Challenge: Are you ONE of the THOUSAND????

Here’s my challenge:  We need one thousand people to consider giving $25 towards bringing our son home.  We anticipate the costs to be approximately $25,000.  Can you help us out?  Can you rally some of your friends?  Do you want to participate in a blessing?

Honestly fundraising this time around and searching for grants is going to be very difficult.  We just don’t have the same amount of time as before.  Our home study amendment is going very quickly and we already have a stack of documents ready to go over to Eastern Europe.  We anticipate a much quicker process.

Now to the blessing!!!!  I can give testimony of what your $25 will do for this boy and yes, if you would like you can give more.  We all know it is better to give than to receive but many blessings come with giving.   Not only will you be a blessing this child, but in return you will get to see hope and love develop in the eyes of a little boy that will have a FOREVER family.  He will no longer be an orphan!

I have seen first hand what adoption can do.  I have seen over these past few months of our newest additions being home, a sparkle in their eyes, a smile from ear to ear and a joy in their hearts.  They are no longer left in hopelessness and they will be forever loved!  I am truly amazed at how far they have come in such a short period of time.  We are actually the ones who are being blessed by these children.  We still have a challenging journey ahead with them but they will always have unconditional love.  As a family we are committed to always move forward and follow God’s direction for our family.  We are also committed to bringing this boy home.

For all of you who played a part in our first adoption here are some recent pictures of Eliyanah Viktoriah and Kevin Michael:

Donations can be made by going to:

http://reecesrainbow.org/90484/sponsorbowling-2

(online donations incur a 3% fee)

or mail your donations directly to:

Reece’s Rainbow

PO Box 277

Monrovia, MD 21770

(*please include Bowling Family on your check)

Where He leads . . . (exciting NEWS)

Some exciting news for the Bowling Family!!!!!

As a family we have decided to adopt again.  As we proceed forward there are many scriptures that come to mind. 

John 10: 4 – When he has brought his own sheep outside, he walks on before them and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.

John 8:12 – Once more Jesus addressed the crowd.  He said, I am the Light of the world.  He who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the Light which is Life

James 1:27 – External religious worship that is pure and unblemished in the sight of God the Father is this:  to visit and help and care for the orphans and widows in their affliction and need and to keep oneself unspotted and uncontaminated from the world.

This is not an undertaking that we, as a family, take lightly.  Richard and I began praying about what we should do.  Remember, we had already received approval for three children from USCIS.  We tried on our trip to Eastern Europe to bring home three children but were unable to do so.  However, we brought home two wonderful additions to our family.  Honestly, I was the one who stated, “I will not return and adopt again, if we can’t bring home three now then two is all we will ever adopt.”  Adoption is not an easy road!!!  Also we sometimes have to do those things we swore we would never do.  Never say never!!!!

Over these past two months, God has been working in my heart.  In the back of my mind I knew there was already an approval and that approval would expire if we did not act on it.  There was a tugging at my heart for a little boy that we had desired to add to our first adoption but were unable to do so.  Also, my heart was very concerned on how this could even be possible.  Who would care for our children and with our newest additions, how could I leave them for an extended period of time?  God spoke to me this scripture:

Luke 15:4 - "Suppose one of you has 100 sheep and loses one of them. He leaves the 99 in the wilderness and looks for the one that is lost until he finds it, doesn't he?"

It took awhile for this to sink into my heart.  Soon I began to feel that this child was one we had lost, but it took some time for me to believe I could leave the eight children we now have at home.  Then God said to me “look at this scripture carefully.”  He left the 99 in the wilderness.  Now I’m not leaving my children in the wilderness but God told me they would be just fine.

I have to say it still took some time for me to take that step of faith and believe God was calling our family to adopt again.  Richard and I began to discuss the possibility and pray God would give clear direction.  He then spoke these scriptures to me:

Proverbs 3:27 - Withhold not good from those to whom it is due [its rightful owners], when it is in the power of your hand to do it. 

James 4:17 - So any person who knows what is right to do but does not do it, to him it is sin.  

We talked it over with our children, who were very receptive of the idea and determined we would take the step of faith to begin the process again.  We have decided that I will travel to Eastern Europe to complete this adoption.  We believe this is the best decision for our children.  By the way, if any one is interested I would love to have a travel companion.  The process to adopt should go much quicker than our previous adoption and we will also need to raise the financial support in a shorter amount of time.  We would appreciate your prayers and support.

We are very excited and can’t wait to bring home a little boy to his  FOREVER family!!!!

All donations can be made thru our FSP at:

http://reecesrainbow.org/sponsorbowling-2

Our Deepest THANKS

A special thank you from the Bowling Family

     We want to thank each of you who have played a big part in our adoption process!  We feel truly blessed by your generosity, either by prayer, financial support, providing a meal, transportation and your kind words of encouragement.  We are honored that God chose us to take this journey and feel blessed by the overwhelming support of His people to help make this adoption become a reality. As supporters, in this process, you, as well, took this journey with us. Everyone played a part in what God called each of us to do.  Our hearts are blessed in knowing two beautiful children now have HOPE and will forever be loved by a family.

     We traveled across the ocean, 6,125 miles, to two different orphanages in the Dnepropetrovsk region of the Ukraine.   The journey was long and difficult, but now that we are home it was so worth it. We persevered in times of difficulty knowing God would not let us down!  We had times where we felt fear and shed many tears, but we never gave up! We were asked many times "why do you want to adopt these children?" This was a country where these children faced a life without hope. They were labeled as worthless, left alone, they were controlled, sedated and most of all unloved.  God has great plans for these two children and they are now forever labeled, loved and cherished!!!

     This journey is not over for us as we begin the process of joining together as a family with our newest additions. Our daughter still needs time to learn what a mom, dad and family are. She has never had this in her life. For almost seven years she has lived a life of neglect, labeled as a wild animal and controlled in many ways. She had never dressed herself, been potty trained, or learned many things we take for granted daily. She is now discovering many firsts and learning how to enjoy childhood.  She just celebrated her very first birthday as she turned 7 years old on February 27th.

     Our son is also experiencing the love of a family.  He is no longer left in a crib alone and unspoken to.  He has had his heart defect repaired and is on the road to recovering.  Kevin Michael is 10 months old and will have his first birthday on April 28th. His smile will light up a room!

     Thank you once again for all of your prayers and support. Our God is ALWAYS faithful and will always be    with us along this journey we call life!!!

The Bowling Family (Richard, Lisa, Aria, Mariah, Josh, Matthew, Judah, Micah, Jordan, Amber, Eliyanah, Reece and Kevin Michael

Where He leads

Proverbs 24:12 - If you say, Behold, we did not know this, does not He Who weighs and ponders the heart perceive and consider it?  And He Who guards your life, does not He know it?  And shall not He render to every man according to his works?


As I prepare to travel with my husband, Richard, in just five days across the ocean to a country I've never been, this scripture came to me.  I actually believe it is speaking to my heart.  There are times in my walk with the Lord that I feel He is speaking to me, whether it is by reading His word, that still small voice, or by circumstances. 

To go back just a few months in our journey of adoption, I filled out paperwork to get our USCIS approval.  Now I was amazed that our home study said we had approval for three children.  I had not asked for our social worker to write our home study to include up to three children.  I was comfortable in the beginning of this process to commit to adopting one child.  It was in our comfort zone.  I was told prior to filling out this form if you put one child you will only get approved for one child.  It was suggested that I put 2-3 in the blank requesting children to be approved for.  So I thought, I can put 2-3 on my form.  As I typed my form on my computer it would not allow me to put more than one character so I had to choose to put 2 or 3.  I chose to put 2 in this blank and only requested to be approved for two children.  I was comfortable with this and began to pray for God to show us His will in our adoption.  During our long wait (75 days) we felt led to commit to two children and added Kevin Michael to our adoption.  We could adopt two children.

When our approval form finally arrived I had to take note.  We were approved to adopt three children.  It was something we have had to look at and consider over these past few weeks.  What is God saying to us?  Only He could do this!  After much praying and searching our hearts this scripture can not be ignored.  We can not say with a clear conscious that we did not know this.  Doesn't He look at our hearts?  I believe this is His hand; His speaking to our hearts.  He will not give us more than we can handle.  I know myself well enough to know if I attempted to travel across the ocean and ignore what I believe God is saying I would regret it.  But worse than regret, I may miss out on what God is doing and His blessing for me and my family. 

This is the step we are taking.  We are going to travel across the ocean in five days to bring home three children.  In this particular country the children we have committed to are not guaranteed to be our children.  Anything can happen and circumstances change.  We pray that these children will become our children, but we must trust God will guide and direct us.  He knows which children are to be a part of our family.  As for our third adopted child, we have not committed to a specific child and we are trusting God on this one.  It is very difficult as we proceed into the unknown, but we trust God will be right there walking beside us.  His ways are always perfect!

Thank you for all of your support and prayers!  We are very close to having all of the funds needed to complete all three children's adoptions.  Keep our family in your prayers during this time!

reecesrainbow.org/sponsorbowling

I am BRAVE ?!?!?!?!?!!!!

I had the honor of speaking today at our local MOPS group.  It is Adoption Awareness Month and I was chosen to speak with them about adoption.  It was quite an honor for me to be able to share our story.  We have not completed the process, but it is truly an incredible journey God has orchestrated in our lives.  I am not a public speaker, but I do have a passion to speak about my Lord and Savior and the grace and mercy He has shown to me.  I can only do these things because of Him!

The MOPS theme this year is "Be You, Bravely."  As I thought about this and what I wanted to share with the group, I have to say my desire is to be me, but I'm not sure about the bravely part of the theme.  During our adoption journey my motto has been "We Can Make a Difference."  Part of this is to be me, the me God created me to be.  My part, even if it's small, can make a difference!  Now to the brave part, well, I can say we have ventured into an unknown area of our life.  Adoption is something we have never done before.  We will be traveling to a foreign country.  I have never been outside the United States and this is the first time for me to hold a passport.  We are adopting children with special needs.  Once again, a new territory for us.  Brave, I'm not sure about that, but I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.  I will stand and strive to be who God has called me to be.  I will be brave because I can not afford not to.  I will run my race, my journey, my life to the best I can.  I will not give up there is too much at stake!  These future children of ours and my entire family are worth the risk!

Thank you, my friend, Gina Carter, for calling me "brave" and blessing me with your key of courage!  I will make you, my family, my friends and my Lord, Jesus Christ, proud!  It is what I am striving for in this journey!!!!

EXCITING NEWS!!!

We have some exciting news today, but it has been a very emotional day!  I was up early praying that we would get word for our DAP appointment.  Of course, we did but I will get to that.  I also had to strip the sheets off my bed to prepare for our new mattress today.  I had no idea getting a new mattress would bring such emotions!  I mean it's over thirteen years old and it no longer provides a good nights sleep.  It just brought back such memories of the day we went to purchase it.  My husband, Richard, and I decided it was a desperate need back in 2001 because I was pregnant with our twin boys, Jacob and Josiah.  I still miss them very much and I can't believe it's been 13 years since their birth.  

Now back to some good news!  We will be leaving on Monday, November 24th to head to our children's country.  We have our DAP appointment on Wednesday, November 26th.  We are so excited!!!!  Our God is so good and so faithful!!!!
Also, it was great news for 5 families today who received their DAP appointment dates.  We will all be having our appointments before Thanksgiving.  Our team will be very busy helping all of these families bring home these children to their forever families!

READY, SET, GO!!!!

Please keep praying for our family as we make preparations to travel.  We still need funds to complete our adoption and would appreciate any help you can provide!

Thank you so much!!!

reecesrainbow.org/sponsorbowling

Yes, we can make a difference

We have been praying for wisdom and what God wants our family to do.  I was talking to someone about the hopelessness and abuse orphans face.  They are just innocent children.  I was also sharing with them that we are praying about adding a third child to our adoption and they said to me: "the tragedies that orphans face happens all over the world and this is not something new.  Are you sure you should add another?"  Yes, this does happen all over the world, unfortunately, but my response to them was:  "this is true but our helping just one more child can make a difference!"  We know this is not an easy decision.  It is a decision that will affect our lives and the lives of our children.  We will be a little more cramped for space, but no one said adoption was easy.  Let's face it raising children is not easy, life is not easy,  but the rewards are great!  

We must all remember that our little, no matter how small, can make a difference!  Our family is in this position by the grace of God and His help.  We can not ignore that we have been approved for adopting up to three children.   After filling out the paperwork and requesting approval for two children our paperwork came back with approval for three children.   I was told if you put two on your form you will only be approved for two.  Honestly, I meant to type 2-3 on the form, but when I rechecked the paperwork it said 2.   So, in our position, we must take note and listen for God to speak to our hearts.  We are approved to adopt three children!  Our hearts are to take this step and bring home three children to be a part of our family.  We are trusting God to work out all the details!

Please pray for us, as we are seeking wisdom and clear direction from God.  We will be traveling to bring our children home in the next 3-5 weeks.  We are still needing funds to complete this adoption process and additional funds to add child number three.  God is faithful!!!!

Thank you for all of your support!  Yes, we can all make a difference!