In less than 48 hours, Robert and I will be boarding a plane for West Africa. I'm beyond excited and the details are beginning to fall into place so that I can leave with assurance that everything is fine with Maleah and Haley while we're gone. I will miss them greatly and wish that they could accompany us to Burkina. I wish that our whole family was able to go and meet Arouna for the first time. But ages of our children and timing doesn't allow this to be possible. As I sit and consider Arouna becoming part of our family, it's impossible for me not to think of the little boys that first led me to want to adopt special needs.
Theo and Ezekiel are their names. They were roommates in an orphanage in North Haiti. Theo had hydrocephalus, an illness where the liquid doesn't drain from the brain, so that the head swells to a sometimes massive size. Theo's head was so large that he couldn't hold it up, and was barely able to move his body. I fell in love with Theo from a picture on their website and then when our family took a family vacation to Haiti to serve in the orphanage, I met Theo in person. He was a gorgeous little boy and I loved laying on the floor by his cot and singing to him or taking him out for a walk in the stroller. Ezekiel was his roommate and was relatively new to the orphanage the first time I met Theo. Ezekiel would be laying on the floor too when I would be there singing to Theo and his smile would light up a room. He has the sweetest dimples and at the time, the cutest dreadlocks. He loved to be sung to and loved to go for walks in the stroller. I was in love with the both of them.
We returned from Haiti in 2011 and immediately our family began talking of adoption. All of the family wanted to adopt, each with our favorite kids from the orphanage. I knew at that time though that God had given me a passion for special needs. Two little roommates and about 3 others at the orphanage with special needs had woven their way into my heart and there was no turning back. The joy that they show and the challenges that they overcome daily is beyond my understanding. They are truly, each one, a gift from God and I consider it a privilege to be able to adopt a child with special needs.
Though adoption did not work out for us in Haiti at that time, I will never forget the 2 little boys that helped to place this desire in my heart. Unfortunately, Theo died in 2012 on his 3rd birthday. Ezekiel is 4 years old now and still in Haiti at the orphanage waiting for his forever family to discover the gift that he truly is. Are you that family? If so, please don't wait til it's too late for Ezekiel.
Friday, 5 September 2014
Tuesday, 2 September 2014
Philippians 4:6-7
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God which passes all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
This has been my favorite verse for many years. Every time I start to worry about something, I would quote this verse and a peace would come over me that is totally unexplainable, except by God. I've been quoting this verse quite a bit this week. Since my last post, we've been busy working out kids schedules, making sure Arouna has insurance when we get back, buying things the orphanage and missionaries want in Burkina, packing it all into the largest suitcases that we own, packing for the time we'll spend in Arkansas, etc......Thus, we haven't had a lot of downtime, but when I do sit down and begin to think about all the transitions and adjustments we will be going thru in the next few months, my heart begins to race. And I have to quote Phil. 4:6-7 to keep from completely freaking out.
And then I think of Arouna, who is 2 years old, can't hear, can't see very well and will be waking up next Monday morning like it's a normal day. There is no way to communicate with him. No way to tell him that his new Mommy and Daddy will be coming to pick him up. No way for him to know that we've loved him for over a year now. No way to explain to him that everything is going to be fine and that we will take good care of him. He'll be taken from the only home he's known since he was 3 days old. And he won't understand at all. In a way, my heart breaks for him that he has to leave his culture and what he's used to. A place where he can wear only a diaper 365 days a year and still feel comfortable. A place where life is pretty simple, all the time. But then my heart gets excited for him as I think of some of the advantages he will have in Canada. The potential to hear, to see better and possibly to walk. The ability to reach his full potential that he was created for. The potential to know the God who created him and to know how much He loves him. Or maybe he'll never see better, hear or walk. Maybe he'll just feel the unconditional love of a family, no matter what he can or can't do.
Since my last post, I've had the privilege of being with friends at 2 different times in which they intentionally prayed for us, our family and Arouna. One time was a surprise baby shower that a large group of friends came to. The other time was my Bible study group that I've been a part of for almost 9 years. It was so special to be surrounded by the friends that have made this whole thing possible with their giving, encouragement and support. And then for them to pray for us was even more of a gift. At each different occasion, friends prayed that even though Arouna can't understand anything, that God would allow him to feel the love of Robert and I as soon as we held him. That even though he can't hear us say it, that he would know in his heart that he was secure and loved. I had never thought about praying that or even considered that God could do that. But He can. He can speak into Arouna's heart and reassure him. So that is now my prayer from here on out.
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
This has been my favorite verse for many years. Every time I start to worry about something, I would quote this verse and a peace would come over me that is totally unexplainable, except by God. I've been quoting this verse quite a bit this week. Since my last post, we've been busy working out kids schedules, making sure Arouna has insurance when we get back, buying things the orphanage and missionaries want in Burkina, packing it all into the largest suitcases that we own, packing for the time we'll spend in Arkansas, etc......Thus, we haven't had a lot of downtime, but when I do sit down and begin to think about all the transitions and adjustments we will be going thru in the next few months, my heart begins to race. And I have to quote Phil. 4:6-7 to keep from completely freaking out.
And then I think of Arouna, who is 2 years old, can't hear, can't see very well and will be waking up next Monday morning like it's a normal day. There is no way to communicate with him. No way to tell him that his new Mommy and Daddy will be coming to pick him up. No way for him to know that we've loved him for over a year now. No way to explain to him that everything is going to be fine and that we will take good care of him. He'll be taken from the only home he's known since he was 3 days old. And he won't understand at all. In a way, my heart breaks for him that he has to leave his culture and what he's used to. A place where he can wear only a diaper 365 days a year and still feel comfortable. A place where life is pretty simple, all the time. But then my heart gets excited for him as I think of some of the advantages he will have in Canada. The potential to hear, to see better and possibly to walk. The ability to reach his full potential that he was created for. The potential to know the God who created him and to know how much He loves him. Or maybe he'll never see better, hear or walk. Maybe he'll just feel the unconditional love of a family, no matter what he can or can't do.
Since my last post, I've had the privilege of being with friends at 2 different times in which they intentionally prayed for us, our family and Arouna. One time was a surprise baby shower that a large group of friends came to. The other time was my Bible study group that I've been a part of for almost 9 years. It was so special to be surrounded by the friends that have made this whole thing possible with their giving, encouragement and support. And then for them to pray for us was even more of a gift. At each different occasion, friends prayed that even though Arouna can't understand anything, that God would allow him to feel the love of Robert and I as soon as we held him. That even though he can't hear us say it, that he would know in his heart that he was secure and loved. I had never thought about praying that or even considered that God could do that. But He can. He can speak into Arouna's heart and reassure him. So that is now my prayer from here on out.
Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
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