We are a family that loves and serves Jesus, and we want the opportunity to give a waiting child a loving home. A little over 2 years ago, we started yielding to the gentle and persistent nudge in our hearts to adopt. John-Peter is adopted and we love the thought of carrying on this legacy (I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. John 14:18).
We believe that if most of us took some time to sit with God about this, more hearts would open to adopting. All children deserve to live, and be in families. Maybe you are supposed to open your heart to adopting a child, or maybe your role is to support adoptive families in process. (”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.“ James 1:27)
God has made it clear to us that it’s time to step out in faith. With urgency in our hearts, and a strong pull to find our daughter, we are moving forward on this journey. (For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. Habakkuk 2:3)
Why India, you might ask? India has the most waiting children of any country. With confirmation after confirmation that this is where God has led us, we are so excited to meet the daughter that has lived in our hearts for some time already! Our boys ask often when she will be home, and dream about cuddling, teaching, and playing with “Baby Sister”. We pray for her every night, and ask for God's protection over her while we wait to be able to graft her into our family. (For thus says the Lord: "Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken, and the prey of the tyrant be rescued, for I will contend with those who contend with you, and I will save your children.“ Isaiah 49:25 ESV)
Consider watching "It's A Girl" on Amazon Prime to learn a bit about the reality that girls can face in India. (Isaiah 58: 6-14)
Adoption is a long, and expensive process. We would deeply appreciate fervent prayer over our whole family as we take each step in faith. It can take up to three years for a family like ours. We are gladly putting our all into this, as we know it brings us closer to our little one. Rarely does an adoptive family have all the funds ready to adopt. We plan to apply for certain adoption grants, when eligible, as well as do a couple fundraising campaigns. Ultimately we trust God will make a way as funds are needed, but this is another tangible way others can support our family growing through adoption. Would you consider joining us financially on this journey? Any amount, big or small, will bring us that much closer to holding our daughter in our arms. All in and through His hands. (”But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.“ Matthew 6:33) (”And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.“ 2 Corinthians 9:8) Your donation is tax deductible, and goes directly to adoption expenses, as our process unfolds.
I wanted to give an update, and ask for your prayers. We are finally, and thankfully done with our homestudy! Currently we are compiling required documents in order to attempt to register to the CARINGS portal in India. This is important, and we need all the prayer cover we can get. Some families have been experiencing difficulty registering in the system due to glitches in the code regarding the age they got married. There is no law or rule that disqualifies foreign families based on this, but not much has been done to rectify it. We are in contact with a reputable Indian attorney who has given us options to resolve the issue if the portal gives us trouble. We press on trusting in God’s leading! He has brought us this far, and called us to this. We know He will be faithful. I look forward to updating you all with praise and testimony of how the Lord moved and worked.
We keep dreaming of the day we can have Baby Sister at home, and the boys just keep asking Jesus to bring her here now. It melts our hearts. This love we all carry helps us to press on. We have begun buying things for her, and decorating her bedroom to prepare for her arrival. We pray that wherever and whoever she is, God is preparing her for us. We pray for her birth family also, because we don’t know what tragic circumstances will have led to her needing to be adopted. Bringing our daughter home is still a long way off, but the beauty of prayer is that it is beyond time and space. Thank you all again for your prayers, love, and support. We are so touched by your sweet messages. God bless you.
Thank you all for your prayers and support! I just wanted to keep you in the loop as to where we currently stand. We are just wrapping up the paperwork needed to complete our home study. Soon our social worker will schedule visits with our family. This has been a tedious part of the process, but every little step brings us closer to our daughter. We could not have accomplished this with out the donations and prayer, so thank you SO much for being part of our adoption process! We paid our first agency fee, and the home study fees with the gifts given through AdoptTogether! A lovely fellow Indian adoptive mother has begun a fundraiser for us with unique earrings designed for our family. The proceeds of those purchases will go toward our adoption fees as well! If you are interested in purchasing a pair for yourself or a loved one please click the below link to shop. I hope to set up a tee shirt fundraiser in the future, so stay tuned. We are still blown away by God’s goodness and provision for every need through this journey. I am thankful to be able to walk the road of adoption. It brings the verses about our adoption into God’s family to life in a way nothing has before. https://jewelsbyjulieakin.com/products/albrecht-family-adoption-fundraiser
