Dec 25, 2012
Today is Christmas. It is 10:12 PM. We have had a whirlwind of family, food and gifts. What a wonderful time it has been. The older I get, the more I cherish times to be with the people I love. The more I love to remember my Dad and grandparents and my husbands grand parents and Great Jane and those family members that have already gone to Heaven. They are truly the lucky ones.
Our Christmas mantel is full of decorations and hand made Christmas ornaments from all of our grandparents, special friends and the first year of our marriage. When I first put out our Christmas decorations, I did not have anything from Joel's grandmother Crumpton and my Grandmother Todd. Last week, Joel's Mom asked us to come to Grandmother Crumpton's house and get anything that we wanted. I found a Christmas tea pot decoration that was perfect to add to my mantle. Then yesterday, while at Moms for Christmas Eve, she brought out some doileys for the girls to pick from that were made by my Grandmother or Great Grandmother. The one we chose is red and white and is the perfect finishing touch to my Christmas mantle. I am really excited that I now have something from all of our grandparents represented on our Mantle. It was the traditions started by them that we remember as children and through the years.
My Christmas decorations will never appear in Southern living magazine. I'm not that great at it. But my Christmas decorations mean something to me and my family. Every ornament tells a story and every decoration is a reminder of a special person or event in our lives.
Our kids were very excited about Christmas. Elijah, our 4 year old was especially excited. He could not wait for Santa to come. Almost every gift he opened was something he "had always wanted". It's so much fun having a little one around.
I thought we would be matched with a birth Mom by now. I thought we would have a due date and some information on our baby girl but we don't. I'm okay with that. I am waiting patiently and trying to follow God's leadership and trust that His timing is perfect.
We are almost finished with all the paperwork for our home study. I hope to mail it by Friday this week. Then we can work on the interviews and hopefully have all our clearances and the study finished by Feb or March. That is our only update. But we are happy and content and so excited that God has lead us to this place. God is making Himself so real to me and to my family. We know without a shadow of a doubt that God has lead us on every step of this journey so far and will continue to lead us. I pray we will be faithful followers of His plan for our lives. GOD gets glory and we get JOY! Merry Christmas!
Sunday, December 30, 2012
Christmas Time is Here
December 10, 2012
Well, the Christmas season is flying by. We finally got our tree up last weekend and are still decorating it. We are not putting up as much as we normally do. Who has time? Working, taking care of the family, church activities, working on adoption homestudy and shopping. Decorating is low on my list of priorities this year. It's truly not that important. What is important is how we spent the first weekend of December.
We took a family trip to Arkansas. We met with Pastor Andy from Crossway Church. Our church is partnering with them this summer to serve in the local May Day celebration for the Marshallese community. God led us to this people group and this church during the early stages of our adoption journey and here we are, discussing our summer missions trip to serve these people who have become so dear to our hearts. Our adoption has become about a whole community, not simply one baby. Our church wants to adopt the Marshallese church and form a missions partnership. God is awesome the way he puts so many pieces together to bring forth His plan.
We stayed in the church mission house which was nice and roomy. On Saturday our family went to help serve breakfast to the homeless. Our two big kids served food, Joel gave a devotion and I kept an eye on Elijah. As breakfast was ending, Elijah played outside with some children who had come to eat breakfast with their Mom. We saw the "compassion center" which is the churches thrift store ministry. They have a huge food pantry in the back of the store where they gather food to share with those in need. Pastor Andy was wonderful to show us around and host us all weekend. We then had lunch with the pastor of the Marshallese church, Mithan was his name. His lovely wife Robin and a sweet couple from their church also ate with us. It was so nice to have some time to talk about what ways our church could serve their congregation. Because the church is made of up Marshallese people, we discussed the needs in that community and how we may help during the May Day celebration. We were able to meet some other Marshallese people and make some great contacts with in that community.
We were able to have some family time on Saturday. We visited our attorneys office, took photos at the old court house and walked around the town square on December 1st, to see the Christmas lights and Santa. On Sunday, we attended the churches Christmas musical. That was awesome! It opened up like a TSO concert. When we got out of our van and began to walk inside the church, the truck parked next to us had the word "Joy" in the tag number. That is our word for this Christmas season because our baby will be named Kalea Joy. GOD gets glory and we get JOY! That is a well known saying around our church. Anyway, back to the trip. The opening congregational song was a beautiful arrangement of Joy to the world. I began to cry at that point and did off and on through out the program. God has given us great Joy.
We ate lunch with Pastor Andy and then headed to the Marshallese church which met at 2PM. It was so surreal to see and meet and sit in Sunday Service with a group of people that I never knew existed until God led us to them. I kept thinking, only God could have led us here. There is no way we could have dreamed this up. God is making our path so clear on this journey and it is simply amazing.
We had planned to leave on Sunday after the Marshallese service. However, we were not able to schedule a time to meet with our attorney until Sunday evening so we decided to stay one extra night and boy I'm glad we did. On Sunday afternoon, we ended up going to meet with a Marshallese lady in her home and she gave us lots of information about the Marshallese culture. She told us there was a small shop where a Marshallese lady named Karmen sold food and handicrafts. We were so excited to find the shop and talk with her and buy some souvenirs We also stumbled across a church having a Gospel Day celebration. We were able to catch a glimpse of this community worshiping and praising God as they celebrated the day Missionaries brought the gospel to their islands.
The last event of the day was when we met with our attorney and her husband for dinner. We felt so confident that God had led us to her but especially when we met her face to face. She told us many stories of how God had put families together and the miracles she had seen through adoption. Her husband was emotional talking about all God has done since she has worked with adoptions. It was wonderful to hear from them and confirm once again that God is leading every step of this journey. Our minds were blown. God is so good and it is such a privilege to be on this journey that He is so clearly leading.
Merry Christmas! May we all focus on what is important this Christmas season. It is the miracle of Jesus birth, the miracle of His life and the miracle of His Grace that saves us.
Psalms 126:3
The LORD has done great things for us and we are filled with JOY!
Well, the Christmas season is flying by. We finally got our tree up last weekend and are still decorating it. We are not putting up as much as we normally do. Who has time? Working, taking care of the family, church activities, working on adoption homestudy and shopping. Decorating is low on my list of priorities this year. It's truly not that important. What is important is how we spent the first weekend of December.
We took a family trip to Arkansas. We met with Pastor Andy from Crossway Church. Our church is partnering with them this summer to serve in the local May Day celebration for the Marshallese community. God led us to this people group and this church during the early stages of our adoption journey and here we are, discussing our summer missions trip to serve these people who have become so dear to our hearts. Our adoption has become about a whole community, not simply one baby. Our church wants to adopt the Marshallese church and form a missions partnership. God is awesome the way he puts so many pieces together to bring forth His plan.
We stayed in the church mission house which was nice and roomy. On Saturday our family went to help serve breakfast to the homeless. Our two big kids served food, Joel gave a devotion and I kept an eye on Elijah. As breakfast was ending, Elijah played outside with some children who had come to eat breakfast with their Mom. We saw the "compassion center" which is the churches thrift store ministry. They have a huge food pantry in the back of the store where they gather food to share with those in need. Pastor Andy was wonderful to show us around and host us all weekend. We then had lunch with the pastor of the Marshallese church, Mithan was his name. His lovely wife Robin and a sweet couple from their church also ate with us. It was so nice to have some time to talk about what ways our church could serve their congregation. Because the church is made of up Marshallese people, we discussed the needs in that community and how we may help during the May Day celebration. We were able to meet some other Marshallese people and make some great contacts with in that community.
We were able to have some family time on Saturday. We visited our attorneys office, took photos at the old court house and walked around the town square on December 1st, to see the Christmas lights and Santa. On Sunday, we attended the churches Christmas musical. That was awesome! It opened up like a TSO concert. When we got out of our van and began to walk inside the church, the truck parked next to us had the word "Joy" in the tag number. That is our word for this Christmas season because our baby will be named Kalea Joy. GOD gets glory and we get JOY! That is a well known saying around our church. Anyway, back to the trip. The opening congregational song was a beautiful arrangement of Joy to the world. I began to cry at that point and did off and on through out the program. God has given us great Joy.
We ate lunch with Pastor Andy and then headed to the Marshallese church which met at 2PM. It was so surreal to see and meet and sit in Sunday Service with a group of people that I never knew existed until God led us to them. I kept thinking, only God could have led us here. There is no way we could have dreamed this up. God is making our path so clear on this journey and it is simply amazing.
We had planned to leave on Sunday after the Marshallese service. However, we were not able to schedule a time to meet with our attorney until Sunday evening so we decided to stay one extra night and boy I'm glad we did. On Sunday afternoon, we ended up going to meet with a Marshallese lady in her home and she gave us lots of information about the Marshallese culture. She told us there was a small shop where a Marshallese lady named Karmen sold food and handicrafts. We were so excited to find the shop and talk with her and buy some souvenirs We also stumbled across a church having a Gospel Day celebration. We were able to catch a glimpse of this community worshiping and praising God as they celebrated the day Missionaries brought the gospel to their islands.
The last event of the day was when we met with our attorney and her husband for dinner. We felt so confident that God had led us to her but especially when we met her face to face. She told us many stories of how God had put families together and the miracles she had seen through adoption. Her husband was emotional talking about all God has done since she has worked with adoptions. It was wonderful to hear from them and confirm once again that God is leading every step of this journey. Our minds were blown. God is so good and it is such a privilege to be on this journey that He is so clearly leading.
Merry Christmas! May we all focus on what is important this Christmas season. It is the miracle of Jesus birth, the miracle of His life and the miracle of His Grace that saves us.
Psalms 126:3
The LORD has done great things for us and we are filled with JOY!
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Thankfulness
We have celebrated Thanksgiving with our family. Some sickness has been floating through our extended family but we have all managed to stay well. I spent lots of time wiht my sister which is a rare treat. She and I took my big kids black Friday shopping and ate at IHOP. That was fun. We got a few door buster deals. Then my sister and I had a "sewing lesson" with my Mom. I cant say I can sew but I learned some things. It was fun beginning the process. Especially since I am sewing with my Grandmothers sewing machine that I used to see her sew with. I have thought a lot about her lately and I miss her dearly.
We went to MS Saturday to pay honor to the graves of my Dad and my Grandma and Grandpa. I did not feel sad at the cemetary. I know that is not where my loved ones are. I am confident that they are with Jesus in a place that my mind cannot comprehend but I look forward to going one day. They are with Jesus. The cemetary simply contains a monument where I can take pretty flowers. Then we went to my grandmothers house which is almost empty. Soon our family will sell the house. While that makes me sad, she is not there. My Pawpaw has been gone for many years. It's not the same place that used to mean so much to me. It's not about the house, the yard, the stuff but about the people who I love that are no longer there.
Also, my husbands grandmother "Mamu" went to Heaven this year. This was the first Thanksgiving I did not get to enjoy her dressing. While Grammys dressing was great, Mamu was greatly missed. These are the first holidays with out her. Those are always difficult. But again, we are confident she is with Jesus and we have Joy in knowing we will see her again.
In our adoption journey, we have no new news. We are planning a trip to visit with our attorney soon. We will also visit with a church that we believe, through our adoption, God has led our church to partner with in Ministry. We look forward to worshipping with them and exploring the possible opportunities God has in store. It's so exciting that our personal adoption journey is growing into a possible missions partnership. We also have some friends who are considering adopting through the same professionals that God led us to. That is an answer to my prayer that God would use our story to encourage others to adopt. We already see our journey growing into a bigger picture. God is about the big picture. He will use each of us in ways we can never imagine if we just follow Him. I never thought our journey would include so many people as it already does and we are still in the beginning stage. I cannot wait to see how God will use this journey to further His kingdom and bring home more babies to forever families for His glory and our Joy.
So, more than ever, I am so Thankful to my awesome God for all He has done and all He will continue to do.
We went to MS Saturday to pay honor to the graves of my Dad and my Grandma and Grandpa. I did not feel sad at the cemetary. I know that is not where my loved ones are. I am confident that they are with Jesus in a place that my mind cannot comprehend but I look forward to going one day. They are with Jesus. The cemetary simply contains a monument where I can take pretty flowers. Then we went to my grandmothers house which is almost empty. Soon our family will sell the house. While that makes me sad, she is not there. My Pawpaw has been gone for many years. It's not the same place that used to mean so much to me. It's not about the house, the yard, the stuff but about the people who I love that are no longer there.
Also, my husbands grandmother "Mamu" went to Heaven this year. This was the first Thanksgiving I did not get to enjoy her dressing. While Grammys dressing was great, Mamu was greatly missed. These are the first holidays with out her. Those are always difficult. But again, we are confident she is with Jesus and we have Joy in knowing we will see her again.
In our adoption journey, we have no new news. We are planning a trip to visit with our attorney soon. We will also visit with a church that we believe, through our adoption, God has led our church to partner with in Ministry. We look forward to worshipping with them and exploring the possible opportunities God has in store. It's so exciting that our personal adoption journey is growing into a possible missions partnership. We also have some friends who are considering adopting through the same professionals that God led us to. That is an answer to my prayer that God would use our story to encourage others to adopt. We already see our journey growing into a bigger picture. God is about the big picture. He will use each of us in ways we can never imagine if we just follow Him. I never thought our journey would include so many people as it already does and we are still in the beginning stage. I cannot wait to see how God will use this journey to further His kingdom and bring home more babies to forever families for His glory and our Joy.
So, more than ever, I am so Thankful to my awesome God for all He has done and all He will continue to do.
Friday, November 2, 2012
Orphan Care
I've completed two weeks at my new job. It feels funny saying that since I have worked at this same boys home two times before. First, I helped my husband as a weekend houseparent the first year we were married. The second time I was hired as a fill in Social Worker which is what I am doing now. It's so obvious why God would drop this opportunity in my lap, totally line up every detail from the flexibility of my schedule, to on site free day care for Elijah and for me to serve local orphans while I work towards my baby girl. It has been a true reminder of why I went into Social work in the first place. In two weeks, I've had an opportunity to meet several of the boys who live there and learn a little bit about their story. In the past, when I worked with boys homes, people would ask how I could do it. They would say how sad the situations and circumstances were and how difficult the job must be. I would say that you sort of get used to it and numb to it. You just work with the kids each day and try to encourage and teach and help them make good choices that will lead them to a good life when they grow up. However, as I sat in the office yesterday, I wept as I read the stories of some of the boys. You never truly get used to the heartache of little children who long for a family. They long to have a Mom and Dad or at least someone kin to them that can love them enough to raise them and meet their basic needs. Maybe God put me here to simply remind me that so many children around the world are hurting. So many children need Mothers and Fathers but more than anything, they need to know their Heavenly Father loves them and will never leave them. Its my job to share that with them and God is laying out opportunities for me in a way I cannot deny. I saw a tshirt tonight that said "If you can't feed 100 people, feed 1." Sometimes we believe the lie from satan that the problem is so big we cannot make a difference. We CAN make a difference. If we can make a difference in one childs life, then we have done what God has called us to do. What opportunities has God given you? This Sunday is Orphan Sunday. Our worship Pastor found a beautiful song that we are planning to sing. The lyrics talk about how we are not orphans anymore. We were, until Jesus loved us and wanted us even though we did nothing to deserve it. He paid such a high price for us knowing that we would betray Him and deny Him and sin. But He loved us and adopted us and now we can eat at the kings table and we have all the blessings of His kingdom. We have the promise of Heaven. We have a Daddy that will never leave us. We are forever His. Please join me in praying for Orphans here and around the world. Maybe God will lay out some opportunites for you to encourage and care for orphans. I have to take an opportunity to say how thankful I am to the people in our church (and in our circle of friends) who have been involved in orphan care through adoption, foster care, mentoring, MakeWay Partners, other orphan care ministries and sponserships. You are all an inspiration to me but more importantly, to the children God puts in your path. Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus to orphans.
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Here is what we know so far
So many people are asking us about our baby so here is the short version. After extensive research and asking the LORD to direct us, He led us to a domestic cross cultural adoption. We are working with an attorney and will be matched with a birth Mom. We will be able to follow the end of the pregnancy and be at the hospital when she is born. We have requested a baby girl because we have two boys and one girl. Caris wants a sister and a room mate so bad. All our kids are so excited about adopting Kalea. Even Elijah who is four is learning what adoption means and he is excited that he will be a big brother. She will be an American citizen but of Pacific Island decent. So, we dont know anything about her yet or the birth Mom or when we can expect her. We are on a list to be matched when a birth Mom expecting a baby girl comes available. That's where we are in the process
We are very excited that we have finally started the home study process. Wow that is more involved than I imagined. Again, God has led us to a Christian professional who will conduct the study. God keeps showing up in every step of this process and I want Him in every detail.
I began that job this week and it is going great. I'm really thankful that not only will this help with the financial part of this adoption, but I have a chance to work with local orphans. What a ministry this will be. My schedule has worked out so that I will work half days and my kids do not have to change any part of their schedules. I think it will be great.
The most exciting thing that has happened today is that some really good friends of ours went to court today. They learned that parental rights have been terminated on their foster child. They fostered him with the hopes of adopting him. We, along with many of our friends have prayed for them to be a forever family and it looks like the beginning of next year, they will be able to adopt him. Praise be to our GOD! This is wonderful news that so many of us are so thankful for. What a wonderful end to a difficult few months of uncertainty. God is so good. I also learned some other adoptive parents that we know gained custody of their twins today in a foreign country. It has been a day of good news! Two families we know are experienceing the miracle of adoption. It's so amazing. I am praying specifically for some other families that are praying and in the process of adopting. I get so excited when I hear good news from them. Praying God will give them a child soon.
The last thing I will post tonight is that I am looking forward to spending Saturday afternoon with my family at the Pumpkin Patch. We celebrated my Dad's last birthday there in 2010. It has become a tradition for my family to go to the Pumpkin Patch the weekend before Halloween. While all of this excitement of our adoption makes me miss my Daddy (just because I sooooo wish he was here to experience this joy with us) I know the joy he experiences every moment in Heaven does not compare to anything we can imgine here on earth. I am sooo very thankful for the hope of Heaven and for the Grace and Mercy that our LORD and savior Jesus shows us, to forgive our sin and take us to Heaven to be with Him when we leave this earth. There is no greater reason to celebrate than that. Thank you Jesus!
We are very excited that we have finally started the home study process. Wow that is more involved than I imagined. Again, God has led us to a Christian professional who will conduct the study. God keeps showing up in every step of this process and I want Him in every detail.
I began that job this week and it is going great. I'm really thankful that not only will this help with the financial part of this adoption, but I have a chance to work with local orphans. What a ministry this will be. My schedule has worked out so that I will work half days and my kids do not have to change any part of their schedules. I think it will be great.
The most exciting thing that has happened today is that some really good friends of ours went to court today. They learned that parental rights have been terminated on their foster child. They fostered him with the hopes of adopting him. We, along with many of our friends have prayed for them to be a forever family and it looks like the beginning of next year, they will be able to adopt him. Praise be to our GOD! This is wonderful news that so many of us are so thankful for. What a wonderful end to a difficult few months of uncertainty. God is so good. I also learned some other adoptive parents that we know gained custody of their twins today in a foreign country. It has been a day of good news! Two families we know are experienceing the miracle of adoption. It's so amazing. I am praying specifically for some other families that are praying and in the process of adopting. I get so excited when I hear good news from them. Praying God will give them a child soon.
The last thing I will post tonight is that I am looking forward to spending Saturday afternoon with my family at the Pumpkin Patch. We celebrated my Dad's last birthday there in 2010. It has become a tradition for my family to go to the Pumpkin Patch the weekend before Halloween. While all of this excitement of our adoption makes me miss my Daddy (just because I sooooo wish he was here to experience this joy with us) I know the joy he experiences every moment in Heaven does not compare to anything we can imgine here on earth. I am sooo very thankful for the hope of Heaven and for the Grace and Mercy that our LORD and savior Jesus shows us, to forgive our sin and take us to Heaven to be with Him when we leave this earth. There is no greater reason to celebrate than that. Thank you Jesus!
Thursday, October 11, 2012
God's perfect plan
Trying to figure out God's perfect plan for our life is always difficult. That is because we want to see the plan laid out before us so we know what is going on. However, God tells us to follow Him and trust Him. As we walk along this journey and follow and trust, He reveals a little along the way. He confirms that we are on the path He has for us so that we are encouraged to keep going.
Early in this process, when I was prayng seriously about adoption, God taught me this during a Sunday School lesson. I was teaching on Joshua 3. Joshua was leading the children of Isreal after Moses had died. God told Joshua to instruct the people to follow the Ark of the covenant and to stay behind it a certain distance. As they followed it through the Jordan river, the waters parted and the Isrealites crossed on dry land. (Sound like another similiar story?) I felt the LORD impress on my heart "Follow me on this journey of adoption". While I was teaching a group of ladies, God taught me. There are already so many moments where God has confirmed to me that this is His plan for us. However, sometimes when God speaks, I don't recognize His voice. Then later I realize that the LORD had been trying to tell me something, but I missed it. Some of the moments I have experienced are private and cannot be shared on this blog. However, most are things I can share and over time will try to recall all the things God is doing in our lives to confirm that He has called us to adopt.
Just this week, I have a lead on temporary part time social work job. It's not definite yet, but I'm pretty certain that at the end of this month I will be working as a social worker,(as is my degree) with foster children. I have prayed that if God wanted me to work to help fund this adoption, that He would give me the perfect job that would fit our family schedule. On Sunday, a friend mentioned that at the boys home where she works, there were two social workers going on maternity leave in the next few months. Joel told her to keep me in mind. The next day she called and said the director wanted to talk with me about when I could work. It helps that I have worked there before as a fill in SW for another SW on maternity leave and the director knows Joel and I well. It sounds like it will be a wonderful opportunity. They also provide on site childcare for their employees and the teacher goes to our church, so Elijah (my 4 year old) already knows her! This seems obvious that the LORD has given me this job.
A word about fundraising. I've had 3 ladies from church already ask if they could help us with fundraising. I so appreciate their offer to help us. At this time, we are not planning to do much fund raising. We are designing our adoption Tshirts now and those will be available for purchase if anyone wants to help support us financially. We don't want to focus on money, but we do want to share how God provides each step of this journey.
There is much to do between now and the time Kalea is born and in our arms. I am so excited to know that God is working for our good and has a plan for us. I'm excited to watch and see how His plan unfolds. I'm excited to imagine our life with our new daughter.
Early in this process, when I was prayng seriously about adoption, God taught me this during a Sunday School lesson. I was teaching on Joshua 3. Joshua was leading the children of Isreal after Moses had died. God told Joshua to instruct the people to follow the Ark of the covenant and to stay behind it a certain distance. As they followed it through the Jordan river, the waters parted and the Isrealites crossed on dry land. (Sound like another similiar story?) I felt the LORD impress on my heart "Follow me on this journey of adoption". While I was teaching a group of ladies, God taught me. There are already so many moments where God has confirmed to me that this is His plan for us. However, sometimes when God speaks, I don't recognize His voice. Then later I realize that the LORD had been trying to tell me something, but I missed it. Some of the moments I have experienced are private and cannot be shared on this blog. However, most are things I can share and over time will try to recall all the things God is doing in our lives to confirm that He has called us to adopt.
Just this week, I have a lead on temporary part time social work job. It's not definite yet, but I'm pretty certain that at the end of this month I will be working as a social worker,(as is my degree) with foster children. I have prayed that if God wanted me to work to help fund this adoption, that He would give me the perfect job that would fit our family schedule. On Sunday, a friend mentioned that at the boys home where she works, there were two social workers going on maternity leave in the next few months. Joel told her to keep me in mind. The next day she called and said the director wanted to talk with me about when I could work. It helps that I have worked there before as a fill in SW for another SW on maternity leave and the director knows Joel and I well. It sounds like it will be a wonderful opportunity. They also provide on site childcare for their employees and the teacher goes to our church, so Elijah (my 4 year old) already knows her! This seems obvious that the LORD has given me this job.
A word about fundraising. I've had 3 ladies from church already ask if they could help us with fundraising. I so appreciate their offer to help us. At this time, we are not planning to do much fund raising. We are designing our adoption Tshirts now and those will be available for purchase if anyone wants to help support us financially. We don't want to focus on money, but we do want to share how God provides each step of this journey.
There is much to do between now and the time Kalea is born and in our arms. I am so excited to know that God is working for our good and has a plan for us. I'm excited to watch and see how His plan unfolds. I'm excited to imagine our life with our new daughter.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Up and running
Looks like we are up and running! Considering my poor computer skills and the age of my computer, I am happy our blog is set up. It is still under construction so please excuse the simplicity and lack of photos for now. I'm still learning how to customize everything. I've wanted to start a blog before but wasn't really sure if I had anything to write that others would be interested in reading. I have a reason to blog now. In September we officially began the adoption process. I want to share everything the LORD teaches us through this journey. So many other adoption blogs were so important to me when I was praying about adoption but still not sure if God was calling our family to adopt. My prayer is that through our journey, others will be encouraged to adopt orphans all over the globe, overseas and here at home. My journey began long before we started the adoption process. I can't wait to share it with you, little by little. For now, I have a 3 year old who needs apple juice and some encouragement to eat his lunch. I can't wait to share with you all the LORD has done and will do in our lives. Until next time, please pray for us as we strive to follow God's plan for our family as we journey to Kalea. (That's our daughters name. It's Hawaiian and means "beautiful".) :)
Thanks be to our God
I want to thank my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ for the journey I am on. My family is following God's call on our lives to adopt. We are adopting because God adopted us as HIS children when we did nothing to deserve it. It was by His grace that he adopted us and gave us all the benefits of His love. We are so blessed by God already with a beautiful family but believe the Five Freds are not complete yet. God is leading us to our baby girl. Please pray for us as we follow Him on the journey to our daughter.
My husband, Joel, is a pastor of a wonderful church. I am a pastor's wife and stay at home Mom to Isaiah who is 13, Caris who is 11 and Elijah who is 3. I have been praying about adoption for along time but have really focused on the idea for the last 6 months. My husband has wanted to adopt for a few years but I was unsure if it was God's plan for us. I surprised Joel on a Sunday afternoon in August when I told him through tears that I thought God wanted us to adopt. He thought it would never happen but was very excited that I was ready. As we researched and prayed over the next few weeks, the LORD led us to pursue a cross cultural domestic adoption. We are very excited about the path the LORD has put us on. Our children were all very excited when we told them we were planning to adopt a baby girl. They had said months before that they wanted another sibling. I'm thankful they are as excited as we are. My husband has a saying at church "God gets the glory and we get the joy". That is what we pray will happen during our adoption journey. To God be the glory!
My husband, Joel, is a pastor of a wonderful church. I am a pastor's wife and stay at home Mom to Isaiah who is 13, Caris who is 11 and Elijah who is 3. I have been praying about adoption for along time but have really focused on the idea for the last 6 months. My husband has wanted to adopt for a few years but I was unsure if it was God's plan for us. I surprised Joel on a Sunday afternoon in August when I told him through tears that I thought God wanted us to adopt. He thought it would never happen but was very excited that I was ready. As we researched and prayed over the next few weeks, the LORD led us to pursue a cross cultural domestic adoption. We are very excited about the path the LORD has put us on. Our children were all very excited when we told them we were planning to adopt a baby girl. They had said months before that they wanted another sibling. I'm thankful they are as excited as we are. My husband has a saying at church "God gets the glory and we get the joy". That is what we pray will happen during our adoption journey. To God be the glory!
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