Meet the Kids Part 2

Now I will introduce you to the older children at the Kirabo Seeds home. 

It's been awesome getting to know them, they are great kids!

Daniel is 11 years old and in Primary 3. He's a sweet boy. His favorite color is red. His favorite thing to do is to ride bicycles. His favorite foods are chicken and caps (similar to meatloaf). He wants to be a car mechanic when he grows up. 

Dickson is also 11 years old and in Primary 5. He's a really smart and really funny. His favorite color is green. He says his favorite thing to do is clean his room. His favorite foods are pizza and rice. He wants to be a doctor when he grows up. And I think he'd make a great one! 

Paul is 12 years old and in Primary 5. He's a funny kid and joy to be with. I'm always smiling when I'm around him. His favorite color is blue. He loves riding bicycles. His favorite foods are rice, pizza, chaps and chapati. He wants to be a car mechanic, like Daniel when he grows up. 

Denis is 12 years old and in Primary 5. He's a quite boy, but he always seems to be happy. His favorite color is yellow. He loves to play football. His favorite foods are chicken and chips (or french fries). He wants to be an airplane engineer when he grows up. 

Angela is 13 years old and is also in Primary 5. Her and I have gotten pretty close over the past few weeks. She's an outgoing and mostly joyful young lady. She's a great helper to her younger siblings and often leading in the activities we do. Her favorite thing to do is sing, and she's really good at it! Her favorite foods are pizza, sandwiches, and sausage. When she grows up she wants to sponsor other orphans like her. (How awesome is that?) 

Peter is 13 years old and in Primary 4. He's a very friendly and outgoing boy. He seems to be best friends with everyone. His favorite colors are yellow and blue. His favorite thing to do is to run. His favorite foods are pizza and chicken. He also wants to be a doctor when he grows up. 

Musa is 13 years old and in Primary 3. He loves to be a leader and usually is the one making sure everything gets done. He has a love for photography and is always asking to have his picture taken. When he sees it he tells me what I could do to improve it. His favorite color is yellow. He also loves to ride bicycles. His favorite foods are matoke (cooked bananas), and chicken. He wants to be a pilot when he grows up. 

Ronald is 14 years old and in Primary 5. He is often found in the background of the group. He's a hard worker and great at taking care of all his younger siblings. He does things right away and never complains. His favorite color is blue. He loves to sweep the compound. His favorite foods are rice, pizza, sausage, and chaps. He would like to be car mechanic when he gets older. 

Meet the Kids (Part 1)

I want to introduce you to the youngest kids here at the home, and I'm hoping maybe you will fall in love with them as much as I have.

Ronah is 3 years old and such a cutie. She can be sassy and try to get away with anything, though, so you have to watch out for that. When she's in her sweet mood her older siblings really enjoy taking care of her and playing with her. She seems to be picking up on English pretty well. Whenever I read her a story she copies every word I read. It's so cute! She said her favorite food is bananas.

Marvin is 4 years old and such a big helper. When the dishes need to be done he is usually the first to help out. He wants me to join him in the helping too. His favorite color is yellow. His favorite foods are pineapple, oranges, and pizza. He wants to be a pilot when he grows up.

Ryan is 6 years old. He is really sweet and loves to laugh. He's one funny boy who loves attention. His favorite color is yellow. He loves to wash dishes, and his favorite food is pizza. When Ryan grows up he wants to be a driver for visitors.

Lydia is 7 years old. She loves when I read her books. She loves to help out with washing the clothes. She can be shy sometimes, but her laugh is contagious. Her favorite color is blue. Her favorite foods are pizza and chicken. She wants to be a driver and a mom when she grows up.

Lawrence is also 7 years old. He's quite the character. He always makes me laugh. He says his favorite activity is watching movies. His favorite color is red. His favorite foods are the same as Desire (they are best friends), pizza, samosas, rolex (similar to an egg burrito) and chapati (a type of flat bread). When he grows up he wants to be a helicopter pilot.

Desire is 8 years old. He so smart and loves to talk. I was helping him with dishes one afternoon and he talked my ears off! He’s such a dreamer. He told me he wants to be a pilot, a mountain climber and a president. He went on and on about how that would be. So cute! His favorite colors are yellow, pink and purple. His favorite foods are pizza, samosas, rolex and chapati.

Christine is 9 years old. She can be shy, and when the attention is on her she giggles and hides her face. She is really good at playing cards (when we play together she's usually wins every time) and jumping rope. Her favorite color is green. Her favorite foods are rice and chapati. When she grows up she wants to be a shopkeeper and a teacher.

Victoria is 10 years old. She always seems to have a smile on her face and loves helping out with the youngest children. She also loves to dance. Her favorite color is blue. Her favorite foods are pizza and fried chicken. She wants to be a teacher when she grows up.

I see so much joy in the kids. I asked Angela (one of the oldest) after school if she had a good day and she said "No", but had a big smile on her face and was skipping around. So I asked her why she was happy, and she said "Home is good, I am happy to be back at home." This is a family, not an orphanage. The kids and staff here are amazing, and I’m so thankful for this opportunity to be part of their lives this summer.

During the past two weeks I've been able to really get to know the kids and see what it takes to run a home like this. When the kids have free time we play games, read books, watch movies, and just talk together. This past week we played a water balloon toss (their favorite). The kids asked me to bring more water balloons because they remember playing it last time I came (with the YWAM team). They helped me fill them and they had a blast playing. It didn't last long, though, because they were so excited. The joy on their faces was priceless. I love seeing even the oldest ones having fun! 

Taking a silly selfie with Marvin.

The kids are really starting to get to know me and I’m falling in love with them. It’s going to be so hard to leave, I already know that. Even though I miss many things about America and some moments I just want to go back, I really love this place! It’s not always easy. As you can imagine helping raise 16 kids is tiring, emotionally and physically, but it’s also awesome! There is so much to learn from my experiences here!

I can't wait to see what the next 3 weeks bring!

Ryan and I playing with my webcam.

*Prayer requests: 

Please pray that God will give me strength and energy to make the most of my time with the kids. Also, that I would be joyful in everything I do. Thank you!

Also, Kirabo Seeds needs at least 3 more sponsors for the kids here. If you are interested please email me for details (sharonburick@gmail.com). It's only $25 a month. I'll be writing a post soon with more details on sponsorship.

2 month countdown!

I Just bought my plane ticket to Milwaukee, Wisconsin! 

In exactly two months from today I will be sitting in an airplane bound for Wisconsin! 

I will be leaving my whole life behind to follow God's leading, 

there is nothing more exciting (and hard)! 

Over North Carolina, Virginia, and Maryland (to change planes)...

 then West Virginia, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and finally landing in Milwaukee! 

All in only 5 short hours! 

(Yes...flying still amazes me!)

I am so thankful that I get to spend the weekend with this precious boy...

William

And his incredible family...

before they take me to Madison

 to begin my YWAM Training! 

Thank you Bridget (and family) for your willingness to open your home to me and bring me to Madison! You are such a blessing to me!

So, It's official now, no turning back! 

YWAM, Madison here I come!

And no matter how scary, or uncertain that may make me feel, I know it's what I'm supposed to do!

I know it is going to be the most amazing experience in my life (so far)! I cannot wait to "Know God and make Him Known"! 

And the people from all over the world I will have the privilege to serve with and learn with are going to be such an amazing blessing to me! We are going to have some incredible stories of how God brought us together, how He provided for each and every one of us, and How faithful He has been to us! I just know it! 

62 days till take off!!

And in case you are wondering, yes, I do still have a lot of money to raise before then! Check my sidebar for the amount needed. 

If you would like to give, please message me or go through paypal by pressing the "donate" button at the top of this blog.

Thank you!!

Luke's Easter (and more)

These pictures were taken today in China (well really last night) from Luke's home, Shepherd's Field Children's Village.

Isn't Luke getting more and more handsome as the days go by? Still praying for a miracle to happen with his adoption paperwork and his heart.

Jesus died and rose again 3 days later! (What other God has done that? None!!!)

So I think (NO I know) I can trust in Him to do this!!!

I'm praying and believing something will happen by September! That's 5 months away! Either Luke's paperwork will be completed and he will be adoptable, his heart is healed, and/or both!!!

Once I leave for Wisconsin in September I am not sure if I'll be able to continue the sponsorship payments for Luke. If God provides, or course I will still sponsor him, but if that doesn't happen, I am hoping that someone will take over that for me. If anyone is interested, please let me know!

Prayers Needed!

I've known for a little while now that the situation with my sponsor child, Luke (at SFCV) was serious. He will be 5 next month, his orphanage is not willing to do his adoption paperwork, therefore he is not available for adoption. He is in need of a heart surgery very soon, (he has a SV) but will not be able to get it done in China.

But today I heard from an adoptive mom, that just got back from adopting a little boy (Zachariah) at SFCV, that Luke did not look good. His lips were very blue, and she was talking to the doctor there about his need for surgery. She said that her son has the same heart problem and knows that they are hard to place in families. It hurt her to see Luke there without a family.

This really breaks my heart!!!! If it were possible, I'd fly there now and bring little Luke home with me, and get him the surgery he needed! But in this imperfect world, that is not possible, for many reasons!

What is possible though is OUR GOD!! With Him all things are possible!!

Please, please, please join me in praying for Luke!

Pray that:

1.) His orphanage will have a change of heart and see the best interest of the children to sign the needed papers and allow Luke to be adopted (after his family finds him, of course).

{*this is the best case scenario, which will allow him to have a forever family, and get his much needed heart surgery in another part of the world.}

Or...

2.) That the opportunity will come up for Luke to have surgery in China. (I'm not sure what that would involve, maybe, the right surgeon or the medical funds?)

Or...

3.) That God will heal Luke's heart!



I know God can do any or ALL of these things!! I have no doubt!!

Please join me in praying and spreading the word about sweet Luke!

Thank you!

Here's a short video clip of Luke and his housemates. Luke is the one in the red sweater. :)

Video From Shepard's Field

This one of my favorite video's from Shepard's Field! I love how it tells sort of the "whole story" of how it started and what they are doing now. And the clips of the kids are so precious! 

I love seeing what God is doing through Tim and Pam Baker for these amazing kids in China! I cannot wait to see what He does through them in the future! God has awesome plans for everyone of these children! 

I'm still hoping to visit this incredible place someday! 

(Look for Luke about at about minute: 5:30.)

Luke's Christmas

Even though Luke doesn't have his own family this Christmas he is living in China with an amazing group of people. Luke is very fortunate to be at Shepherd's Field Children's Village where the family style homes create a loving and caring environment for their 80+ children. 


This week Shepherd's Field has been celebrating Christmas with the children. Fun! 

Smiling for the camera while decorating the houses for Christmas.

Luke with the Samaritan's House residents.

Cute smile Luke! 

Luke with his best buddies Adrian and Shane.

(Aren't they cute!?)

Luke with his new housemates at Zachary House. 

(He was recently moved to another house on the compound 

to make room for new babies with heart problems). 

Luke with one of his Christmas presents. 

So excited to get a toy car!

Adrian, Luke, Kennedy and a staff member Sara

(Showing off their presents, new stuffed puppies and cars!) 

I absolutely love seeing the joy on Luke's face this Christmas! I am so happy that he is able to experience that joy and be with his precious friends in a warm loving home! 

However he still needs a family of his own! What child doesn't deserve the priceless love of a mother and father and siblings? 

I'm prying that next Christmas Luke will have a family!

Will you join me in prayer for Luke? 

This wouldn't be possible without the support of the child sponsors! Please consider sponsoring a child (or more than one) this Christmas! What a blessing they will be in your life! Please go here to sponsor a beautiful child at Shepherd's Field in China. There are at least 50 children who still need sponsors!

*pictures by Jamie, Sara Z., and Timothy Baker (Thank you!)

November Is Over!?

November was National Adoption Awareness Month. If you read  this post you know that I (along with so many other people) participated in the "Pray Down the Number @ 1:47 pm" Event. And it was even more amazing that I thought it would be!! Each day I chose an orphan or an adoptive family (or anything to do with orphans around the world) and lifted them up to the Father. It wasn't hard at all to think of someone or something each day. Each day it seemed that God would put a child a family or a subject in my head and I went with that. It was an honor to pray for them during the whole month of November. The fact that I wasn't alone in praying each day was also a great encouragement. There are 176 people in the facebook group and even if all of them weren't actually praying at the same time it was still amazing to know that each one of them was lifting up orphans all over the world at some point each day. This was an awesome event and I can't wait to participate next year! God really moved, prayers were answered, and God showed up in these lives. 


Just for fun, here is the list I kept:  
(You may or may not recognize some of these names) :)

1st: Liberty and William
2nd: JJ and family
3rd: Will Perry and Ankerich family
4th: Blossom (SFCV)
5th: Luke (SFCV)
6th: Older orphans who struggle with depression
7th: Sharon (SFCV)
8th: Grady (SFCV)
9th: Ruby and Saunders family
10th: Kennedy (SFCV)
11th: Josiah's family (SFCV)
12th: Smith Family (and Derrick)
13th: Stella (Uganda)
14th: Jordyn and Rist Family
15th: Henry (Uganda)
16th: Kira LaTorre
17th: Brookie Leahy
18th: Kayley's sisters
19th: Josh and family (SFCV)
20th: Stoiber family
21st: Joseph (SFCV)
22nd: Phiona's work with orphans
23rd: Orphans in Uganda
24th: Orphans in China
25th: Orphans in Russia
26h: Orphans in India
27th: Orphans in USA
28th: Kiraboo Seeds
29th: Esther and Stonebrook family
30th: Older orphans left behind

*(SFCV)= Children from Shephard's Field Children's Village

Welcome To Shepherd's Field Children's Village

What to learn more about Shepherd's Field Children's Village? 

(The foster home my sponsor children Luke and William live/lived.)

Check out this awesome video!

Welcome to Shepherd's Field Children's Village from Christina Tsuei on Vimeo.

Stella Update

Back in June Tonya LaTorre traveled to Uganda to do mission work with an orphanage and a school in Kampala. She took care packages to the children from their sponsors and get updated pictures and information. She also was able to meet with each child at school and go to each of their homes to meet with their family.

I got these pictures in the mail a few weeks ago and I was so excited to see all of them! Stella looks to be doing really well and she is smiling big in all the pictures. I am so glad she liked all the little things I sent her. I love shopping for other people, so it was so much fun to get to see her reaction in these pictures. 

Here are the pictures that Tonya took:

Stella with her beautiful smile

This must be the teacher or head master of Stella's school

Opening the care package I sent for her

Her new shirt

Look at that smile! She sure is letting her love shine!

Her new dress

Opening her birthday present

Stella holding up the pictures I sent her

The sign for Stella's school

Stella's neighborhood

The house Stella lives in with her sister and nephew

Stella's sister

Stella's sister and nephew

Stella also wrote me a letter (with a cute little drawing). It is such a joy to hear from her and know that she is doing well and enjoying her time at school. I am so excited to get to know her better through future letters. 

Stella you are loved! 

I am praying and thinking of you often!

Your sponsor sister, 

Sharon