Why Go Fund Me?

As our family prepares for our trip to Ecuador this summer I wanted to take a moment to share why we chose to raise funds to help with the cost of our trip.

I would say there is the obvious, 6 people, minus Preston who is going for work, is quite a chunk of change. Though Preston works two jobs, with all the medical/therapy/equipment bills we have the extra is not just laying around.  But for me it is so much more than the obvious.  Choosing to support our family on this trip is choosing to support the families we will impact, and there will be many.  Through Compassion International, at the church Preston and his students will renovate, around 70 children weekly are fed hot meals and given tutoring.  Abandoned women, most of them single parents, are provided ice cream, at cost, to sell for a profit in the town.  For women who have the ability to spend some time in training, the church provides seamstress classes and a sewing machine upon graduation to start their own business.  The kids and I will definitely spend some time helping Preston with construction; we will also spend lots of our time meeting, playing with and ministering to these families.  It is also nice to know we will help provide an updated facility for the families in this community to have their needs met, both spiritually and financially.

Let me explain from the standpoint of our experience giving. Three of our friends from our days in China moved to Cambodia to work with human trafficking. They started an elementary school in an area outside Phnom Penh where child trafficking was more the norm than the exception.  Daily, they work incredibly hard to educate and protect these children while they are in their care.  For the past six years Preston and I have had the privilege of supporting their ministry every month. About five years ago, I had the opportunity to travel to Cambodia to see their work first hand.  We believe this is the most well spent of all our money each month.  You might say if we had saved that money on a monthly basis we could pay for our family to go on this trip.  But then we would be robbing others of the opportunity to experience the blessing we experience when we give.

2 Cor 9: 6-7 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully[a] will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

If you are interested in giving, click here. https://www.gofundme.com/hites-mission-trip-to-ecuador

Everyone doing a little something can make a big impact.