Movin on up

Two very exciting things on the Adoption, finally I have something to update!

1. Our dossier is on its way to Ethiopia!
2. We are #2 on the list and the #1 family has been presented with a referral, if they accept we will be the "new #1"!!

With the changes in the process in Ethiopia, Simon and I thought it would be at least until January before we received a referral. It looks like we were wrong! We have not really been doing any planning because we thought we had 6 months or more to wait. Well, after today we have put the planning back in gear. We also need to be ready to right a large check for the country fee, we need your prayers for that!

Adoption Expo

Our church held its annual Adoption Expo this weekend. We had a great time talking with all of the families interested in Adoption. God is moving in a lot of ways to help the orphans of the world. Several of the families in our Forever Families ministry have received children. Others are jumping through the hoops as quickly as possible. Pastor Alan had a very moving message this weekend, that stirred a lot of people to stop with the "yeah, buts" and open their hearts to the possibility of adoption. We had the opportunity to pass out lots of cards for the Red Letters Campaign and hopefully increase God's work through that channel.

We found out this week that some of our new friends through church (and 4-H) have decided to adopt from Ethiopia as well! Praise God as they are interested in a sibling group!

We do not have any update on our adoption...entering week 3 of waiting...

Keeping It In Perspective

Last weekend our wonderful Pastor Alan gave one of those sermons you think about all week. You can see it here if you would like to watch the whole thing for yourself, but I wanted all of us to think of something he said. He was referring to all of the emails he has received asking him to pray for our country in the midst of this "financial crisis". He said he never gets emails asking for prayer vigils for the 2.9 million people who died of AIDS in Africa in 2006, or the 15 million orphans in Africa who do not have either parent to care for them. Wow...that really hit home. Now, understand that I have NOT been worried about this crisis. I believe these things happen, and it is just a matter for riding out the storm, but God is trying to tell us something. This passage may be telling us what is happening:

Jonah 4:10: But the LORD said, "You have been concerned about this vine,
though you did not tend it or make it grow. It sprang up overnight and died
overnight. But Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people who cannot tell their right hand from their left, and many cattle as well. Should I
not be concerned about that great city?"

Could our financial success be the same as Jonah's "vine"? Are we more worried
about our selves than showing mercy to other countries, such as Africa and the
AIDS crisis? Are we sitting back like Jonah and waiting for God to punish them? Probably not consciously, but do we really care? AIDS/HIV seems to have just disappeared in the US. You don't hear anything about it in the media anymore, the antiviral drugs have made it a "condition" rather than a death sentence. This is NOT the case the Africa. The drug therapy is very expensive and nearly impossible to get to most people in Africa. As Christians we all live by the saying, "What would Jesus do?". Think about that, he would do something for these people, ask yourself, what are you doing for them?

Another reality check Paston Alan gave us was this:

If you have these four things, you are more wealthy than 75% of the
people on this planet.

1. A roof over your head
2. A bed to sleep in
3. Food in your fridge
4. Clothes in a closet

Something to ponder as we worry about our portfolio or the outcome of the presidential election...

We're on the list!!!

As of yesterday, October 3rd, we are officially on the waiting list. We are so excited! We are #5 for a boy and #10 for a girl. Our agency has not had very many referrals the last couple of months, but they are anticipaing more really really soon.

We are getting ready for our Adoption Expo at our church, and I am trying to catch up around here after the crazy 6 weeks I have just had at work. I should have kept track of my hours...I am sure it was 50 + every week. Our budget is going to the City Council for approval on Tuesday, that will signify a slow down for me for a month or so. It has been really hard, but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

We are going to start the process of moving our office to the workout room and moving Bella into the office. She says she is ready to move into the basement, but we are going to take it slow. We really don't need her room until the baby comes home, but we have painting and a lot of work to do to get it ready. That should keep us busy while we are officially "waiting".