FEATURED BLOGGER:

Amanda: AlwaysTryingAgain

Thanks, Amanda, and many others for BlogBuzzing this week! It’s not too late. . you still have 1 week left with these questions! Click HERE for the questions and details on answering them! Make sure to click “see answers” HERE to read others BlogBuzz Thoughts! Now, read and be challenged! –Brandi

OK. I’m going to be quite frank in my answer to the blogbuzz question this week. We have chosen special needs adoption not once but twice now. I have no doubt that given the opportunity, we will choose this route again. I don’t think my husband or I have ever thought of adopting a healthy white female newborn. Heck, I’ve never even thought of adopting a healthy Indian (or any other nationality) child for that matter.

Choosing an Agency and a Child
In locating our agency, we went through the waiting children files online constantly…on as many sites as possible. I looked at sibling groups and older children. I looked at every disability you can imagine. Our agency, Dillon, has a special needs checklist that you fill out with the formal application. Our special needs checklist had a lot of “maybe’s”, a few (probably 5) “no’s”, and some “yes.” In filling in that checklist, I had one thing on my mind, “Would I parent this child if I had given birth to them?” The answer to that question was almost always “yes.” Even for the few “No’s,” I know that we may have accepted a referral. I know without a doubt that we would have parented a biological child.

This is where my reasoning gets frank. I can not think of many situations where I could give my child up for adoption. I know of a couple people I work with who have been faced with tough situations. The ones where one child will physically and intentionally hurt you or your other children. That is the only situation where I feel like I have to say no. I don’t feel like I can tell God himself that He is wrong. We had such peace about both of our adoptions that we are certain that God is giving us these children to raise.

Approaching a Special Needs Referral:

1. Find a doctor to talk with. If the first one won’t take the time, then find another one. The same goes for therapists.
2. Research the condition. Find out what the medical community is doing with it today. This is important. There may be new treatments in the last couple years. There maybe new tests. There may be clinical trials. It is worth looking into while you have the time.
3. Contact your health insurance. You may be able to get a nurse who does case management. This way you know what is covered, what is not, if there are limits you need to be aware of.
4. Find the doctors who you want to treat your child.
5. Find out who does evaluations for early intervention and smart start through our state and county. I figure, I pay taxes then I should get my share of the services.
6. This is actually the most important. PRAY about it. Ask for God to lead you through the decision. Some days it is a hard road. Other days are great.

I don’t think that my family has done anything special by adopting special needs children. They are the light of our lives. I don’t feel like my son gets any less because his sister has a disability. I think he has grown because of it. I would love to see more people adopt special needs/waiting children. It is an awesome experience.

Join Amanda’s family in prayer as they await the arrival of Prasun!

It seems that more and more conservative evangelicals are reacting to this new trend in the church where Christians are getting involved in social justice issues, fearing that it could degenerate into nothing more than a new “social Gospel.”

Those of us who have had a face-to-face encounter with poverty and have found Christ in the midst of it know what that there is an inexplicable mysticism to this kind of ministry that is neither idolatrous nor a watered-down version of the message Jesus brought. Nonetheless, if someone criticizes your passion long enough, you start getting discouraged. This can make us timid, even defensive or worse, despairing. If we’re not careful, we may end up wondering why we’re even doing this in the first place.

So, what’s the point of ministering to the poor? I mean, other than filling hungry bellies and thirsty mouths, is there value in it?

Last weekend, I visited a church near Jackson, MS, and attempted to explain to a bunch of teenagers why getting involved in ministry to the poor and homeless was the best thing that they could do with their summer. I gave them a few reasons why we should minister to the poor, and I believe that they are the same reasons that you should, too:

1) Because you’re not that “big of a deal.”

Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things, and the things that are no, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. 30It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God, that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.” (NIV)

The point is not that you need an action plan for every possible scenario, but that you realize this is real life, not make-believe. We have to figure out whether or not our theology will hold water, if flesh can fit on it, and be actualized. I think it can.

The following excerpt is from a blog by a World Race missionary named Angela Tibbo. I met Angi about a year ago, as I was picking up her and the rest of her team from the airport. They were preparing for a year-long trek around the world, and had no idea what they were getting themselves into.

The World Race is a bit of a bait-and-switch, I’m afraid. We (the missions organization that I work with) are rather unapologetic about it, actually: we bait potential participants with lofty ideas like “the adventure of a lifetime” and “travel the world in 11 months!” and we end up giving them places like Swaziland, which has one of the highest rates of AIDS infection in the world. Of course, they get adventure, but they also learn to inherit God’s heart for the broken, the lost, the widowed, the orphaned, the left-out, and the dying. And that’s where God’s Kingdom is seen most prevalently, in those dire situations where hope is most necessary.

Angi and her teammates have willingly plunged into darkness, knowing that the light of Christ can puncture holes of light into the darkest of places. This blog challenged me, calling me to wonder what I’m doing to find the people like “Baby” in my life. I’m sure that I pass them by every day. I hope it breaks your heart like it did mine and challenges you to act.

I found someone who makes Jesus’ heart melt, someone who makes His face light up with one look from her eyes, a little someone who fits perfectly into His arms, and a smile that makes Him want to give up everything for her. I know this to be true because Christ’s’ passion lives and breathes in my heart.

At “Care-Point” #3 in Nsoko Swaziland, I met her, and the smile that took me thousands of miles deep into the heart of The Father. Baby is her name. Right away when you meet Baby you can see that life is harder than it’s supposed to be for her. Baby suffers from respitory problems that have plagued her from birth. Her chest is misshapen and protrudes beyond normality. Asthma often sends her to the clinic because her family cannot afford a supply of medications at home. Baby also lives with chronic tonsillitis that often steals away her ability to eat when food is available. She is often too weak to walk to the G42 Care-Point. Baby is four years old and lingers around the size of a 2-1/2 year old. She is in desperate need of surgery to remove her tonsils, a simple enough procedure that could make all the difference in her precious life.

I befriended Baby right away. My natural instinct to comfort collided with The Fathers heart of compassion and drew me close to her. I assumed that she couldn’t talk because I had not heard her utter a noise the entire time, but occasionally she would reveal the greatest smile I have ever known. One day I walked to her house to meet her family and learn more about her situation. I learned that Baby talks up a storm at home, she loves to sing, and hasn’t stopped talking about her new friend since the first day she met me. “I have a new friend, and she’s the small one, just like me!” she expressed with excitement to her mother. With that one little line, she stole my heart for good. I had no idea, my petite presence could make such an impact on a child’s heart. I love my little friend too.

I’m sure it’s easy to read about Baby and feel the strings of your heart being plucked. I’m almost certain you will feel like making a difference in this world, even if only for a mere 5 seconds before the overwhelming feeling of inability and helplessness leaks into your thoughts. We are so often immobilized by the sly voice of darkness that subliminally tells us we couldn’t possibly make a difference, it’s only one kid out of millions, and besides, your hands are tied with your own bills to pay, not to mention your own kids to feed. We know this is not our Father speaking, if we were to take a moment to find the still small voice, I know that He is telling us that there is hope in one little face, freedom in giving, enough money to finance the entire Kingdom of God, and His everlasting life breathes out of our outstretched, unwavering hands… if only we could manage to get them out from under our butts.

I once fell victim to this voice of reason and doubt after the Lord told me to financially give to a ministry in Bangladesh over a year ago, and my decision plagued me for months. I knew I heard God’s voice and still turned to partner with helplessness. Where was my faith? And really, how big is my faith if it runs and hides when asked to act? I eventually repented, and right away the Lord redeemed that moment by randomly placing a photo of a young girl from Bangladesh in my hands giving me the chance to once again give financially to someone in need. Only this time I was without job. But the Lord reassured me that it’s Him who wants to provide for this child, He will always provide the money. And He has. He wants to do the same for Baby.

It honestly takes a big shift in our hearts and minds to begin to understand what the Father is about. I am beginning to see that God’s desire for me is to be shaped into a vessel that can and will conduct His love in a just and life giving fashion. I am really starting to see that my relationship with God isn’t all about me and what He can do for me and my future, but it’s about Him being the future to a hurting world through the hands and feet of a person broken for Him.

It starts with us being willing to feel His love for His children, and holding our hands out to those in need instead of folded inward. In turn He will always provide for us, He will be our future, and will lavish us with unending love. Think about it, a church that instead of meeting in a building for a cutsie service, the body of Christ, Christ in Body, meeting at the feet of the diseased, the poor, and the abandoned. A shift that will usher in the presence of God in an unmistakable way. Let’s prepare the way of the Lord. Beginning in our hearts, pouring out to those around us. This is where taking back nations for the Kingdom begins.

• Read more of Angi’s blogs here
• Check out the World Race
• Check out a two-month trip to Swaziland this fall
• Donate to the cause of orphans in Swaziland

tagged as: adventure, Africa, field, missionary, missions, poor, Poverty, short-term missions, swazi, Swaziland, world, world race

It’s that time again! New Blog Buzz Questions! I know you’ve been dying for new ones.. . checking back every 10 minutes just hoping we’d posted! Well, we decided to give out new questions every OTHER week to give you guys more time to blog and more time to spread the word. Speaking of spreading the word, if you are checking back to find new blog buzz questions or just want to keep up on the RLC happenings, did you know you can “subscribe” to this blog? By simply scrolling halfway down the page on the right hand side, you will see the “subscribe by email” box. Simply enter your email address and click subscribe and you’ll get all the new RLC blog posts directly in your email! We’re even working on blogging more. . you’ll hear from missionaries in the field, “Scripture Speaks” with words of truth from RLC pastors, new blog buzz questions, featured posts by RLC Adoption bloggers or Blogger Buddies and even posts featuring great causes to support! Subscribe today!

Ok, now. . what you’re really waiting for: Blog Buzz Week 3!

General Adoption:
Do you have any tips / advice / suggestions for your “Gotcha Day” for people preparing to travel to pick up their little one. . .This could include things that made your day special, an easier transition at home, etc. Tell us what worked (and what didn’t) for you

Adoption: Specific:
If you are considering or have adopted a special needs child: Where do you start? What questions should you ask of yourself, of your agency, of others?

Red Letters Topics:
Read and respond to this verse in Proverbs 21:13
^“13Whoever stops his ears at the cry of the poor will cry out himself and not be heard.^“
What does this say to your heart? Take some time to examine how this may look in your life, your family, your community and your view of the world

Remember to badge your posts correctly. Find the appropriate badge HERE. Also, consider blogging just these questions to encourage your readers to join in on this fun too! We were so excited to see how many of you chose to BlogBuzz last week, especially on Explaining Poverty to your Kids. We are now working on a whole RLC Kids Section! Aren’t you excited!?! Can’t wait to read your thoughts this week. . hmmm. . .which ones should I blog about?

Brandi

PS Remember, you can always blog multiple questions during a week or even old blog buzz questions if they strike your fancy!

When you face extreme poverty, it can be an actual act of worship, an opportunity to encounter Christ, as he promises his church in Matthew 25. Doing something to the “least of these” is equated with doing something for Jesus himself. When we face our Lord, finding him in the visage of extreme poverty, we are, indeed, facing the fact that we, too, are “poor in spirit.”

Here’s an article by Lorie Newman called “Orphaned and Wearing Red“:

The longer I walk on this journey of faith with my Savior, the more I’m realizing just how dark my heart really is.

Over the past several years, even the “smallest of sins” that quite frankly I used to dismiss, seem to blink at my spirit like a fluorescent neon sign that sends immediate checks to the depths of my spirit. Secret sins that I used to tuck away without any remorse, I now have to bring to the light or they will eat me alive.

It’s this process of spiritual transformation that is taking place in me… and it’s an incredibly powerful change. I’m seeing with crystal clear vision that there is absolutely nothing good in me apart from Jesus…. nothing. I’ve done so much in my life to disappoint my Savior.

How many times have I, even as a Christian, given Jesus that “Judas kiss of betrayal” knowing what I was doing was wrong, and choosing the broad path anyway. I’ll spare you the details of my past sins, and just say this. I should have been married in a red dress with a black stripe down the back. Can anyone relate?

That’s why this picture taken in Swaziland, Africa has so affected me. The precious little orphan girl in the picture is wearing a bright red dress—such a contrast to the little children I met when I visited the same area of Africa last year.

They all had dirty and tattered clothes—most of their clothes were either too small or far too large for their little malnourished bodies. Most of them wore no shoes and their feet and legs were covered in thick dust. That same dust clung to their hair, to their hands, and to their tiny faces. Dusty orange dirt… It was everywhere… There was no escape from it for those orphans. Even for this little girl wearing a beautiful red dress, the dirt on her skin is inescapable… inevitable.

I so see myself when I look at this little girl. In fact, I see you too. At one time, we were all this little child. Weren’t we all orphaned once? Weren’t we all covered in dust, mire, and dirt? Weren’t we all wearing crimson red? This little orphan girl is undoubtedly wearing the best dress she has–perhaps her only dress. Isn’t that a portrait of who we all were before Christ? The bible is clear that the best we have—our best righteousness on our own—is just filthy rags before God. In this sweet little girl I see a portrait of me. The best I could “wear” before my God was my red dress. Oh, I tried to make it beautiful! I dressed it up with lace and ruffles. I even tried to hide the dirt and mire that clung to my feet, my hands, and my face—the result of walking for so long in the think dust of my sins.

Although I tried to come before Him with the best I had, my sins were still crimson red. But at my Savior’s invitation, in humility and with a contrite and repentant heart, I wore my best red dress in my Father’s presence. It was all I had to wear… it was my best. And in an instant, though my dress was red like crimson, it suddenly became whiter than snow! The thick dust –the result of past sins–that clung to my hands, my feet, and my face was gone… Gone! I stood before my God as a new creation! The old was gone and the new had come! And with nail-scarred hands, my Savior embraced me and reminded me that He had paid the price for my new white dress… the ultimate price. It was His red crimson blood that now enables me to wear white in the presence of God.

How can I ever repay Jesus for the gift of my white dress? All He asks of me is a life poured out as a living sacrifice before Him. What He calls each of us to do on that altar will likely look very different, as He calls us all to different paths in completing His work here on earth. For me, that path takes me to orphans– orphans like the one in this picture. My life’s calling is to wake up the church to the plight of orphans around the world, and I will do that wholeheartedly with every fiber of my being for His Glory.

My husband and I have four biological children ages 15 through 9 and two adopted children—a girl, 7, from Haiti, and a boy, 4, from Liberia. We have just embarked on our next international adoption and I would like to take you on the journey with us over the next several months as God leads us to our next child. You can read this column and witness first-hand the miracle of God hearing the cry of an orphan across the world and watch as He places him/her in a Christian family. That miracle never ceases to amaze me! Will you join me?

Something mystical happens when we encounter the poor, not as charity cases but as fellow human beings, loved by the Creator, and struggling with their own humanity as we are. When we start being amongst the poor and not just judging them from a convenient vantage point, this transformation takes place and we realize that when Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor,” (Matt. 5) he was talking about us, too… if we are willing to accept it.

Read more articles like this on poverty at Wrecked for the Ordinary

tagged as: Africa, christ, christian, church, jesus, matthew 25, orphan, poor, Poverty, red

Thanks so much for your participation in Blog Buzz last week! It was great to read your responses and helpful too! For our Ethiopian bloggers who responded to the question of why choose Ethiopia, we’ve even added your posts to our Ethiopia page (click on pros and cons)!

Ready for a new week? We thought that from now on, we’ll post these questions on Wednesdays. We know you have all sorts of fun things to read and write about on Mondays, but by Wednesday. . .well, our brains can come up short! This way, you’ll always have something fun to blog about over the weekend. AND, new blogs to read! Is it just me, or do some of you sit home on Saturday nights just LOOKING for new blogs?

Question 1: Adoption - General

How do I choose a country? With so many options, how can I even begin to narrow it down? Where should I start?

Question 2: Adoption - Specific

If you adopted an older child (age 6+), what advice do you wish you had been given or would give yourself to someone considering this journey?

Question 3: Red Letters Topics

How do you explain extreme poverty to your kids? Give tips, ideas, or even tidbits of your own conversations with children!

Remember to use the right blog badge for the question you choose (found HERE) so that it can be fed to our site. Thanks for participating, there will be many families blessed by your sharing of your journey!

Brandi

PS: Check back HERE for answers to Question 1, HERE for answers to Question 2 and HERE for answers to Question 3 !! Now, get to blogging so there’s really something to read on those pages!!!

tagged as: Blog Buzz

Most of you have heard us (or other bloggers) talk about the book, Red Letters: Living a Faith That Bleeds by Tom Davis. It’s a life changing book because it’s filled with the Life Changing Word of God and challenges believers to ACT on what God has told us in His Word about caring for others!

Well, head over to Tom’s Blog NOW. . .he is giving his book away for FREE! He’s also partnering with Seth Barnes, author of The Art of Listening Prayer. I haven’t read this one yet, but it sounds great. With the amount of chaos in our lives (I have 3 little ones who NEVER stop talking!), a challenge for me to sit and listen will be a timely one. Guess what? This one’s FREE too!!

Only two conditions. . .

1. You have a blog

2. You commit to blog about it! In that post, make sure to link back to their sites and share what you’ve learned, how you’ve been challenged and what you will do with that challenge!

Just email dnarron@hopechest.org with your name, address and blog address!

Won’t this be fun? I’ve already read and posted blogs on Red Letters but I’m looking forward to reading the other book. It will really be like a book club if you guys read along too! In fact, email us to let us know you are participating at blogbuzz@redletterscampaign.com!

Remember to check back here tomorrow for a brand new week of Blog Buzz Questions!!!

Love,

Brandi

PS. To read the full post about this giveaway, check out Tom’s blog

Lot’s happening in the RLC adoption community this last week. Some sweet children coming home and some about to get on a plane. Some families got updates and one was on the local news! Thanks to those of you who have participated in blog buzz. There’s still time for those of you who haven’t yet. We’ll have a new set of blog buzz questions for Wednesday!

Question 1: What questions should you ask when choosing an adoption agency? Question 2: Why did you choose the country you chose to adopt from?

Stefne on OK City News for Helping Ugandan

Natalie (US) - Caitlyn’s Home Angel (China) - Kaiya comes Home Leslie (Haiti) - Completed in Haiti Jenna (Uganda) - Travel in 8 days Tymm (Ethiopia) - Meet Meron Christine (Ukraine) - set to travel Rebecca (Ethiopia) - got update Jacin (US) - Closer to placement Lori (Ethiopia) - dossier sent Lisa (Ethioipia) - court date Julie (Ethioipa) - got update DeeDee (Ethiopia) - application sent

tagged as: Adoption Journals Update

By Lauren (http://thegothros.blogspot.com)

Since I first found Red Letters, I’ve been thinking about my time in Guatemala. During the second semester of my Sophomore year at Michigan State University, I decided to take time off school (I’m still working on that pesky degree) and go to work with a ministry in the Guatemalan Dump. The woman who ran the ministry often used the phrase “the poorest of the poor” when talking about the people who live there. That six months I spent working with them changed me in so many ways.

Hope in the Trash

To answer the buzz question, I guess I have to say that I can’t answer it. I can never fully put myself in the place of one of those dear people that live in extreme poverty because I will never know physical hopelessness like they do. The hopelessness that I found in the dump was unlike anything I will ever know as a middle class American. Those poor people have little to no hope for their lives changing. They live day by day hoping to find some “treasure” in the trash that will help feed their family. The depression that they face as they daily move among the garbage is almost tangible. They wake up to trash, sleep in trash, watch their children play in trash… Not only is living and working in garbage bad enough, the heaps often ignite sending horrible fumes into the air that these amazing people cannot escape from.

From Dump to Throne…Hope

I could go on and on about my memories from the dump, but I won’t. I will say that a person who lives in extreme poverty faces hopelessness every moment of the day. That is a feeling that I can’t imagine. The shining light in all of this is that there is hope in Christ for these people. In the life ahead, they will inherit an awesome throne. I can’t wait for that day.

Hope for them doesn’t have to only come in heaven. I have seen people who live in the garbage dump changed through Christ’s love lived out through people and even though they have not been able to move out of the dump, Christ in them has changed their view on life. They have hope. Hope in knowing that even though they struggle, they do not struggle alone.

Be the Difference

Seriously, I saw the change hope made in people. Some of the shacks that I would visit of women who had been a part of the ministry for years were spotless. The house may have been made out of tin and cardboard but it was more tidy and organized than my brick house often is. The point is, that people helping really does make a difference even if it’s one shack at a time.

tagged as: Extreme Poverty