Sowing Seeds

In my last post, I wrote about why we are pursuing this particular path to adoption.  There are SO many options, and many of them less-expensive.  
I wanted to write a little about why the cost of a domestic infant adoption was never a huge deterrent for us.  

Let me start by saying that we are not millionaires.  We didn't don't have an extra $25k sitting in a bank waiting to be used for this eternal purpose. We have modest incomes and had a significant amount of debt when we started this whole process.  But we weren't worried.   We also weren't naive.


Before we were married, I was on staff with a college ministry where we raised our financial support.  I learned in that time that people want to invest in what God is doing.  Not everyone can live in a closed country and share the Gospel as their full-time job.  But, people can invest in that mission and be part of what God is doing in that country.  I had supporters of $5 to $200 a month who each got to be part of how God worked when He allowed me and my team to be on the mission field.  Without their prayers and financial support, we couldn't have been there as long as we were.  My supporters invested in sharing the Gospel with unreached people because they knew it was something God cared about.  He commands us to go, but not everyone can go.  Those who support the go-ers also get to be part of the go-ing. In the same way, not everyone is called to adopt, but people can still be part of adoption through giving and/or praying. 

Trusting God for the finances has been one of the best parts of this journey.  We knew know He will provide because He loves orphans.  We are pursuing something that is part of His character.  He is Father to the fatherless (Psalm 68:5).  Jesus Himself was raised in a family that was not completely biological.  James writes "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world" (1:27).  He "sets the lonely in families" (Psalm 68:6).  Adoption is something God cares about. He will provide. 

The remaining $10,000 or so needed for the adoption?  (*Our price is expected to increase once we get a new home study done if we haven't gotten a placement soon.)  We are still committed to adopting without debt.  We will continue to apply for grants, do fundraisers, work side jobs and put money aside.  We don't expect God to drop it off miraculously in our mailbox (though He COULD).  We will work diligently and faithfully.   And we will continue to invite you to sow seeds of investment into this part of God's story.  You may not be called to adopt, but you can still share in God's heart for adoption. You can be part of this story. Information on how to become part of this adoption is available here. 

A Mini Gburg Reunion

CCC Gatlinburg Summer Project 2002 "The Beast of the East"

A couple of my faithful readers will find this post especially interesting. On May 5th, we had a Charleston-area GSP '02 reunion! Well, of course, it was a mini reunion because it was only for the Charleston area folks, but that was a lot more people than you may think.

Kurt & Morgan (a Gburg marriage!), Dan, Tricia, Brandon, Amber W

Dan Maloy, Kurt & Morgan Brewer, and Brandon Hammond are all on staff with Cru here in the Charleston area. So, Amber Williams and I joined them (and all the spouses/fiances joined as well)!

Kurt, Dan, Brandon (The Guys)

Shannon Maloy, Morgan, Tricia, Ansley Hammond + 2 kiddos, and Amber.

The whole gang (left to right):
Amber & her fiance Sherief Khalil,
Kurt & Morgan Brewer,
Dan & Shannon Maloy,
Brandon, Ansley, Myra Grace & Mackey Hammond,
and the Flaglers

It was lots of fun to get together. Interestingly enough, much of the same crew (though switch Ginger Henry for the Hammonds) had a get together on Cinco de Mayo in 2007. Maybe we will have to make it more of an annual tradition? :)

Would any of you out-of-towners join us?

A Giveaway from a Friend

I'm catching up on blogs and noticed that Joel and Kitty have been posting a lot lately. I love following their blog because it's a perfect mix of life, hobbies, ministry, and faith updates.

You should check them out. And also maybe enter yourself to win the book and cd of Valley of Vision that they are giving away. Here's the link to the giveaway post, but also check out the rest of their updates too.

Weekend to Remember

God knows just what we need. Over a month ago, I got a text from a friend who had registered for a Weekend to Remember conference in Charleston from Dec 3-5. They couldn't go anymore and were offering to give us the tickets. For free. We accepted but knew it would be a challenge to get the time off. But it worked out, in ways we didn't expect.

Matt is God's gift to me, and I have missed him over the last year and a half. This weekend was an amazing time for us to focus on our marriage. Just to re-prioritize and remember that our marriage really should be more of a priority.

We didn't stay at the hotel and didn't do all of the homework and maybe skipped a session that was a little too early on Saturday morning after being up really late. But we still learned SO much and were so thankful for the weekend.

AND we ran into some friends from Charlotte and got to have lunch with them which was nice too!

Thanks, Ben and Jacq for the tickets! God used this weekend for us!

If you are married, I highly encourage you to do Weekend to Remember or something similar. God's plan for marriage is the best. Let us know if you have any questions.

Dear to My Heart...

I received this letter recently from a friend. I've edited it just a little bit for security purposes. Please prayerfully consider partnering with her ministry. As an international student from a closed country, she has a limited amount of contacts to ask to join her ministry. If you are interested, I'll be happy to help you get in touch with her. She is on the left in the picture below.

Everything below is from (Holly):

“You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jer. 29:13

My name is (Holly). I am from a former Soviet Union country which is predominantly Muslim. Verse above is very dear to my heart, because I believe it describes my life. At school I was taught that there was no god. At home I was taught that the Russian people believed in Jesus as their prophet but we had Muhammad as our true prophet. For me, though, my father was like a god. He provided all that I needed and I depended upon him for my physical and emotional needs. I didn’t need anyone else. However, in my early teen years my world fell apart when my parents got divorced. I realized for the first time that my father was just a sinful man and all that I had trusted in was taken away. I found myself alone and wondering if there really was a God. I knew something was missing in my life, so I devoted myself to Islam to fill the void I felt inside of me.

About this same time I moved to the capital of my country, to study at the University and started living with my aunt. Soon I met with my new neighbors and later found out that they were Christians. They were very kind to me and made me feel accepted and loved. But I rejected what they told me about Jesus being for my people too and I set out to prove to them that Islam was the true religion and the best way to see changes take place in my life. For two years I followed Islam but nothing changed. I tried to act happy and satisfied with life on the outside but inside I was still feeling empty and angry at my father. I wanted to forgive him but I couldn’t. My neighbors continued to love me during this time and include me in some of their Christian meetings. Finally I realized that only Jesus could forgive my sins and bring about real changes in my life.

At this time my neighbors had to leave the country. I was feeling very lonely because I did not know of another Christian of my nationality, and I knew very little about my new faith. My friends and family began to persecute me because of my faith, and my aunt asked me to move out of her house where I was living.

One day I was on my college campus feeling very lonely and beginning to think that maybe I had made a mistake. Maybe all of my problems were caused by my leaving Islam. While I was sitting there having these doubts, an American girl who was just visiting my campus walked up to me. I found out that she was with a group with CCC on a summer mission trip in my country. She began meeting with me to teach me about the Christian life and she also introduced me to a number of other Christians of my nationality. Just when I needed it the most, God provided me with a Christian family. We formed a CCC group on our campus to reach other students for Christ. Jesus Christ had transformed my life, and I knew he could transform others as well.

I came to Austin, TX last year to study. Shortly after I arrived, I heard about the Bridges Children of Abraham conference for Muslim converts like me. It was there that I was challenged to consider that God might want to use me as a full-time Christian worker. I am passionate to reach international students for Christ and humbled that God may chose to use me in this way. My vision is to share the love of Jesus Christ with international students here in the United States. CCC has a ministry that lines up exactly with my vision, Bridges International.

Through Bridges, I can reach students who can take the gospel back to their home country. I am now raising my financial support for an 18 month internship with Bridges international. This internship will provide the necessary ministry skills training as I reach out to international students studying at the University of Texas in Austin. I am excited to learn all I can, so I will be ready and effective when the time comes for me to return as a missionary to my own people.

Since Campus Crusade for Christ has no central funds to support its missionaries, each staff member must raise financial support to fund all of the costs of health care, ministry expenses, taxes, and a salary. I must find a team of donors who can give monthly or annually to support our work. I would like to ask if you would prayerfully consider joining my monthly financial support team with a gift of $50, $75, $100, or whatever amount God would lay on your heart.
Please know that whatever you decide, I appreciate so much just having the opportunity
to share about what God is doing in my heart and through my ministry on campus.
One more time, thank you for prayerfully considering my needs.

In Him,
(Holly)

Belated GSP02 Brunch Post

Well, a looooooong time ago (mid-August), one of my favorite things in the world happened: we had friends over for bunch!

It was a mimi-reunion of sorts, as everyone invited to the brunch had been on Gatlinburg Summer Project in 2002... or is married to someone who was. Many of us have ended up in Charleston, and we found a good excuse to get together: Ginger's farewell to Mercy Ships. It seems like that's mostly when this crew gets together--either for 'welcome backs' or 'farewells'.
Anyway, it was a really fun morning. I got to use lots of my Pampered Chef suff to whip up some yummy 'brunch squares', muffins, and a chocolate chip cheese ball. We had a great fruit salad too, so we were definitely set. (Pic of Amber with the spread)

Ginger Henry was the honored guest as it was a send-off for her ministry with Mercy Ships. Amber Williams was the co-hostess. These ladies met on the infamous GSP2002 and have been roommates for the last 4 years here in Charleston!

Pic from left to right: Morgan, Ginger, Amber

Kurt and Morgan Brewer were also in attendance. These two actually met on that summer project and have since married and are on staff with CCC here in Charleston now.
(pic of Kurt below entertaining Nala / grossing the rest of us out by putting her bone in his mouth)


Dan Maloy was also on that project (and also a buddy of mine for 2 other CCC summers), and he brought his new bride, Shannon, to the brunch. The Maloys are also on staff now with the Charleston-based staff team of Cru.
Even my hubby was able to hang out, which was a special blessing to me. I miss soooooo many things about Crusade, and the people are definitely #2. (Being paid to walk closely with Jesus and love on others is definitely the #1!) Hopefully, we'll be able to get together more often.

Even though it was quite awhile ago, I know there are a handful of readers who would recognize most of this motley crew. :)