WE ARE ADOPTING!
You read that right! We are in the process of adopting a sweet little girl from China who has down syndrome!!! We could not be more excited about sharing this journey with our friends and family! We are so excited to become a family of 5 through the blessing of welcoming our "Yehua", or "wildflower" in Chinese. Even our children share in the anticipation! Maggie cannot wait to be a big sister and roommate, and Martin is so excited for the adventure of being a big brother again!
Jesus was specific in speaking about His heart for children, the innocent, the looked over. Even James, the half- brother of Jesus, spoke in his letter that “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) We know God is moving in orphanages around the world, we believe He is calling the church to action, and we are responding.
Truthfully, this is a mission, a call, and deep desire that cannot become a reality without the leading and abounding grace of our loving Father AND without the support of the family and friends our Father has placed around us. We are so excited to see what God has in store and we hope that you will prayerfully consider how you can walk alongside and partner with us in this mission! It may surprise you to hear that China adoption related costs can easily total up to $43,000 or more. This is why we have set a goal of $30,000 to help ease the financial burden that often overwhelms adoptive parents and lets be honest, greatly overwhelms us! We do not take this lightly to be asking friends and family to come alongside us. Instead we know there is something powerful about inviting others to journey along with us to take part in giving a child a forever family. Not only will our family and newest child experience abounding blessings, we know that by you joining with us in this mission, God will also bring beautiful blessings and joy to you! Yes, the amount is significant, but we are stepping out in faith believing our Father has brought us here, and our Father will provide. We know great things will be done through our faith in Jesus!
Why special needs adoption and why down syndrome? (From Rachel)
I know this will be one of the first questions that will come up. So, why are we so specific about special needs and down syndrome in this adoption? First, I want to say it does not take an extraordinary person to love a child with special needs. It just takes love, perseverance and patience – like ALL great things. We have always felt drawn to these children. I have been drawn to children with special needs since I was a child. I personally cared for a young boy for 10+ years with special needs (Ross alongside me several of those years enjoying very minute of it). What makes a child with special needs so special is not their disability, but more so their blessing.
A few years ago, I started followed Reece’s Rainbow, an organization to raise awareness of special needs adoption. Occasionally I would check their waiting child listings and scroll through photos of amazing, resilient children who were waiting in orphanages hoping that one day they would be united with a family that would love them forever. My heart would break for them, and I knew God’s heart was breaking too. As time went on, I was continually drawn to a certain type of face. You might have seen this kind of face: mouth slightly open, tongue peeking, almond shaped eyes and a smile that is surely the most beautiful in the world. This year, I shared this with Ross, and as I began to show these sweet little children to him, his heart broke also. We then decided to ask God what he would have us do. He has led us here, and we are so excited and willing!!!!
3 & 21. These are the important numbers in the world of down syndrome. Three copies of the twenty-first chromosome, a little bit of extra that makes a child experience the world a little differently. In the United States we have awesome resources for “the extra”. It wasn’t always so, but our country has come a long way. In other countries children born with that “little bit of extra”are not always welcomed with resources, with hope, with a future…often not even with love. Although profiles of waiting children with down syndrome describe them as “happy, little angels,” these countries seem to have no place for children with down syndrome. We desire to change that! We believe that her “extra” will be a blessing not a burden!
Our prayer is that by inviting you into this journey, you will see yourself as part of the blessing and part of the mission. We hope to surround our child with a family full of love and hope as they grow up, no longer as orphans, but as heirs that are loved, chosen, & adopted into the family of Christ.
Thank you so much for your prayers and support. We are so very grateful!
Ross, Rachel, Maggie and Martin
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