And the papers are off to Ukraine!!

Good evening friends! Hope you're doing well!! I've played out this blog in my head throughout the day, and here I am finally sitting down to type!!

If you read the blog title, then you know what's coming next!! We have completed our dossier, which is a whole bunch of paperwork that we've worked really hard to complete for Ukraine! We haven't actually sent it yet, but it's going tomorrow!! We started this whole process in January, and here we are at the end of April, preparing for our next steps!!

I'm going to be COMPLETELY honest when I say my stomach is in knots!! We are sending this dossier with still quite a bit left to raise in funds! We've raised several thousand, but have several thousand left to go! We are doing all this in faith....something that is completely new for me!

God has held our hand every step of the way, and everything that we've needed money for, the Lord has provided!! This proves to me just how powerful my God is!! I know He will continue to provide!! It's just a lot more than I've ever needed!! But because I can't do this, I am having to rely FULLY on Him!! I know that He will provide!!

When the paperwork is received, we will receive a court date! So potentially we will be going sometime in June! Which means, we've really got to get on the fundraising!!

Found out there could be a slight delay with things b/c of some holidays in Ukraine, but we know that it's all in God's timing!! Part of my heart is a bit burdened. See, my cousin (who is more like a brother) will be getting married this summer, and I don't want to miss it. But I might not have much control over that! The Lord knows my heart, and I'm praying that He will grant me this request to be here for my sweet cousin!

At the same time, I'm so ready to have my girl home with us!! This who journey has been a bouquet of emotions....happiness, anxiousness, sadness, humbleness, and so many more!! I have cried more the past few days than I think I have in my lifetime! It's all becoming so real....each step getting us closer! To know that this is all happending and she's almost home is huge for me!!

Someone recently told me that I need to take some time for myself. I've been running non-stop since Christmas preparing for all of this. When it's all done, I'm probably going to crash......HARD!! While there are times of waiting, things are still on my heart! I'm thankful God has called us to this, and I wouldn't trade any of it for the world!! Until you actually go on this journey, you can't fully explain to others what you're feeling!!

My children have been such troopers! The past couple of days, we've been running around collecting remaining things! They know we'll be gone for a while, and I'm sure going to miss my hugs and kisses!! I'm praying for GRACE for us all as we are gone!! God has blessed me more than I deserve, and for that I will ALWAYS give Him praise!!

I just received a phone call from a friend, who has just sold 10 more raffle tickets, after she has already sold her first 10. This is someone that I don't know real well, our sons went to preschool together, but she is AMAZING!! Heather has jumped in and helped us, has been encouraging and praying for us b/c she believes in what God is calling us to do!! It amazes me that someone that doesn't know us very well has been more supportive that some that are our closest friends! God is so good to know exactly who to place in our lives and when!! Heather, if you are reading this, I am so thankful for you.....you are a God send!!

If you have bought a raffle ticket, good luck, the drawing will be 4/30!! If you would like to buy a ticket, please let me know asap!! I appreciate everyone donating to our cause!!

If the Lord has placed it on your heart to give to our adoption journey, you can paypal us at jlthorpe7@gmail.com . If you would like to make a tax deductible donation, let me know! Our church is running those for us! We still have about $15,000 to raise.

Thank you for reading about our lives! We know what God began He will complete!! Be blessed my friends!!

Paperwork going to Ukraine.......

Good evening friends!! So many times I know that I want to blog b/c I have much on my heart, but when I sit down I don't know where to begin. I don't want to ramble, but I want to express the things that God is doing in our lives through the adoption!! So here goes!!

Today has been a wonderful and emotional day! In the mail we received our approval for Julia's visa!! This is huge, and one of the final steps before sending paperwork to Ukraine! We are awaiting one more thing, which I will pick up tomorrow, then I'll be off to the apostille office to finish up! So that means either Monday or Tuesday we'll be sending our dossier to Ukraine!!

It's hard to believe how incredibly fast this is going, yet some things seem so slow! It seems like forever since I have given my sweet girl a big hug and told her face to face that I love her. Yet, it also seems like we just started this journey! It's hard to describe the feelings in my heart, but with this approval comes some of the many emotions, that I understand are quite normal!

One emotion is pure excitement! I'm going to have my daughter home, with us FOREVER!! God chose us as her family, and she will be here soon!! I can't seem to get there soon enough! She asks each time we talk with her when we are coming, so she is ready! Our children ask when she is coming, so they are ready for us to bring her home! We are ready to be a complete family!! So this is all so exciting b/c we know this is happening!!

The next emotion is sadness! When Jarrod and I go to Ukraine, we'll be leaving our 3 small children. As I type this, I can't help but cry. I have NEVER left them more than a weekend, and this trip is going to be terribly hard. Probably more on me than on them! God willing, we will be making 2 trips. The first will be for about 2.5-3 weeks. We'll then come home for about 10 days, then we'll go back to Ukraine for an additional 10 days, in which Julia will be with us the entire time, then we'll all travel home together as a family. We're also taking a very special Chelsea Louwho with us on the last trip! I have some WONDERFUL friends and family that will be taking care of our children while we are gone, so I know they will have a blast! Thank goodness for Skype, so I can see them each day! I'm praying that won't be too hard on them! I know the reward in the end is going to be magnificent, but I do ask for extra prayers for us during this time of seperation!

The next emotion is nervousness! Nervousness of the unknown. I've never been outside of the US, never been to an orphanage, never done any of the things that we are about to do! So this is all new!! We are also still in the fundraising mode! While we've raised some $$, we are still quite a ways away from being ready to go! God has brought us this far, and I know He won't stop carrying us along on this journey! My faith is truly being stretched, and I'm trusting that He is providing all of this!! I know He loves Julia even more than we do, and He wants her with our family even more than we do. So I keep speaking His words and His promises. Sometimes I need to speak them for myself if no one else!! God has had me in Hebrews 11 the past couple of days!! I love the journey of faith, although it's not an easy one, it's definetely going to be worth it!!

Each step that we have taken makes this journey feel more and more real!! It's amazing to see what God is doing in our family. Hannah told me the other day that when she is older, she wants to adopt! What a wonderful thing that God is doing in not only Jarrod and I, but in our children! They see the Father's heart for adoption, that so many Christians overlook! I want to change this generation. I want us to get out of this "it's all about me" mindset. God has put us here for a purpose "For such a time as this", and we need to grasp that. He didn't put us here so that we could be the most popular, the most famous, or the richest. He put us here for His kingdom. It's time for the church to rise up and grasp that concept.

We've been labeled many times as being "different" by the world. That's okay, b/c the only one that want to be "like" is Christ! I love children, and want children to feel loved and accepted, and this means that my home will be open to as many children as the Lord sees fit to send through the doors. It's not about me and all the "material things" that I may want. It's about me committing my life to Christ. Which means that I may be "inconvenienced" so to speak. I was thinking today about how many people will do things at Christmas, like an Angel Tree, or something similar. These things are all great, and are needed. BUT, how many of those giving to something like that would be willing to open their homes to the orphans, widow, homeless????? People want to give, but only what is convenient to them. They don't want to get inconvenienced in their lives. There have been many times where I have gotten frustrated, b/c my plans for the day didn't work out. But the Lord had other plans, and my "inconvenience" was all ordained! So I encouarge Christians, embrace the "uncomfortable" or "inconvenient". If He's calling you to adopt, don't let fear grip you, don't let what others thing grip you......let what God is telling you to do grip you! We may be labeled different, but that's okay, we are being obedient to the call of the Father!!

So as I end this blog, I want to ask for prayers! When praying for us, I encourage you to pray His word over us, straight from the Bible! We want and trust in God's promises!! Thank you for listening to my heart! I randomly get things, and sometimes they have no rhyme or reason, it's just what God has laid on my heart!! Be blessed my friends, and I pray that the Father will speak some new blessings over you tonight!!

Angels of Humility......

Good evening friends! I haven't blogged in a while, and I apologize, life has been busy!! I hope this all finds you well! We are all doing well, just moving along to the beat that God has our drum going!!

 I've been reading a book called "Angels of Humility" that a friend gave me 2 nights ago and I'm almost halfway through it! Lately I've remembered how much I love getting lost in a book!! So this book has brought some pretty awesome things alive to me. While a fictional book, it helps you to see that there are two kingdoms; the visible and the invisible......and not to invest in the wrong one. This passage from the book really spoke to me "If you say yes to God, you have no limitations because He has no limitations. If what you're grasping for and planning on doing for the Kingdom isn't way beyond your ability, you're probably not doing the right thing". WOW is all I can say! I'm realized the works that are against me, but also the power that I have through Christ.

I think many times Christians forget about our tools that we hold right within our reach. We have our Bible, which has the answers to all life's questions. Sometimes specific things require sitting at the feet of Jesus and communing with Him to hear those things. The power of life and death lie within the tongue, and oh how we all mess that up at some point or another. Example/confession: Yesterday morning my sweet Jonah was having a bad attitude. We had readjusted it once, but it continued to come back out. I finally had it, and lost my cool. Picked him up and carried him to his room to have him lay down, and the entire way there I told him how he was being disobedient and showing no respect, and the way he was acting wasn't loving towards me, and so on. (This sounds a little nicer now that I am typing it, but I was fuming). He came out a bit later and told me he was sorry. I responded with a sorry too for acting out in anger. Later the Lord spoke to me on speaking words of life over them, and speak those things that aren't as if they were. I'm not walking in condemnation, just realized that I didn't handle it right! Today, we had a similar situation with Hannah's attitude. Instead of getting frustrated I told Hannah that God created her to walk in the fruits of the spirit - love, patience, joy, goodness, self control, peace and kindness. It took her a few minutes, but she was right back on the right attitude track before I knew it!! The power lies in a very small thing called our tongue, so we all have to work on that!!

I have to also confess to my overwhelming feelings that I had last week!! We have so much going on right now. I am a full time mom, homeschooling mom, we are working on the adoption process, and we are the children's pastors at our church. While looking at these things doesn't seem like much, it can at times be overwhelming when I'm not letting the Lord guide my steps. I had to take a day and just spend with the children. Although every title and hat that I seem to wear is for my children, they often take/keep me away from being "fully available" to my children. I'm realizing more and more that while I love to come up with new ideas and love keeping in touch with friends, I'm on the computer way more than I need to be. So there's my confession, and I hope to have someone to hold me accountable to spend more time just enjoying my children. The laundry can wait, the phone can wait, the emails can wait! Yes, I need to work on fundraising for the adoption, but there is a time for that. I need to plan children's activities at church, but there is a time for that too!!

Some of this overwhelmingness came after receiving a letter from a friend. This friend bought a raffle ticket and sent the money along with a very encouraging note. In it she said she was proud of the woman I had become and as long as I am letting God lead us, He'll take us many more places. She said she's following our progress along this path, and loves reading what is going on. Then it hit me, PEOPLE ARE WATCHING US!! I don't mean this in a bad way, but it's just a reality! For some, it will be a testimony to God's promises that He will provide; for others, they are waiting for us to fall; and others, it's just a blessing to see the love that God has given us for Julia. I'll be honest, this put a huge weight on my shoulders that was never meant to be mine to carry. I cried out to God to guide us, and I gave Him all the burdens that I have been trying to carry alone. I realize that He is going to do this, and not the way I think it should be done, but in His perfect way!!

I've found out recently about talk behind our back, which is to be expected, right? Well, I have to admit, some hurt, but I have a wonderful Father, who is my avenger!! As I cried out to Him about these things, He put on my heart to pray for these people who have spoken these things. I forgave them, and I prayed blessings over them. Then I asked the Father that those specific people that have spoken those "disapproving" comments would be the very ones to send the "funds" for our adoption! I'm not sure how that will all look, but I know that God is working and moving hearts at the very moment that I am typing this!!

So I guess this blog has been kind of all over the place, but these are the things that God has laid on my heart!! We had a wonderful family day on a nature walk and looking at God's animals and creation today at a local park. It was so freeing to get away from the computer, tv, phones and everything to spend a few hours with my family and God!! I got re-energized and remembered the things that are truly important! Before our walk, we were able to talk with Julia, and that was so wonderful, as always! One thing she said made Jarrod and I both tear up...she said that we are missing in her life. That when we were together she enjoyed being with us, and she misses that. It was so genuine and so sweet, and I am so thankful that God has given us this mutual love for one another. Each time she asks when we are coming, so she is ready!! We explain to her the process of awaiting the paperwork! We NEVER mention the fundraising, b/c that isn't a burden that she needs to carry or know about. She just needs to know that we love her and are working hard to bring her home!!

Also, about the raffle, if you are interested in buying a ticket, they are still available! At this point, we have sold 54 raffle tickets. $20 donation will buy you a ticket! The winner will chose ONE of the following: $500 visa gift card, iPad, or Kindle Fire. We are praying to sell more tickets, and for this fundraiser to be a good one!! Please help us in that if you feel led!

So for now, I'm off!! I pray that the Lord will bless you and keep you and that His face will shine upon you and be gracious to you!! I encourage you to find a copy of "Angels of Humility", it is wonderful!! Be blessed my friends!!

Moving on along.....

Good afternoon friends! It's a beautiful day here in Georgia, and we are enjoying a quiet afternoon watching a movie!! Then hopefully nap time, keeping my fingers crossed!!

The latest thing we've heard a few times is "Do you know what you are doing, adopting a teenage girl?" The answer is NO!! We don't know what we are doing, but are following the call that the Lord has on our hearts!! I chuckle when I hear this question, because as I became a first time mom with Noah, I had no clue was I was doing!! Even when I birthed our 3rd child, Jonah, I still didn't know exactly what I was doing! The Lord is guiding our hand all the way, so we are at peace!!

I was thinking the other day how our lives have changed so much! When we had 2 children, Noah and Hannah, we thought we were finished having children. We had a boy a girl, it was perfect, right? Then along came Jonah, God's little blessing for us!! After Jonah we decided to get my tubes tied, b/c we didn't want anymore "surprises". This saddens me sometimes, b/c children are such a blessing! Even in our worst days, I wouldn't change being a mom for anything in the world! But here we go again, God has changed our hearts and lives! We are "having" another child, just in a different way! So I've quit saying this is it, we aren't having anymore children. Instead, I'm awaiting when God will tell us next to add to our family again! Of course, mainly I am just keeping an open mind to what the Lord has for us!!

We are moving along with everything with the adoption! We completed our fingerprints this week, and now we are awaiting a couple of more documents before we send everything to Ukraine! We could possibly be going sometime in mid-late May! This is so exciting for us!! We have started the fundraising and we know that God will provide! So far we have raised $4000, and we still have $21000 to go! This is so exciting to see what God has done, and the testimony that will come out of this! My flesh also wants to get really nervous because this is a lot of money, and not a lot of time!! I have to stand on His Word and His promises, that He will provide for this adoption! I'm thankful that God has called us to this, and faithfully we are walking!

Thank you so much for all the prayers, support and encouragement! The Lord has surrounded us with amazing friends and family. We are overwhelmed when we sit down and think about it all!! Please continue to pray for us as we prepare for our trip! Of course we need the money to come, but we will also not be taking our children with us. This is going to be hard for all of us, but we know that God will give us peace and comfort while we are apart!! Be blessed my friends!!

Our life in the adoption process.......

Good evening friends!! I realize that for some this is the first time reading this! If that's you, welcome! I always used this as a personal blog place, and now I am adding to it our adoption! I did think about starting a second blog for the adoption, because this is about my life. But, this adoption is our life, our ministry, so I decided not to! So here is what is going on in the Thorpe household!!

We are moving along in our adoption process! Our first step was our homestudy, which we were somewhat dreading! We ended up with an AMAZING social worker, who has held our hand through every step of the process. She helped us move right through that part of things, and we appreciate her so much! If anyone ever needs a social worker, I'll be happy to send Tonya your way! We wouldn't be where we are if it weren't for Tonya!

Since the homestudy was complete, our next step was sending off our I-600 for approval. It's basically giving preapproval for Julia's visa! It typically takes about 5 weeks to get the approval, but can take more or less time! We are praying for the less! It's now been 2 weeks since we sent this off, and we are awaiting our fingerprint appointment! While waiting, we are starting all the Ukrainian documents, which there are a good many of, and they have to be done exactly correct in order for the Ukraine to accept them!

We have also started our fundraising! As many of you know, adopting is not a cheap thing! It's kind of sad, b/c you are giving a child a family and a home! But then I think of the price that was payed for my salvation. Jesus gave His life that I could live forever with Him in eternity. That is the highest price anyone could ever pay! So no, this adoption isn't cheap, it isn't easy, but God has called us to do it! Over and over again He has confirmed that all He did was call us to adopt, yet He will provide all that is needed!!

I have been overwhelmed at the love and support that we have received with this adoption! When we first announced our journey that the Lord has us on, we received some wonderful financial blessings. To date we have received $3545.00 in gifts! To date our total expenses have been $3006.00. Every need has been met as it has come up! The total that we need for the adoption is approximately $25000.00, so we only have $22500.00 left to go! This is exciting for us! We know that God will provide! I have tried very hard to figure out how this is going to happen and how in the world we will come up with that much money on a tight budget!! But God is already doing this!

We have fundraisers in the works, and know that blessings will come in unexpected ways! We are expecting, and when God provides, we aren't surprised, for He promised this!! God willing we will be going to Ukraine towards the end of May! No one has told us that definetely, but in my figuring of time frames of documents, etc, that is my guesstimate! That only gives us a little over 2 months to raise the money! Now, I've had my weak moments of the flesh wondering how in the world this will happen.....but God has gently reminded me that He's got this!

None of this is happening without the Lord's hand on us. We couldn't make Julia say yes, that she wanted to be in our family.....that was God moving in her heart! We couldn't make the first money come in.....which we needed to get the process started. None of this would take place without the hands of the Lord blessing this! All He asked us to to was answer His call to adopt. We said "yes", so He is working all the other things out!

Thank you for reading this blog, and I look forward to sharing more with everyone along our process!! I also look forward to soon sharing the winner of our current raffle. The raffle is for a chance to win your choice of either a $500 visa gift card, iPad, or Kindle Fire. Tickets are $20 each, and if you are interested in buying one, please email me  amythorpe7@charter.net. I hope that you have a wonderful evening and weekend, and that the Lord will show you more of His love and peace than you have ever known!! Although many have already seen this picture, here is our family! Julia is 4th from the left, with the rest of our family! We are all surrounding her just as we all surround her and cover her with prayer daily!!

Good afternoon friends! It is "quiet" time in our house right now! Of course the dryer is running, I hear pages of books turning as the kids are reading them, and randomly hear a "mom, how much longer"!! LOL, I'm trying to teach the children that we ALL need quiet times, not just kids!! Mommy needs hers too!! Often the kids fall asleep, but sometimes not! I'm limiting their time today, so bedtime will be smooth sailing! It's been a productive day, with school accomplished, some housework done (including some extra helping hands), and some fun (mostly for the children, but I love hearing them play!). So I figured in this quiet of our house, I would blog a few things on my heart!

We have had so much support in preparing for the adoption, but with that support also comes the "disapproving" comments, looks, or whatever form they may take! The first one we received wasn't horrible, but suprising as we thought the person would be very supportive, knowing our stand on children and our desires to one day adopt! This came from a very close friend. We've accepted it, and moved on, and know that there are seasons for everything, even friends! You love them, but not everyone has to agree with what you are doing!

Recently we received another "disapproval", from a not really shocking source, but the words keep ringing in my ears. "I think it's great that you want to adopt, but you shouldn't ask others for help. You shouldn't do it if you can't afford it." When I read these words (it came in an email), I have to be honest, it hurt. I cried, and tried to hide if from Jarrod, b/c I didn't know if I wanted to share it with him. I had to search the validity of this, should I not be asking others for help?? This has been very humbling to ask for help, I've always had to do things for myself. So why is this so bothersome? Acts 2 talks about the people in ...the CHURCH coming together and sharing and distributing all that they had.

When we've shared our story, and sent out letters and starting raising support, we didn't twist anyone's arm, we simply asked to partner with us, in prayer, with financial support, or whatever way the Lord laid it on their hearts! It's the Lord that moves people, not Jarrod and Amy! I was thinking back on relay for life, the police benevolence funds, aids funds, all these different WONDERFUL organizations that daily call and ask for support.....for the chance of saving lives, furthering research, whatever their cause may be! Well this is our cause, to save our beautiful girl from a life of possible destruction. I feel honored that God has called us to this, I feel honored that the Lord is humbling us even more by having to ask for help.....b/c we are truly learning to lean on the one true source, and that is Christ. God is doing this, we are just sharing what we are doing, and of course doing fundraising (just like any good and worthy cause does)!!

After recieving this email (which I did finally share with Jarrod after I wasn't so emotional!), I started thinking about others that ran in this circle of friends. Jarrod and I talked about not hearing from them, not a phone call saying congrats, this is awesome. So we figured that they probably feel the same way, although they are active Christians. I found myself wanting more and more to know if we had their approval, so I started to send a text, but the Lord wouldn't let me. He said "why are you doing this adoption, for the approval of others or for ME"? Ouch, I have to admit, that one shocked me. I thought, but Lord they will get it, I just want to make sure. He reminded me that He has called US for such a time as this. Some will get it, some will not. Even Christians will not fully grasp the concept of what we are doing, even the asking for help part! We've also realized that many won't get it b/c they feel convicted about it, or something is stirring in them that they aren't yet ready to grab ahold of. So many times offense comes b/c you are doing something that others have been called to do, yet aren't doing.

So, I leave you with a bit more of my heart exposed. I still haven't shaken completely the email, I guess I'm still a bit emotional about it. I know, it's crazy, b/c I know it's the enemy's way at trying to get to me. So each time it comes up, I just cast it at His feet. And I won't lie, I have to do it SEVERAL times a day!! One last thought, I just read from a friend on facebook....."Every person wants so much to be accepted. But you cannot be accepted by the world and be effective for the Lord." ~Dr. John MacArthur, Jr. Be blessed my friends, and rest in His love and grace!!

Good evening friends!! Today has been a beautiful day, but filled with many, many emotions!! Church was awesome followed by some amazing fellowship! It was wonderful to be encouraged, edified and prayed for with all things concerning the adoption! It's encouraging that so many are for us and holding our hands us on this journey! I am constantly amazed at what the Lord is doing! We've had gifts given from some that just know we are adopting, without knowing what all will be involved with costs, etc. I know that the Lord is providing the means for this adoption, and it won't be the way that Jarrod and I may invision it!! God has a perfect plan, and we are learning to let go of our plans and move forward in His plans!! For example, the idea of having this cute little family (not that we aren't cute, lol!), perfect home, nice suv. We are ready to trade everything in for the chance of saving lives, changing a child's destiny that the enemy has deemed ruined. I'm ready for that 15 passenger van, that house that is simply filled with love and not necessarily material things! I used to want all the things"normal" people wanted.....like the material toys, putting my kids in every sport they wanted to be in, shopping sprees, cool cars, and the list goes on.....I wanted to better myself and my family, as I believe the American dream goes. Well, I have a better dream, to live what God has called pure and undefiled religion, which is found in James 1:27 "Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world."

Although the great support, there are a few who have objected what we are doing. We do this not for ourselves, we do this because the Father has revealed His heart to us, and we are being obedient to the call He has placed on our lives!! While I have wanted to "defend" our cause, the Lord has shown me that He is our defender!! Psalm 59:1 "Deliver me from mine enemies, O my God: defend me from them that rise up against me." This is such a relief, b/c I know that God will defend those that rise against me, but I'll admit it's also hard to chew on at times! Out of natural reaction and needing to justify things, we want to defend! A friend reminded me of Matthew 5:11-12: “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you." This is a comfort, for we are BLESSED!! When someone comes against you, it does make you question things, and I always search what they are saying to see if there is any truth! This too can be humbling, b/c many times the Lord may be speaking something through this person!

So in my evaluating our lives and our love for our daughter Julia, here are some things that God has revealed to me, and it's so beautiful!! I have 3 birth children...Noah, Hannah and Jonah. Each time I was pregnant with these children, I loved them before I even saw them! The Lord placed them in my womb and handpicked me to be their mother. I had a love for them that I had never known before, it was AMAZING, well I should say is AMAZING!! I would lay down my life for them. John 15:13 says "Greater love has no one that this, than to lay down one's life for his friends". A mother and a father understand that love. We will never understand that love to the magnitude that the Father does, but we grasp a little of it with being a mother and a father!! I would go to the end of the earth to get my child, I will fight for them and their protection, I will recruit others to help me if I need something out of my hands for them.

This is no different than our love for Julia! When we met her in December and were able to spend 9 magnificent days with her, there was no DOUBT that God had placed the love of a mother and father in our hearts,and He handpicked us to be her parents! It was just the same as He did when we were pregnant with our other 3 children, only she's a bit older!! It is not something we can force, it is something that only the Father could do and put in our hearts! So with that being said, we are ready to fight for her, run to the ends of the earth, ask others to help us bring her home to us! We want to save her life from a life of destruction. God gave us this vision and He will carry it about! He has put some amazing friends and family in our life to walk with us through this, and it's slowly coming together! It's not cheap, it's not easy, but we will do this. We understand this is our hearts, this is our calling, but the Father that has called ALL Christians to walk out James 1:27, so when others join in this effort to bring her home, they are operating in pure and undefiled religion!! I do believe that the Father speaks to hearts and moves them, even in the unbelievers hearts!!

So with that being said, we are beginning our first fundraiser! We are having a raffle, and we have 23 friends so far committed to helping us sell raffle tickets! I am overwhelmed with the love and support of this, but I am also expecting that the Father will move on hearts!! I had been stressing on fundraising, then God put this amazing family in my life (who is also currently walking the adoption process), who gave me some amazing fundraising ideas and encouragment!! So, if you haven't heard about the fundraiser, here's the info!! Buy a $20 ticket for a chance to win a CHOICE of ONE of the items: $500 gift card, iPad, Kindle Fire. We will hold the drawing on 4/30/2012. If you are interested in buying/selling tickets, please contact me via email @ amythorpe7@charter.net. We believe this fundraiser will be a success!! We have a few more things coming up too!!

So thank you for letting me share a bit of my heart and I pray that God will bless you with an abundance of Him over this next week!! Leaving you with pics of Jarrod, Julia and I; Tan, Ryan, Chelsea, Julia and Hannah; and our family!! Good night!!