Joy to the WORLD!

Well, I have some awesome news- LACEY IS GOING TO AFRICA!!! Over the last two weeks Lacey has raised well above the targeted goal to get to Africa! I'm so proud of her! Now, I just need to get back in the swing of things and finish raising mine lol I have zero worries about reaching the goal. :)

(I just paused to eat my very first gluten free cupcake- it was AWESOME lol)

Now, where was I...
Oh yes, Africa...

There are no words that can describe how ready my heart is for Africa. I've done some soul searching and I've decided that as soon as the Battle for a Cure Foundation is underway and funding enough clinical trials to actually have hopes of finding a cure; I will start to plan to build an orphanage in Africa. I feel like a large piece of my heart has always belonged there; I feel like I will not be complete until I have actually made a difference in the children there. I know that a dream like this is BIG and that it will not come true without a lot of hard work. However, I also know that the God I serve is a BIG God and He has BIG plans for me. I don't want to count this life as my own...unless I've given all of my heart before my life is over, I have not done my job. I want to get to Heaven completely used up and exhausted because I used EVERYTHING that He gave me to further His cause. An orphanage seems like the next step. Battle for a Cure is cruising right along; I am learning SO much! This year we will start fundraising for our CURE Account- to fund promising clinical trials in hopes of saving these kids' lives. God is moving right along here. I find it hard to put a time stamp on my dreams...it will all happen in His time. I am so excited and in love with life!

I'm excited to share this experience with Lacey...and to come back and share it with YOU! I'm looking forward to almost 2 weeks without my iPhone; it's always attached at my fingers and I'm excited at the thought of being completely lost in Love, Prayer and Africa! :D

Until next time,
...

216 Days to Go!

The days are flying by! I've been swamped with work and all of the Battle for a Cure Christmas Festivities, but I do not want to let the holidays go by without extending the offer to give you a shirt if you provide life saving medicines and food to the children in Africa. For just $25 you can literally SAVE A LIFE! Please consider this offer! Please see the previous blog entry for more details!

I would also like to send out a HUGE THANK YOU to Jan Halash for her donation of funds, flip flops and friendship bracelet materials! Jan, you are an angel on earth, THANK YOU!!!

My flip flop ministry now greatly exceeds 300 pairs (I have yet to sit down and get a final count)! WOW! Thank you all, what an amazing job you did to get this ministry to this point! I am no longer accepting flip flops because the number of flip flops far outweighs the funds I have for extra baggage fees (none so far). I know that God will provide the funds needed to get me (and ALL of my stuff lol) to Africa this coming June!

Thank you all for your continued support! I wouldn't be where I am today without you!

Love,
Amanda

This Christmas Give the Gift of LIFE!

This Christmas you can literally give the

gift of LIFE to a child in Africa!

If you:

**Donate $25 to purchase life saving medicine for an ill child in Africa 

OR 

**Donate $21 to feed a child for one week

I will give you a Mission:Love Africa Shirt! Of course, this offer is only extended while supplies last and available sizes may vary.

This offer is valid until 01/01/2012. Donations sent to Live in Love Ministries are tax deductible. Please see the Donation tab for more details on donating.

Please contact me at missionloveafrica@gmail.com for full details!

Refocusing My Efforts- SAVE THE CHILDREN

Where to start....

The Yard Sale was a HUGE success! Lacey and I made $715! Thank you to all who donated items and stopped by!

Flip Flops: I am no longer accepting flip flops (unless I've already talked to you, in which case, I'm already counting yours). I have about 300 pairs and I feel like God is telling me to refocus my efforts. I will still need help with the baggage fees, so if you feel led to help me with that I would appreciate it very much.

Save a Dying Child:  I am refocusing my efforts. I have talked to Ben and he told me that just $3 will provide a meal to a starving child. JUST $3!! That's pocket change.

He also told me that medication to save children from various sicknesses, including malaria (a child dies every 45 seconds in Africa from malaria) is only $25! ONLY $25 to actually SAVE A LIFE!

I was telling mom, if this were happening in the US and we could line up each dying child, there would be people scrambling to get to them with their 3 $1 bills and their $20 bills! These kids are alive, they are breathing, they are praying, they love, they play, they rejoice, they hope, they BELIEVE...they are CHILDREN....and they are dying. How in the world can I not do everything I can to save as many as I can?

I will be setting up a lot of fundraisers starting in January 2012 to raise money for food and medicine for these children. Please join my efforts! Through my journey you will personally see the lives you save and the children you help! You're not giving your money to a random nonprofit that will divide it and put it where they want...you'll be giving it to ME to use to save children.

PLEASE consider partnering with me on this ministry! I know with all of my heart that God is going to bless it and bless this trip! I NEED YOUR HELP!

Visit the Donate Food & Medicine tab for details!



235 Days to Go!

Hello friends!

I haven't sold any shirts or raised any money since my last post so that stays the same. Only 235 Days to go! I'm so excited!

If you live in the Austin area mine and Lacey's Yard Sale for Africa is tomorrow in Round Rock from 8am to 1pm! We are pricing everything super CHEAP for quick sale! We have a lot of really great stuff!! Come on out if you can!

Me and Lacey are also going to be in charge of the crafts that we will be doing with the kids in Africa. I'm really excited about it! I've been looking up Vacation Bible School crafts and I've come up with a few things that we might be able to do. If you have any ideas please let me know! We are going to do friendship bracelets with yarn and cheap beads. If you have any beads or yarn that you'd like to donate please let me know!

Flip flops...WOW...you guys have really blessed that mission! I have over 250 pairs! John Gavin contacted the Tiddies Sandles company and they donated some of their sandles! There was a little setback with their logo, but Tiffany and I got creative and fixed it, now they are good to go! I can't wait to see the smiles on their little faces!

That's about it for today! Please continue to pray over our team and our trip!

I'll leave you with this, my realization lately: If you're so afraid of everything that you're not doing anything, you're not really living. You can't be afraid to live your life, to go where God has called you, to take risks, to love people, to let your hair down, to have fun...don't be afraid to LIVE or you're not living at all.

Stay Blessed!
Amanda

250 Days and $780 To Go!

The countdown continues, only 250 days to go! I'm getting close to reaching my goal, I'm only short $780!

I want to take a moment to thank everyone who has purchased a tshirt to help fund my trip! You are all wonderful and I cant thank you enough! I wish I could name you all individually, but that would be a LONG blog! lol So THANK YOU a million times over, I appreicate each and every one of you!

If you haven't purchased a shirt, I STILL have some and I would LOVE to sell them all! :)

I also want to thank those of you who have given generous donations to help support my trip:

*Jonathan Marquez, my brother from another mother, THANK YOU for always supporting everything that I do! Your heart is SO BIG and I am SO PROUD to call you a friend! I love you, buddy!

*Steven & Kelly Branch, you are both extraordinary people! I am so blessed to have such an amazing support system! THANK YOU so much for believing in me and funding my trip! I will never be able to repay you for your generosity!

*Bill & Ruth Bartlett, you two have to be the most generous and loving people on the face of the earth! I appreciate your donation to help get the flip flops to Africa! I cant thank you enough for everything that you have done to help me and Beau! We absolutely adore you! THANK YOU!!

I also want to thank everyone who has donated Flip Flops to send to the kids! I'm going to try to name you all, please let me know if I forget anyone!

Jessica Camarillo- You're a saint! You gave over 100 flip flops and I cant wait to show you pictures from my trip!

Mars (my sister)

Mom

Tiffany Burgess

Jane Bartlett

Yvette Wright

Kerrie McCullough

Traci McClead

I know more are on the way from Emersyn Harris, John Gavin (from Tiddies Sandles) and Makayla Lewis as well!

Keep them coming!! We are almost to 200 Pairs!!!

I appreciate all of your support!

Please don't forget about mine and Lacey's Yard Sale on October 15th in Round Rock! We have A LOT of great stuff! If you have anything you would like to donate please contact us!

I also wanted to share a link with you- This is a fellow Austinite that will be spending one month in Peru (I'm SO jealous)! He is chronicling his month long volunteer effort in Peru to help the destitute and sick Peruvian children and raise donations http://austintoperu.blogspot.com/! He also has a facebook page if you'd like to stop by and see what he's up to!

So I leave you with this quote by Mother Teresa (because we should all strive to be more like her in my opinion!)

"We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But the ocean would be less because of that missing drop."

Stay Blessed,

Amanda

262 Days and $1,179 to Go!!



Today I wanted to give you a quote from Mocha Club's "I Need Africa More Than Africa Needs Me" campaign, but I had a hard time finding just one piece of it to show those who have never read it. Therefore, below you will find the campaign in it's entirety. Please allow the words to soak in and marinate inside your heart. Perhaps after reading it you will find the same need to travel to Africa and experience this level of faith, love and grace for yourself.

I Need Africa More Than Africa Needs Me
When I think of Africa, the following images immediately come to mind: Starvation. AIDS. Child soldiers. Genocide. Sex slaves. Orphans. From there, my thoughts naturally turn to how I can help, how I can make a difference. "I am needed here," I think. "They have so little, and I have so much." It's true, there are great tragedies playing out in Africa everyday. There is often a level of suffering here that is unimaginable until you have seen it, and even then it is difficult to believe. But what is even harder is reconciling the challenges that many Africans face with the joy I see in those same people. It's a joy that comes from somewhere I cannot fathom, not within the framework that has been my life to this day.

The images spilling out of my television showed circumstances that could seemingly only equal misery, and I was fooled. I bought into the lie that circumstance defines happiness. The truth is, in Africa I find hearts full of victory, indomitable spirits. In places where despair should thrive, instead I find adults dancing and singing, and children playing soccer with a ball crafted of tied up trash. Instead of payback, I find grace. Here, weekend getaways are not options to provide relief from the pains of daily life. Relationships and faith provide joy. Love is sovereign.

My new reality… I know now that my joy should have no regard for my circumstances. I'm ashamed by my lack of faith, but at the very same moment I am excited by my new pursuit. I'm forced to redefine the meaning of having much or having little. I'm uneasy with the prospect of change and of letting go, but just the thought of freedom is liberating. I want what I have learned to trickle down from my head into my heart - I no longer want to need the "next thing" to have joy.

I'm not saying that Africa does not need our efforts. It absolutely does need our partnership. But for me, I've come to understand that I NEED AFRICA MORE THAN AFRICA NEEDS ME. Why? Because it is Africa that has taught me that possessions in my hands will never be as valuable as peace in my heart. I've learned that I don't need what I have and that I have what I need. These are just a few of this continent's many lessons. I came here to serve and yet I've found that I have so much to learn, and Africa, with all its need, has much to teach me.

In 262 Days I will leave for Africa. To try to express in words how excited I am is impossible, there are no words. I cannot wait to get there! I'm halfway to my fundraising goal! Our Flip Flop campaign has over 200 flip flops that will be traveling with me. I only wish that you could go too.

All my love,
Amanda

Movin' on up! 281 Days, $1,885 to go!

Hello friends and family!

Today marks 281 days until Africa! I am getting really excited about it! I have raised $615 so far and I'm feeling really good about everything! I just have $1,885 to go! Lacey and I are having a Garage Sale in Round Rock on October 15th if you would like to donate your unused items or come shop our great finds! :)

The Flip Flop Ministry is going great! We have around 200 pairs from infant to XL Adult! We are still taking donations of new flip flops so please let me know if you have any that you would like to send our way! You should be able to catch them on sale this time of year! We are still in need of donations for the extra baggage fee so we can get them there. If you feel led to help with that you can donate a dollar or two to the paypal button on the right side of the screen under the thermometor!

I have decided to take tshirts that have special meaning to me with me on my trip and wear them throughout my journey. I will be taking all of my Battle4aCure shirts, my Sevenly shirts, my Team Ethan shirt, my Team Caden Monster shirt, my Mission:Love Africa shirts and any other shirts that I come across in the next 281 days. I will be traveling/in Africa for 2 weeks so I'm excited to 'take everyone with me' on this journey. :)  I know that it will mean a lot to some of those people as well.

Speaking of Mission:Love Africa shirts...I'm running out of some sizes, so if you plan to get one you may want to do it ASAP! They are still $12 for the month of August then I will probably raise them to $15.

I hope that everyone is doing well! Please keep our team in your prayers! Raising money is really hard, we want it so bad that we're doing whatever it takes to get to Africa. Our team really needs your prayers as they raise money and prepare for their trip (I know I sure do!).  :)

Thank you for checking in!
I love you all!
Amanda

295 Days to Go and $2,142 to Go!

Hey everyone!

First of all, I want to thank everyone for their continued love and support! Our trip is just 295 days away, and I am so excited! My trip has a theme song, it's "Shovel" by Katie Herzig. You've probably heard it on the Mocha Club video. After watching the video a few years ago (after already having a deep desire to serve in Africa) I felt so much like God had confirmed this decision for me. I didnt know that it would take a few years for God to prepare me for this trip, but here I am and I AM READY! I have days where I listen to the song and get butterflies from all of the excitement, I have days where the song brings tears for the suffering children in Africa and I have days where I'm so caught up in my own little world that I'm not hearing the message at all. Nobody's perfect.

Fundraising has been a lot harder than I thought it would be, however, I'm moving right along! I know that God will provide! I've raised $358 so far...it's a slow start but a start none the less! I also started the Flip Flops for Africa Campaign! At first I was unsure of this project, but I know the heart God made and so carefully gave to me...and that heart will not let me show up in Kenya empty handed. It's just not possible. God has definiately shown down on this project! I have flip flops dropping into my hands by His servants (my wonderful friends) and I know that he will provide for the extra baggage fee. I cant wait to see their little (and big) faces light up when they get their brand new pair of flip flops. I know it's not much, but it's something that I can do.

I'm planning on having a charity yard sale in October to help raise money. If you would like to donate your unwanted items please let me know!

Thank you for your continued love and support; you will never know how much it means to me!

Here's to AFRICA~ Only 295 DAYS TO GO!

WELCOME!

Hi Everyone!

I'm sure you found this page through your Support Letter (or if it's after July 8th, you found it online). Regardless, I'm happy you're here! Please take a moment to look around. I have been working on this page for a few months and I'm very proud of it!

I worked on my Support Letters for a few months too. I must have edited it a million times. :) I hope you all liked the end result. I hope that something that was written in that letter tugged on your heart strings and inspired you to help.

Here are your letters in the parking lot before I sent them off! Our Mission: LOVE AFRICA!

My Mission:Love Africa

According to Wiki Answers, the word LOVE appears in the Bible 697 times. There’s one thing that is very evident in the Bible, one thing that Jesus made VERY VERY Clear- LOVE. Our job on earth is to love one another.
My Mission here in life is clear- LOVE. Love every person that I come into contact with as if they were Christ himself, even the ones that are tough to love. My Mission for next summer is simple.

My Mission: Love Africa.

Love the less fortunate that have more to teach me than anyone here in the US could possibly fathom.

To me life is about escaping the “comfort bubble”. Jesus was clear about stepping out of your comfort zone to help those that He called you to help. In the US we are so used to believing that we are “poor” and less fortunate; when just across the ocean I’m sure a widowed mother digging through trash to try to feed her starving children would like to give us a clean slap of reality.  When will the American people wake up and understand that we are SO RICH. We have everything we need right at our fingertips.

I know in my heart that Jesus wants me to help those in need. Whether it be by sending Hope to kids fighting cancer through Battle4aCure or to help Make-A-Wish grant wishes to critically ill children or by saving up $2,500 to get to Africa to give all of the love my heart posses to orphaned children. Jesus said GO. (Mark 16:15) He didn’t say SIT, STAY, and I’LL BRING IT TO YOU. He said get off your couch and "GO into all the world".

So here I am; preparing for my trip. Not only am I preparing financially but I have to prepare spiritually as well. I have no worries or reservations at all. I’ve been skydiving twice, rappelled down a 372 ft building and I drive in Austin traffic every day. God is with me no matter where I go or what I do. Some people think of Africa and automatically think of child soldiers, being sold into the sex slave trade, death and danger lurking around every corner. Africa is a devastated country, but it also holds a lot of beauty and love. I put my life in God’s hands every single day… June 6, 2012 will be no different. I will wake up, take a shower, get dressed, head to the airport and set out on the trip of a LIFETIME. I know without a doubt in my mind that God will take care of me according to His plan. This is His mission, not mine.

I am asking you to accompany me on this journey in some way. If God leads you to give, please give and help me reach my goal. If God leads you to pray, please pray for my team, our travel and the people in Africa.  

Thank you for your continued love and support!

Amanda


p.s.- I would like to say THANK YOU to Jamie for letting me use her amazing pictures for my blog. With her photos and Ben's photos (actual photos from Kenya) a really wonderful guy named Mike created this AMAZING blog for me! Please see the links on the right side to see more of Jamie's work and to visit the Live In Love Ministries website.