So after all the recent posts about how the process is going, who is ready for a story about how truly amazing our God is? I promised that God was moving in our story and we have already seen Him confirm our faith several times through different avenues, but this one almost made me fall out of my chair...
So our church has a goal of adopting 20 unreached people groups by the year 2020. An unreached people group is a culture of people, small or large, who have less than 2% of Christians. (It is not necessarily an entire country, but a group of people who identify themselves as a culture inside a country- think Cajuns vs. the entire state of Louisiana.) Basically, this means that there aren't enough Christians to spread the Good News through their entire culture. Our church's mission is not only to select a group and pray for them and their leaders, but to also travel there. And not just travel there for a short mission trip but continue to return and develop disciples and spread the love of Jesus.
The youth group decided they wanted to select a people group. They had a list of 8 groups or so that they were praying over, knowing that God would lead them to the group He chose for them. I saw the list and none of the countries specifically stuck out to me. We prayed with them that God would lay on their hearts the group He wanted for our youth. Sunday was the big reveal. Our youth pastor said there were missionaries from the Czech Republic there to speak to all of us, of course that meant that the youth had chosen a country. But out of the corner of my eye, I see a map of Europe and a whole portion (overlapping several countries) of the map is highlighted with the word "Roma" in big, bold letters. Our youth pastor stands up and says that they felt God calling them to the Roma people and that they would begin focusing on those in the Czech Republic. I almost fell out of my chair.
A few weeks ago, during our phone interview, our agency told us that many/ most of the children available for adoption in Eastern Europe are Roma. The Roma People are a group of immigrants who migrated from Northern India/ Pakistan to this particular section of Europe. There is a tendency to sometimes lean towards racism against them, therefore many of their orphans are not adopted in-country.
So here is the complete surprise blessing from the Father. Not only will we likely bring home a Roma child, but he/she will come home to a community of people who have been praying for the Roma people. And not just praying for them, but have actually gone to their part of the world, learned about their culture and accepted and loved them.
Anyone else amazed at how big God's plan is? Only an all-powerful, loving Father could have put so many different pieces together. Even if our child is not Roma, what a powerful testimony to him/ her that our church has accepted, been to and loved his/her part of the world. The youth are planning their first trip in Spring 2014.
I hope that this little story encourages you and grows your faith. God is involved in every aspect of all of our lives. He sees one part and connects it to another. Won't you trust that He sees the big picture and put your faith in Him today?
Thursday, May 23, 2013
Friday, May 17, 2013
Our first Home Study visit is on the calendar!
Our first Home Study visit has been scheduled! June 4! We are excited to begin this phase of the process as it is one giant step closer to our child! Our home study will be 4 visits with a social worker who will evaluate every aspect of our lives, finances, upbringing, parenting, and home. Whew! I'm already a little nervous. :) So the next few weeks will consist of us praying, talking and me obsessively cleaning the house! Please pray for this process to happen smoothly and quickly. Also, God is working quite obviously in the financial aspect. We are so thankful for those who are praying and financially supporting our fundraisers. He gets all the glory! I can't wait to share with you just how awesomely He is moving!
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Mother's Day
Mother's Day was Sunday and it was a wonderful day of rest in our house. I think I received the greatest gift the mother of a young toddler can receive- a nap! A long, uninterrupted nap! Mother's Day is a day that I always want to spend wrapped up in the arms of my family and reflecting on how much joy they bring to me. I was a little surprised at how bittersweet it was for me this year. As much as I loved having Baby Girl running around the house, I was surprised at how much more it made my heart ache for our Little One. While I was rocking Baby Girl before her nap, I wondered if anyone would rock Little One to sleep. I wondered if s/he even knew there was a mother longing for him/her to be home. For me, Mother's Day is a day to spend rejoicing in the blessing of family, but ours didn't feel complete. As much as I loved having Baby Girl and the Hubby around, I longed for our Little One to be a part of the day too.
It also made me ache for another mother half-way around the world whose baby was not with her on Mother's Day either. Her arms were empty too and I'm sure the same child was on her mind. Two families are missing a precious baby. Two mothers are longing for the same child. That is the mystery of adoption.
As thrilled as I am that God has called us to adopt, I am sad that adoption ever has to be the solution. In a perfect world, a mother would always have her baby in her arms. I really believe that adoption is always God's Plan B. I think that Plan A was to always have families remain together, but sin made its way into our world, and God's Plan A was marred. Extreme poverty, addiction, infidelity, abandonment, abuse, death and a long list of other difficulties are now reality in our world as a result of the fall. Without these things, families would remain together and adoption wouldn't even be a consideration. If you think about it, even spiritual adoption was sort of a Plan B. Without sin, Jesus would have never had to die and we wouldn't have had to be adopted into God's family. Without sin, we would still live in perfect community with the Father.
Because of sin, I will have to answer when he asks, "Why did my first family leave me?" Or choke back the tears when she questions, "Why didn't anyone come for me?" These questions should never haunt the mind of a child. Of course Jesus knew from the beginning of time that this child would grow up in our home and would call us "Mommy and Daddy" but it still doesn't erase that His perfect plan is to leave families intact.
Despite all of the emotions and the many facets of adoption, I am grateful that the holy Father is still on the throne. He sees and understands it all. As He holds my hand through this journey, He comforts another mother's heart. The same hands that hold me, hold her. I am overwhelmed at His goodness and His unfailing mercy. My heart echos Hagar's words, "Surely You are the God who sees!"
At church on Mother's Day, the band played one of my favorite songs. "Your Great Name" by Natalie Grant. The lines that always grip my heart and reminds me to hold fast through this process are:
All the weak find their strength
At the sound of Your great Name
Hungry souls receive grace
At the sound of Your great Name
The fatherless THEY FIND THEIR REST
At the sound of Your great Name
The sick are healed and the dead are raised
At the sound of Your great Name
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuuLBPOYcI8
What an awesome, all-powerful God!
Here are some prayer requests for our adoption process:
- We are working through our training, readings and marriage surveys. Pray that we can accomplish everything in a timely manner.
- I got an email from the Children's Home this week. She can start our home study at the beginning of June! Pray that it is successful and that God would provide all of the funds in His way.
It also made me ache for another mother half-way around the world whose baby was not with her on Mother's Day either. Her arms were empty too and I'm sure the same child was on her mind. Two families are missing a precious baby. Two mothers are longing for the same child. That is the mystery of adoption.
As thrilled as I am that God has called us to adopt, I am sad that adoption ever has to be the solution. In a perfect world, a mother would always have her baby in her arms. I really believe that adoption is always God's Plan B. I think that Plan A was to always have families remain together, but sin made its way into our world, and God's Plan A was marred. Extreme poverty, addiction, infidelity, abandonment, abuse, death and a long list of other difficulties are now reality in our world as a result of the fall. Without these things, families would remain together and adoption wouldn't even be a consideration. If you think about it, even spiritual adoption was sort of a Plan B. Without sin, Jesus would have never had to die and we wouldn't have had to be adopted into God's family. Without sin, we would still live in perfect community with the Father.
Because of sin, I will have to answer when he asks, "Why did my first family leave me?" Or choke back the tears when she questions, "Why didn't anyone come for me?" These questions should never haunt the mind of a child. Of course Jesus knew from the beginning of time that this child would grow up in our home and would call us "Mommy and Daddy" but it still doesn't erase that His perfect plan is to leave families intact.
Despite all of the emotions and the many facets of adoption, I am grateful that the holy Father is still on the throne. He sees and understands it all. As He holds my hand through this journey, He comforts another mother's heart. The same hands that hold me, hold her. I am overwhelmed at His goodness and His unfailing mercy. My heart echos Hagar's words, "Surely You are the God who sees!"
At church on Mother's Day, the band played one of my favorite songs. "Your Great Name" by Natalie Grant. The lines that always grip my heart and reminds me to hold fast through this process are:
All the weak find their strength
At the sound of Your great Name
Hungry souls receive grace
At the sound of Your great Name
The fatherless THEY FIND THEIR REST
At the sound of Your great Name
The sick are healed and the dead are raised
At the sound of Your great Name
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuuLBPOYcI8
What an awesome, all-powerful God!
Here are some prayer requests for our adoption process:
- We are working through our training, readings and marriage surveys. Pray that we can accomplish everything in a timely manner.
- I got an email from the Children's Home this week. She can start our home study at the beginning of June! Pray that it is successful and that God would provide all of the funds in His way.
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