Why Are We Here?

As we prepare for corporate worship this Lord's Day, make time to reflect on why we come to worship our Lord.  Watch the video below (requires Flash Player; sorry Apple users)

John 17 - The High Priestly Prayer

 ¹When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, ²since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. ³ And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. ⁴I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. ⁵And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

 ⁶ "I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. ⁷Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. ⁸For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. ⁹I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. ¹⁰ All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. ¹¹And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. ¹² While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. ¹³But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. ¹⁴ I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ¹⁵I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. ¹⁶ They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. ¹⁷ Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. ¹⁸ As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. ¹⁹And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.
 
 ²⁰"I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, ²¹ that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²² The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, ²³ I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. ²⁴Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. ²⁵ O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. ²⁶ I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them." 

Are We Really Being "The Cheerful Giver"?

2 Corinthians 9:6-15 - The Cheerful Giver

 ⁶The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. ⁷Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. ⁸And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. ⁹As it is written,

    "He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor;

   his righteousness endures forever."

 ¹⁰He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. ¹¹ You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. ¹²For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. ¹³By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, ¹⁴while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. ¹⁵ Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

One of the many blessings that has come from going through the process of adoption is the opportunity for self-examination and reflection (in the context of 2 Corinthians 13:4-6).  One of the areas of self-examination is with regard to what God expects of His children's stewardship (the use of our time, treasures, and talents that are all God-given).

During my relatively short Christian walk of 7 years, I have observed many examples of good stewardship within the walls of our local church.  Yet, it has been this mission of adoption that Stephanie and I are on that the Lord has used for us to observe amazing acts of stewardship within His Church (outside the walls of the visible church).  These acts include, but are not limited to:

• Brothers and Sisters in Christ that I do not know personally sharing prayer, advice, words of encouragement.
• Brothers and Sisters in Christ making precious time to support us with meals, childcare, transportation, and other services while we are traveling.
• Monetary donations on behalf of the precious girls we seek to adopt; much of which comes from people we may never meet (and with the donors to our Reece's Rainbow Account being anonymous to us).

Quite humbling, and a faith building testimony of God's abundant Grace and Mercy!  As I read over the passage above from 2 Corinthians, I ponder this question:  What makes someone a "cheerful giver", for "God loves a cheerful giver".

I found a transcript to a sermon delivered by Dr. J. Ligon Duncan III; pastor at First Presbyterian Church (PCA) in Jackson, MS.  I commend this teaching to you.  Within this exegesis of 2 Corinthians 9:6-7, the following truths are presented:

1. Giving is a delight when we realize we are giving to God
2. Giving is a delight when we view it as worship.
3. Giving is a delight when we realize the privilege of giving.
4. Giving is a delight when we realize that in giving we are acting like Jesus.
5. Giving is a delight when we realize that God rewards for doing our duty.
6. Giving is a delight when we realize that God doesn’t want our money unless we delight in giving it.

I liked this closing quote,

"You see, God can build His kingdom without us or not.  The kingdom doesn’t hang in the balance in our support of ministry here at First Pres year, because God will raise up those who will support Him and do so happily. The only question is will we get the privilege of being a part of that here at First Pres, or will somebody else get that privilege?  I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to miss out on that privilege, and so may God make all our hearts cheerful as we give."

Amen and Amen

Understanding this teaching brings new light to this passage from Acts 4:

Acts 4:32-35 - They Had Everything in Common

 ³²Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. ³³And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. ³⁴ There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold ³⁵and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.


Lord, may every one who has chosen to support us, and the many other families on adoption / foster care / orphan care missions to do so in the spirit of a "cheerful giver".

Soli Deo Gloria

The Supremacy of Christ

Ephesians 6:10-20 - The Whole Armor of God

 ¹⁰Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. ¹¹ Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. ¹²For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. ¹³Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. ¹⁴Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; ¹⁷and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, ¹⁸praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, ¹⁹and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.


As Stephanie and I continue to prepare our heart and mind for this mission to adopt Kathleen and Gayle, we have found the thoughts captured in the blogs of other "RR families" (those who have chosen children through Reece's Rainbow) to be quite edifying; covering the full spectrum of emotions.  I am thankful for those that are willing to share their praises, their celebrations, and also their trials and tribulations.

I have found myself focusing on some of the blog entries dealing with the trials families are dealing with while in country.  This may be due to my own thoughts regarding the journey we have committed to embark on; traveling between 2 different orphanages many miles apart in pursuit of Kathleen and Gayle.

I need to be careful on how I use the insights captured in these types of blog posts.  They can definitely help with our own preparation; considering things that maybe we would not have thought of.  Yet, I can already sense the Spiritual warfare that is and will continue as we get closer to the travel part of this mission.  Oh, there are so many "worldly" reasons not to continue this mission. 

Have you felt that way?  Well, if you have, like I have, join me in meditating on the following passage:


Matthew 28:16 - The Great Commission (my emphasis added)

 ¹⁶Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. ¹⁸And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

Do we really believe what we say we believe is really real?  Do we believe these promises?  Do we really believe in the Supremacy of Jesus Christ?  Watch the ~11 minute video below and be encouraged!

Oh Lord, help my unbelief!

Though I Was Born an Orphan

A few days ago someone within our circle of family and friends said this to me, "I think you should just cancel this".  The "this" was referring to our adoption of Kathleen.  I immediately felt angry, hurt, and ungodly thoughts began crossing my mind.  This comment was made on the same day we committed to beautiful little Gayle.  When I told Corey, his response to me was, "Spiritual Warfare", and that it truly is.  The positive side is that I, once again, shared the WHY? of this mission we are on for GOD.  That in itself was a blessing because I had the opportunity to share the gospel.  I ended our conversation by reading the lyrics of a hymn we recently sang at church (Though I Was Born an Orphan).  It paints a beautiful song picture of our adoption as sons and ends with our calling to help the fatherless.  Here are the lyrics:

Click here to read the story behind this hymn, as well as hear a demo

Though I was born an orphan,
Abandoned and alone,
Enslaved and bound in darkness,
Without a hope or home,
The God of grace and mercy
From his eternal throne
Ordained to be my Father
And claim me as His own.

That I might be adopted
The Father sent his Son
To live in full obedience
And die for what I’ve done.
Now through his resurrection,
Through faith, with him I’m one.
A member of his household,
I am an heir, a son.

To soothe my fear and worry
The Spirit from on high
Was sent to be a witness
That “Father!” I might cry.
O How I love this Father!
I’m never left alone.
He’s come to dwell within me
Until he calls me home.

Since I have this adoption,
I cannot close my home
To widows and to orphans,
Abandoned and alone.
Lord, fill me with compassion
To love the fatherless,
That I might show the nations
How great my Father is!


THIS IS WHY KATHLEEN AND GAYLE WILL BECOME PART OF OUR FAMILY!

Gayle and Kathleen - Chosen for us by God

Ephesians 1: 3-14 - Spiritual Blessings in Christ

 ³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, ⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love ⁵ he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, ⁶ to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. ⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, ⁸which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight ⁹ making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ ¹⁰as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth.

 ¹¹In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, ¹²so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. ¹³In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁴who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

From the beginning of our journey back in April 2011, Stephanie and I have kept an open mind and heart about the possibility of petitioning to adopt a second child. When the Lord led us to Kathleen, the circumstances at that time had us defer our search for a second child.  We are convinced of God's Sovereignty and Providence; His timing is always perfect, and has called us to adopt Gayle into our family.

We realize the sacrifice involved in our adoption mission and are mindful of the need to keep an eternal perspective, as opposed to focusing on the short-term "chaos" that this second adoption process will bring. As stated in the sermon preached at our church last Sunday, "We adopt to show the world what our great God and Father is like, to magnify His greatness to the praise of His glorious Grace."

Redeemed For Adoption

Galatians 4

Sons and Heirs

 ¹I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, ²but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. ³In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. ⁴But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. ⁶And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" ⁷So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.


How well do you understand Christianity?

What comes to your mind when you think of what it means to be a Christian?

What do you believe about God and how He relates to you?

These are eternally important questions to consider.  For some insight into these questions, I commend the following exegesis of Galatians 4:1-7 to you.  These important Truths being proclaimed by Rev. Troy DeBruin, who is one of the pastors at our home church - Westminster Presbyterian Church.

You can choose to stream the audio and/or download the MP3 file

Stream this sermon by clicking this 

Download the MP3 by right-clicking on this and selecting "Save Target As"...


Soli Deo Gloria!

Happy Birthday Kathleen !!!!

...that's 4 exclamation points for each year God has given you in this world; 4 exclamation points that we wish were candles on a cake we could share with you right now!

Although we do not know alot about you yet, your profile on Reece's Rainbow did state your birthday - July 11, 2007.  We wonder if you have ever experienced having your birthday recognized.  If not, may the Lord's Will be that 2011 is the last year for that to happen...

So, on behalf of your (soon to be) mother and siblings (Elizabeth, Trevor, Evan, and Asher), we all wish you a blessed Happy Birthday !!!!

ми любимо тебе (my lyubymo tebe - We love You)

Daddy (as the Lord Wills)....

Why Love Orphans?

1 John 4:7-21 - God Is Love

 ⁷Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸ Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. ¹⁰In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. ¹¹Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

 ¹³ By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. ¹⁶So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. ¹⁷By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. ¹⁸There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. ¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. ²⁰ If anyone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. ²¹And this commandment we have from him: whoever loves God must also love his brother.


Why Love Orphans? from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.

What God has already done!

Each day I look at Kathleen's picture, and pray for God's protection of her mind, spirit, and body.  The adoption process is being restructured in the country she lives, and will close for approximately 3 months beginning on her birthday, July 11.  I'm trying to keep a positive attitude, and think of how this restructuring might benefit future adopting families and orphans in her country.  During this wait to adopt Kathleen, God is clearly calling me to something else.  My husband and I are partnering with other families to begin an orphan/adoption ministry within our church.

One of the clear visions we share, as it pertains to this ministry, is to promote awareness.  Raising awareness doesn't begin by pulling at heart strings, presenting orphan statistics, etc..  It begins with realizing what God has already done, and how this relates to adoption as a whole.  God sent Jesus into the world so that we might receive the adoption and full rights as sons (Galatians 4:4-7).  This has to be the basis we draw from when we, as Christians, promote awareness about adoption.  The perfect example of adoption begins with God the Father, who adopts us, and God the Son (Jesus), who paid for our adoption.  What better model to follow. 

God has instilled a passion within me (and Corey) to adopt precious Kathleen into our family.  If you, my christian brother or sister, don't have this same passion towards orphans, pray to God that He will give it to you as well.  We're not all called to adopt, but we're called to do SOMETHING.  Imagine what the orphan crisis might look like if we, the church, took an active role.