Caroline's Promise News

We awoke early for devotions, an awesome breakfast prepared by our hosts and a spirit-filled learning opportunity with Pastor Peter from Gaba Community Church. It seems the Lord is continuing to impress upon each of our team members the burden of how we can empower the believers here to continue the ministry at Mercy Orphanage long after the “westerners” are gone. There are so many immediate needs of the children such as basic medical care, food on a daily basis and safety that need to be addressed – not to mention the long term needs. While our hearts were broken yesterday (Day 1) we were also immensely blessed to be led in worship by the children. YES, by the starving, malnourished, sick, orphaned children who, with the voices of angels, were praising the name of the living God as if they had every amenity and luxury one could afford and not a care in the world. As I sat there and held a boy (burning with fever, who had fallen asleep in my arms), I wept with a br...

Finally after all the preparation and hard work, our team made it to our destination: Uganda. Despite travel fatigue and jet lag, we are so thankful that God not only protected us, but also all our baggage. God is good. Our hosts’ Patrick and Sarah kindly greeted us with warm hearts at the airport and brought us to what we would call a top-notch guest house. After a long night of unpacking and then re-packing all the shoes, VBS supplies, and medical supplies we needed for Mercy Orphanage, we all crawled into our mosquito net sheltered beds and got as much rest as possible for our first day of VBS. The next morning when we were driving toward Mercy, we prayed to God to prepare us for whatever we were about to see. We realized very quickly when we arrived at the orphanage, that God didn’t want us to be “prepared”, but He wanted our hearts to be broken by seeing the rawness of His suffering children. Our hearts broke immediately, for the tiny child...

Our Uganda Short Term Mission Team departs from Charlotte today for a week of ministry to orphans.  Please pray for their safety, health, ministry and their families they are leaving behind.  We are excited about the way God has brought this team together and look forward to hearing how God uses them to reclaim hope for these precious children!  Be sure to subscribe to this blog to receive updates as they come - or check back often! Thank you for partnering with this team through prayer support.

This is Doug and Beth. That sweet little girl in the middle is Li Yan. Doug and Beth have been praying and hoping for a child for years. They have worked hard, prayed, hoped, worked harder and prayed more and hoped and worked even harder and prayed even more and hoped. Waiting for them on the other side of the world was Li Yan. She didn’t know it yet. Doug and Beth didn’t know it. But God did. And through His providence and care, He united this forever family. Here is their story, from Beth:  “Caroline’s Promise got involved with our adoption journey about a year after we got started with the entire process. Three-plus years later, we are still connected. Lisa has just recommended a wonderful book, The Connected Child, to help us as we bond with our new daughter. God has been faithful to us throughout this process, which has now just begun in many ways upon our return from China. We couldn’t be more grateful to Caroline’s Promise. Without their support and the help of many other...

We have exciting news! Over the past few months, the Caroline’s Promise Cause Page on Facebook has seen explosive growth! We are thrilled to see so many people interested in making a difference in the lives of orphans. We want to take advantage of this momentum and see just how many new friends will join the Caroline's Promise cause. And, we want to reward YOU for helping to spread the word. Between today and October 1, 2009, we are holding a contest to see who can recruit the most friends to join the CP cause. The person with the most recruits will win a $25 gift card to Walmart and a Caroline's Promise T-Shirt! Here's how to invite your friends and get credit. First, go to the Caroline Promise cause page at http://www.causes.com/carolinesp ... . Under the Caroline’s Promise Logo, click "Invite". Then, select the friends you'd like to ask to join the cause. We'll monitor who invites the most people between now and October 1st and announce the w...

Each time we begin planning our mission trips we never quite know what our ministries will be.  They sort of "evolve" based on our team members' gifts and passions.  Our 2009 trips to Guatemala were no different!  We knew that one of our teams would visit a Compassion Project that we have worked with for three years.  We love this group of kids who are sponsored by Compassion International.  We partner with the local church in Solola who hosts this group two days a week.  The kids receive tutoring, Bible study, counseling, a great meal and lots of love!  I've always been impressed with the church members who go above and beyond what is required by Compassion International.  In fact, the ministry leaders are kids who themselves were sponsored by Compassion.  Now they are giving back to kids with backgrounds like their own. When we visit with the children, we try to take something that they can use and we make sure they know that th...

My first trip with Caroline’s Promise was in the summer of 2007. Lisa and David Holbrook approached me and offered the opportunity to stay at Eagle’s Nest, an orphanage in the mountains of Guatemala. I prayed about it for a while and decided God wanted me on that trip. Before the trip I was a young Christian who recently had rededicated my life to Christ and honestly, I was scared about what God might have planned for me and what He might do in my life. I went to Guatemala that year spiritually scared and lukewarm. But thanks to God, I came back with my eyes opened wide with a realization of what I really need in life and how good God is. At the end of the trip we all sat in a circle and discussed what we felt God had taught us on the trip. As for my response, I am a very blessed young man! I have more than I will ever need and God has blessed my life beyond what I deserve. God showed me that I am lucky to have a job, fortunate to attend college, fortunate that I have Christian parent...

We were deeply saddened this week to learn that our little friend Kenia had passed away. Three years ago our short term team, especially our son Kendall, were touched by her little life. Kenia was an orphan from Guatemala with so many physical needs. But there was something so special about her. Kendall was drawn to her immediately and year after year he would spend so much of his time there, loving on her. It's been a journey; praying for Kenia, asking God "why?" and trying to make a difference in her little life. Last year Kenia was removed from her children's home by the government and taken to another orphanage. No one seemed to know where she was. At night Kendall would talk about how scared Kenia must be - alone, unable to see, in an unfamiliar place. That's when God led me to these verses in Zephaniah 3:17: "The Lord your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice ov...

Did you know that Caroline’s Promise has several Giving Circles?  On our website we define “Giving Circles” as “groups of individuals who come together at an established time, for a specific purpose, with an end result being that somehow the ministry of Caroline’s Promise benefits.  “Giving Circles” rally together for a greater purpose in mind…in essence  to “pay it forward”.” One Giving Circle, The Art of Giving, focuses on representing Caroline’s Promise at area festivals and community events. This group, led by Jennifer Barnes, makes their own crafts as well as sell some fair trade items that have been purchased in Uganda and Guatemala. They meet every few months to discuss the needs of Caroline’s Promise and how they can promote our ministry. We asked Jennifer if she would tell us about her story and how she became involved with Caroline’s Promise. My journey with Caroline’s Promise started at the first Caroline’s Promise banquet five years ago. I did not know ...

Doug and Jennifer Barrow, a couple in Kernersville, NC are hosting an adoption fundraiser on Saturday, September in Harmon Park (Kernersville) from 12:00 noon till 7:00pm. There will be food, music, games, prizes inflatables, face painting, craft sale and more! All proceeds will benefit Doug and Jennifer’s adoption of a baby from Nepal. If you are in the area, come out and have some fun! While you are there, give what you can to help bring Doug and Jennifer’s baby home to her forever family.