Upcoming Mission Journeys
Ialoveni, Moldova
Aug. 29-Sep. 6
Application and $250 deposit due
Monday, June 9th.
Help us start off the school year in a SWEET way as we build new beds for the 180 children living in this orphanage just outside Chisinau, Moldova.
Team members will be building beds, leading
worship, teaching in the classroom and hosting workshops for teachers and staff.
Note: This journey occurs over Labor Day, so you won't have to take an
extra vacation day!
For an application or more information please contact Stuart at
stuart@sweetsleep.org.
Friends of
Sweet Sleep
We love it when friends find creative ways to raise funds for orphan beds! And that's
exactly what Debbie Drennan and her daughter Kelsey did before their trip to Drochia.
Debbie and Kelsey partnered with Susan Perkins and Silpada Jewelry to host a party and
raise funds for beds and supplies for Drochia.
"We thought we'd raise a couple hundred dollars and that would be great," Debbie shared.
"But God had something else in mind! He blessed beyond our wildest imaginations!"
Through this fundraiser, Debbie and Kelsey were able to raise
over $2000 for orphans!
Thanks Debbie, Kelsey, and Suan for making the dream of "a bed for every head" come
true in Drochia!
Want to see your Sweet Sleep donation double right before
your eyes? You can!
Sweet Sleep has received a $20,000 Matching Grant for
Moldovan beds and we need you to help us meet our goal!
Can you buy one bed for $185? Just like that -- you'll
provide 2 beds! Help us turn $20,000 into $40,000.
To participate in this match and double your impact for
these sweet children in Moldova,
just send your donation to Sweet Sleep, PO Box 157, Brentwood, Tennessee, 37024
and write "Moldova Match" in the memo line.
From the Heart
Greetings and peace in the name of Lord Jesus.
My name is
Maria Rogoja and I am a member of "Good News" Baptist
Church in Orhei, Moldova.
We were invited to work with the organization "Somn Dulce"
or "Sweet Sleep" at the orphanage in our town. This orphanage is for boys with
special needs.
It was not a very easy work because sometimes these children
became too excited to have a new bed! I had a deep desire to help the team do
their work.
I am glad I could help the team all these days. God is doing
miracles for these children.
I encourage you to support Sweet Sleep in their
work. It is beautiful and pleasant in God's eyes.
May God bless you and give you peace and grace! Amen.
Our Mission
Sweet Sleep exists to share God's love by providing beds to the world's orphaned and
abandoned children.
Sweet Sleep is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization.
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From Jen's Pen
It's hard to believe it's been 5 years since I boarded a plane on a
mission trip to Moldova -- a place I had never heard of before. 5 years, 20 trips, 120 flights, and 1500 orphan beds later and here we are -
celebrating 5 incredible years of ministry and knowing it's just the beginning of what God has in store for Sweet Sleep.
To all of you who have played such an integral part in these past 5
amazing years, I want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart. We truly could not have impacted the lives of so many orphaned and abandoned
children without you. And to the orphaned children who stole my heart five years ago, please know you're the reason I get up every day and the reason
I haven't slept a full night in 5 years! I love you more than you could ever know.
We hope you'll join us for our 5th Birthday Celebration at Greer Stadium on June 20th! Read on for details... We hope to see you there!
Sweetly,
jen
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A sweet beginning: Sweet Sleep President and Founder Jen
Gash with her teammates in 2003. It was on this trip that God began to reveal to Jen His heart for
orphaned and abandoned children and how she would be a part of His plan to bring Sweet Sleep to orphans around the world.
Want to see what God is doing through Jen and Sweet Sleep today? Our Drochia Mission Journey Team just returned from Moldova and they've posted blogs
about their journey.
Visit our newly redesigned website, www.sweetsleep.org, and
click on Connect to Our Blog.
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Don't miss your chance to see 2007 American Idol Finalist
Chris Sligh live in concert at Faith Night!
You'll also hear more about what Sweet Sleep is doing to help provide beds for
the world's orphaned and abandoned children. For more information about
Chris Sligh, visit www.chrissligh.com.
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Celebrate 5 Years of Sweet Sleep with the Nashville Sounds!
Join us as we celebrate 5 years of Sweet Sleep at Faith Night at the Nashville Sounds,
Friday, June 20th. A pre-game concert will begin at 5:30 p.m. and the game starts at 7:00. Discount tickets are available by calling the Sweet Sleep
office at 615.730.7671. For more information about this exciting event, contact jon@sweetsleep.org.
We also need volunteers to help at our Sweet Sleep booth at each of the 6 Faith
Nights!
If you are interested in volunteering at one of these Faith Night events, please e-mail
jon@sweet sleep.org.
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Meet Our Volunteers
The Trip That Changed My Life
By Irene Rodriquez
This year started off a bit rocky for me. God was working on me and I knew that God was
telling me to make changes in my life and I did. My first step in the right direction was getting involved at Brentwood Baptist Church. I joined a
Bible Study that I love and through Kairos, a young-adult worship service at Brentwood, I heard about Sweet Sleep.
One night I heard a teenage Moldovan girl share her story of receiving her Sweet Sleep
bed. I knew in my heart this was the opportunity God was preparing me for. I have always known mission work was something I needed to do, but
never took that step of faith until March 28, 2008.
My biggest concern was that I wouldn't be able to raise the funds necessary for the
trip, but I soon began to see God provide. I asked God to continue to provide and by the time we boarded the plane, He had provided every dollar I
needed. God used my faithfulness in following Him to show how He is always faithful to provide, if we will ask and trust Him.
Even though I attended all of the training sessions for our trip, I still felt I had no
idea what to expect when I arrived in Moldova. Working with children with disabilities seemed like it would overwhelm me, but once we met the
children, God calmed my fears.I think what will stick with me the most are the smiles on the children's faces when they saw their new beds. I was
filled with joy and a sense of accomplishment -- as was each of my fellow team members. While each of our Moldovan experiences were different, I know
I will forever be connected to this place called Moldova.
I look forward to many more trips to Moldova's orphanages and as a dual US and Costa
Rican citizen, I also hope help Sweet Sleep begin to minister to orphans in Central America. Whatever has kept you from saying "Yes, God - I'll go,"
I
hope you will take a step of faith like I did and meet the needs of orphaned children. Just get ready to experience God like never
before!
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Irene with one of the sweet boys at
Casa de Copii.
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From left: Valeriu Ghiletchi,
President of the Baptist Union of Moldova, Stuart
McAlister, Vice President of Sweet Sleep, President and Founder of Sweet Sleep,
Jen Gash, and Ion Miron, Secretary of the Baptist
Union. |
Sweet Sleep Signs Official Parntership with the Baptist Union of Moldova
Over the past 5 years, Sweet Sleep and the Baptist Union
of Moldova have worked together to meet the needs of orphaned and abandoned
children.
This April, Sweet Sleep and the Baptist Union entered into an
official partnership as part of Sweet Sleep's 1:27 Project.
The 1:27 Project connects churches in America with churches in Third
World countries teaching them to "be" the church. The 1:27 Project
models how to live out the Bible's James 1:27 calling to "pure religion" -
ministering to orphans and widows in their distress. The Baptist Union is
currently distributing project information to Moldova's 450 Romanian and Russian
Baptist Churches and 100 church plants. Soon, churches in Moldova will begin to contact our staff at the
Baptist Union, excited about having a church in America partner with them in
ministering to orphans and widows in their communities.
What do we need? Churches to sponsor these Moldovan
churches!
For more information visit www.sweetsleep.org/127project
or e-mail Jen at jennifer@sweetsleep.org.
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Sweet Sleep: Changing Lives Forever
By Galina Tiscenco
I've decided I really want to be a missionary - not only because I want to go to
different countries and help people, but also because missionaries have influence on people's lives. I mean, I could help change people's lives! I
know it is difficult to tell people about God - especially those who have hard lives and that don't even believe that God exists. I know it is scary
to tell people who God is and how he changed my life. But I'm amazed by people who do this and I want to join them.
When Sweet Sleep teams come to Moldova, they tell us about God and they aren't afraid. Many times, I've asked myself, "Do they travel that much just
to tell us about God?" It didn't make any sense to me until I met God. Because Americans cared so much, I met God and now I want to be like them -
going around the world telling people about God. I want to help change someone's life by introducing them to Christ, just like someone did for
me.
My best friend Anastasia Morozova is in Nashville studying with me at the International English Institute. Her life was changed last summer when a
Sweet Sleep team came to Moldova. We went with the team as translators and one afternoon, while we were listening to one of the team members share
how
God changed their life, she understood that she needed to start a new life - a life with God.
On Sunday, May 4th, Anastasia was baptized at Brentwood Baptist Church - the church that
was serving in Moldova when she met God. I was so happy for Anastasia and I know she was happy, too! Afterwards, I was sitting in church - just
looking at her, thinking how amazing it is to be saved and to be relieved from all your worries about taking care of your life. I wish that all
people
will come to know God as I have, and as my friend Anastasia has. I also pray for more people to go on mission trips to Moldova to help God change
people's lives forever.
To find out about how you can help change the lives of children in Moldova and
around the world with Sweet Sleep, contact stuart@sweetsleep.org.
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Home Sweet Home: (Left to Right) Jen Gash, Sweet Sleep's President
and Founder,
Galina, and Anastasia shortly after the girls arrived in the US.
About the writer:
Galina Tiscenco grew up in Chisinau's Internat #2 orphanage.
She is now 16 years old and is living in Nashville with Sweet Sleep's President and
Founder, Jen Gash, while she attends school.
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