12 Days & Counting

this post was taken from a blog friend and you never know who might see this through another friend of a friend.  please pass it along, share it with everyone you know.  you can tell from the date that it was posted....this sweet boy has 12 days and counting now.  time is running out, but nothing is impossible with god!

december 20, 2010

twenty days is all this handsome young man has left to find his forever family.

just. twenty. days.

and then--he will never have the opportunity to be adopted again.

oh my heart.  i cannot stand the thought.

look how sweet he is....



i cannot even imagine being in his situation.  seeing countless "little kids" leave the orphanage with their mom and dad and wondering, wondering, wondering, if his turn will ever come.

sadly for this young man, time is about to run out.  he has waited for such a long time on waiting child lists--but no one has ever said "yes" to him.  can you imagine being passed over so many times?

absolutely heartbreaking for any young person.

according to the agency that has his file, apart from a history of hep b (just like our girls--very easy special need) he is healthy, smart, and a great thirteen year old kid.

goodness, i just know that his family is out there somewhere.  i know someone will go.  why?  because i believe with all my heart that there is a family for every child who waits.  they just have not found him yet.

unfortunately, there's a catch...

he absolutely must be adopted before his fourteenth birthday in february.  that means that his family must already have a dossier in ch*na.  they must be in the process of adopting another child from this country and are willing to add this boy to their adoption.  or, their dossier is in country and they are waiting on a referral.

one of my favorite lines from the movie, "faith like potatoes" is when angus buchan says, "the condition for a miracle is difficulty, however the condition for a great miracle is not difficulty, but impossibility."

god loves to show his glory through seemingly impossible situations.

it's time to stand a trust the father for a great miracle for this sweet guy.  as time ticks by and things become more and more impossible, i ask myself again, "is anything impossible for the lord god almighty?"

i know the answer all too well.  so do many of you.

nothing is impossible!  nothing at all.  not even this.

please, friends, can you help us to spread the word about this young man?  post him everywhere you possibly can in the hope that his mom and dad will find him soon--before it is too late.  once he turns fourteen he will be considered unavailable for adoption.  he will never know what it feels like to be loved and treasured by parents.  he will remain in the orphanage until he is sixteen...and then...well, who knows?  it is the sad reality of any orphan who ages out of the system.  hopelessness.

twenty days...that's all we have to get the word out there on the internet.  will you please help?  will you pray with us for the great miracle that he so desperately needs this christmas?  will you help to spread the word wherever you can?

i so appreciate your help.  you guys totally rock.

let's give him the best christmas present ever...a family!

if anyone wants more details, reply or leave a comment to this post, or e-mail me at renealynch at yahoo.com and i can put you in touch with the ones you need to talk to  regarding this sweet boy!

Visiting Orphans

WOW!!!  Yep, you read that right!  You can win a FREE mission trip to a country of your choice!  Visiting Orphans is giving away a free trip to one lucky winner, and it could be you!  I have to throw in..... I hope it's me! But hey, anyone that can receive an opportunity to practice "Pure Religion" (James 1:27) would be incredible and we live for nothing more than to serve our Lord.

We've had the chance to serve in missions work in Haiti in 2009 and oh what a blessing it was.  Just when you think you are going to help and serve someone else (which you DO!!) the Lord surprises you and blesses you beyond measure.  Some of you have read my posts before on our trip and you can certainly look through the archives and read them.  But what I can tell you is this:  "Once our eyes have been opened, we can't pretend not to know...." (Proverbs 24:12)  Your life will be forever changed and your heart for the orphan will burst with a desire to better serve our Lord.  You will learn exactly what it means by feeling able to “deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me." (Mark 8:34)  

Please visit their site and enter to receive a chance to win. Click HERE to find out how.  You can also check out MY CRAZY ADOPTION and enter the giveaway that's going on there to receive more chances to win!  Good luck!!!  I'm anxious to see who will be serving with visiting Orphans in 2011!!!

So....where will you decide to go?  El Salvador, Costa Rica, Haiti, Ecuador, Honduras, China, Ghana, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda, India, Ukraine 

See what Amanda (the girl in charge at VO!) has to say about WHY they are giving away this trip!

Visiting Orphans Heart from Amanda Lawrence on Vimeo.

National Adoption Month

Choose to give HOPE.....

Hope is Fading – Orphan Sunday from Allan Rosenow on Vimeo.

Choosing to See

If you love to read, and you love adoption....or better yet, if you love to read about how Christ can change our hearts and our lives and how He works through others, then this book is a must read!!!

Most folks in adoption circles (and many more beyond!) know of and love the Chapman Family.  Read their story about their lives together, their adoptions of their three girls and their loss and the triumph that came from that loss in Mary Beth's book "Choosing to See".

You can also find more information about their orphan ministry and how you can help support orphans in China and around the world at their website SHOW HOPE.  If you are in your adoption journey they also provide grants and funding for families so be sure and check out their site.  It may be that the Chapman family is going to help your family adopt!

† Orphan Sunday • Day 9

Was an incredible day. Joy, Melinda and I have worked so hard to bring this day together with our open house and sharing with the community what we had planned.

We started our day at First Assembly where we were invited to speak. The message given by Pastor Randy was awesome. I was so impressed that we made such an impact on his heart and his church that he shared a message devoted to God's heart for the orphan and widow. It was a perfect morning spent with family and friends.
We were just a bit nervous to say the least but people told us we did a great job and thanked us for coming. It really means a lot that Pastor Randy invited us to speak at First Assembly.

My son Tyler loved this slide from the overhead presentation during the sermon.

Pastor Randy Cowart at the open house. My son loves taking pics when people least expect it. :)

Once we left the church we headed to the Open House to set up and decorate. There was a LOT to do. We had lots of help (our boys are big boys), the kids helped move tables and chairs, Joy's mother had made cookies for us and helped decorate, my mom was there to help and let us use her 'yearly' employee use of the center for our event. We didn't have to pay for a space this way and really appreciated it more than she knows. My daughter helped set up displays and Cindy (our friend) was kind enough to do some babysitting duty while we worked. Everything could not have been done without the help of these people. :)
When you entered our event the first thing you saw was the guest book and a poster with our pictures and the proclamation from the mayor. Since we've only been working together for about a month this is us... we will be building a scrapbook soon from our times spent together and our advocating activities! :)
We collected information from various agencies and sponsorship advocates over the last month. We had a whole row of tables dedicated to adoption agencies for international adoption and sponsorship through World Vision and Life Connection Mission (our trip to Haiti) and had pictures and items from our trip displayed.

We had a row dedicated to domestic services and foster care/foster adoption where a specialist from Family Services set up. We enjoyed having Becky with us.
We had a 'coffee house' with a lending library where visitors could sit, enjoy coffee and cookies and check out books that we have collected through our own research and reading. My favorite area was the Christmas area where you could shop from the Christmas Tree of Hope, share in our donation jar or make purchases through World Vision for children around the world. Unfortunately my photographer son forgot to get a pic of that side of the room! lol :) I didn't want to worry about pictures yesterday so some of the things I wanted got missed, but we still have great shots from our event.
We worked really hard and enjoyed spending the day together with our families and a few friends. We missed Melinda and are keeping her and her family in our thoughts and prayers. I'm sure she'll be able to join us soon.

Joy & Jia

Being our only 'officially' adopted sweetheart Miss Jia was the star of the show! The kids all enjoyed playing with her and so did a few of us adults!!! She's precious to say the least! My kids even said they discovered their new 'favorite 3 year old'. She just makes you happy! Her momma would tell you how incredible she is and what an impact she has had on their lives. But I can tell you she's made an impact on so many more people that her little heart realizes. We ♥ u Jia!

Tyler & Jia
And look.... my daughter who favors little boys fell in love with Jia yesterday. Maybe a little sister isn't out of the question. ;)

Then, before our day came to an end we had a pleasant surprise. Ron & Beth Tucker showed up with little Lucy Lu!!! We totally forgot she mentioned wanting to come and meet us and see the open house. Her and her husband drove about 2 hours to come to our Open House. Beth and Joy met through the internet while researching the special needs they had in common with Jia and Lucy. It was so nice to meet them and visit for a while. Lucy is totally adorable too and we loved watching all the kids playing together. When God tells us to become like little children it's so true. Something we need to remember as our kids remind us it doesn't matter where you come from, how old or young you are, or what color your skin is.... we're all God's children. He loves us all the same and the least we can do is to love one another.

Joy, Jia, Jory, Beth & Lucy Lu
Beth and Lucy Lu - We ♥ You!

We had no idea what to expect for our open house but we know God has a plan for us. If only one person was introduced to adoption that will make a difference yesterday and provide hope for God's children then our work was well worth it. We hope everyone else that had an Orphan Sunday event had a terrific day and maybe we all played a part in changing the life of orphans around the world. Thank you to everyone that made our event possible and promoted it for us!

What did you do yesterday? Share your Orphan Sunday event or link in the comments section please!! We'd love to see!

• Day 9 of Prayer •
Today, pray that God would break the heart of your city’s pastors with the plight of orphans. Ask that He would convict them to lead their churches to pray, go, and love in Jesus’ name.

† Orphan Sunday

Mark your calendars!!!! November 8th is Orphan Sunday and JHAM will be hosting an open house to share information with our community and surrounding area to raise awareness of the orphan crisis!

We will have presentations from various organizations, informational packets from adoption agencies, speakers that range from agency reps to seasoned adoptive parents. We will even have profiles of waiting children that are available for adoption! You never know when a little face in a photo will steal your heart away! :o)

Date: November 8, 2009
Time: 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Location: Grundy County Senior Center
Trenton, Missouri

Please come, share your foster/adoptive experience with others, or if you are interested in adoption pick up some information and contact numbers for those who can get your started on your journey to a new family with one of God's children. We look forward to meeting you!

† What Now?

† New Blogs

I know we all have plenty to do no matter what our day involves, but sometimes you just gotta stop and smell the roses... I mean read the blogs! :) They are daily inspiration for me and sometimes devotional, and almost always just a chance to bring a little extra joy into my life. Hope you find this week's blogs as inspiring as I did!

• Do They Have Salsa in China? These twin girls crack me up!!! They will keep you smiling and laughing for days just remembering the funny things they do and say. From their post this morning "No Man" I literally LOL...yep, I started laughing out loud and Tanner ask what was so funny.
• Blessings From Ethiopia has many posts that make you think. The questions and doubts you may have about family size, or birth order, sibling groups, older kids adoption, these people have it down pat. :) They had three biological children and then adopted a sibling group of three. Then ANOTHER sibling group of three. Nine children. They are amazing and a blessing to read their blog.
• Blessed is a family of 9. Seven children total, only two birth children and the rest born in their hearts. Joy has some amazing posts, one of which you'll need to scroll down for when she was ask by a checkout clerk in the store if she treats her children differently because some are adopted. I myself have to remember that people only ask questions like this because they don't know. It's our job to enlighten others and advocate for adoption. It's a wonderful gift from God, just as our own biological children are.

† Meah's Story

The following story was written by our co-founder Melinda for No Hands But Ours. (No Hands But Ours was the vision of a mother of 9, 4 (and one on the way) from China with special needs, whose passion continues to be finding homes for the children left behind. Stefanie saw the need for a site that would provide education, resources, and encouragement for families considering SN adoption, as well as advocacy for children who still wait for their families.)


by Melinda, mom to Meah from China with hemifacial microsomia

When my husband and I were in the process of adopting again, we had looked at all the programs and chose to adopt minor special needs from Vietnam. We also thought we would adopt a 2 to 4 year old... little did we know. While waiting, I would always look at the waiting children, even the ones from the other countries.



In October of 2007, a new China waiting child list came out and I began looking at the list and saw this little girl that I could not quit thinking about. I just felt this instant connection. After 2-3 weeks, I showed my husband her picture and he also felt a connection. I knew that we both felt something, but there seemed to be so many obstacles. For one, she was 7 years old. Our sons were 6 and 3 and our daughter was 4, this would completely disrupt the birth order. Secondly, we knew nothing about her medical condition. The left side of her face was malformed and she had a little ear on the left side of her face. My husband said, "Let's just look at her file, no one else has even looked at her file." So that's what we did. The Monday before Thanksgiving, Mark requested her file from CHI.



We looked at the file and didn't see any other medical condition, except for her little face and ear. Our pediatrician was out of town for Thanksgiving, but we left the file for her to review. I also had an ENT review the file and the ENT forwarded the file onto a specialist. I think we had all ready made up our minds, but the specialist said, "She will have to undergo several surgeries, but there is no reason that she can't be a healthy, happy child." Once our pediatrician returned from the holiday, she said, "This is very do-able, I have another patient with this condition and she does great!" Enough said, oh, but one more obstacle...a little boy who prides himself on being the oldest. I set down with my son and I showed him the picture of the little girl, we have come to know as Meah, and said, "This little girl is one year older than you, but dad and I think she would be a good fit for our family. "What do you think?" He said, "She looks sad and I think she needs a family and we have a great family." That was all we needed and we asked to adopt her.

That's when the paperwork craziness started. Since we weren't even in the China program, we basically had to start from square 1, but it was worth it. On July 28, 2008, we met our Meah for the first time and she was truly incredible. This is not true with every adoption, but Meah had little adjustment. She was very happy to have parents and be on her way home. Once home, we went to the children's hospital to be evaluated. We were told before we went to China that Meah most likely had Goldenhaar's Syndrome. Once she was evaluated by the plastic surgeon, she was diagnosed with hemifacial microsomia, which basically means the left side of her face is underdeveloped. She has good hearing in her right ear and we found out that her left side is capable of hearing, but she has no outlet. She has had phase 1 of the BAHA (bone anchored hearing aide) surgery completed and will be able to use the left side to hear at a normal range. We are expecting a surgery in January to start moving her left jaw forward and then approximately 8 weeks after that surgery she will have a major reconstruction surgery. There will be more surgeries and orthodontic care, but we're taking it one step at a time.


Meah has a truly incredible spirit. Before we went to China, I told my husband, that we all ready know we love her, all she has to do is love us, it's her choice. She has definitely made a choice to be a part of a family, to show love, and to love God. Fortunately, there has been little adjustment for us, it was like she always belonged here, but hadn't found her way. As one of our friends said, "She is the missing piece to your puzzle."


Our family blog is www.copelandsaplenty.blogspot.com. If you have any questions, leave a comment on our blog with your e-mail address.

† AB's

What are AB's you ask? Adoptive Bloggers! I thought it would be a great idea to share once a week a new blogging family and their journey with adoption. I've yet to find anyone who said they regretted their decision to follow the call of their Lord in expanding their family. Not one who said they wish they wouldn't have done it. :) So, for those of you still sitting on the fence maybe there will be stories of encouragement or maybe just the smile of a certain child that melts your heart into submission. Encouraging, promising, loving, inspiring....that's what these blogs are to me. I hope you enjoy them too. Since we're just starting out, you definitely need at least a couple of places to surf right? So I'm sharing three new sites this week. Enjoy!

• Our first is No Matter What. Visit the Neil family and their two daughters from China. They are in the process of adopting their third daughter. Awesome blog, beautiful girls! Great photography! Someday I wish I could meet all these wonderful people.

• Take your next click on over to Longing for Lucy Lane and visit the Johnson Family. This is one of my personal favorites. I visit Kristi's blog daily and their daughter Lucy Lane from Africa is so stinkin' cute and you will just fall in love with their family that includes 4 biological children as well. Her sisters have adopted from Africa also and her older sister Kelly is a huge advocate for orphans and adoption also. You'll find many awesome links in her sidebar.

• Next, head on over to Building Blocks and visit Todd and Amy. They have 7 children. To quote Amy, "4 the regular old way, 2 adopted internationally from Guatemala, 1 adopted through the foster system." Beautiful family and Amy has developed a fund called Pass It Forward Adoption. Her family has an 'adoption jar' that they put extra money into as well as take donations and pass it forward to other families needing funding during their adoption process. You're gonna love this blog too.

I hope these families will inspire you. It helps to see others I think and their life experiences. Knowing you can adopt weather you have no children yet, have small children, or a whole house full. God will bless you when you follow Him. Wherever you are in your journey to adoption, we pray for you today. Happy Monday!

Advocating....
Renea