International (MNN) — How much did you pay for school supplies this year? Bet you can’t beat $20! That’s what Amy Norton with Orphan Outreach says it’ll cost to send kids worldwide back to school.
“These backpacks come with the Gospel message.” (Image, quote courtesy Orphan Outreach)
“We have such a desperate need in so many countries for backpacks and school supplies for these children,” says Norton. “What’s really surprising is how expensive school supplies are in these countries.”
There’s another catch — in many places, a child can’t even attend school without the proper supplies. As we shared in a prior article, an education, or lack thereof, can drastically affect any child’s future.
Since they lack parental guidance and protection, orphans are already vulnerable. Couple that vulnerability with a lack of education and the chances of an orphan winding up in the streets or trafficked greatly increase.
But in places like Russia, getting an education is easier said than done.
“The government is not even giving orphanages money for their school supplies this year,” says Norton.
“The orphanages have to come up with it all on their own. They had been trying to save funds all summer just to provide school supplies for the children once they started back to school in September.”
That’s where Orphan Outreach comes in with “Mission Backpack.”
“We are trying to collect as much as we can here to purchase those school supplies and backpacks, and provide them to the children there,” Norton explains.
This project does more than give orphans a new backpack and a year’s worth of school supplies. Backpacks are distributed with the hope of Jesus Christ on short-term mission trips. No child leaves without knowing Christ loves them and died for them.
“That is a huge part of what we do in every single country, in every single ministry where we serve,” Norton says.
Can you help Orphan Outreach send backpacks, a year of school supplies and the Gospel to orphans around the world? Click here.
According to the National Retail Federation, families with school-age children in the United States will spend an average $634.78 on apparel, shoes, supplies and electronics. National spending on these items is expected to reach $26.7 billion.
When combined with back-to-college spending, the sum surpasses $72 billion.
While miniscule in comparison to these figures, a $20 Mission Backpack investment can yield untold rewards in eternity.
“These backpacks come with the Gospel message,” Norton says.
Please pray all the orphans reached by Mission Backpack see how much God loves them. Pray more believers, small groups, and churches get involved with this project. Ask the Lord if He is leading you to secure an orphan’s future.
