Because of the Gospel

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T21:41:00.004-05:00

Happy New Year!! What a year 2010 has been. It was fun to look back at my resolutions for this past year and to see that I had actually done them. You can read them here. As I have prayed for this coming year, I do believe that I am to just continue to go deeper in the areas that the Lord highlighted last year. The one area that I have not been faithful to die to myself is in the area of my eating. I am beginning Weight Watchers on Monday and I am very excited.

Noah has been home almost 9 months and I am amazed at how far we have come as a family. He is doing extremely well. The past couple of months his language has grown at a very fast pace. He is so much fun and I am still amazed that I get to be his mom. Doug worked New Years Eve so it was just me home with the kids. Here is a video of Noah that was the highlight of my night. Enjoy!!

All Aboard

2010-11-19T16:08:00.004-05:00

This past Saturday was a beautiful fall day. My mom had called the day before to see if we would like to take Noah on the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad. Noah loves trains and I was so excited to watch him experience another first. He was a little apprehensive when the train first pulled in. After that, he was in heaven. Not only was he on a train but he was with his grandma and grandpa for the day. We had a great time. We walked around the historic city of Peninsula, had lunch, learned about beavers and then got on the train to head home. It was a beautiful day. Here are some pictures of our day.

Hard to believe......

2010-11-07T07:46:00.002-05:00

It is so hard to believe that one year has passed since our fundraiser. Last year at this time we had no idea what our son would look like. We had no idea how we would pay for his adoption. We were running around like crazy people trying to pull it off. We also had one child who had just recuperated from Swine Flu. It was a crazy but wonderful time.
Here I sit one year later having one of the cutest Ethiopian boys ever in our home and his adoption completely paid for. As a matter of fact, his adoption tax refund will pay for most of our second Ethiopian prince's adoption!! God has been so good!! Noah has been a perfect fit for our family. He is such a funny boy. The other night Doug was praying at dinner. A couple of seconds into the prayer, Noah begins to pretend like he was sleeping and starts snoring really loud. Needless to say we all lost it!
Noah also got to see snow for the first time yesterday. We didn't have much but he stood for probably a half an hour and watched it fall. I leave you with a picture of that shows his excitement.
One other thing. I will be updating my blog concerning our second adoption. Please pray. There is a little piece of paper that we need in order to have our home study update completed. It is taking four months as of now to get it. This is heartbreaking to us because it mean 9 months before our boy is home. Thanks so much!

Until I breathe my final breath........

2010-10-28T19:01:00.003-04:00

Until I breathe my final breath, I will continue to bring awareness to the orphan crisis!!! November 7th is National Orphan Sunday. What are you doing to make a difference?? If you are a Christ-Follower, doing nothing is not an option! James 1:27 tells us this. Not all of us are called to adopt but all of us are called to act! If you need ideas on how you can make a difference, feel free to contact us and we will help you find a way to make a difference in the life of an orphan.

Do Something Now from Children's HopeChest on Vimeo.

Moving........

2010-10-17T20:11:00.004-04:00

Several times in previous post I have talked about wanting to be closer to our church family. Well, God has provided a way for that to happen. This past weekend we moved into a home that we are renting for at least the next year! We are so excited about this new season of our life. This house is a perfect fit for our family. The move has been the hardest on Faith. She had a lot of great friends in our old neighborhood who she is going to miss so much. Noah has been a trooper. He is one of the most easy-going kids. As long as his family is with him, he is good!! We are looking forward to making an impact in our neighborhood and community. It is exciting anticipating what God has next for us.

So on to another way we are moving. We are moving forward and adding to our family again through adoption. We have officially accepted the referral of a little boy who was on our agency's waiting child list. This was not on the radar for us but we know that he is our boy. We saw him at the beginning of the month and took some time to pray before accepting. We will be starting a new blog that will be private at least until we get him home. We want to make sure to tell his story just as we did Noah. I will put a link to our new blog on here as soon as it is set up. In the meantime, please pray for our little guy. Please pray that he would remain healthy. Please pray for us and the children. Pray that God would prepare all of our hearts for our new addition. Also, please pray for the finances for this adoption. This is much earlier than we anticipated returning to Ethiopia. If it was up to me, I would have waited to adopt again until we had our tax return in our hands in March(we get back all the money we paid for Noah's adoption which is enough to pay for this adoption). The problem with that is that we take away the opportunity for God to show up. From the beginning of Noah's adoption, we said that this had to be God's story or we didn't want to be part of it. That is still true with this adoption. God MUST show up!! Thanks so much for all of your prayers and support. This blog will continue with updates on Noah. So here are a few new pictures of our cutie to enjoy:)

6 Months Home......Really??

2010-10-06T06:33:00.004-04:00

Six months ago this week, we held Noah in our arms for the first time. Where has the time gone?? In some ways it seems like yesterday and in other ways it seems like he has been here with us forever! We have come such a long way since that time.

I have heard that the one month, two month and six month home marks are monumental in seeing changes with the children. I would have to agree. As we got close to the 6 month mark, Noah's language has exploded. He is understanding so much more but better than that is that he is communicating so much more. Some of that is because he knows more English but most of it is because he is more settled and feels safe. He is now expressing his feelings, wants and needs. He has quite the sense of humor and loves to make us all laugh. He is incredibly affectionate with us. At times I feel as if my heart might burst with how crazy in love I am with this kid! All I can say is that adoption ROCKS!!! The joy and laughter that has been added to our home because of Faith and Noah is worth every tear, every night of lost sleep and every penny spent!! Who knows......we may have to just do this again:)....to be continued...........

We are now in the process of moving. Two and a half years ago, God began knitting our hearts with a church community almost a hour away. I have written about our journey in other posts. In the beginning of September we had an awesome opportunity present itself concerning our housing. God opened some doors in order for us to move forward. As we have been studying what it means to be on "mission", we have begun to look at our lives in a completely different way. As hard as this is to move, I wouldn't want to be doing anything else. This season is a time a shedding for us and I feel more alive than I have in a long time. Please pray for us and especially our children. This transition is going to be hard especially for Faith but we are believing that God is at work in her heart and preparing her for the good works that He has planned for her.

So the crazy ride called life continues for us. I couldn't do any of this without the grace of God and the most wonderful husband and father I know!! I leave you with a couple of pictures.

Better Late than Never...........

2010-08-06T09:15:00.003-04:00

I can't believe that it has almost been 2 months since I updated our blog. I am finding that since returning from Ethiopia, I have had a difficult time putting my thoughts into words that everyone can read. I have never been a writer so it is amazing that our journey was documented like it was.

So, I am sure that the question you all have is how is Noah doing. He is amazing, beautiful, a joy, and a delight. I really do not believe there are enough adjectives to describe him. All that to say that some days have been difficult but the good days far outweigh the bad. This past week we were in Chicago to meet up with some moms and friends of his from the IAN care center. We had a blast except for a trip to the local ER. As I watched all of the children, I was once again undone by how perfect Noah fits into our family. It also was cool to see how the other kids fit so well into their families. It reminded me that God is in the business of placing the lonely in families!!

We have been home four months and the changes in Noah are amazing. We have not had the huge growth changes that others have had. Since our referral in December, he has grown 7 inches and gained 8 pounds. He is in the 90th percentile for height and weight. We have had two appointments with the IA doctor. We do believe that he is about six months older than his paper birth date. We have decided to keep his birthdate the same because it will only help him in the long run to be older in school rather than younger. Plus it means that I get to keep him with me for two years:) He is doing great with his English. He is now speaking in three and four word sentences. His attachment is coming along great. We are still pretty limiting in what we do with him and I don't regret it for a minute. Our family and friends have been very helpful and understanding. Last night before bed Doug sat down on the floor. Noah got up from where he was sitting and moved so that he could sit next to his Ababa. This totally melted my heart. It has been fun to see Faith and Noah begin interacting as siblings. Faith is a great big sister but does get annoyed by her little brother at times. I remember being so excited the first time the argued.

One highlight from the past month is that we readopted Noah. We had the pleasure of sharing our journey with an amazing judge. After the hearing, we had to wait to get some paperwork from the clerk. She told us that she had never seen the judge so moved. She said that our boy stole a piece of the judge's heart. This was great to hear and we once again are humbled by how just taking the steps of obedience has brought God glory.

Here are a few pictures of what has been happening the past two months:

My Montage 6/10/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-06-16T23:29:00.001-04:00

Noah's new favorite song:)

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My Montage 6/16/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-06-16T23:28:00.001-04:00

A New Video of Noah enjoying a grape.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Dates that Only God Could Orchestrate

2010-06-11T15:04:00.005-04:00

At the end of November last year, my son proposed to his childhood sweetheart. They set a date of June the 4th. At that time I spoke with my coordinator about time lines concerning the acceptance of a referral. She told us about a little boy that needed a family. He was older than what we expected. After counting out date possiblilities, we realized that it would be better to accept a referral sooner rather than later. You can read more here Here is a look at how the dates of the past year have played out.

August 20, 2009- We sign on with IAN as our agency
August 20, 2009- Noah arrives at Sele Enat(the orphanage our agency works with)
December 4, 2009- We were given info about Noah
December 9, 2009-We accepted Noah's referral
April 4, 2010- We met Noah for the first time
April 9, 2010- We arrived in the US with our son
June 4, 2010- Seth and Mallory were wed
June 9, 2010- We arrived back home after a wedding in Florida

As I look over all of this, I am amazed at God's kindness to me in particular. God knows that I can get very overwhelmed in details. He has continually reminded me through this adoption that He knows my frame. I am so grateful for how He carried our family through these past 6 months. Our boy has been home for two months now and none of us can remember life before him. He is such a joy! So here are some pictures of the wedding and Noah enjoying Florida!!

Unexpected Gifts Along the Journey

2010-05-29T06:50:00.004-04:00

Back in August when we began this journey to bring our boy home, I had no idea how many good gifts God had in store for us. The first one being our amazing son. Not only is he the cutest boy from Ethiopia, he also has the sweetest little spirit! I can not wait to see how God uses him. The second biggest blessing would be all of the girlfriends I have gained through this. Our agency has a Yahoo group where you can gain support, information and encouragement. It really is hard to understand all of the emotions, pain and joy that you experience as an adoptive parent unless you have walked this road. These women got it!! This group actually became my church for a season. They let me scream, cry, laugh, swear, and rejoice:) The closer we got to bringing Noah home, the more concerned I got that these friendships would end. I am so grateful that that is not the case.

One of my closest friends actually lives about 40 miles away. She read my blog back in October and contacted me. We were so excited to realize that we were so close. We talked about the days that would come when our boys would be able to play together. She had her referral at this time but we did not. When we finally received our referral, I began to dream about our boys playing together. Well that dream became a reality last night!! Here are some of the pictures of our evening together and even a video of our dance party:)

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Girlfriends, I want to thank each one of you for your friendship. Thank you for every time you listened to me cry, whine, scream, laugh, and cheer. I couldn't have walked this road without you! Dardi, thanks for opening your home to us! I can't wait for the next visit!!

11 more days....

2010-05-24T14:47:00.005-04:00

Eleven more days until these two are wed! Their relationship started off as a friendship between families. We knew that there was more to the story when Seth started to brush his teeth and shower more often, especially before Mallory would come over.

I remember seeing this picture from the CD-7 Christmas banquet and thinking there is definitely something more going on here.

Then they began to "study" together:)

I knew my boy was smitten and so were we!

Finally after 4 years of being together, Seth proposed and now in 11 days we will get to witness these two declare their love to one another before family, friends and our Lord! We rejoice with them and are so excited for them as they enter into this new season!!

They are gone:((

2010-05-20T19:18:00.003-04:00

Let me preface this with my mother did not do this. Today I took Noah to get his curls trimmed. My mom is crazy busy with babysitting for my sister and then leaving for Seth's wedding so I went to a shop down the street to get his curls trimmed. Trimmed!! Did I say trimmed?? Yes!! Well unfortunately a trim is not what happened:( His beautiful curls are gone! I am so sad and cried the entire way home. Here is the before and after picture:

So much to say but..........

2010-05-19T07:00:00.004-04:00

I am finding that since we got home, blogging is very difficult for me. I have always had a hard time putting my thoughts down on paper. This was not the case during our wait for Noah. I constantly had things that I knew had to be written down. I am so glad that I did because it has been amazing to go back to some of my old post and see how God has been faithful to answer all of our prayers.

Noah is doing great. We had his dedication this past weekend. It was so good to have our entire family together. We actually got the first picture of all of us since Noah arrived home. He has brought such joy and delight to our family! We find that we all do a lot more laughing now that he is here. That is about all that I have for now so I will leave you with some recent pictures! Enjoy!!

One Month Home:)

2010-05-09T16:32:00.003-04:00

It is hard to believe that we have already been home a month. In some ways I can't remember life before Noah was added to our family. He is such a delight to my heart. People have said to me how blessed he is to have us. The truth is that we are blessed and better because of him. The transition has been easier than we could have ever imagined. We have had a few rough moments but the joy and happiness far outweighs those times. We have him on a pretty strict rountine which I think has helped him adjust better. He sleeps great at night and takes usually a 2-3 hour nap per day. We had his appointment with the international adoption doctor. All of his test came back negative. We were pleasantly surprised. We also did our first bike ride through the metroparks. The first ten minutes of the ride, Noah squeeled with glee. I almost wrecked my bike because of laughing with him. Faith has settled in to her role as big sister and is doing a great job with him. Again we are amazed by God's kindness to us!
Life continues to be busy as we get ready for Seth and Mallorys wedding! Mostly everything that can be done on this end is done! Next weekend, with friends and family joining us at our home, we will dedicate Noah to the Lord. We are continuing to pray about going back on the list to do this all over but for right now we are just going to enjoy the next several months. Happy Mother's Day to all my friends. I am a better mom because of your friendship.

I have a BIG mouth!!!!

2010-05-06T12:05:00.004-04:00

Did I get your attention?? I hope so! I know that those of you who know me well are probably saying that you have known that for a long time. My husband actually calls my family the loud family. I remember reading in scripture that as a woman I was to have a quiet and gentle spirit. I remember laughing with God and wondering how that would ever be possible. I later found out that quiet meant to have a firm trust in God. Whew!!I also believe that God has redeemed all of me including my mouth. I now choose to use it for the purposes of God.

So here I go. Most of you who know me and have spent any time chatting with me are aware of a ministry that we support called Drawn From Water. You can click on the link and read more about what they are doing for tribal children in Africa. We had the privilege when we were picking up Noah to spend time with Levi, Jessie, and their children. We also got to love on three children that were considered "mingi" and had been rescued by this ministry. To say that this was one of the highlights of our trip would be an understatement. They are incredibly humble people who left everything here in the States to answer the call of God and participate in saving children's lives. Their family's sacrifice was provoking. The sacrifices continue and now they have an urgent need. There are several women that are now pregnant with mingi babies. They are trying to raise the funds in order to rent a vehicle to make another trip to the tribes in order to speak to the elders of the tribe and make a plea to them for the lives of these babies. Some one has purchased a vehicle for them but they have been waiting for two months to get it through customs. When we met with Levi, I told him that I would come home and use my BIG mouth to make people aware of this ministry. You have an opportunity to participate in the saving of children's lives. My request is that you would pray for Levi, Jessie and their family! I do not remember how long of a journey it is to the tribes but I know that it is long and difficult. Please pray for the elders of the tribes. Please pray that God would open their eyes to lies concerning mingi. Second that you would consider sponsoring one of these rescue trips. The cost for the trip is $800.

Two Weeks Home

2010-04-24T16:33:00.005-04:00

I can hardly believe that we have already been home for 2 weeks! We have definitely gotten into a routine and life is good!! Noah's adjustment has been great. The first week was rough but for the most part he has adjusted so well. It has been so good to have Doug home with us. Next week will be Doug's last full week home with us. We have become very spoiled by having him here with us. It has been great for Noah to have this time to bond with Doug.

We have kept our boundaries very small with him. We have had entire week with no tantrums and very little crying. There was two days when he just has a very sad look in his eyes. It was so hard as his mom to see the sadness and not know what to do for him. After asking him many questions in Amharic, I finally just took him into my lap and prayed and cried out to the Lord for him. Later I came across this article. The grief of adoption is very real. We are believing for the Lord to use all of Noah's pain for His glory!

Noah's english is increasing every day. I can't believe how many new words he uses each day. He is quite the character and loves to make all of us laugh. He is responding very well to correction but we do realize that a time of testing will come. However, we are greatly enjoying this season.

We were able to take Noah to a park one morning this week. It is so fun to experience these things through the eyes of a child. He usually has a look of wonder in his eyes as he sees all the new things. As I am watching him, the Lord continues to speak to me about my adoption in Christ. The question that keeps coming to me is if I still look at the things of God with wonder and excitement. I have been praying for fresh vision as I look deeper into the Word of God. Doug will be taking over the blog to do some posting about our trip.

My Montage 4/20/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-04-20T20:41:00.001-04:00

We are having a blast bonding with our boy. Things have gotten so much better here. My abs are sore from laughing so much. He is such a character and loves to make everyone laugh. Last night he serenaded us from his bed for about 2 hours. I finally went up at 10 and told him beka(enough). Here is a taste of what we heard.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

One Week Home

2010-04-17T21:53:00.003-04:00

It is so hard to believe that we have already been home a week. I know that I said that I would be blogging about our trip but I am still finding it very hard to put our trip into words. So, I decided I would let you all know how our adjustment is going. Noah did great on the plane ride home. He slept most of the trip and when he wasn't sleeping, he was watching movies. The first few days home with Noah were rough. We did not have much jet lag. Thank God or else it would have been much more difficult. The first night that we put him to bed was horrible. We had decided to go ahead and let him sleep in our room for however long the adjustment would take. He did not want to go to bed and just cried. It was the most gut wrenching cry I have ever heard. We were able to get him settled down and he slept until about 5 am. Doug and I tag teamed the first couple of nights. After a couple of days, we had him nap in his own bedroom. Since that time he has been sleeping both a nap and night time in his own bed. We did have to limit his water in the evening and he now sleeps from about 8:30 pm until 7:30 am with a three hour nap. This alone makes for a happy mommy:)

Every report we got from traveling families was that our boy was so quiet. We have not found this to be the case. He has the greatest laugh and loves to be the clown. His giggle is one of my favorite sounds. The first few days, he really was rejecting me. This was hard. The one helpful thing was that I felt love for him from the moment I saw him. We used different strategies with food for him to begin to warm up to me. On Wednesday, Doug was gone for the day so I was his only option. That seemed to make a difference and we definitely had a breakthrough. We have seen the Ethiopian shrug and have been quickly letting him no that this is not acceptable. We are finding that he is a very good eater. He doesn't like much variety which is good because there is not much variety around here.

Once again we want to thank each of you for the part you played in our journey. Having our boy here is still amazing to us. I regularly say to Doug that we have an African boy in our home. We are humbled and amazed that God would give us the privilege to be the parents to these four kids. Please continue to pray for all of us as we adjust to our new normal. Also please pray as we continue to seek God in regards to what He has put in our hearts concerning Ethiopia and our future.

We are Home

2010-04-14T12:25:00.005-04:00

Sorry dear friends for being absent for so long. The absence in the beginning was because it has been near impossible to put our trip into words. I plan on doing that over the next week. We truly felt the prayers of the Saints during our entire trip. When we left on Friday evening, I began to have a panic attack at the airport in New York. I took a Xanax and Doug prayed for me and on the plane we went. We loved flying on Emirates. Our stay in Dubai allowed us to be completely refreshed upon arriving in Ethiopia. Driving through the city to our guest house was surreal. People had told me of the poverty but there really are no words that can prepare you for what you see. This was very overwhelming for both Doug and I. When we arrived at the Yebsabi Guest House, we really began to question what we had done. I was not prepared for this reaction from Doug. We took time to pray and then we got ready to go and meet our boy. As soon as we arrived and saw our boy, our fears immediately dissipated. He was absolutely beautiful. We were only at the care center for about a half an hour before returning to the guest house. We then enjoyed a coffee ceremony. That was our first exposure to Ethiopian coffee and we were hooked:) We then brought Noah to our room and bathed him, played for awhile and then put him to bed for the night. Here are some pictures of our travel and first day with Noah. to be continued.........

Five Days Until....

2010-03-28T07:32:00.003-04:00

So five days until we board a flight headed to Ethiopia and seven days until I get to kiss ........

Him!

Gensis 22:14 The Lord Will Provide

2010-03-25T08:22:00.002-04:00

I was planning on writing a blog today about my son's love story. My desire is to honor him and Mallory and the way that they have walked out their relationship. Also to brag a little about what great kids they are. I will have to do that on another post. This next post is a long one but if you need encouragement concerning the financial aspect of adoption, please read this.

Today I want to brag on my God!! From the time that I accepted Christ back in 1994, God has continually blown me away with His provision for us. This started almost immediately. When we first began following Christ, we were so far in debt that we could barely pay the bills with both of us working full time. As we began to read the scriptures we realized that we needed to tithe on our income. I remember fighting this so strongly but Doug stepped in and said that this was what we were doing. At the time, our pastor told us that he really had no idea how it worked but he saw time and time again where people stepped out and tithed in faith and God provided. So we jumped right into the deep end of the pool. I would have started with 2 or 3% but Doug insisted on 10%. From that day forward, we never missed a bill. Not only that, I was able to quit my job and stay at home with my children. We got into military housing with only a 3 month wait. It normally was a 2-3 year wait. We also paid off all of our debt.

So you think that right there would have convinced me that God would provide. Unfortunately that was not the case. God had put on our hearts in 1994 the desire for more children. It was not a possibility for this to happen physically without a surgery. Through many tears and years of laying it down, God provided a way for us to add to our family. This came through the foster care system. There is so much to that story but right now I just want to focus on God's provision. When we were getting ready to finalize Faith's adoption, I had to go to a meeting through the county about receiving a subsidy. At the beginning of the meeting I raised my hand and explained that we probably did not qualify for a subsidy because we had a healthy , Caucasian baby. The leader asked me a few questions concerning Faith's birth family. Because of their history, Faith qualified as special needs. This totally blew my mind. We then found out that we would receive a monthly subsidy for her until she turns 18. This also just so happened to be the year that the adoption tax credit would be applied to special needs adoptions. Therefore, we didn't have to pay a dime to adopt Faith. We would get a monthly subsidy and we would also get a tax credit of around $12,000 spread out over about 4 years. Unbelievable!!

Fast forward to Noah's adoption. When we started this adoption, we only had enough money for the home study but we knew that God had called us to this. We knew that He would provide but had no idea how. He provided every single penny through so many different ways. People who hardly knew us helped in ways that blew us away. We are forever grateful for all of their sacrifices for us. God used a hail storm, a fund raiser, cookbooks and a grant from Show Hope. Now we just found out that the tax credit has been increased to $13,170 and instead of being spread over 5 years, we will get it all back when we file our 2010 taxes early next year. So all this to say! God is the one who came up with the idea of adoption. It cost Him the life of His son in order to adopt us! I can say with no hesitation that my God WILL Provide!!!

Single digits...9

2010-03-24T07:39:00.002-04:00

Nine days until we are getting on the plane headed to Africa and our boy! Everyone has asked how we are doing and so far we are doing great. I think that we have everything that we need to take. Hopefully tomorrow we are going to pack everything that we will not be using so that we make sure that we can take everything we have. It has helped that we have had a ton of things going on. Last weekend was the shower for my future daughter-in-law. I am so grateful for her! She has been and will continue to be a great blessing to my son and our family! This weekend we will help her move into the apartment that they will be living in after they get married. A friend wrote to me last night that he couldn't wait to meet Seth's wife. As I read it, tears streamed my face. These past 21 years have flown by and now he is getting married. WOW!
Faith seems to be doing ok with the fact that we are leaving. Please pray for her as we prepare to leave. She is so excited for Noah to come home that I think that helps prepare her for our leaving. She has a rough time when Doug leaves for his 24 hour shift. My mom and sister will do a great job keeping her busy. She also gets to have a sleep over with Mallory the night before we come home so that gives her something else to look forward to. Plus I bought her a present to open for every day that we are gone.
Please continue to pray for us as we prepare to leave. Can't wait to share pictures of the newest Robinson in our arms. One last thing, we are picking Noah up on Easter! How appropriate is it that we will be starting our new life together on a day that we celebrate our new life in Christ! Once again I can say without a doubt that God's timing is perfect!!

13 Days but Who's Counting??

2010-03-20T10:22:00.002-04:00

13 days until we leave on a jet plane. Some days I feel as though I am going to burst with excitement and then other days I am asking myself what in the world have we gotten ourselves into. This weekend is crazy with a fund raiser for some friends today and then a shower for my future daughter in law tomorrow. Things should slow down a little this week so that I can focus on getting all of our bags packed with the supplies we are bringing for Sele Enat and Drawn from Water.

This morning I woke up to something that increased my excitement to get to Africa. Here is a short video of the cutest little boy in Africa.

http://sharing.theflip.com/session/ea43e9e37868909d3e5cccc42c49270d/video/11762192

Humbled by People's Prayers for Us

2010-03-18T13:38:00.003-04:00

I saw this message today in an email for a church's prayer requests:

Please pray for Doug and Monica. In about a month, they will travel to Ethopia to bring home their child Noah. Pray for safe travels. More importantly, pray for Noah, that he falls madly in love with his new mommy and daddy, that his life will be of service to God, that he will flourish and grow with his new family. Pray for Monica and Doug as they see their child for the first time. May there be an undeniable bond between them, that all the legal stuff will go smoothly, and that they will raise Noah to fully know Christ.

It was incredibly humbling to know that people are praying this way for us!! Can't believe that we leave in 15 days!!

My Love

2010-03-15T11:48:00.004-04:00

The past week has been a rough one. The stress of the upcoming trip and all the ups and downs of waiting for our embassy date has taken a toll on our marriage. This morning I decided to start my date with being grateful for the man God has given me. I took some time to rehearse all that we have been through in the past 24 years. Here is the list:

1.A 3 week courtship. Yes we were crazy and yes it is an act of God that we are still together:)
2. A long-distance engagement.
3. The death of my grandmother a week before our wedding.
4. Wedding (enough said)
5. Purchased a home
6. 6 month Mediterranean cruise
7. Pregnancy
8.Birth
9.Pregnancy
10. Birth
11.Several surgeries
12.Dive school
13. lots of dive jobs
14. near divorce. This happened a lot but we were in the process in 1994 until God intervened
15. Becoming Christ followers
16. Homeschooling
17. The death of my beloved Grandma
18. Move to Ohio
19. Unemployment
20. Job as a firefighter
21. Foster care
22. Paramedic school
23. adoption of Faith
24. putting our oldest daughter in public school
25. Starting our international adoption
26. Both of our older children moving out
27. Planning a trip to Africa

Add in a number of health problems, changing of churches, loss of friendships and I am amazed that at the end of it all, we love each more today than yesterday. Please enjoy this picture montage of us through the years. I am amazed once again by God's mercy and kindness to us through the years!

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

So Much Happening

2010-03-12T17:23:00.002-05:00

There has been so much going on the past week that my head has been spinning. At the beginning of this process I had determined that at the end of it I wanted to reflect Christ more. When I asked for that I knew that would mean that the fire would have to be hotter in order to burn off the dross. I was essentially asking for trials. They have come so that my faith, of greater worth than gold may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. I do believe that this has happened. My God is worthy of all praise, honor and glory! He has answered the prayers of this momma's heart. When I became a believer someone was praying for our family. She said she saw a little boy who looked nothing like us and he was one of our children. I have never know how that would play out until this past December when I saw our boy's face. We now have a son who looks nothing like us but I do believe that as he grows up, he will reflect our heavenly father. I hope that as he sees Christ in us, he desires to look like him!

So here is what is happening. We have a confirmed embassy date. We will be together with our son in a little over 3 weeks. We have every dime that we need to travel. We got an amazing deal on tickets. We are flying Emirates and that makes this girl who is afraid to fly feel a lot better. We are hoping while we are there that we will be able to meet with Noah's birthmom. Please pray that this happens. We would love to be able to thank her for her selfless sacrifice.

Here is how you can be praying for us:
1. Please pray for us as we prepare to travel. Please pray for Faith that her heart would be prepared for us to leave. Pray for me. I am not to fond of flying and flying over the ocean just scares the poo out of me! Please pray that we would be able to get everything done that needs to be done in order to make our homecoming less stressful.
2. Please pray for all of our friends who are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia. There are big changes happening right now in the country. They now are requiring two visits to Ethiopia. This is an added expense but also takes a toll on the families and children emotionally.

Thanks again for all of your support and care. I have to give a shout out to all my girls in our Yahoo Group. Ladies you are the best!! I never could have done this without you! I really hope someday to meet each of you and your beautiful children. For those of you waiting for court, embassy dates, etc... I will love on your children and whisper to them that they have families who love them and are coming soon. I must say that this is the best agency and the best support group ever!

We have confirmation!!

2010-03-08T15:54:00.002-05:00

We have an appointment with the Us Embassy of Ethiopia on April 7th, 2010. We are so excited and cannot wait to travel. I will write more later but for now we are getting ready to celebrate!!!

I have to Believe

2010-03-06T19:08:00.005-05:00

I have so much to say today but no idea where to begin. So here are a few things that are happening. The first thing is that we got to see the video of our boy finding out about us! It was precious. He just has such a sweet spirit. We can not wait to get him into our arms. We are believing God for the perfect timing of this. That leads me to the next thing that is happening. The Department of State is making some changes to the process after court and before our embassy date. We really do not know what this means for us right now. Our travel could be delayed. We are praying that that is not the case but are trusting that God knows best! You can read more about what is happening here.
Also today was my shower. I will devote a separate post to that but it was amazing. The support from my family and friends during this process has been amazing. This is going to be one loved little boy. So please pray for us as we continue walking this journey. Please pray for us to hear soon about our embassy date.

Travel Detour

2010-03-04T12:03:00.002-05:00

I am taking this post to detour for a short time from our travel plans. Last spring we went to visit my in-laws in Florida. On the way down we had the great pleasure to stay with some dear friends in Charlotte. While visiting with them I felt the Lord spoke to me that we were to mobilize for movement. When we left Charlotte, we had what turned into 13 more hours in the car. Doug and I began to talk about just what that might mean for us. The first thing that I started with asking was what would keep us from movement. One of the most glaring things was our consumer debt. The second thing was our mortgage on our house. During our stay in Florida we began to pray about what steps we needed to make to make mobilization a reality. We knew that getting out of debt was the first priority. Not only is being in debt unbiblical, it is also unwise. So we determined that all of Doug's second income from mowing was to go to paying off debt. We made a ton of progress and then God put a halt to it for a season while we pursued Noah's adoption. As soon as mowing starts up again in the spring, we will be able to continue with paying it off and be debt free by the fall. Praise God!!
We also have been praying as to what God would have us moving towards. Since we came to the Lord in 1994 God has placed in us a desire to walk out our faith in fellowship with other like-minded believers. Over the past several years of really not being in a church God has clearly shown us what that is to look like. We have experienced this is in small ways throughout our years of walking with Christ but over the past year the conviction for this has grown even stronger.
In February of 2008 some dear friends asked us to visit a church about 45 minutes away. They told us it was a safe place that we could go and just worship and hear the Word preached. Isn't it sad that we had to look for a "safe place"? Shouldn't all churches be that?? Sorry, I digressed. Over the past several years Doug has developed a great friendship with the pastor of this church. We love him and his family. As we have seen and heard all that is going on here, a hunger has grown in us to be a part of this body.
So you maybe asking why I am sharing all of this. Well, the reason is because we would covet your prayers as we move forward in this direction. When we began the process of adopting Noah, God said for us not to look at the entire financial picture but to do the next thing. Each time we just did the next thing, God showed up. So that is what we are doing. We are doing the next thing. We have 4 weeks until we go to get our sweet boy. During this time we are going to be getting our house ready as if we are putting it on the market when we get home from Africa. We have decided that if the transition home goes well and we still feel the Lord pushing us forward, we will put the house on the market. If for some reason God closes the door, I will just have a really clean and organized house which will be a blessing. So please pray that we would:
1. Have wisdom to know exactly what money to spend and not to spend to get the house prepared.
2. For us to be able to have joy in the process. If at any time this detracts from our family life, we will put things on hold. We have decided that we do not want to miss out on anything this season has for our family. We want to enjoy Noah's homecoming and Seth's wedding. That is our priority right now.
3. Please pray for us to continue to hear the clear voice of the Lord.
Thanks so much and I will update the next post with more about our journey to get our son.

1st Posting of Travel Plans

2010-02-28T08:01:00.004-05:00

I thought that while I am waiting to travel I would take some time to update you on what we plan to do while in Ethiopia. When we first began this journey we came across a ministry called Drawn from Water. This is a ministry that is working to rescue mingi(cursed) children from culturally mandated infanticide. We have loved hearing what God is doing in through the families that are committed to this purpose. We began supporting them financially and now have the opportunity to share a meal with Levi and his family when we are picking up Noah. I sent an email to Levi asking if there was anything that they needed us to bring with us that would bless them. He explained that since they have grown by another ten children, they have a need for clothing and shoes. I then sent back and asked if there was anything that would bless him and his wife. I was hoping that he would give me an idea of something for them. I have a great desire to honor these two for the sacrifices that they have made for the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are walking out what they believe and that is provoking! So he once again sends back an answer to my question and again the answer is concerning his children. You see they are unable to get ranch dressing in Ethiopia. He wondered if I would bring packets of the dry ranch dressing to mix with mayo for his children. I was undo upon reading the email. I am daily confronted with my selfishness. I daily struggle with dying to myself just to care for the ones right here in my home let alone anyone outside these walls. I began this adoption journey desiring to be more like Christ. I am so grateful for God's mercy and grace that makes that a reality. So as we spend time with Levi and his family, I do hope that we are able to bless them. I also hope that through this visit I am able to come back to the states and reflect more of Christ to those around me. Please read their story and prayerfully consider committing financially to what they are doing for these children. They need 76 people to commit to $25 a month to cover their monthly expenses. As of now I think they still need 31 more people to commit. I can't wait to share more with you when we get home!

Not for the Faint Hearted

2010-02-26T16:02:00.003-05:00

I have come to the conclusion that adoption is not for the faint-hearted. It can be quite the emotional rollercoaster. Throughout this process I have been continually challenged to walk this out in a way that honors God. From the beginning I knew that God wanted to grow me in how I respond to life and circumstances. I have really grown in this area but the past several days have been very difficult. Part of the challenge has come from my desire for control. I am in the midst of doing Beth Moore's most recent version of Breaking Free. She uses Isaiah 30:15. In quietness and trust is your strength. The original word for quietness is shaqat meaning "to lie quietly, be undisturbed, to calm." The phrase that concludes this scripture is: "But you would have none of it" I unfortunately can relate to that. My hearts desire is to be totally submitted to God's timing and plan for bringing our son home unfortunately my flesh fights that regularly. So I am making a choice to surrender this to Christ. I think that I might have to do this every minute or so but I am determined to do it with the help of the one who already has won the battle for me!!! Please continue to pray for us and the timing of all of this. Pray that our son would continue to be healthy. Pray that he would know in his heart that a family is here so excited to add him to our craziness!!

Noah knows about Us!

2010-02-22T14:04:00.002-05:00

I was so excited to get news this morning from my friend who is in Ethiopia picking up her daughter. Here is what she posted:

Nuguisse-Monica, I fell in love with him! We were so thrilled to be able to give him the gifts from you! We got it all on video. He liked the picture that Faith drew-Sister explained to him who it was from. Then we looked at the photo book and the book with voices. He really liked it. I gave him some hugs and kisses. Then we put the book away and he started to cry...really cry. Sister took him on her lap and he just wanted the book back out!!! It melted my heart, he really liked it and she went through it with him again listening to your voices. He also liked the picture of your dog. He was a little heavier than I thought he would be.

So he knows that we are his family! There have been lots of tears shed today as we celebrate one more milestone on our journey to bring our son home. As soon as I get the video I will post it for all of you to see!

My Montage 2/18/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

2010-02-18T20:18:00.001-05:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Introducing.......

2010-02-17T14:29:00.003-05:00

Noah Nigussie Robinson

Needless to say we are jumping for joy!! God is so good! There are so many thoughts and emotions going through my head right now that I will post at a later date. The next step is to receive confirmation of our embassy date. We are hoping for April 7th. After we receive that we will make final arrangements. The timing is perfect because Faith will be on spring break so she will not miss any school and be able to stay with people instead of finding people to stay at our home.
Thanks again for all of your prayers, financial and emotional support! We never could have walked this journey without you!

2nd Try at Court

2010-02-16T18:40:00.002-05:00

While we sleep tonight a judge in Ethiopia will once again be hearing our case! A myriad of thoughts and emotions are happening here in the Robinson house! Please pray that we pass this time. A dear friend of mine is leaving in the morning to go and pick up her daughter. Yea!! She is taking with her a photo album of our home and family. If we pass court she will be able to give this to Noah and let him know that he has a family who loves him dearly! I will post as soon as we hear something. Every day is just one step closer to bringing our boy home.

Next Court Date

2010-02-10T20:27:00.002-05:00

I heard from our coordinator this afternoon that they were unable to get the paper that was needed for us to pass court. They hopefully will have it for our court date which is now set for February 17th. I was fine with the news on Monday but today was a different story. I held it together pretty well until I saw a friends Facebook status. She has been advocating for a 2.5 year old boy from Ghana. He actually was on quite a few peoples blogs with people trying to get a family for him. Unfortunately I just found out that he passed away. This news broke me! This past week with Faith being so sick has made me very aware of how much I take simple medical care for granted. When she had a high fever, I had access to clean water, medicine and a doctor's bill that I have insurance to cover. There really was no fear of her dying of dehydration. Right now, that is not the case with my son. He is in an orphanage. He does have access to water and limited medical care but it is nothing like he will have here. This is another part of the surrendering that has to happen in my heart through this adoption. I have to remember whose child he is first. Please continue to pray for us as we walk this journey of faith. Please pray that every piece of paperwork for our court date will be there. As crazy as this sounds, please pray that the judge would be there also. One last thing is please pray for the orphanage where Sampson lived. Please pray for comfort for his caregivers and also all of the children as the mourn the loss of their little friend.

We did not pass......

2010-02-08T19:34:00.002-05:00

Well friends we did not pass court today! It was a moment of sadness and then just a reminder that God has orchestrated all of our moments. We found out that our son's birthmother did make it to court today but one paper from the Ministry of Womens Affairs did not. Our facilitator feels hopeful that he will get the paper to court wither Tuesday or Wednesday. Please pray for this to happen. If not, our next court date is the 17th of February. In checking flights, we found out that to travel 2 weeks later causes our tickets to go up $1000. We will let you know as soon as we hear anything.

Court Tomorrow

2010-02-07T07:37:00.003-05:00

Tonight as we sleep a judge in Ethiopia will hear our case and decide if we pass court or not. Not passing court does not mean that we can't adopt, it just means another delay in getting our boy home. Court in Ethiopia is nothing like it is here in the states. A number of different things can happen so please just pray that we pass.
Lord willing, if we pass, we will probably be leaving for Ethiopia on the 20th of March and returning on the 27th. Please pray for me in particular concerning the travel end of things. I do not like to fly let alone fly for this long of a period of time. I also have never been gone from Faith for more than 4 days so 7 days sounds so long right now.
Thanks so much for all of your prayers and support! Hopefully tomorrow I will be posting a picture of our boy for the world to see!!

One Week Till Court

2010-02-01T13:15:00.002-05:00

We have one more week until our court date! God willing we will pass the first time and then hopefully travel around the 20th of March. Please pray that all of our paperwork would be there and also pray for our son's birthmom. Here is a video to enjoy. It makes me cry every time I watch it.

Have a Heart for International Adoption??

2010-01-31T10:26:00.002-05:00

Please read this blog and act!

My heart breaks for this little boy and his family. Even though the media has left please continue to pray for the people of Haiti.

We Are Overwhelmed

2010-01-26T18:37:00.002-05:00

I will go before you and make the
rough places smooth:
I will shatter the doors of bronze,
and cut through their iron bars.
And I will give you the treasures of darkness,
and hidden wealth of secret places,
in order that you may know that it is I,
the LORD, the God of Israel, who calls you by your name.

Isaiah 45:2-3

This is the scripture that Lord gave us back in August concerning our adoption. I am so happy to say that He truly has given us the hidden wealth of secret places!! We are overwhelmed by God's grace and favor upon our lives and this adoption. Because of a grant from Show Hope we now have everything that we need financially to pick our son up!! WOW! From the beginning we said that this had to be a story where God is very big and we are very small. That is exactly what has happened. This adoption has the fingerprints of God all over it from beginning to end! What a great story we have to share with our son about God being intimately involved in every detail of his story. As I spent last night rereading my blog post I am once again humbled by God's provision for us. I have asked for ears to hear and eyes to see and I am so thankful that He has answered those prayers. So if any of you are considering adoption but don't know how you can pay for it, BELIEVE BIG!! God loves these orphans far more than any of us do and He is in the business of placing the lonely in families! Step out and watch Him provide. We also are so thankful to our friends and family who have joined us on this journey and supported us both financially, emotionally and spiritually. Thanks for being sensitive to the Lord. You have made a difference in an orphans life and there will be eternal rewards for that! We have desired to continue to sow the seeds of adoption into our families that are moving forward with the process. For that reason, we are passing on the remaining cookbooks to another couple who is just beginning their journey. I still have some left so if you would like one, please know that the proceeds go to another family who we are honored to help get started:)

Please continue to pray for our court date on the 8th of February. Please pray that God's hand would be on every detail of this next step. Please continue to lift up our little guy. Pray that he would be protected and comforted. Thanks again!

Africa Necklaces

2010-01-25T15:44:00.003-05:00

This is a charm that my girlfriend made for me our fundraiser. She has agreed to make 3 more for me to sell as a fundraiser for our adoption. The price for each charm is $50. If you would be interested in purchasing one please email me at robbiesfam@yahoo.com. The piece is sterling silver and includes a black pearl. The black pearl represents our child who is of great value not only to us but His heavenly father.

In a Pit

2010-01-23T18:15:00.006-05:00

Psalm 40

For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.

¹ I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

² He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

³ He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.

⁴ Blessed is the man
who makes the LORD his trust,
who does not look to the proud,
to those who turn aside to false gods.

⁵ Many, O LORD my God,
are the wonders you have done.
The things you planned for us
no one can recount to you;
were I to speak and tell of them,
they would be too many to declare.

⁶ Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
but my ears you have pierced
burnt offerings and sin offerings
you did not require.

⁷ Then I said, "Here I am, I have come—
it is written about me in the scroll.

⁸ I desire to do your will, O my God;
your law is within my heart."

⁹ I proclaim righteousness in the great assembly;
I do not seal my lips,
as you know, O LORD.

¹⁰ I do not hide your righteousness in my heart;
I speak of your faithfulness and salvation.
I do not conceal your love and your truth
from the great assembly.

¹¹ Do not withhold your mercy from me, O LORD;
may your love and your truth always protect me.

¹² For troubles without number surround me;
my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see.
They are more than the hairs of my head,
and my heart fails within me.

¹³ Be pleased, O LORD, to save me;
O LORD, come quickly to help me.

¹⁴ May all who seek to take my life
be put to shame and confusion;
may all who desire my ruin
be turned back in disgrace.

¹⁵ May those who say to me, "Aha! Aha!"
be appalled at their own shame.

¹⁶ But may all who seek you
rejoice and be glad in you;
may those who love your salvation always say,
"The LORD be exalted!"

¹⁷ Yet I am poor and needy;
may the Lord think of me.
You are my help and my deliverer;
O my God, do not delay.

COURT DATE

2010-01-21T07:52:00.003-05:00

Just wanted to let everyone know that we got a court date for the 8th of February. What that means is that a representative from the orphanage will go to court that day in Ethiopia on our behalf. Most families have not been passing court on the first try. We are hoping that that is not the case for us. If we pass, we will travel to Ethiopia about 6 weeks later to pick Noah up. We are so elated and it is starting to really sink in that we are adding to our family. Sometimes as I look at his pictures it still feels like a child that we are sponsoring but today it feels very real.

To make today even more fun, I went to Target to purchase sheets to go with his new bedding. While I was there, I was able to get some clothes really cheap for him! Nothing like a court date and a great deal all in one day!! Please continue to pray for the finances to finish out our adoption. We will need about $6000 but I know that God will provide! We already have $2500 of it. Please pray for our boy! Pray for a hedge of protection to be around him. Please pray for his birth mom. She will have to come to court on the 8th of February. She will forever be one of my heroes. Please pray that God's hand would be personally on every piece of paper necessary to complete our adoption. We can't wait to announce our son as an official Robinson. Thanks so much for all of your continued support. If you would like to make a tax deductible contribution please do so to Lifesong for Orphans. Their address is in the previous post.

Eighteen Days until Court

An Update on our Adoption

2010-01-08T07:58:00.004-05:00

We just wanted to give everyone an update as to how things are going and how you can continue to pray for our upcoming adoption. We have continuously been amazed by God's provision for us with this adoption. When we started this journey back in August we had no idea how we were going to pay for this adoption but God knew. One of the first things He had orchestrated for us was to be in a church that came along side of us in our adventure. Without them, we realize that this adoption would not have been possible. We have been blown away by their support. God calls us to fulfill James 1:27, "care for orphans in their distress..."but not all are called to adopt. Some are called to pray, some to give financially, and some to adopt. Please know that your support has been the hands and feet of Jesus to this little boy in Africa who still has know idea that he has a family waiting for him here in the states.

So this is where things stand as of now. We are still waiting for a court date. We are hoping to hear that we have one scheduled soon. It normally takes 4-8 weeks to get a court date. The court date is normally scheduled for about 3 weeks later. If we pass court the first time which has not been the norm lately, we would travel about 6 weeks later. Right now we are probably going to be traveling some time in April. Please pray for the timing of all of this. Seth's wedding is June 4 so we would love to have him home and settled for a month or so before traveling to Florida. Also, Doug is off for almost the entire month of April so that would be perfect. As I type this though my heart cry is not my will but thy will be done!! God's plans are always so much better than mine anyways:)

Now onto the financial part of our journey. We will need about $6000 in order to travel. Right now we have about $1500 of that amount. I still have about 125 cookbooks to sell. If you would like to sell some or purchase one, please let me know. Also Lifesong for Orphans is a non profit ministry that has come alongside of us and set up an account where people can make tax-deductible donations to help cover our adoption cost. I am posting the letter here so that if you are interested in making a donation you will have the information. Doug is teaching as much as possible at the Cleveland Clinic Paramedic program in order to make extra money. I am also continuing to babysit. All of the money that I make from that goes straight to our adoption fund.

So here is how to pray:
1. Pray for our boy. Pray that he continue to stay healthy. Pray that God would comfort him for his remaining time in the orphanage. Pray for all of my "adoption" friends who will be traveling to pick up their children in the coming weeks. They will get to love on him for us and bring us back lots of pictures:)
2. Pray for financial provision.
3. Pray for peace and endurance for us through this process. We truly want to honor God in how we walk this out.

If you would like to participate financially please mail your tax-deductible contribution to the following and write Robinson #1092 adoption in the memo with check made out to Lifesong. The address is:

Lifesong for Orphans
PO Box 40/202 N Ford St
Gridley, IL 61744

Welcome to 2010

2010-01-05T11:30:00.002-05:00

Has not my hand made all these things,
and so they came into being?"
declares the LORD.
"This is the one I esteem:
he who is humble and contrite in spirit,
and trembles at my word. Isaiah 66:2

I was listening to a teaching from Frances Chan at Passion 2010. He really challenged us to look at our lives and see if we really tremble at the Word of God. I must say that for many years, tremble would not be a word that I use to describe what I felt when I read the Bible. These past two years I have experienced an increase in my hunger for the Word!! I think that is why I have enjoyed listening to men like Frances Chan, Matt Chandler and John Piper. I have seen that as I have grown and been eating meat(spiritual), milk no longer satisfies. But even taking all of that into consideration, I still have not trembled at God's word. Yet God's word says that this is who He esteems.

So this year I am not starting out with a bunch of resolutions. I do have just a few:

1. I am crying out to the Lord that I would tremble at His word. Not only tremble at it but really do it!! I am tired of hearing great messages, reading great books, and reading the Bible and not really walking boldly then in what the Word says! This year will be different.
2. God's word says that we are to take up our cross daily. I want to daily do this. Taking up my cross means dying daily to my desires, my flesh, my comfort and anything else that I can put the word my in front of. This year I am choosing to focus on daily doing this. I tremble as I write this because I know that dying is not easy.
3. I am no longer going to make apologies for my passion for God, for His Word, and my passion to see what is declared in scripture to be lived out in His church. I have asked myself continuously, "Do I really believe all of God's word?" His challenge back to me is to then walk it what I believe. So this year I am going to do just that!

On the adoption side of things, we are just waiting to hear about a court date. Once we receive a court date we will have a better idea of when we will travel. I have been busy getting stuff ready to get his room ready. Can't wait to get him home!!

Happy Birthday Bubby!!

2009-12-20T17:08:00.003-05:00

Today is our son Seth's 21st Birthday. We are so blessed to have him. He is a compassionate, determined, opinionated and strong young man. We are so proud of the man that he has become. We are looking forward to celebrating this next season of life with him as he marries his childhood sweetheart! We couldn't have hand-picked a better wife for him. We look forward to seeing how God uses him in this next season. Seth, may God bless you and keep you and make His face shine upon you. As you get married, you are going to find that you need Jesus more than ever:) I pray that you are surrounded by people that are racing hard after Jesus! Thanks for being our boy! We love you!

Does He Know Its Christmas Time??

2009-12-19T08:09:00.002-05:00

Last night I took Faith to the mall to do a little shopping and have dinner. One of her favorite things to do during this season is to ride the train. As she was riding, I began to cry. I was enjoying watching my little girl enjoy something so simple. I was imagining what my life would have looked like without her in it. I can never thank God enough for the joy that He has given me through this little girl. I was thinking about our little guy a continent away and wondering what Christmas will look like next year with him home!
This year we have taken a different approach to Christmas. We have slowed the pace way down. We have decided to be intentional in our focus. We bought an Advent wreath and candles and have been joyously anticipating the coming of our Savior. It has been so fun watching Faith see Christmas for its true meaning. I have asked myself if I wait for Christ return with as much anticipation as I wait for my son to come to America.
In the midst of all of the joy of the season a part of my heart is missing. It is on another Continent thousands of miles away. It is with a little boy who doesn't even know yet that he has a mom, dad, brother and sisters who can't wait to get him here! Does he know that his next Christmas will be completely different? Please pray that a court date would be granted soon!
I will leave you with one of my favorite Christmas songs. When this video first came out I loved it. Not because of its meaning but because most of my favorite singers at the time where in it! Little did I know that as I sang this song for so many years, that I would be adopting from the place that they were singing about. So enjoy!

How is it possible???.......

2009-12-13T07:11:00.002-05:00

How is it possible to have so much love for a child that you have only seen in pictures?? I am amazed by this. I feel so much love for him that at times I think my heart might just explode! As I think about horizontal adoption, I am led then to think about my vertical adoption. God's word says: I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.Ephesians 3:16-19. To know this love that surpasses knowledge.....So could it be that I am beginning to understand this verse at a heart level and not just head level?? How amazing is it to know that God who knows everything about us, yes every thought, even the ones that you would not want anyone to know, loves us like this?? This is what leads me to fall on my face and worship!!! If you even have the slightest conviction to adopt, I say do it. The amazing thing about this is not what our son receives from this adoption(although that is important) but more so how much more I get to know and understand the love of my heavenly father! As I begin to get a hold of this love, the more I desire to be like Him!

We said YES!

2009-12-09T16:55:00.002-05:00

We have accepted a referral for a little 3 year old boy. We are so excited. The people who have just traveled have described him as "sweet". The past several days have been very difficult and we are learning what stepping out in faith is. God has been so kind to continuously confirm each step that we take. He has brought people from all over the US to encourage us and pray for us. Please pray that we would get our court date soon. We are hoping to travel around the beginning of April. Thanks for all of your support and prayers! Can't wait until he is officially a Robinson so that we can share pictures of him.

6 years ago......

2009-12-06T07:29:00.003-05:00

So this morning I woke up thinking that it was December 5th only to realize that it is the 6th:( You see December 5th is the day that Faith officially became a Robinson six years ago. So today we will celebrate like it is the 5th because her daddy will be home from work and that will make the celebration even better! My heart is so full as I reflect on our journey that led us to our baby girl! I am amazed at our God's mercy. You see I don't deserve any of this. In 1994 my life was a mess, my marriage was over and then God stepped in. Not only did He save me and heal me, He restored my marriage!! Then as if that wasn't enough, He promised to add children to our family. It was a seven year journey to Faith. I knew that He had promised us a child, actually a son who would look nothing like us, is what I believed in my heart. It was seven years of praying, fasting, repenting, and laying my desires at the foot of the Cross. Little did I know when that phone rang on October 4th letting us know that they had a baby and would bringing her to us, the joy that she would be. The fifteen months leading up to her Gotcha Day were some of the hardest yet sweetest days. I learned more about God's love for me through that time than any other. I learned to walk in a greater dependence on the Lord. I began to understand my adoption in Christ in an even greater way. Leading up to the time that Faith came to live with us, I thought so much about what we would be doing for a child. Little did I realize that it would become more about what having her has done for me. So today we celebrate God's gift to us. We remember the courage of her birth mom to realize that she was unable to parent! We thank God for all of the joy, laughter, tears, and fun that have been added to our home because of Faith. Well I have tried to add a picture and after 5 time of my computer crashing, I have to stop and get ready for church. So Happy Gotcha Day Faith!! We love you and are so glad God chose you to be ours!!

By the way, we now only need $2670 to accept our referral! Woohoo! God provided $425 in two days!

Possibly Introducing Another New Robinson

2009-12-04T07:43:00.005-05:00

Well friends, I want to update you on what is going on with our adoption. After much prayer and conversation, we really have had peace with just bringing one child home. The Lord knows our frame and also knows the other crazy stuff that is going to be happening all during this time. That being a wedding in June in Florida! Woohoo! So all that to say, our adoption coordinator emailed us on Monday about a little guy who is 2.5 years old. She wanted to find out if we were set on bringing two children home or if one would be ok. We also talked about what the time frame would be if we accepted a referral right now. Our concern would be that our travel would interfere with the wedding. After checking the calendar, we realized that we would be traveling probably in April. How cool would it be to have the entire Robinson family at the wedding? She then began to tell me about him. I spoke with Doug and we decided to go ahead and see his picture and info. Our intial reaction in seeing him was fear. All of a sudden it really hit us that we were bringing another child into our home and life as we have known it was going to change. We had to remind each other of why we were doing this. We went back to what God has spoken to us from the beginning about adoption. The rest of the evening was spent talking with our children, looking at his picture, reading about the area he is from and praying. Let me just tell you that he is the cutest little guy. When Seth saw him, he said, "he looks sad". That is one thing that I have noticed about every referral picture. The children look so different after they have been placed in a family. It has really challenged me in how I look to others. Does my countenance reflect the reality of my adoption in Christ? He comes from an area that is hardest hit by the drought in Ethiopia. Only 22% of the water is drinkable. The great thing is that he is a chubby little guy and looks very healthy. We passed his medical information on to a friend who is a doctor to review. With the little information that is given, he said that everything looks great.

So what happens next? We have two weeks to officially accept his referral. At the time of accepting his referral, we will need to give the agency $6915. We have $3870 in our adoption fund. We are short $3045. As we have walked this journey, we have continuously stated that this has to be all God. It is easier to say that than to walk it out. We have applied for many grants and are waiting to hear about them. One of the grants is a matching grant that we were hoping would match the money in our fund. We are also looking at doing some kind of event in February. Not sure yet if it will be a spaghetti dinner or a trivia game night.

Here is where we need your help. The first thing that you can do for us is to pray! We only want to say yes to what God has said yes to. If this is our son, our God WILL provide! Please pray that we would clearly hear from Him during this time. The second thing is I have 200 cookbooks that need to sell. That would give us $1400 which is half of what we need. We do have the rest in savings so that would be amazing! If you would like a cookbook, read the previous post on how to do that. If you would like to sell some cookbooks for me, let me know and I will get them to you! Lastly if after reading this you feel lead to contribute to our adoption fund, you can do that by writing a check to New Life Community Church. Your contribution will be tax-deductible. I hesitated in adding this but feel that I would be disobeying God if I didn't. James 1:27 tells us that we are to care for widows and orphans in their time of need. I do not believe that everyone is called to adopt but I do believe that as Christ followers, we are all called to care for orphans. Sometimes that means just being able to help another family bring one home. As you read that please do not feel motivated by guilt to participate just be moved by grace. Also pray that God would move upon the hearts of the people reviewing our grant applications. Please pray for our little guy. Pray that God would continue to keep him healthy. Pray that if this is not our son that God would provide a loving family for him. Pray for his birth mom who had to bring him to the orphanage because she had no way to provide. She will forever be a hero to me. How much courage and love it must take to be able to do that. Thanks so much for your continued support and prayers!

Intoducing a New Robinson to Be

2009-11-27T08:07:00.006-05:00

It is with great joy that I introduce to you the newest Robinson to Be! Seth proposed to Mallory on Wednesday night and she said YES! We are so happy for them. They have walked out their relationship in such a God honoring way for the past 4 years! Seth did a great job preparing for the evening. He made her an amazing meal and proposed in a classic "Seth" way. The best part about it was his dancing to All the Single Ladies by Beyonce. So it looks like we will be having a wedding in Florida in June followed by a reception here in Ohio. The great thing is that we will be busy with wedding planning which will help make the time go faster in waiting for a referral of our next Robinson addition. Let the wedding planning begin:)

Cookbooks are Here!

2009-11-24T15:21:00.002-05:00

So our cookbooks are in and I have 200 to sell:) Each cookbook contain almost 150 recipes. These are easy family recipes! All of the recipes for the different soups that I make are included! You can purchase the books one of two ways. If you have a PayPal account, you can go to your account and click on the link to send money. Then click on the personal tab. My email for Paypal is robbiesfam@juno.com. The amount for the book is $10 and then $2.50 for shipping. I will do bulk shipping if you have others who would like to purchase them. If that is the case please let me know how many cookbooks that you would like and I will weigh them and charge exact shipping. All of the money goes towards our adoption. If we sell all 200, we will have enough money to purchase one airline ticket. If you do not have a paypal account just send me an email and I will give you my address to mail a check to. Thanks so much! Have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Boundary Lines

2009-11-19T12:12:00.002-05:00

Psalm 16:6
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; surely I have a delightful inheritance.

God gave me this scripture 15 years ago when I was first diagnosed with fibromyalgia. He is once again bringing it back to me. This past week and a half of being very sick have been quite a challenge. It has been years since I have been in bed this sick for this long. Being the rebel that I am, I really struggle with boundary lines. For as long as I can remember I have always wanted to push and test them. It was through much wrestling with the Lord that I learned about the pleasant places that God had for me as I walked within those boundary lines. I have experienced a great freedom in Christ as I have walked in them. When I was really sick there was so much that I had to say to no to. This is very hard to do unfortunately in most "Christian" cultures. There is this unspoken pressure as a Christian woman to be able to do and handle it all. Dealing with an illness on top of trying to be the perfect Christian women about drove me crazy. I now look back on this time and my illness with such gratitude. God really used my illness to set me free from so many things... things such as fear of man, pride and the craving of man's approval. It also shattered the lies that there are "perfect Christian women". I have learned through all of this that my standing before God is totally based on Jesus Christ and the perfect life that He lived for me. As much as I would like to believe at times that I can have it all together, the truth is that He is the one who holds it all together for me.

So how does this connect with my illness now and our upcoming adoption? Well, I was quite surprised this morning when God began to reveal to me that I am pushing my boundaries once again. It all started last Friday with a call that our agency had twin 2 year old boys that might possibly be available for us. I immediately went to trying to figure out how to make this happen. I rationalized in my mind that since we had prayed for twins, this must be our boys. I started contacting different organizations to try and get things moving quicker in regards to help financially. From the beginning, we have believed that we are not to go into debt in any way to bring our child home. The truth was that in order for this to happen with these two boys, that would be the case. I tried rationalizing that it is a no interest loan but a loan is a loan!! I have said with my mouth that I am totally fine with it being only one child but this morning the Lord began to expose something deeper going on. I really began to see that my desire for two in some ways is Godly. I mean when there are 4.8 million orphans in Ethiopia, why couldn't we take two. I also know that when we get there and I see the children who still do not have a family my heart is going to break for them. The Lord has continued to remind me that he knows my frame. I believe that I have led a very selfish and closed life for the past several years. I believe that God is calling me to enlarge the place of my tent. I do believe though that He can do that with one child. I am recognizing that some of things that have driven me in the past were beginning to drive me again. I have had a sweet time of fellowship with the Lord as I have repented and once again found delight in the boundary lines that He has drawn for me. As much as I would love to bring home two children, God is going to have to provide in a very clear way in order for that to happen. Do I believe that He can do that?? Absolutely and even if he chooses not I can say with all my heart that my boundary lines have fallen in pleasant places! Thanks so much for your continued prayers as we walk this journey. I will leave you with a quote that a friend posted from a man named Dan Cruver:

What orphans need are churches that are full of people who wake up each morning hearing and rehearsing these amazing words that are declared over them. “You are my beloved child, in whom I am well pleased. Yes, you were once without hope and without God in this world, but I have brought you near, embraced you, by the blood of Jesus. Live in my love as you move out in mission.”

If you are a Christian, God declares these amazing words over you. He doesn’t speak them over you because you have earned them. You could never do enough to earn these words of love. God speaks these words over you because of who Jesus is for you.

This is what God used to expose that I was trying to earn God's acceptance and love through pressing into something that may be outside of the boundary lines of what He has for us.
I am realizing now that loving these children and caring for orphans can only come from a place of understanding how much we have been loved by God. Any other reason that drives us to love them will come up short and not sustain us through the tough unlovely times.

So last night was........

2009-11-09T21:12:00.002-05:00

A total success and had God written all over it! From the beginning of the planning till the end of the event, God carried us through. We are amazed by God's kindness to us. He just continues to prove that adoption is straight from His heart. We have so many people who donated their time, money, talents, etc.. just to make our night a success. It was so exciting to hear today from people God has divinely set up to pursue their dreams to adopt. We do hope that He was glorified and magnified and that the passion that He has caused to burn so bright in our hearts would be contagious. So the big question is, "How much?" and the answer is $2300!!! Everyone asked if we had a goal and the truth is no. From the very beginning we have been completely aware that God knows exactly how much this adoption is going to cost. Because of that we have complete confidence that He will more than provide for all that we need. I am headed to bed because I have unfortunately caught what has been going around but I wanted to just give a short update. I am hoping for Doug to share a little of his message that he preached yesterday. He unpacked how our vertical adoption should impact our views of horizontal adoption. So here is a list of all the people who helped make last night a huge success:
Parma Park Church of God
New Life Community Church-you guys rock!!You have covered us in prayer and support since day one of this journey!
State Fair
Ryan Wilkins
Eric Bernier
Jacob Wadenpfuhl
Lozano Family
Elya Starek
Darrell Scott
Williams Family
Sarah Romain
Brianna Adams
Donna Schuster
Julie Williamson
Renee Barker
Newshutz Family
Linda West
Laurie Muniak
Jenny Duncan
Paul and Sharon Janos
Toni Maynard
Holly Terei
Coakley Family
Caleb Schuster Photography
Five Star Gymnastics
JK Kang Tae Kwon Do
Sbevis Designs Jewelry
Insurance Center of Akron
Masters Pizza
Indian Bear Lodge
Bam Bams Pizza
To anyone else I may have missed. May God bless the works of your hands!!

Do you have plans on Sunday?

2009-11-02T20:47:00.002-05:00

Orphan Sunday from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.

Sunday November 8th is National Orphan Sunday. We are having a night of celebration and awareness. We are celebrating all of the children that God has already placed in families. We are also believing that God is going to ignite this fire in other peoples hearts! Please join us. This is also a fund raiser for our upcoming adoption:)

The cost is $10 per person with a $30 family cap. You will get one raffle ticket with your admission and 3 raffle tickets with your family admission. We will also be selling them 10 for $10. We also have many amazing silent auctions. Bounce houses, face painting, worship and live music!! What more could you ask for.

Date:	Sunday, November 8, 2009
Time:	5:30pm - 9:00pm
Location:	Parma Park Church of God
Street:	12000 Huffman Road
City/Town:	Parma, OH

Calling All Prayer Warriors

2009-11-02T10:29:00.002-05:00

I am calling all prayer warriors! If you read this and think...well that is not me, I want to challenge you that it is! I have never been much of a prayer warrior. I have realized that it is mostly because of self-sufficiency and pride. I needed to repent. A couple of weeks ago, I was worrying about adoption stuff and God challenged me to change those worries into prayers. I am amazed at how sweet my communion with God has become. I am amazed by His strength. He is most strong when I am most weak. Let me tell you, I am learning what weakness is through this process.

We are right now under a full attack from the enemy. God's word says, "God sets the lonely in families" Psalm 68:6. We know that anything that God does, Satan tries to destroy. There is nothing that Satan wants more than to cause us to shrink back and fail. BUT my Jesus says that IT IS FINISHED. I know that the battle is already won! This is where we need you to pray for us.
Please pray:

1. Pray for complete healing of Faith and that nobody else gets sick.
2. Pray for Doug and my marriage. It never fails that when there is a lot going on that that is the first thing that is attacked. It also doesn't help that I am where I am hormonally:)
3. Pray for our other children. No need for details here but PRAY
4. Pray for our event. Pray that God would be Glorified! Pray that peoples hearts would be open to adoption. Pray for the Lord to pour out His blessings for us financially.
5. Pray for safe travels for our friends who are coming in from North Carolina! Cant wait to see them!!
6. Please pray for Ethiopia. The drought is just getting worse there and the orphanages are seeing unprecedented numbers of children coming into care. Please pray for these children and their families.

Thanks so much for all of your support and prayers.

To all of you who have posted about my last post. Sorry I have not responded yet. Faith has been so sick and it has not allowed me time to do much. You can post your bid right in the comments section. The bidding will end on Saturday night at 10pm est. I will contact the highest bidder. This is a one of a kind piece. I think that she may make more at a later date.

Silent Auction

2009-10-30T15:17:00.003-04:00

Here is the charm my friend made for us to auction. All money goes towards our adoption. If you would like to place a bid, just let me know. The bidding starts at $25 and goes up in increments of 5. It is sterling silver. You can check out the rest of her jewelry here.

Update on our journey

2009-10-27T16:49:00.004-04:00

Just wanted to give everyone an update on what is happening with us. We have been very busy getting everything together for our fund raiser. We have so many amazing baskets to raffle off. We also have several very nice items to use for our silent auction. I will be listing those next week and anyone who would like to bid on them can let me know. Some of the jewelry pieces, gift certificates for jewelry to be made, and overnight stays can be used by anyone even if out of state. We also will have cookbooks for sale that will be available before Christmas. They are $10 each and shipping is $2.50. Also if you are a coffee drinker, our store is now up and running. You can purchase coffee and $5 of each bag goes towards our adoption. Here is the link.

We are not on the waiting list as of yet but were told that we are the only family that is waiting for siblings. So it looks like we will be number one on that list. We are not sure where we will be on the infant boy list but we think it will be around number five. We are just waiting for our home study to be signed by our social worker who then has to mail it to the home study agency. After it is notarized, it will then be sent to our adoption agency in Colorado. At that point we will be able to apply for grants and a no interest loan that would be very helpful if we get a referral before we file our income taxes for next year. I am still shock that we are only 2 months into this process and are almost ready to be on a list.

God continues to amaze me through this process. In fifteen years of walking with Him, I have never appreciated His grace and mercy more than I do now. My heart though has been very heavy these past several days. We have heard that orphanages are seeing record numbers of toddlers being dropped off to them. I can't imagine having only the choice of having my child starve to death or be placed in an orphanage. This has kept me awake at night in prayer. I know that my joy comes from another woman's pain. That is hard some times. I pray that I will be faithful to care for that in which God entrust me with.

Thanks to all of you for your support. We have been blown away by your kindness to us. Thanks to all of the men who unselfishly served us and helped get our roof on. We so look forward to November 8th and having you all there to celebrate the gift of adoption with. Please continue to pray for us as we walk this journey.

Opportunities for God to show up

2009-10-22T20:27:00.003-04:00

Today I was reading another blog and came upon a devotion written by Steven Curtis Chapman. Please read it and allow God to speak to your heart:

It wasn't until our second adoption that I understood what God was doing with my family through adoption. I walked into church on September 1, 2002, wholeheartedly convinced that we were not going to adopt a second time. During that service, our good friends, the Coley family, who have four biological and five adopted children, were brought up on stage for the dedication of their latest adopted child, a boy with special needs.

What happened next was almost as if God lifted my chin, and as clearly as I've ever heard Him speak to my heart, He said, "I've heard you sing the song 'Open the Eyes of My Heart', and I've heard you pray, 'I really want to know You and experience You.' I know you mean that." Then He showed me this family on stage, and He said, "There it is; that's my heart. That's your story; that's my story. This is a picture of the Kingdom of Heaven. There it is, in front of you."

And it was this family with whom we've walked through some of the darkest parts of adoption. We've gone with them into treatment centers; we've shed tears together. They knew exactly what they were getting into, but still, here they were, saying, "This is what God has called us to do. We know it's messy; we know it's uncomfortable, and it's going to turn our lives upside down, but this is God's heart."Yet God didn't stop there. He said, "I delight in setting the lonely in families, so I'm going to keep pouring out my love for orphans, and I'm looking for hearts to pour it into. I'm looking for people who really want to do what I'm doing."

He didn't say, "If you don't do this, I'm going to be disappointed with you." Instead, it's as if, as a Dad, God put His arm around me and said, "You don't have to do this, but I'm inviting you in, because I want you to know Me, and I want our relationship to go deeper. If you really want to see Me show up, I want to take you on another adventure."

So I broke the news to my family and told them, "I think God wants us to bring another child to stand under the waterfall of grace." I just pictured God pouring out His grace, inviting us to bring another child to stand under it. God was saying, "I'm going to bring them into my family, but I want to invite you to be a part of that. I'm going to glorify myself through this."

That's why there are so many waiting children; those are opportunities for God to show up and reveal His glory. They are each an invitation from God's heart, saying, "Come and know Me. And I will make myself known through you, members of my body, the church, as you experience the miracle of adoption."

Am I willing to follow God wherever He may lead so that I might more fully know Him and make Him known?

Give me your eyes

2009-10-16T07:53:00.002-04:00

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken-hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the ones forgotten
Give me your eyes so I can see

The first time I heard this song, I was undone. I remember singing and praying that God would give me His eyes to see. Sometimes I think I carelessly pray for things and then when He answers, I realize what I really prayed for is bigger than I ever imagined. When I first heard this song, Africa was nowhere on my radar screen. Adopting from Africa was even farther off of it. Yet here I am waiting for the last piece of information to get to my agency so we can then begin the wait for our child. I can tell you now that I am so grateful that I prayed that prayer and God answered it. I have changed so much in the past several months. The level of intimacy and dependence I have with God is amazing. I have been a Christ follower for over 15 years yet in so many ways, I feel like a new believer. There is a done side to this prayer. The down side is that when your eyes are opened to what God sees, your heart will break. I am haunted at night by what I have seen. Families starving, children dying from treatable diseases,and children being drowned because they are considered "mingi"(unclean). Now that my eyes have seen, I am responsible. At times I think what difference is my adopting one or two children going to make. I then remember that the God who created everything out of nothing is the one whose idea this is. So I still don't know the answer to that question but I do know that God does.

So here is where we are in the process. We are waiting for our home study to be sent to our agency to be proofed. As soon as that happens, it will be signed and notarized and sent to our agency and immigration. We will then be issued an I-171h and be put on the waiting list. The list has been growing so I am hoping that this happens sooner rather than later. Depending on how long referrals are taking we should travel sometime in the summer or early fall. Everything is moving along with our fund raiser. We just found out that our friends from Charlotte are coming in for it so we are even more excited! I will be listing all of the silent auctions here in the next week so that those of you who can't attend but want to bid will be able to. Also, one of my friends is making a piece of jewelry with Africa on it. I can't wait to show it to all of you. I did tell her that she was going to have to make more for the rest of you adoptive mommies! Thanks again for all of your support and prayers.

Update on Our Progress

2009-10-10T07:18:00.002-04:00

I wanted to give all of you an update on what is happening with our adoption. Yesterday we finished everything that was up to us to finish. I will be mailing our dossier(minus our home study) to our agency today. Our home study should be to us in the next several weeks. It will then get forwarded to our agency and also to immigration. Immigration will then issue us a I-171h. At that point we will officially be able to accept a referral. We did receive information yesterday about a toddler boy. After praying through it, we have decided to not pursue him at this time. Because of where we are in the process, it would be at least several weeks maybe even a month before we would be able to get assigned a court date. We felt that it would be unfair to him to keep him in the orphanage any longer than necessary. Our thinking is that if there is a family that is ready right now and could get a court date soon, he would be out of the orphanage sooner.

Things are progressing with our fundraiser on the 8th of November. We have quite a few raffles and then several very nice prizes for our silent auctions. If you are unable to attend but would like to participate in the silent auctions or raffles, please let me know. We have enough money right now to move to the next step. It is at that point that we really will need to see God move. Depending on if we accept one or two children, we will need $6,000-$11,000 dollars. We are also doing a cookbook fundraiser. I have gift certificates if you would like to purchase one. The cookbooks are $10 each and will be ready before Christmas.

I am truly amazed at how much grace there has been on this entire process. We have had such a peace through each step. It has also been amazing to me as to how often I have been able to share my love for Jesus as I have walked this journey. I have shared the Gospel with more people in the past 2 months than I have my 15 years of walking with the Lord.

Please continue to pray for our journey in the following ways:1. That God would be really big and that we would be really small! This is for His glory and not ours! 2. In our excitement, the reality is that there has to be pain for some one else. A mother, father, or grandmother etc, has to place a child in order for us to receive one. Please pray for comfort for the family of our little boy(s). To this day, Faith's birthmom is my hero. Her sacrifice brought us great joy. It reminds me so much of Jesus sacrifice for me. 3. Please pray for protection for our little guy! Please pray that he has nourishment. 4. Also pray for financial provision for us. I have no doubt that God will provide for this! We will be applying for several grants and an interest free loan as soon as our home study gets here. Our church does have an adoption fund set up for us in which you can make a tax deductible contribution to our adoption fund. 5. Pray for Doug as he shares with our church on November the 8th. If you are local, we would love to have you join us at our church for our Sunday morning service.

Thanks again to all of you who have supported us through this journey. We couldn't do this without your love, prayers, care and support.

Our Friends The Weimers

2009-10-03T18:40:00.002-04:00

This is a video about our friends who have adopted 6 children from Ethiopia. Actually we have never met them but their story is what inspired us to move forward with our adoption. We have since become Facebook friends and Heidi is such an inspiration to me. I do realize that she is 11 years younger but I hope to be like her when I grow up!!

So enjoy! here

Rivers of Mercy

2009-09-24T14:36:00.002-04:00

Today is one of those days when I am so aware of how much God is in this adoption process. I am amazed at how things continue to fall into place. I am amazed at the friends He has put into our lives to help us during this time. It has been so cool to see people using their giftings to bless us. One of my friends has been working on items for our raffle. Today in doing that she also secured a bounce house for the night of the fundraiser. Another friend makes amazing jewelry and is donating a piece for the raffle. Here is her website. Check out her work! Several other people are doing baskets for us. Thanks so much dear friends!! We love all of you dearly and can't wait to introduce our boy to his extended family! Thanks also to our church family who have adopted us. Our pastor and his family have been a great support to us and we will be eternally grateful.

Tuesday we got all of the information that was needed to put our dossier together. For those of you who don't know what that is, it just means a crap-load of paper!! Not only does it have to be filled out by everyone and their brother, it all has to be notarized, certified and authenticated. That means just a bunch of running around. I was going to have to pay someone $75 to meet me at our doctors office to have his paperwork signed and notarized. After doing some research, I found out that there was a notary in the building and now we have to pay nothing! As a matter of fact, the paperwork is there and ready for me to pick up tomorrow. Woohoo! All this means is that we are just one day closer to being able to cuddle with our boy(s). Please continue to pray for God to show us exactly how many children we are to bring home this time. I say this time because I know in my heart that this is just a first trip for us. Also, please continue to pray for our fundraiser. We are really believing God for a great night of fun, worship, and great music.
We are putting our roof on next weekend so if you have any time and would like to help please let us know!!

Lastly I do want to bring praise and honor to my heavenly Father! I am continually blown away that He choose me. I was such a mess 15 years ago and in some ways I still am but now I am just messed up for Him! It is my privilege to be His daughter and I look forward to the day that I will bow at His thrown. I am overwhelmed and undone by my FAITHFUL GOD!!

1st Homestudy Visit Done

2009-09-22T10:07:00.003-04:00

We had our first home study visit last night! It was amazing. Our social worker was fantastic and it soon felt like we were just chatting with an old friend! I am amazed at the peace that I have as we are walking this journey. Yesterday we got a call from our agency to ask how quick we could be ready to accept a referral because there was a possibility of children that fit our request. Most of you who have known me for any length of time know that life with me can be a roller-coaster. Because of my passion, I can soar to great heights one minute and the next be in the depths of despair. I knew when we began this process that this was something God wanted me to mature in. The scripture that He gave me was Isaiah 26:3, You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you. Before this process began, I would have been going crazy yesterday but there was this steadfastness in my spirit that shocked even me. I did talk to the social worker and it looks like everything will be into USCIS by the middle of October. It should take only a couple of weeks from that time to get our I 171H. Once we have that, we will be able to accept a referral. That means that by the end of October we will be ready. It also means though, that the money will be needed asap. In my quiet time yesterday I was reading a book called Crazy Love by Francis Chan. He said, "But God doesn't call us to be comfortable. He calls us to trust Him so completely that we are unafraid to put ourselves in situations where we will be in trouble if He doesn't come through." By speaking to our church on Sunday and even just taking the steps to walk in faith concerning the finances of this adoption, we are putting ourselves in a place that HE has to come through! I know for a fact that every other time in my life, He has done just that. Because of that knowledge, it is easier this time. Thanks again to each of you who continue to encourage and support us.

We do have a venue for our Orphan Sunday event on Sunday November 8th. We are so excited to see what God does that evening. One of my favorite worship leaders is coming in from Columbus to lead. Can't wait to hear her amazing voice and be lead into the presence of God. Ryan Wilkins has also agreed to come and play. We love him and his family. He will also be bringing information concerning Blood Water Mission that he supports. You can check out more info here We will be having quite a few raffles (one night stay at Indian Bear Lodge cabin, corn hole game, Outback gift cards, gift baskets, etc.) It you are unable to attend but would like to purchase raffle tickets just let me know. Thanks again for all of you support.

Update and Prayer Request

2009-09-19T06:47:00.003-04:00

I wanted to give you all an update as to how things are moving along and also how you can pray for us. First, we will be sharing this Sunday at our church about how we came to this place of realizing God wanted to stretch us in a new way. We would love to have you join us if at all possible. Church starts at 10:45.
This week has been probably one of the more difficult weeks since starting this journey. There have been several very dark days for me. I am not surprised by this because the truth is that we have an enemy who seeks to kill, steal, and destroy what God has put in our hearts. I have had several friends who have been faithful to speak truth to me during these times. This has been helpful. Yesterday in talking to Doug, he really challenged me that what needed to happen was for me to surrender everything to the Lord. After crying out to the Lord and placing all my thoughts, plans, concerns, and challenges on the altar, I really experienced His peace!
One of the things that I realized this week is that we are not just jumping from the frying pan into the fire during the adoption process. This will continue for the rest of our lives because we are now becoming a trans- racial family. Unfortunately racism is alive and well. The saddest part is that it is alive and well in the church!! How this must grieve the heart of the Lord. Please pray for us as we walk out this part of our story. Please continue to pray for the body of Christ to see that there is NO room for racism in God's family.
Now for the good news. God is continuing to provide for us as we continue to step out in faith. Our church is setting up an adoption fund. We were totally blown away when Scott our pastor approached us about how the church could help us out. This is a way that people can support our adoption and it will be considered a charitable contribution for them. I will add our church's address at the end of the post. Please make the checks payable to new Life Community Church and in the memo, write adoption fund.
We are also having a fundraiser on November 8 at 6 pm. This is also National Orphan Sunday. The main thrust of this event will be to bring awareness to the plight of orphans globally. We are really praying that God would put a burning desire in more people hearts to adopt. The gift of adoption that I received because of Jesus Christ death on the cross is the greatest gift I have ever received. To be able to show that in a practical way to a child is an awesome privilege that each one of us can have whether that be through adopting or helping to other families to be able to bring children into their homes. We will be having a time of worship, prayer, testimonies and a couple of bands will be ending the night. We also have some really cool raffles. One of them is an overnight stay in one of the cabins at our favorite place to stay. The place is Indian Bear Lodge. If any of you have any contacts for other raffles, please let us know.
Here is how you can pray.

1. Pray for our sweet boy's birth mom! Pray that she would have nourishment during this pregnancy. Pray that God would comfort her during this time.
2. Pray for our sweet boy or boys. We really do need to hear clearly from the Lord if is to be one or two.
3. Continue to pray for all of the orphans. Pray that God would raise up people to take part in the amazing journey of adoption.
4. Pray for continual financial provision for us!
5. Pray for protection from the schemes of the enemy during this time.
6. Pray for our fundraiser. Pray that God is glorified through all that we do.

Our church address is:
New Life Church
5404 Center Road (SR303)
Valley City, Ohio 44280

From a journal entry

2009-09-17T10:09:00.002-04:00

Came across a journal entry of mine from January 2008 that I thought I would share. God was just beginning to stir things in my heart at that point, having just left the church we called home to destinations unknown. Here is just a taste:

...What is it, as I look to the days/weeks/months ahead, that I dream about, yearn for, have an insatiable appetite for? When I ponder "church", what is it that the Spirit in me desires? What is it that God desires for the lives of His children, His body, His bride? What would that look like.....?

....To be part of a community, a fellowship, a movement of people whose common ground is hearts set ablaze by Jesus Christ. To walk with people who have received new hearts and minds by rebirth through the Holy Spirit that lives/dwells/resides within them. To live in the authentic reality of the power of God to transform a person, a family, a community, a whole region! To be a people who are not simply hearers of the word of life, but doers of it. To hear and see the proclamation and demonstration of the gospel message that releases God's power into the lives of the saved and unsaved. To be a people known to be disciples of Jesus, followers of "the way" being equipped for works of service, maturing, so that in unity we may all grow in the fullness of Jesus Christ....

And so the quest continues. My hope and comfort come from the fact that God is infinitely more committed to what His church will look like than I will ever be. God, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Allow me to interject

2009-09-13T18:07:00.000-04:00

As you can plainly see, Monica has done all of the posting so far, and doing a great job I might add. But every now and again, I will be jotting down a few thoughts, adding my 2 cents, ranting, whatever you would like to call it. Though the main content of this blog has been to chronicle our journey through the season of life we are in, particularly bringing home the next child (or children) God has for us, I will probably depart from this specific strain of thought to explore some bigger issues. Several months ago this blog (Because of the Gospel) was set up for me to have an outlet to express all that God was doing in my heart. In a nutshell, I spent about a year plumbing the depths of the gospel. The result was a deep conviction and growing appreciation and gratitude for the good news that IS Jesus Christ. During this time I actually drafted several posts but never got around to finishing the thought. So, no posts, until now. The decision to use this blog for our adoption journey seemed, dare I say, almost prophetic. Of course Because of the Gospel. The answer to the question "why adopt?" is found in and through the answer "Because of the Gospel".

So, here is a bit of the sampling of one of the posts I had thought about back in May of this year. Just a peek into the madness that is my thought process as I seek to know and follow Jesus Christ with all that I am. Consider these questions and leave your thoughts if you are so inclined:

Can we stop for just a minute? Good, now take a step back (figuratively speaking of course). Ok, maybe 2 steps back. Now take a long, slow look at the landscape of your life. What do you see? What do you see as you look at the day to day within yourself, your home, your neighborhood, your workplace, your church, your "life"? What is unmistakably present, even dominant? Is there anything strangely absent? What is clamoring for attention? What is "not-so-silently" draining your resources? What informs your sense of purpose? Is there a definable trajectory, a discernible direction that all the "stuff" of life is moving you toward? What (or perhaps who) seems to be the motivating force? Seriously, take a few moments and think about this.

Well? What's that look like?

Faith Like Potatoes

2009-09-08T07:29:00.004-04:00

This weekend was our 23rd wedding anniversary. Because of the adoption expenses, we decided to do a very low cost anniversary. To say that it was perfect would be an understatement. I became so overwhelmed by God's mercy and grace to us as a couple. Who would have thought fifteen years ago when we were on the road to divorce that God would move as He has? I cried most of the day in the complete awareness of God's amazing grace poured out on us. I kept telling Doug that this was my gift, just a total awareness of God's unmerited favor!!

So this is how our day started. It ended by watching a movie called "Faith Like Potatoes". I would highly recommend it. Here is what Christianity Today had to say about it: Here's the thing about potatoes. You plant them, and cover them with dirt, then pray like mad for rain. With most crops, you can see what you're going to eat—the fruit of your labors, so to speak. But potatoes incubate in the ground, silent and mostly unseen, while you hope for harvest. Only a farmer-turned-evangelist would know how apt a metaphor potatoes are for a life of faith in Christ Jesus, making Faith Like Potatoes the perfect title for a biopic based on the true story of Angus Buchan.

Angus tells his wife that he is to be foolish for Christ and every seemingly crazy choice he makes yields a miracle pointing back to the glory of God. Ever since we started this journey, I have told God that we need another BIG story. You see our marriage is a big story that points only to God's glory. Our adoption of Faith is a big story that only points to God's glory. God has not allowed us to take any credit for any of it and I would not have it any other way. I want His glory to shine through all of this in hopes of leading others to Him. I want Him to be the only way that this can happen. I want people to scratch their heads as they hear our story and come away with the only answer. GOD!!

You see though that this is where the problem comes in. I try to take things into my own hands and make it happen. I try to figure out how God is going to bring us the money. Kind of funny isn't it when all the money is his anyways. I always think that I have it figured out. This week we heard about a possible job in which Doug could make about $1500. I had that money spent in my mind before even knowing all of the details. I felt the Lord whisper to me, "What if this isn't how I am going to provide?". I struggled with that. It seems like the perfect answer to me. One of the things about Angus in the beginning of the movie is that in he didn't believe in anything but the toil of his own hands. As I have reflected on the movie, I have become completely aware of my tendency to do the same thing. Doug called me yesterday with Proverbs 3:5 In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight. I listened but in my heart thought it was just a spiritual band-aid being slapped on my heart. I mean everyone even most unbelievers have heard this verse. This morning though in the quiet, the Lord began to expose that this verse was not just a band aid but the very word of God. So once again I have repented and filled my mind and my heart with the truth. I still want the BIG story and believe that it is going to happen but now I am leaving the details up to the One who wrote this story of our lives before time began!! Well, at least at this very moment I am. Check back later and who knows:) By the way, we planted our "potatoes" this weekend. We mailed a check to our home study agency that was rather substantial and then another large check to USCIS to begin the paperwork to bring our boy home. Please continue to pray for us. We have to now have $2150 to send to our placing agency. This I what I know. We have been called to be fools for Christ, so HE will provide.

I will end with this verse:

You will keep in perfect peace
him whose mind is steadfast,
because he trusts in you.
Isaiah 25:3

2009-09-07T21:58:00.000-04:00

Why We Are Adopting From Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, approximately 1 in 10 children die in infancy, and nearly double that number die by their 5th birthday, due to infections, tetanus and diarrhea. Ethiopia is considered the 3rd worst place in the world to be born, better only than Burkina Faso and Djibouti. Of the children who survive, many will lose their mother in childbirth and many more will lose one or both parents to HIV/AIDS.

As more and more parents die, the capacity of extended family members to take care of orphans shrinks. Ethiopia has reached the breaking point where orphaned children are now forced into the streets, into difficult working conditions and/or into heading their households.

In 2001, 13.2% of the population, 3.8 million children, were orphaned. In comparison, the 1994 genocide in Rwanda resulted in 500,000 orphans and the 2004 Tsunami in Southeast Asia resulted in 10,000 orphans. In 2006, only 731 orphans were adopted by American parents. 3,799,269 orphans remain vulnerable.

(courtesy of www.ethiopianrelief.org)

Prayer Needed

2009-09-02T07:42:00.002-04:00

This is the scripture that the Lord gave me as we began this journey. This morning I am really struggling to continue to leave the financial part in the Lord's hands. I believe him for the child because I have Faith to look at each day and see how God knew that she would be my daughter before time began. Even as I type this God gently reminds me about his financial provision concerning Faith. I am reminded about how crazy it is that I get an adoption subsidy for a perfectly healthy Caucasian little girl. I am reminded about how we went through our entire savings to follow God's call on our lives to move to Ohio from Virginia Beach. Again I ask who does that?? That is almost as crazy as this new adventure. In going through our savings, I saw no way possible to pay to adopt but God had a bigger plan. So now He pays me to have the desire of my heart. Who am I that I should not trust him!! I weep as I write this because He has and will always be faithful. These orphans that I cry for every night are all of his children long before they are any of ours. How His heart breaks for them!! This awareness reminds me that HE will do everything to bring our son home to us. So please pray continue to pray for perseverance as we walk this road. Also, we need clear direction concerning our home study agency. A few things came up concerning them so we are praying to make sure that we choose the right agency.

And so it begins

2009-09-01T07:02:00.002-04:00

Today is the day that hopefully the check and application to our home study agency gets put in the mail. I was mailing it out yesterday but wanted to make sure that I had included everything that I needed to before mailing it. We are also hoping to get the application for our agency in the mail soon. We have to include a check for $2150 so we are waiting until all of the money comes in from Doug's mowing accounts that I just billed for.
Those who know me know that I am not good about waiting. This time is not any different except for the fact that I have been able to rehearse the times that I have tried to make things happen and the consequences of that. I do not want an Ishmael. I also remember when we were becoming foster parents. We were licensed in August and I was pushing for us to get a placement immediately. Had I gotten my way, we would have missed out on one of our greatest blessings. You see Faith was not born until September. I am so thankful that I am not the one in charge! God knows what is best for me and our family. The great thing about all of this is it keeps me totally dependent on Him. His word continues to propel us forward on this journey of faith.

Please continue to pray for us. Our greatest need for prayer right now is that our home study agency would be prompt and begin moving us along. In order to apply for any of the grants, we need to have our home study finished. So this is an important piece of the process. Pray that through this process we continue to be sensitive to the Lord's leading and refining. Pray for financial provision. Please pray for the people of Ethiopia especially the orphans. Lastly pray for our future son's birth mom. I found out that the day that we began to pray for Faith's birthmom was the day that Faith was conceived.

For those of you that are local, we will be speaking at our church, New Life Community in Valley City, on the 20th of September. We will be sharing with our church family about the journey that we are on. We would love to have you join us.

1 Thessalonians 5:24 The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it! Amen

2009-08-27T19:05:00.001-04:00

Here We Go Again

2009-08-27T14:01:00.004-04:00

This is the beginning of our adoption journey to Ethiopia! This is where we will keep you updated as to how the process is going. Please pray for God's provision as we move forward. More to come soon.

Here are some facts about Ethiopia:

Ethiopia has approximately 4.8 million orphans and that number continues to rise.

One in six children do not live to see their fifth birthday.

Diarrhea kills 250,000 children a year