Africa Pendant

If you love Ethiopia, please consider purchasing one of these pendants to support our adoption. The cost is $20 per pendant plus $1.50 for shipping (chain is not included). They are approximately 1.25 inch long and .75 inches wide. They are from a jewelry store in Addis and the countries are etched out on the pendant. Ethiopia is shaded on the pendant. The pendant is a polished silver color even though these pictures almost make it look dark gray.

You can purchase on the left hand side of our blog. Please allow 2-3 weeks for delivery.

Thank you!

Lessons from the Beach

The things you learn at the beach.

Like how you start out body surfing or boogie boarding in one spot of the Gulf and then you end up somewhere totally different. And so you have to get out of the water and walk back to where you started so that your parents can keep an eye on you. But you don't really listen, at least not well, so pretty soon, you're way down at the other end of the beach and you're totally oblivious to the fact that you don't know where your parents are. But your mom and your dad...they have their eyes on you the whole time. Why? Because you are precious to them. And you are loved. And they would do anything to make sure that you're safe. They love you more than they love themselves and so their eyes are constantly watching and waiting to see if you'll cry for help.



At one point, you get out of the water and start walking down the beach. You pass your parents, you pass the family's sand toys, you pass the umbrella and chairs, but you just keep walking. Where are you going? Do you even know? But your parents' eyes are still on you....just waiting to see where exactly you're going to go. Are you really going to walk all the way down to the pier before you realize that you're lost? But your parents come looking and asking questions and you really don't have answers. You don't really know where you were going...you were just walking....down to the pier I guess.

And as this all played out on our beach vacation, I thought of how our lives mimic exactly this. We drift away from God. But He never took His eyes off of us. He didn't move. We did. And sometimes you just have to step out of the water and back away from life a little and refocus. Put your eyes back on Him.

And sometimes you're following something, you don't even know what and it ends up taking you somewhere you didn't even know you were headed. And just like the prodigal son, soon you end up somewhere that you didn't want to be. You're at the pier...completely lost....and not sure how to get back. But God never took His eyes off of you and He's right there, waiting with open arms, just hoping you'll turn around and run towards Him. He has great things for you. After all, He'd leave 99 just to find you.

Luke 15:3 Then Jesus told them this parable: 4 “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? 5 And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders 6 and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ 7 I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.

Trials

Life is hard.
I'm sure you already knew that.

One friend just put her dad in a nursing home.
Several friends marriages are in the pits.
Another friend's mother was just diagnosed with cancer.

And then there's everyday life....laundry, dishes, ironing and a to-do list that never seems to get shorter.

I've had tummy troubles since returning from Ethiopia. I finally went to the doctor and they're treating me for parasites and worms and anything else that I might've brought home. I didn't invite them, but they came anyway.

Kind of like life....we don't invite the trials, but they come anyway. And in the midst of them, we are supposed to be thankful.
In everything, give thanks...
Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials....

And so today...
I am thankful for good medicine. So many people around the world are without it.
I am thankful for an adoption journey that is already filled with days of discouragement. I know that God is with us each step of the way even in the heartache.
I am thankful for friends. How sad it would be to walk through life without them.
And I am thankful for the Bible. It offers hope and encouragement for each day.

And so thankful for this verse in Joshua, because this is what I'm holding onto right now.
Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. Joshua 1:9

Sweet Reminders

I've been thinking the last couple of days about why I will continue to go even though it's hard. The first and probably only reason that I need to continue to go is because God has called me to it. But He's given me some sweet kisses along the way as well....these faces are the reasons that I will continue to go....I love each and every one of these faces....and many more!