From Two And A Half to Twenty

Blinking, pinching, shaking my head in realization that two and a half years of waiting have come down to twenty days. In twenty short days, I will be on a plane returning to a place so beautiful, so sad, so close to our hearts. I will be returning, but going for the first time. Our first trip in December of 2008, we traveled to pick up our two precious children, Joshua and Julianna. I got horribly sick the second day our feet were on African soil. I spent my entire visit in bed or looking for a doctor. It was miserable and frightening and I felt robbed of all the years I longed for Africa. I didn't see a single thing but the inside of my room and the vehicle. I will be going for the first time...seeing the beauty of the land, mingling with the precious people of Addis Ababa, and most life altering of all, putting my arms around the two boys we have parented for two and a half years from so far away. We have heard their voices on the phone and talked live on Skype, we have read countless emails and sent letters and gifts and pictures. However, in 20 days, I will drink them in, I will touch their faces, and smell their presence. We will spend seven days together, laughing, praying, building relationships, and then saying goodbye until court. What a bittersweet gift. Me and two other moms adopting from Kolfe will be staying together in Levi Benkert's guesthouse with our sons. It will be crowded, but so fun! Three moms and five sons... We will love on the many boys at Kolfe who long for families and some who already have families in the US. I am so excited to love on the boys of my many friends, being their love extended, taking pictures and video, making memories. We will be bringing donations for the almost 300 boys and will buy them fruit, which is a huge treat for these kids. I cannot wait to experience Ethiopia for the first time. I absolutely covet your prayers for health the entire trip. Please pray for strengthened immunity and pray every parasite dare not come near my body. Pray for no respiratory issues with the raw exhaust that gave me trouble last time. I long to enjoy every moment in the land I've dreamed of since the age 3. So many of you have helped me get to this place of being able to see our sons. Since the heartbreak of losing our pastorate, financially we could never have done this without you. Thank you! Please pray we are able to raise the remaining $600 or so I need to take with me for the guest house, driver, etc. When I return home, we will resume the adoption process and will begin to apply for numerous grants to complete it. That, along with two more trips for court and then embassy will be needed. God is the God of more than enough. His heart is for the orphan and we know He will provide just in time. Thank you for your part in this journey to taking two boys from a life of being a fatherless, without family, support, hope, and sustenance to a life of abundant love and belonging, opportunity and a future.

When Momentum Runs into a Mountain

Momentum...Forward movement, the wind in our hair, seeing results, the goal just ahead. We have been in that place of momentum in several areas of our life for a short six months. Finally, it seemed things were moving, God was bringing results, and we were seeing the promised goal just ahead. Suddenly, the path reveals a unseen obstacle and with a shocking, violent slam, we hit headlong into a looming mountain. Disbelief, heartbreak, disillusionment...we didn't even see this mountain coming. For long moments, we stand on the path before this jagged, ominous barrier, the wind knocked from our lungs, tears streaming down our faces. We are left with no tools to climb it, no weapons to fight it, no map to find our way around it. For two weeks, we have stood here, looking around at the injustice of the mountain, asking God what we are to do with this blockade, trying to comfort one another and regroup. One of the areas this mountain has blocked us from is our adoption. Until we find our way around it, we are delayed. Our sons are growing and changing. Our oldest is now 15 and running short on time. We were just about to file for emergency clearance on our USCIS clearance because of his age when this mountain landed before us. My mother's heart is tempted to panic. Momentum has been disrupted. This was not supposed to happen right now. This mountain couldn't come at a worse time, in fact. Standing before these jagged cliffs, I am reminded of one of my favorite stories from Scripture. I could camp out reading the books of Joshua and Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, and 1 and 2 Kings every day. Nestled in these books are amazing stories of victory despite horrible odds, courageous, yet simple people choosing to believe the impossible. One of those stories I love is of Johnathan and his armor bearer. They found themselves along with Saul and 600 men hiding in caves, afraid of the enemy outside. They had no weapons except for one sword. 1 Samuel 14 contains this amazing story and as Jonathan and his armor bearer decide to regain momentum, the story continues... On each side of the pass that Jonathan intended to cross to reach the Philistine outpost was a cliff; one was called Bozez and the other Seneh. One cliff stood to the north toward Mikmash, the other to the south toward Geba. Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, let’s go over to the outpost of those uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many or by few." “Do all that you have in mind,” his armor-bearer said. “Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.” The story unfolds in an amazing picture of what Jesus, as Jonathan, does with us as wearers of armor, but for this thought, the cliffs and the enemy are what catch my attention. Jonathan had a huge obstacle in front of him, with one weapon and one other friend to help him overcome the enemy, but he confidently declares, "Perhaps the Lord will act in our behalf. Nothing can hinder the Lord from saving, whether by many for by few." He and his armor bearer scale the cliffs, confident of the Lord's ability to save. Scaling the mountain before Kurt and I and our family may delay our adoption for just a season, but we are confident God will act on our behalf as Jonathan declared. Our sons expect me to arrive in Ethiopia the first week of November. The mountain we came crashing into two weeks ago appears to threaten that possibility financially. We are without income in the moment. We are seeking God's plan and looking for open doors. Nevertheless, my children need their mother. They need promises to remain, hope to remain, plans to stay intact. With that before us, we again look to the Kingdom of God for those who might help. I need $2000 to get to my children in November. With the delay in the adoption, they especially need me to come in November. They have waited for two years for me to come. Currently, in our adoption PayPal account, we have $66.00. We have used what others have so generously given to get us to this place in our adoption...right at the tip of being able to apply for grants. That will have to wait now until we are employed and have housing, but we had arrived at a good place with your help so that we will be able to pick right back up when God brings us employment. The two women, also adopting from Kolfe that are going to Kolfe the first week of November are buying their tickets this week. The airline is running around $1400 and the rest I will need for the guest house and expenses. God is big. God's people are givers. I need to get to my sons, but I cannot without help. Our goal: $1934.00 There is a PayPayl button at the top of this blog. God always brings a harvest to our seed and as you sow seed to get me to my children and to the other children at Kolfe, God will return your investment 100 fold. Thank you for investing into the orphans of Kolfe. Momentum will return, for now it's a climb as we pull and hang on to this cliff before us. God will save, by many or by few....

The Little Things

Your son comes bouncing home from school with a good grade, his face beaming with pride and you share in the joy, hugging and high fiving. Your daughter gets asked to her first homecoming dance and she flits around the living room in excitement and nerves and you put on a serious face, demanding the boy come to the door and warn her about no close dancing. Your son lies in bed, burning up with a fever and body aches and you sit and hold a cold rag on his head and feed him chicken noodle soup. The little things...they feel so very important to us as parents and they become glaringly important when we miss them. My younger son messaged me about his first day at private school in ET. He received the highest marks in his grade last year which allowed him to attend a private school this year. He was so excited! His teacher gave him homework and he told me with great excitement that he was going to study hard and wanted to get the highest marks again. I told him how proud I was, but how I wished I could scoop him up with hugs and high fives. He is half a world away. He is growing up without me. The little things... My oldest son messaged me in the middle of the night in Ethiopia. He was burning up with a fever and was very sick. The language barrier made it very difficult for him to tell me exactly what his symptoms were...only that he was sick, couldn't sleep, and very,very hot. I prayed for him, I talked to him, but I couldn't bring him medicine, take him to the doctor, offer him comfort. The little things.... However, God is so good to give us favor in these moments of waiting. The most precious young missionary in Ethiopia, Carmen Post, let me know today, she sent her oldest son over to Kolfe to bring Cherinet medicine. My heart exhaled...comfort for my son on the way. The little things that people do for one another...they make all the difference. What little thing can you offer someone today? What little thing can become such a big thing in another life? It's the little things....

Two Little Girls

Two little girls...birthdays five weeks apart, lives half a globe apart. Two little girls as different as they are same. One born into blessing and love, a mommy and a daddy, abundant nurture and belonging. One born into poverty and neglect, orphaned and fatherless, hunger and abandon. Two little girls...September 13, in their first year of life, two little girls' worlds invisibly collided. The first little girl crossed into eternity to be with Jesus, breaking all of our hearts, changing life forever. Only seven months old, Jesus cradled her in the crook of His arm as He carried her home. Meanwhile, the little girl across the continents struggled to live, sickness and disease, hunger and loneliness. Two little girls... the parents of the first grieving in deep sorrow. The new parents of the other hearing the call to rescue. A mountain of grief and a mountain of impossibility. One life gone far too soon, bringing loss, yet the promise of heaven. One life drowning is hopelessness, stricken with malaria, yet the hope of adoption. Two little girls...months pass and God wakes the first mommy in the deep, late hours. God speaks and she acts. The second mommy restless into the deep, late hours awaiting a miracle to bring her baby home. God speaks and she believes. Two little girls...from the southern end of Texas to the central plains of Kansas, provision is sent...from one set of parents to the other. Provision from the loss to provide provision for the found. Exact amount required... Two little girls...the first adored by Jesus in heaven now for five years...the second home with her new family now for four years. One loved and cared for by God and all His angels, spending her days in perfection, waiting to see her family again. One loved and cared for by her new family, spending her days at kindergarten, her wait is over. Two little girls... Forever connected, hands holding through life. One missed by her parents and the other found by her parents....but only because of the first. The first with a deep legacy, her life giving life to one lost. Her life rescuing a child abandoned at a post office. Her life forever valued, forever meaningful, forever remembered. September 13....we remember two little girls, our precious friends' little girl, a miracle in heaven, a life with great wonder and legacy and our little girl, a miracle in our lives, our precious Ethiopian Princess. Kyandee and Julianna Kynadee. Oh, beautiful little girls....we remember.

15 on 22

Sounds like a football play...15 on 22. However, it's a much more important phrase than a route a wide receiver might take on my son's football team. 15 on 22....our oldest son turns 15 on the 22nd of this month, September. 15 is a pivotal year in the adoption world. It's the last year a child can be adopted and brought home to a family. Our paperwork and funds need to be raised within this year. Our first goal was to have it all done before his 15th birthday. Our paperwork will be finished by then, but we are still praying about our funds. We've been so blessed by so many of you stepping out and giving towards our boys. Several of you have sent donations multiple times and it completely sends us to our faces. We are overwhelmed by your hearts and generosity. The task is great, friends. As soon as our final paperwork is submitted, we will begin to apply for grants. It is our hope that God shows us favor in these and your prayers are so appreciated. When God gives vision, He always gives provision. We know the vision, now we wait with expectancy for provision to complete the task before us in bringing home our children from Ethiopia. Our hope is that I can travel in early November for a couple of days to see our sons. We are waiting on God to open that door as well. 15 on 22....it's numbers on a page, but oh such important numbers to a precious young man on the other side of the globe. Our 9 year old, too, needs to be home sooner than later to begin the adjustment period with his new life and family. If God nudges your heart to give today toward our adoption process, we would be so grateful. You may use our donation button on the right or mail donations directly to us or our agency. Thank you for your prayers most of all. Prayer moves heaven and that is what we are counting on.

Mommy's Coming!

When my children were little, learning how to ride a bike, I would sit on the porch steps and watch them teeter and balance, pushing their bikes down the sidewalk. They would inevitably tip and fall, get up and try over and over again. I would just sit and watch. Occasionally, arms and legs would go flying, balance would give way, and they would crash hard on the cement sidewalk. Loud wails would ensue as my child cried out for me. Instinctively, I would jump to my feet and yell, "Mommy's coming!" as I raced toward my hurting child. The adoption process can be long in any typical case. In many situations, the child knows they are being adopted, but doesn't know their new parents until they arrive for court. In our case, we have parented our children for two years from afar. We have loved them through email and Facebook, and heard their hearts on phone and Skype. We have walked them through ups and downs, trails and tests, joys and moments of pride. We have watched from afar as they have navigated life, falling and getting back up, teetering on the unpredictable vehicle of orphanage life. We have now come to the point, where one of our children has fallen hard. The wait has worn him down to the place he is crying for his parents. Hope is fading in his heart and he needs a glimpse of what is to come to carry his strength this last leg of the process. So, I am jumping to my feet and running toward Ethiopia. The first week of November, I will be traveling with two or three other moms to Kolfe Orphanage in Addis Ababa where I will wrap my arms around both my sons for the first time. The other moms and I will be investing a week loving on our children as well as the other boys waiting for their mom and dads to bring them home. The hundreds of other orphans at Kolfe will be part of our trip as well as we bring donations, shoes, and fruit to them. I plan to bring some Amharic Fire Bibles with me for the boys as well. Please pray for me as I prepare travel plans to go to Kolfe. If you would like to help me raise the money to travel, about $2500, I would be forever grateful. Thank you for partnering with us as I yell, "Mommy's coming!" and race to my hurting sons in Ethiopia. This blog has a donate button on the top right where you can donate through PayPal.

$40 For Food!

Late night Saturday nights are the times I hear from God most clearly...My heart is always preparing for Sunday morning as a pastor's wife and a worship leader. I sit here now at 12:30 am reading Judges 7 and the story of Gideon and listening to the sweet voice of Kari Jobe come through my computer, singing "You Are For Me". My heart is overwhelmed. The adoption process is so long and difficult and the wait so heavy as a mother. Last week, our oldest son and I talked on the phone. I am always amazed as I talk to either of my sons on the phone or computer. Eight hours ahead in a culture vastly different from mine, the soft spoken voices of my children come across the miles. It's always evening there when we speak and the boys make their way outside to escape the noise of hundreds of boys in the dorms. As we talk, I can hear a rooster protesting and dogs barking. It takes me right back to being there four years ago. Our oldest son is nearing 14 and has been in an orphanage for four years. He loves God and he dreams doctor. He shares with me how he walks along the road and dreams of a new life with us. His living conditions are difficult, his needs never fully met, yet he never asks us for a thing. He only says, "I only want you." He is a beautiful child full of destiny. However, his hope is fading. It's the rainy season in Ethiopia. He is on summer break, stuck inside the compound with hundreds of other orphan boys, waiting. We chatted as we normally do, with me passing the phone around to the family to talk. Knowing my minutes on my card were fading, I began to wrap up the conversation. I asked if he needed anything and he responded with the usual "No, Mom." I asked if he had enough to eat and he was silent. I said, "Are you hungry or full?" He responded, "Hungry." I heard a sniffle and I said, "Are you sad?" and he broke into deep sobs. He could not even speak. Eight hours ahead in time, across a massive ocean, and far away from my grasp, my child wept with such deep sorrow that I was overwhelmed. I cried with him. I reminded him that Jesus was with him, that we were coming soon, and that he is never, ever alone. He kept responding with ok, but continued to sob. It's hard to tell a child that Jesus is with him when his belly is empty. That is why Jesus always fed the multitudes or healed the sick or delivered the demoniac before He revealed His Presence to them. With the ache of natural pain and hunger gone, the ears can hear more effectively. I prayed for him over the phone and I know, as it was ten in the evening, that as we hung up, he went to lay on his tiny bunk bed, surrounded by hundreds of orphan boys, with an empty stomach and cried himself to sleep. I spent the day sobbing and praying. I went about my day, but tears continued to fall. I have been heavy hearted since that day. Why children have to suffer and starve and live fatherless lives I do not understand. These will be our third and fourth children we've adopted from Ethiopia. It's so life changing and generation changing for these four, yet it barely scratches the surface of the orphan and hunger problem. My heart is broken. As I listened to Kari sing this intimate song to the Lord... "I know that you are for me, I know that You are for me... I know that You will never forsake in my weaknesses...."I wrapped my heart around the lyrics and the promise behind them for my boys. As I sat there just after midnight, they were awaking to chilly rain and another day of desperation. It is this hope...the hope of the ever presence of Jesus that keeps me from breaking. My arms ache to hold them. Until that moment, I cling to the goodness of God. I know that God is for my sons and for the millions of orphans around the world. But, He clearly commissioned us to be FOR them too. We must be there for them. It's pure religion...to care for the widow and orphan. They struggle in a hopeless world of no hope. How can we live in such luxury in comparison and do nothing? We must be the heart of Jesus extended to our world. How will they ever know that God is for them if we remain still and quiet? The average family of four spends around $40 to go to an average sit down restaurant to consume a meal. Our two sons have thin arms, eyes glassy with malnutrition, yet they smile and embrace anyone who comes to visit. The boys at Kolfe are precious. They deserve more than life has offered them. We are desperate to move this adoption quickly. We have raised all the money for homestudy minus mileage and post adoption fees. We have thousands to raise for our agency fees yet. Our agency hopes to have our paperwork submitted to Ethipian court by the time it reopens in October. That is a big hope. We have much to accomplish to see that happen. Would you be willing to set aside one meal out with your family to help our sons come home to their family, to enough food, to no more lonely nights, to medical care, and opportunity, and community? $40 For Food! I don't want my sons to stay trapped in the cycle of fatherlessness and poverty and hunger and hopelessness. We need your help. Will you help us? Will you help them? Our blog has a donate button at the top which enables us to receive donations via PayPal. You can also send donations to International Adoption Net, 7500 E. Arapahoe Road, Ste 250, Centennial, CO 80112 and specify it to be given towards our adoption. Thank you for praying! This community of people that love the orphan and care about the hurting of the world have done amazing things to change lives! Thank you for praying for our sons and for the hundreds of boys at Kolfe Orphanage. Below is a picture of the kitchen at Kolfe and a picture of Easter Sunday this year when a group of women came and served the boys bread.

In the Gap

Our great friend, Joel Fouse, was traveling through Ethiopia this last week. I knew he was spending most of his time outside of Addis Ababa, but as I sat propped up in a rocking chair with bronchitis in the middle of the night, I realized joel would be back in Addis to fly home. As a long shot, I sent him a Facebook message to ask him about his time in Addis. Eight hours ahead, Joel just happened to be at an Internet cafe to get online. He replied almost immediately that he would have a day and a half in Addis and happily agreed to go meet with our boys. In the late of the day, Joel had his driver transport him to Kolfe Orphanage. The manager was gone for the day so Joel couldn't get into the compound. Our nine year old came out to meet with him and wait for Our oldest, who soon joined them. It is the rainy season in Ethiopia, so it was pouring. Joel put the boys in his drivers car to talk with them. Joel told them of our love for them and that we were working hard to get them home, prayed with our boys, hugged them, and took three pictures. It was a short visit, but Joel drove out of his way to spend a few moments with two boys who wait and wait for their family to come for them. Those few moments of connection with someone we know and love to two boys we love brought the life sustaining power of hope. Hope sustains, hope preserves, hope strengthens. Joel's words of reassurance that he knew our boys parents and that we were coming for them, Joel's words of prayer on their behalf, Joel's arms wrapped around them on our behalf brought hope. Without hope, the heart grows sick. Hope is powerful. Joel stood in the gap halfway around the world, being our hands and voice and heart. God reached through such a gesture and sustained our boys. Our oldest, especially, needs hope. He has said to us, "my heart misses you. When will you come for me? What day and month will you come?" and with such words our hearts break. How we wish we could tell him we are on our way now. Time and process are hard concepts for children. They need tangible gestures of hope. Only God can bridge the gap and offer others to stand in the gap for us until the day we run toward our sons and throw our arms around them. Will you stand in the gap in prayer? With you stand in the gap in giving? Will you stand in the gap by sharing out story with others? Our oldest son turns 15 in September. Times slipping away. We need believers to stand in the gap in prayer. Our sons need hope. How grateful we are to Joel for standing in the gap for us to our boys. The beautiful part is that we did the same for their oldest child. When we picked up Josh and Julianna, we knew Joel and Andi's daughters were in the orphanage waiting. In the baby room where Julianna had lived, we found their teenage daughter sitting on a bottom bunk, holding a baby, helping the nannies. I sat beside her, telling her I was a friend of her mom and dad. Tears flowed immediately down her face and she said "please tell them that I love them and miss them." I grabbed her hand, seeing her deep sadness and said, "They are coming for you. They will be here soon." I hugged her. I told her to keep praying to Jesus and holding onto Him and we left with our two children. It was short but it imparted hope and gave her sustaining strength for the wait. Let us all stand in the gap for God to a dying world. The world is desperate for hope, strength, and sustaining faith. It need not be a lengthy message... A sack of groceries for a single mom, paying for a young family's meal at a restaurant you see across the room, spending a few moments listening to a widow share about what she loved about her husband, a hug for a child at church that may rarely feel love, giving money toward an Children coming home to a family. Standing in the gap for Jesus while a hurting people wait His return is so powerful. It brings hope. It sustains. It brings life giving strength. How will you stand in the gap today?

The Power of a Name

There is a strong power to a name. As believers, we know that just speaking Name of JESUS can change everything. At the Name of Jesus, demons flee. Names were very significant in the Bible. God would often give a new name to his people when their lives altered or took on a new destiny. I believe names are still very significant today. The entrance of radio show host, Delilah, into our adoption story altered everything. After our encounters with her, we knew clearly, our oldest son was to bear the middle name of her son, Sammy, who died this year of sickle cell anemia. Sammy was also adopted as a teenager and was so very special to so many. Not only did the connection between Delilah and our adoption cause us to want carry on her son's name, but the message and power of the name Samuel. Our oldest son loves God. He is full of faith despite his circumstances and he declares on a regular basis, "Nothing is impossible for God." Our oldest son walks to church weekly and prays. He doesn't have parents driving him to church. He doesn't have a bus stopping by his house to get him. He rises and walks with his friend to church on his own faithfully. The name Samuel means "God has heard". Hannah prayed and prayed for a child and God heard her cries and gave her Samuel. God has heard our son's prayers and is moving mountains to see his answer come. Our son wants a family. He wants a good education to become a doctor. Our son wants a home. Our son wants to belong. Samuel, God has heard...what a fitting name. I believe that name will mark his life from this point on as seal. I believe he will pray and God will hear and answer. The power in a name... Our youngest son is nine. We don't get to talk with him as much as our oldest because he is still learning English. The pastor that used to visit them once a week told us how our younger son is outgoing, likes to joke, and have fun. We prayed about a name for him and Gabriel became the name. His middle name will be Gabriel. It will be both our son's choice whether to be called by their first names or their new middle names. They are marked by their names either way. Gabriel means "strong man of God". We sure need some strong men of God in these days! I believe that our beautiful boy will carry this name with valor and integrity and character. His coming into our family will enable him to focus on more than survival. He will be able to develop his gifts and let God develop him into a world changer. Gabriel is one of the arch angels of heaven...a strong angel. Our son will carry strength as a seal. He will be marked by meekness...strength under control. What's in your name? I find the meaning of my name very interesting and sometimes comical. My parents named me JoLynn. JoLynn means two things. It means "Increase" and it means "Bearer of Many Children". Certainly, this name has marked my life! Having children and adopting children have been my passion since I was three years old. We are about to adopt two children, making seven in our home and eight total. I believe its time to find a 12-passenger van! The most important name is the Name Above All Names...Jesus. Have you called out His Name lately? Have you asked Him to take control of your life? Have you used His Name to forgive your sins, to heal your body, to restore a relationship? The name of Jesus is powerful. He is Savior of the world. Call out to Him. The Bible says, "Whoever calls on my name will be saved"...call on the Name of Jesus wherever you are today. He will hear you, He will answer you, He will make you strong. Me with our five children...soon to be seven!

Ever Watchful

It is midnight. I am suffering with a season of insomnia and am about to try to sleep again. As I sit at my computer, the house quiet, the kids sleeping, and the night deep, my sons in Ethiopia are just awaking eight hours ahead of me. We had a fun evening with friends tonight, cooking out at their house and the kids playing with their friends. Kurt and I enjoyed our time, yet something was missing. Once you hear the call of God for a child, they become yours. It's a wonderful miracle that transpires in your heart, yet it brings a heaviness as you live each day waiting for your child to come home. We have two children we love with all our hearts. We long to be together. As I sleep, my sons will be going about their morning at the orphanage. They are wrapping up their school year, will probably play some soccer, or a rousing game of UNO. Today, they will live their life in Ethiopia, not yet home with their family. How glad I am to know that God never sleeps nor slumbers. He is ever watchful over my sons, protecting them, ordering their steps, leading them to their new life with us. It's the only comfort I have being on the other side of the globe. Knowing how they must live for now could overwhelm me with helplessness, but God is the perfect parent. He will keep them, He will watch them with a careful eye. A sign posted at Kolfe Orphanage

God the Farmer

My heart is heavy for my sons today. Can you imagine if your child was taken from you, put in a foreign land far away, in need of food and medical care and love? You would go to the ends of the earth for that child. You would shout it from the rooftops, asking whoever you could find to help you get them home. That's where our hearts are. We have loved these boys as our own for two years. We long to touch them and hear their voice and feed them and love them with all our hearts. God always partners humans together to change the world. No one can do it alone. God partners the willing with the able. We are willing to bring these children into our home, making it a household of 9. We are willing to love them and invest in them, send them to college and support them daily. We need others to partner with us who are able... able to give to pay the large expense of getting them here. Adoption internationally is expensive. We need help with the initial expense to get these boys home. God is just like a farmer. There is always a harvest to the seed that is planted. When you help plant a seed to bring these children into the safety of a home, God will bring a harvest into your life. Giving never goes unnoticed by God and we believe and pray your harvest will be 100-fold. There are many charities to give to in this world. What is so powerful about helping a child go from a parentless existence of poverty, sickness, oppression, and hopelessness, is that you get to see with your eyes what your investment accomplishes. You will see these children come home and join our family and you will see their lives transformed and saved. You will also be able to watch them in the community as they give back to others. There is no greater reward than to see a child find a family and blossom into an amazing young person. We have watched this happen with our little ones and with countless other former orphans who have been blessed to come home to a family. Are you able to help today? Are you able to buy a shirt or a hat from Ordinary Hero with 40% of your purchase going toward getting our boys home? Are you able to give $15 For the 15th Year, helping us get the boys home during our older son's 15th year before he ages out? Are you able to let me take your family portraits for $60 to raise money for our adoption? Maybe you are able to give a large amount to see these boys' lives completely transformed. Pray about what God would have you give today. Your seed, your gift will go into the ground and God will bring a great harvest into your life. You can never out give God! Thank you for praying for our adoption, for our boys, for our process. It is a long and hard road to the final moment they come home, but we are willing to walk that road. Are you able to equip us with what we need to walk it? These are pictures of Kolfe Orphanage...the dorms, the soccer field, the kitchen

So Close, Yet So Far

I talked with my older son today on Facebook. He was about to go to bed eight hours ahead of me and I asked him what he would be doing in the morning...if he would be going to church. He told me he and his friend would be going to St George's Cathedral to pray. Immediately, I googled this church and was awe struck by it's wonder and beauty. While I sleep tonight, my son and his friend, also a wonderful teenage boy waiting for his adoption to be completed, will be walking to church to worship the same God I worship. They will be praying for their families and we will be praying for them. Our hearts so mended, so close...yet, so far away. Modern technology allows us to be close to our sons...email and phone brings their voices and hearts and lives so very close to us as we wait. Yet, they are so far. We cannot see them smile and enjoy the glimmer in their expression. We cannot brush their cheek or draw them close. We cannot breathe in their essence, their unique smell that brings such bonding. In such ways, they are worlds away and that is where the heartbreak of adoption comes in. So close, yet so very far... I marvel at the thought of my son standing before this great house of worship. I am not sure if they enter inside or stand outside and pray as the people in the picture are doing. I don't know if there will be music or a 'sermon' as there will be in our church in the morning or whether its more of a private time as they stand facing the church in prayer. What I do know is this....Jesus is not far from either of us. As we whisper His Name, both my son and his friend and both families...as we cry out from our hearts to the Savior of the world, He is never far away. He is as close as the mention of His Name! As my son whispers in his beautiful Amharic tongue, asking God to bring him home and as we groan out, "Oh, Lord! Bring our sons home to us!", God bends His ear to our cries and sends forth His Word to answer. He is near to those who call on Him....never far, never at a distance...so close, you can feel Him breathe on you if you are still enough to receive. Know this today...God promises to draw near to us as we draw near to Him. No matter what you are facing, what mountain stands before you, what pain you endure...Jesus is close...so very close.

God Heard- Our Adoption Story---$15 for the 15th Year

My stomach full with our Sunday night treat of Casey's taco pizza, snuggled up on the couch with my husband and kids with a movie, my heart drifts to a time zone eight hours ahead of me. As I close out my day of rest, the sun is just peeking over the horizon in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Nearly stirring from a nights rest, lying on the bottom bunk in a room full of boys, a young teenager is waking. Living in orphanage life for four years, he has persisted in prayer for a family, his heart filled with child-like faith. This child is my son. In 2008, we adopted our first two precious children from Ethiopia, Joshua and Julianna. What a blessing they became to our lives. Our hearts for the orphan only enlarged after being in Ethiopia. In 2009, God led us to a powerful group of moms from across the United States, all with a passion for a group of boys living in a government orphanage in the capital city of Ethiopia. These boys, now close to 200 of them, rarely had opportunity for adoption. A movement began called the Kolfe Mamas with women from the US pairing up with boys from Kolfe and loving and nurturing them long distance. Kurt and I became 'Mom and Dad' to three boys, keeping in touch through email and Facebook, and sending gifts to them with traveling adoptive families. Our hearts fell in love with these boys, claiming them as our own, praying for them daily, and mentoring them from across the ocean. This year, God began to stir our hearts for our two younger boys. Our oldest was now a man and struggling to make it on his own and soon we had lost touch with him. How we longed to see our younger two flourish in a family, with community and opportunity and future. Every child deserves a family afterall. I have listened to and admired nationally known radio host, Delilah Rene, for many years. She is a strong follower of Christ who holds tight to the belief that the true church is one who cares for the widow and orphan as James 1:27 teaches. Delilah has twelve children, nine of them adopted. Browsing through the internet one day recently, I came across a story on Delilah's website about her son, Sammy. I could barely breath through the entire story as she told of adopting her son from Ghana, a 14 year old boy stricken with sickle cell anemia, two years ago. The story ended with this: "On the first night that he was fully my son, Sammy told me through tears that he never dreamed God would answer his prayers. He said, "Momma, I always thought I would die alone in the orphanage. That I would never know what it was like to have someone love me"...and then after several racking sobs, he said, "and no one would even know that I had ever lived." I promised him through my own tears that he would not die alone. That he would not die in an orphanage. That he would be loved more than life by me and many others, and that people would know that he had lived. He died in our arms. He died surrounded by people he loved, and none of us will ever forget that he lived." I felt a squeezing ache within my chest as I read her story. My heart broke for Sammy and broke for Delilah. Her grief overwhelmed me. I was compelled to write to her from her contact email from her website. I honestly didn't think she would even read my email, but I knew I must say something. I was moved beyond description and I wanted to share my heart for Delilah in her grief. I reached out to her and also told her of my boys, living in a similar situation in Ethiopia and much to my surprise, Delilah responded to me that very evening. We shared back and forth, talking about adoption, about grief, about the Lord. My conversations with Delilah catapulted Kurt and I into moving forward to bring our sons home and we began the process. As Delilah and I shared, it became clear it would be very fitting to give our oldest son the middle name of Samuel, after her son, Sammy, who had graduated to heaven. Our son has told me more than once, "Nothing is impossible with God, Mom." His faith is strong, his prayers persistent, his need desperate. The name Samuel means "God Heard". God has heard the cries of a young boy in a in a distant land, longing for a family. God has heard the prayers of our family, longing to bring both of our boys home. Our older son will be 15 in September, our younger son is 9. Time is of the essence. After turning 16, adoption is very difficult to accomplish in Ethiopia. We need God to provide the necessary funds to bring our sons home. We need God to move paperwork and give us favor with judges and people of Ethiopia. Our sons need a family. Our family needs them. God is never late, but we need to get our son home before he draws closer to 16. Our younger son needs to enjoy his young life with a family that loves him. Would you be willing to help get our sons home? God always pairs the willing with the able. We are willing to raise these beauiful boys as a part of our family, we are willing to do what it takes to get them here. Are you able to help us? Are you able to give financially? Are you able to pray? Our first adoption was a long process. We are aiming to get them home in our oldest son's 15th year. They deserve this chance to be loved and give back to the world around them. On the right hand side of this blog is a donate button. Would you be willing to donate $15? $15 to get our sons home in our son's 15th year. Would you be willing to share this post with your Facebook friends, yourbfriends at church or work, your family members? This global network attached by the internet is a powerful force when people join together for one cause. Thank you for joining with us and giving $15 For The 15th Year Delilah and her son, Sammy

Kolfe Saying Goodbye

This week, our boys and all the boys of Kolfe will be saying goodbye to some amazing people. Will and Susan Oswald, Baptist pastors who have lived in Addis Ababa for a year, have visited Kolfe every Saturday. These incredible people have taught the boys at Kolfe the Word, loved on them, gave them a great Christmas, and have been the most amazing advocates for us Moms in the United States. My boys will greatly miss them and will always remember what they did in their lives! Thank you, Will and Susan Oswald! We are forever grateful for your investment in the boys of Kolfe and are praying God will bring another advocate for them right in Addis. You have impacted their lives for eternity!!

Wrecked!

Kurt went to Haiti with Convoy of Hope this week and came back "wrecked". That's such a great word for a believer. To be "wrecked"..."gloriously ruined"..."disturbed". Those are words that awaken our souls to the need around us. Those are words that push us into action. Kurt will never be the same after seeing the people of Haiti...their need, their desperation, their beautiful faces, their hope. I have been "wrecked" since I looked into the faces of three African boys in a picture in my preschool Sunday School class. After going to Ethiopia, my level of wreckage was overwhelming. I've never been the same. Now, we have two more sons that need their family and I am ruined more and more everyday. I long to bring them home, to wrap my arms around them and tell them they will never be alone again, to watch them grow and flourish in a family and community that loves them. Our first step towards bringing our boys home was complete this week. We sent in the first packet of paperwork to our agency and we are on our way! Our next step will be to complete the dossier. Let God wreck you for His Kingdom, breaking your heart as His breaks. It's the journey that brings us to a place of changing the world!

Talking Across the Miles

Several of us talked to our precious older son in Ethiopia this morning. He was wrapping up his Saturday after playing soccer and we were beginning our day, anxious to hear all about his. His voice is so cute and he has great English. He is polite and sweet. Connecting by phone makes this momma's heart long for my son all the more. On this upcoming Mother's Day, I can think of nothing more than getting my boys in a distant land home to our family. Brooklyn loved talking to her brother!

We have completed the first step of our adoption process and now are praying as we complete the next. With our initial paperwork, we will need $2500 and then our homestudy will be around $1000. We know that God never call us to something that He doesn't equip us to do. We have full confidence in His provision. Thank you for praying for us as we travel this road. Time is of the essence for our older son at his age. We need God to move this process quickly to get him home. We covet your prayers as we journey to our sons. Here is a list of prayer needs at this stage in the adoption. * Protection for our sons in Ethiopia. * Financial provision for us as we take each step of this process. * Possible grants to come available to us. * Provision for a 12-passenger van. (Yes, we have officially graduated to the large family vehicle!) * Miraculous movement of paperwork in Ethiopia. * Favor for our homestudy. * Prayer for some quiet, private miracles we are asking God for. We love you all and so appreciate your hearts to pray us through this process to bring our boys home. They need their family and we need them.

The Coleman Crowd Is Growing!

Go with us in your minds eye for a moment to a scenario every parent would dread. Your child is in a faraway land with no parents to protect them, not enough food for their bellies, no medical care, and a future that seems bleak. Imagine you can speak with them, email them, but cannot get them home under your care. As a parent, you would go to the ends of the earth for that child, do whatever it took to rescue them, spend your money, your resources, your time finding your way to them. We are in that very place. Our two sons that we've loved and prayed for and emailed for two years need us. Our oldest boy is 14 and very close to aging out of the government orphanage he is in and ending up on the streets of Ethiopia. Our 9 year old needs his mom and dad to come and bring him home. Both of our boys are in the Kolfe Orphanage in Ethiopia. They speak good English, study hard in school, and love God. Our oldest son is full of faith and tells us constantly, "Nothing is impossible for God." We know that God sees his faith and longs to honor it. The Bible is clear on Gods heart for the orphan. Caring for them is what God calls pure religion in the book of James. My sons need their family, they need a church family, they need the opportunity to grow and love and be loved. Today, we officially began our journey to Ethiopia...to our children... To fulfill the Kingdoms work as God has commanded. We have so many times heard it said that when you pair the willing with the able, nothing will stop God. We are willing to open our lives and home to children who need the security of family. Some of you may be able to help us do that. When we partner the willing and the able, God moves mountains. Thank you for praying for us as we walk this journey to Ethiopia, to bring our sons home. Adoption is not for the faint of heart. It takes determined parents to get through the process to their children and then to help them heal and adjust once they are home. We are so willing. Our hearts overflow with burden and love for these boys. Are you able? Are you able to pray? Are you able to give? We will not be ashamed to make the need known as we travel this road. Our needs will be on this blog as well as our progress. Thank you for partnering with us to literally impact generations for the Kingdom of God. This is it! We begin this journey today! Will you journey with us?