Adoption-a burden?

"A religion that is pure and stainless according to God the Father is this: to take care of orphans and widows who are suffering, and to keep oneself unstained by the world." - James 1:27

I love what Courtney has written in her latest post called "Blessed with a Burden", you can read it here . 143 million. Yes, 143 million children remain orphaned in this world. Today. Today there are babies lying out in the cold somewhere that haven't even been found yet. Today there are orphaned children of all ages roaming the streets looking for food, eating trash, and being abused. Today there are orphanages full of children, and only a few workers to tend to their needs. There are babies rocking themselves to sleep, screaming, crying for the warm arms of a mother to scoop them up. Today there are teens all over the world staring out of a window of the building that keeps them semi warm, as the walls crumble away around them. They have not known the love of a parent. Today there are children in orphanages who know nothing more than the abuse they are enduring at the hands of the people who are supposed to be keeping them safe. Today. Yes, today, all these things and more are happening at any given moment.

I too have been "blessed with a burden". A burden for the orphans of the world. I'm not exactly sure when I became aware of this blessing, but I do know it was sometime in my 20's, before I had any children. I remember looking in a mirror one day, and knowing somehow that my calling was to care for orphans, and go wherever that may lead. Not long after, I found myself living in an orphanage in russia. It was there that my burden became solid. I experienced everything I had hoped for, but saw and experienced much more than I ever really wanted to know. Or, I guess really wanted to face. The reality. I was broken. Seeing the reality of small children never knowing real love from a mommy and daddy hits you hard. The reality of the psychological damage that does was obvious. The reality of what a teenager brought up in an orphanage looks like. Hopeless. Empty. Sadness beyond explanation.

The truth is, as christians we are all called to care for orphans, as the scripture I have written above clearly states. If you don't feel you can actually care for one by adopting one, there are many ways you can help care for them. There are ways to help by sponsoring orphans, helping to support a missionary living in another country, or supporting a ministry, or by going there and helping in some way yourself. Here in the US, there is the foster care system, which can always use help. I have also heard that if every christian would adopt just one, they would all have homes. Pray, pray and ask that God would show you how you can help the orphans in our world. If each one of us did just one thing, the suffering of millions of children really would decrease!

I am burdened. But it truly is a blessing. Like Courtney, I still lie awake at night thinking of them, wondering how, how can it be done? I am praying and seeking the Lord with what I should do next-will it be through mission work-or will we foster-adopt? Will we be sent out again to bring home a child from a land far away? Or will a situation present itself and we will just know it is right? With God, all things are possible, and you just never know what He has planned next. I just hope we know soon...the children are waiting.

Adoption is a blessing, but also takes a lot of research and preparation, and work. It takes a willingness to help that child through difficulties and questions they will have. It takes patience, and love. I thank God that he has adopted me as His child, and is so patient and loving to me. I only hope I can be more and more like Him as I love and care for some of the children he has allowed me to parent and pray that he will entrust me with even more.

Children are a gift from God, they are his reward. Psalms 127:3

Another thing!

Yesterday I posted on the Be heard project, and I forgot to say that after you watch the video clip, don't forget to sign the petition below it! We need to take a stand! Once again, here is the link:


http://www.beheardproject.com/

Be Heard

http://www.beheardproject.com/

Please follow the link above and watch the video at the top right of the page. Times are changing, and not for the better. We need to stand up and be heard.

Contentment

Contentment is not the fullfillment of what you want, but the realization of how much you already have.

Spring has sprung!

Happy first day of spring everyone! We had a busy day starting with homeschool co-op, then out to lunch, and back to work here at the farm. Jeff is getting the gardens ready, and I worked on the yard. Trimmed the snowberry bushes, cut other shrubs, raked more leaves, and hauled many loads to the garden for Jeff to mulch up and compost. The girls played with the animals as we worked. Here is Buttercup, our sweet little nigerian dwarf goat we got last spring. She is very friendly and likes to get up close and personal as you can see here.

Here's Lilyann chasing chickens. Looks like she's having fun!!!

These are the chickens we have left from two years ago. One black feather footed banty, and two red hens. They have been producing lots of yummy farm fresh eggs for us!

And here are the new chicks we got this week! A Rhode Island Red, a white Banty, an Auracana (love these for the greenish eggs they produce), a red sex link, and a silver laced Wyandotte. The girls have spent hours with these chicks already! They LOVE them!!!

As you can see, they are VERY excited about the baby chickies, as Lilyann calls them! Miranda especially likes to hold them in her palm and pet them until they fall asleep. Very cute! We will have fun watching them grow, and they do grow fast!

We love spring!!!

Love this girl!!

It's time for another Lilyann update! She is doing so well. I took this picture last night when I got home from work. She was playing dolls with Miranda. This girl has so much love to give! She greeted me when I got home with about 10 big hugs!

Her favorite things are Elephants, (Elly's as she calls them), and she sleeps with two stuffed pink elephants every night. She was at a friends house the other day, and she came out of a room with two plastic gray elephants in her hands, so I know she prefers them wherever she goes!

Her favorite food is cereal, and applesauce, and her food issues have resolved to the point that she is actually picky now, and will only eat large portions of her favorites, as in cereal, and applesauce, if we allow her. She will sometimes start to cry if we won't give her seconds or thirds of these.

She is very funny! The other day she was grabbing things off of the kitchen counter when she wasn't supposed to, and finally by the third time she was talked to quite firmly! After she quickly placed the item back on the counter, she held her hands up in front of her face, and yelled, "NO! NO HANDS!" She actually yelled at her hands. I don't know where she got this from! We tried very hard not to laugh. Since then, she has tried the tactic of blaming her hands when she was asked not do something, but we aren't falling for it!

Her words are coming along, and she is speaking in at least 4 word sentences now. Her favorite one is this, "Mama, hold me, now, peese (please)". So precious and cute!

I just asked her big sister Miranda how she would describe Lilyann, and she said, "funny, active, bossy, strong, and loud!" I think that pretty much sums her up!

Random Thoughts...

I have so many things swirling around in my head right now...as I crave a drink from Starbucks. I am actually writing this post to somewhat distract my thoughts from this craving. And...I am fasting from Starbucks for the next month! Our pastor is on a 40 day water only fast! He started on the 3rd of March, and it will end on Easter. I decided to begin my fast that day as well. I am fasting from Starbucks, and anything made primarily with sugar. I also have not been eating meat or dairy products much for the last few months, so I was already doing that. On the day before my fast I decided to stop by Starbucks for my favorite drink-an iced green tea latte. I usually drink those during the spring and summer, and haven't had one since last summer. So, I see the lady whipping up my drink, my mouth is watering, and I am so excited to enjoy this drink as it will be my last one for 40 days. I walk outside, take a sip, and almost had to spit it out on the sidewalk! I turned around and walked back in, and explained that they left out an ingredient-it was the melon flavoring they add to these that make them taste so good. Her and this other guy proceed to tell me that the melon has been discontinued! You should have seen my face! My bottom lip hit the ground, and I yelled, "What! That's my favorite drink!" I must have sounded like a spoiled little kid. They graciously offered to make me my second favorite drink-an iced chai tea. It is good that I am taking a break from these drinks. They offer no nutritional value, and they tend to help people pack on the pounds. Maybe during this fast I will be delivered from my desire to ever drink anything from there again! That would be nice!

Fasting should always be coupled with prayer. I have been spending so much more time in God's word during this fast, and I have a long prayer list. There are so many hurting people, so many people that need to know of God's love for them, and his saving grace. There are so many areas in my own life I need help with. I heard on a christian radio station today that less than 1% of young adults today believe wholeheartedly in God's word, and only 9% of older adults. How sad. I need to spend so much more time in prayer, and in sharing my faith. My greatest prayer right now is that I would have a hunger, a deeper hunger and thirst for Jesus, and who He is. I thank God for this opportunity.

Did you know??

that March is the month with the highest percentage of suicides?? I am writing this because a teacher DH knows didn't show up to teach his 5th grade class yesterday, and upon further investigation they are calling it a suicide at this time. In my line of work outside the home, I often provide home visits, and conduct therapy in the child's home. A couple years ago, in March, a co-worker of mine went to work with a child and her mother in the home. To her shock, that evening the mother committed suicide. After this we were all asked to attend a class on suicide awareness, and prevention. Why does the month of March bring the highest percentage of suicides? According to the presenters, it is due to the fact that many people tend to get depressed over the holidays, and when March (spring) rolls around, oftentimes many people start to come out of their depressions, but it's those that don't, and see that other people around them are cheering up, when they are not, that are at highest risk of suicide. This was pretty surprising to most of us, and I feel is a pretty important fact to learn. The other important point I remember learning during this class was that if you suspect someone is considering suicide, or if they mention something like this, you should always ask them if they have a plan, and what their plan is. Then find the appropriate help for the person. Oftentimes, a person contemplenting suicide does not appear sad or depressed, that is why it is important to listen to their words as well. I hope someone reading this will learn something new about this, and possibly be more aware of those people out there who are hurting during this month or any other time.

My mind is on....

Chickens!!! I love when March arrives, because I start thinking of adding to my flock! And since we are down to only 3 chickens, I am really looking forward to getting some baby chicks! The problem I am having is that I am really wanting to order my chicks this year, and have them shipped in. I want to get some of the beautiful rare breeds, and the breeds that are good layers, and some of the breeds that lay the cool greenish blue eggs. But! That means that I would have to order at least 25 chickens, as this is the safest way they can be shipped for warmth, and I just don't know if we can handle that many at this time. So, I may just have to head down to the nearest feed store, and see what they have. In my little neighborhood there is a post office/feed store, and every year I show up in the spring to see what he has. The girls will just love to go down there this year, and pick out their own special chicks! Stay tuned for pictures!

The Farm Chicks Giveaway!

The Farm Chicks are having a giveaway! Go here if you would like to enter it too! I have been a fan of the Farm Chicks for many years now, and I am lucky enough to live near enough, that I have been to a couple of their Farm chick antique shows. It's like Christmas all over again for me! They are amazing and I hope to go this year too! Go check them out!