Crazy kind of love....

A little over a year ago I felt the Lord challenging me to go on a church sponsored mission trip to Haiti. I decided to take that challenge, unaware that it would literally change the course of my life forever.

   

Before Haiti, I was passionate about poverty and I was working with several ministries that address domestic hunger and poverty. I thought about people in poverty overseas but it was not a personal conviction. That all changed the day we saw a mother who had given birth in the street, while walking to a hospital in premature labor. The baby was very small and was left in the street to die. I can still remember the blood on the dirt road, and how small that baby was. This is an excerpt from my journal. “... it takes less than two hours to travel from Miami to Haiti. That would have never happened in Miami or anywhere else in America, for that matter! I am an American…I am privileged... I got lucky. That baby did not ask to be born in Haiti. I am angry---a burning anger that will not go away. I know God is even more angry about these injustices than I am. I bet God is wondering where his people are ... how we can allow these things to persist!”

   

I felt strongly that the Lord had something for me beyond those 7 days in Haiti. I left there amazed at the beauty and resilience of the Haitian people. There are so many artists and craftsmen in that country with no one to sell their products to. I felt the Lord showing me that these people need partners. They need Christians – people of affluence, willing to partner with them and build on their unique strengths and weaknesses. But like so many times in the past when I felt the Lord moving, I asked, “Ok Lord, but how?”

  

My husband Tom and I had been praying about adoption for a little over a year before Haiti, trying to decide if we would adopt domestically or abroad. We inquired about adoption in Haiti, but soon realized that we do not meet the minimum age requirements. Two weeks after my trip to Haiti, we moved to Beulah Beach and joined the ministry team there, placing adoption on the back burner.

   

In November of 2011, I met with Terina Dutton, from Heavenly Hope Ministries. I shared with her my new passion for women and children in third world countries, and my vision to find partners for them. If these women could learn some skills and be given a market to sell their products, their lives, and the lives of their families, would be forever changed. They would have hope, something they now know nothing about. Amazingly, Terina shared that God had given her that same vision!  We then began to pray that the Lord would show us our next steps.

In January, we received word from the Dutton’s ministry partners in Ethiopia that there was another nonprofit organization that had pledged to work with a group of women making jewelry. They had some financial difficulties and were unable to continue working with the women who were already meeting at Heavenly Hope Ministries Orphanage! We knew this was not a coincidence, so we stepped into this perfect scenario and began “Project Tesfa”!

We got our plane tickets, collected supplies and flew to Ethiopia.  It was amazing to see God show up every step of the way. We are currently working with 10 women there ... they make jewelry and other items that we bring back to the States to sell. The women are paid based on Fair Trade guidelines, and are given the opportunity to learn about Jesus through discipleship. They are also able to receive a bonus of flour and cooking oil each month for visiting and caring for the elderly in their community.

   

When I was in Ethiopia, I met a six year old little girl named Getese. She was not living in an orphanage but spending most of her time on her own. Getese attended a sponsorship program of Heavenly Hope Ministries to worship and receive a meal each day. She reminded me so much of my own daughter, Mia. When I returned home I couldn’t sleep ... the Lord had put this child on my heart in such a big way. Everyday I would wake up and wonder if she was ok and if she had enough food to eat. I spent many nights in tears. Tom shared the burden and decided we had to do something!

So we did. We not only found Getese on the streets in Ethiopa, but are now in the process of adopting her! This is a huge step of faith for us! We are trusting that the Lord will continue to provide for us financially and spiritually every step of the way! Tom and I live on a relatively small ministry income, but we know our Father in Heaven owns everything. Adoption is too expensive for us—but not for God! We hope that God will use our family as a testimony to His goodness and grace when we simply trust HIM! We want to love the way HE loves. We know that God loves orphans and widows, so that means that the Schmidt family will too!  

Micah 6:8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Proverbs 31:8-9 ESV Open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth and judge righteously, defend the rights of the poor and needy.

James 1:27 NIV   Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

We hope that you will pray for us and consider partnering with us in the following ways:

-- Purchase Cooking Oil & Flour for a widow in Ethiopia - $100 a year.

-- Donate to “Project Tesfa” - Checks can be made payable to Heavenly Hope Ministries;  Memo line – “Project Tesfa" Or at www.duttonfoundation.org 

-- Host a “Project Tesfa” Party in your home or church

-- Collect Beads or other jewelry making materials to donate

-- Make a donation to the Schmidt Adoption Fund

-- PRAY LIKE CRAZY!

Blessings! And ... if you ever have a chance to go on a mission trip—GO! Who knows how God could use it to change YOUR life for His glory!