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My children’s hearts
I’m feeling the need to share a little about my children’s hearts. It has become a running joke in our house that we aren’t done and we may never be done adopting. The kids tease me and I laugh. I suppose it’s funny because I have said I was done after each and every child. “No more!” I would say, but then God would tug at our hearts and we would soon have another daughter or son.
Cassie and Zach understand that if something were to happen to Dan and I they would be responsible and they have agreed….whole heartedly. I don’t know many 20ish year olds that would do that. Cassie recently wrote an article for a magazine that I wish I could share. I don’t feel right sharing the whole article, but I can share what she said others have asked her. My friends (Cassie’s friends) would always ask, “Why are you being a part of this?” “Aren’t you tired of helping your family and not having a life?” and my personal favorite, “Why would your parents do this to you?” Cassie goes on to explain how much she loves her siblings. How her family is her and she is her family so she has never felt like her family was doing this to her. She has always felt privileged to be a part of this. She also feels like the luckiest girl on earth when she comes home from school to cheers from Ben and Maisey. “Yay Cassie’s home! Love you Cassie! Yay!” This is followed by huge hugs and kisses. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a cheering squad whenever they walk in the door.
Our whole family has agreed to this journey that we are on. God has called us to love children and we feel honored and blessed. What a huge blessing it has been to trust in God and His plan. We aren’t doing anything to our “other” children. I won’t say there aren’t time issues sometimes or there aren’t disagreements. But every family has those kind of issues. What we do have is a family that loves children. Gracie goes on and on about not stopping at 12 and if anyone should have a problem with our adopting more, you would think it would be the baby of the family. We are blessed in so many ways to be able to do this at this time in our lives. What a gift.
My children’s hearts are wrapped up in orphans and their causes. Their passion is a beautiful thing to watch. Gracie is trying hard to raise money for Love Without Boundaries nutrition program. You can go here Gracie’s Love Without Boundaries page if you’d like to help too. They have big hearts. I’m very proud of their compassionate, caring, God-trusting hearts. I love that about them. They have a faith that I wish I would have had at that age. I can’t wait to see what they do for Christ as their lives go on. As a mother, you can’t ask for anything more than that.
I feel like I’m adding a P.S. or two to my blog. I just wanted to share what Cassie put as her Facebook status today. This shows my girl’s heart.
12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish. Matthew 18:12-14
Please notice: it doesn’t say that the Father in heaven is not willing that the rich little ones, the American ones, the happy ones, the ones we like, or the ones who have families, should perish. It says any, the Father is not willing that ANY of His little ones be lost. So who are we, as the Church, to decide who does and doesn’t get saved -gets loved by a family-based on gender, race, ability, or native country? We are the Father’s hands and feet: it’s time we started loving like it.P.S.S. 🙂 Here is a song that Cassie has been listening to a lot. It reminds her to love Ben for as long as she has with her whole heart and not be afraid. If anyone should know about this subject it would be the singer. He has a son with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. You can read their story at Bowen’s heart
