Guatemala Sheep: progress

All the sheep for the Guatemala kiddos are sewn up and stuffed!!! I am now in the process of sewing up butts. (can I say that on here? Is that awkward? sorry.)

They all have different ears and legs, and each have the child's name on their sheep.

We have stuffed sheep everywhere we could find the time to do it.  This weekend, Brent stuffed most of them on the ride to Boone. Avenell sat in the back and helped throw them in the box when they were done.

This truly is a family affair! :)

I'll take a picture of them all together soon!

Thanks again for helping to make this happen!

-K

Guyana Names

" He knows his sheep by name and leads them out." 

John 10:3

If you have not heard, please read here all about our next mission with Caroline's Promise to send personalized sheep to children in Guyana and Guatemala.

I am asking that you would partner with use in prayer. Below are names of the kids in Guyana who will be getting a sheep. As I make each of these softies I think about that little one and lift them in prayer. Would you do the same?

Please pray over each name with me, pray that the Lord would remind them of His love for them, that their hearts would love Jesus more than anything in this world, that their needs are met, that they have hope in the hopeless, that their eyes would be opened to what a GREAT God protects them.

In homeschool this week we are memorizing this verse, and it reminded me of these kiddos:
"...The Lord is faithful and will give you strength and will protect you from the evil one." 2 Thess 3:3

May the Lord meet these little ones right where they are and pour His love on them. May a softie, made with them personally in mind, be a reminder of how God cares for them.

Kevin

Roger

Vickram

Steve

Travis

David

Julian

Omarion

Radesh

Tiffine

Omekia

Subrena

Tina

Deana

Angel

Odessa

Cassandra

Kenisha

Princess

Naiomie

Zoe

Tresua

Thanks for praying, friends!
-K

Softies Project: Guyana and Guatamala

I am so excited to introduce you to Caroline's Promise!!


They are they next organization we will be working with for giving out personalized softies to the children in Guyana, South America at the Ruimveldt Children's Home & Care, and to the little ones graduating from Preparatoria class at the Casita Adonai school in Guatemala!

Each child will be getting a sheep with their name on it!

Want to know why we are giving out sheep? Please read how it started here at this post.
To some, toys are not necessisty, not a basic need. They are right. But to a child who has been abandoned or who has nothing to call his/her own, a toy, with their name on it, means the world. My prayer is that each child in that one orphanage will know they are valuable, cared for, loved, and prayed over.

There are about 20 kids in Guyana who will each get a sheep with their name on it. Here is some info on this project:

Caroline's Promise has partnered with The Ruimveldt Children's Home & Care Center in Georgetown, Guyana since the home was built.  We sent a short term mission team to help clear the land that eventually became home to 20 children.  Our Guyana Country Coordinator served on staff for several years and now visits weekly to maintain a relationship with the children and staff.  The kids range from two years of age up and will more than likely remain in the home until they are adults.  Local churches support and direct the home and Caroline's Promise is blessed to help with special projects.

We are also working with a school in Guatemala:

Caroline's Promise partners with the church, Iglesia Adonai in Guatemala City as they seek to minister to orphaned and vulnerable children in a difficult community.  We administer a child sponsorship program for the 125 children, grades preschool - 5th who attend their school, Casita Adoani.  Caroline's Promise partners with the church to provide training, support, short term teams and anything else needed to help this church and school thrive.  Current plans include construction of a new school that will accommodate more children.  In the Summer of 2012 a sewing ministry was established to train the mothers and provide an opportunity for them to start their own business.

We are really excited to partner up with Caroline's Promise and loving on these amazing little ones through softies.

If you would like to be a part of this next mission, you can be praying for each of these children by name (I will be posting their names here shortly), and continuing to support Dunlap Love. We are so thankful for your continued support and we can't wait to share more of this project with you!

-K

Softies made it to GSF!

My dear friend, Casia, made it to Uganda, at Good Shepard's Fold to open the babies home!!

I told you in this post that Dunlap Love softies were heading there with her... well, here are a couple of them in the cribs. She said that the babies LOVE them!

Thanks for all the support and helping us spread some softie joy in Uganda! :)
-K

Next Mission: Good Shepard's Fold

As you know from our mission, we are working with orphanages worldwide to create softie toys to be put into the hands of orphans, to give them something that is theirs alone, to keep.

First stop was the Salvation Army orphanage in Mexico City, which you can read all about here.

Next, we are heading to Uganda, Africa!

My family is in the adoption process right now, which you can read about here, so of course Uganda is on our heart. We are adopting from Good Shepard's Fold in Jinja, Uganda. Please take some time to visit their site to learn more about GSF!! GSF is run by some incredible missionaries who love these kids and do the very best to care for them and share the love of Christ with each child.

My friend, Casia, is moving in July of this year to GSF to open their very first babies home that will house children 2 and under. Dunlap Love will be sending 20 softies, to start, with her to put into the babies home as toys for these precious little ones (as well as some decor items for the babies home).

The plan is to eventually be able to make a personalized softie for each child at GSF (over 100 children live here).

I want to thank you for supporting Dunlap Love. A portion of your purchase goes to fund the supplies and materials needed to create these softies and get them into the hands of children at Good Shepard's Fold in Uganda!

-K

Mexico City 2011: Giving Sheep

Now that the Christmas stocking auction is over (THANK YOU to those of you who supported and purchased or spread the word, it was a great success!), I want to share with you a bit about my trip to Mexico City. I want to be brief, mainly because I am still trying to process it all.

We were in Mexico City for 7 days. We spent time at the Salvation Army orphanage, a women's shelter, and a church in Tepito. This post is all about the orphanage.

What I know to be true: love is universal, no language needed.

I speak no spanish. What I know is what I learned while I was in Mexico City. I was nervous

that the fact that I could not verbally communicate to these kids would interfere with my ability to serve them, to love them. Silly me. God is bigger than that.

I was reminded of Moses in Exodus when God told him to go talk to Pharaoh and let his children go. Here is what happened: (Kaylyn translation)

Moses: I can't speak eloquently, I just can't do it.

God: You idiot, who even made the mouth able to speak??! Me! I will give you what you need to do what I asked you to do. Trust me.

I feel like God said that same exact thing to me that first day in Mexico City. I was amazed at

how quickly these kids warmed up to me, to my team, after knowing me a couple minutes. They were just so hungry, they wanted my attention, my hugs, my love, for me to play silly games with them (which we taught some boys to play "anti-war", you know, the card game War? That game except the boys thought they needed to get rid of their cards to win, so it became a game of anti-war. so fun.), to sing with them, and just to sit on my lap for awhile. They were amazing. They would talk to me constantly. I had no idea what they were saying, but it didn't matter. I was there. I was listening. I had my arms around them. Pure joy in all cases.

About the sheep: I made 47 total sheep before I left. 45 with names on them and 2 extra "just in case". We waited until the last day to give them out. I am not sure what I expected about that moment, I think I was even nervous they would not care about the sheep. I started to hand out sheep one by one. Each child kissed me and said gracias and held me. Held me tight. It was not long before I saw them pointing to their name on their sheep with awe and delight and showing all their friends. There were tears, lots of tears (mainly from me), and lots of hugs. God knew I needed those extra sheep for 2 new kids not on the list. They got sheep too. The whole thing was just incredible. For so long I prayed over each of these names and I got to put a face and a personality to each sheep. The crazy part? The fabrics I randomly picked for each sheep perfectly fit their personalities. Nothing is random with God.

I saw the kids swinging the sheep by their legs, playing catch with them, using them as pillows for a rest, and just holding them as tight as possible. Those sheep were well loved, and I think those children of God knew that they were loved.

Every moment with these kids was a blessing to me, and it was hard.

We slept down the hall from the girls. In the mornings I would see them wake up, start their chores, and prepare for breakfast. All by themselves. Every night, they went to their rooms and went to bed. All by themselves. My heart ached knowing that each morning and night they did not have a mom or dad to tuck them in, to pray over them, to kiss their forehead, to tell them

how amazing God made them, and to speak love into them. No one brushed their hair in the morning, helped them get dressed, or gave them words of hope for the day. They were on their own.

There are hard things in this life. God works for our good. He works for their good. His desire is for us all to care for each other, not just in our backyards, but all

over this Earth, to wherever he calls you. The key? We have to be listening. We have to know there is more to this life than our homes and pretty things in America. There are people with names and faces that are easy to ignore that are hurting, hungry, and need you, need me. We are God's Plan A. There is no Plan B. You and me, we are the plan to meet the needs of those who are hurting, those who are struggling, those who do not have a mom to tuck them in at night.

Thank you to all of you who supported this mission to bring these little plush sheep to a group of kids thousands of miles away in a different country. You are a part of joy that came in the way of a softie doll. A joy that these kids will never lose, even if those legs get ripped off. :)

Seriously, thank you.

-K

Assembly Line

Well, we are 2.5 weeks out from going to Mexico City. That means all the sheep need to be done by next week. It has been a sheep assembly process in the Dunlap Love studio for awhile now, but now it is full on!

All the legs and ears are made.

All the sheep bodies are cut.

All the faces are cut.

Tonight I begin working on all the faces!

I am saving the sewing of names until the very last step before sewing them all up because I have been told there are now new kids at the orphanage and some that have left. Praying to get these names in time before we go so that each child will have their own sheep with their name on it and no one is left out.

So, that is the sheep update. If you are totally confused by why I am making so many sheep, check out this post.

Be back soon!

-K

Rescue for one orphan.

I would love to invite you to follow along our journey to rescue our little girl from Uganda. You can follow along here: www.amustardseedjourney.blogspot.com

-K

We have names!

I have the list of names of the children in the Salvation Army Orphanage in Mexico City! (want to know more about why I need name? Check out this post) I am going to List the names below. PLEASE be in prayer over these kids.

Daniel ILC
Diego
Luis M
Fernando
Rodrigo
Wilmir
Jean
Luis L
Abelardo
Joshua
Miguel
Jesus
Armoando
Daniel R
Bryan
Alexe
Daniel LC
Oswaldo
Edgar R
Salvador
Ricardo
Roberto
Luis M
Israel
Jorge
Sebastian
Edgar J
Ramon
Oscar
Jaun
Marco
Jose
Maria P
IIse
Evelin
Liliana
Estafania
Ximena
Dominga
Daniela
Sheyla
Maria A
Maria O
Lucia
Ariana
Liliana
Dayana
Anahi
Maria V
Veronica
Mari
Selene
Clementina
Lucero
Betsy
Jenni


Thank you for your continued support!

The shop is now on vacation as I finish up orders and start working on sheep for these kids.
I'll keep you updated (also about a possible auction!)

-K

Reckless Abandon

Four months ago I came across this blog. It was by mistake on my end. God, however needed for me to be there. I spent 4 hours that night reading and sobbing, and feeling God pull on my heart in ways I never have before. Orphans. I was always the one saying "I am glad people are helping them, I applaud those willing to adopt, I might do that someday, my world is full right now." That night changed everything.

I cannot wait to share more with you about all God is doing in our lives right now, but I will tell you this blog post was the beginning of it all.

Read it here or below.

Reckless Abandon

It’s Orphan Awareness Month. Again.

Another month set aside for the church to show orphan related videos, hear testimonies relevant to adoption and orphan care, and an opportunity to listen to sermons where orphans are [possibly] mentioned.

I must confess. Many times I ask myself, “What’s the point of it?” “Is having another time set aside to create an awareness of the orphan crisis even worth the effort?” Is it? Will it make a profound difference?

Perhaps I have become somewhat cynical, or weary of the battle that rages for the lives of millions of children, or frustrated that help seems so slow to come, or desperate to see more and more who are willing to go. I don’t know. I only know the sinking feeling that I feel each time I look into the faces of our four adopted children and remember the millions that are left behind. The ones who are literally without hope, without life.

We’re the Christians doggonit! We’re God’s beloved church. His beautiful bride. We’re the ones He has already commanded to take care of the orphans.

Yet sadly, we wait.

We wait for God to speak to us in an audible voice, telling us to “GO!”—sometimes He does that audible voice thing, you know.

We wait for the perfect job to come along—orphan care demands a whole lot of money.

We wait for the bills to be paid—can’t be taking on more than we can handle.

We wait for the larger house—because adding children requires a large house.

We wait for a few kids to leave the nest before we add more—can’t be having too many children in the home.

We wait for confirmation with the perfect scripture to drop into our spirits as a sign that we need to act now.

We wait...for someone else to go.

We wait, we wait, we wait.

And while we wait—they perish. The statistics are staggering. I can’t even look anymore.

This is the horrendous reality...

Why do we find every reason under heaven and earth why we should not go? The Bible is as clear as daylight—“care for the widows and the orphans.”

It’s a lot like missions. My heart aches when I see how many churches don’t have a fabulous missions program. God’s Word says to “Go into ALL the world and make disciples of all men.” It’s a command! It’s non- negotiable. Taking care of the orphans is a command too. We’re commanded in His word to care for them—however that may look.

But still we wait for “the call” to come. Kind of like, “I am SO glad Mrs. Jenkins is called to lead children’s church, because that is DEFINITELY NOT my calling.

Ouch!

God hardly ever calls us to do things for Him when everything in our lives is just grand. He never calls us to walk on the water when our circumstances are sweet. When I look in the Bible, I see people doing things for the Lord in the midst of impossible circumstances. Tougher than what my circumstances have ever been in my entire life. Yet, they did it. In obedience. The Lord commanded them--and they went. They accepted the tough task that lay before them—come what may. They never asked the Lord for a re-commission.

So why in the world do we? What makes us so different to the people God gave us to learn from in the Bible?

Why are there so many uncared for orphans in the world when we’re commanded to care for them?

We would be wealthy if someone paid us every time we have been told that we were “called by God” to adopt our four children who have special needs. Or for the many people who have told us that “There is no way we could do what you do.”

I disagree.

You know what that does? It diminishes God’s sovereign power to do the impossible through each one of us, His people. Comments like that tell the Father, “Sorry God, but you don’t have enough power to give me the ability to parent a child who struggles in life.” “So sorry, God. Just go and call someone else.” “Oh God, and that mission field thing? There is no way I could ever do that!”

That’s perilous ground to walk on.

God’s power is absolutely made perfect in our weakness. When He commands us to do something, He equips us with everything we need to fulfill the calling with excellence. Even people like us--ordinary sinners saved by grace who are just average Joes. He does it for His glory! To make Himself famous in the earth. It has absolutely nothing to do with us. Everything God does is for His glory, not ours.

I believe with all my heart that God is raising up an army of crazy people to do the ridiculous. Many believe we are living in the end times. We agree! We sense that more than ever God is looking for those who are willing to do the impossible. Just WILLING! God is seeking out those who will serve Him with reckless abandonment, no matter where that takes them or what He tells them to do in this life.

Reckless abandon for the sake of His orphans...simply because they so desperately need US. Come what may.

-K

Just 6%

Found this article to be extremely frustrating at first, but I am also hopeful. We CAN be the rescue plan for orphans!

Go here to read.
I am copying it here as well:

How many adoptable orphans are there in the world?

How many Christians are there?

What is percentage of Christians would it take to adopt all the orphans?

My best guess (looking at the data available, see my Orphan Statistics post) is that 40-50 million orphans worldwide are adoptable or would be best cared for through adoption. Ideally that means adoption locally/indigenously first and then adoption internationally.

As for Christians, according to Mission Frontiers, globally there are:

Christian Believers — 800 million who have been born again into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

Other Christians — 1.37 billion who consider themselves Christians because they come from a Christian culture.

Culturally near non-Christians — 1.8 billion are not yet Christians but live in a people where a viable, indigenous church movement has been established.

Therefore, if roughly 6% of the born again Christians in the world adopted we could care for all the adoptable orphans in the world (I have heard 7% used and that might be true as well).

Either way you add it up, there are way too many orphans worldwide and way too many Christians to not believe we can make a difference!

Just 6%.

-K

Softies = care for orphans

So, what is Dunlap Love's Mission?

To provide toys and aid to orphans. Plain and simple.

Let me start at the beginning...

Dunlap Love was started in 2008 with my love to create unique and original items mostly for babies and kids. God has given me an eye for design and a love to imagine and create. All, wonderful and beautiful things, and all worldly. My prayer has always been the same: "God, I know you gave me these talents, but they seem meaningless in the work of your kingdom. Why do I have these gifts? What value are they?". I have seen how he has allowed me to use them to comfort grieving hearts by using a loved one's old clothing to create a softie, and my softies have made many babies and children happy, but I was still searching for how these talents would be of any real value.In the past few months God has been breaking my heart for orphans. He has put a true passion in me to help. I read this post from No Greater Joy Mom and was right there convicted. I hear a lot of Christians say "I am not called to adopt or care for orphans". The reality is God calls ALL of us to care for orphans! It may be financially, through your time serving, or by bringing them home to a family, either way, we are all called to care for them.My dear friends, and church family, just recently came home form a mission trip to Mexico City. While they were there they stayed at an orphanage run by the Salvation Army. They came home with stories of these children they fell in love with. I felt like I was there with them. What stuck out in my mind when I was hearing testimonies of the trip was that there were no toys at the orphanage. The kids did not have but a single pair of clothes to call their own. They had nothing to put their name on. God has made it clear now how my love of making quirky softie toys will be a part of his kingdom plan.The Start:

--There are 60 kids currently staying at this orphanage in Mexico City. I will be creating 60 sheep, one for each child that will have their name on it, each one different, no two the same. To some, toys are not necessisty, not a basic need. They are right. But to a child who has been abandoned or who has nothing to call his/her own, a toy, with their name on it, means the world. My prayer is that each child in that one orphanage will know they are valuable, cared for, loved, and prayed over.--My goal is to provide each child not only with their own softie doll, but to provide clothing in their size, toiletries, and other small toys. I am waiting to hear from a contact in Mexico to get their sizes.--100% profit of items sold through Dunlap Love will go straight to the orphanage. Right now the orphanage desperately needs financial help. They are very behind on their taxes and are at risk of being evicted. I do not want to think of what will happen to these kids if that happened. I know that Dunlap Love will not be able to cover their taxes, maybe not even a month of food, but we can do something. Your purchases from Dunlap Love directly go towards helping this Salvation Army orphanage in Mexico City. They help these kids.

Long Term:

--My dream is that it would not stop at this one orphanage. My dream is that these softie dolls find their way into hands of orphans everywhere. That they own it and know they are worth love. That the proceeds of Dunlap Love will go beyond the orphanage in Mexico City.

Big dream? yes.

Possible? yes.

Why? Because God dreams bigger than I do.



How can you help?

--Buy any handmade item from Dunlap Love at www.dunlaplove.etsy.com and support the Salvation Army Orphange.

--Pray! Please be in prayer over these kids, and that God would provide for the orphanage.

--Give. I am in the process of setting up a Paypal account specifically for giving to the orphanage.

Why blog?
Here you will find updates on what is new in the shop, how progress is coming along on sheep, and how much has been given to the orphanage to date.

Thank you for walking this journey with me, and thank you for your support of Dunlap Love!
Can I take every orphan home and give them a family? The reality is no. However, we can be a part of bringing them joy and supporting their basic needs! I am so excited to see where God takes Dunlap Love.

-K