tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13578956025794229242024-03-13T01:19:07.665-07:00Melodies of MercyLauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.comBlogger168125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-41397839125017730112013-08-27T20:55:00.000-07:002013-08-27T20:56:56.945-07:00Another UpdateI wanted to give you a quick update. Last update I gave had us basically packing bags to head to Uganda. <br />
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We scurried around getting malaria medicine, supplies we needed and making sure we had all our paperwork. We had airline tickets on hold and were checking our email every few minutes. It was craziness but we were so excited!<br />
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Then we got an email letting us know that some things had changed and that we would not be flying out as soon as we hoped. It is the roller coaster ride of International Adoption; very high highs and very low lows. <br />
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So right now we are in waiting mode again. Our case has been assigned to a Judge and we are waiting on a court date. We are praying that it is sooner rather than later.<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-610525197840852182013-08-14T20:40:00.002-07:002013-08-14T20:40:42.072-07:00Overwhelmed by God's Abundance!I have been anxiously waiting to give you an update about our yard sale this past weekend but I first had to finish up some things with work. Well, first I had to recuperate from the weekend. On Sunday night, I think my body just melted into the mattress; even my bones were tired.<br />
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We had been collecting items for our yardsale for sometime. I had been storing things in our attic, garage, dining room and in our bedroom. Plus we had several people generously donate items to us. Really good stuff, some of which I wanted to keep for myself but I didn't. <br />
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All week I had been trying to price things in the beauty of air conditioning but I only made a dent in it. On Thursday night we loaded everything up and hauled it over to my in-laws house. They were so gracious to let us take over their garage and house. By the time we got everything in there, you really couldn't walk. It was packed full and we even had to put things behind their house on the porch because they wouldn't fit in the garage. <br />
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Friday started the task of getting everything organized and priced. My mom, Cliff's mom, Aunt Sandy and myself worked all day pricing items and getting things set up. The men (father in-law, brother in-law, dad and husband) moved stuff, priced stuff and worked too. We worked late into the night on Friday but we didn't really mind because our Yard Sale Entertainer was FABULOUS!<br />
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I wanted to take lots of pictures and be able to show you how much stuff we had and how organized we were. But that just did not happen. </div>
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Here is everyone working away.</div>
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We finally got home and ready to crawl into bed around 2:00am. The yard sale was to begin at 7:00 am, so our plan was to be back over at their house at 6:00 am. It is very foolish to think that you will get up at 5:00 am when your alarm goes off when you are so tired you can barely feel your legs. So you can imagine our shock when I rolled over and the clock said 6:00! It is a miracle that I managed to get clothes on and my hair brushed. <br />
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When we got to the yard sale site at around 6:40, people were lined up in the driveway waiting for us to open the garage. My in-laws said their doorbell rang at 6:30!<br />
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We jumped out of the car and started pulling stuff out of the garage. The guys were hurrying to get the big items from behind the house. Thankfully, the people were very patient to let us get everything pulled out before they started grabbing stuff. It was really crazy from the start which is why I forgot to take pictures.<br />
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At one point my mom asked me what time it was and we were shocked that it was only 10:30. We were both sure that it was at least 2 in the afternoon. I have never seen so many people at a yard sale! <br />
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We wrapped up the yard sale at around 2 in the afternoon. We probably sold at least 95% of what we started with and took the remaining items to the Salvation Army.<br />
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We were all so exhausted but so very thankful because after counting all the money we knew that we had witnessed a miracle. The grand total from our yard sale was a little over ....<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">$2,700!!!!</span></div>
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Who makes that kind of money at a yard sale? We were all truly in awe and overwhelmed by God! <br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-35661181896025891402013-08-07T11:29:00.000-07:002013-08-07T11:31:58.884-07:00Pregnancy of the HeartDo you know what happens when you tell people you are going to adopt, especially if you don't already have biological children?<br />
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They start in with the stories of all the people they know that are now pregnant since they decided to adopt. Literally if I had $10 for everytime that has been told to me, this adoption would be close to being fully funded. I know it happens and I even have friends it has happened to. I think for me the reason I find this almost offensive is that it somehow lends itself to the idea that this is some secret desire that adoptive families have. Nothing could be further from the truth for me. Adoption for us wasn't a second best option but rather God's best for us and for that I am so grateful. <br />
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I literally still look at my children that are 12 and 10 years old and wonder how I got so blessed to be their mama. And the same goes for Brenda. Only God could look the whole world over and pick me to be her mama. How blessed I am!<br />
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Well, that went down a rabbit trail I wasn't really planning. I started that story because just this week my mom told me she had a dream that I was pregnant. My response was something along the lines of "Please don't go there because y'all would need to commit Cliff and I if that were to happen." I love babies but I really don't want to start back over. She goes on to explain that I am pregnant just not in my womb. <br />
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That is the part of adoption that very few people understand. We adoptive mamas get pregnant in our hearts. The hardest part is that our gestational period isn't usually the typical 40 weeks. We don't have a protruding belly telling us the time is drawing near. (Well, some of us have protruding bellies but they don't really mean anything other than we like to eat!) In reality, many times we don't really know how far along in the heart pregnancy we are. Such was the case with me.<br />
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Who knew that I was over 8 months heart pregnant with Brenda! (Only God knew!)<br />
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So you can imagine my surprise at around 1 am this morning when I opened my email to read a message from our lawyer that said we should make preparations to travel. We will either be in court in two or three weeks from today! So then, my water broke! <br />
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All I could do was sit at my desk at cry. I was so overwhelmed at the goodness of my God. I have been hoping for a September court date and never even thought of an August one. I just told someone how I had a feeling it was going to be in September. God must have been smiling with amuzement at what we were about to learn. <br />
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Pray for us! Pray that God would prepare our family for Brenda and prepare Brenda for us. We love her so much and can't wait to be reunited with her!<br />
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Also, pray for our yard sale this weekend. We need no rain and lots of customers! We want a complete sell out!<br />
<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-77141767619072776272013-08-03T23:29:00.001-07:002013-08-03T23:31:43.390-07:00Adoption Fundraiser Yard SaleWe have scheduled our yard sale for this Saturday, August 10th. We are busy gathering items and filling up our dining room. <br />
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If you have items that you have been meaning to get rid of but just haven't gotten around to, we would gladly take them off your hands. You can call, email, facebook us and we will coordinate getting the things from you.<br />
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The yardsale will be held in Wentworth Subdivision. Please go ahead and pray now for a sunny day and a major sell out! <br />
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And if you would like to help set up or price items, we could sure put you to work. We will be doing the majority of everything on Friday.<br />
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Thanks so much!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-39969157847386447872013-07-23T22:53:00.001-07:002013-07-23T22:53:59.782-07:00Fundraiser and Latest NewsFor us the road to Africa is paved with watermelon seeds. We first started selling watermelons back in 2011 to fundraise for our mission trip. We literally set out with a truck and trailer headed south. God blew us away by redirecting us and putting us right where we needed to be. And we came home loaded with melons. <br />
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Last year we sold melons again to raise money for our adoption. And we have been busy selling melons the last couple of weeks. This year the season was later and shorter due to all the rain but we still had two good weekends of selling melons. <br />
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God has blessed our efforts and the money raised will be go toward paying for our lawyer fees. <br />
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We still are not fully funded, so our next fundraiser is a yard sale. Our dining room is being used as our collection site. We still have more cleaning out to do. We are sick of clutter, which makes it easier to part with things. <br />
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If you live near us and have some things that you have been meaning to get rid of, we would love to take them off your hands. You can call us, email or text us and we will work out the details of getting your items. We do not have a date set for the sale, but we want to have it in August. If you would like to help set up or help on the day of the sale, we would love the extra hands.<br />
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In other adoption related news...we mailed our dossier this week. If you are not familiar with what this is, it is basically multiple copies of all your personal information. Ours weighed in at almost 5 pounds. It is on it's way to Uganda. Please pray it arrives quickly. I checked, rechecked and checked again all our documents before sending them off. It is pretty nerve wracking making sure that you have everything that is needed. I was a little nervous to let the lady at the counter take it, but I had already had a prayer meeting over these papers while I was sitting in the car. So off it went!<br />
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Our next step is...<br />
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JUST WAITING TO HEAR OF OUR COURT DATE!!!<br />
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Can you tell I am a little worked up over it. There is nothing left for us to do except fundraise before we go. (Oh who am I kidding, there is lots of things to do but you know what I mean)<br />
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Soon I will list specific ways that you can pray for us. For now you can pray for our court date. The courts are on break right now and will start back up August 15th. When the courts reconvene, there will be new Judges in place. We are praying that this does not cause a big delay in issuing court dates. We are really hoping that we get a September court date so we can be back home before the holidays. <br />
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Thanks for following along on our journey!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-3788301842008341662013-07-13T21:58:00.002-07:002013-07-13T21:58:29.779-07:00Little Pink PurseNext week, people I know will be at Brenda's orphanage. I am a little teary eyed because in some crazy way it makes me feel closer to her. We got her a little gift that will be delivered to her. It was a little pink purse. I had a hard time thinking what we should put in it. In reality, I wanted my current family of four to crawl in the purse and go be with her. <br />
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Oh Lord, make to soon!<br />
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But since we couldn't fit, we put pens, bracelets, a necklace, a bouncy ball, a notepad and a pair of flip flops. I hope the zipper holds. And to top it off, I put in two blow pops. I don't know if she has ever had gum but I do know how much she loved dum dum suckers. So, she is really going to love the blow pops. And we also sent a few pictures and stickers. Above all the stuff, I hope she knows how much we love her and how crazy we are about her. <br />
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<strong>Prayer Request:</strong> There is an important meeting taking place on Monday in Uganda relating to our adoption. Will you join us in praying that this meeting goes well and it accomplishes its purpose. Thank you!<br />
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Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-91430905851314564462013-06-27T21:26:00.001-07:002013-06-28T07:15:18.653-07:00What's Happening?I have been holding off posting hoping that I would have more to report. Our lawyer is working to get the documentation needed so we can file in court. We are praying that our case can be filed with the courts before they close July 15th for a month long break. We would love it if you would join us in praying for this to happen. <br />
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Once the courts come back in session, they will have all new Judges. Every two or three years the Judges are reassigned and this is the summer for that to happen. You can also be in prayer for the new Judges. We pray for fair Judges that look at the needs of the children. <br />
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So that is all we really have to report right now. It is hard waiting but there is not one thing we can do to speed the wait up. The not knowing when you might be going is what makes it really difficult. But the fall will be here in a few months and I guess that isn't really that long to wait. (I don't know that we are going in the fall just me hoping!)<br />
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We did go see the farewell concert for Uganda Thunder on Sunday. Whenever I visit with someone from Uganda it makes me miss Brenda so much more. Something about hearing the accent makes me recall the words Brenda said when we were together. On our last day together, she started singing some of her songs from school for us. I wish I had them recorded but every time we would try to video her she would suddenly get quite and just smile.<br />
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After we left the concert, we started talking in the car about Brenda coming home. We dreamed about what it will be like at the airport. Amelia has designated herself as the "Airport Party Planner"! And she said we really needed to let her know when this was going to happen because she had so much to do to get ready! We just laughed and said we wish we knew! It was fun to think about what we should wear, as if that is important, but it is fun to dream about the day. Should we all match and if so what should we wear? I think it was decided that at least Brenda and I should match since we will be the two coming home together. My thought was that I won't be hard to miss...look for the crazy haired woman crying like a baby! I get teary eyed now just thinking about it. <br />
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This has been quite a journey. I would like to think that we are nearing the end but in reality we could be at the beginning or middle...only God knows. This experience has revealed so much about myself. The other night in our small group I made the comment that I think I need Brenda more that she needs me. God has used that little girl to teach me so much about His love for me. If you don't know me personally, you wouldn't know that I led the women's ministry at my previous church for 10 years. I love leading women to pursue a deeper relationship with the Lord. <br />
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I have spoken on numerous occasions to groups of women about God's love for them. I wanted them to know just how crazy God was and is for them. The problem was I had a hard time living in His love and believing in His love for myself. Oh I could tell you about it all day long, but when it came time for me to live it well that was different. <br />
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I have gained a greater understanding of God's heart for me through this journey. We took Dum Dum suckers when we went to Uganda. The children there call them sweeties. We had a giant bag because we were going to give them to the kids at Brenda's school. It didn't take long for Brenda to spot this big bag in our room our first night together. I gave her one and she was so excited. Over the next few days she kept asking for sweeties. One day I finally had to tell her that we couldn't have anymore for now. In reality, I wanted to give her the whole giant bag of sweeties and tell her they were all hers. But that wasn't what was best for her. I love her more than she can comprehend but I also only want what is best for her. And sometimes what is best is "No". <br />
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God reminded me of this little "lesson" this week. I can't even begin to comprehend the love that He has for me. And because I am His child, He only wants what is best for me. Sometimes what is best is for Him to say yes but other times what is best is for Him to say no. And there are even times when the best is for Him to say wait! And when there is a no or a wait it is not because He doesn't love but because what we are asking for at the moment isn't the best there is for us. And in His time He has something so much better waiting for us!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-74748463917509639152013-06-11T13:07:00.000-07:002013-06-11T13:07:51.432-07:00Do We Care?This video speaks so loudly to me. Maybe it is because I have a daugher half the world away from me that I want to have home. Or maybe it is because there have been so many times in my life that I have been indifferent. I have learned this though...<br />
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We Are Here On This Earth For God's Glory! <br />
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It really isn't about us. We work so hard to make it about ourselves but it never is. When we are finally able to grasp this truth, I believe that is when true living begins. It really is about dying to ourselves and living for Him. And the reality is when we die to ourselves, that is when we are the happiest because we see there is so much more to life than our present circumstances. <br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-12689638304409192012013-06-10T12:50:00.002-07:002013-06-10T12:52:58.069-07:00We Have Progress People!I am excited to tell you that today we wired our deposit to our new lawyer in Uganda and I emailed her our homestudy so she can get busy preparing our affidavits for court.<br />
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I am so excited to have some progress to report. We still feel that it will be sometime in the fall before we can go get our girl but at least we are moving forward. Which brings me to some other exciting news...<br />
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This week I will be posting how you can be a real "piece" in Brenda's story. Sorry to keep you in suspense but that is all I can tell you now.<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-86159376013071656902013-05-07T19:21:00.000-07:002013-05-07T19:21:39.453-07:00Oh Ruby!I am one of those crazy people that names their cars and my current vehicle is named Ruby. Before Ruby there was Bessie and she was special. Bessie hauled us around for about nine years and that old girl saw some stuff! My children grew up crawling over her seats, spilling juice all over her and who knows what else. <br />
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Three years ago Bessie lost her will to haul us around and it became evident that while we loved her deeply, it did not make sense to keep putting money into her. I am not lying when I tell you that there were tears shed when we left her at the dealership. It felt like we were leaving behind a family member and it didn't help any when the salesman said she would most likely be sent to the scrap yard. Oh Bessie, you were good to us old girl!<br />
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The day we left Bessie, we drove away in her next of kin Ruby. Ruby was the same make and color as Bessie only a little newer. We thought it was just meant to be. We just knew that Ruby would be as good to us as Bessie had been. <br />
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There is this thing that happens to most adopting families once they start their journey to adopt...things all of the sudden just decide to break or quit working. Ask a family that is adopting and believe me they will have some stories. It is the battle that is raging that we feel but just can't see with our eyes. We know that God is for the orphan and the enemy is not. He is a lion who prowls around looking for who he can devour.<br />
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Well, tonight it happened to us. Ruby decided that she was going to start having some issues. Two years ago when we were planning our first trip to Uganda, Ruby's transmission went out. Needless to say, most of the money we had been saving up had to go to repair her. Tonight, I was over her. I wanted to take her to the scrap yard, only we can't because we need her. <br />
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As tears started to fill my eyes, all I could think about was how unfair it is that we are having to spend money on a hunk of metal when there is a little girl we love waiting on us. It isn't fair! I am happy to say that I didn't stay there long. I was quickly reminded of my devotional this morning. I read the passage where Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers. The verse that stood out to me was when he tells his brothers what was intended for evil God can turn it into good. <br />
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So that is what I am going to focus on...my God can bring good from this. I will press into Him and take it one step at a time. <br />
<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-20908966575089944652013-05-03T10:18:00.000-07:002013-05-03T10:18:26.528-07:00Adoption Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhws2tR53P4qFqjSPmzBipEIj6KvJ-NO858AJSrtVy8_4GM7ZVJT7FPNaNgHWtwedtVSTj44-003a3L8zhoZjws4xUVwOgLtcXFEExT6SAC8qRHfupMzgmsNDEUdVVNxAqpsnfukYvf5lhc/s1600/Picture+for+Brenda.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhws2tR53P4qFqjSPmzBipEIj6KvJ-NO858AJSrtVy8_4GM7ZVJT7FPNaNgHWtwedtVSTj44-003a3L8zhoZjws4xUVwOgLtcXFEExT6SAC8qRHfupMzgmsNDEUdVVNxAqpsnfukYvf5lhc/s320/Picture+for+Brenda.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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This week we sent this picture to Brenda. We want her to know that we miss and love her very much! <br />
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We have some news regarding our adoption of Brenda...<br />
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It appears that we are having to start over again. What that means is that we are having to find a new lawyer, get an investigation done, and get all our documents notarized again. It was a little hard to accept this at first. We believe that we have found a new lawyer to work with and are looking for an investigator. Luckily, I have all of our documents still in my notebook from our trip to Africa so it will not be too difficult to get that portion done. <br />
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The most challenging part that lies ahead is the fundraising. The money that we had raised last year was spent on lawyer fees, airfare, lodging and immunizations. So, we are pretty much starting over again in this area as well. <br />
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I loved what I read this week written by Beth Moore. She wrote that when you have a mountain in front of you to ask God to move the mountain or to give you the strength to climb it so you can see His transcended glory. <br />
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We know that money is not an issue to God since He owns it all anyway. So we are just trusting Him to show us what we need to do to get our girl home!<br />
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There have been many days over the last several months where we have felt like quitting. This has been a really long, hard journey. But without exception, every time we have felt that way shortly after we have received some type of confirmation to keep on going. And probably the biggest confirmation we have received is her name. In Uganda, you are given a name that has meaning. It may have something to do with how you were born, the season in which you were born, etc. Brenda's birth name is Tibihabya. Can you guess what it means?<br />
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Her name means...WHATEVER HAPPENS NEVER QUIT!<br />
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Did you just get goose bumps? I still get them every time I say it. <br />
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Only God knew that the name given to her on the day that she took her first breath, would be the encouragement that two people living half a world away would need to continue in the fight before them to become her parents!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-73619654702921431092013-04-08T10:32:00.001-07:002013-04-08T10:32:45.738-07:00An Update<br />
"I miss her" was the whisper of my heart to God as I sat listening to the Suubi tribe sing at Dollywood. Tears began to sting my eyes as I tried to blink them away. <br />
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Everyday I think of her, but somedays I miss her so bad that my heart physically hurts. And when I am around another child that shares her same accent and ebony skin, well my heart hurts for her. <br />
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We are still waiting and it is not easy. I want so badly to get on an airplane and go get our girl but I know that is not possible. So, we continue to wait.<br />
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Over the past few months we have wanted to give up and say enough, but every time we have that feeling God sends some sort of message that we are to continue on. Just a few weeks ago we were once again at this point. There has been no movement in our case and it really just doesn't appear that there is going to be any. I had shared with my family, through tears, that this was the hardest thing in my life I had ever done and that I just wanted to give up but I felt that God was saying to continue on. A couple of days later, we received a picture of her through email. We can't give up! <br />
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I can't close my eyes and pretend she doesn't exist. She is real and the reality is that there are thousands more little precious faces just like her in need of a family to love them. And my response is "well I'm here let me love her, but the reply is wait!"<br />
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And so we will continue to wait because the story that God is writing it bigger and better than anything that I could dream up. After all we are here for the glory of His renown and I want my life to exclaim His glory!<br />
<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-81459819778858091142013-03-06T10:07:00.000-08:002013-03-06T10:07:59.855-08:00TrustHave you ever had a recurring theme running through your life?<br />
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Maybe a lesson that you knew for sure that God was trying to teach you?<br />
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The recurring theme, the title of the lesson plan in my life is TRUST! <br />
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As I look back at the events in my life over the last couple of years, it is plain to see. I can almost hear the question being asked "Do you Trust Me?"<br />
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My quick answer would be yes, but upon examination it appears that I hesitate quite a bit. Things scare me and cause me to want to draw back. I have tendencies like a two year old and I want to throw fits when things don't go how I had planned. I want to give up when dreams become to heavy to continue to carry. And yet it is in all of those moments and so many more that I hear the question being asked..."Do You Trust Me?"<br />
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A couple of weeks ago I boarded a flight to Houston with my daughter. I was excited about our trip and wasn't too concerned about the flight. Once you fly for seventeen hours, a two hour flight seems like a piece of cake. That was until I looked at the weather forecast and saw that there were thunderstorms in Houston waiting to greet us upon our arrival. I need to let you know something about me...I do not enjoy flying. The actual flying part is not too bad, it is the turbulence that causes my hands to sweat and my stomach to knot up. So when I saw thunderstorms in our flight path, I began to pray. I asked God to calm the storms and smooth out the air. (This prayer started days before our flight.) As we boarded the plane to leave, my daughter and I grabbed hands and prayed for our trip. We talked about God creating the wind, so He certainly had the power to calm it.<br />
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The flight was a little bumpy but not too bad until we were about an hour out of Houston. The attendants had just given us our drinks and crackers. Then the pilot comes on and informs us that it is about to get rough. We were told to hold on to our drinks and tray tables. I had a death grip on my coke and tray. I was praying and trying to remind myself that I was the adult and needed to hold it together. My daughter fell asleep which I was so envious of her ability to just catch some zzz's. It got BAD! We were swaying from side to side and bouncing up and down. I did not like it ONE BIT!<br />
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In the midst of this patch of bad air, my prayers changed. I was no longer just asking for the air to be smoothed out by Creator God. I began to cry out to Abba Father saying "Daddy, I'm scared! I don't like this! Daddy, please make this stop!" <br />
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In about fifteen minutes, the air smoothed out and I wanted to lay in the floor and cry. Not because I was scared of flying but because I knew what had just happened. I had just gone through a lesson in trust. I had to come face to face with one of my greatest fears. I had to trust that He was in control and that He had me tightly in his grasp. <br />
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That was a couple of weeks ago and today I am still trying to really learn this lesson. I am weary from waiting. I know all the good christian things that I should say and more importantly that I should be doing, but if I'm honest I am just worn out. We had hoped for news of progress to come this week from Africa and yet what we got was more of the same. The report is still not done. It could be a week or two or three or four... you get the picture. I so want what God wants for me and my family but it is really hard to continue on when there is no end in sight. <br />
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I read a devotional about Abraham yesterday. It was out of Genesis and was the passage where he was instructed to sacrifice Issac. I read the whole passage and was really struck at how Abraham was able to walk up the mountain. How was he able to put one foot in front of the other and continue on to face the unimaginable? What was running through his mind? What questions was he asking?<br />
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Those are all questions I am still thinking on today. Abraham was just a man. He was not super human or anything. What did he possess that gave him the strength to continue to walk when you know he wanted to run the other way. The answer is that he trusted God. He trusted the promise that God had made to him. I want to trust God like that. I want to trust Him when times are hard and relatively easy. I want to trust without hesitation. I want to press on when everything in me wants to run the other way. <br />
A trust like that requires that my feet are firmly planted on the truth The truth of who God is and who I am as His adopted daughter. It also requires that I fix my gaze on Him and not the circumstances around me. Knowing this, I have to think that as Abraham climbed the mountain he wasn't thinking of what he was about to do but rather Who he was about to worship!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-31003481512625765782013-02-07T08:04:00.000-08:002013-02-07T08:08:44.320-08:00ReachingIn one of my last posts, I shared how I am trying to live just focusing on today and not what may be in the days to come. Well, I stink at it! <br />
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I can't even do today! That was the main cry of my prayer yesterday. "Lord, I can't even do today but I can do right now, this minute."<br />
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I don't know about you, but I am so thankful that God doesn't dust His hands off and say enough. I am thankful that He doesn't give up on me, that I truly am a work in progress. <br />
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I get up everyday with such good intentions to focus on Him but before I know it I am knee deep in my circumstances either trying to make something happen or worrying about what might happen. I need those blinders that they put on horses so they can only look straight ahead. <br />
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This week in Jesus Calling, it said that to try to grasp hold of anything other than the hand of God is disasterous to your soul. In my mind I visualize it as grasping something and then having it run through your hands like sand. And yet, I still reach for it. I still reach for any bit of control I can have. I still reach for things that appear so appetizing to me even though I know there is no substance there.<br />
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I know this is the lesson I am to learn from the events in my life over the last few months. My life right now is not in my control and that is driving me nuts. I can't focus on The Hand that I should be grabbing hold to for being so focused on other things. Help me Sweet Jesus!<br />
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I was so challenged during Bible Study last night by Paul's opening statement in Ephesians 3. I will go ahead and tell you that I never really give a whole lot of thought to the greetings. I read through them quickly to get to the rest of the passage. Well last night God stopped me at verse one and I really didn't hear much else of what was said because I was having my own internal lesson.<br />
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Ephesians 3:1 states "<em>For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Jesus Christ for the sake of you Gentiles"</em><br />
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Paul was writing this from prison...talk about circumstances. Paul's focus is what struck me. He doesn't say I'm a prisoner of the people that actually imprisoned him. He has a much grander viewpoint and states that he is a prisoner of Jesus Christ. His focus is not on his earthly circumstances. He is not sitting around focusing on how he is locked up. He gives no mention to that. But what he does mention is that when we become a follower of Christ we die to ourselves and we give our lives to Him. We are in essence His prisoner. And no matter what our circumstances are we are serving The One who has a grander plan and purpose. <br />
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That is so hard to live, so very hard. I stink at it. It is not in my power to do it, but when I die to Laurie and grab hold of His hand it's possible. It's the only way! <br />
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The great news is that His hand is outstretched just waiting for us to grab hold of it. So stretch your fingers and reach for it. He will never, ever let go!<br />
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Leave me a comment letting me know your thoughts on this. It's always good to know we are not alone in our struggles!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-8470373437240598972013-01-25T21:48:00.000-08:002013-01-25T21:48:01.955-08:00Our Adoption StoryI am linking up with <a href="http://www.kellyskornerblog.com/">Kelly's Korner blog</a> today and her Show Us Your Life Adoption post. I encourage you to go visit her blog and read the other stories of families that are or have adopted. <br />
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Adoption is very dear to our hearts. It is the means God used to bring our children to us and give me the most glorious of all names "Mama". Twelve years ago, I became a mother for the first time through adoption. I can say to you that the moment I heard about my son that I knew he was mine. I knew that he was a gift directly from God and I didn't care if he was green with three eyeballs, I just couldn't wait to be his mommy. When I held him for the first time, well there just are no words. <br />
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Two years later, we would begin the process to adopt again. This time God blessed us with the most beautiful baby girl. She was and is more than I ever dreamed of in a daughter. We love to tell the story of how her daddy picked her out of all the babies in the hospital nursery. We just knew she was ours!<br />
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Both our son and daughter were adopted domestically through an agency based in Texas. After we adopted our daughter, we felt that our family was complete. God had blessed us more than we could have ever imagined!<br />
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Fast forward to 2011. My husband and I were preparing for a mission trip to Uganda, Africa. Adoption was the furthest thing from our minds. It was not even remotely on the radar! We love adoption, are for adoption, but felt that our family was complete. <br />
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Well, that was until Monday, October 31, 2011. We were in Uganda and we traveled by bus three hours to an orphanage near the border of Kenya. We were greeted by children clapping and singing welcoming us to their orphanage. We hugged on the children as we exited the bus. They were all so beautiful!<br />
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We took a seat that had been prepared for us and listened as the children from the orphanage sang for us. That is when I noticed her sitting on the floor with her legs crossed. She was so tiny. She was staring back at me and I motioned for her to come to me. She got up and came and sat in my lap. I grabbed her ebony hand and held it in mine. She would turn and look at me with the most beautiful smile. Her name was Brenda. It wasn't long before she felt comfortable enough to lean back against me. I soaked up every second of it. She would stroke my arm and eventually lay her head against my arm. My heart was a bunch of mush by this point. At one point she sat up, turned around where she was facing me and began to rub my face and neck. I remember the tears stinging my eyes and praying. I remember saying to God, she has no idea what she is doing to me but you do. <br />
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The program ended and it was time for her to go eat lunch. I started painting fingernails and was able to paint her precious little nails. Finally it was time for us to leave. Our group started handing out suckers to the children. I lost her in the choas. They called for us to get on the bus. I began to search the crowd for her but could never find her to say goodbye. I got on the bus and the tears that earlier stung my eyes were now spilling forth. There was no holding them back. I whispered to God "You knew I couldn't tell her goodbye." <br />
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We returned back to the States the first of November but I knew that a part of my heart was left in Uganda. We tried to re-enter our lives, but coming home during the holiday season isn't the easiest when you have seen and touched extreme poverty. They were no longer nameless faces on TV. I had held them and knew some of their names.<br />
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Finally in January I just could not stand it any longer. I needed to know more about this little girl that had stolen my heart. So I just thought I would Google the name of her school and orphanage. Much to my surprise, the orphanage had a website with contact information. I typed a brief message and hit send. I thought my heart was going to skip a beat. The next day I checked my email and about fell in the floor when I saw that I had a message from the Pastor of her orphanage. We started emailing on a regular basis and I was able to find out lots of information about Brenda. We found out that she was an orphan. At this point we just felt that the Lord wanted us to sponsor her.<br />
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In April, I remember having a conversation with the Lord. I was thinking of all the things that Brenda would never get to experience. I remember saying she will most likely never have a bike and then I would think "Is that fair?" Well no that is not fair but there are lots of kids that will never have a bike. I happened to be in my bathtub during this time and I thought about Brenda never getting to have a bath in a big bathtub with warm water. Again I asked if this was fair and of course it's not fair. I did this with numerous things and then all the sudden the question changed from "Is it fair" to "Can you live with it?" I immediately knew the answer to that...NO! I would not be able to live the rest of my life knowing that I did not do anything to make her life better. So we brought up the question of adoption with the Pastor at her orphanage. It was a God moment and a God thing and it was very evident that God was leading in that direction. <br />
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We worked like crazy getting everything together and officially started the process to adopt. We had to have another homestudy and get all of the paperwork together. We did it all in record time. We sent our paperwork off and finally were assigned a court date. <br />
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This past November we flew to Uganda to appear in court and bring our little Ugandan princess home ...only things did not go as planned.<br />
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We arrived in Uganda late on a Thursday night. We would be reunited with Brenda on Sunday and go to court on Monday. I had played the scene of our reunion out in my mind a million times. I was trying to prepare myself not to cry but I pretty much knew that was hopeless. When she arrived at our guest house, I thought I wasn't going to be able to catch my breath. She did allow me to hug her and hold her and I did pretty good about not crying. She stayed with us in our room that night and she did so good. We all just bonded so well and you would have thought that we had been her mommy and daddy forever. <br />
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We went to court on Monday and sat all day waiting to be seen. Finally we were the last family seen by the Registrar. He had some questions about some of the paperwork on the Uganda side of things. Our lawyer and the Pastor would work on Tuesday to get the questions resolved and we would be back in court on Wednesday. By the end of the day on Tuesday, the questions were still unanswered and we knew we would not be going back to court on Wednesday. By the end of the day on Wednesday, my husband and I both felt that God was saying stop. We did not really understand it but we knew better than to force something that God was saying stop to. <br />
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On Thursday, we had to let Brenda go back to the orphanage and I honestly thought that I was telling her goodbye forever. Did I mention that this was Thanksgiving Day! We were hurt and heartbroken. We left that day to fly back home. I cried on every flight. Our return flight certainly would not end with the Gotcha Day video that I had scripted in my head. The only thing that we were bringing home were pieces of a broken heart. <br />
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For weeks I grieved and mourned our loss. I have never cried so many tears. Finally one night I was praying and I confessed that I could not continue living like this. I was just a mess. So I gave my dream of being Brenda's mommy over to the Lord. I did not understand why He said to stop but I knew the peace He had given to both my husband and myself. We knew that we had done the right thing even if we did not understand why we did it. It was His peace in the midst of our heartache. I confessed that I would be okay with Brenda never living in our house and I began to pray that God would allow me to see her just one more time in my lifetime and that he would let my other two children meet her. <br />
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The next day, the internet in our area was out. Finally by evening it had been restored and I was able to check email. That is when I saw that I had an email from the Pastor at her orphanage. More than two weeks had passed since we left Uganda. The email was a game changer for us and we committed to pray to see what God was leading us to do in regards to this adoption. <br />
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And that is where you find us today. We believe that God is opening the doors for us to go back to Uganda and adopt Brenda. At this point we are waiting for some paperwork on their side to be completed. Once it is finished we will get another court date and we will go back. <br />
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This is the first time since we came home from Uganda that I have typed for the world to see that we believe God is leading us to go back. So much about this process is scary. But I have come up with the saying "I can do today!" I declare this often to the Lord. The future at times can look scary no matter what season of life you are in. There are twists and turns up ahead of us that seem more than we can handle. When I start to focus on what's ahead and the what if's, I quickly get overwhelmed. That is when I declare "I can do today!" I might not can handle what is ahead but today God, well I can do today!<br />
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So please pray for us! We know that Brenda is safe and she will be heading back to school this next week. We want to do what God wants for our family and for Brenda. We want her so badly! If we could get on a plane tomorrow and go pick her up, well we would wave to you from the airport. We are also seeking God's direction regarding the funding of this journey. We had not budgeted for two sets of plane tickets so we are having to start over again as far as that is concerned. We are looking to have a yard sale soon and are really just praying for God to direct us as to what else we need to do. So I ask you again, will you please pray for us!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-16785498292729763872013-01-14T06:28:00.000-08:002013-01-14T06:28:02.989-08:00Making MannaI am hard headed and strong willed. Independent almost to a fault. If my husband reads this he will yell out a hearty AMEN!<br />
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Asking for help is something that I rarely do. I always use to think that I didn't ask because I didn't want to inconvenience anyone but the reality is that pride didn't want me to admit that I needed help. <br />
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That was until November 22nd ...the day I left Uganda without the daughter I went to get. <br />
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Physically I was still in one piece, but inside I was broken so badly that sometimes I wondered if I could catch my breath. I arrived back in Atlanta dragging a mangled heart wondering if it would ever be whole again. <br />
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I clung to the promise that Jesus came to "bind up the broken hearted" and knew that He was my only hope. The tears were plentiful and the words few. I did not have the vocabulary to voice the pain and hurt to Him. Instead I just asked to sit in His presence and that is when the piecing back together began. <br />
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And just when I thought that I had somewhat of a handle on things and somewhat of an understanding of why things might have happened, I was quickly reminded that neither of these things are true. <br />
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Through this experience I have learned something about myself. I realized that I have spent much of my life trying to concoct the recipe for manna. <br />
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After my first trip to Africa, I learned that I live most of my days not having to depend on God. I have organized and arranged my life to where I am self sufficient, which has caused me to think that I can cook manna. <br />
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In the Old Testament manna was the bread from Heaven that fell every morning to feed the Israelites. They were given instructions on how much to collect for the day. It was only enough to feed them for that day. The only day that they could collect two days worth was on the day before the Sabbath. <br />
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When greedy, disobedient hearts tried to gather too much and store it away Scripture tells us that the manna got magots in it and was rotten. <br />
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God set up this system so that His chosen people would depend on Him daily. <br />
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They weren't given the recipe for manna because God wanted them to see their need for Him; their daily need for Him.<br />
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I wasn't created to be independent but to be dependent!<br />
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I was not created to be independent but to be dependent! <br />
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That has been the hardest lesson for me to learn. It goes against the independent vein in me that runs deep. I have to fight against this daily. God has to harness that run away mustang in me because whoa nelly is she a wild one.<br />
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I don't know a tremendous amount about horses. My dad loves horses and has owned one several times throughout his life. I have learned that when a horse is independent and wild you have to break them of it. <br />
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I guess the same holds true for almost forty, hard headed, strong willed lovers of God who think they can cook up their own batch of manna!<br />
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I was not created to be independent but to <strong><u>daily</u></strong> depend on Him!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-26910489135225420132012-12-10T19:17:00.002-08:002012-12-10T19:17:55.273-08:00The Reality of Isaiah 55:8-9<em>I originally wrote this post two weeks ago but did not post it ...</em><br />
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Since we returned home over a week ago, the little case of Polly Pockets that we took to Africa with us has sat just inside our door leading from the garage. These were the toys that Brenda played with and she loved them. The case has sat undisturbed because I could not force myself to open it. I even vacuumed around it last week. I wasn't sure how long it would sit there. I was prepared to leave it there forever.<br />
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But tonight I felt that I needed to open it. I needed to hold the tiny, rubber clothes that frustrated the ebony hands that tried to place them on the dolls. I needed to hold the purple sunglasses that were so smudged with fingerprints because they were her fingerprints. And then there was this tiny basket...<br />
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On Tuesday, we took Brenda to downtown Jinja. We were visiting with Florence in our favorite store and introducing her to Brenda. We were also picking up a few handmade items. Brenda was standing right by me and I see her reach all the way into this shelf. This little basket is what she pulled out. She looked up at me and smiled really big while she put this in our basket of items. I started to laugh and told her she could get the little basket. When we got back to our room, I quickly learned why she wanted the basket. She loved putting her little doll items in it. <br />
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So tonight when I opened the case and pulled out the little basket, this is what I found. My heart sank as I thought of the new Hello Kitty purse that was on her bed waiting for her to get here. Oh how she would have loved having a purse to put things in. I miss her so much!<br />
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<em>"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the LORD. As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9</em><br />
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The reality of these two verses has played out in our lives over the past week. I have quoted this verse numerous times but I now know the cavern that exists between my ways and thoughts and His ways and thoughts. <br />
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I do not pretend to understand for one second how leaving the little girl that I love behind is best. I do not understand. And yet, I know without a doubt that those were His instructions. It had nothing and everything to do with her if that makes any sense.<br />
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We did not wake up on Wednesday, November 21st suddenly feeling that we didn't love her and couldn't parent her. It was quite the opposite. We woke up still very much in love with her. Yes, this was going to be a challenge but we knew that going in to it. But we were suppose to be together. We had taken to eachother so easily. She was desperate for the love of a mom and dad and we were more than eager to give it. But then we felt God saying stop. And while this was the most difficult thing we have ever done, we knew we had to obey Him. <br />
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There are remnants of Brenda still littered all over our house. I almost don't see them when I walk by but I know they are there. I am still not to the point that I can give them away or pack them all up. She is such a part of my heart that I need to see evidence of her in my world. <br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-10772195538731311932012-11-18T01:41:00.001-08:002012-11-18T01:41:27.522-08:00Boda, BodaWhen in Uganda, do as the Ugandans do!<br />
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My driver looks thrilled doesn't he! <br />
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These are called bodas here and basically they are what everybody uses to get around. The first time I got on yesterday, I held onto the driver for dear life. Today I was more of a pro and held the bar behind my back. The Ugandan women ride side saddle but this mzunga wasn't trying that. I was for sure I would fall off. <br />
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Today we got up and straightened up our room in anticipation of Brenda coming. We ate some breakfast and then hopped on bodas and headed to town. We are now back and waiting anxiously for everyone to arrive.<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-17587247094875713072012-11-17T05:22:00.001-08:002012-11-17T05:22:19.001-08:00The Waiting is Over...AlmostWell, as most of you know we are in Africa. When we got the final word, it was kinda a rush to get everything packed and together. As far as I can tell, my hair brush was the only thing I forgot. So that is not too bad. <br />
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We had great flights here. We got to see the Statue of Liberty as we were flying in and leaving Newark. And let me tell you that New York lit up at night is a beautiful sight. We left Newark and flew to Brussels. Here is the sunrise as we were nearing Brussels. This pictures does not do it justice. I took it as a gift or special sign from the Lord just for us. He is so Good!<br />
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After a layover in Brussels, we flew on to Rwanda and then to Uganda. On this flight we got to see another spectacular sight...the Swiss Alps (or atleast that is what we are calling them, we are really up on our geography!)<br />
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We arrived in Entebbe, Uganda on Thursday night close to midnight. We had made arrangements to stay near the airport at a guesthouse since we were arriving so late. It felt wonderful to get to lay in a bed and sleep instead of trying to sleep in the airplane. The Entebbe Airport Guesthouse was great and we enjoyed our night there. Here are some pictures from the guesthouse.<br />
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After leaving Entebbe, we went to Kampala to get us a phone and some other things we needed. We also met with our lawyer. Then our driver, Richard, took us on the two hour drive to Jinja. This was adventurous as lots of people were heading out of Kampala heading to their villages. There were only a couple of times that I cried out to Jesus and closed my eyes! <br />
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We are now at our guesthouse in Jinja where we stayed last year. They actually gave us the same room as we stayed in last year. We have just been hanging out here today taking it easy. On Sunday, Pastor Bernard, Brenda and her grandparents will come to the guesthouse. We can't wait to see her!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-37630497167974246432012-10-29T06:22:00.000-07:002012-10-29T06:23:24.199-07:00Waiting...Last year I had the opportunity to speak to a group of women and share about making God a part of their everyday lives. I had someone come up to me in tears because she was seated at a table full of pregnant women all discussing and sharing birthing plans. She knew me and knew how God had brought my family together. I think God sent me that day just for her because she just needed someone to see her pregnant heart. Her belly wasn't protruding but her heart sure was. We talked about how difficult waiting is because we aren't always given a due date that can be counted down on our calendars. Unlike a physical pregnancy, our hearts can be pregnant for years.<br />
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Waiting is never easy and what I have learned about myself is that I am not very good at it. I am a take action kind of gal. I like to accomplish things and make progress and feel like I am doing something. And sometimes in the midst of waiting none of those things are possible. <br />
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God has allowed me to see some new things in this current state of waiting that I have totally missed in past seasons of waiting. The biggest one is that waiting is as much of the journey as the actual destination. That sounds like the perfect slogan doesn't it. I mean it sounds like something someone says to you while they are trying to be encouraging but it doesn't really help that much. I know because that has always been my attitude. This isn't the first time I've heard that phrase, but it is the first time I've heard it with a new understanding. <br />
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In previous seasons of waiting, my focus has been all wrong. I was solely focused on the finish line. Whether it was realizing a dream that I had longed for or a job promotion or whatever, my focus and thoughts always went to living in the land of dream come true. Not only was I living in the land, but I also romanticised it big time. I mean my life would be complete if only this came true...blah!<br />
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See totally missed it!<br />
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It is dangerous when we live longing for the land of dream come true. Do you know why it is dangerous?<br />
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Because we miss so much of living in the land of Right Now!<br />
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God has a plan and a purpose (Jeremiah 29:11) for every single one of our days. This verse says nothing about the plan <u>only</u> coming true when we live in the land of dreams come true. No, every single moment of every single day has purpose with God and I don't want to miss that!<br />
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This is what I am learning and let me go ahead and tell you that I am in the remedial class, I am learning that what I need to do to navigate these times of waiting is to keep my eyes solely on Jesus. Here I go again with another slogan or great Christian saying. Sounds like an excellent bumper sticker doesn't it. It is so true though. <br />
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When I focus on Him and not my circumstances, the waiting doesn't seem unbearable. I have seen that there are many things that God needs to work out in this heart of mine. Distractions that so easily take my eyes away from Him. In the past, I have ran ahead of God trying to get to that land of dreams come true and guess what all my efforts were useless. They just ran me around in circles but never helped me get there faster. <br />
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In this time of waiting, God has allowed me to see and experience that He Is Faithful! He has allowed me to see and experience that He Is My Provider! He has opened my eyes to II Peter 1:3 that tells me that He has given me everything I need for life and godliness which means that when I feel like I can't that I really can because He has given me everything I need for this current season of life. And that "everything" comes from the One that is living inside of me not from anything I can do on my own.<br />
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I encourage you today to focus on Him, not on the land of dreams come true or circumstances that seem to be insurmountable. If you are His, you have everything you need to live in the land of Right Now and it starts with keeping your focus on the supplier of your everything!<br />
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<em>"Turn your eyes upon Jesus</em><br />
<em>Look full in His wonderful face</em><br />
<em>And the things of earth will grow strangely dim</em><br />
<em>In the light of His glory and grace!"</em><br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-11862495287480389952012-09-12T21:47:00.000-07:002012-09-12T21:47:51.143-07:00How this came to be...I realized in looking back at my blog, that I had not really told how this idea of adoption all came to be. So, here is my story...<br />
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As most of you probably know, last October Cliff and I went on our first foreign mission trip. We went with Pennies for Posho to Uganda, Africa. Pennies feeds children at 10 (now 11) orphanages and quarterly they make trips delivering food. We got to visit 8 of the orphanages and witness the food truck pulling up and the people being so excited. <br />
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On Monday, October 31st we hopped on our bus and headed out to visit an orphanage three hours away. Actually it is only about 45 miles away but due to the roads it took us three hours to get there. We were greeted by children cheering and waving at us. They could not wait for our bus to stop and for their visitors to get out. The greeting is overwhelming. The children are amazed by our pale skin and want to touch and hold onto us. They have prepared a program with singing and dancing for us, so we take our seats under a big blue and white stripped tarp that they had stretched out to shield us all from the sun. I was very thankful!<br />
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I took my seat in a white plastic chair. Cliff was sitting in a row behind me several chairs over. The children began to gather and sit as closely as they could. A choir of school children came in and began singing. They were very good. I had a beautiful little girl in a red dress sitting in my lap. I have since learned that her name is Hadijah. She was a village child and did not go to school. I knew this because she did not have on a uniform. I was listening to the singing and looking at the children sitting on the ground. That is when I saw her; so small and so cute. I motioned for her to come to me and she did. I scooped her up in my lap and I hugged her tight. She stared at me and gave me a half grin. Her skin was flawless and the color of dark chocolate. Her eyes were a deep shade of brown. She sat in my lap for the rest of the program. By the end, she had rested her head on my upper right arm and began to rub back and forth on my forearm. I savored every second of it and thought to myself..."if she only knew what she was doing to my heart!" <br />
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The program ended and the school children were called to go eat lunch. One meal a day, posho and beans, no variety no choice. The sweet little girl jumped down from my lap and headed to have lunch. I began painting fingernails. She came back around and I got to paint her fingernails blue. After painting nails for a couple of hours, we gathered all the children to pass out sweeties. Each child got one dum dum sucker. It was such a treasure to them. We were told to start getting on the bus since we had a long trip back to Jinja. I scanned the crowd looking for her. I hesitated to get on the bus. I wanted to see her just one more time. I wanted to hug her again. But I didn't get to. As I took my seat on the bus I continued to look out the windows for her. I fought the urge to scream her name. Tears began to pool in my eyes. I tried to blink them away but it did not work. They spilled forth onto my cheeks. I felt like I was leaving one of my own behind. <br />
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I can not describe that feeling I had for her adequately. In reality, I only spent a few hours with her but in my heart I knew that she was mine. There was an instant connection between us. She was comfortable with me and as she laid back against me, I believe God was doing a major knitting job on both of our hearts. I wrote in my journal on that day that I believed God knew I wouldn't be able to tell her goodbye so that is why I couldn't find her. I also wrote that I believed that I had not seen her for the last time. <br />
Her face was etched in my mind and for the rest of the trip she is all I thought about. We came home and the adjustment back into our life was very hard. I felt guilty crawling into my king size pillow top mattress knowing that earlier in the week I saw a 103 year old woman who had been sitting on the floor for so long that she literally looked like she was melting into it. Why did I have a bed and she didn't? I felt guilty for having a garden tub and hot water. Guilty doesn't even begin to describe how I felt the first time I had to throw uneaten food into the trash can. I cried for what seemed like months. I couldn't really even talk about my trip without crying. I knew God did not take me to Africa to make me feel guilty but I really wasn't sure what I was to do with my experience. <br />
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Christmas came and went and a new year began. In Janaury, I was on my laptop reading about someone's experience in Uganda and decided that I would google the name of the orphanage that we visited on October 31st. Much to my surprise they had a website. I devoured every work on their website and decided to sent a note on their contact page. The next day, I was checking my email and I had an email from the Pastor of the orphanage. I thought my heart was going to leap out of my body. Cliff was equally as excited about everything as I was. I started emailing back and forth with the Pastor. We emailed photos of our time there and asked about 3 children we met, one being my very special little friend named Brenda. We learned that two of the three were not in school and that my special little friend was an orphan. <br />
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We prayed and decided that we wanted to sponsor these three to go to school. We got that arranged and we felt good. This took a couple of months to get it all arranged. Meanwhile I am following and hearing stories of these Uganda children who have come here to school. My favorite story was when they took the little girl to Walmart to get her a new brush. They are on the brush aisle and the little girl bends over and begins rubbing her head on the brushes to try to pick out a new one. She did not realize that she could pick the brushes up because the reality is she had never had a choice before. The other story that got me was about the child eating dinner in her bicycle helmet because she was so excited that she had a bike she wouldn't take her helmet off. <br />
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I remember it like it was yesterday. I was sitting in my bathtub thinking about these children and Brenda. I started thinking...Is it fair that Brenda may never have a choice of a hair brush? Well no, that is not fair. Is it fair that Brenda will never have a bike? Well no, that is not fair either. Is it fair that Brenda will likely never sit in a big bathtub full of hot water. My mind started racing with tons of questions and the answer was always the same. And then in my spirit, the question changed from "is it fair" to "can you live with it?" I knew immediately that I could not live the rest of my life and not do anything to make life better for Brenda. I went and told Cliff about how I was feeling and God had been stirring in him too. We began praying about what we were to do and then decided in April that we would ask the Pastor of the orphanage his thoughts on adoption. We prayed that if God would open doors then we would be obedient to walk through them. We all believed that this was God's plan for her as well as us.<br />
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In June we started telling others of our plan and sold watermelons to help raise some money for her adoption. In July we completed our homestudy. In case you don't know, completing a homestudy in a month's time is nearly unheard of. We made our initial contact with the social worker and had our completed approved homestudy in a month! In August we mailed our I-600a form. In September we got fingerprinted. And it looks very likely that we could board a plane in October to go get our little Ugandan princess. I'll have to keep you posted on that one...<br />
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So that is how this adoption thing came to be. When we went on the mission trip we had no intention what so ever to expand our family. We were complete. God had blessed us with a son and daughter and we were beyond grateful. Adding to our family was not anywhere on the list of things to do in 2012. But boy are we really excited that it was on God's list for our family. Max and Amelia are as excited as we are about welcoming Brenda into our family. They truly amaze me! <br />
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So check back for new developments in our story. Can't wait to post that our final approval is received and a court date is scheduled!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-52173973535941864502012-08-22T06:33:00.000-07:002012-08-22T06:33:28.513-07:00Only God!Nineteen years ago as a newly married twenty year old, God was speaking very loudly to me and Cliff. At the time, we thought God was calling Cliff into full-time ministry and me as his ever supporting ministers wife. I remember sitting in a service at my home church, the one just months earlier I had walked down that center aisle, and feeling God speaking so loudly to me. As soon as the invitation was given, I found myself kneeling at the altar. I uttered a very simple prayer that day. I prayed, "God I will do whatever you want me to do, whenever you want me to do it, and whereever you want me to do it!" I could barely see through the tears that flowed.<br />
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As I stood to go back to my seat, I remember fear gripping my heart. The reality of what I had just prayed, and meant, hit me like a ton of bricks. And so out of a heart of fear, I reasoned that I would probably be on the next plane headed to Africa!<br />
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Why Africa?<br />
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Well, it represented the farthest place I could think of away from my family and friends. And for some reason it was the first place my fearful little heart thought of. <br />
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Last year as I prepared for my trip to Africa, I was flooded with the memories of this time in my life. I found it very funny that God was sending me, eighteen years later, to the very place that scared me so badly. Only this time I wasn't so scared. <br />
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Well fear tried to grip my heart again, the day before I left. I remember sitting on my love seat in my living room and thinking to myself "tomorrow you are going to get on a plane, fly for 16 hours and be in Africa!" I began to panic. My blood pressure was escalating and by the time I picked up the phone to call my friend I was in full on panic. The only works I could get out through the tears as she picked up the phone was something like "do you know I am going to Africa tomorrow! Do you know how far away that is from my children!"<br />
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I am reminded of these moments now as I wait with much anticipation for a lawyer to send us notice in the coming months telling us it is time to come back. My fear has been replaced with a great love for this far away country. Who knew that the place that caused me such fear would be the place that my heart longs for. Who knew it would be the birthplace of my second daughter?<br />
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God knew!<br />
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Nineteen years ago it was no coincidence that my mind immediately thought of Africa. I believe it was the beginning of God preparing me for what was to come. The beginning of God planting in me dreams that I didn't even know how to dream. <br />
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Isn't He wonderful!<br />
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I am reminded today of Isaiah 55 that talks about our ways not being His ways and our thoughts not being His thoughts. I am reminded that He knows my yesterday, my today and my tomorrow. He knows that we are on a need to know basis because if He unfolded the whole canvas of our lives, it would probably paralyze us with fear. <br />
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So I enter today with a thankful heart. Thankful for a God that orchestrates my days. Thankful for a God whose plans are beyond what I could think or imagine. Thankful for a God who takes a surrendered heart to places it never dared to dream nineteen years later.<br />
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Have a blessed day!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" /><br />
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P.S. I thought you would enjoy knowing that nineteen years ago instead of being on the next plane to Africa, we actually boarded a plane to Texas. Cliff was in school there for a year and then we returned home. Guess what great blessings God brought into our lives from the great state of Texas...my two precious children! Now that brings a smile to my face!Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-52388279169996019342012-08-03T22:50:00.002-07:002012-08-03T22:50:56.076-07:00Where We Are In The ProcessTonight we put together bunk beds in Amelia's room. She was so excited to finally have bunk beds and get to sleep in the top bunk. It hit me when I went back into her room and saw the new bed that we are adopting a little girl from Africa!<br />
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Not a day goes by that I don't think about her but actually making room for her in our home just makes it so much more real. And then the more I thought about it I just wanted to cry because while I have a comfy bed waiting on her, the reality is that she went to sleep on a red dirt floor tonight. Oh how I can't wait to tuck that precious baby into her new bed!<br />
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So, I thought I would give everyone a quick update as to where we stand. We have completed our homestudy and are waiting to get the finalized report showing we are approved. We should have it any time now. Once we have our homestudy in hand, we will send the I-600 form to the goverment. This form is a "petition to classify an orphan as an immediate relative." The time frame for this approval is six to eight weeks. As part of the petition, we will also be given an appointment to go get FBI fingerprints done. <br />
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Once we have the approval from the I-600, we will mail our dossier to our lawyer in Uganda. The dossier is a lot of papers that are required by the courts. We will be working with our lawyer during the six to eight week waiting period so that we have all the required documents ready to be mailed when the approval is received. <br />
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And then we just wait for our lawyer to notify us of our court date. The courts in Uganda close down mid November through mid January. When I asked our lawyer, he seemed to think that we could get a court date before they close. <br />
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So that means that we are hoping to have our newest little member of the family here by Thanksgiving. <br />
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We appear in court for the Judge to grant us legal guardianship. That day at court, the Judge will give us a verbal ruling. Some Judges also give you a written ruling that same day and then others make you wait a week to 10 days for your written ruling. We have to have the written ruling in order to get her passport and visa. <br />
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From what I am hearing now, the passports seem to be causing delays. I know of families that have been there 8 weeks waiting on a passport. I'll be honest and admit that that scares me. But every case is different and I know that God is in control!<br />
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Once we have her passport and visa, then we will fly home and be greeted at the airport by lots of you because my daughter is already planning for the big airport celebration. She informed me today that everyone would have a balloon and that she would probably be too busy organizing everyone to take off running to greet me!<br />
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So there it is in a nut shell! <br />
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We have seen God do so many amazing things along this journey. I look forward to sharing them with you soon. I wanted to close by listing some things we would really like you to pray about with us:<br />
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<ol>
<li>Pray for Brenda! Pray that God will prepare her for us and prepare us for her. She will experience so many firsts, please pray that she is not too overwhelmed.</li>
<li>Pray for us - Cliff and I will travel together, but he will not be able to stay the whole time (unless God works a miracle and this all happens faster than it ever has before!) so that leaves me and Brenda together alone in Uganda. PRAY!</li>
<li>Pray for our lawyer. We believe that we have picked him but pray that he works with great ethics and diligence.</li>
<li>Pray for the Judge that will hear our case. The person who will approve her passport. The people involved in getting her visa. We are praying for things to go smoothly.</li>
<li>Pray for our I-600 to be approved quickly. </li>
<li>Most of all we just pray for God's will in this situation. As I stated earlier, He has brought this together and is in the details. Our prayer early on when we felt God nudging our hearts towards adoption was "if You open doors, we will continue to walk." It is a total trust thing because we can not do this! </li>
</ol>
Thanks so much!<br />
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<img alt="post signature" class="centered" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" />Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-13168507377776495242012-02-14T06:03:00.000-08:002012-02-14T06:53:31.717-08:00Showing Love to OrphansThis Valentine's Day, we are not celebrating with cards, chocolates and gifts. This year, Cliff and I have decided to celebrate our love for one another but most importantly our love for God, by buying a mattress for an orphan.<br /><br />After returning from Africa, one of the biggest problems I had was living in all my abundance while knowing so many were living with nothing. Poverty was no longer just a word, it now had a face and when I closed my eyes it was their faces that I saw.<br /><br /><br /><div><br />I kept asking God what I was suppose to do. I am a doer and I like to get busy doing things. But being this far away I just wasn't sure what I was suppose to do. So I continued to pray.</div><br />A few weeks ago, in a series of random events that can only be described as God, I got in contact with the Pastor at the church where my sweet little Brenda is living. I was able to find out more information about Brenda and her situation. We also learned more about Jack, the boy that Cliff had a special connection with. And through my emails with the Pastor, God answered my prayer of what I should do to help those in Uganda.<br /><br />New Hope School of Orphans, located close to Kenya, had money donated to them through Pennies for Posho to build an orphanage. They are actually building a dorm where the children will sleep. The building will be completed this month. They have the bunk bed frames, but no mattresses. When I heard this, I knew exactly what I could do to help.<br /><br />So, Cliff and I are raising money to buy 70 mattresses. In the orphanages, it is rare for a child to have a bed of their own. The reality of the situation is that 2 or 3 children sleep on one twin bed. In fact, at New Hope School of Orphans they will have 70 beds but have 298 children.<br /><br />I would like to give you the opportunity to change the life of a child in Uganda. For $31 you can purchase a mattress for a child. Basically if our family of 4 gives up eating out just 1 meal, we have $31.<br /><br />We will be giving the money to <a href="http://www.penniesforposho.org/">Pennies for Posho</a>. In April, they will be traveling to Uganda and will purchase and have the mattresses delivered to the school.<br /><br />If you would like to purchase a mattress, make your check payable to Pennies for Posho and mail it to 85 Emerald Hills Lane, Newnan, Georgia 30263. We will send all the money over to Pennies.<br /><br />This is a picture of Jack and Brenda at school.<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 239px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708999476347688770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6g6YVD6KKjiSAMnqYvf3gEOkoIETgpJ_0H5kk5aDnAN9vgTr_L0TcJTa6e1sN5RW-02EYbUpV0AkIcnWbLtz1QMuNxnqxrO85fA-l2n9ntJJ68KUH2cgXCZOH0t4ch5rXs4y8YW5K1lEY/s320/Jack_Alone.JPG" /> Do you know what I noticed when I saw this picture of Jack? He is wearing the same clothes that he was wearing the day we met him. Do you know what the reality is for Jack...those are the only clothes he owns.<br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 239px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5708999458152982610" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnmOXpDqf5NDwRJmLGWjLS4cfJyrYRWVxBIpdKgUxOEmkQelo7SYNzbBnSPYoOX7Dftnluzi823RcfEb0SEY8XE24pxhWyVsRB2OGVxu6pWMC23FDOJifFK8xMIgPpy8kqg0pTkr4wBhw8/s320/Brenda_in_the_office.JPG" /><br />God Bless You!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p><img class="centered" alt="post signature" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" /></p>Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1357895602579422924.post-24650960627778509202011-12-21T07:00:00.000-08:002011-12-21T07:28:36.431-08:00Passing by Crazyville!<div>I headed into the Christmas season saying that this year things were going to be different. I wasn't going to get all crazy and busy and hectic and fly right through Christmas. While this was my goal, yesterday I realized that I was headed straight into Crazyville!</div><div> </div><div>I am kinda embarrassed to admit this, but yesterday I actually was sitting in my car thinking that I needed to write a Drive Thru Rule Book. Oh, yes I did!</div><div> </div><div>I had a deadline looming over my head and I was on my way home and stopped to get a quick bite. The restuarant was crazy busy with the drive thru line wrapped around the building. As I sat waiting for my turn to order, I noticed that someone up ahead was causing a delay. And then I started thinking that I needed a rule book to hand them so they would not cause anyone else's blood pressure to sky rocket. Here are a few of my rules:</div><ol><li>Always looks straight ahead</li><li>Never talk on your phone if its going to distract you from looking straight ahead</li><li>Get your money or card out while continuing to look straight ahead</li><li>The drive thru line is not the time to clean out your back seat, unless you can do it while LOOKING STRAIGHT AHEAD!</li></ol><p>Were you able to pick up on the theme of the rule book?</p><p>Luckily I was able to get back to reality before I set up camp in Crazyville because no one wants to spend Christmas in Crazyville. </p><p>Do you know what happens in Crazyville on Christmas? </p><p>Well, the mayor of Crazyville gets you busy doing all this stuff that really isn't important only at the time you are doing it all it seems like the welfare of Crazyville hinges on you doing all this stuff. And then you wake up on December 26th and you realize that you missed it. You actually missed Christmas.</p><p>Oh sure, you were physically present for the events, but in your heart you totally missed the meaning of the day which is JESUS! And unfortunately, that is the mayor of Crazyville's whole goal. He wants to get you so distracted that you don't focus your heart on Jesus because he knows that life, hope, forgiveness, love, freedom, redemption, peace and joy are found in Jesus!</p><p><em>Oh Jesus, thank you for leaving the glory of Heaven and wrapping yourself in human flesh. Thank you for being born of a virgin to ultimately hang on a cross to pay the price for my sins. Thank you for offering me life and for pursuing me. Help me to focus my heart on You alone! Praise your Holy Name!</em></p><p><br /> </p><p><img class="centered" alt="post signature" src="http://i145.photobucket.com/albums/r208/jennisajoy/BLOG%20DESIGN/ONCEUPONABLOG/lauriesigcopy.png" /></p>Lauriehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17013161588524637937noreply@blogger.com0