I used to write (somewhat) funny stories (from what I hear) and haven’t done that in a long time (I know, I know, I went and got all serious on you)!  So just for fun I will share with you this video!  This is what it’s like to ride up a ski lift at the Great Wall with me (a person that happens to be a little terrified of her lift slipping off that wire and plummeting down thousands of feet to the treacherous terrain beneath)!

Or toddler.  Whichever, God sees fit!  What?  You’re confused?  Oh, well, I’m not exactly pregnant.  We’re adopting!  It’s official!  We mailed our adoption application this week and just got an email today that it was received.  We are adopting from China and everyone around here is very excited!  I know many of you think we are crazy since we already have four kids and all but that’s ok.  I’m prepared to deal with the crazy thinkers.  I think I’m crazy most days too (and not because I have four kids and I’m adopting but just because well, I am crazy)!  If you would like to know how we got on this journey then read here and then here and that should get you pretty much caught up.  I’ll try better to keep this blog updated with our adoption journey.  I know it will be an exciting one and we would love your prayers.  Lots of love to you all!

“God doesn’t call us to be safe;  He calls us to be bold and courageous, and we can trust that even our safety will be taken care of by the One who invites us to bravely step out in faith.”

“And to think, if I had chosen to simply remain safe, I could’ve missed it.  I could’ve missed Him.”

~Steven Curtis Chapman

We returned this week from an amazing trip to Maria’s Big House of Hope in China.  I’ve wanted to write about it since we’ve been home but I’ve found it so hard to put into words all that we experienced and the Lord did in our hearts.  I’d love to write out every detail because there were so many wonderful things but I know you don’t have 2 hours to read this so I’ll try to stick to the highlights.  For those of you just reading about our trip for the first time we traveled to Maria’s Big House of Hope (MBHOH) in Luoyang, China which is a 6 story building equipped with everything needed to care for orphans with special needs.  MBHOH provides love and care for orphans in desperate need of surgeries and special medical attention.  It is a project of Show Hope, a non-profit organization founded by Steven Curtis Chapman, that mobilizes individuals and communities to care for orphans and provide waiting children with families by giving grants to those adopting.

First, I’ll say that only God can take 21 (well 23 with the in-country staff) complete strangers with different personalities, ages, backgrounds, etc and stick them all together on a 10 day trip and create a bond between the group of love and family.  We were SO blessed to be with such amazing people all bound together with the same heart.  We were a little worried that we’d be going with a group of “religious” people (sorry, just keepin it real!) and Bill even told me to filter my mouth!  Not that I’m some sort of sailor but well, I’ll stop on this train wreck now!  Ahem!  What I was trying to say is we were so thankful to find a group of REAL people that are genuine and love the Lord and want to care for orphans.  We have such great love for each of them!

Nick, Mikey, Bill & Mariah (back), Me & Kathy (front)

We were so honored (I don’t think that word is even big enough to describe the way we really feel) to get to know two Show Hope staff people from the Franklin, TN office and two of the in-country staff that work at MBHOH.  Nick & Kathy both work at Show Hope in Franklin and Mariah and Mikey work at MBHOH.  Without all of their tireless efforts none of this could be provided for these children.  Mariah and Mikey are truly angels.  The work they do on a daily basis is HARD.  It is heartbreaking to hold babies with terminal illnesses and watch them take their last breath in your arms.  It is painful to bond with children and then have to say goodbye when they are taken to another orphanage. But these two have a spirit about them that is inspiring.  They both will tell you that it is the grace of God that gives them the strength to do what they do.  Please join us in praying for them and the selfless work they do at MBHOH.  We love them dearly and feel so blessed to know them!

We knew going that we would fall in love with the children but we had no idea we would fall in love with the country as well.   Bill and I were both shocked to find ourselves loving the people of China and their culture.  We spent the majority of our time at MBHOH but also got to do quite a bit of sight seeing while were there too.  While we were at MBHOH we spent a lot of time with the children.  We were free to go in and out of the rooms as much as we would like.  Each room has its own set of ayis (nannies) that care for the children in that room.  Each nanny is assigned to two children and those are “her kids”.  I was pleasantly surprised to see the bond between the kids and their nanny.  It was comforting to me to know they have a strong connection with someone that does love and care for them.  Keep in mind that this facility is somewhat of a paradise for orphans and is atypical of the facilities these children have come from and will most likely go back to.  This facility is state of the art and run by amazing people with amazing hearts.

We had fun getting to know a lot of the children but there were a few that just grabbed our hearts and still have a piece.

The Lord showed us two things while we were there (which we were fully expecting Him to show us something!).  He clarified our vision for Hope.Believe.Obey, the organization we started when we were raising funds for this trip and He showed us that we are called to adopt an orphan with special needs in China.  Hope.Believe.Obey’s primary mission will be to raise funds for Show Hope and support the work they do at Maria’s Big House of Hope as well as their adoption grant program.  We are also excited about going back to MBHOH sometime in the future to do other work projects as well as spread love to lots of little faces!  I will be writing more about our call to adopt in a separate post!  So get ready!

I’m pretty sure this post doesn’t even begin to capture how incredibly life changing this trip was for us.  I think many times in life we get caught up in the “rat race” and we lose sight of our purpose for being here on this earth.  While that might look differently for each of us there are several “callings” we all share.  In James 1:27 it says that “pure and genuine religion is caring for orphans.”  I don’t know about you, but if you’re like me and don’t want to be a religious person but a genuine person that loves the Lord as pure as my sinful self can then you fall into this “calling” with me.  We are all called to care for orphans.  Does that mean we are all called to go to China?  No.  But we are all called to care in some way.  There are lots of opportunities for you to do this.  I’ll be sharing more in the future but for now you could take a baby step and do what Bill and I did and become a Show Hope Sponsor for just $35 a month.  Your money goes to provide state of the art care to orphans at MBHOH and provide money for adoption grants.  I can promise you this . . .  you will be blessed!

I am so honored to be a part of the coordinating team for Destiny in Bloom!  This past week for us was huge!  We celebrated the one year birthday of Destiny in Bloom and we launched a brand new website in the form of an online women’s magazine!  We rounded out the week with a launch/birthday party to celebrate what God is doing through Destiny in Bloom!  Here is a link to my latest article that was featured on the day the new website launched.  I would love for you to read it and leave me a comment over there.  I hope you’ll take the time to check out the new site and all the new features it has to offer!

The DFW authors at the launch party:

photo courtesy of The Love Doves

I recently (as in when I started typing this) discovered I like to use the phrase “I’m so excited . . . ” a lot when I have something to share.  But the truth of the matter is I am so excited to share what is on my heart!  For quite some time I have known that there is a calling on my life (I’m talking about the Lord here ).  I knew the Lord had a specific task/ministry/mission/whatever your favorite catch phrase is for me to do.  I just wasn’t sure what it was.  As I’ve grown in my relationship with the Lord the desire for me to uncover this special purpose grew greater and greater.  So over the last few months I have been on a journey of praying and seeking, listening and stepping and finally I have clarity about the direction He is taking me.  The Lord has placed a burning passion in my heart to minister to and care for orphans.  You might be thinking, “but you already have 4 children, why don’t you leave some for the rest of us” and that would lead me to James 1:27 in which we are ALL commanded to care for orphans (regardless of how many kids you already have).  This passion the Lord has given me is a journey not only for myself but also for our family.  It will involve our children and teaching them to love and care for the fatherless as well!  So, I don’t know what this all looks like (what I’ll be doing this time next year, etc.) but I do know Who does and that if I just keeping seeking and stepping in faith He’ll keep me on His path.  So that’s what I’m doing.  Right now.

Step one is a big one.  Bill and I will be going on a short-term mission trip to China in August of this year with Show Hope.  We will spend ten days volunteering and building relationships with the beautiful children of China. The majority of our time will be spent at the Show Hope project, Maria’s Big House of Hope, a six-story care facility specifically for special needs orphans located in Luoyang, China. Activities will include small work projects on the grounds of Maria’s Big House of Hope, as well as spending time interacting with the children and babies. We also hope to spend one day of our trip investing in the lives of older orphans at the local, state-run orphanage.  We both feel that the Lord is going to use this trip to do many things in our hearts and also give us a greater vision for the work He is calling us to.

We would like to ask that you partner with us in prayer as we set out on this exciting journey.  We want to be obedient to whatever He calls us to.  As with any ministry endeavor there are always costs associated.  In order for us to go on the trip in August we will be raising financial support to cover the expenses of the trip.  Any additional funds raised will be donated to Show Hope.  Our first fundraising project is t-shirts!!  You can support us financially and partner with the ministry God is calling us to by purchasing a t-shirt right here!  In order for us to go on this trip we have to raise $9,000 (total) in a very short amount of time!  The first portion ($1,000) is due on May 7th!  Yes, that’s next week (I am aware)!  So in order to raise the first portion of the money we would like to ask you to please pre-order your shirt NOW!  We will begin shipping approximately May 17th so pre-order today!  And after you order yours please forward this info along to all of your friends and family too!   We look forward to keeping you updated on this new journey and we greatly appreciate your love, prayers and support.