Yesterday was a great day...we had our fingerprinting appointment, we ate lunch together in Madison (and I didn't have to cut up anyone's food or beg them to stay seated in their highchair), we had a leisurely drive home. We even stopped at a rest area & laid in the grass under a shady tree. The breeze was nice & we enjoyed watching the beauty of God's creation in the sky. Then we got home and found the little nastygram comment in our inbox. I felt like I got punched in the gut.
And let us consider how we
may spur one another on
toward love and good deeds.
Hebrews 10:24
Let me start at the beginning...last fall when it was confirmed to us that God wanted us to adopt from Haiti we sent out a letter to our family & friends from church letting them know of our plans & saying that if anyone felt led to contribute that we had a financial need. We searched several Christian websites relating to adoption & they all clearly said one thing - we should invite other believers to participate so everyone can have the opportunity to care for orphans as the Bible calls us to do. In all honesty, we weren't sure how our families would react, but we were certain of one thing - our church family would be excited. After all, we were sharing God's plan for our life & of course other believers would want to learn about that. They would most certainly rally around us & be our greatest prayerful encouragers. Right?
I can say we have had a handful of wonderful local people who were interested in our adoption, asked questions and prayed for us. For this we are grateful. Even more grateful now. For the most part, however, it was a "don't ask, don't tell" policy. Questions weren't asked. Excitement was not in the air. There was no rallying to be had.
We have received a handful of donations from people who know us, but surprisingly the majority of our donations came from complete strangers or by way of fundraisers.
We tried to suck up our disappointment & move forward...after all if people could see the great things God was doing in our lives through this adoption they would most certainly come around, right? We knew God was calling us to more than just the adoption of one orphan. He was calling us to get others excited about this earthly act of His love.
For he chose us in him before
the creation of the world to be
holy and blameless in his sight.
In love he predestined us to be adopted
as his sons through Jesus Christ,
in accordance with his pleasure and
will— to the praise of his glorious grace,
which he has freely given us in the One he loves.
Ephesians 1:4-6
We are sad we were unable to cultivate this calling in the place we thought. We have prayed for God to show us how we can have a greater impact on His kingdom by sharing the passion for orphans He has given us. We are open to His calling alone, wherever that may be. Although it is difficult to leave a place we have called our church home for over four years, we feel it is better to do so than to stir up discord among the members of the body.
Adoption is a difficult process, the wait is long - now more than ever we need to be encouraged by other believers & to be in a group who is open to sharing in our calling. We stand firmly in God's truth.
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10 comments:
I'm still waiting for you to show up in my driveway :o)
I am very sorry you're not finding the support you need in the local body of Christ. You are right to remove yourself from the authority of a church that is not functioning Biblically.
Kathy ~ it will happen! I don't know when, but an E'ville roadtrip is somewhere in our future.
Cara ~ it was a difficult decision that we struggled with for months, but we feel it was the right one. We deeply miss our closest friends & supporters, however, we still keep in touch.
God will lead you to be with people of like mind. We sat with several of our church members last night and the are so excited about our adoption plans. The are hungering for more information. We pray that you will find that same type of atmosphere in the church God leads you to.
Tammy
I hope you will keep in touch and that someday soon you will bring Anchise home. We will miss seeing you in church. We wish you great luck, and support whenever you need it.
The Dallman Family
David, Sara, Damon and Courtney
Tammy ~ I believe we have found the place, but are not jumping in too quickly. In fact, the first day we attended part of the sermon was about adoption. The other exciting thing is that they support two orphanages in Zambia...hooray!
Sara ~ I will miss your family too! Just this morning I was thinking about the time your mom sent me this great e-mail encouragement about adoption. It was such a blessing to me during a time when it seemed no one cared. I would love to have your e-mail address so we can stay in touch easily.
I am sorry to hear that you have had to make a difficult decision. I pray for strength as you venture into a new adventure! I know exactly how you feel with the lack of support!
Christina
Praying that you are led in the right direction towards other believers who will embrace your baby girl and your whole family with love. You are making some huge decisions, but keep trusting your heart. They are the right ones.
I echo this: in so many ways we've had a similar experience. We have faced such silence from many we thought would come along side of us. And we've faced doubt, judgement and criticism from many others. But we too stand on what we know is our calling. He knew our finances when He called us to do this, and He knows that in the earthly realm, not much has changed in our finances. Still He calls. Still we walk!
Walking with you - and totally totally grateful for the support of new internet friends like you!
Praying for you and that God would guide you in your decision!
People just don't understand ...
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