GLO Update #1 - Page, Hope's Illness, New Hope For Africa, "Arturo House" -

GLO Updates & Announcements

Friends, we can’t thank you enough for your generous support and prayers. In the last few months, we were able to raise enough funds to help Pastor Mafabi begin construction on a new house for the orphans, supply medical and education needs and provide enough food for all 17 children.

This will be the beginning of several updates for God’s Lambs Organization (GLO). We hope to grow the support for this ministry so that Pastor Mafabi can continue to serve those who are in need in his region.

I would love your feedback on these updates. I have considered doing a monthly or quarterly newsletter, specifically for GLO. Let me know what you think in the comments below! These updates are to give followers and supporters of Saints Edified information on the children and ministry of GLO. Since this is a new feature of the ministry, I can’t say how regular these updates will be; however, I do want to use Saints Edified to announce major updates whenever possible.

God’s Lamb’s Organization Page on Saints Edified

I’m excited to announce that GLO has an official page on Saints Edified! This is the page where people can learn about GLO, Pastor Mafabi and the children. They will also learn how to give through us or another non-profit organization. (We’ll cover that shortly.) Please share the GLO link and don’t forget to check out the Meet the Children page!

Click here to visit the GLO page.

Click here to visit the Meet the Children page.

Hope’s Illness and Medical Needs

“We had to rush her to the hospital…”
-Pastor Mafabi

It was brought to my attention recently that one of the GLO children fell very sick and was rushed to the hospital. This puts the ministry in a tight spot since a lot of money has been placed for the new building unit, additional orphans that Pastor Mafabi decided to temporarily help and regular necessities for the orphanage. Some have donated to help Hope, but we still have much to cover that we currently do not have. If you wish to help pay for some of the medical bills and medicine for Hope, please contact me or find us on Facebook (GLO Group)!

New Hope For Africa – A Non-Profit Org For Helping Orphans

We have unofficially partnered with New Hope For Africa! This was mainly an agreement between myself and founder of New Hope For Africa, Linda Howards Dillon DeJong via Facebook Messenger that made it possible for us to share their link on our website. In other words, Saints Edified is not involved in the operations of New Hope For Africa – we simply trust and support their ministry by referring people to them. Their About statement reads:

“A Christian Ministry founded for the purpose of providing food, clothing, shelter, medical care, and education for orphan children in the countries of Africa.”
https://www.newhopeforafrica.com/about-us/

Perhaps some of you may be a little confused as to why we’re referring people to another organization. For the past few months, donations have been transferred to my account via Zelle or PayPal, so I can collectively send all donations at once (on the 1st and 15th of the month) to avoid additional fees, using Western Union. Clearly, this requires an element of trust. Plus, I can only manage to keep track of so many people who wish to give. I don’t have an accounting system, other than my ability to review my bank account. We continue to brainstorm on how we can use Saints Edified to independently support GLO. Unfortunately, these donations cannot be used as write-offs, since we are not registered as a business or non-profit.

That’s why we believe New Hope For Africa may be a good option for those who want to write-off their donations for tax-related purposes. Perhaps this may motivate businesses and others to donate more often if they can use their donation as a write-off. I am more than happy to point people to New Hope For Africa for this very reason. NOTE: New Hope For Africa supports many orphanages. Please be sure to select the option to support Pastor Mafabi’s orphanage, God’s Lambs Organization.

“Arturo House”

I was honored and humbled by Pastor Mafabi’s news a few weeks ago. He had decided to name the a new construction project to house orphans after me, “Arturo House”. This meant more to me than he probably knows. About 10 years ago, I decided to pursue my goal to start a Christian orphanage in California. The issue was that I had no funds or support. I felt very lost and overwhelmed, especially with all the laws, regulations, codes and various other requirements that pertain to this state. There was a strong sense of defeat and failure on my part. Only a few months later, I learned about Pastor Mafabi when I came across a written interview conducted by The Reformed Reader. In this interview, I read about his passion to provide bibles for all the families and children at his church and orphanage.

Once I finished reading the interview, I searched for him on Facebook and that was the beginning of our friendship. In one of our discussions, I promised Pastor Mafabi that I would help him with providing bibles for the congregation and orphans. Years passed by and once again, I felt like I was failing to do something I desperately wanted to do. I met my wife, had children, lost my job and had to restart my career/finances more than once. It was out of my means to support my brother, Pastor Mafabi. Yet, this entire time, he always offered encouragement and prayer. Finally, God made things work out for GLO last year, 2019. A group of friends started a pro-life ministry, Arks of Bulrushes, and they learned about Mafabi through my ministry, Saints Edified. They decided to support from that day forward!

God Answered My Prayer

God has blessed and encouraged many of us with his work in Saints Edified and GLO. I love hearing about the children having enough food, education and other needs being met. However, to name a housing unit after me was not expected at all. In some ways, it feels like the orphanage I wanted to build in California is already being built… but in Mbale, Uganda, under the instruction and guidance of Pastor Mafabi. Thank you, Mafabi. This means more to me than you know. I’ll forever be thankful. Years ago, I felt defeated, but God made a way by using you, my brother. Thank you.

Enjoy the photos of the progress Pastor Mafabi and the children have made so far!