Tuesday, May 12, 2009
A child shall lead them
We have a dear friend who is a wonderful mother. She recently shared a story with me about her daughters. They were all playing house the other day and they were going to an orphanage to adopt children. She said if I could have only seen the tenderness in her girls as they chose their babies at the orphanage and how they were struggling with the thought of leaving any of the children behind. Then she shared with me how one of her girls she found one day praying for our adoption the other day. It really touched me to hear this and I hope it does you all as well.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
The hole in our gospel
We subscribe to emails from World Vision, their leader recently wrote a book titled "The hole in our gospel". Their recent email had a link to a website that highlighted the book. If you dont know World Vision is a Christian relief organization that works throughout the world to help the poor, the orphans, those in need. The prologue to the book is 5 pages in length, you can download it for free which I have done. I thought I would share it with you here. I would like to challenge anyone who is reading this to get this book and read it.
Prologue
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” —L U K E 2 : 1 0
Rakai, Uganda, August 1998
His name was Richard, the same as mine. I sat inside his meager thatch hut,
listening to his story, told through the tears of an orphan whose parents
had died of AIDS. At thirteen, Richard was trying to raise his two younger
brothers by himself in this small shack with no running water, electricity,
or even beds to sleep in. There were no adults in their lives—no one to care
for them, feed them, love them, or teach them how to become men. There
was no one to hug them either, or to tuck them in at night. Other than his
siblings, Richard was alone, as no child should be. I try to picture my own
children abandoned in this kind of deprivation, fending for themselves
without parents to protect them, and I cannot.
I didn’t want to be there. I wasn’t supposed to be there, so far out of my
comfort zone—not in that place where orphaned children live by themselves
in their agony. There, poverty, disease, and squalor had eyes and
faces that stared back, and I had to see and smell and touch the pain of the
poor. That particular district, Rakai, is believed to be ground zero for the
Ugandan AIDS pandemic. There, the deadly virus has stalked its victims
in the dark for decades. Sweat trickled down my face as I sat awkwardly
with Richard and his brothers while a film crew captured every tear—mine
and theirs.
I much preferred living in my bubble, the one that, until that moment,
had safely contained my life, family, and career. It kept difficult things like this
out, insulating me from anything too raw or upsetting. When such things
intruded, as they rarely did, a channel could be changed, a newspaper page
turned, or a check written to keep the poor at a safe distance. But not in
Rakai. There, “such things” had faces and names—even my name, Richard.
Not sixty days earlier I had been CEO of Lenox, America’s finest tableware
company, producing and selling luxury goods to those who could
afford them. I lived with my wife and five children in a ten-bedroom house
on five acres just outside of Philadelphia. I drove a Jaguar to work every
day, and my business travel took me to places such as Paris, Tokyo, London,
and Florence. I flew first-class and stayed in the best hotels. I was respected
in my community, attended a venerable suburban church, and sat on the
board of my kids’ Christian school. I was one of the good guys—you might
say a “poster child” for the successful Christian life. I had never heard of
Rakai, the place where my bubble would burst. But in just sixty days, God
turned my life inside out, and it would never be the same.
Quite unexpectedly, eight months earlier, I had been contacted by World Vision, the Christian relief and development organization, during their search for a new president. Why me? It wasn’t something I had sought after. In fact,you might say I had been minding my own business when the phone rang that day. But it was a phone call that had been twenty-four years in the planning.You see, in 1974, at the age of twenty-three, in my graduate school dormitory,I knelt down beside my bed and dedicated my life to Christ. This was no small decision for me, and it came only after months of reading, studying, conversations with friends, and the important witness of Reneé, the woman who would later become my wife. While at the time I knew very little about the implications of that decision, I knew this: nothing would ever be quite the same again, because I had made a promise to follow Christ—no matter what.
The Man Who Wouldn’t Buy China . . .
Several months after becoming a Christian, I was newly engaged to Reneé.
As we were planning our wedding and our life together, she suggested that
we go to a department store to register for our china, crystal, and silver. My
self-righteous response was an indication of just how my newfound faith
was integrating into my life: “As long as there are children starving in the
world, we’re not going to own fine china, crystal, and silver.” Perhaps you
can see God’s sense of irony in my becoming president of America’s premier
fine tableware company a couple of decades later. So when I answered
that phone call from World Vision in January 1998, I knew that God was
on the other end of the line. It was His voice I heard, not the recruiter’s:
Rich, do you remember that idealistic young man in 1974 who was so passionate
about starving children that he would not even fill out a wedding registry? Take
a good look at yourself now. Do you see what you’ve become? But, Rich, if you
still care about those children, I have a job I want you to do
.In my prayers over the weeks leading up to my appointment as World Vision’s president, I begged God to send someone else to do it, much as Moses had done.Surely this was a mistake. I was no MotherTeresa. I remember praying that God would send me anywhere else, “but, please, God, not to the poor—not into the pain and alienation of poverty and disease, not there.” I didn’twant to go there.
Yet here I was, the new president of WorldVision, sent by knowing staff to get a “baptism by fire” for my new calling, with a film crew to document every moment.
Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, once prayed, “Let my heart
be broken by the things that break the heart of God.” But who really wants
his heart broken? Is this something to ask of God? Don’t we pray that God
will not break our hearts? But as I look at the life of Jesus, I see that He was,
as Isaiah described him, “a Man of sorrows . . . acquainted with grief ”
(53:3 NKJV). Jesus’ heart was continually moved to compassion as He
encountered the lame, the sick, the widow, and the orphan. I try to picture
God’s broken heart as He looks today upon the broken world for which He
died. Surely Richard’s story breaks His heart.
Two crude piles of stones just outside the door mark the graves of
Richard’s parents. It disturbs me that he must walk past them every day. He
and his brothers must have watched first their father and then their mother
die slow and horrible deaths. I wondered if the boys were the ones who fed
them and bathed them in their last days. Whatever the case, Richard, a
child himself, is now the head of household.
Child-headed household, words never meant to be strung together. I tried to wrap my mind around this new phrase, one that describes not only Richard’s plight but that of tens of thousands, even millions more. I’m told that there are sixty thousand orphans just in Rakai, twelve million orphans due to AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.2 How can this be true? Awkwardly I asked Richard what he hopes to be when he grows up, a ridiculous question to ask a child who has lost his childhood. “A doctor,” he said, “so I can help people who have the disease.”
“Do you have a Bible?” I asked. He ran to the other room and returned with his treasured book with gold-gilt pages. “Can you read it?” “I love to read the book of John, because it says that Jesus loves the children.”
This overwhelmed me, and my tears started to flow. Forgive me, Lord, forgive me. I didn’t know. But I did know. I knew about poverty and suffering in the world. I was aware that children die daily from starvation and
lack of clean water. I also knew about AIDS and the orphans it leaves
behind, but I kept these things outside of my insulating bubble and looked
the other way.
Yet this was to be the moment that would ever after define me. Rakai was what God wanted me to see. My sadness that day was replaced by
repentance. Despite what the Bible had told me so clearly, I had turned a
blind eye to the poor. Now my heart was filled with anger, first at myself,
and then toward the world. Why wasn’t Richard’s story being told? The
media overflowed with celebrity dramas, stock market updates, and Bill
Clinton’s impending impeachment hearings. But where were the headlines
and magazine covers about Africa? Twelve million orphans, and no one
noticed? But what sickened me most was this question: where was the
Church? Indeed, where were the followers of Jesus Christ in the midst of
perhaps the greatest humanitarian crisis of our time? Surely the Church
should have been caring for these “orphans and widows in their distress”
(James 1:27). Shouldn’t the pulpits across America have flamed with
exhortations to rush to the front lines of compassion? Shouldn’t they be
flaming today? Shouldn’t churches be reaching out to care for children in
such desperate need? How could the great tragedy of these orphans get
drowned out by choruses of praise music in hundreds of thousands of
churches across our country? Sitting in a hut in Rakai, I remember thinking,
How have we missed it so tragically, when even rock stars and Hollywood
actors seem to understand?
Ten years later I know. Something fundamental has been missing in our understanding of the gospel.
The word gospel literally means “good news.” Jesus declared that He had come to “preach good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18). But what good news, what gospel, did the Church have for Richard and his brothers in Rakai? What “good news” have God’s people brought to the world’s three billion poor?3 What “gospel” have millions of Africa’s AIDS orphans seen?4 What gospel have most of us embraced in the twenty-first century?
The answer is found in the title of this book: a gospel with a hole in it.
Prologue
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people.” —L U K E 2 : 1 0
Rakai, Uganda, August 1998
His name was Richard, the same as mine. I sat inside his meager thatch hut,
listening to his story, told through the tears of an orphan whose parents
had died of AIDS. At thirteen, Richard was trying to raise his two younger
brothers by himself in this small shack with no running water, electricity,
or even beds to sleep in. There were no adults in their lives—no one to care
for them, feed them, love them, or teach them how to become men. There
was no one to hug them either, or to tuck them in at night. Other than his
siblings, Richard was alone, as no child should be. I try to picture my own
children abandoned in this kind of deprivation, fending for themselves
without parents to protect them, and I cannot.
I didn’t want to be there. I wasn’t supposed to be there, so far out of my
comfort zone—not in that place where orphaned children live by themselves
in their agony. There, poverty, disease, and squalor had eyes and
faces that stared back, and I had to see and smell and touch the pain of the
poor. That particular district, Rakai, is believed to be ground zero for the
Ugandan AIDS pandemic. There, the deadly virus has stalked its victims
in the dark for decades. Sweat trickled down my face as I sat awkwardly
with Richard and his brothers while a film crew captured every tear—mine
and theirs.
I much preferred living in my bubble, the one that, until that moment,
had safely contained my life, family, and career. It kept difficult things like this
out, insulating me from anything too raw or upsetting. When such things
intruded, as they rarely did, a channel could be changed, a newspaper page
turned, or a check written to keep the poor at a safe distance. But not in
Rakai. There, “such things” had faces and names—even my name, Richard.
Not sixty days earlier I had been CEO of Lenox, America’s finest tableware
company, producing and selling luxury goods to those who could
afford them. I lived with my wife and five children in a ten-bedroom house
on five acres just outside of Philadelphia. I drove a Jaguar to work every
day, and my business travel took me to places such as Paris, Tokyo, London,
and Florence. I flew first-class and stayed in the best hotels. I was respected
in my community, attended a venerable suburban church, and sat on the
board of my kids’ Christian school. I was one of the good guys—you might
say a “poster child” for the successful Christian life. I had never heard of
Rakai, the place where my bubble would burst. But in just sixty days, God
turned my life inside out, and it would never be the same.
Quite unexpectedly, eight months earlier, I had been contacted by World Vision, the Christian relief and development organization, during their search for a new president. Why me? It wasn’t something I had sought after. In fact,you might say I had been minding my own business when the phone rang that day. But it was a phone call that had been twenty-four years in the planning.You see, in 1974, at the age of twenty-three, in my graduate school dormitory,I knelt down beside my bed and dedicated my life to Christ. This was no small decision for me, and it came only after months of reading, studying, conversations with friends, and the important witness of Reneé, the woman who would later become my wife. While at the time I knew very little about the implications of that decision, I knew this: nothing would ever be quite the same again, because I had made a promise to follow Christ—no matter what.
The Man Who Wouldn’t Buy China . . .
Several months after becoming a Christian, I was newly engaged to Reneé.
As we were planning our wedding and our life together, she suggested that
we go to a department store to register for our china, crystal, and silver. My
self-righteous response was an indication of just how my newfound faith
was integrating into my life: “As long as there are children starving in the
world, we’re not going to own fine china, crystal, and silver.” Perhaps you
can see God’s sense of irony in my becoming president of America’s premier
fine tableware company a couple of decades later. So when I answered
that phone call from World Vision in January 1998, I knew that God was
on the other end of the line. It was His voice I heard, not the recruiter’s:
Rich, do you remember that idealistic young man in 1974 who was so passionate
about starving children that he would not even fill out a wedding registry? Take
a good look at yourself now. Do you see what you’ve become? But, Rich, if you
still care about those children, I have a job I want you to do
.In my prayers over the weeks leading up to my appointment as World Vision’s president, I begged God to send someone else to do it, much as Moses had done.Surely this was a mistake. I was no MotherTeresa. I remember praying that God would send me anywhere else, “but, please, God, not to the poor—not into the pain and alienation of poverty and disease, not there.” I didn’twant to go there.
Yet here I was, the new president of WorldVision, sent by knowing staff to get a “baptism by fire” for my new calling, with a film crew to document every moment.
Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision, once prayed, “Let my heart
be broken by the things that break the heart of God.” But who really wants
his heart broken? Is this something to ask of God? Don’t we pray that God
will not break our hearts? But as I look at the life of Jesus, I see that He was,
as Isaiah described him, “a Man of sorrows . . . acquainted with grief ”
(53:3 NKJV). Jesus’ heart was continually moved to compassion as He
encountered the lame, the sick, the widow, and the orphan. I try to picture
God’s broken heart as He looks today upon the broken world for which He
died. Surely Richard’s story breaks His heart.
Two crude piles of stones just outside the door mark the graves of
Richard’s parents. It disturbs me that he must walk past them every day. He
and his brothers must have watched first their father and then their mother
die slow and horrible deaths. I wondered if the boys were the ones who fed
them and bathed them in their last days. Whatever the case, Richard, a
child himself, is now the head of household.
Child-headed household, words never meant to be strung together. I tried to wrap my mind around this new phrase, one that describes not only Richard’s plight but that of tens of thousands, even millions more. I’m told that there are sixty thousand orphans just in Rakai, twelve million orphans due to AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.2 How can this be true? Awkwardly I asked Richard what he hopes to be when he grows up, a ridiculous question to ask a child who has lost his childhood. “A doctor,” he said, “so I can help people who have the disease.”
“Do you have a Bible?” I asked. He ran to the other room and returned with his treasured book with gold-gilt pages. “Can you read it?” “I love to read the book of John, because it says that Jesus loves the children.”
This overwhelmed me, and my tears started to flow. Forgive me, Lord, forgive me. I didn’t know. But I did know. I knew about poverty and suffering in the world. I was aware that children die daily from starvation and
lack of clean water. I also knew about AIDS and the orphans it leaves
behind, but I kept these things outside of my insulating bubble and looked
the other way.
Yet this was to be the moment that would ever after define me. Rakai was what God wanted me to see. My sadness that day was replaced by
repentance. Despite what the Bible had told me so clearly, I had turned a
blind eye to the poor. Now my heart was filled with anger, first at myself,
and then toward the world. Why wasn’t Richard’s story being told? The
media overflowed with celebrity dramas, stock market updates, and Bill
Clinton’s impending impeachment hearings. But where were the headlines
and magazine covers about Africa? Twelve million orphans, and no one
noticed? But what sickened me most was this question: where was the
Church? Indeed, where were the followers of Jesus Christ in the midst of
perhaps the greatest humanitarian crisis of our time? Surely the Church
should have been caring for these “orphans and widows in their distress”
(James 1:27). Shouldn’t the pulpits across America have flamed with
exhortations to rush to the front lines of compassion? Shouldn’t they be
flaming today? Shouldn’t churches be reaching out to care for children in
such desperate need? How could the great tragedy of these orphans get
drowned out by choruses of praise music in hundreds of thousands of
churches across our country? Sitting in a hut in Rakai, I remember thinking,
How have we missed it so tragically, when even rock stars and Hollywood
actors seem to understand?
Ten years later I know. Something fundamental has been missing in our understanding of the gospel.
The word gospel literally means “good news.” Jesus declared that He had come to “preach good news to the poor” (Luke 4:18). But what good news, what gospel, did the Church have for Richard and his brothers in Rakai? What “good news” have God’s people brought to the world’s three billion poor?3 What “gospel” have millions of Africa’s AIDS orphans seen?4 What gospel have most of us embraced in the twenty-first century?
The answer is found in the title of this book: a gospel with a hole in it.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
The cost of adoption
The devotion I have shared recently from Shaohannah's Hope concludes on day 14, I thought I would share it with you all.
Day 14: The cost of Adoption
" God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ... and it gave him great pleasure... He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son..." Ephesians 1:5,7
Our adoption by God cost us nothing. However, it did cost God something; it cost
HIM HIS SON. The high fees and costs for adoption today are indefensible, but they are not inconceivable.
Adoption is costly. Whether in the realm of finances, emotions, relationships, time,or effort, adoption will cost. But think of what it cost God, and yet He was willing to undergo that cost, and not simply to undergo it, but to undergo it with joy! It gave Him great pleasure! What kind of upside down world is this? What pain and loss God must have experienced, and yet he delighted in bringing us into his family! In our world of risk-averse, safety-first, immediate gratification, we often lose sight of the truth that some endeavors are worth the cost.
The adoption journey is not easy, but every hour of toil, every obstacle encountered, tear shed, every sleepless night, are all but a shadow of the price that God paid for us. Jesus came to be a ransom for many(Matthew 20:28), and if God was willing to pay that ransom for us, how much more will He be willing to lead us in ransoming His beloved children from their state as orphans? And it is His love that compels us onward in obedience, whatever the cost, for He who calls us is faithful. Our God who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, who is rich in mercy and grace, who generously provides for all that we need, this God knows the costs we will incur, and promises to be with us and every step of the way. This is about faith in action. This is an invitation to experience God in ways we've never experienced Him before.
In Matthew, Jesus says, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." God's heart is invested in adoption. Let us view the costs, both known and unforeseen , as an invitation for us to invest our resources, and therefore our hearts, into things of God. Don't be afraid to ask others to join you in your adoption journey, supporting you financially, and personally, for the body is made up of many parts, and we all need one another. Let others have the opportunity to invest in the things of God as well. "Carry one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2).
What are some of the costs that are related to adoption that I can meet with the joy of Christ? How am I affected by the truth that God purchased my position in His family with the blood of His son, Jesus? What does this mean for my life?
Day 14: The cost of Adoption
" God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ... and it gave him great pleasure... He is so rich in kindness and grace that He purchased our freedom with the blood of His Son..." Ephesians 1:5,7
Our adoption by God cost us nothing. However, it did cost God something; it cost
HIM HIS SON. The high fees and costs for adoption today are indefensible, but they are not inconceivable.
Adoption is costly. Whether in the realm of finances, emotions, relationships, time,or effort, adoption will cost. But think of what it cost God, and yet He was willing to undergo that cost, and not simply to undergo it, but to undergo it with joy! It gave Him great pleasure! What kind of upside down world is this? What pain and loss God must have experienced, and yet he delighted in bringing us into his family! In our world of risk-averse, safety-first, immediate gratification, we often lose sight of the truth that some endeavors are worth the cost.
The adoption journey is not easy, but every hour of toil, every obstacle encountered, tear shed, every sleepless night, are all but a shadow of the price that God paid for us. Jesus came to be a ransom for many(Matthew 20:28), and if God was willing to pay that ransom for us, how much more will He be willing to lead us in ransoming His beloved children from their state as orphans? And it is His love that compels us onward in obedience, whatever the cost, for He who calls us is faithful. Our God who owns the cattle on a thousand hills, who is rich in mercy and grace, who generously provides for all that we need, this God knows the costs we will incur, and promises to be with us and every step of the way. This is about faith in action. This is an invitation to experience God in ways we've never experienced Him before.
In Matthew, Jesus says, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." God's heart is invested in adoption. Let us view the costs, both known and unforeseen , as an invitation for us to invest our resources, and therefore our hearts, into things of God. Don't be afraid to ask others to join you in your adoption journey, supporting you financially, and personally, for the body is made up of many parts, and we all need one another. Let others have the opportunity to invest in the things of God as well. "Carry one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Galatians 6:2).
What are some of the costs that are related to adoption that I can meet with the joy of Christ? How am I affected by the truth that God purchased my position in His family with the blood of His son, Jesus? What does this mean for my life?
Monday, April 20, 2009
Going on Faith / Dossier fee
We received today a bill from our agency, Holt International. It is the Dossier fee for $2795.00. As most of you know we are going on faith with our adoption related expenses and have committed not to go into debt. So we put before God and all of you this need. Holt's mailing address is Post Office Box 2880, Eugene Oregon, 97402. I imagine the agency could be contacted directly by any interested donors and of course you can contact us directly. We know God will find a way to meet our needs. God bless.
Worth the Wait
We finished the 14 day devotion that Shaohannah's Hope sent us. I wanted to share day 12 with everyone, its message meant a lot to us.
Day 12: Worth the Wait
"I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope." Psalm 130:5
While at a Steven Curtis Chapman concert highlighting the need for adoption, a security guard backstage excitedly approached me and said, "I want to share with you what God did for my family through adoption." "Over thirty years ago," he began, "my wife and I wanted to have a child, but we were not able to biologically. We then prayed about adoption and felt led by God to adopt a little boy from South Korea. However, after filing our paperwork, we found out that because my wife has been a type I diabetic since her childhood, we were disqualified from adopting due to current regulations. We were not only emotionally crushed but also confused because we really felt that God had said that there was a little boy for us in Korea. What was God doing? Had we heard the Shepherd's voice rightly?
"Several years later the adoption agency called and said that the regulations had changed and they had a little boy that we would be eligible to adopt from Korea if we were still interested. Of course we said yes, went through the process, and adopted him. "Thirty years after the adoption, my wife became terribly ill from kidney failure. Every family member was checked to find a match for a kidney transplant, but none of us were close enough. Due to my wife's condition and age, she was so far down on the list of priority there was basically no chance she would receive a stranger's kidney.
"Our adopted son then asked to be tested as a possible kidney donor; however, knowing that he was adopted, the hospital refused. Determined to find out whether his blood type was even compatible with that of his adoptive mother's, he went to the local blood bank and gave blood. And only as God's sovereignty could design, not only was our son a blood match, but in fact he also passed all the hospital tests and miraculously ended up being his adoptive mother's kidney donor!
"Looking back at the wait and setbacks we had endured to adopt our son, God's timing could not have been more perfect. God knew exactly how to connect us to the child he created for us. My wife used to become saddened knowing she had never experienced carrying a baby in her womb; however, after her transplant, she told my son that her greatest joy is that for as long as she lives, she will always carry a part of him within her." "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life" (Proverbs 13:12).
During the times of waiting in my life, am I willing to put my faith in God and His plan?
Day 12: Worth the Wait
"I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope." Psalm 130:5
While at a Steven Curtis Chapman concert highlighting the need for adoption, a security guard backstage excitedly approached me and said, "I want to share with you what God did for my family through adoption." "Over thirty years ago," he began, "my wife and I wanted to have a child, but we were not able to biologically. We then prayed about adoption and felt led by God to adopt a little boy from South Korea. However, after filing our paperwork, we found out that because my wife has been a type I diabetic since her childhood, we were disqualified from adopting due to current regulations. We were not only emotionally crushed but also confused because we really felt that God had said that there was a little boy for us in Korea. What was God doing? Had we heard the Shepherd's voice rightly?
"Several years later the adoption agency called and said that the regulations had changed and they had a little boy that we would be eligible to adopt from Korea if we were still interested. Of course we said yes, went through the process, and adopted him. "Thirty years after the adoption, my wife became terribly ill from kidney failure. Every family member was checked to find a match for a kidney transplant, but none of us were close enough. Due to my wife's condition and age, she was so far down on the list of priority there was basically no chance she would receive a stranger's kidney.
"Our adopted son then asked to be tested as a possible kidney donor; however, knowing that he was adopted, the hospital refused. Determined to find out whether his blood type was even compatible with that of his adoptive mother's, he went to the local blood bank and gave blood. And only as God's sovereignty could design, not only was our son a blood match, but in fact he also passed all the hospital tests and miraculously ended up being his adoptive mother's kidney donor!
"Looking back at the wait and setbacks we had endured to adopt our son, God's timing could not have been more perfect. God knew exactly how to connect us to the child he created for us. My wife used to become saddened knowing she had never experienced carrying a baby in her womb; however, after her transplant, she told my son that her greatest joy is that for as long as she lives, she will always carry a part of him within her." "Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life" (Proverbs 13:12).
During the times of waiting in my life, am I willing to put my faith in God and His plan?
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Easter Sunday
We had an incredible service this Easter. We had whats called cardboard testimonies. I have cut and pasted the youtube link to our service as the church put it on the web yesterday. It shows the power of God and how he can change lives. How he can use anyone and can reach anyone no matter what they have done or where they come from. He can even touch a family in Ohio to desire adopting an unknown child from a far away place like Ethiopia. He can change you too.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9-Qd_zCHZY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9-Qd_zCHZY
Friday, April 10, 2009
Why is Church Unfulfilling for so many?
We received a packet from Shaohannah's Hope the other day. It has a 14 day devotion along with other information in it. I thought I would share day 3 of the devotion.
Day 3: Why is Church Unfulfilling for so many?
By Kerry Hasenbalg
" As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." James 2:26
In much of the American church today there is a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of fulfillment, particularly among the youth, and I believe this is due in large part to how many of us have missed a major ingredient of Biblical Christianity: caring for the Least.
Throughout Scripture and throughout the history of His people, God has called His chosen ones to spend themselves on behalf of the poor, the oppressed, the orphan, the widow, the prisoner, and the stranger in the land. Because many in the church have turned inward, ignored the outworking of their faith, and have forgotten the poor and needy, our knowledge of God is to a large extent merely intellectual, and hence our faiths often appear more dead than alive. This certainly is not true of every church, every believer, or every mission, but it is true enough because it was true of me.
I was afraid to be like those who were trying to earn their way to heaven with good works because I rightly knew that salvation is by God's grace through faith alone. But out of this fear, I, like many others, stopped working all together. Somewhere along the line, I unconsciously began living a lie that says learning about God, singing about God, and speaking about God is more important than walking like him.
Like so many well-intentioned Christians before me, I had thought I could live out my Christianity in church buildings, in Bible studies, and among friends. I had anticipated a comfortable future of growing and learning and discussing and growing some more. But as I took small steps of obedience, God kept leading me into the fields of the fatherless and the widow, the needy and the marginalized.
The call to follow Christ and the path of the crucified life is difficult, requiring self-sacrifice and obedience, and caring for the Least, God has given us a social context in which to live out these truths and walk in His love. Much of the evangelical church is longing for a deeper experience of God, and the irony is that it is among those we too often ignore and avoid- the orphans, widows, poor, sick, and oppressed- where God said he would be. There we will experience Him, see Him, touch Him, and walk with Him.
Are there people around me who are ignored or forgotten that I can love today? "
As I read this, I was really touched by the phrase where she said, " God has called His chosen ones to spend themselves on behalf of the poor, the oppressed, the orphan, the widow, the prisoner, and the stranger in the land." This idea of spending ourselves is really something we as Christ followers ought to ponder daily. Are we willing to "spend" our lives for someone else, perhaps who we may not even know? I think in this spending we will find ourselves, and truly have the joy and the peace and the fulfillment that God intends for us to truly have.
How about you?
Day 3: Why is Church Unfulfilling for so many?
By Kerry Hasenbalg
" As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead." James 2:26
In much of the American church today there is a sense of ineffectiveness and lack of fulfillment, particularly among the youth, and I believe this is due in large part to how many of us have missed a major ingredient of Biblical Christianity: caring for the Least.
Throughout Scripture and throughout the history of His people, God has called His chosen ones to spend themselves on behalf of the poor, the oppressed, the orphan, the widow, the prisoner, and the stranger in the land. Because many in the church have turned inward, ignored the outworking of their faith, and have forgotten the poor and needy, our knowledge of God is to a large extent merely intellectual, and hence our faiths often appear more dead than alive. This certainly is not true of every church, every believer, or every mission, but it is true enough because it was true of me.
I was afraid to be like those who were trying to earn their way to heaven with good works because I rightly knew that salvation is by God's grace through faith alone. But out of this fear, I, like many others, stopped working all together. Somewhere along the line, I unconsciously began living a lie that says learning about God, singing about God, and speaking about God is more important than walking like him.
Like so many well-intentioned Christians before me, I had thought I could live out my Christianity in church buildings, in Bible studies, and among friends. I had anticipated a comfortable future of growing and learning and discussing and growing some more. But as I took small steps of obedience, God kept leading me into the fields of the fatherless and the widow, the needy and the marginalized.
The call to follow Christ and the path of the crucified life is difficult, requiring self-sacrifice and obedience, and caring for the Least, God has given us a social context in which to live out these truths and walk in His love. Much of the evangelical church is longing for a deeper experience of God, and the irony is that it is among those we too often ignore and avoid- the orphans, widows, poor, sick, and oppressed- where God said he would be. There we will experience Him, see Him, touch Him, and walk with Him.
Are there people around me who are ignored or forgotten that I can love today? "
As I read this, I was really touched by the phrase where she said, " God has called His chosen ones to spend themselves on behalf of the poor, the oppressed, the orphan, the widow, the prisoner, and the stranger in the land." This idea of spending ourselves is really something we as Christ followers ought to ponder daily. Are we willing to "spend" our lives for someone else, perhaps who we may not even know? I think in this spending we will find ourselves, and truly have the joy and the peace and the fulfillment that God intends for us to truly have.
How about you?
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Its Spring!
One of my flaws is that I love change (maybe its a strength). So since its spring and everything will be turning green real soon I thought I would change our Blogs template for a fresh new look. Hope you like it.
Shohanna's Hope
Well on Thursday we mailed out all of the documents we needed to assemble to apply for a grant from this incredible organization. We are very hopeful that they will award us with a large amount that will enable us to get closer to bringing our child home. Please pray that God will work all this out and we will be awarded a nice size grant. I for one can almost taste all of this getting done. Of course I am not always as patient as I ought to be at times. haha
Friday, April 3, 2009
Referral
We were blown out of the water a few days ago. We actually received a child referral. We are still in the dossier stage and in need of all sorts of documents and then some additional cash (about $2000)just to complete this stage. Then we have the last stage where we need an additional $9000 and thats when you typically begin waiting for the referral. So needless to say we were shocked. It was a for a young girl who is 4 years old. We had stated in our home study we would accept up to age 3 but we really wanted 0-12 months. When the agency spoke to my wife they told her we would have to update our study to include this age. We had just completed our study Feb 14. After days of talking, praying about it and even fasting for a bit, as hard as it was we decided to say no. It was a hard thing to do, to say no to a child. But both Lisa and I had a peace about it and felt like this was not what God had for us. It was still very hard to do. We are now back on the path that we thought we were on and plowing through the paperwork. Pray for us as we are quite busy with life in general and the added demands of the adoption. God will provide the way through though we know.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Don't read your own press clippings
I think it is very important in life to be transparent with others in your life. Too many of us, myself included, often put on a mask and act like we have everything together. Last night was one of those times where I realized how easy it is to get your motives all messed up.
As we have journeyed along our adoption path sometimes with all that we have to do, it becomes more about us and how much we are doing. We can begin to look at ourselves and think too highly of what we are doing. After all not every person you meet is adopting from Ethiopia right? Last night though I was blessed to attend a small church service of about 40 folks downtown Akron at the YMCA. One of my best friends was preaching the service and after about a year of promising him I would go, I actually went. Its basically a group of homeless people organized by a friend of ours. They sing, preach and then have a dinner for the people. After the preaching there is a small group break out session that lasts for about 10-15 minutes. I met with my friend and 6 other people last night. One gentlemen spoke of his frost bitten feet and how he may be losing toes. Another couple spoke of how they have been living in an abandoned home for over 7 months and how cold it was during the winter months. The man told of a flashlight that he has that is one of those crank flashlights. He said how he has to crank it to get the light and how he sometimes reads the Bible by that light. I wonder how many of us would read our Bibles if we had to crank a flashlight just to see the words at night?
Anyway, these were the types of stories that filled that room last night. The thing I wanted to share though is how this small group of homeless people were recently in the newspaper. They take an offering every week and had raised over $300 to give to an inner city school for kids uniforms etc. What a sacrifice these people make and yet they have nothing.
So much for my families sacrifice!
As we have journeyed along our adoption path sometimes with all that we have to do, it becomes more about us and how much we are doing. We can begin to look at ourselves and think too highly of what we are doing. After all not every person you meet is adopting from Ethiopia right? Last night though I was blessed to attend a small church service of about 40 folks downtown Akron at the YMCA. One of my best friends was preaching the service and after about a year of promising him I would go, I actually went. Its basically a group of homeless people organized by a friend of ours. They sing, preach and then have a dinner for the people. After the preaching there is a small group break out session that lasts for about 10-15 minutes. I met with my friend and 6 other people last night. One gentlemen spoke of his frost bitten feet and how he may be losing toes. Another couple spoke of how they have been living in an abandoned home for over 7 months and how cold it was during the winter months. The man told of a flashlight that he has that is one of those crank flashlights. He said how he has to crank it to get the light and how he sometimes reads the Bible by that light. I wonder how many of us would read our Bibles if we had to crank a flashlight just to see the words at night?
Anyway, these were the types of stories that filled that room last night. The thing I wanted to share though is how this small group of homeless people were recently in the newspaper. They take an offering every week and had raised over $300 to give to an inner city school for kids uniforms etc. What a sacrifice these people make and yet they have nothing.
So much for my families sacrifice!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Godcidences
Sometimes I think God just sits back and grins as he works in his children's lives. The last few days he has had me grinning. I went to look at a used mini van the other day and met a wonderful christian man. He was born in Mexico but now lives here in Ohio with his wife. They just moved here from Wisconsin. We started sharing our faith and I mentioned the adoption. He told me of his friends who have adopted 2 sets of twins from Russia. I couldnt believe the irony as Lisa is dying to adopt twins if thats what God wants for us. I truly enjoyed the 20 minutes I spent with this man. We even said we might possibly get our families together for cook outs etc. Then I came home and spoke with a gentlemen I met on Craigs list. They had listed in the free category of items a rocker/glider. Lisa and I have always wanted one of them through all 4 of our biological kids but never had one. We even were looking at them at Baby's R Us a few months back. It turns out, this man and his wife adopted a child from China and I believe he said Kazakhstan. He mentioned that our email to him, which has our blog on every message that goes out on it, which told him we were adopting, was the reason we were getting the glider. Isnt that cool how God works. Its not a big deal probably to most people, but to us its just one of those little ways God shows us he is taking care of our needs, and even sometimes our wants. I guess we must be getting a baby now that God has given us this glider, I just hope and pray that a second one doesnt show up anytime soon!! That would mean twins like Lisa is dreaming, and I just dont know if I can handle that!! haha
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Chicken Soup for the Adopted Soul
Lisa bought this book that's filled with short stories about adoption and fostering.
I came across this poem and wanted to share it with you guys.
A Child Like Me?
With saddened eyes and head bent low,
It's damaged goods most see.
With my unclear past and broken heart,
Who would want a child like me?
I watch her walk into the room.
From a distance I can see.
But dare I take a closer step?
Who would want a child like me?
And then I see her look my way.
She smiles so tenderly.
But do I even dare to dream,
She would a child like me?
And then, as if I spoke out loud,
She approaches cautiously.
I try so hard to once believe,
She will want a child like me.
But dare I once let down my guard,
And trust that she will see,
Hiding beneath this old stained shirt,
Is a beautiful child like me?
My smile, they say, lights up a room.
I'll be good as good can be.
Oh, please, dear God, let her want
A special child like me.
I feel her hand reach out for mine,
And within her eyes I see,
A single, tiny, shining tear.
Could she want a child like me?
And when she takes me in her arms,
With a warmth so pure and new,
She says the words I've prayed to hear,
"The child I want is you."
I came across this poem and wanted to share it with you guys.
A Child Like Me?
With saddened eyes and head bent low,
It's damaged goods most see.
With my unclear past and broken heart,
Who would want a child like me?
I watch her walk into the room.
From a distance I can see.
But dare I take a closer step?
Who would want a child like me?
And then I see her look my way.
She smiles so tenderly.
But do I even dare to dream,
She would a child like me?
And then, as if I spoke out loud,
She approaches cautiously.
I try so hard to once believe,
She will want a child like me.
But dare I once let down my guard,
And trust that she will see,
Hiding beneath this old stained shirt,
Is a beautiful child like me?
My smile, they say, lights up a room.
I'll be good as good can be.
Oh, please, dear God, let her want
A special child like me.
I feel her hand reach out for mine,
And within her eyes I see,
A single, tiny, shining tear.
Could she want a child like me?
And when she takes me in her arms,
With a warmth so pure and new,
She says the words I've prayed to hear,
"The child I want is you."
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Home Study Paperwork
We received today our actual home study documents. It was exciting to actually hold the papers that say we are approved to be parents- after having 4 of our own already- haha. I thought I would share the opening paragraph with you all.
"Dear Mr. & Mrs. West:
Congratulations on the completion of your international homestudy! This is a big accomplishment and a major step toward the adoption of your child. As of February 14, 2009 you have been approved to adopt one to two children of either sex from Ethiopia, 0-3 years of age, with mild to moderate special needs. Your preference would be to adopt twins of either sex ages 0-1 years old, or a female age 0-1 year old, however you are open to children up to three years of age."
Did you catch it, the insanity of it all. TWINS! Gotta love my wife Lisa dont ya!!!!
"Dear Mr. & Mrs. West:
Congratulations on the completion of your international homestudy! This is a big accomplishment and a major step toward the adoption of your child. As of February 14, 2009 you have been approved to adopt one to two children of either sex from Ethiopia, 0-3 years of age, with mild to moderate special needs. Your preference would be to adopt twins of either sex ages 0-1 years old, or a female age 0-1 year old, however you are open to children up to three years of age."
Did you catch it, the insanity of it all. TWINS! Gotta love my wife Lisa dont ya!!!!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
We are officially approved!
WE received word today that our home study was officially approved. We should have a letter stating our approval shortly. We will use it to apply for grants with a variety of private organizations. Things are getting more and more exciting!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Christmas in Ethiopia
We received in the mail yesterday a video from our agency, Holt International. It is a video they took in December of their center in Addis Ababa the capital of Ethiopia. They were celebrating Christmas with the orphans they had in that center. It was about a 30 minute video. We counted about 21 kids. They were mostly all younger, I would guess about 2-4 years old. There was one child who looked to be about 8-10, and there were maybe 5-6 infants. They gave the kids presents, and they ate cake and other food. It really brought to life the adoption in a deeper way. To think that we were possibly watching our child playing and eating, really was cool. The kids were so sweet looking. I wished I would have been there myself to hold some of them on my lap. God is moving.
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Home study
We had our last meeting in home yesterday. Everything went great. We should have our approved study in a week or two. Our social worker was very nice. She was an adoptive parent herself having adopted a son from Bolivia and a daughter from China. She also has 3 biological children as well who are all grown I believe she said. She was very knowledgeable and friendly. I enjoyed watching her interact with our kids as she asked them questions. Of course Christian had to have some fun at our expense as he told her we had Jack Daniels hidden in our kitchen. I dont know what that boys mother has done to him! (haha)
She and her husband started a work in Bolivia as they ran an orphanage for years. If I understood her correctly they are now doing some work in Kenya. She was able to offer us some insight into what an adoptive child has to go through. One thing that is difficult for many to understand, is that while the adopting family is excited and overwhelmed with feelings of love and joy typically, the child is dealing with a deep grief. A grief that manifests itself in a variety of ways that the less discerning will miss. Please pray for our child/children that God will provide. Pray for their loss and pray for our wisdom in loving them and understanding where they are at in any given circumstance. Bottom line, its not about us, its about them.
She and her husband started a work in Bolivia as they ran an orphanage for years. If I understood her correctly they are now doing some work in Kenya. She was able to offer us some insight into what an adoptive child has to go through. One thing that is difficult for many to understand, is that while the adopting family is excited and overwhelmed with feelings of love and joy typically, the child is dealing with a deep grief. A grief that manifests itself in a variety of ways that the less discerning will miss. Please pray for our child/children that God will provide. Pray for their loss and pray for our wisdom in loving them and understanding where they are at in any given circumstance. Bottom line, its not about us, its about them.
So the world may know
Its Valentine's day and I want the world to know what I think of my wife after 20 years of marriage. Here is my song to her. Follow this link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjfq0Fr85Yg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fjfq0Fr85Yg
So the world may know
Its Valentine's day and I want the world to know what I think of my wife after 20 years of marriage. Here my song to her. Follow this link.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Home study
Well we now have our final in home interviews and safety inspection set up for this Friday 2/13 at 3pm. Olga has been replaced due to remaining on medical leave, by a lady named Rhoda. We spoke with her last night, she works with the agency but she is also an adoptive parent herself. Lisa and her talked for 20-30 minutes last night. She seems really nice. Hopefully we will have our home study finalized and approved then by months end. It will be very nice to finally have this step behind us.
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