26Sep2017

A JOB OPENING & A CALL TO PRAYER

September 26, 2017

advocacy, job opening, LSM Staff, mobilization coordinator, support, Updates and News Business, Caring for Orphans, LSM, News

We are privileged to serve more than 240 vulnerable children and 40 single mothers in Haiti and Ethiopia. Our small U.S. staff supports LSM’s vision through fundraising and mobilization with the U.S. church. It’s our heart to always empower people in their own cultures and communities to care for the vulnerable children among them. As we continue to expand our ministry in Haiti and Ethiopia, we have growing needs here in the United States as well.

Do you sense God calling you to join the LSM Team? Or do you know of someone who would qualify for this role and has a heart to join this life-changing work?

JOB OPENING: MOBILIZATION COORDINATOR

LSM is seeking to fill an immediate need for a Christ-centered, highly motivated individual to help build and develop relationships with ministry partners via digital marketing, social media, and regional awareness campaigns. Candidates must be willing to work from LSM’s Bluffton, Indiana, offices. Ideal candidates will have professional social media experience, possess very strong writing and communication skills, be able to do public speaking and networking, and be effective at scheduling and making their own appointments.

Please contact Joe Gerber at joe@loving-shepherd.org to receive a full job description and more information about the position.

Please join us in praying for the right people to continue to join the LSM team here in the States, in Haiti and in Ethiopia.

Share this job opening with a friend who might be qualified.
Join the LSM Prayer Team.
Give to the incredible life-changing work.

26May2017

You May Never Know the Impact You’ve Had

May 26, 2017

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Aben, Ammet, education, Ethiopia, family empowerment, family preservation, Jesus, poverty, Prayer, small business development, support, transformation Combating Exploitation, Ethiopia, Family, LSM, Uncategorized

Your life in the U.S. can have a powerful impact on another person’s life halfway around the world. Sound impossible? Here’s just one of the countless examples how this can happen every day.

Ammet is a single mother in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. She grew up in hopeless poverty with no food to eat, no school to attend and no peace in her life. Her father was an abusive alcoholic. She was just 12 years old when she ran away and stayed with her uncle, hoping to finally be able to go to school and have a chance at a better life.

Quickly, though, Ammet found herself the forced personal servant to her aunt, who severely abused her. Finally, she escaped, and married a young man, grasping once again at hope for a better life. But things rapidly spiraled further downhill. Ammet suffered more abuse, this time even inflicted upon her child, Aben. To save herself and her son, Ammet fled to the city, forced to forge a way for both of them. Which often meant simply surviving from one day to the next.

It wasn’t until LSM found Ammet and started working with LSM that a flame of hope was struck in an otherwise dark life of desperate survival.

Ammet received small business training so that she could provide for Aben. But the support from LSM was more than the chance at earning a dignified, living wage. More even than having people surrounding her who proved to her that she was worth it. Is this:

“Because of LSM, I am now receiving Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. It’s the biggest blessing in my life. One I can pass down to my son.”

We are here today, helping her child, Aben, now 10 years old, from continuing that cycle of poverty and abuse into the next generation. We are helping to provide stability for their family by connecting them to an active church community, ongoing support and education for Aben. We, arm-in-arm with our donors, are the hands and feet of Jesus in their lives.

**Here are three things you can do right now to help Ammet and Aben succeed as an independent family filled with dignity and hope:**

Pray.

Pray for success in Ammet’s small business and confidence in her heart as she leads her family with dignity and hope. Pray for Aben and the life-changing opportunity he has to attend school. Most importantly, pray for his salvation and that his mother would continue to grow in her faith.

2. Join us at Seeds of Hope.

Join us on July 8 to hear more about Ammet and other vulnerable families at our SEEDS OF HOPE event. Learn more here.

3. Become an Ethiopia Family Sponsor.

Become an ongoing Ethiopian Sponsor and change the futures of many families like Ammet and Aben with us! You’ll receive powerful updates like this on a regular basis and see the transformation coming to a new generation in Ethiopia.

*names changed for privacy

16Nov2016

God’s Hand in Sadie’s Life

November 16, 2016

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Change, Family, God's Heart, Home of Hope, orphans, stories, support, vulnerable Caring for Orphans, Haiti, LSM

Do you remember a time when life felt completely overwhelming, like you could do absolutely nothing to change the whirlwind around you? Imagine that knot in your stomach, the feeling of panic inside as you tried desperately to reach for some sense of normal …

That’s exactly how Sadie* felt every day as a child. She was overwhelmed with grief when she lost her mom at a very young age. Her father, who had long ago abandoned their family, never returned. After her mother’s death, Sadie’s grandmother cared for her and her siblings. But it wasn’t long before she realized she didn’t have the resources to take care of that many children. Being the oldest and most likely to survive on her own, Sadie would have to go.

2Aug2016

Your Gift is DOUBLED!

August 2, 2016

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Change, child development, Community, matching grant, newsletter, support, transformation Uncategorized

We need your help! For a limited time, your gift to help transform Haiti for Christ is DOUBLED!

In the summer newsletter, we introduced a tremendous opportunity to make a real difference for vulnerable children in Haiti by giving a financial gift to our Child Development program. In a culture where only 61% of the population is literate, the intentional education and support that serves vulnerable children from childhood through young adulthood is rare. Our effort to give each child a well-rounded, excellent education alongside personal and professional development opportunities requires that we invest deeply in these areas. This is all done with a vision that these successful, godly adults will integrate into their communities and transform their fellow men and women with the powerful love of Christ!

You can read powerful stories and learn about the matching grant here.

15Jun2016

For Our Dads

June 15, 2016

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Change, dads, father's day, Fathers, Home of Hope, Homes of Hope, LSM Staff, Prayer, support Caring for Orphans, Family, Haiti, Uncategorized

We want to give a BIG shout out to you, dads. Those who are raising your kids to love Jesus, who are faithfully serving Him, and who are selflessly caring for others. We know you have a tough job. And we are so thankful for all the ways you rise up to the task.

Here’s a beautiful message for you from a couple of adopted kiddos:

2Jun2016

Four Things That Will Make Your Summer More Meaningful

June 2, 2016

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bake sale, garage sale, lemonade stand, purse party, sponsorship, summer, support Caring for Orphans, Family, LSM, News, Uncategorized

Consider adding in one of these activities for your whole family this summer. It will truly help transform the lives of vulnerable children, and it will be a reminder to you—and a valuable lesson to your own children—that if feels good to do good.

22Apr2016

Polly

April 22, 2016

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Change, faith, Homes of Hope, Hope, Jesus, life, orphans, poverty, support, transformation Caring for Orphans, Family, Haiti

Sometimes there are stories that hit you square between the eyes. Polly’s* is one of them.

Only a few years ago, Polly stood here with her uncle who was caring for her in front of his hut. Falling apart, dirty, barely providing relief from the elements, the hut was no place to be raising an orphaned little girl. He knew it. And he wanted more for her. But on his own, there was no way he could do anything.

14Apr2016

Double Your Gift This Mother’s Day

April 14, 2016

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Change, Ethiopia, Family, Moriya, moriya ethiopian accessories, mother, mother and child, Mother's Day, support, Sustainability, Updates and News Caring for Orphans, Combating Exploitation, Ethiopia, Family, LSM, Uncategorized

Imagine a sprawling, broken and dirty city road dotted with storefronts full of trinkets being sold by men shooting leering looks in your direction. You tug the scarf a little tighter around your chin and grab your tiny child’s hand, walking quickly towards the little vendor down the block, dodging motorcycles and mangy dogs scrounging through garbage in the street. The men’s stares follow you the whole way.

Your child’s eyes look up to meet yours, “Mama, can we buy some eggs today?”

The innocent face nearly breaks your heart because you know the cost of a dozen eggs is more than you make in an entire day. You clutch in your hand your meager bit of money as you try to forget about the bleak meal you’ll be feeding your child once again. You wonder, “What has life come to? How will I ever provide for my child without stooping to desperate measures?”

MILLIONS OF MOTHERS FACE THIS TRAGIC CIRCUMSTANCE EVERY DAY.

7Apr2016

What You Should Know About International Adoptions

April 7, 2016

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Adoption process, Adoption Questions, Adoption Resources, international adoption, LSM Staff, support, updates, Updates and News, World News Adoption, Caring for Orphans, Family, News, Uncategorized

Last week, the U.S. State Department released a report about international adoptions in the last year—and the results might surprise you.

In 2015, U.S. families adopted 5,648 children internationally—the lowest number since 1981—representing a 75% decline since international adoptions peaked at 22,991 in 2004.

1Apr2016

It Takes Many Hands to Make a Lasting Difference

April 1, 2016

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Community, construction, LSM Staff, Missionaries, partnership, support, Sustainability, truck, Updates and News Business, Caring for Orphans, Family, Haiti, LSM, News, Uncategorized

As we were so happy to report in our Spring newsletter, Randy and LaNae Meyer are heading to Haiti soon where they will serve a two-year term with LSM. Randy will be in charge of a Haitian construction crew at LSM Technical Institute. LaNae will work in hospitality and keep LSM’s U.S. staff connected with stories and pictures. (You can sign up for our e-newsletters at the bottom of this screen.)

As you might expect, moving abroad is no easy task. It takes many hands. Maybe even more than you think.

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JOB OPENING: MOBILIZATION COORDINATOR

Here are three things you can do right now to help Ammet and Aben succeed as an independent family filled with dignity and hope:

Pray.

2. Join us at Seeds of Hope.

3. Become an Ethiopia Family Sponsor.

We need your help! For a limited time, your gift to help transform Haiti for Christ is DOUBLED!

MILLIONS OF MOTHERS FACE THIS TRAGIC CIRCUMSTANCE EVERY DAY.

Last week, the U.S. State Department released a report about international adoptions in the last year—and the results might surprise you.

**Here are three things you can do right now to help Ammet and Aben succeed as an independent family filled with dignity and hope:**