What hurts you in the church or community? What are you doing about it?

So THRILLED!!!  Many of you have asked what we have done in our church as far as starting up an Adoption/Foster Care ministry.  So I want to share with you something I just sent out to our contacts and explain a little about how all that is going. 

First - the title is from a couple of questions our lead pastor asked the congregation.  Good question don't you think?  ME TOO!

(Today's pictures brought to you by the Lowry Zoo.  I have no idea how Matthew ended up missing the picture op?  Michael was sleeping!....so I added a picture of them both at home.  Oh and check out the one where Abigail is holding Jonathan up and he is pointing to Ethiopia :)  TOO CUTE!)

So earlier this year we really thought- let's try to start something.  Now we go to a larger church.  What that means is that there are those in charge who protect that church.  As it should be.  We want our church to be filled with integrity!  We want truth to be spoken!  You can't just have anyone come in and say- we want to do this and go for it, and have it not be Biblically based or fall apart or both :(.  That would not help to unite the church. 

Size of church does matter because in a smaller church the pastor may have already known you for a while and seen your family do an adoption or foster care.  They may have been to your home.  So there is a difference. 

God has ordained so much in our church lately!  We have been able to meet with our head pastor.  Share our hearts for foster care and adoption.  Share the burden we feel for children in need!  We have had many families praying for this.  Praise God! 

So now......these are the things we are now doing in our church (taken from a letter we just sent out to those in our connection).  :)  WAHOOO!!!!!!

1)  This Sunday Jason and I (Dawn) will be sharing LIVE at each service about our passion for foster care and adoption and what we are doing about it.  We are thrilled, but also want to ask for prayers.  We want everything we say to be pleasing to the Lord and to move others to realize the huge need for children to have families- there are over 163 Million orphans in the world in our back yard, in our state, around our country, and around the world.  We would covet those prayers so that only God would be heard.  Thank You!

***If you want to listen live this Sunday or after that - GO HERE and then click on demand.  Our services are at 9am, 11am, and 5pm Eastern Time :).

*******PLEASE PRAY FOR US!!!!!!!  THIS IS HUGE AND WE WANT GOD TO BE GLORIFIED!

2)  Our Foster Care and Adoption Connection is Growing!  This is an answer to many many many prayers, and thanks to each and every one of you.  Whether you are a prayer supporter, an adoptive parent, and adoptive parent and your kids are grown, a person who is doing foster care right now, or you haven't taken the classes yet, wherever you fit in we are thrilled to finally start finding those connections.  We want those connections to keep growing to help support each other.  So if you know ANYONE in our church that fits this mold please let us know.  We want to welcome everyone!

3)  We are on the Crossing Church's website!  YEAH!  Check it out  http://crossingonline.org/children as well as we have a connection on Facebook too!  **We have made our private facebook page a place for resources - to post prayer needs or joys.  To post great blog articles or anything they think will help inspire our connection :).

4)  We are going to be having a table on November 4th - Orphan Care Sunday!  We are going to need your help to help be at that table before and after services. 

5)  Speaking of helping each other- that is our main goal along with spreading the word about the need for foster care and adoption.  We want you to let us know of any needs that come up.  Whether that is just wanting someone to talk to about behaviors or difficulties with a child (adopted, foster care, or birth), needing clothes or toys or school supplies for a new child that comes to you by foster or adoption, wanting more information on how to help your new child- foster or adoption.  We want to help you get connected! 

6)  Just so you know we do have a Life Group @ our home as well on Tuesdays between 7-8:30pm - Please come and join us if you can.  This is just another way to form those connections. 

Whew!  I don't know about you, but in the last 6 months this has been a great journey.  We can not wait to see what the Lord has in store for us in the future.  Let's remember this is not about us, but ABOUT THE KIDS!  Witnessing to them, loving them like Jesus does, giving them a hope and a future, and sharing that love with birth families and others in our communities. 

Sooo.....we started off by going to meet with our missions coordinator a few times.  Letting him know what we wanted to do and how.  We started by having a life group because we knew that would be beneficial and small, but needed to start bigger things.  

 

We then asked around.  We have served in different areas in our church- through being a life group leader, going to services weekly, serving with the little kids, rocking babies, and all our our kiddos are active too, and we made a point of telling people how our children came to us- Helps that we wear 8 stickers into the service every Sunday (you know the ones for security reasons at your church to match you to your child.  Oh and we wear 8 because Abigail is too old to have one.)  So people have asked us several times.  When we march our crew in on a First Wednesday night service- ummm...people tend to notice ;).  **Keep in mind our church is several thousand members. 

 

We got connected to people throughout the last several months....took note of emails, addresses, and such and kept track.  Kept up with them as much as possible through facebook and emails.  

 

In June we had a "Father to the Fatherless" Picnic on the Saturday of Father's Day weekend.  It was GREAT!  50 people there!  Remember that was literally a few months after we initially started.  :)  

 

So that is what we have done.  I pray that this encourages you to get out there and do this too!!!!  If you have the determination and calling- then go for it!  THE CHILDREN NEED US TO SPREAD THE WORD!  :) 

Pray your week is going great!  Do you have an answer you would like to share to the opening question?  Let me know!