Nothing sends me flying more than God's Word! This was my devotional this AM:
I AM THE PRINCE OF PEACE.
As I said to My disciples, I say also to you: Peace be with you. Since I am your constant Companion, My Peace is steadfastly with you. When you keep your focus on Me, you experience both My Presence and My Peace. Worship Me as King of kings, Lord of lords, and Prince of Peace.
You need My Peace each moment to accomplish My purposes in your life. Sometimes you are tempted to take shortcuts, in order to reach your goal as quickly as possible. But if the shortcut requires turning your back on My peaceful Presence, you must choose the longer route. Walk with Me along paths of Peace; enjoy the journey in My Presence.
Isaiah 9:6
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, [a] Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
John 20:19-21
19On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!" 20After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
taken from:
Jesus Calling
by Sarah Young
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Monday, November 30, 2009
We are going to get our girl!
2-3And then God answered: "Write this.
Write what you see.
Write it out in big block letters
so that it can be read on the run.
This vision-message is a witness
pointing to what's coming.
It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait!
And it doesn't lie.
If it seems slow in coming, wait.
It's on its way. It will come right on time.
4"Look at that man, bloated by self-importance—
full of himself but soul-empty.
But the person in right standing before God
through loyal and steady believing
is fully alive, really alive.
Habakkuk 2:2-4
the message
I cannot contain my excitement! We are one week away from our GOTCHA day. How overwhelmed I am that the Lord has allowed us to bring her home before Christmas.
I must admit to a little anxiety today. Last night Libi had a pretty significant seizure. It necessitated a 911 call and trip to the ER. Looking at a LONG trip to China spinning off of a night like last night...anxious. I go back to what the Word tells me: "Be anxious for NOTHING, but in everything, by prayer and petition, let your requests be known to God." Will you join me? Pray with us for Libi's health and that I will totally trust God's Sovereignty over her. I know this can be a huge distraction to the JOY that lies ahead, and we know the JOY STEALER that creeps about. We pray against him!
"May the God of HOPE fill you with JOY and peace as you TRUST in Him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit."
Romans 15:13
Now...the great details!!! We will be leaving bright and early on the the 3rd...Thursday and will return on the 22nd! WOW! That is right, 19 days! We will be sure to post our itinerary. We will return to Bloomington on the 22nd so stay tuned for details. We would love to have you help us welcome home Haddie Hope Jie!
It was 4 years ago that the Lord and I had a serious conversation. I was quite weary after 6 months of wrestling over whether He was prompting us to adopt or not. On November 17th, 2005, I was getting ready for the day and talking with the Lord. I smacked my hairbrush on the sink and said, "Lord, if you want us to adopt then just tell us and we will do it, but tell us! In fact, tell us this weekend. I just want to know" Through those tears of frustration and fear I had no idea how my cries were rattling the heavenlies. For tell us He did! That Sunday, November 19th we visited a church that was holding "Adoption Sunday" We had no idea! As I shook and cried through the service I KNEW the Lord was speaking. He specifically addressed every fear and question I had raised to Him about this journey of adoption. I was Awestruck by the wonder of such a personal God.
Then, the journey began, and He led us to foster care. As we prepared to foster He brought us a lovely young unwed mother. She became our daughter as we loved her through the process of giving her son up to be adopted. While she lived with us God brought a beautiful little Hispanic girl to be our own as well. She was ours for 18 glorious months!
We have loved and let go, and it has been painful and wonderful. He has filled us with Joy and Blessing! He has never left us, and has provided for our every need. As we watched our sweet girl transition back to her mama, the Lord directed our path to Libi Faith. What a gift at the most perfect time! Before we even left for China to bring home our Libi Love we knew that we would soon go back. We felt certain that the Lord had another daughter there for us.
One year ago He took us on a journey that twisted and turned, but led us to the wonderful, precious Hadassah Hope Jie! What a work in 4 years!! I laugh at what I told the Lord in the beginning...that I did not want a girl, that I wanted them from the first day they were born, and they better stay FOREVER! How He has changed, and continues to change my heart. In the beginning, it was so about "me", my desires and wants. What the Lord has opened my eyes to, that it is so about HIM! He is at work, and we are the privileged ones to join in that.
147 million minus ONE....and counting
thank you for joining us in bringing her home!
Write what you see.
Write it out in big block letters
so that it can be read on the run.
This vision-message is a witness
pointing to what's coming.
It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait!
And it doesn't lie.
If it seems slow in coming, wait.
It's on its way. It will come right on time.
4"Look at that man, bloated by self-importance—
full of himself but soul-empty.
But the person in right standing before God
through loyal and steady believing
is fully alive, really alive.
Habakkuk 2:2-4
the message
I cannot contain my excitement! We are one week away from our GOTCHA day. How overwhelmed I am that the Lord has allowed us to bring her home before Christmas.
I must admit to a little anxiety today. Last night Libi had a pretty significant seizure. It necessitated a 911 call and trip to the ER. Looking at a LONG trip to China spinning off of a night like last night...anxious. I go back to what the Word tells me: "Be anxious for NOTHING, but in everything, by prayer and petition, let your requests be known to God." Will you join me? Pray with us for Libi's health and that I will totally trust God's Sovereignty over her. I know this can be a huge distraction to the JOY that lies ahead, and we know the JOY STEALER that creeps about. We pray against him!
"May the God of HOPE fill you with JOY and peace as you TRUST in Him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit."
Romans 15:13
Now...the great details!!! We will be leaving bright and early on the the 3rd...Thursday and will return on the 22nd! WOW! That is right, 19 days! We will be sure to post our itinerary. We will return to Bloomington on the 22nd so stay tuned for details. We would love to have you help us welcome home Haddie Hope Jie!
It was 4 years ago that the Lord and I had a serious conversation. I was quite weary after 6 months of wrestling over whether He was prompting us to adopt or not. On November 17th, 2005, I was getting ready for the day and talking with the Lord. I smacked my hairbrush on the sink and said, "Lord, if you want us to adopt then just tell us and we will do it, but tell us! In fact, tell us this weekend. I just want to know" Through those tears of frustration and fear I had no idea how my cries were rattling the heavenlies. For tell us He did! That Sunday, November 19th we visited a church that was holding "Adoption Sunday" We had no idea! As I shook and cried through the service I KNEW the Lord was speaking. He specifically addressed every fear and question I had raised to Him about this journey of adoption. I was Awestruck by the wonder of such a personal God.
Then, the journey began, and He led us to foster care. As we prepared to foster He brought us a lovely young unwed mother. She became our daughter as we loved her through the process of giving her son up to be adopted. While she lived with us God brought a beautiful little Hispanic girl to be our own as well. She was ours for 18 glorious months!
We have loved and let go, and it has been painful and wonderful. He has filled us with Joy and Blessing! He has never left us, and has provided for our every need. As we watched our sweet girl transition back to her mama, the Lord directed our path to Libi Faith. What a gift at the most perfect time! Before we even left for China to bring home our Libi Love we knew that we would soon go back. We felt certain that the Lord had another daughter there for us.
One year ago He took us on a journey that twisted and turned, but led us to the wonderful, precious Hadassah Hope Jie! What a work in 4 years!! I laugh at what I told the Lord in the beginning...that I did not want a girl, that I wanted them from the first day they were born, and they better stay FOREVER! How He has changed, and continues to change my heart. In the beginning, it was so about "me", my desires and wants. What the Lord has opened my eyes to, that it is so about HIM! He is at work, and we are the privileged ones to join in that.
147 million minus ONE....and counting
thank you for joining us in bringing her home!
Sunday, November 22, 2009
TA!!!!!!!!!!
Oh it is with great JOY that I announce we have received our long awaited travel approval! We will be leaving for China on December 4th!!! We will return on the 20th...HOME FOR CHRISTMAS! We are so very thankful that God has moved and our time to meet Miss Haddie has come. Oh sweet Haddie...may the God of HOPE fill you with all JOY...we are coming baby...your family is coming!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
"Unto the Least"
Check out this video that expresses the truths of God's Word. The needs of the Orphan are REAL and GREAT. Our hearts should break for them and stir us to act. The song is by Ginger Millermon. Much of what you see in this video is from the day they were united with their daughter in India for the first time...BLESSED IS THE MAN WHO WILL GO...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYsh3C9v1r8
When does it become enough?
When does it become too much for us to look away?
To look away
What are we waiting for?
Why does there have to more who suffer while we wait?
Why do we hesitate?
Who will cry?
Who will go?
Who will touch?
and who will show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The orphan child, a broken heart, a desperate soul, that should tear us apart.
What will we do today? What will we do today?
Who will cry?
Who will go?
Who will touch?
and who will show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
Blessed is the man. Blessed is the man.
Who will hold,
who will reach,
blessed is the man who will teach.
Will you cry?
Will you go?
Will you touch?
and will you show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYsh3C9v1r8
When does it become enough?
When does it become too much for us to look away?
To look away
What are we waiting for?
Why does there have to more who suffer while we wait?
Why do we hesitate?
Who will cry?
Who will go?
Who will touch?
and who will show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The orphan child, a broken heart, a desperate soul, that should tear us apart.
What will we do today? What will we do today?
Who will cry?
Who will go?
Who will touch?
and who will show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
Blessed is the man. Blessed is the man.
Who will hold,
who will reach,
blessed is the man who will teach.
Will you cry?
Will you go?
Will you touch?
and will you show?
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
The heart of Christ, the hands of Christ, the love of Christ unto the least.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
UPDATE!!!!!!!!!
Well, as we sit and HOPE for our TA (travel approval) we got the next best thing...an update!!! WOW! We are so in love with our little Haddie. What a pretty little girl she is! She looks so tiny to me. I am passing along the new information we have about her and the new pictures. Feel free to ohhh and ahhh with us over our daughter...we really don't mind.
Can she read?
yes.
Does she like books?
Yes.
Does she like to wear dresses or pants?
Dress.
Does she enjoy coloring?
Yes.
Does she like to play with dolls?
Yes.
Does she like to play or care for younger children?
Yes.
What is her favorite song?
Gan En De Xin (grateful heart), Wei Xiao (smile), etc. some children songs.
What is her favorite color?
Red.
What is her favorite thing in school?
She likes to play with play dough, slides, swivel chair, skate board, etc. she likes art and craft, physical training.
Is she excited about her family?
Yes. She is very excited.
follow this link to one of her favorite songs...Gan En De Xin (grateful heart),
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Package #3...and hopefully the last!
Sweet Xiao Jie,
I hope that you are doing well. I hope that we do not have to wait too much longer to come to China. I am so excited to meet you. I think about you every day. We have done our some of our last papers and we hope we will be there in November
We got some new pictures of you in a beautiful green dress. You looked just like a princess! We were told that you are called “flower”. I like that, because you are very pretty, just like a flower. It looks like you are growing tall. You’re brothers are very tall. You will love having them to hold you up high. You’re sister is very tiny. She loves to look at your picture. She always smiles when she looks at it. I think you will be very good at taking care of her. Do you like to play ball? Do you like to play with dolls? Your sister, Libi, likes those things very much.
We are sending you a pretty pink sweater to wear when it starts to get cool. When you wear it think that we will soon be in China and you will be with your family. We hope it will not be too cold before we get to come. We are also sending some balloons and chocolate for you to share with your friends there.
I want to share some more things with you about America that we may do different than China. In China, you use chopsticks to eat and we use a spoon, fork, and knife: inserted a picture for her
I had a hard time learning to use chopsticks. I think you will learn how to use a spoon and fork easily.
We take baths and showers here in America to get clean. I am not sure what you do to wash, but a bathtub is a big tub that holds water that you sit in and wash. This is your little sister’s favorite way to get clean. She loves to splash in the water and play with toys. It may seem scary to you at first if you have not taken a bath in a tub before, but I think you will like it.
You will have all new things to wear when we come. It may feel scary to leave all of your clothes and shoes that you have now. We want you to know that you are safe with us. We are your new family and we love you very much. We want to take care of you. We will help you when you feel afraid.
When we come to China it will be busy. We will have a lot of places to go and papers to sign so we can bring you home to the United States. Remember that you will need to hold our hand to stay close to us. We will have time for playing too. We will stay in a hotel. It is a building that has many rooms in it with beds. This is where we will sleep and play. In the mornings we will eat breakfast at the hotel in a large room. I am excited to find out what you like to eat.
The last thing I want to share with you is your American name. We have chosen the name Hadassah Hope Jie. We will call you Haddie. We know this will take some getting used to. When you are ready to use your new American name you can let us know.
There will be many things that will be new and strange to you. We will help you to learn. We are very excited and thankful that we get to be your family!
I love you,
Mama
Something happened to my camera and I have no pictures of this last package.
We sent Haddie some goodies for her to share with her friends, chocolate kisses, balloons, and Hubba Bubba bubble gum. There was an array of Hello Kitty goodies, a purse, a pink sweater and sparkly butterfly shirt. My most favorite thing in the package was a necklace that had a heart charm and another charm that had the word love on it. I could just picture that being placed around her tiny little neck. I wonder if there is any hair to sweep away to fasten it in the back. What does her hair feel like? What does her skin feel like? Can I tell you how anxious I am to be the one to put a necklace on my sweet little girl?
The great news is that all of our final US approvals are complete and now we await our TA (Travel Approval from China). Our hope is that we would travel at the beginning of November!
I hope that you are doing well. I hope that we do not have to wait too much longer to come to China. I am so excited to meet you. I think about you every day. We have done our some of our last papers and we hope we will be there in November
We got some new pictures of you in a beautiful green dress. You looked just like a princess! We were told that you are called “flower”. I like that, because you are very pretty, just like a flower. It looks like you are growing tall. You’re brothers are very tall. You will love having them to hold you up high. You’re sister is very tiny. She loves to look at your picture. She always smiles when she looks at it. I think you will be very good at taking care of her. Do you like to play ball? Do you like to play with dolls? Your sister, Libi, likes those things very much.
We are sending you a pretty pink sweater to wear when it starts to get cool. When you wear it think that we will soon be in China and you will be with your family. We hope it will not be too cold before we get to come. We are also sending some balloons and chocolate for you to share with your friends there.
I want to share some more things with you about America that we may do different than China. In China, you use chopsticks to eat and we use a spoon, fork, and knife: inserted a picture for her
I had a hard time learning to use chopsticks. I think you will learn how to use a spoon and fork easily.
We take baths and showers here in America to get clean. I am not sure what you do to wash, but a bathtub is a big tub that holds water that you sit in and wash. This is your little sister’s favorite way to get clean. She loves to splash in the water and play with toys. It may seem scary to you at first if you have not taken a bath in a tub before, but I think you will like it.
You will have all new things to wear when we come. It may feel scary to leave all of your clothes and shoes that you have now. We want you to know that you are safe with us. We are your new family and we love you very much. We want to take care of you. We will help you when you feel afraid.
When we come to China it will be busy. We will have a lot of places to go and papers to sign so we can bring you home to the United States. Remember that you will need to hold our hand to stay close to us. We will have time for playing too. We will stay in a hotel. It is a building that has many rooms in it with beds. This is where we will sleep and play. In the mornings we will eat breakfast at the hotel in a large room. I am excited to find out what you like to eat.
The last thing I want to share with you is your American name. We have chosen the name Hadassah Hope Jie. We will call you Haddie. We know this will take some getting used to. When you are ready to use your new American name you can let us know.
There will be many things that will be new and strange to you. We will help you to learn. We are very excited and thankful that we get to be your family!
I love you,
Mama
Something happened to my camera and I have no pictures of this last package.
We sent Haddie some goodies for her to share with her friends, chocolate kisses, balloons, and Hubba Bubba bubble gum. There was an array of Hello Kitty goodies, a purse, a pink sweater and sparkly butterfly shirt. My most favorite thing in the package was a necklace that had a heart charm and another charm that had the word love on it. I could just picture that being placed around her tiny little neck. I wonder if there is any hair to sweep away to fasten it in the back. What does her hair feel like? What does her skin feel like? Can I tell you how anxious I am to be the one to put a necklace on my sweet little girl?
The great news is that all of our final US approvals are complete and now we await our TA (Travel Approval from China). Our hope is that we would travel at the beginning of November!
Saturday, September 12, 2009
UNBELIEVABLE!!!!
Isaiah 55:10
"Though the mountains be shaken
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,"
says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
and the hills be removed,
yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken
nor my covenant of peace be removed,"
says the LORD, who has compassion on you.
Thank you to all of you who lifted us up in prayer over the last 2 days. I cannot tell you how much it means. We have seen the Lord move in MIGHTY ways!
Let me back up a couple of weeks. We had quite a mess on our hands. There was a malfunction in our neighborhood sewage line that caused the sewer to back up into 6 houses in our neighborhood, ours being one of them. So imagine with me sewage water springing up through your drain for 3 hours and there is absolutely nothing that you can do, but pray for Jesus to make it stop!! We discovered that it is very possible that the majority of the expenses will fall into our laps. Faced with the very near travel to get our little Haddie, this added some financial stress.
Due to the MESS in our basement we had to haul everything up to our garage for the necessary clean up. I had been debating about having a garage sale to try to raise some more funds to cover our expenses. On Monday I found out that our neighborhood would be having a garage sale. SO...Thursday night, after finding out that we would soon be traveling to China I decided to go for it and have a small sale.
Crazy that the Lord enabled me to pull things together with the emotional stress of our approval error! Friday while having the sale I was trying desperately to get everything squared away with our approval that needed to be resubmitted. YES...I said resubmitted. We do have to resubmit and pay the fee. Praise the Lord the delay in our timeline will only be about 3 days...very minimal! Here is where it gets good!!!!!!
The additional fee would be $340.00. So, the Lord floods our basement, bringing up all of our "junk" to the garage at just the time there will be a neighborhood garage sale...I hope you are following me with this...so, our new application was sent overnight today and our sale finished, let me share some numbers with you:
Application fee: $340.00
FedEx cost: $25.64
Copies: $ 2.00
Total: $367.64
Garage Sale Profits: $367.65
Lord God,
How we praise You! How do I ever doubt the perfection of Your plan? You have once again blown us away by Your provision! We thank you and speak praises to Your Great Name, because You are the Deliverer and Provider of our precious Haddie Hope!
Join us in our rejoicing and praise...What an Awesome God we serve!
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