Below is from my friend, Kari's, blog.  She has done an amazing blog giveaway and two special people will get to go on a trip of a lifetime to Ethiopia! Praise God.  Now she is going ABOVE AND BEYOND with her t-shirts and donating to 2 special charities doing awesome things in Ethiopia right now.  :)  Her shirts are awesome!  Seriously love that my boys walk around with a shirt that says, "man up, protect and love the fatherless" on their backs!!!  Go get one for yourself. I can't wait for my thermal to arrive, just in time for nice, cool, fall weather. 

Dear crazy reader,

I just wanted to personally thank you for your support, prayers, cheers and encouragement during the Missions Trip Giveaway!  My dream to give away 2 trips to Ethiopia just became a reality.  I can’t believe I’m actually saying these three words, but YOU DID IT!!!!!  We did it together!  You helped sell 366 tees in 2 weeks!!!!!!!  Oh what a miracle!!

I was so scared to launch this project… I really had no idea if anyone would want to join my crazy team in Ethiopia!!  But, this was the start of something so big for missions!!  You have prayed and hoped and dreamed with me!  Two blessed people are going to join me serving and loving orphans in Ethiopia!  Every single tee has helped simply love an orphan.

Here’s whats soooo exciting!!!  The Giveaway ends October 28th at midnight.  Now, every tee sold will go ABOVE & BEYOND to raise a love gift for two of my favorite ministries-Project 61 working in Zoie’s Korah and Visiting Orphans!!  We have the opportunity to bless the ministries making a difference every day loving orphans!!  Remember, every tee you purchase is an entry to win the 2 Grand Prize Missions Trips!!  Keep sharing giveaway miracles on your blogs & FB!!

He is whispering to you…”trust me, I know what I am doing, I have it all worked out- I have plans to take care of you, plans not to abandon you, plans to give you the future you have hoped for… when you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I WILL LISTEN… I can do anything you know- far more than you could ever imagine, or guess, or request in your WILDEST DREAMS.” (Jer 29:11 & Eph 3:20)

Thankful to not have the above choice to make, but I can choose to be complacent or fight for the rights of those that have no voice.  I chose to plead the case of my extended family until they have clean water, health care and decent schools to educate their next generation. 

"Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come."
Revelation 4:8 (Tuesday July 6 Dusk)

"The hand of the Lord was upon me and He brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley...He asked me, 'Son of man can these bones live?' I said, 'Oh sovereign Lord you alone know.' This is what the sovereign Lord says to these bones,'I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life...I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.' So I prophesied as He commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood upon their feet - a vast army."
Ezekiel 37:1-10 (Tuesday July 6 Bedtime)

"Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"
John 11:40 (Friday morning July 9)

July 6, 2010
These were defining scripture and moments in my life that God allowed me to experience and I will never be the same. I witnessed the hand of God touch down on Earth in an irrigation ditch in Gunnison, Colorado and from this point forward my heart, soul and mind will have a new viewpoint and motivation. (For more details on how God raised my best friend's son from the dead, please visit http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/goreotteson for the full story of God raising Gore Otteson after being without oxygen for 55 minutes. You must enter "Goresky" for password.)
God in His amazing grace allowed me to be there with Amy and her children and experience His presence in a way I will never fully be able to explain. But as a result I want to thank Him the rest of my life. What does this mean? Somehow - someway living beyond myself to forever agree with Him that He is HUGE, PERFECT, MIGHTY, and STILL IN THE BUSINESS OF PERFORMING MIRACLES!

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another."
Proverbs 27:17

I have been blessed with some outstanding friends in my life and apparently God likes to sharpen me by their presence my world. Two in particular, Emily Alexander and Amy Otteson, have these giant empathetic hearts that love Jesus with all their heart, all their strength and all their mind...yet they love life as well...and make it fun. They challenge me to be a better friend, mother, wife, "person" and follower of Jesus. Their desires and passions that fire them up are even similiar. I had longed for that passion they had for "the least of these". I am often impressed at how the Lord weaves each of our lives and stories in such a way that if we are following Him, they all fit together to form a beautiful tapestry that brings Him glory. In the wake of witnessing God give life back to Amy in Colorado, I come home to God giving life and a grand vision to our dear friends Moody and Emily in Texas...or shall I say Ethiopia? Emily has had a heart for the people in Africa ever since she set her sights on adoption which resulted in Abe. This precious boy rocked all of our worlds with his smile and luscious locks - but to witness how this adoption has affected Emily and Moody is, to say the least, inspiring, humbling and eye opening. They have only drawn closer to the Lord and they have only fallen deeper in love with Ethiopia as a result. November 2009 along came Eyasu into their household who melted not only my 2 little girls' hearts but mine and Tommy's as well. We will forever be singing, "Pants on the ground, pants on the ground..." and mimicking his animated voice and moves with everything we do! Still, I watched, loved, and admired the Alexander's passion to serve the people of Africa from an arm's distance. It was humbling to the point of wondering, "What is wrong with me that I don't want to adopt or at least give up everything to serve His people over there?"...Until July 6, 2010 when I experienced the holiness of God and His amazing grace as He peeled back the scales on my eyes and I said, to quote Isaiah, "Woe to me! I am ruined...I have seen the King, the Lord Almighty."
As Emily and I caught up after a summer apart of experiencing what each of us did in June and July, my heart was broken and my heart was open for the first time as I heard her talk about Eyasu's village, Dube Bute, his uncle that relinquished him and their lack of clean water. I just could not believe how lukewarm and comfortable I had been all this time while God's people, His church, were suffering on the other side of the globe. How the Lord has not spit me out before now is beyond me, but one thing I know is that He has answered my prayer to break my heart for the things that break His heart. I have a long way to go to climb out of this lukewarm bath I like to linger in but He has shown me that I have a few loaves and fish that I can offer up to serve His multitude. If I have nothing else I have willingness, faith, prayer and pilates. I have been offering free Pilates classes this past year at my church knowing it was out of obedience as it is one thing I can do...but all the while knowing there had to be more to it. Thankfully after this past summer God revealed to me, "Pilates for Water" - if each person in your class made a donation everytime they came to class and treated it like a fee, then we could start a fund for Dube Bute, Ethiopia. And if each of those people told a friend, God could move hearts to give so Eyasu's village can have clean water. I am not a details girl, I am a pray and have faith my God can take my meager loaves and fishes and feed multitudes girl. I typically leave the logistics to my sweet husband but in this case I leave them to this remarkable organization called Glimmer of Hope who gives 100% of all donations directly the projects in Dube Bute. Even the PayPal transaction fee is covered by the Glimmer endowment! Please watch the video below to learn more about Glimmer of Hope.

Will you help me build 2?
To read more about Dube Bute and the people living there go to Emily's blog Soli Deo Gloriahttp://www.teamalexander.blogspot.com/ and read the October 18 entry.

Gratefully,
Mary Lynn

"At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality..."
II Corinthians 8:14.

"Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. For where you treasure is there you heart will be also."
Luke 12:33