I posted last Thursday that we were waiting on our clearances to return from DSS and right after I posted that blog I received an email from our home study agency letting me know that the clearances has just been returned. Yea! So, now our home study agency will send the entire home study packet to our international agency for their approval and then back to DSS for their approval and then to immigration for their approval. Are we noticing a trend here?! Paperwork and approval, paperwork and approval; reminds me of the military. Oh and hurry up and wait, that is the Navy's most preferred game. So, we are well equipped for this process thanks to our training from the Navy. Hopefully we will have everything off to immigration in a month, hopefully.
On the fundraising home front we have a garage sale on Saturday and then the Oyster Roast on following Saturday the 26th. Can I tell you that I know nothing of Oyster Roasts! Nothing, absolutely nothing. We Californians are not experts in the roasted oyster or pig pickins. I had to write up a flyer and type the word pickin, we all realize that pickin is not a word, right? It is picking, but Will told me I must use proper southern terminology if I am to advertise amongst them! So, to my dismay I had to type pickin and ignore the spell check that was screaming at me! So, pray for us as our horizons are broadened and we experience new things in pursuit of this adoption.
John 15:2
"Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it that it may bring forth more fruit."
the amplified translation says it this way -
"... and He cleanses and repeatedly prunes every branch that continues to bear fruit.."
It is easy to blaze through this scripture but if you slow down and take a close look at these words you quickly realize that this process of bearing more fruit will most likely be uncomfortable at the least and very likely more like painful. If you have ever undergone a cleanse whether that be from sugar, cigarettes, television, a toxic relationship or whatever needs to be removed from your life then you know that it is difficult, trying and often it is simply painful. The word prune means "to cut out unnecessary parts," lets just be straight here for a minute, cutting is not a warm fuzzy kind of a word. It implies a swift, decisive, intentional and painful act to remove that which is unnecessary. It can not be an easy process, God did not say it would be, He used specific language to ensure that we knew it would be difficult. But, then He makes us a promise if we will endure this "pruning, cleansing, and purging," He will bring about more fruit in our lives. And, what is fruit? Fruit is life; God's life being poured out into us because we have been cleansed and therefore we have room in our lives to allow this new fruit. If we allow God to cut that which is sinful or just unnecessary then we will give room to that which is life giving and eternal rather then temporal. So, if God is pruning, which we should all pray that He is in our lives, then relax in the discomfort and pain because you have a promise that He will bring more fruit which is far greater then anything we could ever hope for. So now we all say in one accord PRUNE AWAY! or at least we pray for the strength to say prune away. Happy pruning everyone.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Adoption Update
I realized that I have said very little about the actual adoption process and where we stand in the whole scheme of things and why we have chosen to do this. I can explain where we are at with the adoption a bit easier then I can explain why we are adopting so I will start with that which is easier.
I mentioned earlier that our home study has been written and we are waiting for our clearances to come back from DSS so that the home study in its entirety can be sent to our adoption agency. The home study included two visits from a social worker, physicals for all 6 of us, financial statements, autobiographies from both Will and I (which he was not pleased at having to write,) and a few other things of that nature. All went well with the home visits until she spoke to Gracie, our youngest, who likes to speak her mind and she did, all of it. When the social worker asked what she would do if the new sisters took one of her toys she replied without hesitation, "I would punch them in the face." Well thank God for 5 year olds who keep it real and for social workers who have a sense of humor! Once the home study is approved by our agency we send it to immigration along with some other forms for approval. Then we prepare our Dossier which is every document ever known to man and then the whole package is sent to Ethiopia for approval. We are praying to have our side of the paperwork done and sent to Ethiopia before the summer because the Ethiopian courts will close at that time for their rainy season. So, pray for us that things run smoothly and efficiently and we are able to get in completed by the summer. Apart from the paperwork we are FUNDRAISING like crazy! And we have a wonderful church that is supporting us and tolerating us. We have had a yard sale at church (the first of many I am sure,) spaghetti lunch, sold pizza before Bible studies, we will have an Oyster Roast on the 26th of Feb, a silent auction in March and we are putting together a team to run the Savannah half/full marathon in November. There are other ideas that we are working on but those are the ones that are definite. God has shown up at each event and supplied us with many people to help and many people with generous hearts who given freely. BJ and I both are learning a tremendous amount about life, love, faith and ourselves through this whole process and one thing we are realizing is that we have difficulty depending on others. I know that sounds horrible but up until this point in our life we have been able to handle most of the curve balls life throws at you by depending on ourselves and God but very rarely others, sad but true. This adoption is so much out of our realm of comfort or capabilities that we must rely on others in many areas. So God is stretching us, imagine that, God stretching us; who knew He wanted us out of our comfort zone?! But each time we are learning that God has many wonderful saints who want to partner with us and allow us to lean on them when necessary, it has been terrifying and wonderful all at the same time. I don't like to cry but I come dangerously close every time I think of those people who are putting so much effort and love into our adoption. Thank you to all of you, you mean the world to us.
I am strangely long winded when I write, I am like this when I speak? I don't think so, I write more then I speak! Weird. I will save the second question about the why until next time so I don't bore you all.
If you think God is asking you to do something you are completely incapable of, unqualified for, or not even sure if you want do it; then you are probably on the right track. So, step out and do it, you will never be disappointed when you get out of God's way and let Him do His thing. It is our things that get us into so much trouble, not His things.
I mentioned earlier that our home study has been written and we are waiting for our clearances to come back from DSS so that the home study in its entirety can be sent to our adoption agency. The home study included two visits from a social worker, physicals for all 6 of us, financial statements, autobiographies from both Will and I (which he was not pleased at having to write,) and a few other things of that nature. All went well with the home visits until she spoke to Gracie, our youngest, who likes to speak her mind and she did, all of it. When the social worker asked what she would do if the new sisters took one of her toys she replied without hesitation, "I would punch them in the face." Well thank God for 5 year olds who keep it real and for social workers who have a sense of humor! Once the home study is approved by our agency we send it to immigration along with some other forms for approval. Then we prepare our Dossier which is every document ever known to man and then the whole package is sent to Ethiopia for approval. We are praying to have our side of the paperwork done and sent to Ethiopia before the summer because the Ethiopian courts will close at that time for their rainy season. So, pray for us that things run smoothly and efficiently and we are able to get in completed by the summer. Apart from the paperwork we are FUNDRAISING like crazy! And we have a wonderful church that is supporting us and tolerating us. We have had a yard sale at church (the first of many I am sure,) spaghetti lunch, sold pizza before Bible studies, we will have an Oyster Roast on the 26th of Feb, a silent auction in March and we are putting together a team to run the Savannah half/full marathon in November. There are other ideas that we are working on but those are the ones that are definite. God has shown up at each event and supplied us with many people to help and many people with generous hearts who given freely. BJ and I both are learning a tremendous amount about life, love, faith and ourselves through this whole process and one thing we are realizing is that we have difficulty depending on others. I know that sounds horrible but up until this point in our life we have been able to handle most of the curve balls life throws at you by depending on ourselves and God but very rarely others, sad but true. This adoption is so much out of our realm of comfort or capabilities that we must rely on others in many areas. So God is stretching us, imagine that, God stretching us; who knew He wanted us out of our comfort zone?! But each time we are learning that God has many wonderful saints who want to partner with us and allow us to lean on them when necessary, it has been terrifying and wonderful all at the same time. I don't like to cry but I come dangerously close every time I think of those people who are putting so much effort and love into our adoption. Thank you to all of you, you mean the world to us.
I am strangely long winded when I write, I am like this when I speak? I don't think so, I write more then I speak! Weird. I will save the second question about the why until next time so I don't bore you all.
If you think God is asking you to do something you are completely incapable of, unqualified for, or not even sure if you want do it; then you are probably on the right track. So, step out and do it, you will never be disappointed when you get out of God's way and let Him do His thing. It is our things that get us into so much trouble, not His things.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Take 2
There appears to be some name confusion regarding my husband; some of you know him as Will and some of you know him as BJ, he is in fact one in the same. BJ is his family name, nicknamed after his father who was called Billy Jo as a child. When we checked into his first boat in WA state (notice I say "we" because as a military wife what happens to him, happens to me!) he decided to start going by the name Will (since he is William Joseph). So, if you knew him pre - USS HM Jackson then he is BJ to you, if you are post - HMJ then to you he is Will. I will probably use both names in this blog so hopefully that clears up all confusion.
On to more important things, not to say BJ/Will is not very important but you know what I mean. In church we are starting a series on the Incredible Family which is very timely for rapidly expanding family. This morning I was studying some of the verses our pastor used and one that I have heard many times and most of us can quote and often do seemed to take on new meaning for me.
Matthew 22: 37 -39
"And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
You know it right? We all know it, but do we really? What does that really look like? It is so simple, yet so profound. But, if I were to be honest with you I would have to say that while it is simple to understand, it has been deeply painful for me to put into practice, if I can even claim that I am putting it into practice. To love the Lord your God with all you are; with all of your strengths, your talents, your weaknesses, your career, your money, your education, your free time, your hobbies, your relationships, etc. I wonder do I really do that? There are so many things I desperately love; my husband and children, my parents and sister, friends, church, running, my dog (who is laying at my feet right now like the loyal and loving dog he is,) sugar (yea, I said it, I am a sugar addict, which is something I am working on,) reading and many other things and honestly I put many of them before God sometimes. But, if I am being REALLY honest you know what I love more then all of those things sometimes; myself. I hate to admit it but I do, I think about me all the time! It makes me sad to think about how often I think about what I want or what I need. Which ties in nicely to commandment #2 "to love thy neighbor as thyself," because if I took care of my neighbor as well as I take care of myself my neighbor would be one happy camper! If we love the Lord our God with all we are and our neighbor as ourselves are we willing to prove it? If God asks us to move out of the house we have worked so hard for so that we can give more to those in need around us, are we willing to do that? What about our careers? Would we walk away from the money and the prestige we all hold so dear to serve those who may not even appreciate us? or give up hobbies, habits, leave relationships that are not healthy? The list can go on and on of the things we love and serve and they often have nothing to do with God or our neighbor. So, maybe that is part of what this adoption is about for BJ and I; laying down some of the things we love, to answer a call that teaches us to love Him first and then our neighbor. Everyday I pray He will give me the strength to walk this road He has called me to and that I won't disappoint Him. When God asked me to forfeit my education and my career to stay home and home school my children I thought my heart would break and some days it got pretty close. But, He picked me up time and time again and He taught me how to live this life and I know He will do the same as we set out on another arduous mission. I know that life is short and He loves us desperately and passionately and He wants us to love Him in the same manner. Pray for me as I will pray for you that we may live always by these commandments.
On to more important things, not to say BJ/Will is not very important but you know what I mean. In church we are starting a series on the Incredible Family which is very timely for rapidly expanding family. This morning I was studying some of the verses our pastor used and one that I have heard many times and most of us can quote and often do seemed to take on new meaning for me.
Matthew 22: 37 -39
"And He replied to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
You know it right? We all know it, but do we really? What does that really look like? It is so simple, yet so profound. But, if I were to be honest with you I would have to say that while it is simple to understand, it has been deeply painful for me to put into practice, if I can even claim that I am putting it into practice. To love the Lord your God with all you are; with all of your strengths, your talents, your weaknesses, your career, your money, your education, your free time, your hobbies, your relationships, etc. I wonder do I really do that? There are so many things I desperately love; my husband and children, my parents and sister, friends, church, running, my dog (who is laying at my feet right now like the loyal and loving dog he is,) sugar (yea, I said it, I am a sugar addict, which is something I am working on,) reading and many other things and honestly I put many of them before God sometimes. But, if I am being REALLY honest you know what I love more then all of those things sometimes; myself. I hate to admit it but I do, I think about me all the time! It makes me sad to think about how often I think about what I want or what I need. Which ties in nicely to commandment #2 "to love thy neighbor as thyself," because if I took care of my neighbor as well as I take care of myself my neighbor would be one happy camper! If we love the Lord our God with all we are and our neighbor as ourselves are we willing to prove it? If God asks us to move out of the house we have worked so hard for so that we can give more to those in need around us, are we willing to do that? What about our careers? Would we walk away from the money and the prestige we all hold so dear to serve those who may not even appreciate us? or give up hobbies, habits, leave relationships that are not healthy? The list can go on and on of the things we love and serve and they often have nothing to do with God or our neighbor. So, maybe that is part of what this adoption is about for BJ and I; laying down some of the things we love, to answer a call that teaches us to love Him first and then our neighbor. Everyday I pray He will give me the strength to walk this road He has called me to and that I won't disappoint Him. When God asked me to forfeit my education and my career to stay home and home school my children I thought my heart would break and some days it got pretty close. But, He picked me up time and time again and He taught me how to live this life and I know He will do the same as we set out on another arduous mission. I know that life is short and He loves us desperately and passionately and He wants us to love Him in the same manner. Pray for me as I will pray for you that we may live always by these commandments.
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Here we go!
My Disclaimer: I HAVE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THIS BEFORE so please bare with me and thank you for your patience.
I am not sure if anyone will read this (except for my husband because he is required to by marriage) but a few people have mentioned that a blog might be a way to update people on our adoption. I truly appreciate any of you who may indulge me by reading this.
Let me explain to you why I chose my user name Undone; it is simple really, I chose it merely because it describes perfectly what has happened to me as we have started to walk this road with God. In the first few weeks after we felt that God was calling us to adopt I was quite frankly a WRECK! Whenever I was alone, which is not often considering I have 4 children, I would cry whenever I thought of adoption. Most of you are thinking I would cry too if God was calling me to adopt, which I understand but I was not crying at the thought of more children to care for, I was just crying, unexplainably. I can not explain it, except that I was undone. Isaiah speaks about being undone in chapter 6 after seeing the Lord of Hosts, we are all undone as we witness our Savior.
For those of you who don't already know we are planning to adopt two sisters from Ethiopia. They are between the ages of 10 and 12 (accurate birth dates are not a priority in Ethiopia) and the oldest is deaf and mute. Their names are Eyerus and Tsinat and they are beautiful. We are just now completing our home study, in the next few weeks we pray to have it completely done. We are currently waiting on the background checks, apparently DSS is running behind. We pray our paperwork makes it to the top.
I will write more soon. May God bless you all.
I am not sure if anyone will read this (except for my husband because he is required to by marriage) but a few people have mentioned that a blog might be a way to update people on our adoption. I truly appreciate any of you who may indulge me by reading this.
Let me explain to you why I chose my user name Undone; it is simple really, I chose it merely because it describes perfectly what has happened to me as we have started to walk this road with God. In the first few weeks after we felt that God was calling us to adopt I was quite frankly a WRECK! Whenever I was alone, which is not often considering I have 4 children, I would cry whenever I thought of adoption. Most of you are thinking I would cry too if God was calling me to adopt, which I understand but I was not crying at the thought of more children to care for, I was just crying, unexplainably. I can not explain it, except that I was undone. Isaiah speaks about being undone in chapter 6 after seeing the Lord of Hosts, we are all undone as we witness our Savior.
For those of you who don't already know we are planning to adopt two sisters from Ethiopia. They are between the ages of 10 and 12 (accurate birth dates are not a priority in Ethiopia) and the oldest is deaf and mute. Their names are Eyerus and Tsinat and they are beautiful. We are just now completing our home study, in the next few weeks we pray to have it completely done. We are currently waiting on the background checks, apparently DSS is running behind. We pray our paperwork makes it to the top.
I will write more soon. May God bless you all.
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