David and Goliath

I am studying David right now. This morning, I read about David and Goliath. I was reminded of how wonderful and thought provoking this Sunday school story really is. David did not have any question as to whether the Lord would bring him victory or not. He knew that God was bigger than any of his problems.

I quickly got busy getting everything ready for our big week to come and David and Goliath were long forgotten. Anxiety began to grow as I went through the huge, intimidating stack of mail that has accumulated since we have been in Florida which potentially has large doctor bills amongst them. I came across a letter from Bariela, our Compassion child from the Dominican. In it, she said that her favorite Bible character is David because he killed the Giant. Great timing huh? The Lord used sweet Bariela to remind me that He is bigger than any giants I have in my life. What a great joy it is to be a Compassion sponsor!

Busy Weekend

We have a crazy busy few days. Friday, we had meetings all day. After our dinner meeting, the four of us, John, Barbara, Brock, and me, drove to Knoxville, TN for the night. That way, we only would have a 4 hour drive the next day to get to Mooresville, TN where our show was that night.

Early in the morning, we were sleeping in lala land (actually I was dreaming I was in Harpers Island, which is the setting of this thriller TV show Brock and I had been watching). As I was sitting on the beach in my dream, I hear this awful, blaring buzz going on and off. Then, I feel Brock leave the bed and could hear Barbara giggling and saying, "What is this?" Apparently, they don't have fire alarms in Mexico. Just the time I got up out of the bed, the alarm stopped. Most of us did not really go back to sleep. That made for a tired day yesterday.

However, the show last night went great! I think we fed off the energy from the crowd. Now, I am sitting in my hotel in Marion, NC which is about an hour and a half from where we did the show last night. We have a 3 1/2 hour drive to Cleveland, TN where we will perform at Lee University tonight. After the show, we will drive the 2 1/2 hours home. Then, tomorrow morning, we go to a Compassion seminar which will last all day. Such is our life!

The Purpose for the Party

After everyone ate, we gathered the table from the bedroom and living room into the dining room area and Brock spoke to them a little. He talked about Haiti and what we saw while we were in the Dominican Republic. We chose to give through Compassion International because we trust them so much. The president of Compassion lived in Haiti for 4 years. Also, they have been raising up children there for the last 40 years. Wess Stafford, the President of Compassion, said that these leaders and Christian pillars of the community that have been raised up are poised and ready "for such a time as this." He also said, "The media will leave, but we will stay."

The day before, on my way to make the big grocery run, I was thinking about everything that had happened that month. We had a pipe burst. We had a leaky roof that had to be fixed. Plus, some other things that we did not count on happening. The thought ran through my mind that maybe we should not give as much as we had alloted to give toward Haiti relief. Then, I caught myself! I had a roof and pipes to complain about. Many people in Haiti had lost everything. Then, I heard the Lord's gentle prodding to give more. When the time came to contribute, I was so excited! There is something about giving sacrificially that gets my blood flowing! I had not done that in a while.

When all was said and done, we raised $1,050 for Haiti relief Saturday night. Praise the Lord! I beg you not to be like the press. Let's keep praying for Haiti. We've been praying for Haiti for years. They are so close and so desperate. It was a quicker flight from DR to Miami than Miami to Nashville. They really are our neighbors.

Preparing for Party

We are having a Velentine's Party with a Purpose tonight. We are dressing up and serving a 5 course meal. Our house is being transformed today into a restaurant with candle light and white Christmas lights. We will use curtains to partition off certain areas of the house like the kitchen.

I got a couple of great cooks to help me with the entrees. Brock is going to be the host tonight and Barbara the waitress. I will be working as chef. Here is what is on the menu:
Appetizers-french bread to dip in olive oil and spinach and artichoke dip
Salads-Caesar and house salad (spinach leaves, walnuts, feta cheese, pears, avocados)
Entrees-chicken & rice, vegetable lasagna, or beef stroganoff
Cheese tasting-goat cheese, a blue and cheddar cheese, a unique aged cheese
Chocolate tasting-5 of our favorite chocolates

Our purpose is for Haiti. We are giving through Compassion. Pray that it goes well, and many are moved to contribute.

Meeting our Compassion Child

On rare occasions, you have redefining times in your life. For me, this was one of them...We got to meet our Compassion child in the Dominican Republic! It was so amazing. First of all, our translator and guide from Compassion International was a former Compassion child from The Dominican Republic. His sponsors live in Pennsylvania. Ivan is his name. That's one reason I love this organization. They use the locals to run everything. It just makes sense.

Ivan drove us three hours northwest into the mountains closer to Haiti. The people in the small town that we were in felt the quake so much more than they did in Santo Domingo. They said that the house shook and they all ran outside. It scared them, but nothing was damaged. We estimate that it was up to a 5 there. They also experienced the after tremors.

Bariela, our Compassion child, just turned 8 on Christmas Eve. You can imagine that she was a little shy with all of the attention she was receiving. I could tell that she had her best clothes on and her hair was so cute! She melted our hearts as soon as we saw her. We gave her a little backpack with a few things in it. One of the things was a picture album of us and our friends and family, so that she has a better idea about our lives. We also gave her a couple of coloring books, and she and her friend began coloring.

Brock did a little magic for them (watch the video at the end of this post to see one). As Brock began doing magic, neighbors and family members began pouring inside. Bariela's house was very small maybe 15X15 and she had two doorways but no actual doors. At one point, I counted 22 people in that little house. It made me think of that TobyMac song, "When love is in the house, the house is packed..." They definitely could teach us a few things about community. It came so naturally to them.

Toward the end of our visit, Brock asked them what they needed. He said that he wanted to pray for them. He did, but I know Brock. He was fishing, too. He likes to fulfill people's needs. Bariela's father, whom was an impressive leader in his family, answered the question. You are not going to believe what he said! "Pray for our health and the people in Haiti." Brock and my mouth dropped. They don't even have a door, and they only asked for that? If we were to ask that of anyone in this country, they would have a list of things they "needed." We have much, and we want much. They have nothing and want for nothing. It was a special time when Brock prayed over Bariela and her community.

As we were leaving, the father said that they only wanted to serve us. As Brock shook his hand, he also shook his head, and said that we want to serve them. As I hugged Bariela's grandmother, she held onto me tightly and then looked me in the eyes and said, "Blessings." I cannot imagine that we blessed them as much as they blessed us that couple of hours that we spent hanging out with them. I will always remember and treasure that time sitting in Bariela's house on that Friday morning.
Us and BarielaBariela and her parents and siblings
Bariela opening her gift
Everyone hanging out in the house
Ivan is the big guy holding the baby
The backside of their house
Their neighborhood

Big Weekend

Along with Barbara, a couple of other people are staying with us this weekend. We've been having a good time exploring food and magic.

Today, we have a show in Alexandria, AL. That is a little over a 3 hour drive. We are going to drive home after the show. Pray that it all goes well.

Then, we are having a Party with a Purpose Monday. It is going to be a festival with several of our local musicians performing. We are raising money to buy malaria tents for Compassion. I will let you know how everything went on Tuesday!

A Bowl of Rice

Watch these videos. Brock is much more positive than me. I'm so effected by stuff like this!

Rice Challenge

We are giving everyone a challenge for this coming Wednesday. Brock said it really well...

did you know that two thirds of the world lives on less than $2 per day? what would it be like to live on that? what if we could only afford to buy a cup of rice each day? what if we had to live on a cup of rice?

this coming wednesday march 11 is global food crisis day. this is a day that we have an opportunity to give to compassions global food crisis fund and make a difference.

here is my challenge. are you ready?

on wednesday, i want you to take a cup of rice and live on that for a day. call it a fast if you want. i will put it this way, if you can live on a cup of rice for the day then you will have a glimpse of what it is like to walk in their shoes. you will gain some serious perspective. you will realize how blessed you actually are.

the money that you would have spent on food for the day can now be donated to feed people around the world. click here to donate. take the challenge and put your money where your mouth is. this is the rice challenge.

on monday at 5pm i will be at http://brockgill.tv chatting live with all of you who would like to join me. i want to hear from you and talk about ways we can make a dent in the food crisis.

the rice challenge will begin wed march 11. spread the word by linking here or copy and pasting this post onto your blog.

March 11 is Global Food Crisis Day

Here is the radio spot Brock did for the upcoming Global Food Crisis Day:

We may have a chocolate tasting hosted by Brock on brockgill.tv that night to raise money for this effort. Maybe some of you would want to join alongside us at your home or church. You could order a chocolate tasting kit from us or get your own chocolate from your local store. Lindt is a good chocolate. They have many different flavors added to the chocolate. You don't have to buy too much when you have a chocolate tasting, either. Each person only tastes a little from each bar.