Orphan Wares - Artists & Shoppers - Both With a Purpose

 "As each has received a gift, 

use it to serve one another..."   

1 Peter 4:10

Back in December I wrote about a dream I 

felt the Lord had given me.

I wrote about it here.

Getting everything up and running on the web site has been a far greater chore {in a good way} than I had ever dreamed it would be.

The idea is this:

Ordinary people spending their free time so that an orphan can eat

and/or

Ordinary people shopping with a purpose so that an orphan can eat.  

I was talking to a young man who has recently moved to our area last night at church.  He and his wife wanted a change in their lives and they moved to our beautiful area to regroup and to do away with the "rat race" they had been living in the big city they came from.   Wonderful people, just not doing the things they really wanted to be doing.

They started attending our small group in our home.  And then his wife went as one of the team that is currently serving in Uganda with Dw and Emmy.  Their lives are being radically challenged and changed.

Face it, there are so many well-intentioned people {including pastors and lay leaders} filling churches who are living day-to-day lives with not much thought for the 850 million people who are not eating anything today.  

Not much thought for the 163 million orphans in the world.  

Not much thought for the widows who have no food {or homes} for their family.

So what would happen if we started spreading the word that there is a whole lot more to this life than coming home, plopping on the couch and watching the latest episodes of whatever your favorite shows is for the night?

What if? 

What if instead of sitting idly watching the show, your hands were busy doing something that would ultimately feed a child?  

What if instead of partaking in that sport for one season people said, "I'm going to take a season off from playing softball or kickball or hockey or volleyball and take the time that I would normally be playing that sport to make things that can be sold and the money used to feed the kids who live on the streets"?  

What if?

People can say, "But I don't have any artistic ability in any fiber of my being."  

Oh!! 

But God can give even the least artsy/crafty person an idea!

I know He can. 

Cause He loves the orphan too much not to.

God gave us the idea for the log candle holders.

I am not a very artsy person.

But He loves the orphan too much not to give us an idea that we can do as a family.

Another thing everyone can do is spread the word. 

We will have a badge that others can put on their blogs.

We will have cards that are made up with the information that we can mail when they are ready.

So spreading the word is huge, huge, huge!!! 

And here's what the word will need to be spread about:

Instead of running to the store for a gift for someone's birthday, graduation, new baby, anniversary, wedding, "just cause", or any other occasion the first place some one looked was at the site that displayed hand crafted items lovingly donated to provide food for an orphan?  

What if?

What if living life was supposed to be about giving your life away?

On that note:

since we are so very, very close to launching the web site

{By very close I mean a few weeks, Lord willing.}

In the meantime, Kala {my partner in California} is ready to start receiving your artisan crafts.  Kala and her family have been praying for a long time for a ministry to the orphan that they could do from home, together.  When they purchased their home with a very large steel building on the property, they prayed and wondered what God's purpose for it was?  {Isn't it beautiful that they prayed and wondered that? Truly exposing their hearts.}  And then when I posted about the dream God had given me...wow, the rest is history.  

It must be understood that when sending your items,  

you are truly donating them.  

They cannot be returned.  

Other than the shipping, 100% of the proceeds for each item sold will be used to feed the orphans.  

Kala has researched the most economical ways to ship an item.  More than one item purchased and shipping can be combined! 

We have prayed and prayed that Dw would be able to link with reputable ministries to feed the kids of Uganda.  {I firmly believe that this is going to take off so big that we will be partnering, before long, in different countries, but for now, we know Uganda and so it just seemed so perfect that that is where we have committed to first.}

And here's the best part!!

You know those street boys that you helped cloth 

for the wedding feast, those and other street children in that same slums are the ones all of us will be feeding!  

Here they are all dressed up for the wedding feast!

 Look into his eyes.  

I can barely without starting to cry.  

His eyes plead for love.  

The ministry {A Perfect Injustice} is the very first ministry that Dw has committed our Orphan Wares ministry to partnering with to feed those same street boys {and the other street kids there}!!  {eeeeek}  

I was so excited when he told me! 

We are partnering together and God is going to be glorified and boys will eat each day and they will hear about Jesus and come to know Christ and grow in Him and get off the streets and be set free - all because people spent their time making things to sell on the site and other {or the same} people went on the site and 

shopped with a purpose.  

What are we exactly looking for?

Quilts

Wood items

Cloth items

Pictures

Hair bows

Handcrafted clothing for children

Pillow cases

Novelty items

Jewelry

Browse around Etsy for more ideas.  

There will be a link on the site {once it is up and running} for artists to click on and print out and enclose with your items when you are shipping them, but for now, here is the address and here is the information to enclose:

Ship to: {exactly as written below}

Shipping Manager11000 Brimhall Road, Suite E
Bakersfield, CA 93312

Each artist should include with your items the following information:

Your Name:
Your E-mail:
Mailing Address:
Phone numbers:
Brief product description:
Product quantity:
Artist's suggested donation:
Additional notes:

At this moment, the non-profit is not finished {and will not be for awhile}, so there cannot be tax receipts issued for your items donated. 

Please pray with us, for continued favor, for blessing and for provision for each step of the process and we strive together to minister to the orphans and hurting of this world.  

 "As each has received a gift, 

use it to serve one another..."   

1 Peter 4:10