Jan ’10 – 1000 Soul Goal
Dear Friends,
At this Holy time of year when we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ I want to wish all of you a Happy and Blessed Christmas. Even though this Hearts for Ukraine mission will begin in January, it will still have a Christmas theme as Orthodox Christmas is celebrated in Ukraine on January 7 and many Ukrainians celebrate the Christmas Season almost through the end of January.
I leave for Ukraine on January 19, 2010 and will join team members in various cities. In all, we plan to visit about ten orphanages in five regions of Ukraine. This will be a great time to tell these poor, oppressed children how much God loves them and how he wants to adopt them as his own.
Ukraine Orphans Needs
I want to bless every child we visit with a Christmas gift. Right now the ministry is in great need of funding for this robust January itinerary and two other trips planned for 2010. In addition to transportation and translation costs, funds for gifts and food for each orphanage are greatly needed. It costs $200 to $300 to fully fund one orphanage visit. What do they get? Usually there are about one hundred kids at each facility. With this money we can purchase food, gifts, clothing and/or toiletries per their needs. This is a wonderful way to bless the children; and often times it is the only way to “get in the door” to preach the Good News of Jesus Christ to these kids!!
1000 Soul Goal
Hearts for Ukraine Needs Your Help to Reach 1,000 Souls! God has blessed me with the time for this service to His children in Ukraine, but now I need the financing to get there. With a very doable goal of reaching a thousand souls in two and a half weeks, that’s a total of $2,500 that needs to be raised in the next 5 weeks.
I heard a wonderful video this week at my home group. In this short clip called “The Corner,” Rob Bell talks about how in the Old Testament God instructed farmers how to harvest their crops. Gather only the grains, olives or grapes on the first pass through. Do not go back to the corners or edges of the field to get what was missed the first time; do not go over the vines again to get more. Instead leave that which remains for the orphan, the widow and the immigrant. That is God’s grace to them because they have no land or vines and it’s just the right thing for us to do.
Each of us has a corner of our own harvest that we can spare for someone in need. Rob put it this way, “Our overflow is somebody else’s necessity.” He further asserts that by giving, a person is reminded of what he or she has been given.
So please consider what you’ve been given and what “corner” you can leave for the orphan, the widow or the immigrant. In doing so, you’ll help Al reach his goal of blessing 1,000 souls this winter! Please see our new Hearts for Ukraine Giving Plan in the next section.
Hearts for Ukraine Announces Giving Plan
Hearts for Ukraine needs more “hearts” to step up and become regular contributors. For those who wish to, we have developed a giving plan to help you schedule your giving. And of course one time donations, large or small are also much appreciated!
* To become a PARTNER
Pledge $10/ month and say,
”Al, I want to do my part to help bring the Gospel to Ukraine orphans.”
* To become a SPONSOR
Pledge $25/ month or make a $250 one-time gift and say,
”Al, I want to bless 100 children in an orphanage.”
* To become an AMBASADOR
Pledge $50/ month or make a $500 one time gift and say,
”Al, I want to bless 200 children in two orphanages.”
* To become an ADVOCATE
Pledge $100/ month or make a $1,000 one time gift and say,
”Al, I want to bless 400 children in four orphanages.”
Natasha’s Story
In Donetsk region where our Thousand-Soul Goal Tour begins, a pastor’s wife, Natasha prepares for our visit. Her team of church members are rehearsing a play complete with costumes and puppets that will be performed at up to four orphanages in this region. Using the Birth of Jesus as a backdrop to this play, it will be a great way to instill the Gospel message into these little hearts. My only concern is that Natasha has high hopes to bring this play to 520 orphans in four orphanages and right now, there is only one-third that amount budgeted for this region.
With a very doable goal of reaching a thousand go souls in two and a half weeks, that’s a total of $2500 that needs to be raised in the next 5 weeks. That’s where you can help! The bottom line is, the more we raise, the more children will be blessed this Christmas. Please don’t let me disappoint Natasha and these children.
At this time of year especially, we are opening our hearts to family and loved ones. We are making sure each person in our lives dear to us receives a gift, a token of our affection. Yet, in Ukraine so many children DO NOT have familes to buy them gifts. Please open your heart and your wallet for these orphans this Christmas.
Sincerely,
Al Scoglio, Missions Director,
Hearts for Ukraine