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What if I won the lottery…..
I’ve been hearing people talk about what they would do with the money all day long. I listened to people talk about buying a house in every country so they could travel everywhere but stay in their own home. I heard someone even mention buying the “E” channel so they could fire all the Kardashians. Baseball teams and football teams were mentioned. Fancy cars, furs, jewels, gold, boats, etc. I heard it all. Of course, they would take their family on trips. They would pay off bills. They would give some away. But we are talking about 1/2 billion dollars. Maybe they just haven’t put any thought into it, but man I have. I have put some serious thought into how I would spend that kind of money.
Can you even imagine? I mean you will lose 1/2 of it to taxes, but still you would have the ability to spend $250,000,000 plus. I can barely wrap my head around the thought of that much money. But believe me I know exactly what I would do with that money. I would fund so many adoptions – domestic and international. I would get rid of that “We just don’t have the money.” excuse. I would pay for surgeries for clefts, and little broken hearts, and club feet. Show Hope, Hope Foster Home and Love Without Boundaries and I would become fast friends. The work they do is so absolutely AMAZING! I would help them do even more. $25 million to each for starters. Just boom write out a check and let them do their work. Can you actually fit that many zeros on a check? 🙂 Foster homes would be funded because I believe that getting children out of institutionalized care is so important. Children would be fed. Wells would be dug. There are so many organizations around the world that are doing really great work. They just need support and funding. There are so many people who have given their lives to make a difference.
My dream of becoming a philanthropist would become a reality. My heart races with the thought of it all. But the odds are 1 in 17,500,000. I heard someone say that you have a better chance of being hit by lightning – TWICE! So now what? The news is just in and I didn’t win. So there is nothing I can do right? Wrong! I can do something. I can sponsor one child getting a cleft and that is huge to that child. I can give every time I hear about a family that is adopting. I can support those people and places that are making a difference and spread the word of what they are doing as often as I can. I believe that Satan wants us to believe the world is too evil. He wants us to believe that there is nothing we can do. He wants us to believe that we are helpless, but what is that saying about our God? I’m not able to do much, but God is able to do everything. Everything is possible through Christ. Everything. It’s time we take our eyes off of the new car, the new house, the new gadget, and put it where it really belongs – on those that are less fortunate that us. We have so much. Just think about how much is in your house right now. Do you really need more? I know I don’t. I want to make a difference. I want my life to matter. I want every day to be spent thinking about someone other than myself.
Why do I believe so much in adoption? Why? Because every day I wake up and see the most amazing scene. I see two little children who just 7 months ago were in an orphanage. Children that were quiet and afraid and wouldn’t even bother to cry because they had learned no one comes when you cry so why bother. How sad is that? What does that do to a child’s heart? Just weeks later, it had started to change and now months later they wake up with such joy that is it overwhelming. They are so content with the littlest things. They laugh and giggle and hug and kiss. They just want to be loved. How can we say that anything is more important that loving a child? How can we stand by and do nothing when we have so much?
I have had people who really don’t understand it. There are those who still think I have lost my mind, but after being around Ben and Maisey for even a little bit – they get it! When you stand in my yard and watch those two little ones run down a hill, just loving life, you know you’ve made a difference. Isn’t that what we really want? To make a difference. To have our lives matter. I don’t want to be remembered for the car I drove or how clean my house was (I can pretty much guarantee that one now.). I like being Ben’s mom, Maisey’s mom, Cassie’s mom, Zachary’s mom, Kyle’s mom, Codey’s mom, Hope’s mom, Lainey’s mom, Lauren’s mom, Eli’s mom, Gracie’s mom, Faith’s mom. It used to bother me that no one really knew my name, but now I’m okay with just being mama. I don’t care if anyone remembers me for anything more than having happy, content children, with compassionate hearts that put God first. If this happens, I will have made my mark on this world and will have made a difference. And I didn’t even need the lottery to do it.
