My heart is burdened tonight. We have been so busy with all the details of our adoption, trying to get our dossier sent off as quickly as possible. Now that our dossier has been shipped off to Ukraine, I have actually had time to slow down a bit. In these quieter moments (as many as one can have with 4 spirited daughters), my thoughts have turned to all the children who are waiting for families this week.
My girls were blessed to participate in a video this week to help raise awareness for waiting children in our home state of Arkansas. My very talented friend put it together, and I would love for you to take a peek at it below:
My daughter shared a fact in the above video....2.1 million children are orphaned each year, and only 250,000 are adopted. EACH YEAR!!! Think about how many children are waiting, hoping, and praying, for a family.
For those of you that have been following along with my blog, you will remember that a few weeks back, we were able to send a package to A with a missions group that visited her orphanage in March. When I asked how the mission trip went, my sweet friend Shelly that put A's package together for us said, " the lady who led this team (it was her 2nd year to go visit lz) said it was overall a really heartbreaking trip for her... it seemed like many of the older kids were kind of giving up. in contrast, she did say that a**** was there for all of their sessions and that she seemed very happy and well."
While it makes me so happy to hear that A is well, thriving, and happy, it makes my heart ache that we can't do more for these other sweet children who have the same hopes and desires that our precious child does. I haven't shared any pictures of A on our blog yet, but I want to share with you this picture:
This picture is our sweet daughter, and a precious woman named Natalya that pours much of herself into the orphans in Ukraine. In this picture, she is teaching an English lesson to A. This picture brings tears to my eyes because of what all it represents. A is learning English in preparation to start her new life with a loving family. There is so much hope in this picture.
One of the women who went on the Mission trip I mentioned above had this to say about A, " let me tell you she is blossoming and just on such a high about family coming for her!!! I can totally see her as a great big sister!! She was always smiling and like a ray of sunshine. " Do you see what family can do for these children? All they need is a CHANCE. These children only need a chance to blossom, flourish, and live up to their God given potential. They just need the love of a family!! Can you see why my heart breaks for the other children? I am beyond thankful that we are able to be the family that Alona has hoped and dreamed of for so long. As you continue to pray for us, as we move along in our adoption process, would you also join me in praying for the other millions of orphans that are still waiting for their families to come and give them hope? May we all pray that one day, there will be NO MORE WAITING!!!
"And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me."
Matthew 18:5
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