What do I want for my birthday?

Theodore is on MFFM!! Yay!!!

Theodore

Remember when I talked about Theodore a while ago? I said that his file was sent back to his country and he didn't have a chance to find a family anymore. Well, I was totally wrong about that. God knew he needed a family and now Theodore has one coming for him! God is so good!

Next month, I'm going to turn 18. For the last couple of days, I've been pondering this question. What do I want for my birthday? Well, this is what I want.

Marla

I want Marla to have a family coming for her.

Darina

I want Darina to have a family coming for her.

That's what I want for my birthday. I can't say it any clearer than that. I want these two girls to be in the arms of their loving families. I don't want them to be in an orphanage or institution for the rest of their lives. I want them to be happy, living with families who will love and care for them.

These two girls need our help. They need to be adopted soon, or they will spend the rest of their lives in an institution. I don't want that to happen to them. Please blog and share these girls anywhere you can. Also, please pray for them.

Orphan Sunday

Today is orphan Sunday, and right now I'm thinking about two little girls.

I've been thinking about Darina.

Darina

And I've been thinking about Marla.

Marla

Out of the many orphans in the world, why do I put these two girls up? That's a question I can answer easily. 

Darina and Marla are close to my heart. I think about them every day. I pray for them every day. Sometimes I cry when I think or pray for them.  I love them so much, even though I've never met them in person.

I find it interesting that I can love these two girls, (and many other children,) just by seeing their pictures. I'm sure many people on the RR facebook page would say the same thing. When I found Marla, my heart broke. It broke like it never had before. When I found Darina, I wanted to help her in any way I could. God broke my heart for a purpose. The purpose was to help these children on RR find families. 

It makes me think about this passage in the Bible.

Matthew 25:31-46 NIV

The Sheep and the Goats

³¹ “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. ³² All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. ³³ He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

³⁴ “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.³⁵ For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶ I needed clothes and you clothed me,I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

³⁷ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹ When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

⁴⁰ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

⁴¹ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. ⁴² For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, ⁴³ I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

⁴⁴ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

⁴⁵ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

⁴⁶ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

What does verse 40 say? It says, "The King will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." He said the opposite in verse 45. "He will reply, 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me." When God says something important in the Bible, He means every word of it. And, if God didn't care about the orphans and widows, James 1:27 wouldn't exist.

James 1:27

²⁷ Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

I am going to advocate for orphans the rest of my life. I know my life has changed since I learned about Reeces Rainbow earlier this year. After learning about institutions, I wanted to help the children who are about to go into them.

 I can't live my life and pretend these orphanages and institutions aren't there. They are there, and I know God wants me to help the children in them.  I'm going to do what He says, and nothing is going to stop me from doing just that.

Victoria, Zack, Theodore, Elias, and Brandon

Well, I have some more good news. Victoria and Zack are on My Family Found Me! Yay!!!! I know Zack has been on there for a while, but I kept forgetting to mention it on here. I'm so happy for them!

Elias

This is Elias. He is 3 years old and he has CP. Isn't he cute! I just want to cuddle up with him!

But I have some bad news. I tried looking for Theodore on Reeces Rainbow, but I couldn't find him. He was taken off of Reeces Rainbow because no family wanted to adopt him. I feel sad because I think he should have stayed on RR. Then, after they saw and fell in love with him, a family could have adopted him.

Brandon

This is Brandon. Next month he will turn 7 years old. He has CP and is in the same orphanage that Marla is in. Doesn't he look handsome?

Please pray that Elias and Brandon will be adopted soon. Also pray that Victoria and Zack's adoptions will go smoothly. Also pray for the families that were affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Good New... No, wait. Great News!

I am so happy right now!

Carolina



Yesterday I looked at the My Family Found Me page on Reeces Rainbow. Guess who I saw on there? If you guessed Carolina, then you were right. I am so happy for her! I'm praying that the adoption will go smoothly and Carolina will be with her family soon.

Marla



I also have some more good news. The $500 matching grant for Marla has been put into her account! Now she has $2000 in her account. And, she only needs $500 to be on the sizable grants page on Reeces Rainbow. She's so close! Please share Marla on your blogs, facebook, etc. She desperately needs our help. Lets find a family for Marla!

Victoria, Marla, and Theodore

Right now, there are two auctions going on.  One is for Marla and the other is for Victoria.

The one for Victoria is a bag-a-thon. There are many different bags on the bag-a-thon facebook page. For example, there is a Baby Boy Bag, that has a couple little outfits for a baby boy, a baby girl bag, that has a couple little girl outfits, (among other baby boy and girl things) and many others. There are a lot of bags to look through. The auction ends on Sunday, October 14.

Here is the link to the bag-a-thon for Victoria. Bag-a-thon for Victoria

The auction for Marla is an everything auction. Basically, you can find anything like books, bath sets, and jewlrey. (plus other things) The auction ends on Monday, October 15.

Here is the link to Marla's Everything Auction: Marla's Everything Auction

I also have some bad news. I found out today that Theodore only has a few more days to find a family. I think it's less than a week. After that, if he hasn't found a family in that period of time, his file will be taken off of Reeces Rainbow and he will not be available for adoption.

Here is a picture of Theodore.

Theodore

Please pray that Theodore will be adopted before it's too late. Also please pray that the auctions for Marla and Victoria go well.

They need to be loved too: Autism, DS, HIV

This is a really hard blog post to write. I'll tell you why.

First, let me show you some children. You can click their names to see their profiles.

James

This is James. He is 11 years old, and he has Asperger's, (which is a type of autism,) and ADHD.

Here are some more children with "symptoms of autism," or "suspicions of autism."

William and Tommy

I believe this is William. He has "autism symptoms."

I believe this is Tommy. Both boys are listed together on one profile. Tommy has "developmental delays."

Jenna

Jenna's profile says "possible autism."

Zeke

Zeke's profile says "suspicion of autism."

Justine

Justine's profile says that she has autism.

Why did I show you these children? You may ask, don't I normally post children with CP? Yes, I normally put on kids with CP, but I felt God saying "Put these children up."

I said in the beginning of this post that this is really hard to write.  This is the reason why.

My brother, who is 7 years old, has ADHD and is on the autism spectrum, just like James. He's extremely smart, (like, beat me in every game of chess kind of smart,) and can remember things very accurately.

I've had a hard time trying to accept my brother the way he is. I'm not going to hide it. There was a period of time when I didn't really want to do anything with him. I always thought it would end in disaster. Now though, I'm slowly learning what I can do with him and what I can't really do with him.

Sometimes playing with my brother can be very fun. One time I was playing pretend with him.We pretended that we were in an arena and I was beating many different monsters. He was being the monsters. One of the monsters was booger babies. (He made those up. lol) I've also jumped on our trampoline with him. A couple times we played the game, "Who's Still Standing," on the trampoline.  (That's a show we liked to watch.) It was really fun. 

Children with autism are special too, not just the children with CP I put up all the time. Everybody's Special means everybody's special, whether you have Autism, CP, DS, HIV, or not.

God allows different things to happen for different reasons. He never once said," Oops, I put an extra chromosome in that girl." Or, "Uh oh, this boy is going to have HIV." No. Everyone was created by God. There is a reason why my brother is the way he is. There is also a reason why you are the way you are. God never makes a mistake.

One drop at a time

Last night, before I went to sleep, I thought of something. I imagined a faucet and a cup. The faucet was turned off, but there were still drops of water going into the cup. It was a slow process filling the cup with water because it was one drop at a time.

Then I thought of something else. It was about midnight last night when I was thinking about this. Isn't that the same when it comes to adoption? You have the cup, which is the amount of money needed to adopt the child, (or children,) that you want to adopt. Then you have the faucet and the water. The faucet represents friends, family, churches, etc that help raise the funds needed to adopt your child.

Then we get to the water, which is the money. Every drop of water that goes into the cup fill the cup with water. Every dollar that goes into a RR child's account help raise the funds needed to adopt that child.

So next time you think you didn't give enough money to a child on RR, remember the drops of water. Every dollar counts, just like every drop of water counts in a cup of water.

Late night thinking has it's benefits!

Obedience

Obedience: what is that?

Today I've been thinking about obedience. It all started when I read about Noah's Ark in Genesis 6-9. This one verse really hit me. It's in Genesis 6:22.

Genesis 6:22
²² Noah did everything just as God commanded him.

Okay, now lets back up.

God told Noah to build an ark so the animals, his family, and he could be safe from the worldwide flood. He told Noah how many animals needed to be on the ark. He also said they were to be one male and female of every kind. He even told Noah how to build the ark.

Here is the beginning of Noah's Ark.

Genesis 6:1-22

6 When human beings began to increase in number on the earth and daughters were born to them, ² the sons of God saw that the daughters of humans were beautiful, and they marriedany of them they chose. ³ Then the Lord said, “My Spirit will not contend with^[a] humans forever, for they are mortal^[b]; their days will be a hundred and twenty years.”

⁴ The Nephilim were on the earth in those days—and also afterward—when the sons of God went to the daughters of humans and had children by them. They were the heroes of old, men of renown.
⁵ The Lord saw how great the wickedness of the human race had become on the earth, and that every inclination of the thoughts of the human heart was only evil all the time. ⁶ TheLord regretted that he had made human beings on the earth, and his heart was deeply troubled. ⁷ So the Lord said, “I will wipe from the face of the earth the human race I have created—and with them the animals, the birds and the creatures that move along the ground—for I regret that I have made them.”⁸ But Noah found favor in the eyes of the Lord.

⁹ This is the account of Noah and his family.

Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God. ¹⁰ Noah had three sons: Shem, Ham and Japheth.

¹¹ Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. ¹² God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. ¹³ So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. ¹⁴ So make yourself an ark of cypress^[c] wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. ¹⁵ This is how you are to build it: The ark is to be three hundred cubits long, fifty cubits wide and thirty cubits high.^[d] 16 Make a roof for it, leaving below the roof an opening one cubit^[e] high all around.^[f] Put a door in the side of the ark and make lower, middle and upper decks. ¹⁷ I am going to bring floodwaters on the earth to destroy all life under the heavens, every creature that has the breath of life in it. Everything on earth will perish. ¹⁸ But I will establish my covenant with you, and you will enter the ark—you and your sons and your wife and your sons’ wives with you. ¹⁹ You are to bring into the ark two of all living creatures, male and female, to keep them alive with you. ²⁰ Two of every kind of bird, of every kind of animal and of every kind of creature that moves along the ground will come to you to be kept alive.²¹ You are to take every kind of food that is to be eaten and store it away as food for you and for them.”

²² Noah did everything just as God commanded him.

What does the last verse say? It says, "Noah did everything just as God commanded him." What's that called? That's called obedience. Noah obeyed God and was saved from the worldwide flood.

Now, lets turn the story around. What if Noah didn't obey God? What would have happened?
I can think of one thing. He would have drowned in the water along with everyone else on earth.

What else would have happened? Not only would he have drowned, but his whole family and the animals would have drowned. (That is, unless God told one of Noah's sons to build the ark.) The end result would have been no one living on the earth. No man, or creature would have survived the flood.

How does this apply to us today? God promised he wouldn't flood the whole earth again. So what can we learn from this story? I've learned about obedience.

If God told you to do something, would you do it? Noah didn't wonder if God really wanted him to build the ark. He just built it. He didn't say, "Is God really going to flood the whole earth?" He didn't wonder, he didn't question, and he didn't disobey God. He just built the ark and knew that God would protect him and his family from the flood.

If God wants you to do something, please don't wait! If you know for certain that you are supposed to do that specific task, then do it! God called you to do it, not someone else. This doesn't just apply to adoption, but it applies to everyday choices you and I make every day.

Please keep praying for these precious children. Pray that they will be adopted by families that will love and take care of them.

Marla Matters

Yipee! Marla has over $1,000 in her account! Yay! It's much better than the $20.00 she had back when I first saw her profile. (I think that was in April. I'm not absolutely sure though. Time is going by too fast.)

Marla Matters

Marla Matters is a new facebook page that was made to help advocate for Marla. When you click on the link above you will go right to the page. You will be able to see what fundraisers are going on to help raise money for her.

The book sale was absolutely amazing! It turned out very well. Last time my mom and I checked there was $650.50 raised for her. I think it went up since then. Isn't that amazing?

               

I wish I could tell you how much I love Marla. Yes, I know I've said it a hundred times, but I wish I could tell you the longing I feel to go get her. I want to go get her and take care of her. I've said it over and over to my mom. And, just a few days ago, my mom called her "my daughter." Whoa. I might be getting the mother instinct, even though I'm not a mother. I don't know what else to call it.  I don't want her to go into the institution. I want to keep her safe from harm. I want to show her that I love and care deeply for her.

Darina

There is going to be another fundraiser for Darina, Haven, and Marla soon. It will be a 31 bags fundraiser with new items for the fall. It's started now, and it will end on September 20. Check it out by clicking on this link. 31 Fundraiser for Darina, Marla and Haven

Also, on September 15 Haven's Art Gallery will be ending. There are still more pictures and crafts being added for bidding. They are really pretty so check out the page! Just click on the Haven's Art Gallery link to see the page.

Haven

Please pray that these precious girls will be adopted by loving families soon.

Let's help Marla!

We are so close to meeting the matching grant for Marla. She needs $211.00 to meet it. Can you give $5.00? $10.00? Every dollar counts.

Let's help Marla!

This was written by Julia Arnold Nalle.

What do you think when you see this little girl? What do you see? Honestly - I see neglect and abandonment. A child forgotten and left to die. It looks hopeless. Who will rescue one so weak - so helpless? I see a child who is LOST and will be LOST FOREVER unless WE do something. She doesn't have a family coming. She doesn't have ANYTHING. But she does have a matching grant. A small matching grant. It isn't much but dang it... it is SOMETHING. Sadly... It is NOT being met. It isn't even halfway to where it needs to be. All she needs is 500.00 to get another 500.00 and people... THE PERSON GIVING THE GRANT WANTS TO GIVE MORE! But he doesn't think anyone cares about this child. DO WE?? DO WE CARE??? IS THERE ANYONE WHO CARES??

Marla

 

An Amazing Opportunity

An anonymous donor has offered a $500 matching grant for Marla. This is an amazing opportunity to get her closer towards the sizable grants page on Reeces Rainbow. If she gets on there, then more people will see her and she has a better chance of getting adopted. The matching grant will start tomorrow and will go on for a week. This anonymous donor really cares about Marla and wants her to be adopted by a family. That makes me feel good.

This is what a matching grant is for those of you who don't know. For this week, every dollar that gets put into Marla's account will be doubled by the anonymous donor. If someone puts one dollar in, it gets doubled to two. If it's five dollars, it gets doubled to ten. (and so on...) It goes all the way up to $500. I'm so happy!
Click here to donate.

To tell you the truth, I never thought this would happen. I didn't think anyone cared about Marla until my family and I started talking about her. I'm really glad there are people who care deeply for her. I want to thank everyone for sharing her on your blogs and for advocating for her.

Please pray that the matching grant will turn out well. Also pray that Marla will be adopted by a loving family soon.

Making a Difference: Marla

Why?

                                          Marla

Why did my heart break when I saw her face?

Why is she always on my mind?

To be perfectly honest, I don't know how to answer those questions.

I stare at her profile pictures. My heart breaks every time I think about her. I imagine myself taking care of her. (By the way, this is all the time. 24/7)

I just love Marla.

I know there is a reason why I saw her profile the first time I looked through Reeces Rainbow. I know there is a reason why my heart melted the way it did that day. I just don't fully know what that reason is yet.

I't's moments like these when I wish I was older. I wish I was old enough to adopt Marla. I know I would adopt her (and Darina,) in a heartbeat.

I also wish it was that easy.

There is some good news about Marla. Yesterday I looked at her profile and her grant was at $88.00. This morning I looked at it again and it was at $98.00. Then, not long after that, my mom told me that she was at $103.00. Praise God! She's getting publicity and more people are seeing and advocating for her.

I looked at a blog post earlier today and the last sentence really hit me. It felt like a sign from God about Marla. I'm serious, the timing was perfect. Here was the sentence that I read.

It said: "You can make a difference to this one."

After I read it, I was thinking about the starfish poem. This is how it goes.

THE  STARFISH  POEM

Once upon a time there was a wise man

who used to go to the ocean

to do his writing.

He had a habit of walking

on the beach

before he began his work.

One day he was walking along

the shore.

As he looked down the beach,

he saw a human

figure moving like a dancer.

He smiled to himself to think

of someone who would

dance to the day.

So he began to walk faster

to catch up.

As he got closer, he saw

that it was a young man

and the young man wasn't dancing,

but instead he was reaching

down to the shore,

picking up something

and very gently throwing it

into the ocean.

As he got closer he called out,

"Good morning! What are you doing?"

The young man paused,

looked up and replied,

"Throwing starfish in the ocean."

"I guess I should have asked,

why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?"

"The sun is up and the tide is going out.

And if I don't throw them in they'll die."

"But, young man, don't you realize that

there are miles and miles of beach

and starfish all along it.

You can't possibly make a difference!"

The young man listened politely.

Then bent down, picked up another starfish

and threw it into the sea,

past the breaking waves and said-

"It made a difference for that one."

Wow! Isn't God good? His timing couldn't have been better. I know that I need to keep on advocating and praying for Marla until she's on MFFM. I can imagine myself jumping up and down until I'm out of breath because of happiness that she has a family. Do I know if I'm supposed to take care of her? No, I don't. But, if God wanted me to, and my family is supposed to adopt her, I would take care of her like I was her mommy. 

So, I'll leave you with this. Pray and advocate for Marla. And, if God is calling you to, adopt her. She needs to be adopted before it's to late and she's sent to an institution.

It would make a difference for her.

What? What! WHAT!?

I never thought that this would happen. Simeon lost his family. At first, he was on the MFFM page. Now though, he's listed on the Newly Listed Children's page. He's also listed with the other children in his orphanage.

Here is his picture. You can click on his name to see his profile.

Simeon

Please pray for him and for the family that was going to adopt him.

Kramer

This is Kramer. He is 8 years old and he has CP. You can click on his name to see his profile. Now, here is where the big "what" in the title comes in. Even though he is 8 years old, he weighs 25 pounds. I know what you're thinking. What? Kramer needs to be loved on and cared for by his mommy and daddy. He does not need to be neglected like that. 

No one needs to be neglected like that.

Please pray that a loving family will adopt Kramer so he can be loved on and cared for.

Fundraiser for Marla

^{Matthew 6:19}

¹⁹ “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven,where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Marla

Today the Bible verse in Matthew kept on popping into my mind. What are the treasures in heaven that Jesus was talking about? Are they new cars, new clothes, new shoes, or new houses?

I don't think so.

If they aren't those things, then what are treasures in heaven? I mean, when you die are you going to take your car, house, or clothes with you? No. It's just going to be you. Are the new clothes, shoes, cars, etc going to be in heaven? Probably not. What's going to be in heaven then? People are going to be in heaven. People that were Christians on earth are going to be in heaven. Your mom, dad, aunts, uncles, friends, etc, if they are Christians, are going to be in heaven. Those are the treasures that Jesus was talking about. What about the children you have never seen, but you advocate for? I believe that they will be in heaven too.

All day yesterday I couldn't stop thinking about Marla. She was always on my mind and I was worried about her. Every time I look at her picture my heart keeps on breaking. I still have that feeling of wanting to jump into the computer monitor so I could take her home to love and care for her. Please someone adopt Marla before it's too late! She needs to get out of her orphanage NOW!

When my family and I first started looking at Reeces Rainbow, Marla was one of the first children I looked at. The first time I saw her my heart just broke. I cried and cried for what felt like hours. In reality, I believe I cried for ten minutes. I had my head on my computer desk and I just let the tears fall.

Right now my family and I are doing a fundraiser for Marla. It will go on until September 7th. It is a book auction. Every book has a starting bid and you can bid by writing a comment below the book that interests you. You can click here to see the facebook page. Hardbacks of Hope 4 Marla Her money is just about doubled right now. She had $20 earlier today. It's $38 right now. 

I'm going to be perfectly honest with everyone who reads this post. I love Marla. I don't want to hear or see that she has gone into an institution. I don't believe I will ever stop crying if that happened to her. I would love to see her on the MFFM page on Reeces Rainbow. I can already imagine myself jumping up and down until I'm out of breath because of happiness.

Please pray, blog, and advocate for Marla. She needs our help 

Zack and Hudson

I just looked at the Newly Listed Children page on Reeces Rainbow and I found a few more children that need families. Here are two of them. Please pray that these boys will be adopted by loving families.

                                     Zack
Meet Zack. He is 11 years old and he has CP. I don't know how long he's been waiting for his family, but I do know this. I know that he doesn't have to wait any longer if a family is willing to adopt him. He looks like he was having fun in that pool. Wouldn't therapy and the love of a mommy and daddy help Zack reach his full potential?


 I think whoever adopts Zack will always have fun days playing with him and taking care of him.

 Are you Zack's mommy and daddy?



                            Hudson                     





Look at this little sweetie pie! This little boy is Hudson. In October he will be 2 years old. He also has CP. Every time I've put a young child on here I've always said that the sooner they can get adopted the better. It's the same thing with Hudson. The sooner he can get adopted then the sooner he can get the therapy he needs and the love from his mommy and daddy.

Marla and Darina

Have you ever watched a movie that touched your heart so much that you felt like jumping into the tv? One day I was watching a movie called Christy. It's about a girl who was going to live in the Smoky Mountains. She was going to be a teacher at the school there. The movie I watched was basically the beginnings of her living there. My mom and I watched a few episodes that were done after the movie. I think it was a tv series and the first episode was the movie I watched. As I was watching it, I had the feeling of jumping into the tv. There was a shot where Christy was looking at a lot of children as she was standing in front of the school. As that shot was going, I wanted to pause the movie and jump into the tv with all my clothes in my hands. The children all had dirty clothes on and I don't think they had any shoes. Even though I had the feeling I knew the only thing that would happen was me bumping my head and possibly breaking the tv, but even for a movie, that shot still broke my heart.

Now, I have that feeling again. This time though I want to go into my computer monitor and I want to get a little girl out of an orphanage. Okay, I want to get two little girls out of the orphanages they are in. I'm thinking about Marla and Darina. I can't get Darina out of my head and I just can't stop thinking and worrying about Marla. They both need families and they both need to get out of the orphanages they are in ASAP. If they don't get adopted they can get worse, and yes, possibly die. Right now it doesn't look like Marla has a lot of time before she is sent to an institution. I really don't want that to happen to her. She looks so thin and fragile and I hate to think that she could get worse.

                          Marla                                                                           Darina             

I also don't want to see Darina in the same situation and condition that Marla is in. Please someone get these little girls and get them quickly! Please!!!!! They need our help and they can't wait much longer.

 Please pray for Marla and Darina. Pray that the right families will find them soon and they will get adopted. Also pray that the adoptions will go smoothly.

A Bible Study from July 3rd

This is a facebook status that I wrote on July 3rd. I felt like I sharing it with you. I studied the Bible for hours and I absolutely loved it! I can't wait to share the next thing God has in mind for me to study!


This is what I have been thinking about for the past few hours. (Correct me if I'm wrong in anything that I've typed.) God's Word is Amazing!

I was reading in 1st Peter in my Bible and I read a passage that talked about how Jesus is a precious cornerstone and how "we are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood." (1st Peter, chapter 2, verse 5) (I paraphrased a little bit there.

) Here is the passage that I read.

1st Peter 2:4-6 says this. NIV
4. As you come to him, the living Stone —rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— 5. you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6. For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”

Jesus is the cornerstone that this passage is talking about. We are the "holy priesthood." (1st Peter 2:5) In the Old Testement the priest (or was it the high priest?) was the only person allowed in the temple to do the sacrifices and offerings for the people. Now, everyone can be near the Lord if they believe and have a relationship with Him. And, because Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of sin, we no longer need to sacrifice the animals that the Israelites sacrificed in the Old Testement.

The "spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God" is obedience to Him. (This sentence was in my Bible notes.)

1st Samuel 15:22
“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the Lord?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.

As you can see, God desires obedience rather than sacrifice. You may ask, Then why does it say "spiritual sacrifices" in 1st Peter? What I found is that spiritual sacrifice is laying down our own desires and following Him. (That was also in my Bible notes.)

In Romans the Bible says this: NIV
Romans 12:1
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

In the Bible God tells us to live in a way pleasing to God. When we do this we are also worshiping Him. We also need to obey what God is telling us.
It also says this in verse 2.

Romans 12:2
2. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is —his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Since we are becoming more like Christ, we are told not to "conform to the pattern of this world." When we have a close relationship with God, we won't want what the world has.

What is the"spiritual house" in 1st Peter 2? The Bible talks about the "Body of Christ." So what is the "spiritual house?" We are called by God to be the Body of Christ. We all have our place in the Body of Christ too. For example, one person might be the hands of Christ as a missionary while another person might be the ears of Christ as a Christian Councilor. (Don't get me wrong though, many people are gifted to do many things.)

We are "being built into a spiritual house." (verse 5a) There need to be walls and a roof to make a house. (Duh!) If there isn't a certain wall or beam to hold the roof up, then the whole house will fall. Also, the whole house can't stand without a foundation. There has to be a start to the house, right?

Jesus talked about the house on a rock and a house on the sand in Matthew 7:24-27.

Matthew 7:24-27 NIV
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. 27 The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”

When Jesus talked about houses in that passage, He was talking about our lives. Jesus talked about having a strong foundation in our lives. As Christians, our foundation is God's Word. We need to listen to what it says and obey it.

When you look at both houses, you can see a difference between the two. Let's talk about the one on the rock. The wind and rain are the struggles in our lives. When we listen to and obey God's Word and the struggles in our lives come, then we will stand firm on His Word and we won't crumble. On the other hand, when we don't listen to God's Word and we build our house on the sand, then we'll crumble when struggles come into our lives.

Let's go back to 1st Peter 2:6.

1st Peter 2:6
6. For in Scripture it says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,
a chosen and precious cornerstone,
and the one who trusts in him
will never be put to shame.”

When I searched, I tried to find out what the word Zion meant. What I found was that Zion is used as a synonym for Jerusalem. (wikipedia) I don't know what the name means in this verse though.

The "stone" in this verse is not talking about an actual stone. The Bible uses different words to describe different things. In this case, the "stone" is Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 28:16
So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;
the one who relies on it
will never be stricken with panic.

Jesus is the perfect Son of God. He is the strong foundation of our faith.

On the Clouds of Heaven

Well, after I wrote the other post about Margaret and how she died I went to my room and cried. Actually, it wasn't crying, it was more like sobbing. I don't think I've cried like that in a long time.

But, after I cried, I closed my eyes and I saw Jesus, (the way I imagine him to be) and he had his arms around me. I was on his lap with my head on the left side of his chest, and he was telling me that everything was going to be okay and that Margaret was in Heaven.

But wait, it gets even better.

After that, I saw myself entering Heaven. Who do you think was the first person I saw? If you said Margaret, then you're right! She was in front of a group of people heading towards me. Among them were Simeon, Ivan, Haven, Presley, Darina, and Marla.

After they came and welcomed me into Heaven, we all held hands and walked into Heaven on the clouds. I was in the middle. It looked so real that I don't know if it was a dream or a vision. I'm kind of thinking that it was a vision because I wasn't asleep. If I was a good painter I would want to paint the part when we were all holding hands as we walked further into Heaven. It looked so beautiful.

That dream (or vision) is something I will always remember. I felt comfort after I opened my eyes and I stopped crying. Jesus is definitely our Comforter when we need comfort.

Sad News...

Right now my heart is breaking.

I'm writing this blog post with tears in my eyes. I could start crying any moment now.

I just heard some sad news. Right now the news hasn't sunk yet, but I know it will in a minute. There is a little girl in Ukraine that has just died. Her name was Margaret. My sister called her "mini me" because she said she looked like me. I put her in the CP video, but I never mentioned her on here.

Here is a picture of her.



I don't know what to say. I honestly don't know what to say. It breaks my heart. I'm upset because Margaret died without being adopted by her mommy and daddy. Not only that, but she died without knowing the love of a mommy and daddy.

I'm just heartbroken.

                        Marla



I hate to think about Marla dying so young and without a mommy and daddy. She needs our help and she needs it ASAP. I don't think I would be able to keep myself from crying for hours if I heard the news that she died. I mean, when I first saw her on Reece's Rainbow, I cried for ten minutes straight because I felt so sad for her. Now, after I saw her recent picture on her profile I feel even more sad.

What about Carolina? She's in an institution and probably in terrible conditions. And what about Reid? He's in another orphanage and no one can adopt him except the people from his country.

I guess I feel guilty for not mentioning these kids enough. But what else can I do? I can mention them more, but I can't go and adopt them all because I'm not old enough. I wish I could...

Please, please, please pray for these children on Reece's Rainbow. Pray for them, advocate for them, and, if God is calling you to do this, adopt them. They need our help, and they need it NOW. (The capital letters are supposed to signify urgency, not yelling.)

Presley

This week is the last week of sharing the kids from orphanage 42. This week is Presley's week. As always, you can click on his name to see his profile.

                                                                     Presley

                                            

Just look at this little cutie pie! Presley is 4 years old and he has leukemia. Here are a couple pictures of him.

                                                  

 Just look at his smile! Doesn't it just melt your heart? He looks so cute!



To be perfectly honest, I don't know that much about leukemia. I do know that it is a type of cancer, but please don't let that scare you away from him. There is a treatment (or treatments) for him.

Please pray that a loving family will adopt Presley. Also pray that Ivan, Darina, Chase, and Haven from orphanage 42 will be adopted by loving families.

Carolina

                                                                       Carolina

                                 

I feel so bad for Carolina. Today I just found out that she was taken to an institution. It doesn't feel good to hear that a child you have been advocating for has been transferred to an institution.

But, there is still hope for her. Even though she was taken to an institution, she can still be adopted. My hope and prayer is that someone will get her as soon as possible. She needs that smile on her face instead of a frown. She needs to laugh and play like other children do. Most of all, she needs a mommy and daddy to love on her and take care of her.

Please, someone go and get this little girl out of the institution!

Please pray for Carolina and the other children on Reece's Rainbow.

"Help Me!" Marla

This little girl is Marla. She is 5 years old and she has CP. I put her on my first blog post, but I never really talked about her. You can click on her name to see her profile.


.                                                                      Marla
                                    


Marla is in serious need of a family. Now when I say serious, I mean serious. She is facing transfer to an institution very soon, and I mean very soon. Here is a more recent picture of her.

                                             

These pictures just break my heart. Even before her profile was updated with this picture my heart was broken. She's so thin, and she doesn't need to be.  She needs to be loved on and cared for by her mommy and daddy. She does not need to spend the rest of her life in an institution.

Mommy? Daddy? Where are you?

This is a desperate cry from a little girl who needs our help. From the bottom of my heart, I am asking for your help. Pray for her, advocate for her, help raise money for her account, and, if God is calling you to do it, adopt her. She needs our help desperately.

Will you help Marla?