A Family Who Needs Us

Friends:

I was fortunate enough to run across a blog that has captured my heart. This family has the strength of a million soldiers. They are fighting a war for their daughter Ashley's life and the battle is bloody and difficult and ugly. I have been praying for this little girl and her family and thinking about what I can do for them. They do not know me and I have never met them. I have only become acquainted with their lives through this blog.

The parents have tremendous faith and strength. They will never give up on their beautiful little girl's life. They are a shining example of the power of love and family for us all. I am humbled by their struggles and feel so honored that they would share the intimate details of their horribly painful battle with us. Yet - they hold up hope and faith that their daughter will live. They will not entertain the idea of giving up.

Please I implore you to pray Ashley's family. Pray for continued strength to endure this pain. Pray for their precious daughter as she fights for life. They are a hard-working family that will do whatever it takes to sustain her life.

I am forever changed by having known about their lives. Dear Lord, please give this family strength and healing and surround them with Your love.

Stepping Forward in Faith

I have been experiencing a true "inner struggle" for a while now. I have happened upon several really inspirational blogs of families who are dealing with special needs. They are shining examples of the family I want be. They accepted God's call to parent their children NO MATTER WHAT. NO IFS, ANDS, OR BUTS. They did not place limits on what they would accept. They did not question for one minute what God was asking of them. They faced their fears of the unknown head-on.

I am ashamed to admit that every now and then something bad tempts me to question what special needs our family can handle. Can I truly handle parenting a child that has a terminal illness? Or don't all of us as God's children have an expiration date on our bodies? Deep stuff for me to ponder! I think it is putting my faith to the test - the test of a lifetime.

I'm sure that no one in their right mind wants to say goodbye to a young child. Death is difficult and painful enough right? But the death of our child......well - really God's child. We are here to parent and love and support and care for our children. But they are all our adopted children, aren't they? This is really really hard for me to grasp because the experience of growing a baby in your womb, carrying that baby, nourishing them and giving birth to them - life! Well, let me tell you it is like nothing else. It truly is MIRACULOUS.

Since I was 18 years old, I have spent my life protecting my children and keeping them from harm, sickness, danger, and meanness. Knowingly accepting a child into our family (whether by adoption or birth) that has life-threatening, or at the least, life challenging medical needs is quite terrifying to me. I know it is selfish and weak - believe me I pray for strength every night.

I just wanted to share these fears with all of my blog friends because I hope that you have felt something similar and understand me. I need your prayers to give me strength of body, mind, and spirit. I know that God has big wonderful things in store for us! I pray that we will be worthy of His plans and take that step forward even though there is risk involved.

Better Than A New Car!

http://www.reecesrainbow.org/havegrantwilltravel.html

Okay - If this doesn't bring me out of hiding to blog, then nothing will! What better way to spend $20,000 than to save a child from death! Join me in a prayer of thanks for the donor who decided that this precious and beautiful little boy deserved life more than he/she needed some material "thing." God bless you!

Look at that face! Please step up if you are able and bring this baby home!

Prayer Request

Yes - I am still blogging and we are still on our adoption journey! I have been spending some quiet time in prayer with God for the last couple of weeks.I have been feeling that His plans for our family are taking a turn. He is showing me the path and I am seeking advice and assistance from our social worker on this. We are at a cross road right now - not a bad one though. Just a detour or a different view.

Would you please pray for our family? We need for you to pray that we will receive the guidance and trust in God that we need to continue on our adoption journey. We have been called to be the family to a special needs child. Please pray that our Lord will provide all the means needed to do just that!

Blessings to you all - your prayers mean the world to us!

Time for Reflection

Haven't posted in a while. God has been calling me to reflect recently. After praying for several families losing their precious children and enduring so much hardship, I have been turning inward to reflect on my blessings. I also feel that God is building up to show our family something very BIG and DIFFERENT somehow. Do you ever receive feelings like this after prayers and talks with God? The more I really talk to Him and the more I become quiet and listen (okay, this is a tough one for me), the more He reveals to me. I am unsure what twists and turns He has in store just yet, but I am eagerly awaiting.

All I can explain is this: We are moving towards a big change. Don't have a clue what kind of change. I still know that we are called to adopt. I just think that God is about to shake things up a bit. Even though it scares me to death, I am so excited! We began on a journey, but we are in for an adventure...........of a lifetime! I will blog about whatever happens when or if it happens. I do feel changes inside of me. I feel like I am preparing to be used for something great!

Thank you Father for using me! I am so blessed and honored to serve as Your daughter, a mother, and a wife. Please show me how to do what You need me to do. As always, we appreciate all of your prayers for our family! Be blessed!

Stepping Up To the Plate

From my devotional prayer :

"In this spiritual journey, God wants to know whether you'll trust Him when He calls you to do the impossible. It's easy to make trust an easy word to utter, but when your name is called and your assignment is given, what will you do then? What if God called you into something that wasn't glamorous? What if you were called to leave your comfortable salary and position and start an outreach ministry? Whatever God's called you to do, I hope you'll listen to Him and go for it. If you're wrestling with your call, you need to know God will provide. You may have to make some sacrifices and compromises, but I assure you, God will take care of you. Here's a little hint for you. When you show God how faithful and committed you are to Him, that's when He'll open up the windows of heaven and pour you down some blessings."

Here we are Lord. Ready to serve You. Ready to carry out Your plans for us. We accept our assignment and will do our very best for You. While we are not perfect, we were made in Your image so we are good. Please help us along the way - we really need you. Hear our cries for mercy and endurance. We have hearts that are burdened by Your children - especially the orphans of the Ukraine. Help us help them.

A Princess Dancing

I think we are all grieving the loss of "our" Serbian Princess Chrissie. I cannot help but feel distraught because I am only human. I cry for her mother, Lorraine, because I am a mother too. I cry for her short life because she just received her chance of a "real" life with a loving family here in the US. I cry because she fought and fought and suffered - all with that tiny little body. A body not unlike my 4 year old's body - I cry selfishly because it could be my child one day.

Then, I try to hang on for dear life to my faith - my unsteady, faltering, imperfect-but-still-here faith. I know that her life was worth far more than anyone will really ever know. Chrissie touched thousands of families all over the world. The Pattersons are an example of the kind of family that I want to surround my children with. This is it my fellow daughters and sons of God! It doesn't get more real than this, does it?

Deep inside, this is why adoption terrifies me. I am so weak and so human. I am afraid that adopting a special needs child may place our family in the exact position that the Pattersons are in. I may have to let go of my child before I am ready! However, isn't this a possibility every day with every single member of our families? We do not know what the future holds here on earth. We MUST have faith in something more.

The really important things in life, the greatest battles, the greatest victories, the greatest and deepest love is found when we let go and take that chance. So, our family will do just that. Thanks be to our Father for placing families such as the Pattersons in our paths. Hug your children and hold on for dear life! Every moment with our loved ones is pure gold and so precious! Please join with us in praying for the Patterson Family.