Tim's New Book

The time has come!

I’m excited to share with you my new book, Awestruck: Life-Altering Encounters With Jesus. The book focuses on Jesus’ encounters with real people and the real change that occured in real lives as recorded in the Gospel of Mark.

The book will release Tuesday, May 10, and will be available through your local book retail location, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and anywhere else that books are sold.

Before I share some early comments about the book, I want to share something special about the book.  Every penny of proceeds from the book will go towards a very special cause to our family- bringing our daughter, Abby Kate, home from Ethiopia to join her forever family. We are in the process of adopting and I hope you’ll consider that if you purchase a copy you are directly impacting real lives!

 Here’s what some are saying about the book:

"Tim Cooper knows the Word of God and has the gift of putting it down on the ‘bottom shelf’ where everyone can be blessed by it. In his latest book he does just that as he takes these ‘Jesus encounters’ in the gospel of Mark and shows how they  can transform your life, marriage, home, and church.”
- Wally Rendel
 Director of Church Relations, Cincinnati Christian University

“This latest book is just another reason I believe Tim Cooper is one of the best young leaders in the church today. His insight coupled with his understanding of Scripture result in a compelling tool for today’s journey.”
-Philip Ling
The Ling Group

“When you encounter Jesus one-on-one, your life changes forever. It really does. As you read these pages you will clearly see that Tim’s life has and yours can, too!”
-Mike Breaux
Teaching Pastor, Heartland Community Church

I’m incredibly honored by each statement.

One of the goals of the book is that it will be applicable to followers of Jesus and those unsure of their path at the same time. Mark’s Gospel is a tremendous starting point and discipling tool at the same time. It is my prayer that Awestruck will both meet you where you are and challenge your journey in the end. It’s very readable and a great length for readers of all interests and levels.

If you would like to help bring Abby Kate home, click below to pre-order an autographed copy today!

A Word About The Ethiopian Adoption Crisis

Over the past two weeks Ethiopia has made many drastic changes to the way they conduct adoptions. The Ethiopian Government has decided to reduce the number of adoption cases approved by over 90%.

The proposed legislation is to try to protect Ethiopian families from those who would seek to act illegally and immorally to create a culture of child trafficking.

We're all for that. The problem, however, is that this legislation will literally spill children from orphanages to the streets at epic proportions. There are currently 5,000,000 orphans in Ethiopia. In 2010, nearly 2,500 were adopted. As you can see the number wasn't nearly high enough to make a dent in the crisis. Now, the government proposes reducing the number of adoptions even more.

The economic strain on the country will be unbearable but the real losers are the kids. Disease will kill more. Unsafe water will kill more. Starvation will kill more. The bottom line is that more children will die at unprecedented numbers if the government does not reverse their decision.

Join us in signing an international petition by the Joint Council for International Adoption to be sent directly to the Ethiopian Prime Minister. It takes less than two minutes to complete. Click here to sign the petition and save lives.

A Special Note From April

There are 5,000,000 orphans in Ethiopia where we have been approved for adoption. The odds are stacked against each of them. 3 out of 10 children in Ethiopia do not live past their 1st birthday. 8 out of 10 use the same streams from which they drink as a bath and toilet. The average annual household income is less than $330. Many of these orphans not adopted through agencies are forced onto the streets or kidnapped into sex and child trafficking as young teens and smuggled throughout the African continent.

There is such a great need.

This year, I will be running the Papa John’s 10 Miler Race in Louisville, Kentucky, on Saturday, March 26. I am taking pledges for each mile of the ten mile race. For example:

• A pledge of $2.50/mile would equal a gift of $25.00
• A pledge of $5.00/mile would equal a gift of $50.00
• A pledge of $10.00/mile would equal a gift of $100.00

Pledges can be made in any amount. If you would be interested and able in helping us bring our daughter home to a life of hope, please consider joining us on this journey. Thanks for partnering with us on this journey as I Run For Our African Princess on Saturday, March 26! 

Sincerely,

April

aprilcooper06@gmail.com

Makayla's T-Shirt, Ordinary Hero, and How You Can Help

So much has happened over the past few weeks in our adoption process.

Our daughter, Makayla, won a contest to design the new youth/kids t-shirt campaign for Ordinary Hero. Ordinary Hero is a non-profit that advocates for adoption while helping families in the process raise much needed dollars towards the process.

Makayla's shirt has now been produced by Ordinary Hero benefiting families of adoption.

Any item purchased from the Ordinary Hero site helps us by sending 40% of the purchase price to our Adoption Agency account. How it works:

Visit http://www.ordinaryherostore.org/

1. Shop Ordinary Hero
2. When you checkout, enter your payment info, and look for the "Affiliate" drop-down menu, select "April Cooper"
3. Share a special bond with our family.