As of today, all of the money needed to get Rebeka and Roberts here has been given! God is soooo awesome! It's fun to see Him work like this! Following God's call for us has been the most amazing thing. We have been blessed beyond belief in so many ways. And to top it off, last night Eileen prayed to ask Jesus to live in her heart! Words can not describe how that feels!
Today we have to overnight the rest of our paperwork to NHFC. The money, letters to the orphanage and letter & pictures to Rebeka & Roberts all need to be there by tomorrow. Next Wednesday, a very nice lady is coming to our house to meet us and do a safety visit in our home--just to make sure it is a clean and safe environment for the children. She said she knows it's a stressful thing, but not to worry! :) Well for those of you that know me, I am worried and in complete stress mode about it! I know it'll be okay, but I'm just one to stress over things like that!
Keep the prayers coming! Thanks for reading our blog!
Brooke
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Thursday, April 24, 2008
The Home Stretch...
Well this is it! One week left to raise money and we're only $192 away! It's truly amazing that God has blessed many people in giving. Looking back, I was a little nervous about raising over $4,000 in such a short amount of time. But He has provided. This money will truly go towards a good cause. And we thank everyone who gave and those who wanted but were not able. Words of encouragement are just as valuable and we thank all friends and family who have supported us.
Thank you,
Craig
Thank you,
Craig
Saturday, April 19, 2008
We're not crazy--seriously!
And we're not the only ones bringing more than the statiscal 2.5 children into our home. Everyone keeps telling me we're nuts for doing this. We already have 3 kids. So? Maybe we are crazy, but sometimes God calls people to do seemingly crazy things. So glad He sees the BIG picture--but I wish He'd let us in on it every once in awhile. :)
I have been reading a little about the Dunn's adoption. For those of you who don't know, they are the family in Monroe (our neck of the woods!) who have 3 biological children (hey--another similarity) and returned today from Brazil where they adopted 5 children. I have to say, their story encourages me like you wouldn't believe! God raised the $40,000 to adopt these kids for them! Seriously! This money was raised in a year! How awesome is that?! And it all happened because they were willing to listen to God's call. What would happen if you stepped out of your comfort zone and listened to God's call? A move? A new job? Quitting a job? Maybe even bringing another child (biological or adopted) into your home? You just never know.
I have to say, I am scared. Differently than I was scared before. At first I was scared that things wouldn't work out. For whatever reason, we wouldn't be able to adopt Rebeka and Roberts if that's what we decided to do. Now I'm scared that it IS going to work out. Weird, right? I start having all these doubts about how we will work everything out--from teaching english and homeschooling and the ineviteble sibling rivalry that will come. Sometimes I start to wonder if we're doing this for us and telling ourselves God told us to. But then something will happen that will be so GOD that I can't deny His role in all of this. He has brought us here. He has put these children in our lives. He has raised this money for us. He has brought people for encouragement into our lives exactly when we need them. He has brought that money and encouragement from such unexpected people/places that the only explaination is that GOD DID IT!
So, are we crazy? To most people, yes we are. But we're going to go on being "crazy" and follow God on this journey until He leads us somewhere else.
Please pray for our continued seeking of God's will and for our whole (even those across the world) family.
Crazy for Jesus!
Brooke
I have been reading a little about the Dunn's adoption. For those of you who don't know, they are the family in Monroe (our neck of the woods!) who have 3 biological children (hey--another similarity) and returned today from Brazil where they adopted 5 children. I have to say, their story encourages me like you wouldn't believe! God raised the $40,000 to adopt these kids for them! Seriously! This money was raised in a year! How awesome is that?! And it all happened because they were willing to listen to God's call. What would happen if you stepped out of your comfort zone and listened to God's call? A move? A new job? Quitting a job? Maybe even bringing another child (biological or adopted) into your home? You just never know.
I have to say, I am scared. Differently than I was scared before. At first I was scared that things wouldn't work out. For whatever reason, we wouldn't be able to adopt Rebeka and Roberts if that's what we decided to do. Now I'm scared that it IS going to work out. Weird, right? I start having all these doubts about how we will work everything out--from teaching english and homeschooling and the ineviteble sibling rivalry that will come. Sometimes I start to wonder if we're doing this for us and telling ourselves God told us to. But then something will happen that will be so GOD that I can't deny His role in all of this. He has brought us here. He has put these children in our lives. He has raised this money for us. He has brought people for encouragement into our lives exactly when we need them. He has brought that money and encouragement from such unexpected people/places that the only explaination is that GOD DID IT!
So, are we crazy? To most people, yes we are. But we're going to go on being "crazy" and follow God on this journey until He leads us somewhere else.
Please pray for our continued seeking of God's will and for our whole (even those across the world) family.
Crazy for Jesus!
Brooke
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Arrival Date!!
We found out today that our kids will arrive in Atlanta on June 26 at 11:24 PM. Yes, PM!! They will probably spend an hour or so in customs before we even get to see them! Pray pray pray for no delays with the flights and a speedy customs check! I think we will put Eileen, Merrick and Adalynn to bed around 4:00 or 5:00 PM and try to let them sleep and then wake them up around 9:30 or so to go to the airport. I think it's very important for Rebeka and Roberts to see everyone they will be living with for the summer as soon as they arrive. I think having the children there will make them feel more comfortable as well. Merrick and Addie will probably sleep in the stroller, but I'm sure Eileen will have tons of energy as always! Plus, Craig, Eileen and I will have so much anxious energy that we won't be tired one bit! We will all sleep very well (and late!) the next day. Hopefully it will give Rebeka and Roberts time to get used to the time difference and catch up on some sleep.
We also found out they will leave on July 31 at 1:20 PM. So they will be here for 2 days short of 5 weeks. I wish they didn't leave until later. I'm sad for that time already. I hope that I can remember to enjoy the moments while they are here instead of dreading when they have to leave the whole time.
We have about $780 left to raise by April 30! That is so awesome! God has done amazing things in getting the money for the hosting to us! I am going to try my best to continue trusting in Him for all things! I am leaving my job of almost 11 years to be a stay-at-home mom at the beginning of June so trusting God to provide is going to be something I learn BIG time soon! :)
Thank you for your prayers!
Brooke
We also found out they will leave on July 31 at 1:20 PM. So they will be here for 2 days short of 5 weeks. I wish they didn't leave until later. I'm sad for that time already. I hope that I can remember to enjoy the moments while they are here instead of dreading when they have to leave the whole time.
We have about $780 left to raise by April 30! That is so awesome! God has done amazing things in getting the money for the hosting to us! I am going to try my best to continue trusting in Him for all things! I am leaving my job of almost 11 years to be a stay-at-home mom at the beginning of June so trusting God to provide is going to be something I learn BIG time soon! :)
Thank you for your prayers!
Brooke
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Host Families Needed/Starving for Information
The deadline for families to host children from Russia is 4/15/08 and the deadline to host children from Latvia is 5/5/08. There are just over 60 children waiting for host families. If you or anyone you know would be interested, please visit New Horizons website to get more information. These kids deserve to learn about the love of Christ and to find loving homes!
That being said, I am starved for any information on Rebeka & Roberts! I want to hear how they are doing, I want to see pictures of them at Christmas (they were hosted by a family in Maryland), I want to meet them so badly! I'm so excited for summer to be here, I almost can't stand it! I wonder if anyone else is going through these same emotions--and I know they are! Our host training session will be on June 7, all day and we will learn so much more and meet other host families. I am very excited to meet other people who have the same heart as we do and whose first words when they meet us won't be, "You're crazy for wanting to do this!" :)
I pray every night with Eileen, Merrick and Adalynn that God will let Rebeka & Roberts know we love them and keep them safe and healthy. And we do love them--all of us! Merrick says, "Roberts? Rebeka?" all the time. It sounds more like "waburts" and "beka" but that's okay! :)
Please pray for their health and safety and for God to comfort them.
Thanks for your support and prayers,
Brooke
That being said, I am starved for any information on Rebeka & Roberts! I want to hear how they are doing, I want to see pictures of them at Christmas (they were hosted by a family in Maryland), I want to meet them so badly! I'm so excited for summer to be here, I almost can't stand it! I wonder if anyone else is going through these same emotions--and I know they are! Our host training session will be on June 7, all day and we will learn so much more and meet other host families. I am very excited to meet other people who have the same heart as we do and whose first words when they meet us won't be, "You're crazy for wanting to do this!" :)
I pray every night with Eileen, Merrick and Adalynn that God will let Rebeka & Roberts know we love them and keep them safe and healthy. And we do love them--all of us! Merrick says, "Roberts? Rebeka?" all the time. It sounds more like "waburts" and "beka" but that's okay! :)
Please pray for their health and safety and for God to comfort them.
Thanks for your support and prayers,
Brooke
Friday, April 4, 2008
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Precious in His Sight
Jesus loves the little children. All the children of the world. Red & yellow, black & white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.
This song has been playing in my head recently. Mainly because we recently named our new orphan's ministry Precious in His Sight. I think of it as a cute song to sing to my children and those at church about how much Jesus loves them. Now, that song sings to me of Jesus' love for the orphan and His desire to see all children cared for! Jesus says in John 14:18 "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." God's Word often speaks of us as being adopted as God's children. James 1:27 plainly states, "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." God clearly has a heart for those without parents. He calls us to help them. That doesn't mean everyone is called to host or adopt a child. It doesn't mean everyone is called to give financial support, although even a couple of dollars wouldn't hurt MOST of us. It does mean that EVERYONE can pray. Everyone can do something. Craig and I feel that we have currently been called to host and to reach out to our community to create an awareness of the need. Will hosting lead us to adoption? I hope so! But God might call us a different way. We are leaving it up to Him. We do know that Rebeka & Roberts are not adoptable until Rebeka turns 9, which is February 22, 2009. So for now, we are focusing on our current calling--to love these children and teach them about the love that our Heavely Father has for them.
In Christ,
Brooke
This song has been playing in my head recently. Mainly because we recently named our new orphan's ministry Precious in His Sight. I think of it as a cute song to sing to my children and those at church about how much Jesus loves them. Now, that song sings to me of Jesus' love for the orphan and His desire to see all children cared for! Jesus says in John 14:18 "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you." God's Word often speaks of us as being adopted as God's children. James 1:27 plainly states, "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." God clearly has a heart for those without parents. He calls us to help them. That doesn't mean everyone is called to host or adopt a child. It doesn't mean everyone is called to give financial support, although even a couple of dollars wouldn't hurt MOST of us. It does mean that EVERYONE can pray. Everyone can do something. Craig and I feel that we have currently been called to host and to reach out to our community to create an awareness of the need. Will hosting lead us to adoption? I hope so! But God might call us a different way. We are leaving it up to Him. We do know that Rebeka & Roberts are not adoptable until Rebeka turns 9, which is February 22, 2009. So for now, we are focusing on our current calling--to love these children and teach them about the love that our Heavely Father has for them.
In Christ,
Brooke
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