This is the fourth entry in our “TOP TEN Highlights From 10 Years of Ministry” series. Click here to read previous entries>>>

4. Experiencing the Miracle of Prayer

In 2006, after visiting China, Mary Beth Chapman came back with a heavy heart for a specific child named Chen Chen. This precious little girl desperately needed a family, but the chances were very low that she would be adopted. However, after putting out a call to the Show Hope family to pray, a courageous couple stepped forward to adopt her. Today  Chen Chen has a forever family! This began our monthly prayer efforts, and thousands are now seeing miracles like this happen as they advocate on their knees.

Download this month’s Prayer Focus, featuring Torie (left)>>>

Help us celebrate our 10 Year Anniversary! Join us for a FREE picnic at the Allen Arena Plaza from 12-3 on Sunday, May 26. Inflatable games, a photo booth, Nashville food trucks, Miss Patty Cake, and Randall Goodgame will ensure a wonderful time is had by all! Learn more>>>

I know many of you wanted to be with us in person for our 10 Year Anniversary Concert but couldn’t work it out, so we decided to bring the celebration to you for FREE!! We’ll be webcasting an unprecedented line-up of renowned artists who have played critical roles in the lives of orphans and adoptive families across the globe. We anticipate an evening full worship, jaw-dropping testimonies of God’s amazing miracles, and great joy. Although it may not feel the same as being present at a live event, there is sure to be somethings special about experiencing the celebration in the comfort of your own home. Are you thinking about gathering your community for this  evening? Here are 10 great reasons to host a viewing party:

1. If you are adopting, this is a perfect opportunity to share your story with family and friends.
2. This is a great reason to gather your church small group for a night of worship and fellowship.
3. Miracle testimonies told at the event will help inspire those considering adoption.
4. Use the webcast to begin conversations about the plight of orphans with your family.
5. As a Show Hope Sponsor, this is a worshipful way to share with your family the impact your giving is having on orphans.
6. If you are a sponsor and have encouraged family or friends to become a sponsor, this is a great tool to invite them to prayerfully commit.
7. There will be special surprise guests you don’t want to miss hearing from!
8. Students involved with orphan care projects can use this event as a tool to convey their journey with peers.
9. Starting an orphan ministry in your church? Host a committee meeting around this event.
10. Simply rejoice, pray, and worship as a part of the extended Show Hope family!

Get your FREE ticket now and invite your friends to join you! stagehop.com/ShowHope

Upon meeting the Jacksons, you quickly learn their unconditional love for their son. Bruk was born in Ethiopia, and Drew and Cassie were finally able to bring him home when he was 14 months old. I say “finally” because the Jacksons knew for a very long time they wanted to adopt. In fact, they knew they’d adopt long before they even knew each other’s names.

“We both had strong feelings about adoption even before we got married – we didn’t need to wait for the other person to come around to our way of thinking,” Drew shared.

Adopting a child from Ethiopia meant many hurdles for the Jackson family. Travel to and from the country for required court dates was an added expense, and it would have been easy for even the most optimistic of families to lose hope.

“We were reminded of God’s provision,” the Jacksons shared. “He has never left us without and this adoption was a magnification of that truth.”

As with many couples, the Jacksons were brought closer together during the adoption process. Their relationship grew stronger as they navigated the tumultuous journey of bringing their son home.

“We had to trust God together and be patient with each other on the hard days more than we ever have in our marriage,” they shared. This was especially important that first time they visited Ethiopia, met and bonded with their son, and then had to make the difficult journey home without him as they awaited their next court date. “We didn’t realize that it would physically hurt,” she said.

It was in those moments of pain that the Jacksons leaned into God’s Word. It was a supernatural encouragement during their moments of longing and hopelessness. It was in God’s Word that they re-learned the story of adoption, not only for their son but for themselves.

“We learned about the amazing parallel between us adopting Bruk and God’s infinite love and mercy to adopt undeserving people like us into his family forever.”

Show Hope became a pivotal piece in their son’s adoption. While money came in from family and friends, it was Show Hope’s contribution that sealed the deal of their adoption becoming a reality. They received an adoption aid grant from Show Hope, and were blessed shortly thereafter when they were chosen as a  featured family in Show Hope’s ”I Heart Adoption” Facebook promotion. As friends, family, and people they had never met banded together to “like” and share their story, the Jacksons were able to secure the final funding  needed to bring their son home.

“The grant from Show Hope was a beautiful chapter in the story of God’s provision for the adoption of our son.”

As many families know too well, the adoption process is long and hard. It’s oftentimes lonely, but as the Jacksons can attest, it’s well worth the wait.

“It’s sometimes hard to trust that God’s timing is benevolent,” they shared. “But when the waiting is over, we get to look back and praise him for what He has done.”

Help make more adoption miracles like this possible. Become a Show Hope sponsor today!

I recently had the privilege of traveling to Texas A&M University to visit some new friends of Show Hope at Breakaway Ministries. Breakaway is a weekly bible study that thousands of students attend each week . . . the group meets in the home arena of the Texas A&M basketball teams. Needless to say, it is a big community of college students who together desire to follow the Lord, dig deeper into his word, and live life accordingly. Every year, Breakaway challenges their students to commit to one month of giving sacrificially of their time, energy, and resources specifically for the purposes of their annual “Shalom Project.” Each year, they choose a non-profit ministry to partner with offering care for vulnerable and impoverished people. After researching  various non-profits, Breakaway felt strongly that they were meant to partner with Show Hope this year. The students were challenged to raise $100,000 to provide adoption aid grants to help bring seven children home and cover the cost for a year of care for 20 children at Show Hope’s Special Care Centers.

I am so thankful for the opportunity to celebrate all that God did in their month of generous giving. I heard stories of students gathering  items they no longer needed and having massive garage sales so as to donate all the proceeds to the Shalom Project. One student spent his weekends driving to small Texan towns surrounding College Station and speaking to local churches about Show Hope. He raised more than $4,000 just by inviting them to forever change the lives of orphaned and vulnerable children in America and around the world. The students were challenged to be the hands and feet of Jesus, and I must say they not only rose to the occasion, but far exceeded our expectations. In that one month period of time, the students at Texas A&M did not raise $100,000 . . . they raised $124,000! Yes, you read that correctly . . . $124,000. Wow! The money will be used to help provide life-altering care to more 30 waiting children.

As I met the staff at Breakaway Ministries, I was genuinely inspired by their humble dedication to loving God and loving people. They aren’t content to simply read the scripture and remain unchanged. In fact, the staff and the students are very intentional to challenge themselves to put into action what they read in scripture, which is particularly evident through the Shalom Project. Therefore, when they study James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress,” they respond by supporting a ministry on the frontlines of orphan care. I was deeply impacted by my time with the Breakaway family and these college students who are caring for those that are most vulnerable in our society.

To our new friends at Breakaway Ministries, thank you, thank you, thank you! We are entirely grateful for your generous hearts and partnership with Show Hope through this year’s Shalom Project. Additionally, we are thankful for the way you are encouraging and inspiring our country’s next generation of leaders to remain concerned and attentive to the needs of those in the margins of our society. We pray God’s blessings continue to abound on Breakaway Ministries.

As the temperatures begin to warm up and spring finally makes an appearance, I go into cleaning mode. I instinctively know that it’s time to open windows and dust off each room in my house. A quote by a 19th century architect named William Morris has become my spring cleaning mantra: “Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”

When I follow this rule, there are inevitably things that need to go, but I have learned that although something is not useful for me, it may bless someone else immensely. What if we made a choice this year to use the spring cleaning season to show hope to orphans? Click here for more tips and resources to make your clothing swap a success!

A group of my friends recently began hosting clothing swaps every few months, and I’d love to share this fun idea with you. Each of us brings clothes and accessories that we are no longer using to the host’s home, along with a snack to share. We display our pieces on a rack, table, or couch, and get excited to look through the options. When everything is set up, we draw numbers to determine the order in which we will “shop” and start trying on clothes. We choose three items the first round, and two items each round after that until everyone has taken what they like and will use. I always leave thankful to see my friends giving the clothes I brought a second chance and eager to wear my new finds!

By asking for an entrance donation or a suggested donation per item, hosting a clothing swap with your friends is an easy Show Hope Advocates project that allows you to help transform the life of an orphan this spring.

If a clothing swap is not a good option for your group of friends, here are a few other Advocates ideas to consider as you clean and raise funds to impact an orphan’s future:

• Swap home items and décor instead of clothes
• Host a garage sale to benefit Show Hope as a family, small group, or church
• Sell unwanted items on eBay and use eBay Giving Works to donate the proceeds to Show Hope
• Send your excess clothes to the Red Bus Project to help raise awareness on college campuses
• Shop at a sale or consignment store and donate the funds you were planning to use on new items

Visit www.showhope.org/advocates to sign up as a Show Hope advocate and find more ideas on how you can spread the movement to care for orphans in your community!

When I decided to run a marathon a couple of years ago, I knew I had the opportunity to run for a worthwhile cause. But there are so many needs around us that I had a difficult time choosing one. In my research, I came across the Show Hope website and read about how many waiting children are without a home and the financial barriers for families trying to bring these children home. These numbers stayed with me for several days after I first read them. The Lord was answering my prayers by showing me the purpose I was looking for.

I decided to become a Show Hope Advocate and set my goal of raising $2000. The love and support I received from family and friends was tremendous, but I was even more encouraged to see people excited about helping orphans in need! A friend told me before running to dedicate each step to a waiting child in need. I tried to keep that in mind (although you tend to forget a lot of things after mile 20).  The race was a little difficult, but remembering why I was running kept me motivated to finish. In the end, I beat my original goal and raised more than $2,400!

All of us may not be called to adopt an orphan, but there are always other ways we can get involved. Whether that means being the one raising money, the one giving money, or the one who prays diligently for each child (or all three!), I encourage you to pray and wait on the Lord to see what role He would have you play in transforming the live of an orphan.

As I begin training to run the Philadelphia Marathon in November, I’m excited to be running as a Show Hope advocate once again. I am so thankful for the work the Lord does through Show Hope. It’s exciting to know that we are God’s fellow workers (1 Corinthians 3:9), and I am looking forward to more opportunities to serve Him in caring for the fatherless! May His name be glorified.

How have you made orphan care a part of your everyday life? Leave a comment and let us know your Show Hope Advocates ideas!

Get started on a Show Hope Advocates project today!

Are you ready for our second 10 Year Celebration giveaway? Follow the easy steps below to win a Show Hope 10 Year Celebration prize package including: a pair of premium level ticket upgrades, a signed event poster, and two Show Hope t-shirts.

1) Click here to download our 10 year logo sheet.
2) Take a photo of you holding up the logo sheet.
3) Share your photo to our Facebook page with your anniversary wishes by April 7!
  3a) OR share your photo to Twitter/Instagram with the hashtag #SH10yr and tag @ShowHope.

Questions about the giveaway or the event? Leave us a comment!

Two months ago I was living what I would call a pretty comfortable life. I had a job that paid well, a great house to live in, friends that most could only dream of having, and I was okay with it all. Never did the thought cross my mind that three short weeks later I would be moving five-and-a-half hours west to be a part of an internship that I never in a million years expected to be blessed with.

I have never been more convinced that God has a fantastic sense of humor.

Here I sit, balancing somewhere between reality and what I am sure could only be a dream.

I arrived the evening before my internship with the Red Bus Project started. Although I felt completely unprepared, I felt this excitement that I still can’t fully explain. I don’t think I can fully communicate how AMAZING this team is. These interns are world changers. I’ve never been a part of such a solid team that still has more fun than anyone could describe in words. I’ve laughed harder in the past few weeks with the four other interns and Chris Wheeler than I have in the past few years combined. I pray these relationships only grow stronger over the next few months and will continue for years to come.

The first few weeks in the Show Hope office consisted of processing donations, brainstorming new ideas, shooting promo videos, writing emails, and trying to prepare for a tour that most of us had never experienced. It was a great time to learn where we fit in the team. It was a great preparation for the first week of tour.

On March 5th, we arrived in Asheville, NC at 5am for the first day of the Spring 2013 tour. We had only slept two hours on the overnight trip. We had never set up the bus as a team. But somehow we rallied, set up and opened the bus, and had a fantastic day. I’m still not entirely sure how we pulled it off so well. The day involved a cold start, some dancing, a little bit of limbo, tree climbing, and multiple cornhole competitions. It was a great start to what turned into a challenging but successful first week of tour.

Three days, a monsoon, a mountain trek, a snowfall, amazing volunteers, and a broken-down bus (thanks to Hemphill Brothers for getting us fixed up for next week!) later, we completed our first week of tour. We arrived back in Franklin as a colder, but stronger team.

This brings us to sometime around today. We’re digesting everything that happened last week, tweaking things for the next tour leg, and preparing to hit the road again next Monday. We’re thankful for the week off from tour, but at the same time we’re completely anxious to get back out on the road with the Red Bus Project as we journey to Indiana for a five days.

Please keep our Red Bus team in your prayers. While we adore what we are doing, we are quickly discovering that we aren’t as invincible as we thought. We leave a lot on the road, but we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Follow the Red Bus Project’s journey through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and our website. We hope to see you on the road!

Upcoming Red Bus Project Tour dates:
3.18 University of Evansville – Evansville, IN
3.21 Taylor University – Upland, IN
3.26 Furman University – Greenville, SC
3.27 Brevard College – Brevard, NC
4.4 Georgia State University – Atlanta, GA
4.9 Lipscomb University – Nashville, TN
4.11 Western Kentucky University – Bowling Green, KY

Show Hope is turning 10 this year! Since we awarded our first adoption aid grant in 2003, we have been humbled and blown away by all that God has done through your prayers, support, and financial gifts!

On Memorial Day Weekend (May 25-26, 2013), Steven Curtis and Mary Beth Chapman will host Show Hope’s 10 Year Celebration. Come meet the Show Hope staff at our Open House, enjoy a family picnic with food trucks and inflatables, and finish the weekend with our 10 year anniversary concert, featuring Mark Hall of Casting Crowns! It’s going to be an incredible weekend of fellowship and hope! Learn more and purchase tickets >

But there is something you can do NOW to help us celebrate as well. Help us spread the word about our ten year anniversary. Complete the steps below, and you’ll be entered to win a $50 gift card to the Nashville restaurant of your choice and a Show Hope t-shirt to enjoy when you visit us in May for our anniversary festivities!

Here’s how you can win:
1) Take a photo of yourself with “10” somewhere in the photo! Get creative…craft a 10 out of kitchen utensils, make a human 10 with some of your friends, hire a sky-writer…you name it.
2) Post your photo to Show Hope’s Facebook wall and include the message “Happy 10th Anniversary, Show Hope! www.showhope.org/10yr”
3) Alternately, you may post to Twitter or Instagram. Be sure to mention us (@ShowHope) and tag your photo #SH10yr

The winner will be randomly chosen and announced on March 1, so get your photo in today!

Thank you for your continued support of our mission and ministry as we celebrate our first ten years of growing the movement to care for orphans and look forward to the next ten years of transforming lives!

“Imagine 50 acres of land and 10 million blooming flowers. Rows of red, yellow, pink, fuchsia, coral, orange, gold, blush, and white racing out ahead of you like ribbons in the wind. At times, the intensity is so great it’s helpful to divert your gaze to the monochromatic blue of the Pacific Ocean nearby. The prospect of exploring something so vast is overwhelming. You have a desire to get up close and personal with each bloom, but that’s not possible. You love flowers, so walking away is not an option.

“This was my Easter morning at the Carlsbad Flower Fields in California. I had seen the fields on TV and in photos, but nothing prepared me for their enormity. Immediately, I envisioned an entire show of these flowers. Choosing which blooms to paint would be a challenge. So I approached the task, one flower at a time.

“Now imagine the 153 million orphans of the world. Children who, through no fault of their own, are parentless. Red, yellow, black and white, from every nation. The enormity of the problem is overwhelming. It would be easier to look away. How can you make a difference, how can you get up close and personal with each child?

“For me, walking away is not an option. Maybe, together, we can transform lives, one child at a time.

“Adoption is personal to me. Mine is a life that was forever changed when the Walker family took me home to be in their family. I will always be eternally grateful for the sacrifice my biological parents made, and the commitment my parents made all those years ago.

“The flowers in my upcoming show represent hope. These new compositions are infused with color and passion, and are meant to bring joy. I will donate a portion of the sale of each painting to Show Hope, helping transform the lives of orphans by helping families with their adoption costs.

“One flower at a time. One child at a time. It’s personal.”

-Dyana Hesson

Dyana Hesson is an artist and Show Hope Advocate. For several years, she has used her talents on behalf of the world’s waiting children by holding gallery events to benefit Show Hope. Dyana often invites local adoptive families and Show Hope grant recipients to speak at her shows. Through ticket sales, silent auctions, and the sale of her art, she has raised more than $11,000 through her annual fundraisers.

Are you interested in using your passions and talents to transform the lives of waiting children? Become a Show Hope advocate today!

photo by Sandi Bradshaw