Love With Abandon

Today's post comes from my friend Rachel at Walser Adoption Adventures.

Rachel started a really cool project in March that I just had to share with you. I

 love her heart for keeping vulnerable children with their families and

her passion for making it a reality ~ Enjoy!

 

Last February I went on a mission trip. Our church took a team of about 10 people to Addis Ababa. We had a dual purpose: training for indigenous church planters and serving with widow and orphan care ministries.

When I went on my first mission trip to Ethiopia in 2010, I was in the middle of our adoption process. I had never been to a third world country. Truthfully, I had never been on a mission trip anywhere. I was broken, in a good way, but I can't help but think everything I processed was seen by me, at least in part, through the filter of our adoption. Of course I was motivated to share the love of Jesus with all those sweet children and to see the face of Jesus in the beautiful people of Ethiopia. But it was also another layer to our story, to understanding the why of our decision to adopt internationally, seeing first hand the great need, and falling in love with a country that is now a big part of our life.

 

 

And I felt confirmed in our decision to adopt, and to adopt from Ethiopia. I love adoption so much. I love the gospel so clearly on display. I love kids without families being fought for, being loved, and being pursued so intensely and sacrificially so they can have a forever home and a forever family. "One less." It didn't seem like much of an impact after witnessing such great need, but it was something.

Fast forward to last year. While we were in country on our trip, we found out some news about our own adoption that brought to light that our story was not the story we thought it was. It forced us to deal with the truth that adoption is a messy business. Worth the mess, and a wonderful answer to a great need--but it is only ONE answer. And what hit me hard on that trip last year was, is it the best answer?

Hear me out. In some cases, yes, it is. But perhaps in other cases, it's not addressing the systemic problem. And--here's where it got tough for me personally to swallow--it might even be perpetuating unethical practices because we are so focused on working hard to get kids into our families that we don't even see the opportunity to prevent them from needing to be there in the first place.

I think of all the time, energy, blood, sweat, tears, and CASH poured into bringing Abby home. Was it worth it? Would I do it again? Abso-friggin-lutely!! In a heartbeat. She's worth it. And God is soverign--no doubt in my mind He brought her to our family.

But--here's the rub. Am I willing to pour as much energy, time, resources, and passion into fighting to keep children with their birth families?

Because I believe--and my eyes were opened to--many situations where mothers and fathers are giving up children for adoption because they do not have the means or ability to meet their basic needs. No parent should have to make that kind of decision. It's a harder problem to solve, and often waaayyyy messier to deal with. But as beautiful a picture as adoption displays of the gospel, isn't equipping a family to stay together and seeing it thrive also a beautiful picture of redemption and restoration?


Adoption is a great response. I'm just not sure it should be our first response.


And I am convicted all over again. I want to be mobilized and advocating for the adoption of true orphans, particularly those who are overlooked or considered unwanted. And, with the same passion and fervor, I want to fight for kids to stay in their families. I want to support and advocate for ministries that share the love of Jesus and offer much needed help to women who just need a hand so they can care for their children. And I want to serve firsthand women facing these kinds of decisions and let them know they are not alone, that someone cares for them and for their children.
And these thoughts and stirrings are what led me to launch the

Last year I raised approx $2500 for my mission trip. I decided I wanted to raise DOUBLE that amount to give back to orphan care---in all of it's different nuanced areas.


I have set a goal to raise $6,000 so I can give $1,000 each to 6 different needs, each addressing the orphan crisis in a different way. (Originally I planned to raise $5,000, but I'll explain why that changed in just a second.) Let me share with you first WHO I'm fundraising for, and then tell you HOW I plan to do it!

Bring Love In

Levi and Jesse are the awesome couple behind Bring Love In, which works to create new families in Ethiopia by pairing a single mom and her children with other orphans in a home unit, providing a family structure and support for a lifetime.

Compassion Families Intl

Peter and Elizabeth run Compassion Families, which provides drop-in centers for kids who need schooling, and/or after school care, also helping with needs like uniforms and school supplies and clothing and shoes. Making it a little easier for those families who are struggling to provide basic needs for their children.

 

Embracing Hope

Jerry and Christy Shannon run Embracing Hope, and it was their daughter's genius idea to provide a free day care for single moms so they can go to work without a child strapped to their back. Providing food each week, and supporting the moms with micro-loans and saving plans so they can look ahead with hope to a future being able to provide for their family without having to beg or prostitute.

LifeBridge Church

LifeBridge is my local church, and we just moved 6 months ago into a building that's located in the poorest zip code in our county. We are thrilled to be there, and each day the Lord is guiding us as to new ways to love tour new neighbors. Our ministries to the broken families in our area are just beginning.

The Waulk family

The Waulks are our dear friends and part of our church family. Josh is our Executive pastor at LifeBridge. They adopted Karis 2 years ago, and are in the process of adopting domestically again, a baby due this summer.

The Davis family

When I first decided to do this project, I was going to set out to raise $5000 for the 5 causes above. My friend Christy happened to be one of the first people I told about my project, and she was so supportive and excited for my efforts. She has always been the biggest cheerleader and supporter of many of our adoptions, long before they even began their adoption process last year. They have been waiting to bring a little girl home from Ethiopia. But just this last week, her husband died tragically, leaving Christy and three beautiful children behind. As many of my friends and I grieved, prayed, and served her this last weekend, it dawned on my how close to home it was now---the charge to care for widows and orphans. Now it's my friend, and now it's her kids. So it didn't take me long to decide to add their family to my project.

*********

So that's the WHO. Now for the HOW. And here's where you come in!
 

I am launching a store of fun items, and ALL the profits will go towards these ministries and families. My goal is to be able to raise $1,000 for each.
 

Are you in?! OK so here's the links you'll need:

• SHOP here!!
• Donate directly to Bring Love In
• Donate directly to Compassion Families (PLEASE make a note in donation that it is for Compassion Families--this organization supports other ministries)
• Donate directly to Embracing Hope
• Donate directly to LifeBridge Church
• Donate directly to the Waulk family
• Donate directly to the Davis family:
• Paypal a donation to scrappycdavis@yahoo.com
• Davis Children Trust, c/o Everbank, 26417 US Highway 19, Clearwater, FL 33761

(If you would prefer to donate by check to any of the above, please email me for information.)


(Please please let me know if you donate directly so I can count it in my total for fundraising!)

OK people--let's do this!!

SHOP! DONATE! POST LINK!! Let's all LOVE WITH ABANDON!!

. . . . . . . . . . .

the moments He shows me it's worth it

This is hard y'all. Trying and straining and reaching for the life Jesus wants us to live. Caring for orphans is messy work. It's exhausting.

I'm thankful for the moments when He shows me it's worth it. The mess. The exhaustion. It's all SO worth it.

I don't post about this often but William and I lead the orphan care ministry at our church. It's a blessing-beyond-words to be a part of a church where "orphan care is not just a program on the side but a part of our church DNA." <----- Our pastor said that. See what I mean? blessing. beyond. words.

Our big event of the year is an orphan care and adoption seminar we host alongside our local partner, the Orphan Care Alliance. It's hard work. I stay up late to get everything done. I sit at my computer and work when my kids are awake and I feel guilty. I drag them to meetings and promise ice cream if they will just be still and quiet for 45 minutes. But it is worth it:

Over 80 people learning about orphan care and adoption last month!

One goal of our ministry is to financially equip families within our church who are stepping out in faith to adopt. Last week I had the absolute privilege of working with Lifesong for Orphans to help one family get a matching grant. I didn't really do anything, other than field a few emails. (during the day while my kids were awake.) I was not expecting this family to be blessed as much as they were. I knew our partners were generous but I put God in a box - in my head I had a "max" of what He would do. He blew me, and my friends the Shores, away with a $7,300 matching grant!

I cried tears of joy and awe all morning. It was such a beautiful thing to see this family who is doing what most people don't understand - adopting a sibling set of three - being blessed by a God who is saying to them through His people "Yes. You are doing my will. And I will bless you for your obedience."

And then there's our sweet M. He is the one who costs me the most sleep. He is the hardest. A couple weeks ago we were visiting friends and he picked up their "thankful basket." My friend explained their family writes down things they are thankful for and puts them in the basket.

She asked if he wanted to draw something he is thankful for and he said yes. When he started drawing a person I got a little nervous. Who was it? Someone from his past? Was it me? I am so unworthy of his gratitude. My inner thoughts went on and on. My friend asked. "Who is that?" His answer? "Jesus. I'm thankful for Jesus."

It is worth it. Sleepless nights. Tantrums. Uncomfortable conversations. ALL. SO. WORTH. IT. for this little boy to be thankful for Jesus. (And spiders:-)

Praying I never forget. Knowing I will. Trusting Him to remind me.

Summit 9. Go there.

Are you going to Summit 9? You should. 

Quick explanation: Summit is the national conference of The Christian Alliance for Orphans’ and has become the national hub for what Christianity Today recently called, “the burgeoning Christian orphan care movement.”

The schedule includes heavy hitters like David Platt and Randy Alcorn and  has several workshop tracks including Art, Advocacy and Orphans, Building Church Orphan Ministries, Engaging Effectively for Orphans Worldwide, Loving Children with Special Needs, Strengthening the Family and much more!

I'm drooling over the Engaging Effectively for Orphans Worldwide myself.

Ok, so go register. The price is affordable, the experience is unforgettable and everyone knows someone in Nashville whose couch you can crash on.

Will we see you there?

weekend reading

"When we consider the complexities of issues that surround the global orphan crisis, we are confronted with the fact that truly visiting orphans in their distress (James 1:27) requires more of us than we can imagine. The mandate to care for orphans over the long haul requires that we give of ourselves in ways that are at war with our culture’s pursuit of earth-bound treasures. It’s impossible to care for the orphan without living self-sacrificially.

As a result, if we are not actively locating our identity in or being defined by the grand story of redemption, our efforts to care for the orphan will likely be superficial, perfunctory, and short-lived." - Dan Cruver, Together for Adoption.

 Read the full post here.

Waiting for Glory,

both/and NOT either/or

My post from Friday initiated some really wonderful conversation in the comments and on Facebook. One of my favorites was "We call that having a both/and approach to kids instead of an either/or approach. There are kids here and there and they all are in need of healing!"

With that in mind I wanted to share some practical ideas for a "both/and" approach to orphan care. Not everyone is called to foster or adopt but there IS something for everyone! I hope you find something on this list for you!

Helping Kids Here...

Make dinner for a foster family. (If you don't know any I will give you our address:-)

Donate clothes and other items for kids going into foster care.

Become a Life Coach for a teenager in foster care.

Become a host family for the Safe Families for Children program.

Become a foster family.

Become certified to provide respite care for a foster family.

Become a CASA worker. 

Share this post.

Helping Kids There...

Participate in Samaritans Purse or a container project.

Follow blogs or websites highlighting waiting children and pray them home.

Donate your birthday - give money or items to your favorite orphan care ministry. (local or abroad)

Support an adopting family by buying their fund raising "stuff".

Sponsor a child.

Sponsor a mom.

Sponsor a teacher.