Many, many people have asked us this question since we returned from Russia. And the next question inevitably is, “What can I do to help?” Everyone we speak to seems committed to helping keep the momentum and energy from the trip.

With that question in mind, here are a few things that you can do to help:

• Pray. Pray early and pray often. :-) Pray for the kids in the orphanage. Pray for the staff and care givers. And pray for each other – those of you supporting the kids with your letters and finances and those of you who might travel with us on our next trip to Russia. More than anything, we covet your prayers.
• Consider sponsoring a child at the orphanage. You can sponsor an individual child for $34 a month. That money goes to provide a better quality of life, provide for Disciplers who go and visit the orphanage regularly and provide a Christian presence, and the resources necessary to operate this ministry in Russia. Sponsorship requires both a financial commitment as well as a commitment to write letters to your orphan. We need more committed sponsors, so please prayerfully consider this option.  More information on sponsorship can be found here.
• If you are already a sponsor, please make sure you are current with your payments. While we have over 60% of the children sponsored, we only have 36% of the funds paid. Your money helps support these children and will enable us to grow the staff of Disciplers and provide for these kids. Please take the time to get current on your support if needed.
• Spend a moment to write letters to the children. The orphans in Slobodskoy love and treasure the letters that we send them. We can’t begin to tell you how important your letters are to these kids, whether or not you officially sponsor a child. Please write to the children as often as you can.
• Consider a donation to the Mission 1:27 General Fund. In addition to the sponsorship dollars that are raised, additional funds will help to pay for other expenses and supplies for the orphanage. Thank you for your generosity and support.
• Learn more about our trip. For those local in Chapel Hill, the travel team will be debriefing on Sunday, April 11th from 4:00 – 5:00 p.m. in the Disciple Room at Christ United Methodist Church. Please consider joining us to pray, offer up praise, reflect, share stories and brainstorm.
• Help plan our next steps! On Sunday April 18, 2010 from 3:00 – 5:00 pm (please take note of the new time), also in the Disciple Room at Christ Church, we will have a Leadership Team Meeting to talk about how we move forward in 2010 with Mission 1:27. There is so much to do, won’t you please help make a difference? The meeting is open to any interested person.

If you have any questions about what you can do to help, please reach out to David Parker, one of the team leaders for Mission 1:27.  David can be reached at or 919-967-5962.

Thank you to everyone for journeying with us to Russia. We are excited about what God has in store for the kids in Slobodskoy and look forward to how He plans to use each of us to continue this good work. Peace and blessings to all.

P.S. Note that we have changed the header photo for the blog. As we began our journey, we knew we were headed to a destination - a physical building in Russia that serves as an orphanage. For many of us, that picture of the building was the only image we could connect with as we started our travels. One week later, the mental picture of the orphanage is not of the physical building but of the children who live in that building - their smiles, their warmth and their love. That's the lasting image of our trip...and a much better representation of our Journey to Russia.