The Lord continues to teach us so many things about His goodness and provision as we move through the adoption process again. Last night we got together with other families in our community that have adopted from Poland. What a grace it was to see all of our kids laughing and playing together (all speaking English) and know that the Lord has done so many great things to unite all of these children with their forever families. In His sovereign plan, He has ordained the timing of each adoption, the parents and siblings that will love them well and teach them His Word, and bonded them together in a way that can only be explained by God's goodness and redemptive power. He makes broken pasts into beautiful stories of hope.
As we work to bring home our children's sweet sister, I'm so encouraged to know that the same God that brought us together less than a year ago is still at work. He is not done writing our story. When we longed to grow our family, He blessed us with three little ones to love forever. When we had no clue how to parent three kids who spoke a different language, He covered us with His grace and reminded us of the ways that He parents us each day. And although we had no means of affording the great costs of adoption, He provided the funds that we needed to bring home our babies. I know He will not leave us on our own this time.
In our first adoption, we were able to raise a large portion of the money that we needed through fundraising. We made artwork, sold furniture and t-shirts, and auctioned items that had been donated. We applied for grants and used our savings. The Lord used those events and the gracious donations of our faith family to help us travel to Poland fully funded. In my simple mind and sinful heart, I sometimes think that I worked really hard to bring them home. I forget that it was not my efforts that paid for our adoption, it was the Lord's generous hand. It was His will to grow our family in this way, and He provided all that we needed.
This time, our circumstances are a little different. In addition to balancing work, church, and the mound of adoption paperwork, we're parenting. Our days are filled with school and work, and our nights are kept busy with homework, soccer, and the ongoing task of training our children. It's far too easy for me to forget what all the Lord has done, and I sometimes think that the task this time is much greater than it was before. Then I am reminded that we never could have brought our children home on our own. Every grant we received was because of His goodness. Every t-shirt we sold was only because He saw it fit.
So here I am, realizing that once again, the Lord will fulfill all that He has planned. One of my favorite parts of our adoption story is the way that He used our faith family to provide so much of what we needed. Our hearts were overflowing from the way that He used their donations and their prayers and encouragement to build us up. I'm not sure how He will provide this time, but I'm confident that He will. A friend reminded me last night that so many Christians want to support adoption. Not everyone will feel called to adopt, but many are looking for ways to be a part of the work that the Lord is doing among the nations to care for orphans. The Lord has blessed us with such a vast community of believers, and our prayer is that He will continue to use them to meet our need.
For this adoption, we still need to raise $30,000. This will cover our adoption and travel expenses for six weeks in Poland. Most importantly, it will help us bring home our kids' baby sister and prayerfully love her the way that Christ has loved us. We are asking for help!! On Facebook alone, Mitchell and I have over 1,500 friends, and we know that many of them are believers. If 1,000 people will donate just $30, we will reach our goal.
Here's how you can help!
If you would like to donate online, you can //click here to give//. Every penny that is donated will be used for adoption expenses.
If you'd rather donate in another way, you can email me at dcolle2@gmail.com to receive our mailing address or mail funds directly to our adoption agency.
Finally, pray with us and share our story. Our aim is to make much of the name of Christ as we pursue His calling and take the hope of the gospel with us to the ends of the earth.
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