tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-80133499703991626472024-02-08T03:30:33.844-08:00Downs4Love - Our Adoption StoryRob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-52361491017463841662012-04-29T19:14:00.001-07:002012-04-29T19:14:41.080-07:00My PrayerAfter a restless night's sleep the other night, I decided to write down my thoughts. It ended up being this prayer:
Dear God,
I praise you for your omnipotence, awesomeness, holiness. I praise you because you are a mighty, wonderful, loving God. Thank you for your mercy, thank you for saving even me, thank you for your love and care. Thank you for always working all things together for good. Thank you for knowing what is in our hearts, even before we ask. Thank you for your goodness.
My Lord and my God, thank you for giving us a heart to adopt. Thank you for what you have already done in this adoption and what you are going to do.
Lord, I find myself feeling discouraged, weak, alone, and helpless in this process. Please forgive me for my doubts and fears. Please help me to wipe away these feelings and rely on You completely. Your works are wonderful, thank you for being a God of compassion and comfort.
Please help me to trust in You and rely on Your perfect timing. Please give me a renewed energy to complete your work. Please prepare our hearts and minds for what you have for us.
Lord, please prepare your chosen child's heart to be ready to be part of this family. Give him peaceful nights sleep, give him nourishment, calm his cry. Please heal emotional and physical ailments he may have and Lord, may we please get to him soon?
Please prepare all of our family's hearts to accept this child and cherish this child, just as you already do. Break our hearts for what breaks Yours.
And Lord, I know this adoption can only come from you. Please show me the next steps you want me to take. Please help me to trust. You have everything in control.
Thank you for this miracle you are doing in this adoption. May we give you all the praise and glory with every step...both the highs and the lows.
I can't thank you enough for giving me breathe, and for blessing even me with Robert and our kids. I'm so undeserving and yet your mercy is astounding and humbly brings me to tears. Thank you, my God, my Savior, my Father.
I pray in Your name,
AmenRob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-63818962101485588762012-04-10T19:22:00.001-07:002012-04-10T19:22:38.019-07:00God caresI woke up this morning in tears and having an overwhelming sense to just pray for our child and our adoption. I have no idea why and I can't really describe this feeling. Our little son is always on my mind, in my dreams, and I am constantly praying, but this morning felt different. Again, I don't know how to describe it. All I can make of it is God is moving in this...He's putting all the pieces together. I have wondered if our child is heart broken today and maybe God is having me feel some of his pain...or maybe a family member of our son is saying goodbye? I just don't know.
While I was teaching this mornings Bible lesson, one of the suggested teacher's questions was to ask the class what the verse means when it says "look at the birds of the air..our Heavenly Father takes care of them...are you much more valuable than they?". I want every child to know how valuable they are. It tears me to think that some children (even adults) don't know this!!! I needed to be reminded of that today. Our Father does care, we are valuable, He will take care of us!!! And of course (because even teachers get the right lesson at the right time) our lesson was on Peter walking on the water, until he took his eyes off Jesus, became afraid, and began to sink. Then Jesus reached out His hand...Needless to say this morning's lesson had me blinking tears, trying not to let the class notice.
I was reading through my last post. After reflecting back, I see now I was wrong about something...that path was never "dirty" or "dusty". It's a beautiful path, because our Saviour is leading us through it every step of the way. It may not be an easy path, but I will walk it a million times if it's what it takes to follow my God. I will take all the bumps, all the rocks, all the bruises, and anything else it may have if it means we get to have God's child. I am thankful for that path!!!
Lastly, we have made a decision regarding a choice we had. We are going to continue adopting through Ghana. We both feel God gave us our little boy to bring us to Ghana, and we are to carry on. We knew back when we first started, nothing was guaranteed, and although our hearts broke after losing our little Noel, we feel God gave us Noel to bring us to Ghana for the reason of adopting another child in His perfect timing.
Again, we really need your prayers. We look forward to seeing this miracle!Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-17400804035004674592012-02-16T20:44:00.000-08:002012-02-16T20:44:07.877-08:00In His TimeIt's been over two months now since we found out the little boy we were trying to adopt is no longer in the orphanage. We still don't have answers to where he is or what happened. However, we know God has another little one for us and His timing and plans are perfect. <br />
<br />
As I look back at the last couple months, I envision Robert and I happily walking along a beautiful path, and then out of no where, our legs were swept out from under us, leaving us lying there, confused and dusty...and the path is no longer beautiful. After taking time to breathe, heal, and pray, we feel we are now ready to carry on and complete what God has started in our lives. We are helping each other up, dusting ourselves off, and even though the path is unclear, we will continue on one step at a time.<br />
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The song "In His Time" comes to my mind often. The lyrics are:<br />
In His Time, in His Time.<br />
He makes all things beautiful, in His time.<br />
Lord, please show me every day,<br />
As You're teaching me Your way,<br />
That You do just what You say,<br />
In Your Time<br />
<br />
In Your time, in Your time,<br />
You make all things beautiful, in Your time.<br />
Lord, my life to You I bring,<br />
May each song I have to sing,<br />
Be to You a lovely thing,<br />
In Your time.<br />
<br />
Honestly, I wish it could be MY time, I want more than anything to know the child He has for us and have this child in my arms right now. But it's not about me or my wants...it's about Him, and Him knowing what is best. He already knows the desires of our hearts, we need to have faith and trust that He is going to complete this blessing, and we are to give Him all the praise and glory along the way!<br />
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Without going into a lot of details, we are faced with a decision...I guess you could say it's two different paths. One path seems easier and shorter; the other path is longer, but may possibly have a clearer outcome. Either path we take will still need some major funding, about $16,000. Although we have been praying about both ways, neither of us feel God calling us one way or another. Please pray with us for wisdom and discernment, for clear direction, and for peace in our hearts. Also, please pray that we will find a fundraising opportunity and for a funding miracle to happen.<br />
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Thank you for taking time to read this and thank you for your prayers, concern, and love. Your support means a lot to us.<br />
<br />
<br />
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God sets the lonely in families.Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-14548837874466346002011-12-28T06:14:00.000-08:002011-12-28T09:32:50.267-08:00Difficult UpdateWell, I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">don't</span> really know where to start. I guess I'll go back to my last post, which was in June (oh my, time flies!!!). We have been very busy on our adoption path and have news we need to share.<br /><br />The adoption auction we had at our church in June went very well. It was a complete "God thing"...we really felt His presence, peace, and blessings. We raised over $4,000 towards our adoption!<br /><br />In July, we had our home study. We enjoyed the whole process and really liked our social worker. In talking with her, she shared that she was adopted, her husband was adopted, and then together they adopted a little girl. So cool! Everything went very smoothly. After waiting for all of our referral letters to come in, we received our notarized home study in early September. We held a softball tournament for a fundraiser, and were touched by how many people helped with it. We also worked on our passports, our state clearances and criminal background checks, our adoption education, financial statements, and completed our health evaluations and forms at that time. We both did our psychological evaluations required by our agency, which was a meeting with a psychologist and a 300plus question computerized test. We both passed (phew...<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">heehee</span>!), and received our notarized evaluations quite quickly. We sent in our <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">USCIS</span> application to the government, and received our appointment to get fingerprinted. The fingerprinting was fun, we went through what seemed like airport security, they went through everything! The fingerprinting was computerized, I was disappointed because I was looking forward to getting the ink like you see on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">tv</span>. :) Again, everything went very smoothly. We are ready to send our dossier to Ghana, just need the funds to be able to do so. Our next step is to apply for grants and do more fundraising. This aspect has not been going smoothly, and I kept praying for God to give us time and energy to put into the grants and fundraising, but never found it. Now that we are so far into our adoption process, our agency coordinator told us she would get more information and updates on our little Noel. She also mentioned it may be what we need to get "re-energized" into getting the funds we need so we can get our dossier over to Ghana so we can bring our little boy home. We were so excited to hear how he is, how he had grown, how his health is, if he even knew about us, how many words can he say, is he potty trained, etc., etc., etc.!!! We were told their <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">internet</span> connection in Ghana was not good and they were trying to fix the problem. After three weeks, we had found out through a weekly mailing that the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">internet</span> problem had been fixed, so Robert and I were anticipating hearing from our agency. Finally, on a Tuesday afternoon, my phone rang while I was in school. I noticed it was our agency, so I ran out for a quick second to hear the voicemail...it didn't sound as exciting as I had imagined...she had just said she heard from the orphanage and to call her. I quickly checked my email, thinking maybe our coordinator had forwarded documents. All it said was, "We need to talk, call me as soon as you can." I felt <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">nauseas</span>, I tried to keep telling myself everything is fine, I'm just "reading into it too much." As soon as my students were dismissed, I ran out to call Robert and told him about the voicemail and email, then I returned the phone call to our agency. That's when I got some hard news.<br /><br />Our agency coordinator told me that Noel is not in the orphanage anymore. He's not there, and they are not getting answers of why. My heart broke. She told me she'd call the next day, and let me go. I called Robert, barely able to get out words. I think we were just silent for a while. It's been four weeks now, and we are still shaken. It was difficult telling the kids. We haven't told many people, I haven't wanted to speak about it and don't have answers. I remember after the phone call that day, crying out to God, telling Him I'm giving Him a white flag because I give up. Still today, I don't know what to do. Why would He put us on this path, then take it away? Why did it feel so clear that Noel was the one God had chosen for us, then have him ripped away? Why was everything going so smoothly, then all of a sudden this happens? What do we do now?<br /><br />I don't know the answers to these questions, but I do know...<br /><br />As far as the adoption...I know God called us to adopt, and we are going to continue. There's a few options we can do now, we have all of our paperwork and everything needed to adopt a child. We can continue with our adoption through Ghana, and adopt a different child. We could go through another country to adopt. We could adopt here in the US. We just don't know and are praying for God's guidance, wisdom, and clear direction.<br /><br />As far as Noel...we are praying that he is safe and in a loving environment, that he comes to know that there is a mighty, loving God that cares so much about him, that he grows up to be a man with godly characteristics, and that he has overflowing love and joy in his heart.<br /><br />As far as why did this happen...God is God, He doesn't need to explain, His plans are always perfect and best for us. Maybe we will know one day and it will all make sense, maybe we won't. Even though it's been hard, we find rest knowing that He is our Shelter, our Stronghold, our Savior.<br /><br />Over the last few weeks, I've asked myself how do people go through anything rough in their lives without Jesus. I've found myself asking this many times when I see things on tv like earthquakes or people living in the middle of war or people living is severe poverty or seeing people lose homes or loved ones in a fire or natural disaster or murders. Even here in my little part of the world, hearing people having financial troubles, foreclosures, losing loved ones, going through cancer, sicknesses, job losses, relationship troubles...how do people do it without knowing Jesus? Where do they go? Who do they turn to? Who do they trust? How do they get help? How do they find peace and joy again?<br /><br />Some verses from God's Word that have helped me:<br /><br />"The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble." Psalm 9:9<br /><br />"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8<br /><br />"In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety." Psalm 4:8<br /><br />"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." Matthew 11:28-30<br /><br />"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever your go." Joshua 1:9<br /><br />"Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7<br /><br />I am so thankful to know God's peace and comfort. I don't know what the future holds, but I do know God loves me, my husband, and my kids. His timing and plans are perfect, even though I may not understand it.<br /><br />Would you please pray for us and our adoption journey? Please pray we follow God's direction and that another child will be revealed, please continue to pray for Noel, and please pray for our finances and adoption funds.<br /><br />I would love to pray for you also. If you don't know God's peace or if you have something on your heart that you would like prayer for, please contact me on here on this blog, or by emailing me at: sweetshoreforme@gmail.com.<br /><br />Thank you for your continued prayer and support!<br /><br />"He replied, Because you have so little faith. Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there', and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." Matthew 17:20<br /><br />"Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." Mark 11:24<br /><br />"And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord's people." Ephesians 6:18Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-87855618201337662502011-06-13T17:30:00.001-07:002011-06-13T17:30:41.495-07:00Rob's TurnI am sitting here thinking about the journey we are on to help a little child have the love he deserves and a place he can call home. I think of how much God has taught us to trust Him more and more through this process. I know myself when Bethanie and I discussed adoption I was very hesitant and kept asking her how we were going to afford to do this. I have trusted God more and more in this area and completely turned the finance part of it over to Him. We have been very blessed so far and with the auction just under a week away we have received some great items to be auctioned off. I know God is working in this area and we just need to be patient and He will work all the details out. I know we will need prayers and help from everyone, and I know He will provide. I am excited to bring this little boy home!<br /><br />We would love to see a lot of people come and support us in this auction. Bring your kids, family, and friends. This is open to the public. Please pray for a good turnout with us and please continue to pray for our family and Noel as we go thru this journey.<br /><br />Bethanie has updated below the items that will be up for auction. God has blessed us with quite a few great items. We are thankful to everyone for their support and prayers.Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-83029864269354042912011-05-28T19:48:00.000-07:002011-06-13T17:23:46.076-07:00Auction!Please plan on coming to our auction on Saturday, June 18, at 10:00!! All are invited, and please bring family and friends. We'll be having a continental breakfast with plenty of coffee and juice too! It's being held in our church's auditorium, The Journey Baptist Church, 7 Amarosa Drive, in Rochester, NH. The church is located behind the Stonewall Kitchen. We would love to see you there!<br /><br />We already have some really cool things donated so far:<br />2 admission passes to Santa's Village in Jefferson, NH<br />4 tickets to 19th Century Willowbrook Village in Newfield, ME<br />a big (I need to get the measurements) ocean watercolor painting<br />4 tickets to the Children's Museum of NH in Dover<br />2 adult and 2 children tickets for a train ride at Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad in Portland, ME<br />2 ski lift tickets at Pats Peak in Henniker, NH<br />4 tickets to a Portland Sea Dogs game in Portland, ME<br />Lia Sophia jewelry donated by Patricia McSharry from Rochester, NH<br />2 tickets to the Seacoast Repertory Theatre in Portsmouth, NH<br />4 VIP passes to York's Wild Animal Kingdom in York Beach, ME<br />2 tickets to Clark's Trading Post in Lincoln, NH<br />Pampered Chef Hospitality Set donated by Tammy MacDonald<br />4 vouchers for Amtrak<br /><br />and just in:<br />2 tickets to Soulfest 2011 donated by Amber Weststrate<br />Autographed J.D. Drew photo donated by Boston Red Sox<br />Coach wristlet bag donated by Leah Sprowl<br />6' Picnic table donated by Nutes Trading Post<br />16 hours of electrical work donated by Andy Becker<br />Cupcakes donated by Krista Willis<br />$25 gift certificate for Avon donated by Robin Healey<br />Custom airbrush work donated by Vic Healey<br />Tree removal or pruning donated by Dennis Chapman and Burke's Tree Service<br />Apple Pie donated by Donna Devoid<br />Something sweet donated by Wagner Family<br />Bathroom Cleaning donated by Linda Wentworth<br />25% off oil change donated by Rich Wentworth<br />2lb box of Goldenrod Salt water taffy<br />2 rounds of golf with cart from Ragged Mountain Resort<br />2 tickets to Ogunquit Playhouse<br />4 box seat tickets to NH Fisher Cats<br />2 tickets to Manchester Monarchs<br />2 passes to Childrens Museum and Theatre of Maine<br /><br />Plus, Lino (from Lino's in Wakefield, NH) has offered to help us with the breakfast. Thank you, thank you, thank you to Lino!<br /><br />Pretty awesome, huh?! I'm so thankful to each person and business that has helped us in this way! Please come and bid on these awesome things and enjoy some breakfast and coffee! We still need more donations. If you or someone you know would be willing to donate for the auction, please let us know. My email is: sweetshoreforme@gmail.com, or items can be dropped off at our church (info above).<br /><br />To be honest, we still need to raise $19,000 more for the whole adoption. We realize we need to take it step by step, and right now we are praying specifically for $1760 to help with some paperwork and the home study. Please pray for God's blessing and provision with this adoption. We are so ready to have this child in our family, the only thing holding us back is the funds to do so. We know it's all in God's timing, and if this is what He wants, He will provide.<br /><br /><p style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family:Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">We are sponsored through our church's adoption fund which accepts tax-deductible donations on our behalf if you feel you would like to help us monetarily. Words really can't express how much we would appreciate it. Here is our church's info:<br /></span></span></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0in"><span style="font-family:Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">The Journey is a non-profit organization (Tax ID #20-1066486) and donations received for this event tax-deductible. All funds received through sponsors will be used to underwrite the costs of this event and a contribution letter will be sent back to any sponsor within 30-45 days of receiving donation funds. All that is needed is a mailing address, a contact name, and for each check to have in the memo “</span></span><span style="color:#000000;"><sup><span style="font-family:Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Adoption Fund</span></span></sup></span><span style="color:#000000;"><span style="font-family:Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;">.”</span></span></span><span style="font-family:Tahoma, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size:100%;"> All checks can be sent to The Journey, attention Elizabeth Kesselring, at 124 Milton Road, Rochester, NH 03868. </span></span> </p><br />I'll try to keep updating as more things come in for the auction and as we have more updates with the adoption process. Currently we are working on paperwork, paperwork, paperwork. (Trust me, there's a lot!)<br /><br />Again, we really need people to come and bid on June 18!! If you can't make it but would like to bid on an item(s), let me know and I can be your absentee bidder!! My email is above.<br /><br />Thanks for taking time to read this. We love you and are thankful for you in our lives.Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-91704033287612859532011-05-18T19:31:00.000-07:002011-05-18T20:25:13.311-07:00Upcoming EventsSeacoast Christian School Bell Choir performance is this Sunday, May 22, from 6:00pm to about 7:30pm. The concert is being held at Kaleo Coffee in Dover, NH (in the Janetos Plaza in downtown Dover). Please invite every one you know to come! The concert is free, and any donations go to our adoption fund. We will also be selling out adoption t-shirts at the concert (my brother designed them...Thank you, Luke, we love them!), and our friend, Amber, is graciously doing a raffle for us. (Thank you, Amber, you're a wonderful friend!)<br /><br />The bell choir plays many genres including hymns, classical, patriotic, show tunes, etc. Every age will enjoy their performance. We are so thankful to the high school kids (and their parents!) at Seacoast Christian School and to the music director, Mrs. Towne, for holding a concert for us this Sunday. They are coming not expecting anything out of it for themselves, but just to be a blessing. We appreciate their selfless generosity! <br /><br />Also, our church is sponsoring an Adoption Auction on Saturday, June 18 at 10:00 am. We will be having a continental breakfast along with the auction. We would love for you to join us and bid on some items (a list of items is to come in the next couple weeks). Pastor Rob will be the auctioneer (woo-hoo!!! Thank you P. Rob!), and my cousin, Jaimi, will be singing a song that we love called "One Less" (Thank you, Jaimi! Can't wait!) The Journey Baptist Church is located at 7 Amarosa Drive (behind Stonewall Kitchen to the left) in Rochester, NH.<br /><br />We still need more items to be donated so we may auction them off. If you would be willing to help, we would really appreciate it! Items can be given to us or brought/mailed to our church. All donations through the church are tax-deductible.<br /><br />My cousin made a website for us (Thank you, Leah, it's awesome!), it's <a href="http://downs4love.com">downs4love.com</a>. We can be contacted through the site. Our church's mailing address is: The Journey, Attn: Elizabeth Kesselring, 124 Milton Rd., Rochester, NH 03868. (Thank you, Elizabeth, for doing all the paperwork and record-keeping with wonderful precision and organization!)<br /><br />As I'm reviewing this post before publishing it, I am reminded how blessed we are to have such incredible people in our lives. Thank you so much to everyone for your support, help, and love. We love you so much! May God bless each of you, as you have blessed us and the child He has for us. What a joy it will be to introduce His little one to all of you!!!Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-7674084870008989852011-04-25T18:14:00.000-07:002011-05-04T15:31:08.573-07:00Heavy heartIt's been a while since I've last written here. There's many reasons for my failure to update the blog, the biggest reason is because I've been discouraged (it's not easy for me to admit that). You see, I feel like since it's been over a year since we have decided to adopt, that God would just be "handing" us everything we need. Over the last few months, He is working on me to show me that I need to work for the things He will give me, and that means putting me out of my comfort zone. People that know me and that have known me for a while know that I don't like being uncomfortable, I'd much rather hide and go into a box. But if we are to obey God's commands, we certainly will not be comfortable. I really don't think Moses, or Abraham, or Noah was ever comfortable when they followed God's plan!<br /><br />We've been taking baby steps I guess you could say. God has shown us a different direction. This whole time we thought he had wanted us to go to Ethiopia. Well, Ethiopia's government has been changing adoption regulations, and it could now take quit a few years if we were to proceed. I did some more research, and rather casually looked into a different agency. We were happy with everything from this place, including their information, their fees, and the great, sweet lady we talked to. They work a little differently than our last agency, and we were told that Ghana is open and we are eligible to adopt through the country. Robert and I prayed about this new possibility, and felt that we needed to keep this door open. The sweet lady from the agency asked if we'd like to see pictures of a few of the children available. We said sure, although we felt that God would choose the child and didn't want to become "attached" to a child that may not be ours. There was a few pictures, one of them was a little boy named Samuel. I can't remember exactly whether I called or emailed the agency to request more information about him, but the response was there is already a family trying for this child. Then she continued to say...but there is another child I just received, I'll email you pictures of him right now. Well............this child took my breathe away and knocked me over. It's the first time I "felt" the child. I immediately prayed about him and sent the email to Robert. We talked to the kids about him, trying to protect them by saying he is a possibility, we don't know what God has for us. But I can tell you now...this is the child we are still fervently praying for. His name is Noel. He is younger than what we had said we would take. It's funny to me that what we were thinking was right (Christian agency, Christian <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">orphanage</span>, school-aged child) is not what God has for us. But we trust Him and His perfect plan and know that what He has is so much better!!! My heart hurts to get this child.<br /><br />That evening, I wrote an email to my pastor. This is what it said:<br />Hi P. <span class="il">Rob</span>,<br />As you know, Robert and I feel we have been called to adopt.<br />I hope you don't mind, but I'd like to share some background info. During my pregnancy with the twins I spent most of it in the hospital because I was sick, had hypertension, and had low amniotic fluid. After having an emergency c-section, my body hemorrhaged and I needed a blood transfusion. The doctors were afraid I would go into cardiac arrest, and I was monitored constantly, and at one point after the delivery had a nurse by my side for 24 hours as ordered by my doctor. Thankfully, Robert and I had made the decision before all this to have the procedure so I could not have any more children. I was young, 22 yrs old, and the doctor told me they don't usually do the procedures on someone so young, but I remember telling him if we decide to have more children, we would adopt. Robert and I have always talked about it. In 2007, we started looking into adoption, and chose Guatemala as the country we felt God had for us. After beginning the process, we received news that Guatemala had closed its international adoption program. We both agreed it was a closed door and "walked away". But this overwhelming feeling hasn't left. My heart hurts. I believe God has been working on me, calling for us to obey for a long time now. Robert and I have been praying about this earnestly for over a year now, and we both firmly believe it is time to obey and follow His plan.<br />This is where it gets hard for both of us: we need to swallow our pride and ask for help. I'd rather hide in a box (or a turtle shell, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">haha</span>!) than to put us "out there". It's uncomfortable.<br />I know there's a ton of needs out there, plus I know the church wants to build, and I'd love to see the Journey go on a missions trip :), but I also know we can't do this alone.<br />If you could bear with me, this is how I see it in my head... I feel like Robert and I are at a race, but the scary thing is we are the runners (yikes!!). We're in those starting block things with our butts up in the air, and God is the voice calling out..."on your marks, get set...." and we've been waiting for Him to say "GO!". I believe we now have His "go", and we've started this race. But then out of the starting blocks we look over to the stands and realize there's nobody there cheering us on. We stop and wonder why, then realize we haven't invited anyone to come cheer us on to support us. We do realize that not everyone we invite will want to come to those stands (that scares me). But we know we need to keep going, to run with all our might, keeping our eyes on the path God has for us. We need to obey.<br />Robert spoke to you a few weeks ago asking for help and support. He said you would like for us to come up with a fundraiser idea. We are very open to hearing what you and the church may have for ideas. We don't want to take away from other events going on right now (passed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">thru</span> fire, night before the fourth, building fund, etc). We were wondering if maybe a yard sale and bake sale (on the same day) held at the church would be <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">ok</span>? We are also working on t-shirts and homemade candles to sell. Plus we've been in touch with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Kaleo</span> coffee and are trying to get bands and singers in there; and we are waiting to get mugs and coffee to sell from them.<br />Honestly, we are looking to raise about $22,000. We know it will take a miracle, especially in the short time we may have of 6-12 months. (We were told there are times when it moves quickly and could be even faster, under 6 months! Yikes!)<br />We had originally thought God was going to bring us to Ethiopia to get our child, but recently feel God is pointing us to Ghana, Africa. We have a child in mind that we are praying God has for our family.<br />Robert and I and our kids would so appreciate your prayers, encouragement, support, and help. Would you and The Journey Church come be in the stands of our race?<br />In His love and grace,<br /><span style="color:#888888;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Bethanie</span> Downs</span><br /><br />So, over the course of the last few weeks and a few discussions, we decided to do an auction at our church on June 18. More news to come on that! We also have <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">tshirts</span> that just came in that we are selling for $20. More news (and hopefully a way to order them online) to come!<br /><br />God is so good all the time. He is faithful, just, full of grace, love, care, and knows all of our needs and the desires of our hearts. I'm overwhelmed by His goodness!Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-42405456167268965492010-11-18T19:08:00.000-08:002010-11-18T19:47:53.934-08:00'Sweet' NewsRomans 8:15-16 "For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, "Abba, Father." The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children."<br /><br />Well, we have told people about our adoption. It was just our close family and friends that knew we were planning to adopt, but now we have told people at our jobs, and have put it on Facebook (and we all know how quickly FB news spreads!). I admit I am nervous about possible negative reactions and comments. So far the reactions have been great, even positively overwhelming. So many people telling us they will pray with us, questions about adoption, others saying they want to adopt (yes!!!), and already a couple people asking if they can make donations. My heart is filled with joy! Praise be to God for His mercy, love, care, provision, and goodness!!<br /><br />Psalm 100:5 "For the Lord is good, and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues through all generations."<br /><br />During my day off last week, I decided to research a possible fundraiser for the adoption. I had thought about selling fudge...it's yummy and chocolate!!, it's reasonably priced (usually), mostly everyone likes it, and with the holidays coming up, it would make great gifts and great desserts (or in my opinion...a great appetizer!) It was important to me that it be a small business in New Hampshire, since NH is where I have lived all my life. After some searching, I found The Mill Fudge Factory. I emailed them to find out if they'd be willing to help us out, they got back to us right away, responded quickly to our emails and phone calls, and had some awesome flavors of fudge! Susan and her son, Noah, set everything up for us and now we are selling fudge! There are 16 flavors on the order form: Penuche, Belgian Chocolate, Snowy Moose, Holiday Mint, Egg Nog, Maple Walnut, Rocky Road, Natural Peanut Butter, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Chocolate Raspberry, Chocolate Walnut, Penuche Pecan, Peanut Butter M&M, Cappuccino, Strawberry Fields Forever (Stawberry and White Chocolate), and Cranberry Maple Nut.<br />Our goal is to sell 200 pounds. I will update the blog to let everyone know how many pounds we sold. Fudge can be ordered through the site that Susan and Noah (from The Mill Fudge Factory) set up for us: www.themillfudgefactory.com/adoption.aspxRob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-51643916880253492232010-11-11T11:20:00.000-08:002011-01-13T14:27:38.173-08:00Stepping Out in Faith<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Matthew 21:22 "If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Why is this so hard for me? It has been almost a year since God showed us we are to adopt. But yet here we are, with no certain steps towards what God has for us. I know without a doubt that we are to adopt, that there is a child out there that is waiting to have a home and be part of a family...our home, our family. It's because of my lack of faith. I don't like to admit it, I am scared of so many unknowns. How are we going to raise the $26K? How will others respond to hearing of us adopting? How will this new child fit in? How will my kids adjust to having someone else getting a lot of attention? What if this child doesn't speak English, how will we communicate? Will we be able to afford another child to put through college?</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) "For He Himself has said, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you'."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Philippians 4:6 "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Isn't it incredible that we have such a loving, caring, merciful God who is there to help, never leave our side, hear our prayers (and cries), and already knows the desires of our hearts? He already knows the answers to all my questions and all my fears.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">1 Peter 4:7 "Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">1 Thessalonians 5:24 "The One who calls you is faithful and He will do it."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">It's time to step out in faith and TRUST HIM; it is time to let go.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">God has shown us some direction already. We feel we are to adopt a little boy from Ethiopia. (God told me this quite a few months ago, and me in my sinful self, looked for other places. I am ready to obey and listen now.) There are literally millions of orphans in Africa. We also have received information from an agency, All God's Children and possibly some information from missionaries in Ethiopia. We are still uncertain where the funds are coming from, it's in God's hands. I have been to a few craft fairs selling embroidery items that my gracious sister-in-law has made. Because there are fees to be a vendor, we usually have just about been breaking even unfortunately. My plan is to continue selling, especially with the holidays. I have been looking into a few other fundraisers. If anyone has any ideas, I would gladly like to hear them.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Just want to quickly share two things that have blessed me recently: One is a book, </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Successful Adoption: A Guide for Christian Families</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">. It has many good resources and great information. There's a quote from it I especially like:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"Love goes out of its way, and the one loving ultimately benefits more than the one they have loved." - Nicole C. Mullen</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The second thing that has blessed and encouraged me is a song I heard on the radio and immediately went to download. It's </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">One Less</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> by Matthew West. Of course I cried through the whole song, especially when he sings "brought their little girl home today". Please listen to the lyrics if you get a chance. I love the whole song, but the words that stick out to me are:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"So let worlds colide, colors fade, let your light be the miracle today" and...</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">"One less not alone, one less child without a home, one less birthday gone forgotten, one more soul rising from the bottom, one less broken heart in the world tonight."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Please pray for us as we follow God's will. Specific needs are: that we will know the agency we are to work with, raising the overwhelming amount of money, that the process will go quickly and smoothly, and most importantly that the little boy that is out there waiting will not lose hope, that he will know there is a great God that loves him, for him to believe that there is a family that has a place for him in their home and hearts, and to have his needs taken care of until we can get there. Thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Hosea 14:3 "In you the fatherless find compassion."</span>Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-85033853088454816122010-02-16T18:10:00.000-08:002010-02-16T18:10:00.722-08:00God is so good!<span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);font-family:georgia;" >Phillippians 2:13 "For it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose."</span> <span style="font-family:georgia;"><br /><br />God has been so good to us. We were able to speak with our representative this week, and ask more questions. We are registered for Bethany's intercountry adoption information meeting on March 4 and are really looking forward to it! We do not feel a particular country "calling" us yet (is that normal?!), but we are praying for God's will to be done and a country to be put on our hearts. I called Robert's sister, Dawn, this week, and the whole conversation was an overwhelming blessing! She has adopted four (all with special needs) children. She was answering questions and concerns before I could even ask them, it was awesome! Through her, one of my prayer requests was answered. To help with the cost of adoption, she is willing to work with us as she owns an embroidery business! Praise God!! Still so many things to think about and set-up, but with Him all things are possible!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia;">I know I started this blog page to journal our adoption events, but I feel the need to diverge for just a moment. Even if not for the reader of this blog, but for myself or my kids that may someday look back through this. There's a song my principal, Mr. Reynolds, has taught the classes in chapel, it goes...</span> <pre style="font-family: georgia;">The Devil is a sly old fox,<br />if I could catch him<br />I would throw him in a box<br />I'd lock the door and throw away the key<br />for all the tricks he's played on me.<br /><br />I'm glad I've got salvation.<br />I'm glad I've got salvation.<br />I'm glad I've got salvation.<br />I'm trusting in the Lord.<br /></pre><div style="text-align: left;">The first time I heard that song, I was a little concerned about my class having nightmares after hearing the first verse. Where am I going with this you may wonder? Well, I want you to know that the devil will appear when you least expect it. There are going to be times you'll be joyous, going through your day, doing what you feel is God's will, and all of a sudden something is thrown in your way. We get knocked down, then what?<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">2 Corinthians 4:6-9 "For God, who said, 'Let light shine out of darkness,' made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed."</span><br /><br />His joy is my strength!<br /></div>Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8013349970399162647.post-64750845540936529342010-02-06T07:47:00.000-08:002010-02-16T12:35:21.866-08:00<span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">From the Beginning...<br /><br />James 1:27a "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress."</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Psalm 68:5-6a "A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families."</span><br /><br />It seems these verses has been knocking me over these past few months. Every time I hear them, they ring loudly and echo in my ears. I have always been interested in adoption, it seems it's always been part of my life. There are people in my life that have been adopted, friends and family that have adopted children already, my parents talked about adoption while I was growing up, Robert and I talked about adoption even before we were married, as teenagers. After finding out we were having twins (in our early 20's), we decided we would not have more children of our own, and if down the road we felt we should have more kids, we would adopt.<br /><br />We had looked into international adoption a few years ago, and had chosen Guatemala. After receiving all the paper work and doing some research to begin the process, we found out the country's government had stopped adoption outside of their country, so Robert and I accepted it as a closed door from God. However, over these past few years, the desire has never left my heart. In fact, it has been so much stronger, even to the point where I feel it's overwhelming (and personally a struggle between God and me). After many discussions between Robert and I, we feel God is calling us to take the steps again to adopt. There are many questions we can't answer, (such as how are we going to afford this!) but we know we find rest in Jesus Christ and His perfect plan.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Jeremiah 29:11 "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'"</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">and my life verse:</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Proverbs 3:5&6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight."</span><br /><br />So our journey begins. Last Sunday, January 31, Robert and I sat down at the computer and filled out a preliminary application for Bethany Adoption Services. We received an email yesterday, Friday, February 5, saying it has been successfully processed, and a social worker will be contacting us soon. We already received a phone call last night (I didn't get her name or title, I think I was too excited) from the agency, explaining what countries we do and don't qualify for. She also is going to re-submit our applications for other countries we had not originally checked off, and she will call us again next week to discuss other countries that may be a possibility for us.<br /><br />That's where we are in the process now. We would very much appreciate your prayers. Again, we don't know how, but we have faith God does!<br /></span>Rob and Bethhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14585826747141079359noreply@blogger.com0