12/7: Do You Hear What I Hear?

One of the most joyous aspects of Christmastime is the rich tradition of music which accompanies this special season. Recently, I was struck by the words of a well known carol entitled "Do You Hear What I Hear". This song chronicles the progressive telling of the Savior's birth from the night wind to the little lamb, the little lamb to the shepherd boy, the shepherd boy to the mighty king, and finally the mighty king to the people everywhere. What a glorious progression as the good news of Christ's coming begins with the single voice of shepherd boy and gradually reaches all people everywhere!

This Advent season, I am reminded that a single voice is a powerful force. Much like the classic yuletide carol above, we have seen the impact a single voice can make when a story is passed along from one person to another. Sharing the stories of these vulnerable children with our friends, families, coworkers, roommates, and neighbors is absolutely critical to the mission and purpose of Forgotten Voices. So many lives have already been changed because someone has been willing to speak on behalf of these children providing them with a voice in a busy world that has drowned out their cry for help.

Please consider sharing the work of Forgotten Voices with your friends and loved ones this Advent season. I have included a short list below of some things you may consider doing to use your voice on behalf of a Child in Africa.

1. Place a nativity in a prominent location of your home where you are able to look upon it often. Consider that God's voice came to us in the form of a helpless, vulnerable child.
2. Include a small note with your baked Christmas cookies which provides the webiste and blog for Forgotten Voices.
3. Make an announcement in your Sunday School class regarding the work of Forgotten Voices.
4. Pray for the many orphaned children in Southern Africa who are daily wondering whether anyone in the world cares if they live or die.
5. Since it is generally more acceptable this time of year, send an email to your coworkers suggesting that they make tax-deductable end of year gifts to Forgotten Voices.
6. Tell the story of a child in Africa to one person, every day.
7. Collect loose change from your friends, family, neighbors, or Sunday School class and give it to children in Africa. We once had a college student collect over $250 in loose change from her fellow dormitory residents to help pay for school fees in Zimbabwe. Every penny goes a long way.
8. Place a stack of Forgotten Voices brochures next to the napkins on the buffet table at your family holiday gathering. Please feel free to contact me at jschwamb@forgottenvoices.org for a printable copy of our materials.
9. Use the search engine GoodSearch, which enables you to give to Forgotten Voices simply by searching the internet. You can enter Forgotten Voices in the field "Who do you GoodSearch for?" and every search you perform gives Forgotten Voices a penny - you can even see how much money has been raised so far. At the writing of this post, we had raise over $330 this year just from people searching the internet!
9. This Christmas, give an education, a farm, or a home care kit to a child or family who desperately needs it.

Sharing the story of a child costs us so little. Please consider passing along a story to someone you know - you can even use the story I posted yesterday. During this Advent season, listen for the voices of these children and empower them by using your voice to tell their story.

Happy telling and blessings,

Jesse