Saturday, November 19, 2011

Today.....

Today was a pretty cool day. 

Today we went to a lil' elementary school in Louisville where our adoption agency was having a reunion. 

I had a rare moment - (if you know me, prepare to be amazed)

I sat.  I sat STILL.  I didn't talk.  I looked around.  I observed.  I saw mommas wiping faces.  I saw dads playing airplane with kids that did not resemble them in the slightest.  I saw great diversity.  I saw alot of love.  I saw kids who I know at one point were abandoned and completely alone and who now run into the arms of mommas and daddys.  I saw a group of people who reached out - some across the world and others right out their backdoor - not for their own glory but for God's. 

I wish you could have been there. I wish you could have seen it. It was amazing. 

I looked at the faces of the children from Ethiopia and tried to imagine what Maggie will look like.  I pictured what next year there will look like for us.  I can't wait to be the family that is telling the new family our story and have Maggie jump into our arms and ask for another chicken nugget. Most days it seems so far away and almost out of reach.  Today we saw that it isn't. 

Today was a pretty cool day.

Thursday, November 17, 2011

When I don't have the words to say it......

I take from others that do.......(that's just how I roll) :) 


Don’t You Already Have Kids?


“I can hardly breathe,” I told my wife. And I meant it.

We were in an old elevator headed to the third floor of a battered women’s shelter in downtown Taipei just seconds before meeting our two new daughters. They were 5 ½ and 3 ½ and were just as nervous as we were.

The social workers blandly announced to the girls, “here’s your mama, and here’s your papa.” They handed us a bag of clothes that did not fit and sent us on our way.

No fan fare, no celebration, no instructions. It was one of the greatest days of our life. It was also the culmination of years of conviction, hard work, bureaucracy, patience (impatience!), and prayer. The most common question we heard through the whole process was, “Don’t you already have kids?”

What they meant was, “why would you adopt when you can obviously have kids biologically?” We had three biological children but it never crossed our mind that we should not add to our family through the gift of adoption. Here are the factors that were the driving force behind our decision to adopt.

We are committed to life. For our entire marriage we have supported many pro life causes. But we always
felt that if we were going to encourage unwed girls to give birth to their babies, then Christians should be in line to be ready to adopt those who would be given up. It was our way of “putting our money where our mouth was.”

We are committed to the helpless and disadvantaged. James (1:27) makes it clear that one of the evidences of our faith is how we respond to the “affliction” of widows and orphans. Taking care of these two groups is time consuming, messy, and sacrificial. But it is a central part of the Christian life. We wanted to make sure that our family was heavily invested in this important admonition.

We are committed to biblical manhood. Men are called to lead, provide, and protect (Gen. 1-2, Eph. 5, I Kings 2:1-9, 1 Pet. 3, Col. 3). This is a fundamental teaching of the Bible and it does not merely pertain to the four walls of one’s home. Men should be looking for those who need protection and provision. There are fatherless children all over the world. Every year I meet women who are burdened for adoption but their husbands won’t budge. It’s usually something about retirement, college costs, or they are finally able to afford that boat they always wanted. In our home, the men lead and sacrificially give of themselves for the good of others.

We are committed to Gospel-centeredness. The doctrine of adoption is at the heart of the Gospel. We are born outside of Christ, but it is through Christ that we receive “the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry ‘Abba! Father!’” (Rom. 8:15) Physical adoption is a daily living picture of this spiritual reality. It is a constant reminder to our family and others of the grace and mercy of God and His love for the lost and care for the fatherless.

We are committed to the nations. Not everyone is called to international adoption but the result is a reminder of God’s love for every “nation and tribe and language and people.” (Rev. 14:6). Every week the Lord adds people to his church and tells you and I to love them. They may not look like us, smell like us, have the same socio-economic background as us, or talk like us. But that’s the beauty of the Gospel. Twice we have brought into our home children from another country and told our other kids, “they don’t talk like you or look like you, but here’s another one, love them.” It has been one of the biggest blessings in the whole process for us and has dramatically shaped our view of the whole world.

Maybe the next big decision in your life will involve a vacation house or a boat or a car that you don’t need. Maybe it will involve trying to sock away even more money for that early retirement you have been hoping for. It might even involve contributing to a monument or building with your name on it. Or just maybe it will involve an old elevator in another country with your mind in a whirl, your heart racing, adrenaline rushing, and your lungs struggling inexplicably for their next breath. And in making that decision, it might not even cross your mind that you already have kids.
_____________________________

Randy Stinson is the Dean of the School of Church Ministries and the Vice President for Academic Innovation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY. He also serves as the Senior Fellow of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood (http://www.cbmw.org/).

I found this here if you want to learn more.  :)

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

This pretty much sums it up....

If you read this blog - you know she is one of my fav bloggers. 

She pretty much summed it all up.  I couldn't write it any better or insert any jokes so I thought I would just simply share......

click here:

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

#25!!!!!


We recieved a call from our adoption agency last week that informed us that we are now #25 on some obscure, vague list.  Eric recieved the call and in his excitement of hearing anything regarded as progress, hung up and called me....here's how the conversation went.

Eric:  'Fran! I just got a call from Lifeline!'

Me:  (Reaching for a chair - thinking what's happening - is this it, did they find a match for our family?)  'And....'

Eric:  'WE ARE #25 ON THE LIST!!!!'

Me:  (still kinda numb and shakey) 'Oh, that's great! What does that mean?'

Eric:  'I have no idea! but isn't it great!!!!!'

Me:  'Yes honey it is. However, I need to know if I am just experiencing Braxton Hicks or if I am dilating here!'  (If you don't get that joke - I can't help you)

So here we are.....#25.  We have no clue what it means (and we are too embarrassed to call back) but we are so excited.  We don't know if we are close to finally seeing Maggie's face or if we are still months away; nonetheless it's in God's hand and that is a good, good thing.