that’s 6 million children under 16!) Due to extreme poverty, AIDS and preventable diseases, parents have died, leaving behind 1 million orphans in Zambia alone. The children are needlessly sick, drastically underfed, and neglected from society and their families. Psalm 27:10 says, “Even if my father and mother abandon me, the Lord will hold me close.” I want to be the hands of feet of Jesus to these children. 

3. My son, Zach, and I (along with some dear friends) traveled to Zambia last summer with Family Legacy Missions. Connecting with God’s heart for the poor and needy profoundly changed our hearts. My younger son, Hudson, wants to experience first-hand the same life-change his brother and I did. Hudson wants to go with me!

4.  I named my son, Hudson Taylor, after a pivotal missionary named James Hudson Taylor who brought the love of Christ to China in the 1800s. My intent was not to persuade my son to be a missionary but for him to have a heart that gives all for the cause of Christ. Isaiah 6:8 says, “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Then I said, ‘Here am I, send me.’”

5. We will be serving at Camp LIFE for one week. Camp LIFE is a seven-week summer ministry serving 1,000 orphaned and vulnerable children at each camp. Yes, that’s 7,000 kids throughout the summer (no repeats–scratching the surface of the population of children)! We will be serving in one of those seven weeks along with 100 other Americans, sharing and bonding in the love of Christ for His children. We will each have approximately 10 kids, along with trained Zambian translators.

 6. Kennedy (1st pic) is our sponsored child who we financially support monthly. The support helps him spiritually, educationally, medically, and economically. Kennedy is considered a complete orphan, meaning both his parents have died. He lives with an Aunt who is not too much older than him. His brother supports them and several siblings, as a taxi driver. We have dear friends who are also sponsoring James and Gift. Kennedy and James were in my group of 10 boys last summer and Gift was in Zach’s group. We hope to have at least one of these boys in our group this summer.

7.  Scripture tells us to care for orphans in James 1:27, “Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of God is this: to visit the widows and the orphans in their distress.” And Isaiah 1:17 says, “Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.”

 8. I have seen first-hand the amazing power of the Holy Spirit as He leads people to become the hands and feet of Jesus to children in Zambia. I saw pain and despair lifted in the lives of these children. In Matthew 19:24 Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.”

9. Hudson and I want to experience God’s love in a new and powerful way! Matthew 28:19 says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

10.  And last but not least, these 10 boys and the 10 we will love on this summer are what beckon our hearts to Zambia.

TOP 5 WAYS YOU CAN HELP US!

1. Pray for: Our safety & health; God to prepare all hearts involved; and Finances.
2. Watch this video and more, for a quick glance at the orphans of Zambia.
3. Take advantage of one of our fundraisers.
   1. Purchase Survival Bracelets, pictured here (many colors): $5 each
   2. Carry out @ Ranch Bakery using the below flyer through March only.
   3. Hair Cuts for Kids, minimum $10 (I used to be a licensed Cosmetologist and still cut hair—Specialty: boys hair cuts!) Email for appt: [email protected]
   4. Follow my blog & shop through my affiliates Day Spring & Amazon.
4. Donate items. Family Legacy has several schools throughout the capitol city of Lusaka, Zambia, as well as one in their Tree of Life Children’s Village (orphanage). Please watch the education video here and consider donating the following supplies by delivering them to me (contact: [email protected]). Hudson and I can bring an extra suitcase each for donations!

5.  Donate towards our trip and for 10 kids to attend Camp LIFE. Our total financial deadline of $7,900 is due April 1, 2012. We cannot accept financial donations toward this fee after April 1. Through generous donations of friends/family, fundraisers, and personal savings, we’ve raised half of the cost (about $4,000). If you feel led to contribute to our cause, you can donate HERE: www.camplifezambia.com/humphries.