Avi's Story, International Adoption, Orphan Care, Philippines

The Power of One: Tin Tin Ornaments for the Avi Campaign

November is #adoptionmonth November 12 is nationally recognized as #StandSunday #orphansunday #purereligionsunday November 13 is known as #WorldOrphanDay Isaiah 1:17 Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. Proverbs 31:8-9 Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice. And the very well known verse from

James 1:27 Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.

We at Ting Ministries and the Tin Tin House had our beginnings in 1998 when we adopted our first and oldest daughter. This is when we began to learn the plight of millions of orphaned, vulnerable children, street children and those living in horrible situations such as poverty or trafficking or slavery. This began our journey to be #voiceforthevoiceless.

Ministry was named in 2007 after the adoption of our daughter from Taiwan with multiple special needs. Then in 2009 when we learned of the plight of one tiny dark haired girl with significant special needs the ministry of Ting Ministries began its first work outside of adoption and began support of many orphans and 1 very special orphanage where this tiny princess lay. In 2011 we had the honor, blessing and privilege to become her mom and dad forever. AVIGAYIL “Avi” or better known as “Tin Tin” changed our lives and is still changing lives for eternity! She is the face of all things Tin Tin and The Power of One Campaign and The Avi Campaign!

The statistics are staggering regarding the plight of orphans and vulnerable children. We challenge you to get involved! We challenge you to adopt or foster a child! We would love to come personally share about the work of Ting Ministries with your church, Bible Study, business or small group! Ting Ministries is not just speaking words when we say we care for the orphan! Every day is Stand Day, Orphan Day, World Orphan Day, Voice for the Voiceless Day and Pure Religion Day in our home and in the ministry!

Not only have we at Ting personally adopted multiple children with multiple special needs from multiple countries but I have also worked with multiple adoption agencies as a professional who has helped many other families find and bring home their precious children through the gift of adoption. Help those Ting Ministries helps by praying, sharing and supporting this small but vital ministry. Those supported and helped by Ting would call what help they have received life changing. In addition and even more urgent is the sharing of the Gospel! This is truly the Power of One! This is where lives are changed – by the Power of Jesus Christ! He is returning soon and it is urgent for the Gospel to be shared! Jesus Christ can change your life and He has the power to save. It is His command to care for the orphan and widow and poor! We serve a very mighty God and his Love compels us to continue to be a Voice for the Voiceless and to share the Gospel! Join Ting

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Ting Ministries 29 East Poplar Street Lebanon Pa 17042

Tin Tin and the Tin Tin ornaments being produced as I type by a dear brother and sister in Florida who I had the honor to meet through animal rescue ❤️

Avi's Story, International Adoption, Orphan Care, Philippines

The Power of One

Originally Published on November 5, 2023
The power of one life – that one life is that of Jesus Christ. He has the power to save. Romans 10:9-10
Today 5 years ago was the worst day and the best day of my life. Today is the day that my princess Avigayil Christina ( better known as Tin Tin in the Philippines and now all around the world in the places where Ting Ministries has teams on the ground sharing the Gospel and being a voice for the Voiceless )
Today is the day our Lord took her home with Him. Today 5 years ago is the day her body became whole as she took the hand of the Savior Jesus and went home with Him. One day when He returns or calls me home I will spend eternity with her and my Savior – so that is how it is the worst day and the best day of my life.
I remember the moment like it was yesterday- for anyone in the midst of grief it is unending. For me …time has not healed as the cliché phrase states. But for me and us at Ting Ministries the days are bearable and even can be joyful only because of Jesus Christ and that of serving Him.
The twinkle in the eyes of a little girl Today because she was able to buy a sandwich to feed her hungry stomach because of the kindness of a stranger …the joy of seeing children in Pakistan have a bed frame to sleep on or food to feed the starving baby….the joy of a family freed from slavery and beginning a new life…the joy of watching slave laborers use their skills to build the walls of the church in Pakistan…the joy of seeing homemade boats built and dedicated to the Lord and named after our princess…the joy of having a feeding program feed thousands of children or schools open in her name and honor…the joy of lives coming to know Jesus Christ as their Savior and knowing that an entire ministry began because of the life of ONE TINY BROKEN ORPHAN HALF A WORLD AWAY WHO BECAME A PRINCESS AND LOVED AND ADOPTED BECAUSE OF THE POWER AND LOVE OF JESUS CHRIST! WOW!
TODAY SHE HAS HER 5TH HEAVENLY HOMECOMING…I can’t see what I type because the tears flow from missing her here so much. To me she was perfect..her tiny perfect hands…her perfect nose and perfect laugh…her perfect dark curls and perfect beautiful feet. She is now perfect with our Lord but she was perfect here on earth to me even though she had a broken body by our world’s standard – but then maybe our world is upside down and she was given to the world to have the world see things through her perspective.
The day I picked her up for the first time in a metal crib in an orphanage in the Philippines I was asked why I wanted her so desperately when I could adopt another child not so broken. At the time I had no idea the Lord would use her to birth a ministry but what I did know is that the Lord called us to adopt HER!
SO today and the whole month of November we at Ting Ministries have the Avi Campaign running in honor of our Princess.
$5,000 on the 5th ( and throughout the month) for her 5th heavenly homecoming
These funds will be used for all things Tin Tin in each country where Ting Ministries has teams feeding children and sharing the Gospel!
Help me celebrate my girl.
Help other children and families in her honor.
It’s a tribute to one..that one is Jesus Christ and He has been using the power of 1 tiny little dark haired girl to change lives for eternity !
Thanks for loving her and crying and rejoicing with me as we see one life at a time changed by His power.
JAMES 1:27
PROVERBS 31:8-9
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Ting Ministries 29 East Poplar Street Lebanon Pa 17042
God bless you
Thank you Lord for giving us Avi – our Tin Tin House
Ting Ministries
Adoption, International Adoption, Russia, Sasha's Story, speaking engagements

Abortion Survivor Speaks: Sasha Presents on Sanctity of Life Sunday

On Sunday, January 22, 2023, I was blessed to share my story as an abortion survivor and Russian adoptee at Freedom in Christ Fellowship, in Lebanon, PA. The Lord has granted me an incredible testimony of redemption. In this service (full video above) I share:

  • My story of adoption at 17 months old to being reunified with birth family in 2018. A message of redemption, forgiveness and grace, for all those impacted by abortion: birth mothers, birth fathers, children, adoptive families.
  • What the Bible tells us about the Sanctity of Human Life (Deuteronomy 30:19, Proverbs 31:8-9, Ephesians 1-2; Romans 8:1)
  • Practical steps we all can take to be a Voice for the Voiceless in our society, including recent statistics on the reasons women face the choice of abortion and what can be done to support family strengthening
  • Bonus Video Below: I closed the service in the Aaronic Benediction in English and Hebrew (music by Marty and Misha Goetz.) I’ve been blessed to share this performance on other occasions, notably at the Jericho March in Washington, D.C.

May the Lord bless you and keep you. 

Adoption, Avi's Story, Ellianna's Story, International Adoption, speaking engagements, Team Ting

Ting: What Does It Mean?

TING: To Truly Listen

What does it mean?
It is a skill that not too many have actually acquired. It means to not be focused on yourself and your own thoughts, attitudes and opinions when hearing someone.
Listen with TING!
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Turn your focus away from yourself and listen with your eyes, your ears, your mind and your heart.
So how did the ministry end up with the name TING MINISTRIES?
In 2007 we adopted a tiny little girl from an orphanage in Taiwan. Her name given at birth by her own birthmother was Ya-Ting. We renamed her Ellianna Ya-Ting.
It was on that adoption trip that we sensed God was leading us as a couple into ministry to orphans as a means to share the Gospel and to live out the Gospel (James 1:27) It was during that week in Taipei, Taiwan that the name TING MINISTRIES was birthed for a ministry yet to begin.
We held onto the name and finally in August of 2009 Ting Ministries began its first mission outreach to an orphan and orphanage in the Southern Philippines (that orphan would later become our beloved daughter Avigayil – Avi – “Tin Tin.”)
Do you LISTEN with your heart?
The really amazing thing about Ellianna’s name being Ting is that her birthmother did not know that she was deaf. Ellianna was born with many special needs but her birthmother did not know she was also deaf. So Ellianna Ya-Ting truly must “listen with her heart” and has been teaching us how to LISTEN!
Today listen with TING!
Annie's Story, China, International Adoption

Happy 20th Birthday, Annie!

6 years ago today Sasha and I were in China completing the miracle adoption of Annie!
The Race to China started 6 and 1/ 2 weeks before Annie turned 14! At that time, 6 years ago, Chinese orphans aged out on their 14th birthday. If you arrived late- even a day after the child’s 14th birthday even because of flight issues it would have been to late for an aging out child. There was no wiggle room for any mistakes or unforeseen circumstances! That child would be forever an orphan and no longer eligible to be adopted.
We only learned of Annie about 8 weeks before her 14th birthday and sensed the Lord say “GO”!
WE HAD NO ADOPTION FUNDS, NO CLEARANCES, NO CURRENT HOME STUDY AND ANNIE DID NOT EVEN HAVE A FILE IN CHINA. At that time an average China adoption would take approximately 8 months to a year or more. Our next adoption of Brittan and Hope a year later took almost 2 years to put the miracle into perspective!
The Lord brought in every penny needed for her adoption and every necessary document and had us on a plane from D.C. to L.A. and then onto Guangzhou and finally to Changsha in less than 7 weeks time. I am not sure there was a single soul who believed we would make it to Annie on time. But God knew and urged us onward. Sasha and I arrived in her City on the 26th and adopted her officially by 5 pm June 27th and she turned 14 at midnight in the 28th.
God did it! There is no other explanation except Him.
Fast forward 6 years- what a gift He has given us in our Hannah “Annie”! The first moment Annie was placed in the van beside Ellianna, upon our arrival home 2 weeks after our finalized adoption in her city – they became best friends and sisters. Ellianna and Annie have remained best friends. God made them for one another. Annie is 4 years older and from China and Ellianna is from Taiwan but we often get asked if they are twins. In personality they are polar opposites. Ellianna is a fireball with never ending energy. Annie is calm and patient and prefers to read to being active all day. Ellianna prefers black and navy colored clothes and Annie prefers pink and sparkly! Annie cognitively is very bright but her body doesn’t want to do what her brain would like( moderate to severe cp) where as Ellianna may not walk or hear ( also cp and brain injury) but her upper body is a powerhouse with very good dexterity. Her brain injury however has affected her ability to read and learn academics. Annie helps Ellinna to sit and do schoolwork and will tell her what to cut and paste and Ellianna can do the fine motor skills. Annie has difficulty feeding herself and Ellianna steps in and lovingly feeds Annie when Annie needs help. They have developed their own type of language and can communicate very well even though Annie’s hands keep her from doing sign language for Ellianna to understand.
Annie was considered an older child for adoption and often times there is fear in adopting an older child. We can not imagine our lives without this beautiful, kind and passionate daughter of ours. She has spunk if needed and patience when needed. She accepted Jesus as her Lord and Savior and was baptized last July. She loves to read and listen to sermons on her IPad. She has a card ministry and loves to encourage others by the cards she writes. She asked for a pink study Bible for her birthday.
Annie we celebrate you today!! We celebrate the miracles God has done in your life and in ours by giving you to us in such an extraordinary way. We celebrate your 20th birthday today, tomorrow and all week.
You can help Annie celebrate by giving to those in need. The adoption of children has slowed down terribly since 2020 but there are many that are working to make a difference in the lives of children and needy souls in other ways. I do have some friends also needing prayer for adoptions that are happening but are terribly slow right now.
Annie helps in Ting Ministries by praying and writing!
She asks that in honor of her miracle adoption and her 20th birthday that you would consider a gift to Ting Ministries in her name. She will send every penny to the country that you would choose.
Here are her ministry focuses for prayer this week to which you can donate in her honor:
1. Pakistan – to complete the first ever of the Ting Homes so the Gospel will be preached to the Hindu colony where the homes are being built. $1,000
2. 120 days of feeding the Muslim children living on the streets in the Philippines $2,500
3. To build a shelter in Romania for the rescued animals who were beaten and starved before the Ting Director saved them and to fix the roof of the House of Salvation $2,000
4. To feed the orphanage children in Bagladesh $500
5. To continue Lera’s Dance for the poor village children in Russia for the month of July $400
6. To allow a group of Indonesian Ting missionaries to travel through the mountains to reach unreached people with food and the Gospel $500
7. To help a Ukrainian family to pay 4 months of rent that a landlord said did not need to be paid monthly but now wants all 4 months at one time and due to the war they have not been able.to work and have no money and grandma is not well and was diagnosed with cancer$800
Happy Birthday Annie! Thank you Annie for being a bright light in this dark world!
Ting Ministries
29 East Poplar Street Lebanon Pa 17042
James 1:27 seems like a fitting verse for today
Ask us about ministry opportunities
We would love to come to your church or small group or business to share.
Ask us about adoption.