Startling Statistic: about 147 million orphans worldwide
James 1:27
"Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."
"It's the mark of Christians to care the orphan because we're orphans. It's automatic--it's natural. And I'm not saying it all looks the same in every single one of our lives, but it's not possible to be a Christian, a child of God, and not have care for orphans." ~ David Platt
"The deepest and strongest foundation of adoption is located not in the act of humans adopting humans, but in God adopting humans. And this act is not part of His ordinary providence in the world; it is at the heart of the Gospel. Galatians 4:4-5 is as central a gospel statement as there is: 'But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.' " ~ John Piper
God's word is clear and the statements of these men of faith speak what is in Ryan's and my own heart--their words are definitely more eloquent than my own. I hope that these above/below statements will help you understand and answer any questions in your mind. I know that some of you may be asking yourself,"Why would a couple with two healthy children want to leave their children in the states and travel across the world to bring a child from a different country home?" or "You don't know what kind of issues this child may have, do you really want to make life harder for yourself or for your family?" Let me assure you... we know that this is going to be difficult, and yes this child may have learning disabilities, fear of being abandoned again, issues with connecting to our girls or us, etc, but don't you see...we, all of us, have an abundance of issues and God loves us anyway. He sent His son to die for us. Here are a few more statements that may shed some light on our decision making...
Piper speaking on the culture of adoption at his church,
"It means that our people are looking to their heavenly Father for their joy rather than rejecting the stress and cost of children in order to maximize their freedom and comforts. When people embrace the pain and joy of children rather than using abortion and birth control simply to keep children away, the worth of Christ shines more visibly...God's cost to adopt us was infinitely greater than any cost we will endure in adopting and raising children."
Okay now let me clarify! We are not saying anything against birth control here when quoting this statement :) We are stating that we will not let children, any child, orphan or unborn child, be looked at as a burden. Yes, we will have to raise a lot of money to fund all of the fees that come with adopting, but we know God is bigger than any $ amount and He is faithful. If it is His will we walk this road, He will see us through. And yes, we know that children are expensive, but friends let me be frank...we do NOT have to give our children everything this western world says they need. I pray everyday to be able to teach my children that all the junk will amount to nothing! Nothing! All that matters is that we obey the Lord and trust in Him and be His hands and feet. Now again, I'm not saying that nice things are wrong... if you know me at all, you know that I love shopping, I love crafting (which let's face it, Pinterest can be dangerous), I love going out to eat, etc, but again I say to you, we budget, we try and live within our means, and teach ourselves and our children everyday what is truly important.
"Now don't miss this: what we bring is not the hope of better in America...If that's the hope we bring, we have missed the whole point. If the point of orphan ministry is to bring children into nice homes with nice stuff and comfortable lives. We've missed the whole point ...We bring them hope of a Father on high who defends and protects and provides for them, and a Savior who pursues them and rescues them." ~ Platt
"It's all over the place; the law, the prophets, the psalms, God has chosen to care for the fatherless." ~ Platt
"We helpless in our sin, fatherless, slaves to sin, and God on high reaches down and instead of leaving us as sinners in rebellion, worthy of eternal damnation, he raises us up to be his children, in whom he delights, that's what happens on the cross." ~ Platt
Don't you see...
We are the rescued! Isn't it our responsibility to share how others can be rescued by our Father's hands?
Please pardon the length of this post, but I truly felt that these quotes helped to better explain why adoption is not just a resolution to infertility. It is a call to action on the parts of the believers whom God appoints this calling. But friends, we are ALL called to do something. And it is between you and Your Maker to decide what your part will be.
Thanks for reading,
Jenni
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