So much has happened since our last post. Our lives have been a bit of a blur with a lot of worldly distractions, you can learn more about what's been going on in this post. The devil has a way of raking you over the coals sometimes. The fog seems to be clearing and just in time to tackle a new family crisis!
In the midst though, God has sent some wonderful words and people our way. Encouragement has been abundant and we are so excited about the new information about Help Christians Adopt. The family we are currently sponsoring Baron and Laura Goins have been matched a with birth mother (read about God's AMAZING timing here) and were able to spend a weekend with her recently (read post). Since then two more families have called me and asked to donate to their adoption!!! God is soooo good! We've also received word from another group that they plan to make a donation!
So in the middle of sadness, disappointment, and discouragement come voices of sweet Christians that have allowed God to lead them in their giving to a precious mission effort! For that silver lining I am forever grateful. I am reminded that God never leaves us, forgets about us, or turns away. He is ever present and always there to comfort us in whatever we are struggling with.
Remember to Be Strong in the Lord and He will lift you up!
Monday, February 8, 2010
Monday, January 4, 2010
Shock and Awe
With a recent turn of events, our future is looking very different than I envisioned a few days ago. How quickly things can change. Adding to our family we believe is still God's plan, but recently He gave us clarity that we cannot deny. We will not be adopting Zane. With a broken heart, I am reminded of the timely phone call from my sweet Aunt Suzanne last week. God led her to pray with me on the phone. Her motive was pure and her request for God to make it obvious and clear was answered.
My original reaction was shock. How could I have become so emotionally involved with a child unknown to me that would not soon be mine? The shock of a devastating loss was quickly replaced with AWE. Awe of God, His power, clarity, and promise. As my heart bleeds for sweet Zane, I have full confidence God has a home for him.
I will continue to pray through my shock and awe as I wait for His will to be revealed. One thing I know, praying brothers and sisters with constant encouraging words have made this journey bearable. We are blessed.
My original reaction was shock. How could I have become so emotionally involved with a child unknown to me that would not soon be mine? The shock of a devastating loss was quickly replaced with AWE. Awe of God, His power, clarity, and promise. As my heart bleeds for sweet Zane, I have full confidence God has a home for him.
I will continue to pray through my shock and awe as I wait for His will to be revealed. One thing I know, praying brothers and sisters with constant encouraging words have made this journey bearable. We are blessed.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
We're Expecting
It's official the call came yesterday to say that we were the chosen family for Zane!! We are excited and filled with so many emotions. What a wonderful early Christmas present! Hopefully we will be able to meet him in mid January and by the end of the month he will be with us permanently. As our waiting continues we covet your prayers for our family and Zane.
With new beds to buy, rooms to rearrange, and plans to make we'll be busy making everything special for him! The kids are excited and anxious to meet him. We love you Zane!
To God be the glory in ALL things!
With new beds to buy, rooms to rearrange, and plans to make we'll be busy making everything special for him! The kids are excited and anxious to meet him. We love you Zane!
To God be the glory in ALL things!
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
345,600 Seconds and Counting...
What is a second? 1 mississippi, 2 mississippi, 3 mississippi...that's how I've always counted them. Most of us consider a second the quickest measure of time. Something that goes by so quickly you barely have time to blink. But think about what LESS than a second can mean to a marathon runner, an olympic swimmer, or a mom whose child has just touched a hot stove. They'll tell you that a whole second is a lifetime. And that a lot can happen in that amount of time.
Do you know how may seconds are in one day? Me neither, so I had to look it up. 86,400. What do you do with all that time? What if you sat in a chair and counted out loud...1 mississippi, 2 mississippi, 3 mississippi? Wouldn't it seem to take forever?
Well, in approximately 345,600 (4 days) we will find out if we are the chosen family for Zane! We will finally get the answer we've been waiting for. God's plan will be revealed. It is so excited and scary. I'm covered with anxiety and overcome with happiness! There is so much to do, so many plans to be made. Adding a new member to your family comes with a host of emotions and we seem to be experiencing all of them at once :). It's just like when I was "expecting" with our birth children.
Whatever God's answer is, we have FULL confidence and faith that HE will make a way for this to work. He will conquer our fears, comfort Zane in the transition, and give us the words and actions to make Zane feel a part of our family. He will surround us with love, people, and resources for support! We will have victory in Jesus!!!
So, in this case a second seems as though it may last a lifetime, as these will be the longest 345,600 seconds we have ever had to wait. But keep praying...like I said, A LOT can happen in a second!!!
Do you know how may seconds are in one day? Me neither, so I had to look it up. 86,400. What do you do with all that time? What if you sat in a chair and counted out loud...1 mississippi, 2 mississippi, 3 mississippi? Wouldn't it seem to take forever?
Well, in approximately 345,600 (4 days) we will find out if we are the chosen family for Zane! We will finally get the answer we've been waiting for. God's plan will be revealed. It is so excited and scary. I'm covered with anxiety and overcome with happiness! There is so much to do, so many plans to be made. Adding a new member to your family comes with a host of emotions and we seem to be experiencing all of them at once :). It's just like when I was "expecting" with our birth children.
Whatever God's answer is, we have FULL confidence and faith that HE will make a way for this to work. He will conquer our fears, comfort Zane in the transition, and give us the words and actions to make Zane feel a part of our family. He will surround us with love, people, and resources for support! We will have victory in Jesus!!!
So, in this case a second seems as though it may last a lifetime, as these will be the longest 345,600 seconds we have ever had to wait. But keep praying...like I said, A LOT can happen in a second!!!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Why Do You Want to Adopt?
This is a good question. One that I've actually asked myself this week. I've prayed for the answer and waited patiently. Since then God has reminded me loud and clear...convicted me of why I want to adopt...I read a blog post yesterday of a new found friend, Rachel Goode who too has a heart for adoption. It brought some clarity and has helped me cleanse my words, thoughts, and motives. In the post called "Segregation" she boldly talks about hypocrisy (that we are all guilty of), neatly sanitized Christian boxes, and sends out a call to action.
As you probably know, we have been "waiting" to hear about whether we will be the chosen family for Zane. The wait is difficult at times. I did talk with our placement specialist, Brian, early this week and he hinted around that he wasn't quite sure we were the "right" family for Zane. He confirmed that we have not been eliminated yet but something about the conversation made me feel uneasy. Apparently Zane isn't perfect! Turns out Brian thinks we are a "white picket fence" family! Hahahaha...
It was only after our phone call that I wondered, are we doing the right thing? Bringing a stranger into our home, feeding them, loving them, showing them Jesus. I mean isn't that risky? Aren't we putting our "perfect little family" (whatever that is) in jeopardy? Couldn't it be disruptive?
Read those words again...bringing a stranger in, feeding them, loving them, showing them Jesus...does that remind you of someone? Isn't that what Christ does for us? He has adopted each of us as His children. We are sinners, imperfect, and humanly flawed. We are undeserving but God dines with us, He loves us unconditionally, and He makes sure all our needs are taken care of. He gave us EVERYTHING! Talk about laying everything on the line...He did it ALL!
So why do we want to adopt? For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?, The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:35-40. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27. We love because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19.
I guess you could say we want to "get our hands dirty" serving Him and being about His business! What else can we do? We've been called and we must obey. God will give us the resources, people, and support to get through this. We want to adopt so God will be glorified! Is there any better reason?
As you probably know, we have been "waiting" to hear about whether we will be the chosen family for Zane. The wait is difficult at times. I did talk with our placement specialist, Brian, early this week and he hinted around that he wasn't quite sure we were the "right" family for Zane. He confirmed that we have not been eliminated yet but something about the conversation made me feel uneasy. Apparently Zane isn't perfect! Turns out Brian thinks we are a "white picket fence" family! Hahahaha...
It was only after our phone call that I wondered, are we doing the right thing? Bringing a stranger into our home, feeding them, loving them, showing them Jesus. I mean isn't that risky? Aren't we putting our "perfect little family" (whatever that is) in jeopardy? Couldn't it be disruptive?
Read those words again...bringing a stranger in, feeding them, loving them, showing them Jesus...does that remind you of someone? Isn't that what Christ does for us? He has adopted each of us as His children. We are sinners, imperfect, and humanly flawed. We are undeserving but God dines with us, He loves us unconditionally, and He makes sure all our needs are taken care of. He gave us EVERYTHING! Talk about laying everything on the line...He did it ALL!
So why do we want to adopt? For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?, The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:35-40. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27. We love because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19.
I guess you could say we want to "get our hands dirty" serving Him and being about His business! What else can we do? We've been called and we must obey. God will give us the resources, people, and support to get through this. We want to adopt so God will be glorified! Is there any better reason?
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Waiting...
Thank you for all the prayers and well wishes as we continue our wait to adopt. Unfortunately I don't have any new news to report. We are still among 5 families being considered for Zane and no one has been ruled out thus far. In addition, another case has caused ours to take back seat but hopefully will be top priority soon.
It is very difficult to wait and wait and wait (Isaiah 40:30-31). God has provided many distractions like the birth of our new nephew Gavin, travel for work, home projects, good reads, and soon holidays. The children also struggle with waiting. They ask often (sometimes daily) if we've heard anything about Zane. Some days when we were hopeful to hear something, David would call me 2-3 times just to ask if I had heard anything. As a family we are as ready as we are ever going to be...just waiting on God. Confident of His faithfulness, we are constantly reminded of friends and family that are lifting us and Zane up in prayer! THANK YOU!!! I'm not sure how this will all turn out but one thing is for sure...God has a plan (Jerem. 29:11) and for that I am forever grateful!
Our ways are not His ways (Isaiah 55:8) thankfully, otherwise I'd make a big mess of things. Jerem. 10:23, reminds me that He is the ONLY one capable of directing the path our family takes.
It is very difficult to wait and wait and wait (Isaiah 40:30-31). God has provided many distractions like the birth of our new nephew Gavin, travel for work, home projects, good reads, and soon holidays. The children also struggle with waiting. They ask often (sometimes daily) if we've heard anything about Zane. Some days when we were hopeful to hear something, David would call me 2-3 times just to ask if I had heard anything. As a family we are as ready as we are ever going to be...just waiting on God. Confident of His faithfulness, we are constantly reminded of friends and family that are lifting us and Zane up in prayer! THANK YOU!!! I'm not sure how this will all turn out but one thing is for sure...God has a plan (Jerem. 29:11) and for that I am forever grateful!
Our ways are not His ways (Isaiah 55:8) thankfully, otherwise I'd make a big mess of things. Jerem. 10:23, reminds me that He is the ONLY one capable of directing the path our family takes.
Friday, November 13, 2009
The Words I would Say...
I've heard this song a million times and love it. But today, I thought of Zane. So many of these lyrics have been my prayer over the past several months!
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