Fundraiser Success

The day started with the sun shining bright and a crisp chill in the air. We set up tables and the Braai outside of the International Office where there is lots of foot traffic. The students helped us braai the sausage, bake and sell the cakes, and bargain on prices for the used clothes. They carried large handmade signs advertising "Braai and Bake Sale - Youth Camp Fundraiser" on the street corners. By the end of the busy morning we were celebrating that the cakes were sold out and the sausage was gone! This is the first fundraiser to help support our students for youth camp the end of August. Please pray with us that other fundraisers will be as successful and then the students will also take up the responsibility to raise personal support so that this camp will become a reality.

Personal sporsorship from the partners is appreciated too. Just donate through our Christ's Hope USA office, and specify for August Youth Camp, Namibia Choose to Wait. www.christshopeusa.org

Seven said YES

For me the most thrilling moments are those that have eternal impact. That is the case when someone says "yes" to Jesus. Last Saturday, Auino (a staff member of YWAM - Youth With a Mission) shared his story with our students and challenged them to live a life sold out - totally committed to God. One by one, seven students raised their hands to accept this challenge and make that commitment. It was powerful! After the session, I gave each of them a Bible, instructed them to read the book of John and handed them a small booklet that helps them understand what it means to have a personal relationship with God. I pray that they will attend our club meetings and become strong in their faith journey. Please continue to pray with us and for us.

Humbled Yet Again

In the pictures above you see two tin homes. These are typical homes for a lot of the people who live here in Okahanja, Namibia. I do not show these to you to get you to feel sorry for the people but to give you a visual picture to go with the story I am going to share with you.

The two homes you see are about 13' x 13' and are made out of about 20 sheets of tin, 8 wood poles, and three 2" x 4"'s. They are very small and can house anywhere from one to ten people. There is often no electricity and no running water and only a dirt floor. It costs about $560.00 USA dollars to build one home which equates to about $4,500.00 Namibian dollars.

You have helped to build three new homes for three young men that have been working with me on building projects for Christ's Hope. These young men dreamed of having their own homes but could not imagine that those dreams were reachable. You see an average salary here is about $950 to $1,200 Namibian dollars a month and that salary is needed to buying groceries, pay for rent, school fees, taxis, and clothes.

God is using you to help these young men provide for themselves and their families. To see the smiles on their faces as they enter their new home is an experience that is impossible to put into words. I can tell you that it is working with these people that makes all the hard times and hard work worth it.

Thank you for your continued support. Your faithfulness is changing lives one day at a time. We pray that God will continue to use us all to make a difference in His children's lives.