Hey Friends!

It was a great day because I was able to meet with the GHI team today and get an amazing overview of GHI's mission statement and their goals and projects for India. I love meeting with them because it's so awesome to talk with people that share, and even helped create, this passion for India. Sometimes its hard to understand how people couldn't share the same passion as I do, but I have to remember that this is something that God had laid on my heart and He has other plans for other people. Being around the team is always so encouraging and always gets me a little more pumped for the trip!!

We talked mostly about our partnership with Indian Christian Ministries, which is the organization that we are partnering with in India. This organization is planting churches, training pastors, and opening orphanages in India. They also partner with an amazing organization called Sarah's Covenant Homes, which provides homes to special needs children. We also talked about the main components that GHI is heading up and in charge of. Many people wonder, why India? India is home to 1.2 BILLION individuals. India will soon exceed china as the largest nation of the world, yet it is already the most unreached and neediest nation in the world

The first thing we discussed was Church Planting. Church planting is the most effective means of evangelism, which transforms not only individuals but also entire communities through consistent discipleship and continues to fellowship and community development activities. The idea is to plant churches in the rural villages to help the people of those villages. We want Christians to be portrayed as people that are helping others even if they do not share the same beliefs. We want to focus on the widows and children especially. We want to help provide for these widows and their children who otherwise would have nothing. Church planting is a proven strategy to reach rural people. How this works is that each native missionary is assigned 20 villages and will visit five villages every month and all 20 in four months. Everything is gospel centered and church planting focused. From these villages comes other local missionaries and each one of those missionaries plants 3 churches in 3 neighboring villages. Once there are 100 baptized members the church will receive a grant for a 20 X 40 concrete building. Then within these churches more missionaries are developed and the cycle begins. Once the church is a concrete building they work to launch a Church Orphan Home or a Child Development Center in that building.

This picture is of Beja. Beja is a new gospel centered church planter. He will be provided with a bike, keyboard and PA system and will plant 3 churches simultaneously in neighboring villages.

This fits right along into Child Rescue. India has one of the most largest populations of orphans in the world. Many of those orphans live on the street instead of orphanages. Another large amount of them become sex slaves for brothels and temples. Some children are taken from their widowed mothers and promised a better life, education, and food, but instead are sold into the sex slave trade for temples. This is such  huge problem, and a problem that has touched my heart especially. GHI is partnering with a child rescue program that ICM has already developed. This Child Rescue program has provided the opportunity for people to sponsor children each month. For $30 a month the church can provide a private education (because the public schools are not reliable), a tutor for after school for homework (because most of the parents are illiterate), and a full meal before they go home. This will protect many of them from being sex trafficked and also preventing them from becoming a child laborer. The awesome thing about this is you will be given a picture of this child and their information so you will be able to connect with them! This is such a great and easy way to help a child that needs it! I just have such a heart for the child rescue, I hope that while I am in India I will be able to work to connect people with children that needs sponsors.

I am sorry that this post is so much information, but I really do feel like it is important that every one knows exactly what is happening. I hope that these ideas make people excited and wanting to know more and help more! I believe that since this has been placed on my heart it is my responsibility to share with others how important India is. If you do feel compelled to donate you can go right to our donation website:GHI Donations. There you can designate your donations to any of our team members or any of our projects. I ask you to prayerfully consider whether God is calling you to do this!

Thanks so much for reading!!
Love you all,
Grace

"GO and make disciples of ALL nations." Matthew 28:18-20



Lord, ready my heart and make it ready to serve you. Bless the wonderful children who are in need. Bless the current village pastors and future pastors, that Your light would shine through them. Thank you for all the GHI team members that work so hard to save the beautiful people of India. Thank you for Becca and for Kevin, for their guidance and as they lead this team of interns. Thank you so much for Valerie and she leads our prayer team. Bless Debi and she prepares to lead a group of women to India to help train the pastor's wives. Thank you for the wonderful interns, for Jason, Kelsy, Allison, and Megan that are working in Raleigh to help us while we are India. Thank you for everything You do. We Love you and praise you! Amen.

Getting closer and closer!

Hey Friends!

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, and remembering all that our amazing soldiers do for us! This is such a happy time of year. Graduations, weddings, pools are opening, and everyone is getting ready for summer. This is probably one of my favorite times of the year. I was really reminded of this as I spent almost the whole weekend babysitting. 

I love watching kids on the playground. I don't know if you have ever just sat and watched two or three kids on a playground together, but it can be really interesting. Its amazing to listen to the conversations they have or watch the games that they play (that they probably made up on the spot) and I think it's really important to appreciate the creativity they have and the innocence about them, their minds still somewhat uninfluenced by society and the people around them. I also love that everyone is a friend to a child. Children can connect with almost anyone at the playground. It doesn't matter what you look like, what brands you're wearing, or where you come from; just as long as you share the same mutual love for the swings. What if we could all be like that? What if we didn't care what anyone looked like or what they were wearing? Or what society thought of them? Especially as Christ followers, what if we just focused on our mutual love for Jesus instead?

Being at the playground got me thinking about something else as well. As I watched the kids play I realized that India does not have playgrounds, that the Indian children have never gotten to play on a playground. I guess that I see a problem with that! To many, I realize, this may seem insignificant and unnecessary; but I ask you to recall your memories as a child on a playground. I know that when I was younger I could spend hours and hours at a playground. One in particular stands out to me that my grandfather used to take me too. This playground had a GIANT slide, I honestly think it must have been at least twelve feet tall, and totally not up to code. But it was the most amazing slide! I just remember climbing up that latter, not looking down, your knees shaking a little bit. It took a little courage to get up there, but once you made it the ride down was awesome. The slide was metal, so you would zoom down the slide super fast. As your started your breath would catch a little, but you'd still be able to squeal in excitement all the way down. Then you'd run around to the latter and go at it again. I think every child should be able to have that distinct of a memory as I have of a playground. As I thought about it, I asked myself: What if it could be more than just a playground for children?  What if it could be a  part of the community, a CLEAN place where people can go and forget their worries for an hour? Or maybe there would be a well there that the people can could get clean water. It could me more like an Oasis for them. Somewhere safe, a little piece of heaven in a place where that rarely exists.

I hope this post doesn't go to waste and these aren't empty thoughts. I hope I can make something like that happen, something that I can be proud of and call my own. I would love to one day create a place like that for India's children.

 All of these thoughts and ideas continue to make me think about my trip. I get so excited thinking about it and I am so ready to go, and I am happy to be updating all of you about the things we're doing in preparation. When I checked my donations funds yesterday, someone else had donated $100!! That feeling never gets old. I am always so blown away by people's generosity! It is so cool that people want to help me with this journey and help me fulfill this vision! What a cool feeling that I have people here in the states thinking about me and praying for me while I go on the most amazing journey of my entire life! God has just laid this on my heart and I am so excited to see His plan put into action. Getting this donation put me at 17% of my goal. That may seem like not very far, but I am so excited about being that far along. My new goal I have set for myself is to reach 50% by the end of June. I am totally confident that I can do it. We have so many fundraisers in June that we are really hoping will really bring in a lot of funds for our team. In addition, I am continuing to sell Threads of Hope Bracelets (Threads of Hope) which is so much fun! I can't believe how many connections I have made through these bracelets. Just by telling people the story, people are so willing to help me. So many people have offered to help me sell them, my salon is selling them for their customers as well as a small Free Trade Store in Cary that sold them this weekend at an art fair. It's so exciting to see people as crazy about this as I am! In addition to these fundraisers, if you are a Cary resident, look for an article in the Cary News this week featuring GHI and our project!

If I sell all my bracelets by the end of the month it will put me at 30% which is incredible, and I will be so excited to be able to personally donate that amount of money to my trip; but still does not allow me to reach my goal of 50% by the end of June! As always, I can not do any of this with out you amazing people. If you are interested in donating something its very easy. Go to this website: Global Hope India and where is asks to "designate your donation" select interns, and select my name. Your donation will go directly to me. If you are interested in donating towards other things such as bibles, child sponsorships, or mission development projects; they are under GHI projects. All donations are 100% tax deductible and SO appreciated! I will not be able to reach my goal with out you!

Jesus loves the little children
all the children of the world.
Red and yellow, black and white
They are precious to his sight.
Jesus loves the little children of the world.

Thanks for being amazing!

Much Love,

Grace

"Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not forbid them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there." Matthew 19:13-15

Dear Jesus, thank you for the wonderful people You have put in my life that support me. Thank you for putting my trip and my needs on their heart. I praise Your name in all that I do for this trip because I know that with out You, nothing would be possible. Thank you for being a forgiving Father and for breaking my heart for these people that You love so much. Bless everyone that is helping out and help them to see through this blog the huge difference that they are making. We love You and we praise You.  

Our first Fundraiser!!!

Hey Friends!

So glad to be finishing up what seemed to be the most intense craziest two weeks of my entire life. I am really starting to see how stressful it is going to be working full time and also trying to dedicate adequate time to all the support raising I want to do for my trip. Thank goodness for wonderful friends and family that are so encouraging at the perfect times.

I was able to attend my last high school small group last night! I work with some of the most amazing women and the most amazing girls. Luckily, God seems to know when my breaking point is, and makes it all work out so that I can get the fill I need with beautiful people that are so spiritually healthy. I was so discouraged that work was going to prevent me from being there the last few nights with all of them, but was so grateful when I was able to leave work early last night, especially because I was able to have such a wonderful conversation with two amazing women afterwards. I am so grateful for them. I should not complain about work completely though. Again, God is just continuously reminding me that he knows exactly what he is doing. I know that he put me in this position at work for a reason and I have to trust that its the right thing, no matter how stressful it is. I could not ask for a more supportive boss when it comes to my trip. She is so on fire for missions of her own in Uganda, and she is always telling me how much she wants to do exactly what I am doing. I need to be more grateful and appreciative of her because it is so encouraging to hear how excited she is for me. Today, for an example, she let me pass out flyers for our fundraiser tonight to all the parents at the YMCA, which I am not sure is allowed, but she let me do it anyways.

We had our first India fundraiser tonight!!! So exciting!! I was not able to go until later but from what I heard the place was completely packed with people with our flyers! Chik fil A gave a percentage of people's orders when they brought in flyers that GHI had advertised. I am so excited to see how much money we raised! It was also such a great opportunity to let people know how important India is and raise awareness about our mission there. I was also able to sell my Threads of Hope bracelets that I have been selling. I am so close to my goal of $1000 dollars which is so exciting for me. It feels so rewarding working for the money that is going towards India and doing something that I think is so much fun. Every one loves the bracelets and I have a blast selling them. Thank you so much for everyone that came out tonight to eat! We are so thankful you!

Also I can't forget to say a huge thank you to the wonderful Stephanie Hill that made me this amazing plate for me! It is amazing and I know I will have it forever! What a wonderful icon representing a country that has become so dear to my heart.

Thank you for all your support!
Sending Love,
Grace

"And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation." Mark 16:15

Dear Lord, thank you for reminding me that You are in control and that You know that everything will work out according to Your plan. Don't let stress prevent me from being effective and useful to You. Please do not let my own plans and ideas cloud my vision from what You want from me and do not let my attitude get in the way of serving You. Thank you for my job, as I am reminded that not everyone has one. Thank you for wonderful encouraging friends and a supportive family. Thank you for making all of this possible. Bless the beautiful Indian babies that I get to live with soon. You are wonderful and I love you and am awed by Your unfailing love for us. Amen

3 Months is closer than it seems...

Hello All!

First of all if you are reading this I want to thank you for supporting me and praying for me as I am about to embark in the biggest journey of my life!!! Second of all: this is my first blog post EVER in my life. So bear with me as I try to figure this out and hopefully get better as the days go by!

I am so excited and I can't believe its already only 3 months away. I was able to really reflect this past week as I have had off from work and was able to take a small break from the chaos that is my life. Thinking about it is overwhelming at times. In fact, just the other day I had a little bit of the an emotional break down as I was making lists and thinking about everything that will go into the trip. Its hard to plan out your life six months in advance. Thinking about how many bars of soap you'll need, or planning out how much tooth paste to bring, and thinking of all the other things you may need on a daily basis to survive life in third world living conditions. It is terrifying and mind blowing, but yet I still continue to feel peace about my decision to go and serve my brothers and sisters in India.

 A very special person said this to me when I told him what I was going to do: "When else are you going to find something that you're passionate about. Something that will make you crazy thinking about, something that drives you. Maybe its the craziest thing you'll ever do, but you'll drive yourself crazy not doing it. How many people can say that they did something worth meaning, that followed the drive, the passion? Not many. But you have a chance!" I don't know if he knows how encouraging that was, because I don't think I ever told him. But how true! How many times in your lifetime can you say that you felt truly passionate about something? How many times can you say that you feel 100% driven to do something? And when that happens, how many times do you hear someone to tell you to go for it?

For example: I was so scared of my parents response when I told them of my plans to travel half way around the world for six months. I heard their excuses in my head before I even said anything: "How will you handle your car payments? Loan payments?", "what about your job", and "what about school". Because these were questions I had already asked myself. What an awesome surprise when I heard nothing like that,. but instead received their blessing and support. Just another sign to me that this was exactly the direction that God was pointing me!

I hope that you will enjoy reading my posts about my trip as I share with you my thoughts, my fears, and my prayers. I hope that you will feel free to share and comment on anything! Thank you so much beautiful people!!

With Love (from America but soon to be INDIA!)
Grace

Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

Lord I pray that you continue to guide me and lead me in the direction You want me to go
I pray that You continue to bless this trip as You have been doing so far
I pray for the beautiful children that I will meet and I ask that You keep a special eye out for them 
I pray for Indian Christian Ministries as they prepare jobs for us and that You will help them and guide them to put us in places that we can serve You the best
I pray that You prevent any fear that may be entering my mind that would prevent the gifts that You have given to me from shining through.
I pray for the team members that will be starting the journey with me, that You will provide support and funds for them and that You will put their minds at peace
And finally, I pray for the wonderful people at Global Hope India that make everything possible
Amen