Pillowcase Dresses (Part 1!)

     I am SO blessed to have so many people that are getting involved and helping me as I prepare for my trip! I am leaving exactly a month from today (today being June second!) Yesterday some friends of mine opened their home and hosted a fun girly sewing day! We made dresses out of pillowcases for the girls I will be ministering to at the orphanage in Thailand. As the girls grow, the dresses will grow with them and turn into shirts. We had so much fun doing this together that I'm sure we'll be making more for future trips!

Cara (top right) and Amanda (bottom right) making their pillowcase dresses for the orphan girls.

Hard at work! 

Making the dresses.

Left to right: Audrey, Mrs. Hollis & Mrs. Heidi. with their first finished dresses!

Left to right: Amanda, Cara & me with our first dresses!

Left to right: Me, Amanda & Cara with our second finished dresses!

     The dresses turned out beautifully! Each one is so different and unique, just like the sweet girls who will be wearing them. We ended up finishing thirteen in one afternoon, with each dress taking about thirty minutes to make. Altogether we need to make thirty, so we will be getting together some time soon to get the next half done. Each dress will be sent off with a picture and letter from the person that made it, to make the experience more personalized and special for the orphans! I just can't wait to watch the girls choose and enjoy their pretty dresses. It should be a beautiful experience!

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 14:18 

My July Journey

      For the month of July, I will be attending a four-week mission trip with Sending Hope International! The founders, Dave and Joyce Atkins, are close family friends of ours. We will be spending one week in Cambodia, working to establish a new orphanage. Next we will be spending three weeks in Chiang Mai, Thailand, ministering to the hill tribes and serving in an orphanage there. The orphanage rescues little girls (age two to fifteen) from a life of prostitution and sex trafficking. During my time there I will be doing many things with the girls, including teaching English, leading worship and sharing Christ. For years now I have really enjoyed mentoring and ministering to young girls, so I immediately fell in love with this opportunity. My heart just breaks for them and I can't wait to finally hold one of them in my arms! I will be posting in She's A Goody Two-Shoes regularly (before, during and after) with prayer requests and updates about the trip! I am really excited to see what God does in me and through me during this life changing experience.

Learn more about Sending Hope International here:

Sending Hope International

How to get involved:

Please, pray for me! If you would like to donate items to the orphanage or support me financially, please email me at hamnbacon@mac.com.

The End Of A Chapter

The End Of A Chapter

     About seven years ago my family moved to California to take care of my father's parents in their last years of life after my grandmother had a stroke and survived. My grandma passed away about two years ago and my grandpa just died about two weeks ago. They both passed away surrounded by their children and their grandchildren, in a happy, loving home. 

     My grandpa's wish was to be surrounded by his loved one's when he passed away. For those of you who don't know, my father pastor's a church that meets in our home. My grandpa passed away in his bedroom during the church service, with all of his favorite people in the same home as he breathed his last. Three years ago, when he was 88 years old, my grandpa prayed with a lady at our church and accepted Christ. It is encouraging now to know that he is in a better place and finally with my grandma again! We just had his memorial service a couple days ago (Saturday) in our home as well. It was a sweet time recalling memories and reminiscing about different things that my grandpa did during his life (like fighting in World War 2 and helping build the Apollo 13!) He was a brave man who loved his family, friends and his country. 

     For my family, this represents the end of a chapter in our lives. We spent the last seven years caring for my grandparents, but that time is now over. It was a time when our family was faced with different struggles, but as I look back, I realize that there were far more blessings we encountered during this time than hindrances. 

1 Timothy 5:8 (NIV)

Anyone who does not provide for his relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. 

     This verse really convicted our family seven years ago when deciding whether or not to care for my grandparents. Today, my parents leave me in awe. They didn't care about what culture thinks of the elderly. My parents left our entire life in Canada to move to California in order to take care of my grandparents. Who does that anymore? Unfortunately, not many people. Living a Christian lifestyle calls us to be different. To love everybody. Before we start thinking about providing a home for that abandoned dog, shouldn't we start by providing a home for members of our very own family?

In His Service,

~Hannah Megan Boyd

Philippians 1:21

College Decision: One Step Closer!

     Well, I finally made a decision on what I'll be doing for college this fall! Instead of going straight to a four year Christian university, I'll be staying home and taking college classes at my local city/junior college for two years and then transfer to a Christian university. Since I'm going into full time ministry I know I won't be making a lot of money and private Christian university's are really expensive in comparison to a JC, so financially going to a JC makes more sense then heading straight to a four year. My goal with college is to graduate completely debt free. It may seem impossible, but as I've been searching for a way to do this I have met many people along the way that have successfully graduated debt free and I feel like I will be able to do this! Of course, I am looking for a job so that I will be able to pay off any college expenses as they come instead of acquiring loans.  I will also be living at home, which gives me an extra two years of training for adulthood without being on my own just yet. I have a great relationship with my family so I'm fine with still living at the house. We DO get on each other's nerves sometimes, but that's what family's are for, right? ;) Anyway, this brings me one step closer to a final college decision! It may seem like a little step, but it's a step that took me a long time to make. I really needed my family's support and confirmed affirmation from God before taking any steps forward! I feel like I have that now and I'm really excited to see what God has in store for me in the months to come!

First Grandpa Post

     To make a long story really, really short, a couple months ago my ninety year old Grandpa fell and broke his neck. He lives with us, so we were there for him when he fell. He miraculously survived a couple surgeries (one included getting a titanium rod installed in his neck) and returned home about two weeks ago. It's been a very emotional process for my parents (especially my dad) since they have been helping him with a lot of custodial tasks, like going to the bathroom and eating. Last year he broke his hip and recovered very well, but he never recovered back to the healthy state he was in before the broken hip. The same thing is happening now with his broken neck. He is recovering very well, but I don't think he will ever return to the state he was in before he broke his neck. However, God shows up in miraculous, awesome ways all the time, so I won't ever say it's impossible!

~~~~~

     This week some friends of ours had a baby. On Sunday, as a church we prayed for both my grandpa and this baby who was soon to be born. It's amazing to observe two people at completely opposite ends of life. This baby has yet to see the world and all the days of her life are ahead of her. When first thinking of my grandpa, it would be easy to say that his days are almost up and he doesn't have much ahead of him. But, think, he has SO MUCH ahead of him! He will get to spend eternity in heaven with Christ. This baby girl, so much is ahead of her as well! So many new sights, sounds, feelings, places and people to discover! But how much more does my grandpa have to look forward to?! 1 Corinthians 2:9 says that no heart can even imagine what God has prepared for those who love him! The baby girl, as she grows older, will also discover physical and emotional pain. Revelation 21:4 says that in heaven, there will be no more crying or pain! Wow! The elderly are so blessed. They are so much closer to finally experiencing eternal life with Christ. Suddenly I wish I were ninety years old. ;)
   
   

Happy Birthday, Grant!

Happy fourteenth birthday to my oldest younger brother, Grant! 

Here are a couple old photos of him and I. :)

Then:

Now:

I love you, Grant, and I hope you have a wonderful fourteenth year! 

      

Still, My Soul, Be Still

   

     So, for those of you that don't know, this year I decided to take on the challenge of completing two years of high school in one year, so that I could graduate a year early! Though this is super exciting, it also gives me less time to look for colleges and pray about what to do with this next step of my life.

     Lately we've been really busy and I haven't been spending much time researching different college options. I started getting really stressed and felt like my mental 'to-do' list wasn't getting done everyday. On top of that, I was still having symptoms that the Candida Diet was supposed to cure and we were having issues getting ahold of my doctors. Now I felt sick emotionally AND physically.

     This morning before getting out of bed I stopped to pray. I prayed that God would give me a sense of direction about where to go to college. "Anything at all." I whispered.

     Peace. For some odd reason, that word popped in to my head. I thought maybe God was trying to tell me something. I sighed, then finished praying. "Yes... I need peace."

     After praying, I pushed my emotions aside and put my IPod on shuffle while getting ready for my day. The first song that started playing was Still, My Soul, Be Still by Keith and Kristyn Getty. Here's how the chorus goes. 

God, You are my God

And I will trust in You and not be shaken

Lord of peace, renew

A steadfast spirit within me

To rest in You alone

     

    When the chorus started playing, I paused what I was doing and just listened. I felt like those words were meant for me. Lord of peace renew... I will trust in you and not be shaken... a steadfast spirit within me, to rest in You alone. I thanked God as the song ended, but then continued my day and completely forgot about it.

     After finishing my schoolwork, I decided to do my daily bible reading. Some days I feel the Lord really speaking to me during these times, other days I feel like it's more mechanical. Today I guess I was expecting it to be more mechanical or something, because I know that I wasn't expecting to feel God's presence the way that I did.

     I opened my bible to the passage I was supposed to read that day and one of the first verses included the phrase, "Be still and know that I am God." I stopped and just shut my eyes. The Lord was giving me this moment to just be still. I felt this warmth spread through my body and just felt like the Lord was telling me to trust him. To be still and rest in him. Suddenly I didn't feel worried about this whole college transition. I didn't feel worried or scared about what to do. And most importantly, I finally felt like God was giving me a clear sense of direction. He was telling me to just trust him. 

     I felt so lighthearted as the day went on. Now, as I'm writing this, I still don't know what college I'll be going to. I don't know what this next year is going to hold for me, but I do feel God's peace as I continue trusting in him! Just think, by this time next year, I'll be halfway done with my freshman year in college!

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UPDATE

   
     Alright, well, I wrote this post last night but decided not to post it since I finished writing it really late and wanted to read over it once more in the morning. This morning my devotions were awesome! They were all about trusting God and about how he has bigger plans for us than we could ever imagine. But the best part of the devotional was definitely the scripture! Here are the verses that were assigned to me this morning.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 

In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

     Well, needless to say, reading that scripture this morning was a total God thing for me! I felt like it was just another way in which God was telling me to trust him. I was so worried about not feeling a clear sense of direction, but the last couple days I've really been feeling God's peace within me. I am so excited about this next step of my life and I can't wait to see what God has in store for me!

     God Bless,

     ~Hannah