The Mind of Christ

These lyrics seem to run through my head constantly right now.

To receive when others reject, to treat each one with true respect,
To shield when others throw stones, to be with one whos all alone,
To think and choose to see the very best,
To live like this is nothing less than to possess

Chorus
The mind of Christ, my highest goal
The Lords delight, the desire of my soul
The Fathers heart will always guide my life
If I will have in me the mind of Christ

To build up when others tear down, to seek the lost until theyre found,
To give grace where its needed most, rejecting pride when others boast,
To sacrifice my all without regret,
To live like this is nothing less than to possess.

We hope to have more information to share with you all soon.

Some good news

Eric just called from work with great news. OSU has changed their policies on adoption benefits. We had originally been told that would be receiving $4000 towards this adoption. We were very grateful for any help we would be receiving from Eric's employer, and $4000 is a lot of money. Now they are giving $5000 per CHILD. That means a grand total of $10,000! Eric called to talk with someone to make sure that he understood the policy, and they confirmed that we would be receiving this amount. This brings us much closer to our end goal. It is a reimbursement policy, so we will not receive the $10,000 until the girls are home. We will have to pay for our expenses up front, and then we will be reimbursed when this is all over.

God is good, all the time. He is working, even when I can't see His hand moving. He is with our girls today. He knows them. He created their inmost being. He knit them together in their mother's womb.

HOPE

I received this email today from Diana regarding adoptions in Liberia. If you have lost track of where we are in the process, we are still waiting for our referral.

I spoke with Patty this morning regarding adoptions in Liberia. The legislature is out on a six-month intermission, during which time no new work will be done on the new law. However, President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf issued an Executive Order to the Ministry of Health declaring that pending the new law, the Ministry of Health must continue processing adoptions promptly according to the existing law.

Following the issuance of the order, the Ministry resumed work on the cases of ten special needs children in the care of Acres of Hope, Liberia. Two of those cases are already completed. The Ministry stated that the remainder would be finished today, after which they will resume work on cases not involving special needs. The Deputy Minister of Health has been working very closely with Acres of Hope, Liberia staff as the representatives of the newly formed Liberian adoption providers’ association.

The orphanage has been able to accept four new babies as a few children have gone home, and we anticipate being able to make more new referrals in the coming months. At this time we expect that adoptions in Liberia will shortly resume their normal pace and more children will come home.

Somewhere on the west coast of Africa, a story has begun to unfold. It began last November when we simply said "yes" to God's call. Actually it began long before that, longer than I'm sure I even know. I know very little about this story, God has not chosen to reveal much to me yet. However, He has begun to make the pieces fit together. I've thought about God's hand moving in this story often today, as though I can almost see His hand resting on my daughters, guiding the steps of their birth families and directing this story as He sees fit.

I have so much more to post, both here and on my other journal. But, it will take time for these thoughts to develop. That's enough for today.