November 7, 2008
The Roots of Operation Christmas Child
One reason why SiowFong, Lydia, and I look forward to our volunteer efforts with Operation Christmas Child each year is because this program is a personal way that we can help to meet the basic physical needs of some children overseas.
To understand the purpose of Operation Christmas Child, Samaritan’s Purse’s annual program that gives hope to needy children in over one hundred disaster-afflicted, war-torn, or impoverished countries, one must read the Parable of the Good Samaritan since this story embodies the spirit of this nonprofit organization’s work.
The parable is found in the the New Testament of the Bible in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 10, verses 25–37.
"On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?". "What is written in the Law?" he replied. "How do you read it?" asked Jesus. The man answered: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'" "You have answered correctly," Jesus replied. "Do this and you will live." But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" In reply Jesus said: (the parable starts here) "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead with no clothes. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two silver coins and gave them to the innkeeper. 'Look after him,' he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.' "Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?" The expert in the law replied, "The one who had mercy on him." Jesus told him, "Go and do likewise." New International Version
“The Parable of the Good Samaritan is a New Testament parable appearing only in the Gospel of Luke.[1] (Also known as The Good Neighbor). The majority view indicates this parable is told by Jesus in order to illustrate that human kindness and fellow feeling must be available to all, and that fulfilling the spirit of the Law is just as important as fulfilling the letter of the Law. . .” (Source: Wikipedia. “Parable of the Good Samaritan”)
“How can one be a neighbor? It takes eyes and ears to be a neighbor, as well as a compassionate heart. The one major difference between the priest and Levite on the one hand and the Samaritan is not what they see and hear, but what they do with what they see and hear. Only the Samaritan takes pity. Only he has a heart. Neighbors are people with a heart that does more than pump blood. It sees, feels, and serves.
One often hears that the task of dealing with pain in the world is so vast that we do not know where to begin or how we can even hope to make a dent in what needs to be done. Such thinking can become an excuse for inaction. . .A better attitude is to pitch in where one feels a sense and ability to help. Maybe I cannot help everywhere, but I can help somewhere and try to do a meaningful work of service. . .Neighborliness comes in all shapes and sizes. It is limited only by our failure to see, feel, and respond.” (Source: Darrell Bock. The NIV Application Commentary on Luke. Zondervan: 1996. pages 302-303.)
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Photos: Samaritan Project 5 All Done!
DSC_5558After her mom had labeled the shoeboxes, Lydia helps to carry them from the living room to the upper landing area where they will be stored tonight.
DSC_5559Look at that determination on Lydia's face.
DSC_5569Lydia is getting ready to stack the shoeboxes.
DSC_5579Tired from all of tonight's activities, Lydia rests in front of the twenty shoeboxes.
DSC_5597Lydia and Tiger are happy that the shoebox job is done!
Her dad will take the shoeboxes tomorrow to a local Lifeway Christian bookstore that has been collecting the shoeboxes for the last few weeks. Later in November, the shoeboxes will be sent to a local collection site before they are transported to a regional collection site. Then Samaritan's Purse will airlift the shoeboxes to over 100 different countries where they will be given to needy children.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in the living room and upper landing areas of our home during our shoebox packing for Operation Christmas Child.
Photos: Samaritan Project 4 Parents
DSC_0053Lydia is getting ready to place a tube of Crest toothpaste into a shoebox while her dad carries a stack of soap for Lydia to put in other shoeboxes.
DSC_5496Lydia is carrying a memo pad that she will soon place inside a shoebox while her dad, who is following her, has other pads in his hand.
DSC_5497Lydia and her dad are holding the ten solar calculators, gifts for the toddler and preschool-aged boys.
DSC_5537Lydia shows her mom a "BOY" label before her mom affixes the label to this box with clear packing tape.
After the shoeboxes are filled with gifts, the labels are placed on the boxes.
The late pastor Ken Brackney, the minister who provided our marriage counseling and who officiated our wedding, once gave a message in November at the First Chinese Baptist Church in Virginia Beach, Virginia entitled "Thanksliving". In that sermon, Pastor Ken emphasized to the congregation that Christians are not only to give thanks to God daily but also to live as grateful people each day. An element of living thankfully is caring for others since God cares for each and every human being.
DSC_5548Lydia gently noserubs her mom's head and hugs her mom as they take a brief break from placing the boy and girl labels on the shoeboxes.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in the living room of our home as we were distributing gifts inside the twenty Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes that will eventually be given to needy children abroad by Samartan's Purse.
Special note: Operation Christmas Child is only one of a multitude of ways to show concern for others. Tim Stafford's outstanding parenting book, Never Mind the Joneses, lists these ideas for families to reach out to people: volunteer where you're uncomfortable, provide holiday meals, go on missions trips, welcome international students, befriend a missionary, sponsor a child living abroad, care for a foster child (or foster children), adopt a child, and write letters on behalf of organizations that fight for human rights and promote justice.
Photos: Samaritan Project 3 In Action
DSC_0049Clutching a bunch of toothbrushes, Lydia slowly proceeds down the line of shoeboxes on the left that are designated for toddler and preschool-aged boys to drop one in each shoebox. (The shoeboxes that are lined up next to the coffee table are ones for toddler and preschool-aged girls.)
DSC_5464Lydia is placing a box of crayons inside a shoebox.
DSC_5509Lydia has just released a tube of Crest toothpaste into a shoebox.
DSC_5514Lydia is getting ready to put a package of Dora the Explorer stickers inside one of the shoeboxes that will be given to a toddler-aged or preschool-aged girl.
DSC_5524Lydia is ready to drop a washcloth into a shoebox.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in the living room of our home as we were packing shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child.
Special note: "For more than 30 years, Samaritan's Purse has worked in close partnership with churches around the world. Whether we are responding to a devastating storm here in the United States or a war or famine in Africa, we have found there's no better way to meet the urgent physical and spiritual needs than through the local church. . .
One of the best examples of church partnership is our Operation Christmas Child project. Right now, tens of thousands of churches in the United States and other Western countries are helping to pack and collect millions of shoe boxes with gifts for hurtiing children. In the weeks ahead, local churches in more than 100 countries around the world will hand out these gifts.
Not only will these gifts delight the kids -- including many who have never received a Christmas present -- but they also are ideal ways for churches to tell children and their families about God's greatest gift, His Son, Jesus Christ.
Along with the shoe box gifts, Samaritan's Purse provides Gospel storybooks in dozens of languages so that the children and their families can read about Jesus. Then we offer a Bible study program that churches have used to lead hundreds of thousands of children to faith in Christ."
(Source: Franklin Graham. "Serving the Church Worldwide." Samaritan's Purse Update. November 2008. pages 1-2.)
Photos: Samaritan Project 2 Teamwork
DSC_0014While her dad and mom are assembling new Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes, Lydia is carrying a completely assembled shoebox to the other end of the living room.
SiowFong and I have participating in Operation Christmas Child for many years, and this year is Lydia's second year of involvement. Although most of our charitable giving is just writing checks to fund the work that our church does locally and the work that Christian organizations do internationally for the poor, such as World Vision, Assemblies of God, and Samaritan's Purse, Operation Christmas Child is a special opportunity for us to help needy children overseas. Pastor Bob at Shoreline Community Church periodically reminds us that as Americans, we are wealthy (whether we believe it or not) compared to those billions of people who live beyond our shores.
DSC_0023Eight shoeboxes are completed with twelve more to go. Ten of the shoeboxes will contain presents for girls between two and four years of age, and the other ten are designated for boys between two and four years of age.
DSC_0076Dad, Lydia, and mom sit beside the two rows of shoeboxes. Those behind us are for the girls, and those in front of us are for the boys.
For many children growing up in America, the Christmas experience generally includes receiving gifts. Most of the children around the world who do not live in developed countries like Australia, those in Europe, and Japan, however, have never been given a Christmas present. "Reerose was 14 years old when she received her first Christmas present. The Filipino teenager was overjoyed to get a shoe box containing a variety of school supplies -- exactly what she needed for her course work. 'It is exciting to know that people like you from the other parts of the world are concerned about our situation here,' said Reerose. 'Even my parents were very happy because what I prayed for was granted.' . . .For millions of children, Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes are tangible expressions of God's love and constant presence." (Source: Operation Christmas Child's 2008 brochure)
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in the living room of our home during the two and a half hours we were assembling and packing shoeboxes of gifts for Operation Christmas Child.
Photos: Samaritan Project 1 Started
DSC_0013Lydia helped mom and dad carry the bags of donated goods that had been stored in our guest bedroom to the upper landing area where they would be organized before being placed in the twenty shoeboxes.
Upper stairs
DSC_0024Lydia is stacking two towers of Palmolive bar soap.
Upper landing
DSC_0037Lydia is surrounded by the gifts for the children.
Upper landing
DSC_5450Does the word "fun" come to mind when looking at this picture of Lydia?
DSC_5520
Lydia is happily holding a pile containing twenty washcloths.
Living room
"The Scripture 'Be kind to everyone' (2 Timothy 2:24) poses a challenge during the early years. A young child sees himself at the center of the world, so the very act of being helpful, caring or compassionate requires a child to reach out to others. The concept of kindness begins to have real-world meaning when the word "kind" is attached to specific actions."
(Mary Simon. First Virtues for Toddlers. Standard Publishing: 2003. page 248.)
Note: For many months earlier this year, Lydia's favorite book was "the virtue book", the name her mom and dad assigned to First Virtues for Toddlers, as she asked that we repeatedly read this book to her.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in our home.
DSC_5520Lydia is happily holding a pile containing twenty washcloths.
Living room
"The Scripture 'Be kind to everyone' (2 Timothy 2:24) poses a challenge during the early years. A young child sees himself at the center of the world, so the very act of being helpful, caring or compassionate requires a child to reach out to others. The concept of kindness begins to have real-world meaning when the word "kind" is attached to specific actions."
(Mary Simon. First Virtues for Toddlers. Standard Publishing: 2003. page 248.)
Note: For many months earlier this year, Lydia's favorite book was "the virtue book", the name her mom and dad assigned to First Virtues for Toddlers, as she asked that we repeatedly read this book to her.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 7, 2008 in our home.
Photos: Samaritan Project
DSC_5337Samaritan Purse's Operation Christmas Child Logo that appears on the outside of one of its shoeboxes
The logo, which shows a gift box with airplane wings, essentially summarizes how this program works. Donors in America pack shoeboxes filled with Christmas gifts that are sent overseas by airplane to be distributed in third and fourth world countries where boys and girls struggle with poverty, disaster, or war.
DSC_5340A donor tapes either a boy's label or a girl's label to a shoebox and marks the appropriate age group on the label that corresponds to the specific presents that inside the shoebox.
DSC_5342Franklin Graham, Billy and Ruth Graham's son who is the President of Samaritan's Purse, summarizes succinctly the purpose of this ministry -- which is to "bring joy and the Good News of Jesus Christ to children in need of hope."
Note: All of these pictures of Samaritan's Purse's Operation Christmas Child materials were taken on November 2, 2008 in our home.
International Adoption Update
November 4, 2008
International Adoption Update
A few weeks ago, I read a brief article in Newsweek about the current international adoption landscape from an American perspective. Quoted below is the majority of that piece.
“…American interest in adopting foreign children is stronger than ever. So why is the United States adopting fewer of them? According to early projections by the US State Department, foreign adoptions have dropped an estimated 10 percent from last year – the fourth straight year of decline since the high-water mark of 22,884 in 2004. Experts say the downward trend is likely to continue as countries such as Russia, Guatemala and China, which in recent years had been among the largest providers of orphans for adoption, have either dialed back their programs or ended them entirely.
China says increased prosperity in the country means fewer abandoned children. Russia, Ukraine and South Korea, all facing declining birthrates, are encouraging domestic adoption. The US government stopped new adoptions from Guatemala early this year because the country failed to comply with the Hague Adoption Convention’s standards. And Vietnam shuttered its program last year following allegations of fraud and corruption.
Advocates hope the tide will turn back soon. Guatemala and Vietnam are planning reforms. And there are encouraging signs that adoptions from Mexico, Columbia and Ethiopia will soon increase, proving that as some doors close, others are bound to open wider.”
(Source: Pat Wingert. “Fewer Bundles of Joy.” Newsweek. October 20, 2008: page 8.)
International Adoption Update
A few weeks ago, I read a brief article in Newsweek about the current international adoption landscape from an American perspective. Quoted below is the majority of that piece.
“…American interest in adopting foreign children is stronger than ever. So why is the United States adopting fewer of them? According to early projections by the US State Department, foreign adoptions have dropped an estimated 10 percent from last year – the fourth straight year of decline since the high-water mark of 22,884 in 2004. Experts say the downward trend is likely to continue as countries such as Russia, Guatemala and China, which in recent years had been among the largest providers of orphans for adoption, have either dialed back their programs or ended them entirely.
China says increased prosperity in the country means fewer abandoned children. Russia, Ukraine and South Korea, all facing declining birthrates, are encouraging domestic adoption. The US government stopped new adoptions from Guatemala early this year because the country failed to comply with the Hague Adoption Convention’s standards. And Vietnam shuttered its program last year following allegations of fraud and corruption.
Advocates hope the tide will turn back soon. Guatemala and Vietnam are planning reforms. And there are encouraging signs that adoptions from Mexico, Columbia and Ethiopia will soon increase, proving that as some doors close, others are bound to open wider.”
(Source: Pat Wingert. “Fewer Bundles of Joy.” Newsweek. October 20, 2008: page 8.)
Photos: Shopper Lydia
DSC_5384Lydia is examining a blue polarfleece vest.
After church today, we went to a local REI store to buy Lydia a polarfleece vest and a jacket as she is outgrowing the ones that we purchased for her last year.
DSC_5390Lydia is meticulously trying to get the zip up a red polarfleece vest.
Whenever we have been shopping for Lydia's clothes recently, Lydia consistently wants to touch and try the garments herself. She does not like it if dad or mom try to assist her initially. Only if she is unsuccessful does she call for her parents' assistance.
DSC_5395Mom and Lydia leave the REI store after purchasing a purple jacket and a purple polarfleece (pink options were not available). While holding her mom's hand with her right hand, Lydia is carrying the brown REI bag in her left arm like a professional shopper. (This picture will probably delight two of her aunties who like to shop, MayNah and MayLee.)
DSC_5402Mom and Lydia are walking back to the car.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 2, 2008 at Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood, WA. The first three pictures were taken at the REI store, and the last was taken near Nordstroms department store.
Photo note: All pictures were taken without the use of any flash.
Photos: With the Kaings
DSC_0005While uncle Matt is feeding Kayla, his four-month old daughter, auntie Mayfanna is describing pictures in an activity book to Lydia and Kyvin, her 2 year and 7 month old son.
DSC_0010In the living room's coffee table, Kyvin and Lydia are coloring together in the activity book.
DSC_0047Kyvin is sweeping the floor with a toy with wheels while Lydia is sitting in a chair.
This toy is one that Lydia pretends is her vacuum cleaner. When her mom or dad are vacuuming, she will sometimes bring it out and mimic her parent's actions.
DSC_5288"Among Friends" might be a good name for this picture because Lydia, Kayla, and Kyvin look relaxed and comfortable with each other.
Note: All of these pictures were taken on November 1, 2008 in our home. The candid shots occurred in the living room, and the portraits took place in the dining room.
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