Passport :)

I am upstairs at the moment. For the first time in way too long I can hear my mother laughing with sheer joy as she tells the good news to a friend on the phone. You know what the good news is if you know my mother at all. Our little boy has a passport. A little black book that will allow him to leave Ghana and arrive in America with no problems. The laughter dowstairs goes on.... :)

I can finally imagine myself at the airport, welcoming my new siblings home. I couldn't do that before today.... Thank you God! I thought that I would want to shout or scream with joy when we finally heard the news, yet instead I'm filled with a content calm. They will come home. I think we were all beginning to think (and fear) that they would remain in Ghana forever. Mama said her trip to see them seemed like a dream. No more. They are coming home!

Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

The post I didn't want to do...

Making a post for the Carpenters for Christ LA mission trip means that it's over, the end, finished. I didn't want to accept that so I put off posting about it. I have now realized that I have great photos and awesome memories and I need to share them. God did a great work in and through every person who went to help Beulah Land Baptist Church in Haughton, LA. I can say with confidence that we all left changed people, ready to serve the LORD in our Jerusalem.

Here are a few photos....

The roofers were blessed with overcast skies on Monday and were able to knock out those shingles in no time.

Hard working girls

Special friends


This is one unstoppable crew!



Final day group photo :)

Let the fun begin!!

I've never seen that much insulation in my life! A day of working with that lovely stuff means a cold shower at the end of the day :)

Beulah Land Baptist Church

Fun times :)

Thank you Jesus for bringing together an unlikely group of people and using them to further your kingdom. The building that we helped construct is just that, a building. The people who gather inside that building to worship You and learn about You will become the church. Bless Beulah Land Baptist Church as they strive to reach their community. Give them strength as they do Your will.

For Sarah

Below is an amazing arrangemant of Love Story (Taylor Swift) and Viva La Vida (Cold Play) by Jon Schmidt. This song is dedicated to his little girl, Sarah.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you

Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,

Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,

And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;

If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with triumph and disaster

And treat those two imposters just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken

Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,

And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

And never breath a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;

If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -

Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,

And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

The first five lines of this poem (the fifth line especially) remind me very much of my Mama. She is the bravest woman I know and yet would never consider herself so; her mercy is abundant but she never forsakes justice. Right now Mama's heart is torn between two children in Africa, a husband and seven children in her home and the reminder that her oldest child is about to leave for her own home 400 miles away. This will be an exciting and enriching year (it already has been) but it as not been without heartache and great faith on the part of my Mama.

I love you Mommy and pray for your strength. This poem gives me a vivid picture of your walk with Christ and I pray that I may emulate it in my own life.

When the weather's not so fair....

Run your car off the side of the road
Get stuck in a ditch way out in the middle of nowhere
Or get yourself in a bind lose the shirt off your back
Need a floor, need a couch, need a bus fare
This is where the rubber meets the road
This is where the cream is gonna rise
This is what you really didn't know
This is where the truth don't lie

You find out who your friends are
Somebody's gonna drop everything
Run out and crank up their car
Hit the gas, get there fast
Never stop to think 'what's in it for me?' or 'it's way too far'
They just show on up with their big old heart
You find out who your friends are

When the water's high
When the weather's not so fair
When the well runs dry
Who's gonna be there?

You find out who your friends are

If you've been keeping up with my mom's blog (Streams of Joy) you know all about the outpouring of blessings our family has received for the adoption process. Gifts have come from friends we haven't seen in years, family members who live in other states, friends and family from our community and church and anonymous donors that will never reveal themselves.

It's hard to remember when but I do believe that about two weeks ago we were still unsure of how and when the adoption fees were going to be paid. As of today every single fee has been met ( with gifts and grants), Mama has flight plans (the tickets were also paid for by friends and family and our Grandmother even gave us snacks for the little one's on their flight home), and just yesterday we were given three different gifts from fellow brothers and sisters in Christ which amounted collectively to $500.00.

God is showing my family just who our friends are. Without Him working through them we would still be worrying about a $3000.00 fee that hadn't been met. We felt as if our well had run slap dry, but God knew better. It was as if He looked around and said with a smile "Hey y'all, watch this."

Praise God from whom ALL blessings flow.

Missed Opportunity

"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." Thomas A. Edison

My Mama is going to Ghana!

Within hours my mom will be holding these precious babies in her arms! No longer will they simply be faces on pictures. She will hear their voices and their laughter, kiss their faces and hold their hands! What an awesome God we serve. The adoption process has seemed to be a dream until now. They are coming home in a matter of months, no doubt about it! Thank you dear Jesus!

This is Home
Now I'm finally where I belong
Where I belong
Yeah this is home
I've been searching for a place of my own
Now I've found it
Yeah this is home

~ Switchfoot