2014 Angel Tree - DON'T MISS OUT!!!!

As a family we have decided to participate in Reece's Rainbow 2014 Angel Tree.  We will be sponsoring a child between November 1st and December 31st in an effort to not only raise funds for her, but to also raise awareness for special needs children in an effort to help them find their forever families.  The child we have chosen is EMMALYN.  She is a beautiful girl, born in May 2001 with Down Syndrome.  She is such a beautiful child yearning to have a family to call her own!

Please consider donating towards her grant.  For any donation of $35 or more by December 1st you will receive a beautiful photo ornament of her to hang on your tree.  What a great way to celebrate Christmas and to bless this beautiful girl!!!  

I know everyone is now ready to donate today, but please hold on and wait until November 1st!  I have placed a donate button for EMMALYN here on this blog.  If you need further assistance in donating towards this years Angel Tree please contact me at lisabowling@me.com.  THANKS!!!

Thanks for everyone's support and prayers during our adoption!  We hope to be announcing our travel date soon, so stay tuned!!!

My Greatest Treasure

     As I reflect on all that I have, the one thing I treasure the most is my ever growing relationship with Jesus Christ.  My God is my strength and my stability!  I can say that personally my relationship with God, my prayer life, and my faith has increased tremendously over these past months.  The more you are stretched the more you realize what's important in life.  
     The path of adoption is difficult!  It has its ups and downs; its highs and lows.  Yes, it requires an enormous financial commitment.  It's an amount that most families can only dream of having someday.  The amount required can be very difficult to come up with, at one time, in only a few short months.  Then there is the intimidating paperwork.  The home study, just one part of the paperwork, is a large report on you and your families entire life.  You feel like your life is being placed under a microscope.  You are being judged on your parenting skills and your ability to provide a stable home for a child.  You must rely on someone else's opinion of you and your family.  It can be very stressful!  Once you get all of the paperwork done and redone over and over again then you must wait on further approval.  You wait and wait and wait and wait!!!
     You have time to think back on how you got to this point in the first place.  That tug on your heart and that still small voice inside that said, "this is the way, walk in it and trust me!"  You remember the first time you saw the pictures of the two children God placed on your heart to be a part of your family.  The  tears you've shed for these two children you have yet to meet.  Every step God has been at our side!  We have seen His hand on this entire process!  How do we know this is God?  Because these are things we could not have done on our own!   Our God is faithful and His love is never-ending!!!
     We are traveling very soon and we will be receiving our exact travel date within the next four weeks.  We are still in need of funds to complete this process, but most of all we need everyones continued prayers!  We are not at the end of this journey yet and there are still some small details that need to be worked out.  We will need God's wisdom, guidance and favor!!!  Our God is faithful!!!
     Thanks to everyone for your continued prayers and support!!! 

Submission Day!!!

We have now passed another marker in our adoption process.  We officially submitted our dossier in our children’s country today.  We will now anxiously wait for our invitation to travel.  We are very excited!  This invitation could come within the next 4-5 weeks and we should be able to travel within the next 8 weeks.  Currently, we are still in need of additional funds to complete our adoption.  Please make this a matter of prayer.  This has been a long journey, but we are almost there!!!

Please continue to keep our family in your prayers as we make preparations to travel to another country.   We will need to work out all of the details concerning our children's well being while we are out of country.  Please continue to pray that all of the paperwork for our children will be in order when we are ready to travel and that we will find favor during this entire process.   We need His wisdom and insight as we continue to proceed.  We know our God is faithful, His timing is always perfect and His plans will prevail in our lives!!!

YOUR OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!!!

For the month of October until November 5th we have been invited to participate in the 5/5/5 on the Reece's Rainbow site.  We are still in need of finances to be fully funded for our travel and adoption.  This is an opportunity to bless not only our family but other families as well.  All of these families featured in the 5/5/5 are not fully funded and will be traveling very soon.

Helping is easy!  Donors are asked to donate $5, $25 or any other amount monthly for a period of five months or longer.  If you are unable to make the monthly commitment you can also make a one-time gift.  These donations really add up when they are added together with other monthly donors.  All of the selected families are very close to traveling and in need of your support!

When you commit to making a monthly donation for up to 5 months to the 5/5/5 for families on the Reece's Rainbow site you are helping as many as 25 orphans become a part of a forever family.  These orphans are from all over the world!!!  Your donation, whatever the amount, CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE in the life of many children!!!

I encourage you to participate because we can ALL make a difference.  Please click the 5/5/5 button on this page or use the link below!!!!

Once again, thanks for all of your prayers and support!!!

http://reecesrainbow.org/555families

Patiently endure as you await HIS promise!!!!

Today has been a difficult day, but I must always remember "everything is God's timing, not my own, and there are things that I can not always understand."  As I sit here typing and dwelling on today I know that God is greater than I am and He has promised to never leave me nor forsake me.  I must place my trust in Him and I know, at times like these when I do not understand, when I am discouraged, and heartbroken He is in charge of my life and is always faithful.  I know what He has promised and where He is leading us!!!  This is not a setback that He did not foresee!!!

Our paperwork will not be submitted until October 16th.  There are things beyond my control and I trust that God has something great in store for this family.  I know He does and these children, these new members of our family, are in God's hands.  Yes, this seems like a delay, but my God is greater and knows the future.  This is something I can not see and that is the future and why things happen the way they do.  If I continue to put my trust in Him, He will see this through to the end like He has promised!

Hebrews 6:15 - And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.

Please continue to pray for us during this time of waiting.  Please pray that there will be no more changes to any of the paperwork that is completed and ready to be submitted.  Please continue to pray that we raise the remainder of the funds needed to complete this adoption.

Thanks to everyone for your continue prayers and support!!!!

God is Faithful - One Step Closer (keep praying)

I am so excited to report that our last form is here!!!!  We will drive this form to Santa Fe tomorrow morning to get apostilled and then send over to our children's country immediately.  We are so overwhelmed with emotions right now.  This is one step closer to traveling.
Please keep praying for the safe arrival of our last document to their country this week.  We need our dossier to be submitted prior to September 30th so we can get our invitation to travel.  
Thank you for your prayers and continued support!!!

PLEASE CONTINUE TO PRAY

We are ever closer to our goal of having our dossier submitted.  Please be in agreement with us that we will get our last piece of our paperwork finished and over to our children's country this week.  We will be driving to Santa Fe, NM, this week to get the last stamp of approval and then sending this doc overseas.  This is a deadline we desire to make to keep this process moving and not to face anymore delays.  We must meet this deadline this week or face a 2 1/2 week delay.

We are also getting closer to be fully funded when we leave within the next few months.  Check out our current amount received.  We had an amazing night last night at our Benefit Dinner and Auction.  Everyone has been so generous!!!  Our God is so faithful and we can not wait to meet our children face to face.  

Thank you so much for your prayers and continued support!!!

We still have a few items available from our auction if anyone is interested in making us an offer.  Remember all proceeds help to bring these children home.

silentauctionitems.blogspot.com