The whole story

I have posted the entire story of how we have gotten where we are with our adoption.

It's under the Adoption Timeline tab. :)

Waiting and coughing, coughing and waiting

That's pretty much all that's happening here.

Our entire family has a virus. It originated with Leah which is the running theme this year. You know that when you hear things like, "Leah, stop licking your shoe!!" coming from the back seat, that the whole house will be down for the count soon. She doesn't seem to have the OCD qualities that I possess.

The waiting is very difficult. It has been 2 full months now that we have been waiting to know if these twins will become our children. In the grand scheme of things, that's not very long. But in my heart, it's an eternity. I am thankful for the distraction of normal life. Kids still have to get homework done, dinner has to be made, bills have to be paid, room mom duties call, etc. But every day that passes is one more day that they sit without a mommy and a daddy. And that is very difficult for me.

I am learning a lot in the wait. I am seeing my sinful heart even more than before. I am painfully aware that it's not time yet and if/when it's TIME, things will happen. God is in control and we are so very thankful for the blessing of His grace and love in our lives.

My Week in Review @ Filled with Praise

Amy @ Filled With Praise is doing My Week in Review, so I am linking up.

Here are my highs and lows of the week....

{Greatest High}

God heard the cries of His people and moved a mountain this week in regards to our adoption

{Lowest Low}

I spent the night in the hospital with a friend whose father had a massive stroke. My heart breaks for her and her family and I am praying for peace and healing in the days to come as they make decisions for his care.

Want to share your highs and lows? Head on over to Filled With Praise and link up.

Our adoption has taken a turn we never expected!!

I will take some time this weekend to post the whole (long but sooooo good) story but I wanted to finally tell y'all the news.




God has changed our adoption path and we are going to....

 Ug*nda!!



Right now we are praying about a referral that we hope will come very soon, for twins!!! It's not official yet, but God has moved every mountain up to this point.

Here's a map so that you can get a visual of "The Pearl of Africa."



Honduras Blitz by Lifesong for Orphans

Honduras Blitz from Lifesong for Orphans on Vimeo.

What if every time you gave a dollar to orphans it became one more? 

One more dollar towards food, education, shelter?

One more dollar towards sharing the Gospel and providing Biblical mentorship?

One more dollar towards changing the life of a child?

I love to use this platform to advocate for those in need... and thanks to a generous donor every dollar given to Lifesong Honduras will be matched… up to $120,000!  We praise the Lord for this amazing gift and invite you to be a part of it.

Over the next 10 days we are teaming with Lifesong and are hoping for 100 1-year commitments of $30 a month.  Just think, for about $1 a day a life in Honduras can be forever changed.

Partnering with Tree of Life Missions in Honduras, Lifesong for Orphans is able to work toward providing hope to the hopeless, help to the helpless and healing to the hurting.  TOLM reaches kids through a program called Plan Escalon.  (Escalon is translated "escalator" and is used to describe the children's escalator out of poverty/brokenness.) 
Through this program we strive toward:

• Providing an education to the poorest of youth
• Providing food to the poorest of youth
• Providing vocational training & micro-business opportunities
• Providing free medical and dental clinics to those in need
• Training young people to give back to their communities
• Reaching people in the jungles of the Mosquito Coast 

Stay tuned for stories, personal testimonies, and fun ways to spread awareness and instill a heart of giving in your kids!

Our goal is:

Will you help us?  100 commitments in ten days is no small feat, but with God it is possible.  We have seen Him move mightily in His people to serve orphans and we pray that this ten weeks will be a testimony of that!  Together we can make a difference in the lives of these kids!  Together we can do more to bring joy and purpose to orphans!

Contact Lifesong at info@lifesongfororphans.org to make your commitment AND be sure to tell them that we sent you from our blog!

Hear personal stories & follow the progress on our blog all this week!

Check back often to hear personal stories and get updates on the progress.  Please join us in prayer as we ask the Lord to raise up 100 commitments!

Contentment

Someone asked me this morning at church, "How are you?"

My honest response?

 "Ok."

I am just going to be honest.

It was a really rough week.

Lots of ups and downs in the adoption process last week.

I did what I had to do to get by and nothing extra.

I stayed at home as much as possible, sometimes in my pjs.

I kept saying, "I am fine with whatever God has for us."

But obviously my actions were saying something else.

It all became clear for me this morning at church.

The music was enough to put me in the floor in repentance. A huge thanks to our pastor and praise team leader who work diligently to have music that speaks truth!

Then there was the message.

  Phil 4:10-13

 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

 If you want a practical sermon on being content, then put your seat belt on and click below to listen.

Learn to be content

I will also leave you with a great song that a reader mentioned on my blog. This is a song that we are listening to daily right now for encouragement in our adoption but it applies to all of us who are waiting on the Lord and learning to be content in HIM alone.

The adoption process

I haven't posted about our adoption process in a while. There are things happening that I can't post yet in this public place. Those of you who know us well probably have seen us blurry eyed at times and know something must be up.

For those of you who don't, here's the deal.

Adoption is tough.

This process has pulled us in directions that we never thought existed.

It has brought us to our knees daily. Hourly at times.

It has stretched our family in ways that we didn't know possible.

It has made us long for the roller coaster to let us off.

And it has made us leap for joy that God has called us to keep riding.

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.  Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." Jer. 29: 11-13


Please pray today for our process.

Weekly Challenge

One of my fb friends has started a weekly challenge.

This is a tough one.

Ephesians 4:29 "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen."

It is helping to hold myself accountable. This verse applies to all relationships in our lives.

8th grade DC trip

How many of you got to go to DC in the 8th grade?

I didn't.

But now that my daughter is in 8th grade, I got to make the trip.

It was not the easiest trip I have ever been on. It was a lot of hours on a bus and a lot of walking in the rain. But the reward was great. Time spent with my oldest daughter and her friends. That is something that you can't put a price tag on.

I'm Forgiven

I think sometimes in our Christian walk we focus so heavily on what we need to give God: time, prayer, love, obedience, etc. that we forget to focus on what he's given to us. Those things are good and right and we need to focus on, love and obey our Lord.

At the same time, we need to rest in the promises that He has made to us.

Today I had a meeting that I have been dreading for a long time. It was a mediation with Mackenzie's birth father. This brings up so many memories for me. Ones that remind me of the life I used to have, before God saved me.

I got in the car and I was sick to my stomach.

Will I have to talk to him?
Will this be resolved today?
Why didn't he let Tim adopt her years ago?
Why do I have to re live my past?

And above all....
How can I honor the Lord and show His love in this?


This song was the first one that came on. Now, I have heard this song many times on the radio. But I had never really listened to it.

Well the past is playing with my head

And failure knocks me down again

I’m reminded of the wrong

That I have said and done

And that devil just wont let me forget

In this life

I know what I’ve been

But here in your arms

I know what I am

[chorus]

I’m forgiven

I’m forgiven

And I don’t have to carry

The weight of who I’ve been

Cause I’m forgiven

My mistakes are running through my mind

And I’ll relive my days, in the middle of the night

When I struggle with my pain, wrestle with my pride

Sometimes I feel alone, and I cry

In this life

I know what I’ve been

But here in your arms

I know what I am

[chorus]

I’m forgiven

I’m forgiven

And I don’t have to carry

The weight of who I’ve been

Cause I’m forgiven

When I don't fit in and I don’t feel like I belong anywhere

When I don’t measure up to much in this life

Oh, I’m a treasure in the arms of Christ ‘cause

[chorus]

I’m forgiven

I’m forgiven

And I don’t have to carry

The weight of who I’ve been

Cause I’m forgiven

The truth is, this battle is not mine. It is the Lord's. It is a battle between good and evil. And it was won a long time ago.

For the first two and a half hours, it didn't go well. I even texted Tim and told him that we were going to have to go to court. I put up a status on face book asking for prayers.


And something amazing happened.....


God changed his heart.

He became willing to cooperate. And we walked out an hour and a half later with an agreement that includes the words we have waited years for.

He is allowing Tim to adopt Mackenzie!!!


When I left I called one of the good friends that I had asked to pray. She asked me what time the change of heart took place. I looked back at my phone and I had texted Tim at 11:12. She said that she had gotten an overwhelming urgency to pray for me at 11:20. So while she strolled around Target she prayed.

At 11:30, the vibe in the mediation shifted and he had a change of heart.

Friends, I am here to remind you tonight that NOTHING is too big for our God. And He has already fought our battles and won!!

My sweet friend sent me this scripture tonight in response to hearing how awesome the meeting went.

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor ANYTHING ELSE in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God." Romans 8:39