Completely Belated

Due to life, I'm completely late on many of the updates I've been meaning to give!  However, that means I get to make a list, and my little OCD self is super excited about it!

1.  My new Weekly Favorite is up.  Check out my sidebar.

2.  The Sunday before Thanksgiving (see, I told you that this was late!), we did our annual Turkey Outreach (where we give away turkeys and meals ready to cook).  This year, we gave meals to over 1500 families!  Every year is incredible, but because we've got a block that Billy and I go visit anyway, we got to lead our regular team out there.  It was so amazing to see our people connect with the people on the block.  Sometimes, they're a bigger blessing to me than I ever am to them.

Some kids decorated the boxes.  Adorable?  Yes.

His name is Cash.  But he might tell you today that it's Bob.  And tomorrow, it's Marcus.  But really, it's Cash.  Who cares what his name is with eyes like those?

Unloading the turkeys.  So cute... Ahem, sorry honey.  Manly and Strong.

Is all of the preparation and a whole weekend of work worth it?  Definitely.

(P.S. - This is not me)

3.  I made my own Christmas card and saved truckloads of money.  Maybe next year I'll start a little local business for the cash.  Or, you know, the holiday cheer.  (I will be uploading my card after I send it out.  On my To-Do list.)

4.  I took some pictures this weekend of a dear friend who refuses to blog, though she is hilarious and so much fun.  She's pregnant (hola, baby fever) and adorable.  I'll only give you one picture, because I haven't even shown her yet!  I'm super glad she let me practice my photo skills on her and her hubby.

She loves Zebra.  We wore Zebra shoes in her wedding.  So of course, the scarf...

Alright, friends, we're almost all caught up!

Dear Anonymous...

Do you see this face?  Do you see the pain in her eyes?

You must have heard their story... our story.  You must have heard our pain for them.
About a month ago, on our block, a young man took his own life.  It was a wake-up call for us.  What were we doing?  Why weren't we reaching out to these people more?
Anonymous, you have joined with us.  You are one of our cause, and we thank you.

God bless you, Anonymous.

With your gift, you have touched our hearts, and we know that you will touch theirs.

Project Backpack

This year, we had our 2nd Annual "Project Backpack" with our church.  All we do is buy bookbags and school supplies, pack them together, and hand them out around our community.  This year, we had 500 bags, and next year we will definitely need more.

We packed all 500 bags in 45 minutes on Saturday.

We put these fliers in so that they would feel free to come and get to know us better!

Billy and I got to take a team out to our block (which I've written about before - but we go once a month) and we saw some of our friends out there.  Being able to bless people we already know and love was amazing.  This is one of our favorite families.

We toted around as many bags as we could get.  Some families needed up to 15 bags!

This family was on our block also.  One of the families from our church has fallen in love with this family, and they called them before we came so they'd be expecting us. 

It feels so good to pour out.  You feel as if you've been more full even though you're so empty.

Tiny Offering

Happy Easter

This weekend we spent some time with the people on our block:

My brother's girlfriend (and my friend) Jackie was explaining that the eggs were for the hunt and not to pick them up yet!

Eating candy out of the Easter egg

My youngest brother 

I swung with him forever because I couldn't bear for him to stop giggling.

Remember that I said a family needed diapers?  This is her face when she saw them.

(read about that here)

This is her family in their tiny house.  

What a blessing these people are to us.

What an amazing way to celebrate Easter...

Being Christ's hands extended...

Loving others because he first loved us (John 4).

Such a tiny offering,

Compared to calvary.

Nevertheless,

We lay it at your feet. 

I Need.

I say that I need a lot of things.  I was just thinking about that phrase this morning as I was actually thinking about someone else's real need.

Billy and I get to head up a "block" for local ministry.  We lead a group of college students in the Outreach department, and one of our outreaches is to visit a large neighborhood the first Saturday of every month.  All we do is hang out with them, meet them, and if we can, we try to meet their needs.  For example, last month, the guys in our ministry pulled together to buy this man a brand new lawnmower.  He was so excited:

There is also this wonderful family that we have all really loved getting to know.  They occupy about three houses on the block.  And the fact that they have adorable children helps, too!

They have a pair of twins that just steal your heart:

Yes, they are dressed alike... Precious, yes?!

Well, we found out that they really need:

Diapers!

I'm guessing that this is a necessity.  Especially for twins.  Especially if you can't afford them.

Well, this month, our girl small groups are working together to get them as many diapers as they need.  We'll probably throw in some wipes, too. 

Thinking about this need made me think of all of the things I buy that I think I need.  Sometimes, I selfishly buy things for myself while I could be living with a different mindset.  I bet there are people everywhere with real needs that I could meet.  

Diapers are a real need.

I can probably go without my Starbucks today...

Giveaway with a Heart

This giveaway is very close to my heart.  If you have read some of my posts, especially What's Your Beef?, you know that human trafficking and child prostitution are really huge issues for me that I would stop if I could!  

Well, I have found an amazing organization called NightLight International that rescues girls in and at risk of trafficking and prostitution in Thailand.  They also give them jobs to help them earn money and learn a different lifestyle.  And, guess what they do?  Make jewelry!  Actually, they have a business and teach the girls all different aspects.  Some learn to design jewelry, and some make it, and some learn the business side of it.  I love this idea, because they are not only doing something to help the girls get out of terrible situations, but they help them stay out, which is so effective!

I wanted to share this with all of you, because the jewelry is so great and the cause is so worthy.  I thought, what better way than to give away something to spread the word?

I'll be sending the winner some....

Beautiful Earrings

The winner can choose between these two:

Black and Jewel Toned Pearl Earrings

or

Multi-Tonal Pink and Cream Pearl Earrings

How to Enter:

Follow my blog, and tell me which earrings you would like.  (1 entry)

Check out NightLight's Store and let me know your favorite piece (1 entry)

Twitter about it and include @sarahannrogers so I know! (1 entry)

 Blog about this giveaway and the organization (3 entries)

Please spread the word!  What a great opportunity to support these girls!

Leave me comments letting me know what you have done so I can make sure to count all of your entries!  Also, if you don't have a blog I can contact you through, please leave your email address!  Thanks!

I will choose a winner:

Monday, March 29 at 7:00 pm (EST)

Missions!

I decided to do Kelly's Show us Your Life today, and I was so excited to see that today's topic was Missions!


From the time that I was 9 until I was 13, my family lived down in Laredo, Texas (one of the driest, hottest places in America) and my parents worked for a mission organization that hosted short-term trips into Mexico, Cuba, and El Salvador.  I had the amazing privilege of going on more mission trips than I can count and having a complete change in my perspective.  Since I could go on for many posts about these experiences, I decided to limit myself to five things that I learned then and on mission trips I've been on since:

1.  American culture is not the only culture in the world.  After years spent immersed in a culture completely different than mine, I had to learn how not to judge.  It's amazing how highly we think of ourselves.  Sure, we like to learn about different cultures, but we often think that ours is the best.  My mind had to open, and I found that I loved some of the ways that things are done in Mexico, even better than the way we do them here!  

2.  God is the same on the mission field and off.  I would get frustrated every time I returned to normal life after a summer filled with mission trips.  Why did God speak to me then, and not now?  One realization changed my life, though, and that is that God is never changing.  He was the same God there as he is at home.  I'm the one that changes!  I'm the one that pulls my focus away from the things of him.

3.  Hand Sanitizer is the bomb.  Yep, I said it - the bomb!  I think I have used over 5 gallons of this stuff in my lifetime.  Ok, maybe not, but it really helps.  There are some super civilized and clean places, but there are some crazy dirty outhouses that you have to squat over and find that little 6 inch hole and hope... And then not only rub your hands, but your ankles and your arms... all over with whatever germ-x you can find.

4.  Orphanages need help.  I remember one in particular in Nuevo Laredo, MX that was just horrific.  There was one little girl that was never adopted or helped, and I think she had some mental issues.  She would come sit in your lap and get really close and whisper in your ear: "I love you; do you have any money?"  It was just awful.  I saw roaches climb in babies' diapers and I saw children with scabs on their heads that showed just one of many diseases available.  They need help badly, badly, badly.  More than anyone I met there.

5.  God is bigger than me.  And he's bigger than language barriers, and culture barriers, and my presuppositions.  He is the change agent.  He may use us on trips, but he is the one who softens hearts and saves his children.  I have nothing to offer except willing hands and words and heart, but He is everything and provides all we need, no matter where we come from, or what side of the ministry we are on.

Sharing God's Word all over the world is part of my heartbeat, and I'm thankful to have married a man that feels the same.  This will always be part of my life, in a big, big way.

Sueño, part 2

This is a continuation of Sueño, part 1.

Well, I said that I was going to be sharing my dreams. Although I hope that you can relate to having big dreams or even dreams similar to mine, I am not writing this for you. This is something I need to do for me. What I hope you will find is something inside of you - a way to recognize your own dreams and a way to share them. I believe that taking these dreams out of my heart and placing them onto this page (or post, I should say) will make me take them more seriously. And perhaps you will post your dreams on your own blog and that will help you take yourself more seriously - I don't know. If you do, I would love to read it, so let me know.

Alright, I've delayed long enough. Here they are (of course, I have tried to pick broad ideas that encompass all of my very specific ones - that would take too long!):

• Write: Ever since I can remember, I have wanted to write. I am obsessed with words, and I love to communicate. I guess that I should also include the dream of speaking into this category, which is a recent addition to my life. I recognize that God has placed this dream on my heart and that I should pursue it. I think He wants me to use my love of words and my black-and-white personality to share Him. However, I'm scared to death of failing in this, and I am even more terrified that I won't be relevant. You see, relevance is very important to me because of my next dream---
• Change the World: Yep, I said it. I don't know if there is a piece of everybody that wants to do this, but for me, it's a really big one. This one scares me more than the first one, because it seems impossible. I am very aware of my inadequacy.
• Adopt: I always thought that this was an awesome idea. However, when I went on a mission trip to Brazil with my family in 2007, we met a little girl that changed my life. She was in an orphanage but not available for adoption because her parents were still alive. We all fell in love with her, and I knew from then on that I wanted to adopt (along with having my own). I am blessed to have married a man with the same dream. Here's the little girl, Grazieli... isn't she precious?

• Missions: I spent 4 years on the mission field growing up. It changed my life, broke my heart, and gave me an incredible perspective that I am so thankful for. Even if we never do mission work in a foreign country full time, I want to be mission/outreach-minded. Whether we are in our community, our country, or abroad, I want to be living as a full-time missionary. I want our (someday-)children to have the same global-mindedness that I was allowed to cultivate. I want them to love everyone, no matter their color, culture, or religion. And I want them to know that we do everything we can to be God's hands and feet extended. We have a long way to go.

You may notice that I mentioned some of the struggles that I have with these dreams. The first struggle was admitting them to the world and to myself. However, my doubtfulness and insecurity are things that hold me back consistently. As I was thinking about this post, I realized that I could not help but include a third part. Sueño, part 3 will include where God comes into all of this, and how I am overcoming these insecurities.

What insecurities do you have about your dreams?