If there is one thing that rebelutionaries are good at it, it’s supporting the efforts of their fellow rebelutionaries. Here’s a chance to do that. Watch this video.

Seriously. Georgia-based rebelutionary Andrew Cunningham needs to finish in the Top 5 (in total views) in the 104.7 The Fish Opening Act contest on YouTube. If he wins, $10,000 will go to a student-led missions organization. That’s one big reason to watch. The other is that Andrew’s song is really, really good — plus, it has a truly rebelutionary message based on a passage in Matthew 7.

Watch it and share it. Use Facebook, email, Twitter, you name it. He’s 8,000 views behind the leader, but rebelutionaries won’t let that last for long. Soli Deo gloria!

+ Click Here to Watch +

Thank you all for your support of our family after the passing of our mother. We have been overwhelmed by the love, prayers, and stories of lives changed by God’s grace through our mom’s faithfulness. Please, keep them coming!

By God’s grace, we are doing well — inexplicably well, apart from hope in Christ. The weekend before last, we held a conference in Atlanta — just 20 days after mom’s death. Everyone would have understood if we had cancelled it, but we knew she would want us to carry on. As one friend reflected, we could almost hear her saying, squeezing our hands, “Don’t give up… Don’t you dare waste this time.”

By God’s grace, over 100 people came to know her Savior that day.

When Hard Things Happen

If anything, our experience this summer has helped us to more deeply sympathize with the suffering around us. Our family is not the only one feeling the sting of death — defeated as it is. We are not the only ones who have lost a parent. Cancer and disease ravages this fallen world. Things are not as they should be.

Even in America, where we have so much for which to be thankful, drug and alcohol abuse, crime, car accidents, and broken homes are just a few of the constant reminders that we live in a fallen world. The Rebelution calls teens to do hard things, but what about when “hard things” come to you?

What follows are four things that have upheld us through this trial. We hope God will use them to encourage those of you who are also experiencing a season of suffering, and to equip all of us for the trials that will inevitably come.

Photo credit: Andie Jael.

(more…)

Abby Enck is only eight-years-old, but her story provides an excellent blueprint for rebelutionaries on how to make a difference. This shy girl found a cause close to home (supporting her brother who has cerebral palsy) and took one small step to meet that need (raising $4.50 selling lemonade to buy crayons).

Once she had developed a successful model, she multiplied it (buying crayons for other kids too and equipping other people to sell lemonade) and that is only the beginning (she is going to buy DVD’s next year and wants to become a special education teacher when she grows up).

We hope Abby’s story will encourage you that starting small is better than doing nothing. Whether it is raising money for Haiti, witnessing to friends at school, or volunteering to help out at church, remember that God can do great things when we make ourselves available. So, stop making excuses, and step out in faith!

8-Year-Old Girl Creates Charity Lemonade Franchises
by Kate Allt • NBC Chicago • Friday, July 16, 2010

Chicago, IL – Plenty of elementary school kids run lemonade stands during the summer. Few turn those lemonade stands into charitable franchises that help sick kids.

But 8-year-old Abby Enck found a way to use her refreshing entrepreneurial enterprise to bring some color into the life of her 6-year-old brother Cameron and his cohorts at Lutheran General Children’s Hospital in Park Ridge. Cameron was born with Cerebral Palsy.

“It’s hard sometimes to have a sibling with a disability, but Abby is a really great sister,” Abby’s mother Becki Enck said. “I’m amazed by her everyday. She’s a very giving, thoughtful, gentle person.”

Cameron was diagnosed with the disease when he was just one week old. Big sister Abby has accompanied him to almost all of his appointments, and she noticed that the kids at the hospital liked coloring.

So when Abby made $4.50 from selling Delicious lemonade to neighborhood locals, she decided use the money to buy 36 boxes of Crayons for Cameron and the other kids at the hospital.

“Cameron’s doctor loved it,” Abby said. “I really like to color, and I thought the kids would love it too.”

When 2010 rolled around, Abby thought she could best last year’s donation. So rather than sling lemonade on her own, she created “lemonade kits” consisting of a bottle of water, a packet of lemonade and a homemade tag that explained her goal. Abby made 52 kits and recruited family and friends to help sell them for $1 each.

The franchise idea turned out to be Crayon boom-town, and Abby has been able to purchase 869 boxes of Crayola Crayons so far this year. She hopes to make it to her goal of 1,000 boxes in the next few weeks.

(more…)

The four oldest brothers: (l-r) Brett, Joel, Alex, and Josh.

Photo by Andie Jael.

Before anything else is said, thank you all for your love and support these past several weeks. Our family has truly felt uplifted by your prayers, your letters, and your comments. By God’s grace, we are doing well — and in that same grace, the life and ministry of the family that our mother gave her life to continues on.

In light of that, we are very excited to announce that our older brother Josh will be joining us for three of our remaining conferences this year — Atlanta, Nashville, and Washington, DC. Not only will we be able to make jokes about his height and hair (or lack thereof), but he will be delivering a powerful message, based on Dug Down Deep, exhorting us all to build our lives as rebelutionaries on truth about God.

If you are anywhere nearby one of those three cities, we encourage you to come and be inspired by our big brother. Date, location, and registration details below. Note that the Atlanta pre-registration discount ends this weekend!

Atlanta, GA — July 24 — Pre-Reg discount ends July 17 (save $5)

Nashville, TN — August 14 — Pre-Reg ends August 7 (save $5)

Washington, DC — September 25 — Early Bird ends July 31 (save $10)

+ Register Online +

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” — John 11:24-26

Photo by Andie Jael.

At 8:00pm (PDT) this evening our mother, Sono Sato Harris, went to be with her Savior. She went peacefully and painlessly. We all grieve, but we have hope. We rejoice with her — and we eagerly anticipate our reunion with her someday.

Fourth of July represents something even greater to us now, true freedom for our dearest mother — from a body wracked by cancer and life in a broken world.

Tonight, as fireworks lit up the sky, we like to think that they celebrated a life well-lived — and a recognition that it is not death to die, that we can still rejoice.

Our older brother Joel, who leads worship for the Rebelution Tour, wrote a song for mom yesterday called “Goodnight, Mama.” The lyrics beautifully capture our last several months with her — and are included below.

GOODNIGHT, MAMA
Written July 3, 2010

Walking through your door, sitting on your bed
Talking about everything together
We’ll talk into the night, till everything seems clear again
And there’s only one thing left to say…

Goodnight, mama, I’m so glad that you’re here to talk to
Sleep well, I’ll see you soon
Thank you, Jesus, for a mother who pours herself out
Always something more to do

Walking through you door, bringing you your food
Talking about how you slept last night
We only have a little while, till you need to rest again
And there’s only one thing left to say…

Goodnight, mama, I’m so glad that I got to see you
Sleep well, I’ll be back soon
Thank you, Jesus, for a mother who poured her life out
Please fill her anew

Walking through your door, to see you one more time
Thinking about all the times we’ve shared
Not much longer now, because He’s calling you home
And there’s only one thing left to say…

Goodbye, mama, I’m so glad that I got to know you
Farewell, I’ll see you soon
Take her, Jesus, to a place with no pain or sickness
To heaven with you

Copyright © 2010 Joel Harris

Goodbye, Mama… We love you.

Abby Sunderland and her family have come under a lot of criticism in recent weeks — most of it by people who have not met them and never will. We know them personally. They have our full support, prayers, and shared joy as they welcome Abby home and welcome their newest brother — Paul — to the family.

Today Abby and her older brother Zac held a press conference to tell her story and answer questions about her attempt to sail around the world. Catherine Saillant of the Los Angeles Times provides a great account:

Young Sailor Recounts Her Adventures and Defends Her Ability
Abby Sunderland says her difficulties in trying to sail around the world had nothing to do with her age

Facing dozens of cameras, 16-year-old sailor Abby Sunderland thanked her rescuers on Tuesday, recounted how she got through her most terrifying moments at sea and spoke about how her family has gotten through sharp criticism of the voyage.

Responding to those who said she was too young to sail around the world by herself, Abby defended her abilities. On boats since she was a toddler, she has worked as a crew member on sailboats piloted by her father, a shipwright, and her older brother, Zac, who made his own circumnavigation last year at age 17, before departing on her trip in late January.

After she traveled 12,000 nautical miles, her voyage was stopped only because a rogue wave turned her boat upside down and snapped her 60-foot mast, she told reporters at a news conference in Marina del Rey.

“I’ve crossed two oceans and two capes,” she said. “The questions about my age should have been done months ago…. My trip didn’t end because of something I did wrong.”

People who know Abby best say she’s always been a can-do girl. She raised her family’s 25-pound Thanksgiving turkey two years ago. At 13, she decided she wanted to sail around the world. While onboard her 40-foot-sloop, Wild Eyes, she said, she read “Do Hard Things” by Alex and Brett Harris, which rails against society’s low expectations of teenagers.

Last week, while some other teenage girls were camping outside a Los Angeles theater to catch of glimpse of the stars of the latest “Twilight” movie, Abby was on a French patrol boat making her way back to her Thousand Oaks home after her rescue at sea.

“Never much into vampires,” she responded to a question about whether she had seen any of the wildly popular movies based on the “Twilight” books.

Read the rest of the article…

A week and a half ago, we were on the set of the ‘Huckabee’ show, taping an interview with Governor Mike Huckabee. The Governor has met the Sunderland family and personally requested that we respond to the criticism being thrown at them — which we were glad to do. That interview will be broadcast on July 17th — exactly one year to the day after we posted our letter to Zac.

But we also want to speak directly to our fellow rebelutionaries.

The Rebelution movement is not about sailing around the world, but it is about raising expectations for teens. Zac and Abby and their parents share that vision. How many more lives have been wasted because of low expectations and parental neglect, than because of young people who dared to accomplish something greater — and whose parents provided the guidance and support they needed?

Juxtaposed with the story of Abby’s safe return on the L.A. Times website is the tragic headline, “Teen girl, 15, dies of suspected overdose after rave at Coliseum.” More lives are thrown away by teens failing to take responsibility than will ever be lost by teens attempting to take on “too much” responsibility.

What we said to Zac last year remains our position on feats like the ones he and Abby have undertaken. They have a place — if only to force our society to rethink their unbiblical, counter-historical assumptions about what young people can and should accomplish. If not weekend raves, if not rogue waves — what?

God doesn’t call all teens to sail around the world — but He does command us to dream, to dare, and to do. Abby and Zac are doing just that. Many of their peers are not. High-profile or low-profile is not the goal, but faithfulness to Christ and His call. From what we know of the Sunderland family, that is their goal as well.

+ AbbySunderland.com +

Photos by Andie Haugen, taken last week. A blessing from God.

Many of you have asked for an update on how our mother is doing. Our older brother Josh recently shared the following on his blog:

Several of you have asked about how my mom is doing (see this post for background on her fight with cancer). Thank you. We really appreciate your concern and prayers for her. The short answer is that her spirit is strong but her body is failing quickly. In the past few days in particular, she has grown very weak. We’re sad but have come to the realization that it seems to be God’s will to take her home sooner than we had hoped. At this point there’s nothing that doctors can do. That being said, Mom speaks joyfully about seeing Jesus soon. She is not afraid of death. She knows that her Redeemer lives.

Read the rest of the post…

Thank you all so much for your love and prayers. This is a very hard thing, but God is good. It is in His strength that we do and endure hard things. Soli Deo gloria!

UPDATE: There was some confusion about air dates for the show. We just learned that it will air on Saturday, July 17th at 8 PM (ET), and will re-air at 2 AM, 8 PM and 11 PM on Sunday the 18th.

UPDATE #2: Apparently an opportunity to interview Robert Duvall has caused our show to be re-scheduled once more. We’ll let you know when we get an update. Thanks for your patience (we’re waiting too).

Brett and I are about to step on the NYC set of the Fox News Channel hit talk show ‘Huckabee’ with former Governor Mike Huckabee to discuss the Do Hard Things message and movement. Please pray that God would use our words to challenge and inspire our generation to boldness and faithfulness for Him.

The show will air on Saturday, July 17th at 8 PM (ET), and will re-air at 2 AM, 8 PM and 11 PM on Sunday the 18th. Be sure to tune in and spread the word to family and friends. This is a great opportunity to introduce new people to the Rebelution movement.

+ The Huckabee Show +

We stumbled across Kickstarter today after hearing from a mom and daughter team who are raising money for a book project about Donaldina Cameron, a Presbyterian missionary and abolitionist. We were impressed not only with their project, but also the service they were using to solicit pledges — and we figured you would be too.

We receive many questions about how to raise money for projects (which is why we devoted a section of Start Here to fundraising) and Kickstarter seems like another excellent tool to add to your rebelutionary toolkit. They are currently limited to “creative” projects (e.g. books, music, film, design, photography, technology, community, etc.) — but for many of you, that is no limitation at all.

So, check out Kickstarter and file it away for use on future projects. Our links take you to the project that introduced us to Kickstarter. Take the time to learn about Donaldina Cameron and consider pledging your support to Kristin and Kathryn.

Share your thoughts and tips on fundraising