How School Became a Light to the Community in Liberia

Aug 1, 2024 3 Min Read

14 years ago,

our school in Liberia was the only school available to a community of over 6,000 people.

For two years, our team provided education to 60 orphans, even without a school building. They taught the children in their homes, and eventually, twelve classrooms were built.

Children learned to read and write in English, the official language in Liberia.

A ministry leader shares—

“We saw kids entering a classroom for the first time in their lives.”

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

Today, our school in Liberia continues to grow.

Students receive a Christian education with classes in health, science, reading, writing, math, and social studies. They also learn to study the Bible. Teachers receive discipleship training and are equipped to share the Gospel with our students.

Above: Elementary school children attend classes in Liberia.

One of the families our team serves couldn’t afford to send their seven children to school.

Before coming to Lifesong, not a single one of their children had set foot in a school. Now, our campus is like a second home to them. They attend a high-performing school for free and receive breakfast and lunch every day.

By the grace of God, more families are breaking generational cycles of poverty as orphaned and vulnerable children receive an education, a foundation for their future. As our teammates in Liberia explain—

“Education is giving every orphan the chance to succeed.”

Pray for Liberia

Praise God the teachers worked hard to prepare students for a successful month of exams.
Pray for the upcoming high school graduation. Praise Him for a wonderful closing program for the younger students.
Pray for children to grow in their relationship with Jesus during youth camp this summer.
Praise God for 177 years of independence in Liberia. Pray for continued peace and healing in Liberia.
Pray for wisdom and patience as our team teaches, encourages, mentors, and disciplines teenagers in our program.

Join our prayer team to receive monthly prayer requests & praises from across our ministry.

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Will you help orphaned and vulnerable children in Liberia experience the hope of the Gospel?

When you give to Lifesong, you show orphaned and vulnerable children they are seen, known, and loved through Gospel-centered holistic care. Thanks to TMG Foundation, 100% of your gift goes directly to helping orphaned and vulnerable children.

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How School Became a Light to the Community in Liberia

**Tommy and Heather only planned to adopt one child.**

They had three biological kids already, and they believed their family was nearly complete. Never in a million years could they have predicted what the future held. In Tommy’s words—

“What God had planned was adding five more kids to our family in a story He’s now writing with a family of ten.”

This is a story about saying yes to adoption and seeing what God will do.

“It’s an adoption story only God could write.”

Heather and Tommy were always open to adopting, but while Heather felt the call to move forward, Tommy needed more time. Everything changed when Tommy attended a conference where the speaker talked about adoption, and Tommy felt a shift in his heart. He knew at that moment, God was leading him to say yes to adoption.

“But I still didn’t have the courage for a month or so to tell Heather.”

The reason for his hesitancy?—Tommy and Heather had just quit their jobs to start a new ministry. Tommy explains—

“We took a 100% pay cut and were raising our own support. How were we going to take care of the three kids we already had? It’s not that I didn’t want to adopt; I just couldn’t financially make it make sense.”

But, as Tommy and Heather would soon find out, adoption is an investment far bigger than dollars and cents. It’s about stepping out in faith into a story bigger and better than anything we can write for ourselves.

Adoption makes eternal sense.

“We knew right away.”

Once Tommy told Heather he was ready to say yes to adopting, they knew they would adopt two girls from an orphanage in the Dominican Republic whom they had known for several years through trips overseas.

But as can sometimes happen with an adoption story, what Tommy and Heather thought would be a year-long process turned into a three-and-a-half-year process with multiple court appearances, many trips, living in the DR for months at a time, and taking their whole family back and forth.

“Many times we felt like it was not going to happen, even though we said yes.”

In the end, they brought home two wonderful daughters—Jada and Izzy—and began a journey that hasn’t been easy but was absolutely worth the wait.

“And then, God allowed our path to cross with a single mother who needed help.”

Even before Jada and Izzy’s adoption was complete, God allowed Heather to meet a single mother in their local community who was in need of help and support. Believing strongly that God ordained their meeting, Heather did whatever she could to offer her love and support.

“And within a month of our connection, she asked me to care for her ten-month-old baby girl.”

Surely God wasn’t asking Tommy and Heather to say yes to another child, was He?

“I can remember the first night I went to Tommy and told him Aubree’s mom asked for us to watch Aubree overnight.”

They had no idea what God was doing, but they decided to trust that He was leading, even if they couldn’t see the full picture yet.

And so began the journey of bringing Aubree into their family.

But God wasn’t done.

And this new student, Noah, wanted to learn to play basketball.

Tommy started his career as the head basketball coach at the kids’ school before surrendering to the call of full-time ministry. Their new ministry’s mission was to equip college basketball coaches and athletes to leave a legacy on and off the court for the glory of God.

So Tommy agreed to meet Noah. And that meeting began a year-long investment into Noah’s life.

And then, at the end of the year, a situation occurred where—for Noah to be able to finish school—he needed to find a new place to live.

“I think we all know when opportunities are Divine appointments, when God puts something in front of us and His Spirit nudges us. And we can either say yes and see what God does, or we can say no, and we can talk ourselves out of it.”

—Heather Kyle

So Tommy and Heather welcomed Noah into their home and family to finish school.

When Noah was 22 years old, he asked Tommy and Heather to officially adopt him.

Though it was an adoption story they never anticipated, they again said yes.

Giancarlo’s parents are missionaries in the Dominican, good friends of Tommy and Heather’s. They reached out to see if Giancarlo could live with them to finish high school and pursue playing basketball in college.

Tommy explains—

“Giancarlo has great parents that love the Lord and serve Him. He came to live with us when he was 15. He went to high school and just finished college. And we love him as a son.”

And in the remarkable way that God weaves stories together, Giancarlo grew up serving the orphanage where Jada and Izzy lived before Tommy and Heather adopted them. So they’ve known each other their whole lives.

Giancarlo makes 8 kids, and now the family is a party of 10.

**“We started by saying yes to one.”**

But God said, “five more.”

When God calls us to step out in faith—especially when it comes to adoption—the word “yes” is loaded. It’s not just a simple, three-letter word. It’s a personal declaration, a holy rebellion against fear. It’s looking at all the unknowns and saying, “We trust You, God, more than we trust our own understanding.”

It’s the audacious belief that God’s plans are infinitely better than our carefully laid-out ones. It’s knowing that when we say “yes,” we’re not just changing a child’s life—we’re letting God radically transform our own.

Thankfully, Tommy and Heather didn’t have to do it alone.

“Lifesong became one of our biggest advocates.”

In Tommy’s words, “We would not be here today if a lot of people, including Lifesong, did not give.”

Here at Lifesong, we believe money should never be the reason a child doesn’t have a family. So through adoption financial assistance, like matching grants, interest-free loans, and adoption crowdfunding pages, we help families like Tommy and Heather’s bridge the gap in adoption fundraising.

Tommy shares—

“People think we’re superhuman, but we’re not. It’s just totally God’s story. We opened up our home and brought in God’s children and literally watched Him change us.”

“You may not be called to adopt today, but we’re all called to do something. And when you invest in adopting or in adoption, you’re making an eternal return on investment that I can guarantee you is going to change a life. My advice?—Ask God what He wants you to invest.”

We agree, Tommy. And we’re thankful for the way you and Heather are showing us how to do it.

Considering Adoption? WE CAN HELP.

LEARN MORE

2024-08-29

God Rewrites Stories Through Education in Uganda

Aug 29, 2024 3 Min Read

Without a quality education,

orphaned and vulnerable children in Uganda are more likely to repeat generational patterns of poverty and relational trauma. Without an education, it is difficult to find meaningful employment, leading to an inability to provide for a family. Girls who are uneducated often have no choice than to marry and fulfill household duties at a very young age.

Thankfully, God is at work.

A ministry leader in Uganda shares—

“The students we serve who are part of our team’s continuing education program are some of God’s greatest success stories. And God is writing more stories every day with students in our primary school.”

Meet Kennedy

Kennedy is one of the students whose story God is redeeming. Before joining our continuing education program at the age of 15, Kennedy had only a second-grade education. Now, he is pursuing his passion: working on machines and cars. With our team’s support, Kennedy enrolled in a trade school and is learning the skills he needs to become a mechanic.

Saul receives a certificate in accounting.

Meet Saul

Saul is another student whose story has been rewritten by the education our team provides. He is currently attending university and will soon be receiving his degree in accounting and business management.

Because of the education he received, God willing, Saul will have the opportunity to work as the bursar for our secondary school when it opens, a career with great potential to sustain him and his future family.

At Lifesong, we stand by a 4-part pledge to the children we serve. The third part of the pledge affirms our commitment to providing quality education to orphaned and vulnerable children to provide a foundation for their future. For students like Kennedy and Saul, this means providing them with tangible skills to help them have a better future.

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

Education is one way orphaned and vulnerable children we serve experience love.

As they receive the gift of a hopeful future through a quality education, they begin to see how God is rewriting their stories.

This group of boys can attend school because of our boarding program.

From primary education through continuing education, God is transforming the lives of orphaned and vulnerable children in Uganda.

Pray for Uganda

Praise God for providing land that has been purchased for building a secondary school. Pray that our team in Uganda will be able to open a secondary school soon.
Pray for God to provide land for an alumni transition home.
Praise God for the recent baptisms and baptism classes for ten of the children we serve.
Pray for more orphaned and vulnerable children in Uganda to grow deeper in their relationship with Jesus.
Pray for wisdom for ministry leaders and staff as they seek God and operate the ministry.

Join our prayer team to receive monthly prayer requests & praises from across our ministry.

JOIN THE PRAYER TEAM

Will you help orphaned and vulnerable children in Uganda experience the hope of the Gospel?

GIVE TODAY

2024-08-05

Holistic Care Paves the Way for New Beginnings in Tanzania

Aug 5, 2024 3 Min Read

Lives are being transformed by Gospel-centered, holistic care in Tanzania.

With a safe place to stay, food to fill their bellies, and medical care readily available, orphaned and vulnerable children are flourishing as they become who God created them to be.

Three stories from Tanzania are included below, examples of the amazing life-change that occurs when children have their basic needs met by a caring, God-honoring support system—

Daud’s Story

Like many kids living in poverty, Daud’s needs were often left unmet. But when Daud came to our team in Tanzania, he found a safe and nurturing environment where he could heal from the trauma he suffered.

Today, Daud is full of joy and peace. He receives food, water, medical care, and a safe place to live. He shares—

“I feel a sense of belonging and am looking forward to a brighter future.”

Above: Daud spends time with a mentor and friends.

Esther’s Story

Esther came to our team in Tanzania seven years ago. Her father passed away and her mother, who was unable to care for her, left her alone without protection. At Lifesong, Esther has a new beginning. She explains—

“This place is more than just a shelter; it’s a home where I receive care and support.”

Esther feels peace and happiness, now believing that her dreams and goals are within reach.

Patricia’s Story

Patricia lived on the streets after losing her parents. Abandoned and alone, she lost hope and developed a deep sense of fear.

Because she received consistent meals, clean clothing, and a safe environment, Patricia was able to focus on her studies and build new friendships. As her fear was replaced with courage, she began to feel valued and hopeful for the future.

At Lifesong, we stand by a 4-part pledge to the children we serve. The second part of the pledge affirms our commitment to providing holistic care to orphaned and vulnerable children so they don’t lack food, clothing, medical care, and shelter.

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

Daud, Esther, and Patricia are just three of the children whose lives have been impacted by the care they receive from our team. God watches over every child and rescues them so their lives can be changed not just on earth, but for eternity.

Pray for Tanzania

Praise God that children’s basic needs are being met. Pray for more children who need help to come to our team in Tanzania.
Pray for stamina for our team as they tirelessly serve orphaned and vulnerable children.
Praise God that the Gospel continues to change the hearts of many children in Tanzania.
Praise God for a season of consistent teaching staff at the primary and secondary school.
Praise God for wonderful school principals.

Join our prayer team to receive monthly prayer requests & praises from across our ministry.

JOIN THE PRAYER TEAM

Will you help orphaned and vulnerable children in Tanzania experience the hope of the Gospel?

GIVE TODAY

2024-08-28

How This Labor Day Can Benefit Your Adoption Journey

Aug 28, 2024 3 Min Read

Over the next few days,

we’ll celebrate Labor Day weekend. And since there’s no such thing as a wasted detail on the adoption journey, why not let even this holiday work for your good?

Here are three simple but impactful ways Labor Day can impact your adoption journey—

1. Bond as a family.

What if you used this weekend to lean into some deep family bonding on your adoption journey?

I know, I know. The adoption process can be full of paperwork, meetings, and waiting rooms. And family bonding doesn’t always stay at the top of the to-do list. Sometimes it’s just about getting through the day.

But what if this weekend, you gave yourself permission to pause, to set aside the lists and the logistics, and just focus on being together? It doesn’t have to be perfect or profound—just real, intentional moments where you can connect.

Because trust me, it’s the small, everyday moments that will carry you through the big, life-changing ones.

2. Flip the script.

What if you used this weekend to replace small talk with real talk?

If you’re spending time with friends or family, keep your heart and eyes open for moments to share what God is doing in your home. I know it can be easiest sometimes to just coast through the day with a “We’re fine; everything’s great” attitude, but sometimes the best connections happen when we get a little vulnerable.

If you need emotional or spiritual support, don’t be afraid to mention it to those closest to you. They love you. Let them be part of your story.

And if someone brings up adoption, be open to the conversation if you can.

“So many adoption journeys are sparked by hearing someone else’s story. Your willingness to answer questions might be the nudge someone needs to step into their own adoption journey.”

You never know what God is up to in someone else’s heart, so be ready to share the good, the hard, and everything in between. You might just be part of the next beautiful chapter in someone else’s story.

3. Take time to rest.

The adoption process can feel like a marathon—so much waiting, paperwork, hoping, and wondering what’s next. It’s exhausting in a way that goes beyond the physical. It can drain your heart and mind, too.

So give yourself permission to breathe. To pause. To put the to-do list on hold and let your soul catch up. Rest isn’t just a luxury; it’s a necessity.

Spend time in the Word or in prayer. Reflect on what God has already done in this journey so far—every small step, every door opened, every moment of grace.

Let that be your encouragement that He’s still moving, even in the waiting.

Rest isn’t just a reward after the adoption; it’s something you need now, to sustain you for the beautiful, life-changing days ahead. You’re in His hands, and He’s got this.

Take a deep breath, trust the process, and be encouraged.

And have a great Labor Day weekend!

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2024-08-15

Nari Challenged Herself and Succeeded in South Korea

Aug 15, 2024 3 Min Read

**Nari* is a dental hygienist today**

because of the support of her mentor and our team in South Korea. During the first few semesters of college, she struggled to maintain academic eligibility for our team’s Oak Tree Project scholarship and program.

She didn’t want to have to leave the program, so she decided a change in her major could help. There was only one problem: she lacked the confidence to do so, fearing she wouldn’t succeed.

Thankfully, our team and Nari’s mentor believed she could do it.

Nari shares—

“I didn’t know how to challenge myself, but thanks to my mentor’s consistent encouragement, I was able to change my major and graduate well. My mentor told me, ‘You can do it!’”

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

“Our Children” Will:

Be taught the Gospel and how to live as a follower of Jesus Christ

Not want for food, clothing, medical care, or shelter

Receive a quality education to provide a foundation for their future

Experience continued love and support while transitioning into adult living

Nari began applying herself full-heartedly to her studies.

She gained hands-on training in dental hygiene, completed her assignments, and participated enthusiastically in class.

Her efforts paid off, and her grades soared above our GPA requirements. Nari was delighted by how much she accomplished when she challenged herself. She graduated this year and now works full-time as a dental hygienist.

Above: Orphaned young adults celebrate graduating from college.

Another graduate shares—

“Without my mentor, I wouldn’t have focused on my studies and would have lived a life of self-pity like I had been living before joining the program.”

Because our team believes God can transform the lives of orphaned and vulnerable young adults in South Korea, orphans in our program don’t have to live a life of pity. Orphans are succeeding and reaching their full potential with God’s grace and a mentor’s support to show them the way.

*Names have been changed to protect the identities of the children we serve.

Pray for South Korea

Praise God that students like Nari can gain confidence and succeed with the support of their mentors and our team.
Pray for the recent graduates to grow deeper in their relationships with Jesus as they enter adulthood.
Pray for job opportunities for recent graduates in a culture where orphans often face discrimination in the workplace.
Praise God for Oak Tree Project scholarships and programs that make it possible for orphaned and vulnerable young adults in South Korea to attend college.
Praise God that orphaned and vulnerable young adults have a place where they can find belonging as they pursue a quality education.