I have a story I have been meaning to share. It’s a story from the heart of God. See, He’s not limited to the economy. He’s not limited to a loss of job. He’s not limited to the rising cost of food.
He loves the orphan. He longs for every.single.one. to be in a home.
And He is definitely not a deadbeat Dad.
If He loves the orphan so much, do you think that a job loss is a surprise to Him? Does a loss of income come as a surprise to Him? Or how about the rising cost of food?
Not a chance!!
Sweet friends, if need be, He will bring money out of seemingly no where. And yes, you could wake up in the morning and find a stack of money on your front lawn. He owns it all!! And nothing is too difficult for Him. He can truly bring money out of nowhere, from the down right craziest places, to provide for each treasure of His to come home.
And here’s a personal story of Ruby’s ‘pennies from heaven’.
In early summer, I had gone downtown to
have coffee with a friend.
She went on – she needed help carrying “it.”
out of the trunk and carried toward
me the prettiest box ever
{wish I’d taken a picture of the box, you’d have loved it.}
I was dumbfounded. I had completely forgotten about my penny comment when we had met for coffee a few months before.
She then handed me a wad of bills too. She and her sweet husband wanted to help little Miss Ruby {and SJ} come home.
Dw and the kids almost passed out when they saw it.
It was full.
Completely full.
It was one of the coolest things we have ever received. A clear reminder that God uses pennies to help bring treasures home. He uses people and crazy circumstances {like finding a penny on the ground while stepping off the curb saying good-bye to a friend having coffee} to prompt someone to share what they have so that a much-valued little person {or persons} can come home forever.
Now the adorable piggy is too big for our Memorial Box but a penny is not. It serves inside our Memorial Box to remind us that every penny should be picked up, because in the long run, a penny makes a lot of pennies and all those pennies
put together work wonders.
Faithful God.
Faithful generous, orphan-loving friends.
Baby girl laying in my arms shrieking and cooing as I type.
Do not let money ever stand in the way.
Ever.
He will provide every.single.penny.every.single.time.
{Please feel free to share your ‘penny story’
in the comments to encourage others!}
It was amazing to watch God work when we brought home our little girl, Haleigh, from China in 2010. We started with change as well because we felt God was saying He would provide little by little. We started with our piggy banks that we had kept as children. Being older parents who are "starting over", they were mostly wheat pennies and any other coins were worth more as well since they had more metal. God used people we hardly knew to help us in so many ways! And every day we found at LEAST a penny around our house and usually more! I know God put them there!
My husband retired 2.5 years ago after serving over 20 years in the military. We are are not like most retirees, we still have four children at home (9, 5, 3, 1). So while we are blessed to receive his retirement and medical insurance, it isn't enough to pay all of the bills. My husband has not been able to find work so he is using his GI Bill and is currently working towards two Master's Degrees. Through all of this, God has been incredibly faithful and money that was desperately needed has been provided in many unexplained ways. We still own our home, have never gone hungry, our children can still enjoy life as they know it and I have even been able to start a small business that has become another blessing. His GI Bill ends in August. I don't know how we will pay our mortgage in September if my husband hasn't found work by then, but I do know that God is bigger than our mortgage and He already has a plan and will continue to provide every penny for our family. I will be adding a penny to our memorial can now too!
I am so agreeing with this promise from God! We are surviving on His promises and waiting for His timing and His direction. I pray for the children I am yet to hold! Psalm 113:9 "He makes the barren woman to be a homemaker and a joyful mother of [spiritual] children. Praise the Lord! (Hallelujah!)" He has already fulfilled this in me, but I can feel His tug for more to come! He is fully able to fulfill His promises :o)
Ohhhh Linny. I love how He uses you to speak to my heart over and over and over again. Thank you for the reminder that He provides and He is not a deadbeat Dad. Love you!
LOVE this post. We have sooo many "One Little Penny" stories from our adoption it seems unreal!
I can't post details of all of them, but here is one great one :)…. During a trying financial time, as we were getting fairly close to travel for our sweet treasure in China, our electric company CALLED US to tell us that they were going to clear over $2,000 of money we owed them (we hadn't been getting electric bills for months b/c of a computer glitch, but knew we'd have to pay it all eventually).
So yes, they called us to say that they couldn't fix the computer glitch, so they were just clearing our account and we would not need to pay the $2,000+ we owed!!! Yes, two THOUSAND dollars!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just like that! Thank you Jesus! We were blown away! And I can't post the details of everything else we were going through at the time, but let's just say that God's timing is always perfect, but we saw that perfect timing that day in a mighty way!!!
How timely! Rough economy, job loss..yep, we are there. Our adoption plans have been on hold for over a year and a half now due to our financial difficulties. Just this afternoon I made a quick run into the store. As I entered the doors I spotted a shiny penny on the floor and stopped to pick it up. As I held it in my hand I felt the Lord reminding me not to be anxious about our financial situation. I came home and added the penny to our China piggy bank. Three years ago when we started seriously talking about adopting I bought a giant white piggy bank at the craft store. We looked up Bible verses with our kids about orphans and taking care of the poor and wrote them all over the piggy bank. It's just about full. I love how our girls put every bit of change they find or receive in the bank to save for their sister. He will provide!
~Kelly
When I was little we learned to give our pennies for the missionaries because they are both one cent/sent:)
My wife and I are in the process of adopting two little girls from Uganda (I'm so excited!). While we're young, we've been blessed with good jobs that allow us to afford the adoption. Even so, it seems like my wife is constantly saying,
"Wow, we got a couple hundred more dollars this week for the adoption!"
Derek
Last year we were led to adoption, and then God threw a curve ball at us (no surprise to Him) and took us back to foster care for the 4th time! While we were gettting licensed we needed to make a fourth bedroom in order to meet the state fire marshall regualations. We decided the dining room would be the best option because the windows met the measurement qualifications. But, there were no doors. We had no extra money in our budget, in fact, we were lacking. This did not make sense. We still felt God pushing us forward. We prayed that God would supply what was needed and we continued to fill out piles of paperwork. Just a few weeks before our home study we were really becoming anxious. The cost of the new doors would be $300.00 almost to the penny. My Mom called one morning and asked me to stop by and see her. She had visited some friends the week prior. As I was leaving our visit she remembered something in her purse. Our friends had sent us a card. Inside… $300.00. They didn't know what we needed, they just felt impressed to share with us. The following weekend my husband and brother installed the new doors just in time for our home study the following week. Our girl came just one week after our license came in. We are praying to sdopt her this year! Pray with us!
Love your "penny" story! And your friend who saved hers for Ruby!
I don't know if this is a save a penny story, exactly, but it is certainly a God providing a penny story. We were in the process of adopting our 8-yr-old from China when our agency contacted us about a girl with heart disease who would turn 14 in four weeks. They said we could adopt her if we had $12,000 to add her to our dossier. We had $100 in the bank. I said, "My Father owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Let me pray about it for three days." I wasn't brave enough to tell my husband about it the first day, but on the second day I confessed, and he said, "Honey, we don't have the money." I said, "Let me pray about it." That evening, an organization contacted us to offer two $5,000 grants. My husband said, "OK, I guess we're doing this!" The next day during the last hour of my prayer and fasting, a private individual contacted us to offer $5,000. We were still $15,000 behind on the first adoption, the one already in progress, but the second one was paid for in three days! Only God. Three weeks later, my husband flew to China to bring home BOTH daughters. They have been home for ten weeks, now, and BOTH adoptions are paid for now. Only God! I am amazed still — such a whirlwind of events, and just the tip of this year's ice berg.
We soooo did not have the money to adopt these girls! But God did.
Often people tell me, "I don't have the money to adopt," and I tell them, "If money is your 'only' barrier, then it is no barrier at all. Worry about something else! God will take care of the money!"
But I do soooo understand the faithless fear that we carry, anyway, even though we know our Father will provide. I so understand the wandering Hebrews who thought about all their wonderful spices back in Egypt and feared that God wouldn't provide even bread and water in the desert, in spite of the fact that He had divided the sea for them. In spite of all God's **amazing** goodness, I still wander through the desert like a faithless Hebrew.
Here's to **growing** in grace and faith in God our Father!
I am the mama to two little girls in my house, and one little girl waiting to come home from Eastern Europe in the very near future! If you are familiar with Reece's Rainbow, you can search for "Calista" and see our sweet girl! I am a stay at home mama and knew God would bring the funding we needed to bring our baby home–He had done all the prep on our hearts and assurance of His will already after all, but was willing to do what I was able to help, but as any stay at home mama knows…it's work! I woke up one morning and during my quiet time, I heard "You could make cheesecakes". So, now our cheesecake fundraisers are over…and God provided over $4,000 just through my baking! I feel so blessed that God could use me at home to still feel so productive towards bringing home my baby. All that we're lacking is $12,000 that we will be refunded from the government, and we know He will provide a way for that loan also. We can't wait to see what it is!
Well, we are once again gathering our pennies. A little over a year ago we brought home our 10 y.o. son. I made the comment that God will have to hit me up-side the head to have us adopt again, but when he did …we would be ready. He didn't have to hit very hard, but DH and I both saw our daughter on a waiting list and . Here we go again. Some people are looking at us and wondering. We aren't as old as "some people" but most of our friends are thinking of empty nests and grandchildren…oh and the money thing. No raises in 4 years,but somehow the money will be there and our financial statement looks good enough for a certain country to approve us.
But I will be picking up every penny and praying for the right clothes to be at the thrift shop when I visit and the meat to be on sale.
Thank you once again for your sweet reminder of God's faithfulness and provision!!!
I have two favorite "penny" stories from our adoption story so far. One is that our tax agent told us that we would have to pay $1200 in taxes for 2010. I was heartbroken because I had hoped to have a return to put toward our adoption fees…a month later when I went to sign the paperwork I shared our adoption story and asked if/how we needed to file fundraising sales from the adoption for the following year. I also asked about tax credit from the adoption. He pulled up the page to show me how it works and found a tax credit carry-over from our previous adoption in 2006!! Instead of paying $1200…we received a return of $6,400!!!!!
My second "penny" story so blesses my heart! I do children's worship at our church. After church one day a 7 year old walked up to me and handed me $9.00. He explained that he made a store in his room and everyone who visited his house was asked to buy something. He handed it to me and said, "now you can adopt your boys"!!!
I'm sharing what's happening right now…We embarked on our 4th adoption journey, even though WE said we were done. None of it made sense. My husband is in the midst of his doctorate so he can better advocate for children, we've sold everything we can…just tapped out all the way around. But you guessed it. God had other ideas. We are adopting a SN little girl from China. On paper according to the current averages, we thought maybe WE could get it figured out financially. Again, God had other ideas. LOA is taking 70-100+ days. Ours took 36. Nobody knows why.
God began working on us again. This whole journey has been about faith & trust from the beginning. I think God hijacked what we had figured out to remind us yet again (each of our adoption journeys has never been just about adoption…God has grown us in all kinds of directions).
We talked about doing fundraisers & all kinds of other things. But then a friend said, "You need to just ask", which confirmed what we were feeling in our hearts, but were afraid to step into. Sorry, this is getting long, so to get to it, 48 hours ago we launched a charity/benefit page & began asking people to share it on FB & anywhere else. No gimmicks, no hooks…just us & Him.
We have a ways to go yet, but I have to say I've never felt such an outpouring of love for our family & for this little girl that God is bringing into our family. Yes, the money is coming in, but the comments that come along with it have been nothing short of food for our souls. Adoption is grueling at times, so this has been amazing.
Our God is definitely in the business of moving mountains, & we wait in grateful anticipation for how He continues to love us through people…some that we've never even met. This adoption journey has been one of the hardest, most beautiful experiences yet.
Kinda funny that you would post this right now, don't ya think? Coincendence, or God reaffirming what He's been saying to us yet again? ;o) Thanks.
Wonderful story! He really does provide abundantly!
A week after we said "yes" to our most recent adoption, we found out that we were eligible for the tax credit for our last two adoptions. We honestly had NO IDEA that the refund could be carried over from the credit that we couldn't take! So within a week, the Lord provided a very large chunk of the funds for our newest treasure to come home. Hooray, God!!!
Now, we just need to get her here!!! Come on India! Send our little sweetheart home to us!
AMEN to that! God did just that for my adoption. Late one night, just as I was starting the process, I was praying to the Lord, "Lord, I am a single teacher…I have no money to speak of…no savings, yet I feel that you have called me to adopt. How can this be? How will I ever be able to pay for all the expenses?" I was bawling to the Lord. Shouldn't be surprised that he was already at work. I went back to my room – still crying – and hit play on my cd player. I had no idea what was in the player. I was picking up my room and still crying…then I sat on the side of my bed laughing hysterically as I realized that the song that was playing was, "Jesus Paid It All." I've always loved that hymn, but now it has such a special place in my heart.
God continued to come through with every expense. Half of my homestudy was due the following Tuesday – $645. I had a yard sale on Saturday. I made $648. Only God.
When it was time to travel, I needed $1,085 for Emma's plane ticket. The teachers from my school surprised me money…I recieved an unexpected check…the total? $1083. My friend Sydney was glad to pitch in the other $2.
Only God.
The timing of my adoption was another God thing. Our school ended on May 22. I was to leave on May 6. (I took a couple of extra days before traveling to prepare) I was able to use the personal days I had accumulated. In the end, I was out a little over $1,000 of pay. I new the Lord would cover us somehow. And he did. When we returned from China, there was an unexpected check from my insurance where some past bills had been re-filed. The check amount? $1,035! Only God!
Those are just 3 examples of ways He's come through. How thankful I am that He owns the cattle on a thousand hills…and sometimes He will sell one to make ends meet for his children!
I am humbled that He has moved in such mighty ways for my daughter and I. We have been home a year and a half. I held her for the first time on Mother's Day 2010. Perfect Mother's Day gift. She is 3 and a half…going on 16! Precious gift!
Libby a beautiful story about how God will provide. A few years ago I found out my position was being moved to another state and I would be out of a job in 3 weeks. It was at the beginning of the economy tanking. I came home to find a letter from a previous company asking me to please cash a paycheck from 2 years prior and if I didn't have the check to let them know and they would re-issue it. I save that letter as a reminder that God is always there.
I will be traveling to China in March (Lord willing) to bring home my son. I am wondering where in the world the funds will come from in such a short period of time, as all I can see now are bills, bills, bills. Your story reminded me that I have a jar of coins (mostly pennies) in my room. It is a large jar and is about 1/3 filled with coins. I have been dropping change in the huge jar (a large glass 10-gallon bottle) for about 20 years. I drop coins in it when I think about it, as well as some paper money every now and then.
I am excited to find out how much money is in that jar because I have a feeling that the Lord is going to use that certain amount whatever it may be, in His perfect timing for my upcoming trip to bring home my son, Harris, from China. Please pray with me that the Lord will provide all the funds needed for the trip.
Thank you for reminding me of that penny jar in my room!
Candis
We have a cool penny story. We've always known that we would adopt, and were just waiting for the right time. I had a mental list of things that needed to happen first (among other things, my boys being a bit older, and financial security). Then we heard God's soft whisper this Spring that NOW was the time. I was surprised because it seemed like an odd time: the economy was insecure, our youngest was only 6 months old, and we didn't have extra cash lying around since we had just refinanced our home and fixed our car. God kept telling me: "I got this. Go ahead." We sent in our application for the Ethiopia program of AWAA. The very next week, my husband got a promotion and a raise. Then we got our tax refund, which turned out to be $1k more than expected. Then we got a BIG check from the bank for thousands of dollars we had apparently been overcharged in fees during the refinance of our home. "See, I told you I got this!" said God, "I just needed you to take that first step of faith."
~Katie
(waiting for a referral for our daughter in Ethiopia)
I love this story. It's a good reminder…
Sometimes, especially when I'm right in the midst of a financial woe, I forget that there is no point in worrying because it is God's money and He will always provide for the things that are really important. This is one of those subjects that I seem to need constant reminders of (and thankfully, He provides the reminders too). 😉
LOVE this encouragement (thank you!) just as we are about to send off our application to adopt from Ethiopia. This will be our 1st adoption, and we've been saving for a year (started fund-raising last year and then welcomed new baby by birth in the meantime!) I've been AMAZED by the "penny stories" that have gone on this past year:
1) an ice cream bucket FULL of change plus a check for $250 buried in a bunch of yard sale donations for our fund-raiser sale.
2) a complete stranger putting a $100 bill in my hand and telling me, "Keep going with this."
3) upon selling some gold for our adoption fund, I had wanted to get $50, but the best I could get at one place was $30. Went to a 2nd place and they offered $40, so I took it. When I went back into our van, I went to put the $40 into the glove compartment, and when I did, a $10 bill fell out…which equaled $50. SERIOUS!
4) a family gave us over $400 just out of the blue…they said God put us on their hearts to give the money to
God does something like this every time my husband and I start to get cold feet and wonder if we're doing the right thing. 🙂 He also reminds me of His heart for the orphan, so I can ask Him again to give me His same heart and also the peace that quells my various fears. OH HOW I LOVE HIM!!
Thanks for sharing! Your life and stories are so uplifting and encouraging. I'm constantly talking about you! Thanks!
My story isn't exactly a "penny" story, but it is related to affording adoption. We have adopted 2 sweet girls from China and my hubby always wondered how we would afford it. We had a number of years where we literally thought we would lose our home. Within a year or two we managed to have enough money for 1 adoption. It did cost a LOT!!! We managed to get the money for one reason only…I lost both of my parents to cancer in 1 1/2 years. Yes, it was a difficult/horrible time, but God still blessed us beyond measure!!! For the second adoption we were once again unsure how we would afford it. I confidently told my husband that God had told me the money would be there…I know He did! I seriously thought that someone/someones(I know that's not a real word) would give us the money. That didn't happen. However, we were able to finally, after many years of trying, get a loan…a loan we intended to use for business purposes. I know this is not ideal, at least in some people's eyes, but we now have our sweet Raina at home with us! I'd rather have that kind of debt than a mortgage or car payments! God did provide!!! It is His money!!
PS: I know it is not fair to read your blog and not share mine. It will become a public blog soon…I just need to take the time to make sure all non-public posts are removed.
Hi, Linny, I love your penny post. I'm seeking approval from my social worker next week to be able to bring home a 13 year old from China. I will be scrounging for pennies, since my tiny savings is for my first daughter's medical care this year.
Hi, Linny, I love your penny post. I'm seeking approval from my social worker next week to be able to bring home a 13 year old from China. I will be scrounging for pennies, since my tiny savings is for my first daughter's medical care this year.
We can attest to God's faithfulness in providing for adoption. When we first began to consider international adoption and were told it would cost around $30000, my husband thought we just couldn't do it. Shortly after we had a car stolen – it wasn't insured and was worth about $10000 – we never saw it again. I kept thinking that would have being a nice chunk towards our little one. My husband was commenting on how it wasn't so bad having lost the car, it wasn't like losing a loved one and God provided alternatives. So when I told him what I was thinking, he agreed and we began to pursue our first adoption. Praise God!
It was expensive but God provided extra work both to pay for and for the financial statements (making our paperwork look wealthier) in the years prior to both of our adoptions now.
We had plans to build and sell an investment property (husband is a builder) to fund our 2nd adoption. Our planning hasn't exactly worked out but our 2nd adoption has come in alot cheaper – largely due to the high Aussie $. God always provides – sometimes in mysterious ways.
A friend of mine once said to me, "Pennies make dollars". I think about this phrase often, especially in these tough times. People say, "What can you buy with a dollar?" Well, not much, but if you keep saving pennies you'll have more dollars. 🙂
Thanks for the penny reminder!
Hi Linny,
What an inspirational post and the timing could'nt have been more perfect. We are in the process of renewing our homestudy for the 3rd time as we our wait to complete our China adoption has lengthened immensely. Each time we have to renew paperwork it costs, with social work fees, fingerprints, medicals etc., almost $1500. We also will be receiving an invoice from our Agency in the next couple of weeks for their "file maintenance fee" which is another $250. It all seems so overwelming. I have another concern that weighs heavily on my heart. In 2010 we had a VERY good financial year as my husband is in real estate and the economy was excellent here. We rode the "good wave" and completed renovations on the house and purchased a 2nd car so I wouldn't be isolated at home while my husband worked long hours. Not only did we spend our good fortune on these items we actually went into debt thinking that we were "on a role" and it would be easy to pay off with the next big real estate deal. Oh, hind sight is 20/20. This past year, as the economy tanked we have struggled to make ends meet. The money for our adoption does not exist and we don't know where we will find the resources to complete what we began 5 years ago. Sooo….my question is: Do you think God is punishing us for being irresponsible when we had the opportunity to set the $$ aside and chose not too? Do you think God will still provide given these circumstances? If you feel inclined I would appreciate any prayers you could send my way.
BTW…….this was the post that caused me to "de-lurk". Thanks for speaking to my heart!
Perfect Timing. Today I am praying and fasting about a special needs orphan, if she is the one for our family. I am also specifically praying for the familes who have helped me raise over 13,000 towards my adoption. As a single Mom on disability I am trusting in God to provide every penny and He has done just that. In his perfect timiming he has provided exactly what is needed, as it is needed.
One story I can share is about a consigment sale. I am pretty thrifty and usually consign last years clothes to afford new(ish) clothes for my daughter. Well last spring I asked my Sunday school class if they would like to donate clothes and toys to help me raise homestudy fees. I had hundreds of items to tag and prepare, so not only did my sweet friends donate items but some came to help me prepare and deliver the items as well. I needed $1000 and the check came in just under that, then I got a note saying they made a mistake with calculations and the two checks came to $1001.
This adoption is a miracle on many levels and God has grown me so much. I am trusting in God to provide and lead the way to bring home a treasure very soon. I have 100% faith in my father in heavan who loves me and the little girl who will be my daughter.
I love this because pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters from many, many people are what brought Jaxson home. Several thousands of dollars worth of change God dropped at our front door in a weeks time. When everything in us said it wasn't possible to get that kind of money God said "let me handle it."
Such a timely post! We don't have a penny story . . . yet. But God is calling us to some big things that haven't been fully revealed, and in the little that we can see, it is certain that there is NO.WAY that we could do this in our own power and finances. Just this week, I was fretting and stewing over our budget for even regular expenses, much less these big new ventures, forgetting momentarily that if God calls us to them, He will make a way. So thank you for your part in renewing that message for us!
Thank you Linny, I really needed this today!
We are in the process of adopting two boys from Haiti, but started with just one. We had the first adoption fees covered when we met our second son in Haiti while visiting the first and realized he was supposed to be home with us too. I am a planner, saver, overly cautious person in general and it was so hard for me to sign the paperwork with no money for the fees– I immediately was looking into refinancing/taking out a home equity line. The week our first set of fees were due, we came home from school (my husband and I are teachers) to find a check for the exact amount we were short. This was before we had asked for money/tried fundraising. Moreover, this check was from a church friend who was and had been for awhile out of work (a construction manager) and not sure how to cover his own bills. He gave all he could on faith because God told him to– we paid our initial fees on time and, within a week, he had three new jobs! Wow God!
Lindsay
http://hentschels.blogspot.com/
Chill bumps everywhere! LOVE it! Just curious what your thoughts are about using a credit card for another adoption? We don't believe in debt….but another child is not the same as debt. Thoughts please? 🙂
We are in the waiting stage of adopting one or two children from Ethiopia. Early in our adoption journey, we began collecting soda cans/bottles to redeem for a nickel a can. We asked our family and friends if we could have their soda cans/bottles that were just lying around their basement or garage. It has been the longest running "project" that our friends have been encouraged to help us with. College students have bins in the dorms to collect cans for us. Our dentist office is collecting cans. Some of my students' parents are bringing me garbage bags full of cans/bottles. We now joke whenever we see a can lying beside the road ~ "That's money for our babies!!!!" "God is sooooooo good, He's soooooooo good to me!!!"
Thank you so much Linny. This blog entry was just one of three blogs yesterday and today that spoke to where my family is. We are in the midst of our annual January fast to focus and set ourselves for the new year and seek His heart and what He has for us to accomplish. I've got a list a mile lone of questions, concerns, and pressing issues for Him… and He is speaking to us, it's awesome. Your entry today was another reminder and confirmation for us… He cares down to the last penny. Ah God is so so so faithful! Thank you for sharing your heart with us!
I pushed the share button and shared this post to facebook. So many need to hear what they already know…they need to hear that they are not too old to adopt or too poor…because HE has it under control.
recently, I've had two dreams that we went back to CHina and adopted not one more but two more (we've only been home for 10months)…Maybe I need to 'listen' to this post a little more closely too.LOL
I LOVED this penny story! Thank you so much! It encourages me, and I try to find a way to fundraise for a mission trip!
Thank-you so much for this beautiful penny story! It uplifted and encouraged me today!
God bless you and your sweet family!
Thank you so much for sharing. What an amazing story of faith. I just finished Hebrews in my bible study this week and talked about the faith of Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Noah, Rahab.
Every time I pass by the River Church, I pray for all of you. Every time I hear the Flight for Life helicopter, I pray for your family & Karl (we live across the highway from Mercy and can actually watch it take off and land.) God prompts me to pray for you in the middle of the night when I am awake with my sweet baby.
I'm praying for God to help me in my faith. Thank you for the example.
I can't believe when I read this post today…as you know, Linny, we just started the process of adopting one or two children from China. The last couple days, as I have been paying the bills with a smaller than average paycheck because this is my hubby's slow time of the year, I have been questioning God about how we are going to be able to really fund this adoption. With little money left over after necessities, I was getting down. So, I prayed and let it go. Today, Sean came home with the mail and folded up in inside some bigger magazines and envelopes was a small, unmarked enveloped addressed to Mr and Mrs S Onions, no return address. Inside was a cashiers check to us for $1,000!! No joke!! I was speechless. No one has ever given us money before. It did not say it was for our adoption or for what. We are not expecting any returned money. Sean and I just looked at each other and started tearing up. We couldn't believe it. I wish I knew who it was from. I have a couple ideas, since we have only told a handful of people so far about our adoption. Tonight I am still dumb-founded by this persons generous act of love and Gods amazing faithfullness and provision!! I can't wait to share your story and now my story with others who think they don't have the money to give these orphans a home. I KNOW HE will provide!!
Linny, will you please pray for me? For many years, the Lord has been laying two things on my heart, somehow connected: Children, and Africa. My own children are almost all grown, and now I feel He is calling me to something, but I don't know what, exactly. My husband and I are struggling in our marriage (low level of domestic violence), and he is not at all interested in pursuing this. I pray to find God's will for the rest of my life. Thank you!