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Showing posts from August, 2012

Sharing About Orphan Sunday

Orphan Sunday is November 4, 2012. If we can help your church with a special speaker, Sunday School lesson or orphan project please let us know! Contact us at lisaholbrook@carolinespromise.net or in South Carolina at rebeccamoore@carolinespromise.net (If viewing in a RSS feed, click here to see video.)

Down Time On An Upbeat From Angie

Our PAL summer session officially closed off this past Friday in order to give everyone a week to prepare for school to open back on September 3rd.   While the lessons sessions are closed we will still be in the area enjoying some down time and broadening our ministry outside of the walls of PAL. Vreedenhoop Wesleyan church, (our partner church) raised funds to clothe Thirty children from the community in school uniforms for the 2012-2013 school year.  Sister Pam, our future sewing instructor in PC, went to work measuring the children and sewing 60 uniforms in the month of August.  So while we are “down” for the summer we will end with an upbeat time on Friday afternoon as parents in the community and members of the church come together under Liz’s house to cast the vision for the future and take PAL to a next level. Members of our partner church have also been walking the community and talking to families whose children attended VBS in July.  I was thrilled to make in

Jetty Walk: One Team Member's Thoughts On Guyana

"One of the jetty walls leads to the Atlantic ocean. I walked it. It broke me.  When I stood at the end of it and looked out into the only ocean I have ever seen, it didn't even seem possible that it was the same ocean.  We taught the kids in PAL about the planets the whole week, and in that moment it felt like the Atlantic ocean I have visited my whole life must have been on another planet.  In front of me was a blank ocean with no signs of life besides steel ships that marked the opposite bank.  The waves didn't even seem to have any desire to crash on the shore.  Behind me was a community with unbelievable inner and outer beauty.  Smiles that would make stars seem dim.  In perfect harmony with my feelings I was standing over the gap where two huge pieces of the jetty wall had broken apart.  I was part of the wall.  I want to lead them all to something beautiful.  A new life. Free of the mud, crabs, abuse, drugs, alcohol, and generational poverty that they have known.

Christmas in Guatemala

What are you doing for Christmas Break?  If you've ever thought about a short term mission trip, this one may be for you!  For the past several years, we have taken smaller teams to Guatemala City to work with our partners at Casita Adonai.  This little school has quickly grown from 50 to 125 students and Iglesia Adonai, the church that started the school, has now expanded its ministry to another community called Herona.  Children walk for miles to attend the weekly services on Sunday afternoons.  These few hours a week are a departure from the poverty that they live in. Iglesia Adonai has asked us to come the week after Christmas and assist their young adult leaders with a Vacation Bible School to the kids at Herona.  We are excited to once again partner with them and invite you to join us!  This trip is open to adults and teens (with a parent) ages 15 and up.  Please do not sign up for this trip if you don't enjoy working with children. Dates:  December 26 - January 1, 20

From Plastic City Jetty to Furintureland USA

Nathan served as the team leader for the Caroline's Promise - NC West Youth Team.  He has served many years at Providence Wesleyan Church in High Point, NC.  While he is called to serve as the youth and young adult pastor, he has also stepped up to the plate to be a presence in his community as a teacher in his local public school.  God is using him in both venues to reach the lost and disciple those who are found.  God has also now added Guyana to his ministry focus and he has wasted no time in creating sea glass jewelry and selling necklaces to benefit the ministry in Guyana. He shares his thoughts about his experience with us: "I have been emotionally and spiritually deflated since I gave hugs and waved goodbye to the 6 PAL leaders on a red dirt road, just down from the bustling intersection known as "The Junction" in Vreed en Hoop. Before parting ways, I told the 10-15 year old leaders over and over, "I am proud of you." Since my return to

I Can See!

Last Christmas many of you participated in our "Gifts with a Purpose" and sponsored eyeglasses for a student at Casita Adonai.  We wanted to show you how your support is changing lives! This summer our teams were able to sponsor an eye clinic so that the students would have updated prescriptions.  Over 30 kids needed glasses and the teams participated with their parents, who payed a portion.  By the end of our first week there, the eyeglasses arrived and in typical Guatemala fashion we made a big deal of presenting the glasses to the kids. At first they were a little self conscious and we wondered if they would actually wear them.  The responses were "I can see!"  "Everything is so clear!"  "I can read better!".  Words can't describe the feelings the following week as we saw the kids wearing their glasses.  THANK YOU!!  As our partners in Guatemala say, "It may seem like something small to you - but to us it's huge!"

Sewing Ministry is Changing Lives in Guatemala

For several years our partners at Casita Adonai in Guatemala have dreamed of offering women in their community opportunities to learn a trade that would allow them to support their families.  After much discussion and prayer it was determined that sewing classes would be a perfect fit! In the Spring of 2012 Shady Grove Wesleyan Preschool in Colfax, NC wanted to use their annual Trike A Thon to support a project at Casita Adonai.  We told them about the need for a Sewing Ministry and they jumped at the chance to help!  This little school raised almost $1000 which enabled us to purchase 6 sewing machines, tables, chairs, and supplies to get the ministry started! Around the same time Mackenzie Campbell-Hunt was looking for a special project for her 10th Birthday Party.  Instead of bringing gifts, Mackenzie asked her guests to bring new pillow cases to be used by the Moms in the sewing class. Sherrie, Oneida, and Lea Ann Our Summer Family Team partnered with our friend, Oneida

Why Worry About Backpacks?

In the Spring we found a deal on the cutest backpacks for our younger kids at Casita Adonai.  The administrators wanted to use them as an incentive for parents to register their kids early for the 2013 school year.  Our teams delivered the backpacks this summer and put them in storage.  While they were sorting through them I wondered, "How are we going to get backpacks for the older kids?  We only have enough for the little ones." Thirty minutes later I received a text from my friend Linda Nance who attends Mt. Zion Wesleyan Church in Thomasville, NC.  It read: "We have a team going to Guatemala in a few weeks and we wanted to do something to help Casita Adonai.  We were thinking of bringing backpacks.  Could you use those?" Their team leader, Dr. Ed Reedy of Thomasville Pediatrics, found a deal on backpacks and Mt. Zion was able to purchase and deliver the exact amount we needed!  Their original plan had them serving kids in another part of Guatemala, b

From Angie - Guyana Country Coordinator

There will be more words from the NC West team in coming days.  There will also be more words from me.  We are all still walking on clouds and a little in shock at all God did among us this week.  Perhaps the children need to speak for now so I will be their voice... Saturday as we gathered for our final session we focused on "Who we belong to." As I asked the children about some of the things we did this week I was amazed at how easy God was going to bring home the point. "Miss Angie we play together?" "Miss Angie we walk together?" "Miss Angie we eat together!" "Miss Angie we ride together?'" "Miss Angie we read together." "Miss Angie we be together." As I listened I naturally heard the word "together" spoken by every child. Our team (and even myself) were barely holding it together emotionally, but what a beautiful picture God gave us through our children.  In six days of consta

A Big Day Of Influence

Thoughts from Nate, Sarah and Victoria from the NC West Team…. To feel both deep heartache and share in the joy that only comes with salvation in the same day is a rare occurrence. Today our team joined Angie and the PAL Youth leaders on an excursion that included a trip to the market,  a state park and St. George’s Cathedral.  It was at the park that we played, shared lunch, ran races and fed sea manatees (you read that right, check back for the videos). We also engaged in a conversation that both broke hearts and saved souls. The subject for the conversation was influence. Our two ladies on the team (Sarah and Victoria) were especially impacted by the conversation that happened in a small blue shelter surrounded by exotic trees, dancing yellow finches and even the occasional chicken hawk (as one youth described it). Shrouded in this beautiful backdrop the Holy Spirit descended and brought about a harvest in the life of one of the PAL leaders In the first part of th

A Teen's Thoughts On Her Trip To Guatemala

Hello! For those of you that don’t know me, my name is Anna. I am 15 years old and just got back from my first missions trip by myself to Guatemala. (That's me in the striped shirt on the right, in the picture below.) The Lord taught me a lot on this trip. One thing He taught me was how to get out of my comfort zone. I was put in numerous situations where I needed to use my Spanish. I also had to step out of my comfort zone when I shared my testimony in front of a Spanish speaking chuch. And then I was put in charge of putting 7 little Guatemalan girls to bed when we ran an overnight camp for kids. Here is a picture of me and the 7 little girls I shared a room with:  But God taught me more than just how to get out of my comfort zone. The big thing He taught me was that He gave me my values and gifts for a reason and I am to use them for His glory. I would like to share with you 2 different times where God showed me why He gave me my unique values and gifts.  While

Dude, We Are In Guyana

Thoughts from the team as they spend their first day in Guyana: Arriving in Guyana generated a feeling of jubilation. We sat inside the airplane on the tarmac in Port of Spain (Trinidad; we had to look it up) for two hours wondering when we would make it to Georgetown. Exiting the plane and walking to the immigration line at Timehri Airport was not only a literal breath of fresh air (because we scooted out of the plane and across the tarmac into the Guyanese night), but it brought the promise of good things to come during our time here. At the airport, we had to work out some issues with checked bags that did not make the flight, so after some paperwork, we were on our way to the mission house with Angie and Colin, our driver and new friend. Our ride to Georgetown brought the smells of a local rum factory, livestock milling about, and evidence of the Guyanese fishing industry. We passed a cab that smashed into something big (couldn't figure out what), a man standin

Team Heads to Guyana

From Angie: Twenty-four hours from now I will be on my way to pick up a team of 5 youth, ages 16-25 and 1 youth pastor from the NC West District.  These six energetic young people are going pack in a week of memories and I am sure we will not want them to leave us a week later.  The trip has been in the works since youth camp 2011.  Our week together is firmly focused on helping 7 of our core youth in Plastic City understand what it means to be a Christian just a little bit better.  Additionally, the youth will be a part of our educational program called PAL. We will all work with our children on Monday, Wednesday and Friday and then just spend time playing sports and being in the community.  On the alternate three days we will spend the entire day with the seven youth from PC. The NC West youth will be stretched in sharing their faith and life with others.  So, pray for our health to stay strong and pray, in a big way, that all the youth from PC can come without strug

Team Member Share Their Story

  Kaitlyn and Chelsea joined Caroline's Promise this summer in Guatemala. Kaitlyn served this year as a leader in training and this was Chelsea's first trip with us. They shared their experiences with their home church in Charlotte and wrote about that experience.  " We felt right at home as we listened to the International Service at United Wesleyan Church on Sunday morning. What a privilege we were given to be a part of this awesome service. With the Latino praise band, Spanish music, and translation of languages, Chelsea and I felt as if we were back in the much loved country of Guatemala. It was only a few weeks before, that we were doing the same things at Iglesia Adonai. During the middle of the service, Pastor Jeff Haynes invited us up to the stage to share our testimonies and a song. I shared about Caroline's Promise and what we do in Guatemala and other countries. I also shared my sentence of what God has done in my life since the beginning of our trip to