So Grateful

Last week, Josh and I had our individual interviews for our home study. These are the interviews for which we wrote our autobiographies. Forcing myself to sit down and walk through my past was so beneficial. I was reminded of all the people God has used in my life, as well as many of the lessons He has taught me along the way. The process made me so thankful for my upbringing. My parents aren’t perfect, but both of them have pointed me to Jesus and encouraged me in my faith. For that, I am eternally grateful. (So, thanks Mom & Dad!) Now, Josh and I are beginning our adoption education courses! I’m really excited for this part! Once we complete those items, we’ll meet with our social worker again.

On the fundraising front, there are a few things to mention. First off, we just want to say thank you to all of you who have supported us through your prayers, your encouragement and your giving. We are continually blessed by you all! Secondly, I have begun to collect gently used books to sell online as a fundraiser. So, if you have any collecting dust on your shelves or would be willing to do a mini book drive for us, it would be greatly appreciated! We are going to be having another garage sale fundraiser in a couple months, so if you have anything – we’ve already got a good pile going in our basement!  We’re hoping to do an adoption t-shirt fundraiser in the near future too. I’ll keep you posted on that. Another new fundraiser we’ve begun is through a wonderful Christian company called Just Love Coffee. A portion of the proceeds from every purchase made through the Just Love link on our blog (see the sidebar) will go directly toward our adoption costs! Please share the link with your friends too. The coffee is really good, and the company is truly the kind we want to support. Check out this video to learn more about how they do business!

If you are like me, you spent a fair amount of time this month thinking about gratitude and giving. One thing our family did this year was to make a “thankfulness tree.” Each night at dinner we wrote things that we were thankful for on a leaf that was added to the tree. It was such a good exercise for us all. Our leaves are covered with quite a variety of things – everything from bacon to the grace of God! 

God has been hammering away at me this month; He’s so good to do so. Over the weekend, Josh, my sister Patti and I went to downtown Atlanta with some folks from our church to minister to the homeless community. There was a station handing out clothes, a prayer station, a medical station, a foot care station, a call home station, music, s’mores and chili. The three of us were on trash duty, which ended up being a lot of fun. We got to mingle and talk with people the whole time. I kept thinking about Grace, a homeless woman that I got to know when I worked in Cleveland. One thing I learned from her was that a lot of people who are homeless just want to feel human. They want to be looked at in the eyes, called by name and talked to. I was so humbled when the man singing asked “Who here has something to thank God for today?” and I watched almost everyone put their hands up. That's a moment I hope to recall when I feel like complaining. I’d like to challenge us all to do more than just write a check to charity this Christmas season. Let’s get our hands dirty. Let’s form relationships. Let’s give of our time, talents and treasures without concern for recognition and without worrying about how others may spend our gifts. Let’s be true followers of Jesus, imitating Him and living out His gospel. He chose a humble beginning in a dirty manger, and He spent much of His time on earth among the poor. We have so much to learn from His example and from the poor themselves. Sure, we can give ourselves a gold star for an annual good deed performed; but if we are truly following Christ, caring for the least of these will become a lifestyle pattern - part of our DNA, if you will. That cuts me right to the heart. Being the bookworm I am, I have to plug a book here too. One of my favorite books (co-written by a man who was homeless) is Same Kind of Different as Me written by Denver Moore and Ron Hall. You just HAVE to read it; that’s all there is to it. 

Every year around this time, I’m especially reminded to take an inventory of my affections and priorities. I just pray that I will focus on what is lasting and eternal and continually throw off the hindrance of “stuff.” This month, I am being schooled by my six year old. One night, I watched Sydney bring her piggy bank downstairs and empty all of its contents into our adoption change jar. For her birthday party this month, she asked people to bring canned goods for MUST ministries rather than gifts. She was so excited when that food filled our whole trunk and we drove it down there. Then, I took her to Target a couple weeks ago with $10 she had received from a family member for her birthday, and she gave $5 of it to her brother to spend. I don’t know about you, but she’s putting me to shame lately. It makes me feel a little better that she is still trying to come to grips with the fact that she will no longer have her own sink when her sister arrives! ;) Most days, she is still her bossy little self who struggles with self-control, but I am so grateful to see the work Jesus has begun in her little heart. Aren’t you thankful that God is not finished with us yet? I know I am.