Pray for Carter!

Carter is getting his tonsils removed on August 7th- everyone, please pray!  We are excited for him to get this surgery because he has been struggling for about 18 months now with strep throat, infected, painful tonsils, difficulty swallowing and difficulty breathing.  Carter has been on a blood thinning medication called Coumadin for almost three years now.  Tonight, we have to stop giving him this medication because he can't be on it so close to the big surgery date.  Please pray that he will be safe while he isn't taking the medication, there is a slight risk of stroke which is, of course, scary.  

CompassionArt

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This is an awesome project!  It is not only inspiring music, but all of the proceeds go to help fund some incredible projects all over the world.

All Worked Up

Sometimes I get a little overwhelmed at all there is to do in the world.  My heart has been broken in a thousand different ways.  Lately I have been trying to find some focus- this verse from The Message helped me today.

"Take your everyday, ordinary life- your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking around life- and place it before God as an offering... readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it."                                                                                                                                                                                  Romans 12-1-2

You Can Do It, Too!

A friend shared with me recently that I seemed so confident throughout our adoption process. This comment really surprised me! There were many nights during our adoption process that I was scared, thought about giving up, felt completely overwhelmed and even regretted our decision to adopt.

But here is what kept me going... I was completely committed to obey God no matter what. It really didn't matter how scared I felt. Did I believe God was with me on this, or not? I fully believe God loves adoption and created adoption from the beginning of time. He certainly has a heart for the widow and orphan! I wanted to join God in this special work, this "visible gospel" as John Piper calls adoption.

Did God see our family as a perfect family who could handle an international adoption? Was this a task our family was uniquely suited for? Nope. This was one of those experiences in life that I found myself needing to rely on God's mercy, wisdom and strength to complete.

I share this because some of you might feel that adoption is somehow out of your league. It is not! If you have God, He is all you need. You just need to follow Him.

Fair Trade Coffee, It's not Trendy, It's Biblical!

I am totally convinced that I need to buy ONLY fair trade coffee. I've had this thought for awhile, but being the bargain shopper that I am, it was hard to swallow paying those few dollars more per pound. Well, those days are over!

I mean, how can I call myself a Christian and still buy coffee that I know is being made on the backs of the poor? That is the trouble with having your eyes opened. Once you are made aware of the problem, you have to change!

Here is the scripture that made me say goodbye to unfairly traded coffee forever:

Isaiah 10:1-4
1 Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees, 2 to deprive the poor of their rights and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people, making widows their prey and robbing the fatherless. New International Version

There is a great coffee shop in Batavia, IL that only sells fairly traded coffee. If you are in the area, check it out!

The Great Physician

Yesterday I was playing doctor with Carter- he was the doctor of course. As he came at me with a pretend shot, I feigned great fear and trembling. Sweet, sweet boy that he is, he put his hand over my leg and administered the shot through his hand. He looked right in my eyes and said "no owie, Mommy, I do MY hand for you".

During the countless medical procedures I've gone through with Carter, I've had that feeling that I could in some way identify with God, in that He allowed His Son to suffer, so that a greater good could be achieved. I hold Carter still so that an IV can be placed- I don't like it. I want to take him in my arms and RUN- go out for ice cream instead. But I know he needs the IV, so I hold him down, whisper comforting words, and pray until it is over.

My precious son gets it. He took the pain for ME. What a privilege to have a son who is willing to hurt so I don't have to. What a picture of what Christ does for us!