Giving.

We have just set up an account at AdoptTogether. They are a 501(c)3 organization that partners with adoptive families to provide a way for them to fundraise in a tax-deductible way.  This means that people can make a donation to them on our behalf and then they will use those donations to pay for expenses incurred during our adoption.  To make a tax deductible gift, you can click on the “donations” tab to the left or just follow this link: www.adopttogether.org/craft.

Please know there is absolutely no pressure to give.  We are prepared to tackle this on our own, but we are blessed to have people who have expressed a desire and willingness to partner with us financially. This site will allow you to do so in a tax beneficial way. We are grateful for and humbled by all of your prayers and support. Thank you all for your generosity!

Update!

Artwork courtesy of Isaiah.

The big news this week… Our home study was completed! Also, all of our dossier information is together and has been sent out for translation. This means that we are now referral ready. After hurrying to get through the home study process, we now find ourselves waiting for a referral. This is obviously a very anxious time for us, but we know that we will meet our child in due time.  

Please continue to pray for us, but more importantly our child... Even though we may have to wait a little longer to meet them.

7 Things to Pray for Your Children || John Piper

1. That Jesus will call them and no one will hinder them from coming.

Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” And he laid his hands on them and went away. (Matthew 19:13–15)

2. That they will respond in faith to Jesus’s faithful, persistent call.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)

3. That they will experience sanctification through the transforming work of the Holy Spirit and will increasingly desire to fulfill the greatest commandments.

And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37-39)

4. That they will not be unequally yoked in intimate relationships, especially marriage.

Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? (2 Corinthians 6:14)

5. That their thoughts will be pure.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.(Philippians 4:8)

6. That their hearts will be stirred to give generously to the Lord’s work.

All the men and women, the people of Israel, whose heart moved them to bring anything for the work that the Lord had commanded by Moses to be done brought it as a freewill offering to the Lord. (Exodus 35:29)

7. That when the time is right, they will GO!

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

We can't just walk away.

Wisdom is needed in addressing the issue of human trafficking. We as Christ followers will never overcome this evil by disengaging from it. In our sanitized church culture, it is far too easy to condemn anyone we see living in a "sinful lifestyle." But millions of children around the world today are being forced into selling their bodies & then handing the money over to their pimps. These sex slaves can't just decide one day that they're "done." Their owners -- or their early death -- will decide that for them.

We dare not continue to ignore child trafficking because we feel it is too complex or too corrupt. If we truly care about orphans as Jesus does, we can't just walk away.

-Jonny Carr

Adoption: Why?

God put the idea of adoption on our hearts about five years ago. We wrestled with the idea and continued to ask the questions of why and how. After all, we are a large family by current standards, and the financial cost  of adoption was a huge hurdle that made it seem impossible even if we wanted to. A few years ago, we seriously consider adoption and even began the home study process. We quickly pushed the pause button when we became pregnant with Silas, feeling that it wasn't the right time to begin this journey. A year after Silas, Gabe decided to make his entrance into our world. And, yet again, we felt the timing wasn't just right.

While adoption did not fit in our "plans" at the time, God continued to soften our hearts. He continued to teach us that He adopted us into His family and we should do the same for those in need. Every time we came up with a reason to not adopt, we would quickly realize that the reason was selfish and not rooted in Him. 

So, why adopt now? As we've said, we have a large family. Six children makes for a full house. During the home study interview, Eli jokingly told the social worker, "Well, seven is a lot of kids!" And he's right. However, we have all sat around the dinner table and have had the feeling that a little person was missing. Not realizing at the time that the sibling we were missing wasn't simply in the other room or down the hall, but half a world away.

Last year, there were 147 million children living without parents and only an estimated 25 thousand adoptions. When compared against that backdrop, the bigger question that kept coming to our minds was, “Why not?”

This leads us to today. We still do not have answers to all of our questions, but the Lord has taught us that He will be more than sufficient and we believe God is using this process to strengthen our trust in Him. We do not expect this journey to be easy, but we know it will be worth it.