Welcome back friends! It’s been a long time since we last posted. As far as this blog is concerned it has been a little over 4 years. But in true Maynard fashion… we are making some big changes! Because of those changes, we are back to sharing part of our lives with you.
In the fall of 2021, our dear friend, Rick Whittle, introduced us to Growing Faithful Children (GFC). What is GFC? If you look on the website you will see our mission: Growing Faithful Children is a Church of Christ organization that’s purpose is to spread the good news of Jesus Christ to children around the world and to teach those children to have a positive impact on their community through Christ-centered living.
The summer of 2022 Justin and I were able to take our first trip to Santa Cruz, Jamaica. Since then we have become very involved in this organization. Justin is now on the board of GFC and serves as the Director of Church Relations and Curriculum Development. I’m sure you have lots of questions about what this means, stay tuned, there will be follow-up blogs explaining the different parts of GFC and how you can also be involved!
This blog is simply an introduction and a “welcome back into our lives.” We have loved sharing our farm with all of you from 2012-2015 and then sharing the work in Tanzania from 2015-2019. Now, we are in a new chapter. For those of you who do not know, Justin is stepping down as the youth minister of the Spanish Fort church of Christ as of Jan 1, 2024. Now, before all of you jump to conclusions, we are NOT moving to Santa Cruz, Jamaica. We are moving to Augusta, Georgia. I have taken a full-time job as a Licensed Associate Professional Counselor (LAPC). Justin, Lord-willing, graduates with the same degree in May 2024 and will begin counseling in the summer or fall of 2024.
We are excited about this next chapter. The Central church of Christ in Augusta is dear to our hearts. Like many of you, they were a huge part of our work in Tanzania and a source of encouragement. We are thrilled to be a part of this congregation and that they are also involved in the work in Jamaica.
So why the blog? Well, over the next few months I am going to share with you about Growing Faithful Children and the work in Jamaica. But more importantly, in the last 4 years SO many of you have asked Justin or I how you can be involved in work that we do. We are so excited to say that we are looking for congregations to be involved in GFC. If you want Justin to come and give a report or talk with your eldership about the work going on in Jamaica – send us a message or email themaynardsfarm@gmail.com . Starting in January of 2024 we will be more than happy to come and share this work with you and your congregation.
Last, we are doing a crayon drive for Growing Faithful Children. My next blog will be explaining our Impact Kids program. But a little sneak peak: during the summer we go into the public schools in the St. Elizabeth Parrish and have the opportunity to teach more than 5,000 kids about Jesus! To do that we need LOTS of crayons. If you are interested in helping we are collecting the 24 pack of Crayola crayons. You can purchase those off of Amazon (or anywhere) here. This is 24 packs of 24 for $30. Now, you don’t have to spend $30. This is just one example. Amazon has lots of great deals. Recently, Walmart had these packs on sale for .99! Just a single pack puts us closer to our goal. You can mail your crayons to: 26028 Point A Isle Road Andalusia, AL 36421. The Spanish Fort COC, Prattville COC, and Central COC in Augusta are all collecting crayons also.
We are so excited to bring y’all into this work whether through prayer, encouragement, financial support, or by coming with us to Jamaica (2024 registration is open). Be on the look out for my next blog where I will explain our Impact Kids program.
Goat Girl Gazette 