Arandis, Namibia: 2007-03-18

Friday, March 23, 2007

Hope's Promise Web Site

23 March 2007

Greetings, although a day or so late in letting you know, the updated Hope's Promise Orphan Ministries web site is up and running. If you haven't visited their site yet, and are interested in learning more about Hope's Promise, you can check things out.

Also, if you're interested in helping to sponsor a child, or just send a couple of bucks their way, as you can see from the previous post it goes a long way for them, you can donate online. And yes...it's safe!

Thank you.

posted by Don @ 8:25 AM 1 comments

Monday, March 19, 2007

News from Rehoboth

19 March 2007

Last Friday, I had heard from Brenda who told me that Maderyna had left Hope's Promise with her mother, to go and visit with her Ouma (grandmother) for a week and that she has yet to return.

I just got off the phone with Sylvia (Country Coordinator for HPOM Namibia) who is in Rehoboth and she confirmed that Maderyna's mother had asked permission to take her to visit with her grandmother but it was with the understanding that it would only be for a week. Well, the week has now turned into three and other than an SMS (text) message to HPOM that Maderyna was okay, they have not heard from her and do not know her exact whereabouts. They are hopeful that she will return and that the reason she is not back yet might be financial in nature, in that they do not have the funds to get back to Rehoboth from where they are.

Please keep this girl, and her mother, in your prayers. When I finally met Maderyna, I gave her three bracelets that had on them, Redeemed, Adopted and Forgiven. She was thankful and put them on her wrist. Within an hour, I noticed one of them was missing so I asked her about it. She said she decided to give one to her mother - the one that said Forgiven. We talked about it briefly and she told me that her mother was trying to get better and change her life around. Once again we see how the bond between a child and mother is strong enough to transcend many things.

Maderyna is due to have her baby in May. She has been having a difficult time since returning to Hope's Promise, coping with the feelings she has; herself wanting to change from the street life that had become familiar to her but yearning for whatever satisfaction that street life gave her.

Please pray that this young girl of fifteen has the willpower and faith to overcome the temptations of returning to a life she wants to escape from.

posted by Don @ 9:37 AM 0 comments

Sunday, March 18, 2007

Another non-coincidence?

18 March 2007

I'll admit, after having spent time in Namibia and then coming home, I've struggled with a few things. One of my struggles has been trying to put into perspective the things that I have versus the things that they don't have. The things I can purchase and the things they cannot. I do not believe there is anything that I need that I cannot buy and I can also buy many of the things I want, but I don't really need.

In Namibia, oftentimes they cannot buy the things they need.

The fact is, I waste money. There, I said it. Material possessions, I have many. I spend money in ways I do not need to; I buy things I really do not need. Everytime I hear or read Matthew 19:21-22, Mark 10:21-22, or Luke 18:22-23, I think, am I the one in the story who is walking away sad and grieving?

And here's the kicker, not only do I have the ability and tendancy to justify any purchase I make of something I do not need, I can find others who might also help me justify the purchase; to help me convince myself that it was the right decision. Maybe what I really should do is go out and get one of those "What Would Jesus Do" bracelets and as I feel the urge to spend money a certain way, look down at it and wonder?

Some might say I'm taking things to the extreme. Some might say that I shouldn't take things so literally. Perhaps and perhaps. But in the end, it's up to me to decide for me, what it is I should do. We all know that we enter and leave this world with nothing; that what is important is what happened in between those two days.

What do I do? What is the right thing to do? Is it okay to have even just a little of what I want, and don't need, while ignoring the real basic needs of others? Is simply saying a prayer for them my justification that I've fulfilled my selfless obligations; that I've prayed God will do something to help them? Maybe what scares me is that God's answer to that prayer, and all prayers perhaps, can be found when looking in a mirror.

So what's the non-coincidence?

Last week I was having coffee with a friend of mine. Part of the conversation revolved around buying something that cost $40 US. And, although there were many reasons that easily justify its purchase in his eyes and the eyes of others, the fact is, it was something that I did not need and I wondered what that same $40 US might buy in a place like Namibia. Well, on that very day, after I got home from having coffee, I had an email from Brenda Johnston, of Hope's Promise, waiting for me. It was a copy of a brochure that a partner/friend of Hope's Promise had generously donated their time and talent to come up with, to use as a marketing, leave behind piece. And there, on the back panel, staring me in the face, was a list of things that your donations could do for Hope's Promise. And included were two things that $40 could buy. I've included the information on the new Hope's Promise web site which is almost ready to go live. I'll let you know when it does, and I encourage you to take a peek. In the meantime, I'll post here some of what is on that brochure.

Here is what your donation can provide:

$10 - School supplies for one child for 6 months

$20 - Daily fruit for one month for 30 children

$35 - One month of water for a foster family

$40 - School uniform for one child

$40 - One month of electricity for a foster family

$75 - One month of expenses for a child

$100 - One month of rent

$100 - Glasses for a child

$120 - One child's school fees for a month

$150 - One teacher's salary for a month

And these are just a few of the things.

I think about the $10-$20 I might spend at a place like Dunkin Donuts each month, on top of the $14.99 bottle of wine, or the sushi rolls for $5.99.

Now that I know what that money can provide for in a place like Namibia, is it right for me to continuously spend $20 per month at Dunkin Donuts and ignore the fact that if I made the sacrifice, and did not spend the $20 to satisfy my selfish wants, that I could help selflessly satisfy the nutritional needs of 30 children in Namibia?

By somehow finding a way to disguise and justify the things I want as things I need in this life, am I, as the man in the story, turning and walking away sad?

I struggle trying to find the crossover between taking action and non-action. How selfless am I expected to be in my life? Whose expectations are they?

Is the answer in the mirror?

Can I accept the answer?

posted by Don @ 9:53 PM 1 comments

About Me

Name:Don (& Chandre)
Home:Nashua, NH (Arandis, Namibia)