I-pod touch!!! Help unite a family!

My friend Melinda and I are trying to raise some fast cash for a friend. Here is the blog post snatched right off of Carolyn's hi-jacked blog.
Join us as we spit in satan's eye and be a part of reuniting Salah with her older brother and sister.

i-Pod Touch deposit $10 in Salah's Red house fund

How would you like to have an ipod touch? This is Carolyn's friend again posting this. She is not cooperating on taking any help and does not want to ask for any help, so a couple of her friends have decided to take it into our own hands. We have purchased an 8G i-Pod touch to give for the Twiet's travel cost's. For only $10 you get your name entered for a chance to win this. The more you donate, the better chance you have to win!!! I own an i-pod touch and it is wonderful. I use it every day, lot's of fun! Come on everyone, let's get this money raised for this awesome family! We will keep the opportunity open for one week. Drawing will be held next Sunday by 5pm central time. Winner will be announced that night and I will send out an email for address confirmation for shipping. Use the donate button on the right of the page to go and donate now. Please pass the word along on your facebook or blog. Thank you all for reading!


You can click on the Project Hopeful donate button on my blog. In the notes, specify Ipod drawing!
Thanks.

one of those days

I'm having one of those days. The ones where nothing is wrong but nothing is right either. I can't write about it specifically because that would be wrong too.
I'll get through it, and hopefully in a Godly manner eventually, so how about I encourage you today? It will apply to me as well.

These are some notes I took from the message at church this Sunday.

The passage was 2 Corinthians 4:1-7
1 God, with his mercy, gave us this work to do, so we don't give up.2 But we have turned away from secret and shameful ways. We use no trickery, and we do not change the teaching of God. We teach the truth plainly, showing everyone who we are. Then they can know in their hearts what kind of people we are in God's sight.3 If the Good News that we preach is hidden, it is hidden only to those who are lost.4 The devil who rules this world has blinded the minds of those who do not believe. They cannot see the light of the Good News—the Good News about the glory of Christ, who is exactly like God.5 We do not preach about ourselves, but we preach that Jesus Christ is Lord and that we are your servants for Jesus.6 God once said, "Let the light shine out of the darkness!" This is the same God who made his light shine in our hearts by letting us know the glory of God that is in the face of Christ.
7 We have this treasure from God, but we are like clay jars that hold the treasure. This shows that the great power is from God, not from us.

It was pointed out that we become weary of the work we are placed here to do, but this passage encourages us to not give up. I think we become weary when we think we are the ones working. we can't forget that any thing of value that we have done is really God working through us. If we know that He is doing good, how can we become weary? We are to live out the gospel in the world. We are to do good to all people, not just our Christian brothers and sisters.
Friends, what is God trying to do through you? Are you submitting to it? If not, why not? Are you afraid? How can that be? Isn't God your father, and if so, what are you afraid of?

I encourage you today to live out the gospel in the world- right where you are.

Drum Roll Please

Just a quick post to announce that:

THE DOSSIER IS ON IT'S WAY TO UKRAINE!!!!!!!!

I sent it FedEx yesterday and it won't arrive until Monday the 19th. I will keep you posted about travel dates and such. I don't know those details yet.

We are coming Baby!

Quandary

I have not left for Ukraine yet.
According to Traci the travel agent, tickets should have been purchased and used by now. My precious daughter should be in my arms learning to understand that in fact someone does love her. A whole family loves her. 7 people exist who yearn to hold her.
Unfortunately, Traci the travel agent has no real authority. The One in charge has said not yet.
This is the quandry. How to rest in God's peace and in his perfect plan and reconcile the surface reason for all the delays.
It appears that my file at CIS is not being delt with right now. It has turned into "The Money Pit". Every time I enquire about when I can expect to receive the I171H, I am told, "two weeks."
Meanwhile, half of my dossier will expire within those "2 weeks". In order to correct that, yesterday I went to the court house for new marriage certificates, went to Illinois State Police office for a new background check. I was told "2 weeks" there as well. My unstoppable pitiful and silent crying as I filled out the form and wrote the check created such empathy in the clerk's heart that she processed my request immediately and Scott will pick this form up today. This morning at 7:30am, Scott and I had fasting blood work drawn because the medicals will also expire withing those same "2 weeks". This afternoon we go back to the doctor for a cursory physical.
This leaves the elusive I171H. I have made an infopass appointment for Tuesday the 13th to get to the bottom of why I do not have this form.
I do know it will come and she will come home.
We appreciate your prayers!

What does it look like to be God's Hands and feet?

This is a picture of 5 moms who helped at this weekend's resale. They represent 20 adopted children. Isn't that awesome?


Be God's hands and feet. That's something we've all heard before, but what does it really mean? Many times it is used when talking about doing something grand like being a missionary in some far off land, or donating some huge amount of money to a good cause. This weekend, I saw people actually being His hands and feet and we didn't leave Joliet.
My dear friend Cindy and her husband are persuing the adoption of an 8 year old HIV+ girl named Irena who lives in Ukraine. They have stepped out in faith to be her family and bring her home. How is it stepping out in faith to bring her home? The day they said yes, they did so knowing that they had 0 of the $27,000+ that they need in order to make it happen. You see, they are opperating under the impression that if it is HIS WILL IT IS HIS BILL. That's right, God is never going to ask you to do something and not provide the way to do it.
This weekend, we saw God make good on this promise.
Tim and Cindy had a rummage sale. In three weeks time, they sent out a mass email asking their friends to donate any items they no longer needed. Her church, Harvest Bible Chapel Joliet, donated the use of their gym to hold the sale. Many, Many friends dedicated their time helping organize, lable, paint signs, handle the check-out process, baby sit children, boil hotdogs for hungry workers, deliver large items that had been purchased, etc.
It was awesome. In 2 days, the sale generated over $4000, an ammount we hope will be matched by a grant from Lifesong.
This is what it looks like to be His hands and feet. It is seeing a need and meeting that need. Meeting this need here, helping with this sale, meets a need far away, Irena needs a loving family and a home.
In about 3 weeks, everything that didn't sell at this sale will be used at another sale in Mokena. This one will be to benefit the Kocis family. They are seeking to adopt a sibling group of 3 from Ethiopia. Her future 16ish year old son has a prosthetic leg and hearing loss. He also has 2 younger sisters, aged 12 and 9. They also need a loving family and a home. The Kocis family needs about $30,000 to make it happen. The sale after that will be in Crown Point, Indiana, to benefit the Lewis family who hope to adopt 4 HIV+ girls from Ukraine, and so it goes.
These families adopting these children, these friends donating items and working at these events, this is what it looks like to be God's hands and feet!

If you live in the South Suburbs of Chicago and feel your hands and feet itching to work, contact me to donate items for the resale, or if you just want to donate some money, I can tell you where to send that as well.

Something to pray about

I had opportunity to make a new contact today. Her name is Becky and she works with the Russian Orphan Lighthouse Project. They regularly arrange trips for older Russian children to connect with American families who wish to adopt them. The recent H1N1 epidemic has temporarily halted the children's trips here, so Americans are traveling to Moscow to meet and spend time with the children. At the last minute, these children were added to Becky's list of children to place. They are the first HIV+ children she has been asked to assist, so she contacted Project Hopeful for some education and assistance. I was able to provide her with helpful information and she asked if there was anything else I could do.
It is my pleasure to share these deserving children with you. Will you join me in prayer and help advocate for them?




Meet Yuliana (girl) and Artem (boy). They are 5 and a half year old orphans from Russia. They are not twins, but are available to be placed together and are both HIV+. Aside from this health issue, they have no delays and are otherwise as healthy as can be expected.
They are yearning for a family.
If you have a passport and immediate time off, you could go to Moscow to meet them this March 25th through the 31st.

I am not kidding.

You can go.

NOW!

The cost of this first trip would be not more than $1600. I have included information from their flier at the bottom of this email.

I know it's short notice, but I also know we have a mighty Heavenly Father who delights in the unanticipated. What is miraculous to us is commonplace to Him.

I am not the only one advocating for these children. The team of people praying strongly believe that someone will step forward in the next 24 hours so they could make this March trip. If this doesn't happen, there will be a trip in June.
Contact me or Becky- her information is below.
What ever is on your heart, please be praying for these lovely children who need a family.

*****************************************************
This March, visit Russia and spend time with a Russian orphan! Travelers will choose a child, fly to Russia as a group, meet and spend time with the child in Moscow, sightsee together, and decide whether to pursue the child’s adoption. Travelers not interested in adoption are welcome to join us. Single boys and girls, ages 7-14, and sibling groups, ages 6-15, are available. The Lighthouse Project will arrange transportation in Russia, lodging, activities, and most meals. Sightseeing plans include Red Square, St. Basil’s Cathedral, and other culturally appropriate activities. Cost depends on which lodging option is selected, but ranges between $1250-1550 per person, including airfare, assuming double occupancy. This is more cost-efficient than making a “first trip” to visit a child in the standard, two-trip adoption procedure. Basic paperwork includes an application and a statewide background check. Those deciding to adopt will complete the requisite paperwork in the US, returning to Russia to finish their adoption in one trip six to nine months later. For more information, please contact trip coordinator Becky De Nooy at (616) 245-3216, or visit www.lhproject.com or www.RussianOrphanLighthouseProject.blogspot.com.

Visitors (also known as "The Madness Continues")

So we have some baby chickens. Only for one more day. They were visitors for a week. We hatched eggs at Classical Conversations.
It is a bit more madness, but really, who gets to have baby chickens?
Just another benefit of home school.