{Compassion International}: I'm Changing the Story for One Child! Will You Do the Same?

During the month of April, I have committed to helping Compassion International find sponsors for two children and I desperately need your help!!!

This is our Compassion Child, Edwin. I call him our third son! ;) So much about him reminds me of my own boys; he has been such a blessing in our lives for the past three years! I love telling Little A and Little E about him and having them pray for him with me. It really puts into perspective how blessed we are here in America.

You can read more about Edwin and my sponsorship story here. While you are there, find out how you can become a sponsor yourself.

I am currently working day and night to find a sponsor for Hillary, a sweet little 5 year old boy from Kenya! 

Find out more about him here and if you cannot sponsor him yourself, please spread the word to your family and friends, or simply share this link on all of your social media sites. 

Once his sponsorship is secured, I will begin working to find a sponsor for one more child in need. Together, I know we can make this happen!!!

Let's help Compassion release more children and families from poverty in Jesus' name!! I cannot say enough good things about this fabulous organization and their awesome ministry!!!!

Thanks, friends! :)

About the Author: Erin Vick Franklin is the founder and director of Worthy of the Prize. Erin has a BBA in Marketing and Management from TCU and a Masters of Christian Education in Church Recreation from Southwestern Seminary. She is a published, award-winning author and poet. Purchase her book Worthy of the Prize Sports Camps: A Church's Guide to Implementing an Effective, Community-Reaching Christian Sports Camp to be used as an outreach tool for your church or mission organization. Erin is the wife of A, a Worship Pastor, and a work-at-home-momma to 2 crazy little boys, a and e.

{My Favorite Things Holiday Gift Guide}: 12 Christmas Gifts That Give Back

I love the fact that there are so many shops out there that not only have fabulous products, but more importantly, give back to fabulous causes!

Why not give a gift that "gives back" this Christmas? We spend SO much money on Christmas gifts for the special people on our list, why not spend it on products that we know all (or a portion) of the proceeds are going to support great causes and fantastic ministries? It's a win-win!

I have put together a list of 12 products/shops that I happen to LOVE and know are giving back! May it help you finish your Christmas shopping for the year and bring joy to both the giver and the receiver!

1. Compassion International is a wonderful ministry, one that happens to be near and dear to my heart since we sponsor a little boy who lives in an AIDS infected area of Uganda through their ministry. Compassion has a great little online shop filled with various items (apparel, accessories, books, resources for families and churches, etc) that would make great Christmas gifts. I absolutely love this cycling jersey! Or you could simply sponsor a child in someone's honor. What a meaningful gift that would be, to know that a child is receiving food, water, shelter, clothing, an education and most importantly, hearing the hope and love of Jesus because of you! Here is a list of the precious children who are waiting for sponsorships! 

2. Noonday Collection provides a pathway out of poverty for artisans around the world through the sale of their fashionable jewelry, handbags, home decor and accessories. Proceeds also help place orphans in forever families. Check out their site here to find the perfect gift for that special someone on your list! 

3. Here at Worthy of the Prize we carry (evangelistic) soccer balls and basketballs for the little guy or gal on your list. And the best part is that for each ball purchased, we send a ball to a child in an orphanage or poor village around the world, through our brand new partnership with J316 Ministries! This child will not only enjoy the pleasure of a fun, healthy activity, but will also hear the gospel message of salvation through Christ alone when the ball is delivered to them and presented using the color code on the ball to tell "The Greatest Story Ever Told!" You can purchase a ball here in our shop.

4. Sew.Hip.Mama sells fashionable handbags, headbands, apparel and accessories, including custom orders. All proceeds go to fantastic organizations who are fighting against sex trafficking around the world! Contact Kara here to place an order or check out her Facebook page to see what is ready for purchase.

5. Three Six Tees exists to connect people who have a passion to turn the world around with charities that already are. Proceeds from each one of their fashionable tees goes to help one of 6 worthy causes around the world: planting trees, providing clean water, funding education, providing vaccinations, feeding the hungry and providing shoes for children who do not have any (just like TOMS does when you purchase a pair of their shoes). Shop their fabulous collection here. 

6. Here at Worthy of the Prize, we also sell Chosen Child Adoption Bands {wristlet keychains} through our Chosen Child Adoption Ministry, to help adopting families raise the money they need to bring their child home! These make great Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers for moms, teachers, college students, runners and all those who have their hands full or have to carry their keys with them. The keychains come in a variety of colors and all proceeds go to support our adopting families! Purchase yours here. 

7. Cap Creations also sells a Chosen Necklace to support our Chosen Child Adoption Ministry! Each one can be customized with a name and $10 from every purchase goes to our adopting families! This would a make a beautiful Christmas gift for anyone on your list, whether representing an adopted child or the fact that we are all "chosen" in Christ! Find them here in Cat's shop.

8. Scripture Art carries a variety of fabulous peel and stick products including wall decals, chore charts, calendars, growth charts, menu planners and potty charts with scripture on them to transform your life and walls. They also offer promise packs, fashionable tees, and phone/laptop covers. All of their products are stylish and decorated with scripture. 10% of all proceeds go to help stop sex trafficking! Shop their online store here.

9. The Mercy House is a wonderful ministry that provides alternative options for pregnant girls living in the streets of Kenya, aiding them in education, nutrition, housing, prenatal care, Bible study, counseling and job skills for sustainable living. They have a shop full of fabulous products, made by the very women of The Mercy House, to help fund this ministry! Shop here to support this worthy cause. 

10. Here at Worthy of the Prize, we also support The Mercy House through the sale of our Victorious Virtues Prayer Cards, which also come in pink! Because of your purchases, every mom living in The Mercy House receives a set of these cards, allowing them to pray the Biblical virtues scriptures over themselves and their child through the guided prayers! There is nothing sweeter than praying for your newborn child and it is my desire to encourage these women who have chosen life for their child! Our prayer cards make great Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers, particularly for young moms and new grandmas. Or even for adopting moms who are waiting to bring their child home. What an encouragement it would be for them to be able to pray over their child while they wait for them to come home to their forever family! Pair them with our Chosen Child Adoption Band {wristlet keychain}, allowing women to carry their cards with them as they travel, walk the neighborhood, run errands around town or as they sit in the carpool line, at their desk at work or at the doctor's office and you will be supporting two great causes simultaneously! Shop our cards here. 

11. Show Hope carries these adorable little handmade Hope Dolls from Baby be Blessed, who carries a variety of beautiful, handmade scripture dolls. Each doll  has Romans 15:13 stitched onto it and all proceeds go to fund their ministry of caring for orphans and funding adoptions. Boy dolls are also available and they have other fabulous products for adults and kids in their online shop as well, including fashionable apparel and accessories. Shop their online store here. If you would rather, you can simply become a sponsor in someone's honor. What a great gift to know that orphans are being cared for and adoptions are being funded in your name! Become a sponsor here.

12. Wild Olive Tees carries a large variety of fashionable Christian tees for adults and kids. And the best part is that 10% of all proceeds go to organizations that support adoption and orphan care! Shop their fabulous tees here.

These are a few of my favorite things, but I know there are more fabulous shops out there with a mission! Feel free to leave comments with the links to other shops who sell to "give back!"

Give a gift that gives back this Christmas and bring even more joy to this wondrous holiday!

Linking up with:

About the Author: Erin Vick Franklin is the founder and director of Worthy of the Prize. Erin has a BBA in Marketing and Management from TCU and a Masters of Christian Education in Church Recreation from Southwestern Seminary. She is a published, award-winning author and poet. Purchase her book Worthy of the Prize Sports Camps: A Church's Guide to Implementing an Effective, Community-Reaching Christian Sports Camp to be used as an outreach tool for your church or mission organization. Erin is the wife of A, a Worship Pastor, and a work-at-home-momma to 2 crazy little boys, a and e.

Our 3rd Son!

As you know, we have 2 boys - Little A {5} and Little E {3}! They are so much fun - a true blessing, full of life and energy. They make us laugh all day long.

Here they are showing off the ring pops that my sister Sarah sent to them when she asked them to be the ring bearers in her upcoming wedding. They sent her this picture to say YES!

{Side note}: I am thrilled that they will both have the chance to be in a wedding while they are still little guys! They will be SO cute in their little tuxedos. :)

Did you know that we have another "son" who lives in Uganda? His name is Edwin and we sponsor him through Compassion International.

Isn't he adorable? I love his cheeks! He was 5 years old in this picture - he is 6 now. He has been apart of our family for about 18 months. We pray for him and also pay a small fee each month that provides him with the following:

• educational opportunities
• health care and health-related instruction
• nutrition
• life-skills training

And opportunities to hear about and respond to the gospel.

Someday soon I hope to actually send him a letter and maybe one day see him in person.

I am begging you to consider sponsoring a child as well. These children have been waiting for a sponsor for at least 6 months. Please help provide them with the benefits that our sponsorship provides for Edwin. There are SO many children living in poverty who need your help to live and to hear about Jesus.

Did you know that last year alone 163,527 mothers and children invited Jesus to be their savior through the Compassion International programs!!!

This, my friends, is what it is ALL about! This is why I blog for Compassion International and why we sponsor a Compassion child. What an INCREDIBLE organization!

Join them in their mission by sponsoring a child today. And if nothing else, please click this link to help me win a gift card to the Compassion Store, so that I can purchase some promo items and continue to help spread the word!

The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ {Matthew 25:40}

{Baby Gift Ministry}: The Mercy House

We are in the midst of a lot of exciting changes around here these days, if you haven't noticed.

One of those exciting changes happens to be our brand new partnership with The Mercy House.

The Mercy House is a maternity home that provides alternative options for pregnant girls living in the streets of  Kenya.

And I am SO proud to announce that from now on, every mom living in The Mercy House will be receiving a set of our Victorious Virtues Prayer Cards, produced for us by Tower Promotions & Planning Solutions, LLC- allowing them to pray the biblical virtues scriptures over themselves and their child.

Many women do noble things but you surpass them all.  {Proverbs 31:29}

I have SUCH a passion for this ministry - a strong desire to encourage new moms. Motherhood is a tough journey and at the same time, a high calling. This print that I found on Pinterest describes it perfectly. I could not have said it better myself.

Source: ordinaryinspirations.blogspot.com via Worthy of the Prize on Pinterest

And this is my desire - to encourage all moms to point their children to the one true God and to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

And for those women who find themselves in a crisis pregnancy, I want to do everything I can to encourage them to first of all have their babies and then if need be, give them up for adoption....urging them to avoid abortion, allowing God to assume his rightful authority as the author of life and death - there are plenty of adopting families who desperately want to give these children a home if they cannot keep them, even special needs children.

Why do I care so much, you ask?!

His name is Little A. He is a sharp, vibrant, athletic, perfectly healthy 5 year old little boy who the doctors told us to consider terminating when we were 20 weeks pregnant with him because there "might" be something wrong with him.

We will never know if he was perfectly healthy all along or if God healed him - but either way, I will never get over this.

He is the reason why we here at Worthy of the Prize support The Mercy House through this Baby Gift Ministry, why we help adopting families raise $ for their adoptions through our Chosen Child Adoption Ministry, why we sponsor a child through Compassion International and why we continue to promote other ministries who have the same goals as we do.

We want to do everything we can to honor God and his miracle of life, as well as reduce the HUGE number of orphans in the world - every child deserves the love of a parent here on this earth.

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. {John 14:18}

I will be back next week to fill you in on the changes we have made in our Chosen Child Adoption Ministry. For now, I just want to say THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart for your contributions to this little ministry of ours - whether it be financial, through prayer, by purchasing our products, volunteering your time and talents or simply by helping us to promote what's going on around here. We could not do it without YOU.

Please continue to purchase our Fit Bands, Fit Cards and Baby Gifts found right here in our online shop, so that we can continue to fund these ministries - and please help us spread the word!

Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever! Amen. {1 Timothy 1:17}

{Compassion International}: Just a Minute

Her name is Dianne. She is the realtor who sold us our house a year and a half ago. She just happens to be a member of the large church that my husband had recently accepted a position with, as the new worship pastor.

It was a divine encounter. Unexplainable - were it not for a God of compassion.

I had just completed the hardest thing I had ever done in my life - moving north, far from family, friends and all that is familiar - taking my boys away from their grandparents and cousins {aka. best friends}...

...when in walks Dianne. My angel.

 A sweet Southern woman, with that familiar Texas drawl I have known and loved my entire life - 30 years my senior but full of charm and a kindred spirit none the less - lover of all things Tex-Mex, sweet tea, Johnny Cash and Southern living. What a marvelous combination.

And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus. {Philippians 4:19}

In just one moment, she changed my life. For the better.

She has walked with me through some of my darkest days. The ultimate prayer warrior. And boy do I have some stories to tell about the miracles we have seen the Lord perform through those faithful prayers. I would not want to imagine my life without her.

What about you? Has anyone changed your life in just one moment?

Dr. Wess Stafford, president of Compassion International, recently released his second book, Just a Minute. In this book he contends that it takes just one moment for anyone to positively impact the life of a child. 

Wess has a stunning story of such a moment. Take a few minutes now to watch him as he tells his story about the power of just one moment. 

{scroll down and hit pause on the music player before watching the video}



Wow. Big A and I never want to stifle the passions, hopes and dreams that God is cultivating inside of Little A and Little E. Please Lord, help us to remember...

Every child is a divine encounter. {Wess Stafford}

...even our Compassion child Edwin, who lives in Uganda. Bless him. Protect him. Reveal yourself to him. Meet all his needs according to your glorious riches in Christ Jesus. Use us to bring joy into his life and to point him to our savior. Please allow us to meet him in person someday.

Amen.

The 4/14 Window {April 14th}

Today is April 14th {4/14} and Wes Stafford and Compassion International are challenging us to take some time to pray (and fast) for the more than 1.2 billion children around the world who are in the 4/14 window.

What is the 4/14 window you ask?

It is children between the ages of 4 and 14.

Children are the most open to Christ's gift of salvation and moldable in their spiritual beliefs and values between the ages of 4 and 14. This is the time of life when they're also most vulnerable to the devastating effects of poverty, war, disease, neglect and abuse.

Why is it important to reach children between the ages of 4 and 14?

Alot of us have children of our own, are adopting children or are sponsoring children in this age group.

Besides the fact that God loves them, research has revealed that the majority of people who accept Christ do so before the age of 15. In addition, people's life-long spiritual identity is in place by age 13 and rarely changes thereafter.

Let's take a moment today to make a significant difference in the lives of these children and help raise up a new generation of Christ followers.

I began a personal relationship with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ at the age of 10---almost 23 years ago!

At what age were you saved? Leave me a comment.

Go HERE to discover Christ's gift of salvation.

The Lord your God is with you, he is might to save. {Zephaniah 3:17}

Sports Ministry Opportunities {Prayer Requests}

I do not normally blog on the weekends but I have 5 really important things to tell you about and I want to take this opportunity to ask for prayer---so stick with me!

1. As you may or may not know, I am a Compassion Blogger which means about once a month or so, I will tell you about something special going on through Compassion International so that you can help take care of the orphans as God commands us to do! {James 1:27} I am one of many voices for orphans and underprivileged children!

Meet Emilda.

Emilda is an 18 year-old sponsored Compassion child with the mental capacity of a 3-year-old who lives in the Philippines.

And she is FAST!!!

In 2009, Emilda competed in the Philippine Special Olympics and she did SO well that she qualified for the World Special Olympics in Athens, Greece this Summer!!

BUT...she needs your help to get there.

Neither Emilda's parents nor the Philippine government are able to pay her way to Greece.

She needs $19,857 to get there.

Will you help her?

Go HERE to make a donation---any amount, no matter how small will help!

You can also go HERE for more information related to Emilda and her story.

2. I have been asked to be apart of an amazing team going overseas to teach basketball to orphans and underprivileged children! The trip is totally up my alley since WOTP is all about sports and orphans---however, I do have some concerns and am having a hard time discerning God's will concerning my involvement. Please pray that God will quickly and clearly reveal His will to me.

3. It is time for us to start planning our summer schedule as far as volleyball team camps go! If you are apart of (know of) a volleyball team that would like to set up a WOTP Volleyball Team Camp for Summer 2011, please email us at worthyoftheprize@yahoo.com.

4. I am in the final stages of the publishing process of my sports camp manual, Worthy of the Prize Sports Camps! Please pray that everything will come together in God's perfect will and timing.

5. Finally, yesterday I had the privilege of attending a FCA event here in town! I am somewhat connected with a local FCA group---I served as a counselor at the Fields of Faith event (where athletes and coaches from the area gave their testimonies) at a local highschool back in October and yesterday I was invited to attend the basketball game of the #13 ranked NCAA women's team and it was a blast! The UWGB women's team is fantastic and fun to watch---and the best part is that the coach is an outspoken Christian! He was the guest speaker at the Fields of Faith event in the fall and yesterday we got to hear him, his assistant coach and one of his players speak and give testimonies before the game! Please pray for his ministry there at the college and in town. Also, this same FCA group has asked me to come to a breakfast in March where we will be talking with the teenage girls about "worth" while the guys talk about "purity." Pray that God will speak through us and that He alone will be glorified!

Be sure to stop back by tomorrow for our weekly mom2mom {linky party} and either link-up or leave comments of things that "work for you" as a mom!! Can't wait to see what MJ has in store for us!

Have a great week!

Give a Gift of Compassion

So I have decided to become a Compassion Blogger and I could not be more thrilled about my decision!

More than 5000 children living in poverty around the world have been sponsored through Compassion Bloggers!!!

Unbelievable!

Let's make it 10,000!

This simply means that about once a month I will be informing you of the happenings at Compassion International, letting you know how you can get involved!

As you know, we have a BIG heart for orphans and children in need here at Worthy of the Prize.

And you may or may not know that Big A and I have added to our family by sponsoring our Compassion Child Edwin!

You can read about him HERE.

What I recently found out is that you can send Christmas gifts to these children through Compassion as well!

How cool is that?

Spend anywhere between $10 and $5000 to improve their quality of life!

Gifts include:

-mosquito nets

-soccer balls

-chickens

-baking supplies

-vaccinations

-education supplies

-kits for new moms

-goats

-water filters

-beauty training

-bakery skills

-small business skills

-mechanic workshop training

-cows

-computers

-farming equipment

-water

-toilet stalls

-kitchens

-major surgery

Go HERE to purchase gifts!

Need a great gift for a loved one? Buy one of these gifts in their honor!

Happy Shopping!

Meet Edwin

I am SO pumped to introduce to you the newest member of our family....our Compassion Child Edwin!!

He is a 5 year old boy who lives in an AIDS infected part of Uganda, Africa!

Isn't he cute?!!? LOVE the cheeks! :)

We chose him because we wanted a little boy (5 or under) from Africa and also wanted his name to fit with our family (all of our names start with A or E and end with an N) Edwin was the only one available that fit this criteria.

Even though we have wrestled with sponsoring a child for awhile now, I knew for sure that God was calling us to do this after reading "Take Your Best Shot," by Austin Gutwein, the founder of Hoops of Hope.

Austin's ministry helps raise money for AIDS orphans in Africa!!

We knew we could not afford to do this until we sold our house in Austin (even though we have wanted to for a long time) since we already bought a house here...so we waited.

However, we officially SOLD our house in Austin...we closed yesterday, literally 3 days before we would have had to make our 1st double mortgage payment!!

God is SO good and faithful!

Soooo...Meet Edwin!!

Turns out he likes to play ping pong and soccer, as well as play with cars!

He will fit in perfectly around here! ;)