Adoption Fundraiser

Meet my friend Hayden and her family.  They share their story over at their blog Longing for Luda.  I have known Hayden as long as I can remember.  I think we lived on the same street during elementary school.  I moved away from our hometown at age 22 and she doesn't live their any longer either, so we just lost touch.  We found each other on Facebook a few years ago and realized how much we have in common.  We both love Jesus more than anything, home school our kids, and LOVE the orphan.

You can read Hayden's personal story on her blog, so I won't spoil that for you.  I am blogging today to ask you to please, please consider donating to their adoption fund, to pray for their family and their sweet girl Luda, and to share their story on your blogs and Facebooks.

Please.

Anyone who has read my blog before knows how I feel about adoption.  Aside from my personal relationship with Christ and my own family - there is NOTHING more important to me that advocating for the orphan.  Absolutely nothing.  My daily prayer is that God would use me in any way He chooses to help more vulnerable children find forever families.  If that means that we adopt more children, wonderful.  If it means that our family donates money and spends time advocating for others, that is awesome too.  Whatever it takes.

The church has been silent on the issue of adoption for far too long.  We have given it a cursory glance as we donated money to foreign missions and overseas feeding programs.  I think we assume that the government in America will take care of the orphaned or abandoned children here and the "missionaries" will be responsible for the children in Africa.  We have thrown some change at it, but until recently, it has never been personal and certainly never sacrificial.  I do think that more people are waking up from this apathetic attitude.  I do think that people want to care - as long as it doesn't cost them too much or change their lives.

The trouble is, the Christian life does cost us too much - it costs us everything.  Just like it cost God.  Truly walking with Jesus changes you.  Always.  If it doesn't, you have to ask yourself if you are truly walking with Him.  One of His names is Jealous.  You can't have it both ways.  You can't serve Him and your American attitude of entitlement.  You just can't.  God doesn't say that the orphan should be an after thought.  He said "true and undefiled religion" is to care for the orphan and the widow.  It is worship.  It is being His hands and feet.  It is costly.

Not only does loving the orphan wreck your life emotionally, it costs you something monetarily.  These precious children are trapped.  Trapped in a life where they feel rejected, unloved, and unworthy.  Even the ones who are cared for properly from a physical standpoint feel this way.  And the others....well, their plight is incomprehensible.  There is no substitute for a real family.  It is the way God created us.

We can not continue to stick our heads in the sand and think that someone else is going to do something.  As the body of Christ, who else is there but us?  Who else cares about LIFE the way we should?  Every life.  No matter how sick, how damaged, how old, how frail, or how inconvenient?  The ransom price is high.  Seemingly unattainable at times.

But, God.....

God is the author of every life.  He loves these precious ones and He desires that they each find a forever family.  Someone who loves them unconditionally.  Someone who will fight for them, protect them, and lead them back to Him.  The journey can be long, emotional, and draining - but, it is always, always worth it.  More than that, it always changes and blesses you the most.  People look from the outside and say things like, "Wow, he is sure lucky to have you" or "what a special person you are."  Neither of these things is true AT ALL.  "Luck" has nothing whatsoever to do with any of it, and I (nor any of my fellow adoptive mamas) are any more "special" than anyone else.  We simply obeyed God and our lives were changed.  

Yours can be changed too.

Adoption leaves you different.  It leaves you forever changed.  The blessings are too many to number and they are mostly yours.  God can use anyone to provide for His orphans, but He wants to use you.  Whether it be donating money for their ransom or adopting yourself - please pray and ask Him.

As you read Hayden's blog, can I ask you to please seek God as to what He would have you do to help?  Please.  Every single dollar counts.  Nothing is too small for God to multiply it.  Remember the loaves and fish?  All He needs is a single step in obedience and He steps in and moves mountains.  His heart is for the orphan every time and He will provide.  Let Him use you as part of that provision.  It will open up a whole new world to you and you will never want to look back.  We, the Church, are the ones responsible for bringing Luda, and the millions of others like her, home forever.

Thank you, sincerely.  Luda's heart depends on the actions that you take in this situation.