On our way...

 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9


Thank you to all who have joined us in this journey of redemption. We are FINALLY on our way. We have a start at the finances required to accomplish what God has called us to. We are confident in Him, and know that He has a plan for where the remainer will come from. We walk on, secure in the finished work of Christ Jesus. All Glory is yours Lord.  The warfare continues to be fierce, BUT we know who we are in Jesus. His holy word is very clear how to handle Satan.

 

We wrap ourselves in scripture... and "hit him!"

 

Thank you for continuing to lift us up in prayer and share both our need and God's story.

 

For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things her planned for us long ago.  Ephesians 2:10

 

Urgent plea ... down to the wire.

As Bob and I come down to the wire, we remain in great need financially. Without your help we will not be able to complete the adoptions of our children who are waiting. Children who face a grim future without a forever family. Children who have already spent many weeks in our home. Children who have already said "YES" to our offer of adoption.

There is no easy or eloquent way to say this... We need the church. We need you. We need to have our need spread far and wide to ensure that every person who feels called to join us in bringing these children into our family has the opportunity to donate. To pray. To share with their friends, family and church, so that they also can join in.

We have no back up plan. The battle has exhausted our financial resources. We are to travel very soon. We do have dates and invitation to travel. I cannot release exact dates but will as soon as I am able to. Our family needs to ensure that our children are safe and there is no further interference in our process.  

Do you have a burdened heart for the orphan? For children who have waited there entire life and now believe no one is coming? That even though they have been promised a family will come, at this late hour, their belief is non existent? We have 3 such children hoping, praying, our word is good. That our promise to them will come to pass. That very soon they will each have a family of their own, and a place to call home...forever.

All donations to our family are tax deductible as long as you use the link on the top right corner of this page.

We also have been notified by a dear friend that she is doing an amazing give-away of a diamond necklace on her blog on behalf or our children. You can participate just click this link .

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18

           our promise to them because it is Jesus promise to us.

that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you. "I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. "After a little while the world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live also.… John 14: 17-19

A heartfelt thank you to each and every one of you who choose to give, share, and pray for our family. We are so grateful.

                   Shakin' every penny loose for the mission at hand...

 

to God be the Glory!!!

How we roll....

So many have asked us how we continue. With all the challenges we have faced on this adoption journey, most people tell us they would have quit. I am not saying that our continuing has been peace-filled and comfortable. There have been days filled with tears and thoughts of..."are you sure you have chosen the right family for this mission?"

But through it all, Bob and I stand together, trusting Jesus. Confident in the knowledge that, no matter what our situation looks like in the nature...GOD'S GOT IT.

We have only to open our bible and read what Jesus said when challenged and tempted by Satan, during His time in the wilderness. We stand on that ....  wrapping ourselves in His Holy Word, walking in total faith, confident it is TRUTH.

For "IT IS WRITTEN"...  the words Jesus spoke to Satan, "IT IS WRITTEN"... followed by scripture.

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you. Deut. 31:6

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Eph. 6:10

The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. Psalm 28:7

I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only. Psalm 71:16

But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. Isaiah 40:31

Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. I Cor. 9:24

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, Heb. 12:1

Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts. Zech. 4:6

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.       II Tim. 1:7

It is God who arms me with strength, And makes my way perfect. Psalm 18:32

And my favorite...

      So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
and
For I am the LORD, your God, who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. Isaiah 41:13

                             We also shared and instilled His Holy Word in to a very special girl.

                                                              To God be the Glory!!.

A house divided....

 

This post has been coming for a long time....

 

division...

I have searched God's word for wisdom. I have read of His mercy and love for all people. His great efforts to bring us into unity. And how we have, through the ages, repeatedly fallen short and been in opposition to each other, although we were created to work together.

 

I am certain God looks down at the division occurring in the  "church,"... read :"adoption community",  and weeps.

So much passion. So much time. So much energy. So much talent. So much purpose. All wasted. All coming against heaven. Gifts, talents and resources that could have gone into placing yet another of the fatherless into a forever family, drawing another soul into the Kingdom and illuminating the mercy and goodness of God and the Glory of The Lord as we allow Him to shine through us.

But if a house be divided against itself...Any family, small or great, that house cannot stand; its contentions and discords will soon bring it down from a comfortable and flourishing situation, to a distressed one...crippling it, possibly erasing it from existence altogether.  

 

We are all one body, His word reminds us its so. 

All of you together are Christ's body, and each of you is a part of it. 
1 Cor. 12:27

He created us to need each other, to work together, to be community, brothers and sisters, family, in Christ Jesus. He created us to produce fruit in our lives that is evidence of the goodness that flows from heaven.

"A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. And I tell you this, you must give an account on judgment day for every idle word you speak. The words you say will either acquit you or condemn you." Matthew 12:35-37


Mark 3:20-35
One time Jesus entered a house, and the crowds began to gather again. Soon he and his disciples couldn't even find time to eat. When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away. "He's out of his mind," they said. But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, "He's possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That's where he gets the power to cast out demons."

Jesus called them over and responded with an illustration...
"How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided by civil war will collapse. Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart. And if Satan is divided and fights against himself, how can he stand? How would never survive. 
Let me illustrate this further. Who is powerful enough to enter the house of a strong man like Satan and plunder his goods? Only someone even stronger, someone who could tie him up and plunder his house.  I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences."  

Then Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him. They stood outside and sent word for him to come out and talk with them. There was a crowd sitting around Jesus, and someone said, "Your mother and brothers are outside and asking for you." Jesus replied. "Who is my mother? Who is my brothers?" Then he looked at those around him and said, "Look, these are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does God's will is my brother and sister and mother." 

I encourage each of you to seek after Jesus Christ and find the answers for yourself in His Holy Word.
 
The scripture tells us to "avoid" those who cause division ...
Don't be fooled by those who say such things, for  "bad company corrupts good character." Think carefully about what is right, and stop sinning. For to your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all.  1 Cor. 15:33-34 

But, instead of avoidance, the church has welcomed such and have even engaged in their  foolish debates, mindless arguments, and idle gossip.  By doing so, you have now yourself become participants of these spirits, and have fulfilled the will NOT of our Lord, but of Satan himself.  For these spirits have been sent for  the sole purpose of destroying the church and shaming the name of our Lord by the ungodly conduct of its members.  And the spirit of strive and division shall remain within the church as long as she refuses to REPENT and begin walking according to the Spirit.  For where there is LOVE, there shall be no existence of the negative works of the flesh.

Not only for the obedience to the Lord and for our own spiritual well being, but also we must be mindful that the world is watching. Our conduct is a representation of who we are in CHRIST. Shall we through our conduct make Him appear to be one who approves of strife, who welcomes division, who accepts arguments and disputes amongst His followers? Or, through our behavior reveal him to the world as one of love, peace, joy, hope, forgiveness, acceptance and unity.

Leaving you with the words of Paul...
And now I make one more appeal, my dear brothers and sisters. Watch out for people who cause divisions and upsets people's faith by teaching things contrary to what you have been taught. Stay away from them. Such people are not serving Christ the Lord; they are serving their own personal interests. By smooth talking and glowing words that deceive innocent people. But everyone knows that you are obedient to the Lord. This makes me very happy. I want you to be wise in doing right and to stay innocent of any wrong. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under his feet. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.  Romans 16:17-20

I encourage each of you to seek the wisdom found in His word and the discernment and direction found in the Spirit and bring unity to our community. 

Shalom

We are still walking...

                                We are still walking.
 
   As we journey we hear His words encourage us onward...

Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand. "See, all your angry enemies lie there, confused and humiliated. Anyone who opposes will die and come to nothing. You will look in vain for those who tried to conquer you. Those who attack you will come to nothing. For I hold you by the hand - I, the Lord your God. And I say to you, "Don't be afraid. I am here to help you."  Isaiah 41:10-13

Although this adoption process has been difficult, we continue.

We pray for the boarders of Russia to once again be open to Americans, allowing us to continue in our pursuit to bring home a precious little girl who still waits.

We pray for a Ministry that has gone awry and turned from what is ethical and right in biblical standards.

We pray for all that has been stolen, not only from our family, but many others, to be restored unto them. We pray for Justice. Holy Justice.

We pray for the children. So many children. Those left waiting and wondering. Those abandon and unchosen.  Those sold to the highest bidder as they leave behind the only home they know.

We have prayed that God would use us. Use our story. Use our weakness, 
unworthiness and complete lack of ability. Use us to shine His strength, His worthiness and His Almighty power through us into the darkness that He may receive all the Glory.    

As we have prayed, God has been busy. He has been preparing and equipping Bob and I for what He has called us to accomplish. He has been making a way. We are continuing on the path of bringing home 3 teenagers from Eastern Europe. We are scheduled to travel soon. All our documents are in order. Eastern Europe has recovered from both the multiple summer holidays causing staff shortage and the conflict and shortage regarding passports.


The facts remain...
 Each year 14,050,000 children  grow up as an orphan and age out of the system.
Every day 38,493 children age out, meaning they are 14-16 years of age, depending on country, and they are expected to live independently after being institutionalized for many years.
Every 2.2 seconds, another orphan child ages out, without a family to belong to or any  place to call home.
In Eastern Europe10% commit suicide in the first year.
Many of these children accept job offers that ultimately result in them being sold as slaves. Millions of girls are sex slaves today, simply because they were unfortunate enough to grow up as orphans.

Knowing these facts, and believing our kinship with Christ calls us to go, we now ask, all those who call themselves our brothers and sisters in Christ, Every soul who claims the name of Jesus and proclaims Him Lord of their life, to rise up. To stand with us. To examine His Holy Word and think for yourself. To prayerfully consider our request. Our adoption fund is dreadfully short. We have teenagers waiting, hoping we are coming for them.  We are their ONLY human kind hope for a future beyond the slavery, homelessness, and tragedy that awaits them without a forever family. 

Jesus was clear when He addressed the divided crowd.  In both Luke and Matthew the accounts are the same. The crowd that had been divided in purpose by Pharisees.

Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. Matthew 12:30

Anyone who isn't with me opposes me, and anyone who isn't working with me is actually working against me.
Luke 11:23

It may be addressed to the Pharisees, what their words really implied. They are not due, as some might think, to mere indifferentism or to a judicial neutrality; such a relation to him is impossible. They were due to the opposition of inner life and of outward energy. Thus their words denote complete separation from Him.

This, however, would attribute to the Pharisees too great an ignorance of their own feelings of opposition to Christ, and it is therefore best to understand the verse as addressed to the many bystanders. Christ has defended himself from the accusations brought against Him, and now urges these waverers not to be content with only opposing Him, but to take sides for , in fact, they cannot help doing so. Indifference is only another name for opposition in this circumstance; not actively to help, is to hinder.

God has reveled something to us on this journey.  That in our personal efforts to give grace we need to ensure that we do not sit back and watch the innocent be harmed. With His Word our only resource for how to live out this life, we take Him seriously when He tells us in Isaiah..  
 Your kindness to the wicked does not make them do good. Although others do right, the wicked keep doing wrong and take no notice of the Lord's majesty. Isaiah 26:10

We understand how anyone can be fooled by those that chose to deceive and divide. We have been there, being deceived ourselves, in the past. It was only in turning to seek truth in the Spirit that the veil was lifted and things became clear.

2Cor 3:15-18
Yes, even today when they read Moses' writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand. But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had the veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. and the Lord, who is Spirit, makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image. I know many have grown weary in the lengthiness of this journey. We too have felt weariness at times... but our trust in the Lord has continually renewed our strength and urged us onward. 

As we now call on the Lord to meet us in our need... we offer an invitation to  each of you. We are asking all to join us in a day of prayer, fasting and spiritual fellowship on behalf of our children who have waited so very long to come home. Understanding the biblical truth in Ecclesiastes 4 ... A person standing alone can be defeated, but 2 can stand back to back and conquer. Three are even better, for a triple-braided cord is not easily broken. We  believe there is power when God's people come together, in the Spirit, with Him and in purpose.. 

We have chosen that day to be Wed. Aug 21. "to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke" (Isaiah 58:5).
The number twenty-one represents a holy state because it is the product of seven and three multiplied by each other, and seven signifies what is holy, and so also does three.
  We will continue to rest and be restored in Him.  We will lift every desire, every thought, every concern, to Him for reproof and continue to find all we need in Him. We feely choose to honor Him, to love Him, to trust Him. to follow Him all the days of our earthly lives. Nehemiah 8 is ever present and at the for front of our minds and hearts..."The joy of the Lord is my strength!"

Blessed be the name of the Lord, now and forevermore. Whether we are in the darkness of the deepest valley, surrounded by enemy, under attack, or, atop the highest mountain surrounded with evidence of victory in hand, we will sing His praise and speak of His goodness.


Goodness evident in moments such as this....

 

and this...

and this...

 

and this...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Memories with family such as  this...

 

and this...

 

 

 

Experiencing the parental love that

is lacking in their lives... 

and this...

 

 

and this...

and this...

and this.

 

 

 

 

Learning how good it is to sit on grandma's lap.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Experiences and outings

with family like this...

and this...

                                                Dad's secret fishing hole!

and this...

Berry picking so mama can bake pies!

 

And this...

Hanging out in the park!

 

And This...

Dad sharing hunting wisdom...

 

Birthday party with cousins..

                                                           Waterpark fun!!!

 

And this... garage sale find. getting a little TLC

and personalization to become a place to meditate...

 

 

 

 

 Holding a brand new baby...

 

Or a little sister...

 

Oksana IS Lillian's absolute, hands down, favorite person!!

 

 

 

It feels good ... to work hard on the farm

 

 

 

Celebrating  the birth of Jesus

surrounded by family...

and this...

and this...

 

                                                   Brother and Sisters...

 

                                              Learning how good it is
                                              to have an earthly daddy....

 

                                                      


                                                                 and sisters....

                                          

                                                                                                  

 

                                       

 

                                          The hardest day ever....
                        Having to say goodbye and send her so far away, while                     she  wept and pleaded with us to stay.
                          Heartbreaking for her. Heartbreaking for us.

April was so upset that day...she has prayed,
shook heaven, for Nana to return home to us DAILY.

We were thankful Abby was with us.... her antics and silliness always makes us laugh!

 

 

 

None of these children were not chosen by our family. They were placed into our home by a good and gracious Heavenly Father who heard not only our "yes" to love those He called us to love... but the prayers of these children for a family to come for them.

Just as the journey has been long for us, the waiting has been almost unbearable for Nana. We have received numerous letters begging and pleading us to hurry, to come quickly and bring her home. Thankfully, that time is close at hand.

 

We raise hands to Heaven and praise the One who holds it all. Thank you Jesus, that in all the delays and misfortune you are there...

If I go to the Heavens, you are there; If I lie down in Sheol, there you are.

If I take the wings of dawn, and dwell beyond the sea. Even there your hand guides me, your right hand holds me fast. Psalms 139:8-10 

 

As we go we can hear you... and we are not afraid.

Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.

 

Please Join us,

Today, Aug 21

as we pray and fast on behalf of these children.

Fasting isn't your deal?

Praying and sharing this post on social media

works too!

 

thank you 

  

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. Isaiah 61:1