I Am Accountable

Several years ago, Mike's father was diagnosed with lung cancer. After some discussion, we decided to move him in with us. In order to do this, we shifted all three kids into one bedroom and moved his bed and medical equipment into our daughter's room. Mike, working third shift at the time, would forgo sleep to drive his father to another town in order to receive regular radiation treatments. He lived with us until he passed away.

Mike and his father didn't have the closest of relationships growing up. My father-in-law spent many years being absent from my husband's life, and even as Mike became an adult, his father's actions often caused separation between him and his children. And yet, when cancer came into play and his father was living alone, we knew the right thing to do was to take him in. It wasn't easy, but God asks us to honor our parents and we felt that this was what we were called to do. 

Fast forward to today. When we shared the news that we were bringing home five children from Costa Rica, our family received many kind words of support and encouragement. We've had friends who have given sacrificially to our adoption fund, those that have offered furniture and clothes, and others who are holding fundraisers on our behalf. It's one of the ways that God has shown our family that we are not alone in this journey and that He is already providing in ways that we would never have expected when we said "yes."

But....we've also had those who haven't reacted with the same level of enthusiasm. Those who can't understand why we're doing what we're doing, and those who have even gone so far to express their concern that we raise these children to be contributing members of society, or that we're possibly being negligent when we try to place that many children in a house that is clearly too tiny by their standards. 

Some of those reactions, well, they tend to tear me down. They can even cause me to question myself and my parenting. Maybe I really shouldn't be trying to bring 5 more kids into our family.  And others, well, I could come back with a defensive spirit and a mama bear growl because you're talking about my daughters and my son, but instead I'll share my thoughts from this morning. 

I was sitting in Sunday School when my teacher happened to mention living a life that is accountable to God. I pretty much blanked out for the rest of the lesson, stuck on the idea and what it means.  To be accountable by definition, one must be required or expected to justify their actions or decisions, taking responsibility. And when I thought of our most recent decision to adopt 5 and when I look back to when we took care of my father-in-law, it just hit me, "I am accountable."

When God commands, "Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute (Psalm 82:3),"

I am accountable.

When God commands, "visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world (James 1:27)",

I am accountable.

When He places me in Haiti and Africa and gives me fatherless eyes to stare into, and tiny bodies to hold, and names of living, breathing orphans to remember. When He reminds me that He made each and every one, that they are a reflection of the Creator, and tells me to share their story,

I am accountable.

And when He inscribes 4 little girls' and one little boy's name on my heart and burns their faces into my memory, stirs up a desire to call them daughters and son, and tells me to go after them,

I am accountable. 

It's true, I could say no. I could stay right where I am, living a comfortable life, knowing that the finish line of parenting the children in my house right now is just a short distance away. It would be easier. It would cost me a lot less in many ways.

But there will come a day when I have to take responsibility for how I spent my life, a day when I have to answer for the decisions I've made, a day when I'll have to explain why I did or didn't ignore the things that God opened my eyes to, and I'd rather please God than make sense to men.

I. Am. Accountable.

*** I wanted to take the time to share some praises because I truly want people to see the way God is working as we double the size of our family:

Within six days of saying yes to our kiddos, we were able to find families right here in Kentucky that have adopted from Costa Rica. We have had a chance to have dinner with one, and are beyond blessed to have new friends that have already completed the journey we are on and who are a great source of encouragement to us.

Shortly after I posted our adoption story, a sweet sister friend got us in touch with a gentleman who will be helping us with our home remodeling project without charging us for labor! This is a huge savings to our current budget! Praise the Lord! We also had friends who have offered beds that we will desperately need. 

Our fundraising page has been shared many times, and several people were kind enough to donate. I have been blown away by the generosity of people. Our We Care page has generated over $700!  How awesome is that? Praising God for the way He provides. Every little bit gets us closer to the finish line, and if you'd like to donate, please click here. 

*** Prayer Requests:

As we continue to move forward, please pray for us as we redo various paperwork and steps in getting our new dossier complete. Pray that we will be able to get everything completed in an easy and timely manner so we can get it sent to CR as soon as possible.

Pray for K,M,S,H and J. Pray that God would protect them where they are right now, that He would keep them safe and healthy, and that He would prepare their hearts and ours as we get closer to becoming one big family. 

Pray for Mike as he takes on available overtime at work. It is a great source of funds that we will need to complete this adoption in the next 6 or 7 months, but I certainly don't want him completely exhausted and depleted from working all the time. 

Pray for others who will read our story and think, What if I adopted or fostered or went on mission to these children? There's a lot of reasons why people talk themselves out of stepping out in faith, but there are so many children who need people to say yes.

Blessings-
C