Adoption Stories: Give Me Faith

Two days away from the release of Flavors of Forever Families: A Collection of Recipes and Redemption Stories, we offer a taste (pun intended) of another adoption story.  This is Joel and Lisa Basinger's story (written from Joel's perspective) of how God brought a feminine touch to a boy-heavy family:

Give Me Faith

If I have been asked this once, I have been asked it a thousand times, “Why adoption?”  There isn't a simple answer to this question.  First of all, we don't have any issues with fertility.  Lisa has been interested in adoption for a while.  I on the other hand, thought we had a big enough family with three boys and couldn't see providing for another child.  God had other ideas for us! Almost two-and-a-half years ago, I decided to do an in-depth study of the book of James.  Little did I know, before I finished chapter one, I would go through a complete transformation.   James 1:27 states, "Pure and undefiled religion is this, to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from this world."  Wow, what a revelation!  it is clear that we, as Christians, are all adopted into Christ's family through His sacrifice on the cross and directed to care for the fatherless.  Does that mean that we are all called to adopt into our family?  No, but it is clear that we are called to care for orphans, just as we are called to make disciples of all nations.

So I don't think the question should be "Why adopt?"  I think it should be "Why not adopt?”  We explored international, foster care, and domestic adoption and went back and forth several times until God led us to an amazing adoption agency in Abilene, Texas.  During this time of exploration, God worked in Lisa's heart to have her explore different aspects of adoption: race, special needs, drug use of parent, and gender.  Through each of these, Lisa learned to trust God to be faithful to give us the child He wanted us to have.  We submitted the beginning of our paperwork in April of 2012 and attended the adoptive parent orientation in July.  We met some great couples that are still friends to this day.  We submitted all of our paperwork in September, and we were approved to be shown to potential birth mothers on October 15.  We were excited; several of the other families that we went to orientation with had already received babies, so we thought it would happen quickly.  We continued to  wait while we kept seeing friends get matched.  We started to get impatient; meanwhile, in February, God decided to move us from Mississippi to Texas.  Maybe He knew what he was doing...

Coming: The China Connection

Next week on the blog, the China connection.  The first time I ever heard the suggestion of an orphan care ministry at CHC was at small group one night in the home of a couple who had twice adopted from China.  Several of the stories in Flavors of Forever Families are of adoptions from China.  There seems to be a special kinship among families who have this experience in common, so next week on the blog will be China week, when we will bring you a sample of each of these stories. 

All of the adoption stories can be read in their entirety in Flavors of Forever Families -- even as you browse the rest of the book for some new favorite recipes.  Order your copy today or pick one up at either CHC Southaven or CHC Hernando this Sunday! 

Previous previews:
"Temporarily Todd"
"Growing Paynes"
"It All Happened So Fast"
"Found! God's Perfect Timing"

Thanks for reading.

4theVoiceless,
Al

Adoption Stories: Temporarily Todd

For the last several months, the 4theVoiceless ministry has been collecting recipes in anticipation of producing an adoption cookbook.  What began as a trickle of recipes flowing in became a deluge at the deadline, and we are now in the process of putting them together, getting the cookbook formatted and to the printer, and making them available in time for Christmas.  We anticipate having the cookbook completed in the next couple of weeks and will let you know how to get your hands on one (or several).

The purpose of the cookbook is to fund our church's adoption fund that will help families make adoption a little more financially feasible.  At the same time, the cookbook is intended to raise awareness about the need for adoption and how it reflects what God has done for us in adopting us as children in His family.  To that end we have included nine stories of adoption from several different angles.  Over the next few weeks on the blog, I want to give you a taste of those stories.

We'll start today with Jay Trawick's story:

Temporarily Todd

March 8, 1973 was the day my story began. I was born in a hospital in Mobile, AL. I spent two months in foster care as they gave me the temporary name of Todd. They said I was a healthy and happy baby, always smiling. 

Little did I know, May 10^tph, 1973 my world would really begin. A young, married couple named Cheryl & Jerome from Eufaula, AL, were looking for a child to adopt, as they had no children of their own. They prepared their lives for over a year before they got the news a child had been chosen for them. They did not know the details of my story; all they knew was that they were going to love me and accept me into their home, no matter what! 

 And that’s exactly what they have done since that day. My world as I knew it from the start has always been a home filled with genuine love. Somewhere along the way, I knew God had given me amazing parents; I just did not realize how amazing they truly were. My childhood was dotted with special friends and warm memories. Every step of the way, Mom & Dad were always there. 

When I became a young man, I moved away from my parents to the Memphis area. I’ve always enjoyed going home to visit. All of the years had passed quickly in my adult life, but inwardly I always wanted to know the real answers to why I was adopted. 

During the month of April, 2010, my parents hired a private investigator from the state of Alabama. Within 7 days, they found the keys that would unlock the chapters of my life story. On April 19, 2010 at around 2:30 AM, my wife woke me up and said I had a phone call from my parents that I might want to take...

The Rest of the Story

You can read the rest of Jay's story when the 4theVoiceless cookbook becomes available.  The first opportunity to pre-order will be this Saturday at the CHC SHE ministry craft fair in Southaven.  4theVoiceless will have a booth set up to sell paracord bracelets and paper bead jewelry (Great stocking stuffers themselves for a great cause) as well as pre-orders for the cookbook.  I will let you know here on the blog and on our Facebook page when we will begin to take pre-orders online.

^{Galatians 4:4-6 (HCSB)}

⁴ When the time came to completion, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. ⁶And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father!”


Thanks for reading.

4theVoiceless,
Al

Project Update Day: Happy Friday

Happy Friday to all you friends of 4theVoiceless!

Much of the attention on the blog for the last couple of weeks has been focused on our recent trip to serve the House of Abraham children's home in Jacmel, Haiti, but I wanted to use today's blog to give some updates on some other projects that we have going on.  Many of these will be coming to a close soon.

Kards 4 Kids

Our ministry friends at Orphanos Foundation sponsor an annual project called Kards 4 Kids.  Homemade, handwritten Christmas cards go to kids in orphanages in Colombia, Peru, Mexico, Nicaragua, Brazil, Jamaica, and South Korea.  Here's one unique aspect of this project: the cards are written in the child's native language!  (There is a list of Christmas greetings in each language; they have done most of the work for you.)  Click on the K4K link above to find out more.

If you attend Colonial Hills Church (Southaven or Hernando) and would like to be a part of K4K, encourage your small group leader to pick up a packet or two in our leader meeting or find me Sunday, and I will get you a packet (Southaven before and after 1st service, Hernando after the service).

If you are one of our followers from outside the Mid-South, you can click on the K4K link above and get every bit of the information that I have.  You do not have to go through 4theVoiceless to be a part of K4K, but we would like to know if you participate.

Deadline to have these turned in to Orphanos is November 30!

Adoption Cookbook

We are down to the last few days to gather recipes for the cookbook.  I must have them by Wednesday, November 21.  Go here to submit a recipe online.

We will still take recipes in all the different areas, but we especially need international recipes, crock pot recipes, and starter/appetizers.

We will be compiling and formatting all the recipes, as well as the adoption stories that we will sprinkle throughout the cookbook, over the next couple of weeks and will have them published in time for Christmas.

Dignity Bags

I wrote about this project on the blog back in October.  Click here to read the background on this project.

One of our small groups has committed to providing the toiletries for the first bags and is working on getting the bags themselves through one of the group member's company.

I know that there are sometimes avenues toward serving others that go untapped because those with access to certain goods and services never see how they could be used in ministry.  If you have access to basic toiletries that kids who are picked up by DHS social workers might immediately need (toothpaste, toothbrush, deodorant, comb, brush, etc.) for free or for cheap, you can help us provide this for kids who are already going through a painful experience.

Ditto with nice duffel bags that provide some sense of dignity (as opposed to a garbage bag) to children who are being removed from their homes most often because of abuse or neglect.  If you have access to such bags for free or for cheap, please help us provide 100 bags to our local DHS social workers.

For our out of town readers, would you consider making a call to your local DHS office and asking if dignity bags would be a need for them, too.  Many of the issues with at-risk children could at least be improved if the church got involved in a helpful way such as this.

House of Abraham

Finally, as some of you may have read yesterday on our Facebook page, construction on the House of Abraham children's home in Haiti has stopped due to lack of funds.

Dusty Cooper of Isle Go Missions wrote a  guest blog back in August about the origins of the House of Abraham and the need for this new home.  Our recent trip confirmed everything Dusty wrote (not that I expected any different) and then some.

4theVoiceless will have a table set up at the CHC SHE ministry crafts fair on Saturday, December 1.  All of the profits from our sales of paracord bracelets and paper bead jewelry will benefit the House of Abraham.  These make great stocking stuffers and will provide great opportunities to share with friends and family members the work that God is doing in Jacmel, Haiti, to provide for the needs of 13 kids and to provide hope for a nation.

Several of you from outside of this area have asked how you can give directly.  Click here to go directly to Isle Go's "Donations" page.  Be sure to note "House of Abraham" on your check or, if you give electronically, in the box next to the amount of your donation.  I know that Dusty and Fenel and all those who have already invested in this project will be extremely grateful for your help.

Get Involved

How will you live out the biblical command to care for orphans?  I have laid out in this blog several ways you can get involved, and most of them don't take a lot a resources, just a willingness to help and a heart for the orphan.

God did not plan for us to remain spiritual orphans.  Nothing better reflects His heart for spiritual orphans than our care for physical orphans.

John 14:18
"I will not leave you as orphans; I am coming to you."


Thanks for reading.

4theVoiceless,
Al

Friday Little Bits: Not There Yet, But Closer

My friend Jacob and I leave for Haiti in three days.  We will be meeting a team from Illinois in Miami on Sunday before flying to Haiti on Monday morning.  I have been telling people we leave for Haiti in (as of this morning) three days when I won't actually be in Haiti for (now) four days.  Leaving here doesn't equal being there.

As I prepared to write the blog this morning, the thought occurred to me that 4theVoiceless's current ministry projects resemble our day on Sunday when we will have left Memphis but not yet arrived in Haiti.  Progress but not ultimate destination. 

• Hope for Haiti has made some nice progress, but we are at 27% of our ultimate $35,000 goal to build a new House of Abraham.

• We have collected over 80 recipes and some of the adoption stories for our adoption cookbook, but we haven't yet reached completion.

•  One of our CHC small groups has taken on the task of providing dignity bags and some basic toiletries for social workers to be able to gather children's belongings in when they are taken into foster care.  We haven't given these things to DHS yet, but we're getting there.

• We are just getting started with our Kards 4 Kids Christmas project, but our church will have an opportunity to jump on board on Sunday, November 4 (Orphan Sunday!).  By Christmas we hope to have 700 hand-made cards in the hands of orphans and those who care for them in Mexico, South Korea, Ecuador, Columbia, Brazil, and Jamaica.

• We have several families in the process of adoption or fostering.  Not there yet but moving forward.

Waiting is often very difficult, but it is part of the process of almost every aspect of orphan care ministry.  Waiting is easier when there is movement.  Not always movement to the final destination but toward it.

Thanks for reading.  Please pray for our team as we are in Haiti from Oct. 29-Nov. 5.  I will update on our Facebook page as I have access.

4theVoiceless,
Al

Friday Little Bits: Right Around the Corner

Do you want to make a difference in the life of a fatherless child?  If you live in the Mid-South area, you have several opportunities right around the corner.  (If you live somewhere else, you have opportunities, too; I just don't have a list of them for you :)

• CHC Southaven's Orphanology class was full again this week.  Lauren Johnson from Harden House Adoption and Foster Care helped our class know some of what to expect during the adoption process.  She will be back again this week to talk about foster care.  We are hopeful to provide some specific training in our area for potential foster parents in the near future.  You can come and take part in our class at any time; you need not have attended any of the previous classes!

• 4theVoiceless will have a table with our jewelry and T-shirts at the Tricia's Hope fundraiser (Read Tricia's story here.) at Jim Saucier Park in Southaven.  Ten percent of our profits from that day will go toward helping defray the Chavez family's medical expenses. The rest of our profits will go toward building the House of Abraham children's home in Jacmel, Haiti.  We are grateful to partner with our friends from CHC's Celebrate Recovery; they are awesome folks who have been great friends to the ministry of 4theVoiceless!

• The flow of recipes for our adoption cookbook has picked up this week.  We still have plenty left to go before we are ready to publish, but this week has been very encouraging that we will get there and be able to help families fund their adoptions.

•  Orphan Sunday is just four weeks from this Sunday.  This will be the first time for an Orphan Sunday emphasis at CHC.  I met with our pastor this week about what November 4 will look like for our church, and I am looking forward to hearing his message to the church from James 1:27.  His HYPOChRIsTianE series has been eye-opening to say the least, and this message will fit in perfectly with the rest of the series.  We will also have some practical expressions of care for the orphan in which our people can engage.  If you attend another church, I hope that your church is also recognizing Orphan Sunday in some way.  The official Orphan Sunday web site has plenty of ideas that churches all over the world have done and are planing for this year.  If I can be of any assistance to you, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Let me offer you a challenge between now and the next blog post on Tuesday: look for a way to engage in a conversation about orphan care and see what you discover.  

Thanks for reading.  Now, move.
Al

Friday Little Bits: Progress Report

Here are a few ministry progress updates from 4theVoiceless:

Orphanology

Wednesday night was the first night of our Orphanology study at CHC Southaven.  There were 18 of us in attendance, a great group.  The study will continue through November 7 on Wednesday nights from 6:30-8:00.  This past Wednesday, we focused on how orphan care reflects the gospel and how God’s commands to help the “voiceless” have always been to His people.  Therefore, believers have a responsibility to minister to orphans.  We ended with this video, which.powerfully captured the first session of our study.

Lauren Johnson, adoption specialist, will join us the next two weeks as we focus on adoption and foster care.  Lauren and her husband Chris are active in the orphan care ministry of Lifepoint Senatobia.  If you live in the DeSoto County area, please join us on Wednesday nights.

Adoption Cookbook

We are hoping to complete the 4theVoiceless cookbook sometime around Orphan Sunday (Nov. 4) so that they will be available during the Christmas season.  The cookbook will help fund our adoption fund as well as create awareness about adoption through some pretty remarkable stories.  The recipes are still coming in slowly.  Would you use your influence to help us gather about 300 more recipes in the next month?  Each person can submit up to 10.  Click here for the form.

Hope for Haiti

Not much change in the Hope for Haiti campaign over the last couple of weeks, at least as far as funding goes.  We are still at about 26% funding for the new House of Abraham.  4theVoiceless will be selling paracord bracelets and paper bead jewelry at the Trinity Baptist Church (7200 Swinnea in Southaven) crafts fair tomorrow from 9:00-3:00.  We will be at the Tricia’s Hope fundraiser extravaganza at Jim Saucier Park in Southaven (near the library and police department) from 11:00-dark on October 13.  Finally, we will be at fall festivals at CHC Southaven (Go Center) and CHC Hernando (Conger Park) on October 31.  Get the word out!

Work continues on the orphanage in Jacmel, Haiti, as you can see in the photos below.  Thanks to Dusty Cooper of IsleGo Missions for the update!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Orphan Sunday

Orphan Sunday is a day when churches around the world focus on God’s call to defend the orphan.  This will be the first Orphan Sunday at CHC Southaven and CHC Hernando, and we are still in the planning stages.  More and more churches are joining in.  Check out the Orphan Sunday website for the story behind the day and to see what churches around the world are doing on this year’s Orphan Sunday, November 4.  If you are part of a church that would like to get involved, please let me know; I have recently been asked to serve as an area coordinator for the Orphan Sunday organization and would love to talk to you and share ideas.

Thanks for reading.  Now, move.
Al

Busting Up Boulders

Just like there’s more than one way to skin a cat, there’s more than one way to break up a boulder (like the one pictured above).  A jackhammer of some sort is ideal, but what if one is not available?  In Jamaica and Haiti, where heavy equipment and power tools are most often not available or affordable, workers use an interesting method that involves the following steps: 

• digging a trench around the rock
• covering it with charcoal and allowing it to burn until the rock is fiery hot
• dousing it with cold water to hopefully break the large rock into smaller, moveable pieces.  

When I learned of this technique, I couldn’t help but think how much starting an orphan care ministry is like that.  The boulder is the enormity of the need -- at least 140 million orphans in the world by the most conservative estimates.  There is no jackhammer big enough to do the job of providing each of them a loving home with parents to care for them.  So what do we do, just concede that the boulder is too big and can’t be moved?  God’s Word simply does not allow for that.  He commands His church to minister to orphans, so we look for other ways to break up the boulder.

I am very grateful for men and women and organizations who have done the work of breaking up the biggest rock.  They have done much of the preliminary hard work of creating opportunities for others to get involved., but there is still much to do.  Many of the rocks are still very big and need exploding further.  The question for us, especially as churches, is this: How big a part can we play in the movement (and I hate to call it that, like just another social cause) to care for the world's fatherless children?  How big a rock can we chip away at? 

The people who helped get the ministry of 4theVoiceless off the ground believed we could take a good-sized piece of the bigger boulder and learn how to most effectively chip away at it.  We have chipped away some fragments, and we have seen some significant pieces fall away.  For instance, we have spent considerable time and space in this corner of the blogosphere talking about our Hope for Haiti campaign, an effort to raise $35,000 to build a permanent building for the House of Abraham orphanage in Jacmel, Haiti.

However, the smaller pieces are no less significant.  There’s the call I got yesterday from one of the widows in our church, getting clarification on the purpose of the forthcoming 4theVoiceless cookbook to benefit our adoption fund.  She is aggressively gathering recipes for us from the senior adult Sunday school classes.  There’s another conversation I had with a lady in our community who wants to adopt but doesn’t even know where to begin, so someone put her in touch with me.

If you are not currently involved in caring for orphans in some practical way, explore how you can get involved.  If you are a part of a church that is not moving toward the command of James 1:27 to minister to orphans, we need you to take your rock and chip away at it (under the authority of your church leadership).  It doesn’t take a large budget; 4theVoiceless started with zero dollars.  It doesn’t take a multitude of connections; most of the people who have been a great help to us we met after we began to move toward God’s command.  It doesn’t take a huge team; we have operated with a handful of dedicated people.  You don’t have to have a dynamic leader for your ministry; I am not being falsely humble when I say that my personality is not exactly magnetic.  But know this: none of those things determine the success of an orphan care ministry.  The great God of the universe, the Father to the fatherless, and the owner of all the resources on Earth (not to mention Earth itself) will guide you to break up more of the boulder that is the needs of the world’s orphans than you could possibly imagine.  Just move and see.

Thanks for reading,
Al

Friday Little Bits: 4 Ministry Updates

Hope for Haiti

Hope for Haiti continues to make progress.  Right now, through bracelet sales and contributions, we have raised $7,200 (23%) of our $35,000 goal.  Construction on the new House of Abraham has begun with work on the foundation.  Look for photos in the next few days on the Facebook page.

 

4theVoiceless Adoption Cookbook

We have received 37 recipes (9%) so far and have 363 to go.  Remember, profits from this cookbook will go toward the 4theVoiceless adoption fund to assist those adopting children.  If you haven’t submitted a recipe yet, would you please send us up to 10 of your best.  Click here for the form.
Categories:

Main Dishes
Breads
Side Dishes
Desserts
Starters/Appetizers
International Dishes
Soups/Salads
Crock Pot/Slow Cooker Recipes

Adoption Conference

I am looking forward to attending the Together for Adoption national conference near Atlanta with one of our other team members.  There are some great breakouts scheduled; we had a hard time choosing eight of them between us.  I look forward to reporting on what we learn.

Orphanology Study at CHC

Colonial Hills Church - Southaven will be offering a study of Orphanology, by Tony Merida and Rick Morton, as part of our equipping classes beginning September 26.  This is a great place to step in to orphan care ministry.  Along with many others, I have found this book to be a great blend of WHY we should do orphan care and HOW we can do orphan care.  Whether you are an attender at CHC or not, you are welcome to join us for this study on Wednesday nights at 6:30.

Thanks for reading,

Al

Friday Little Bits: Turbo Week

I have learned that in the early stages of a ministry like 4theVoiceless, much time is spent dreaming and planning.  Actual movement toward those dreams can be slow.  Not this week.  Someone must have hit the turbo button this week.  Here’s a quick update:

1.  As you have probably seen on our Facebook page, some big contributions gave a jump start to our Hope for Haiti campaign.  Between gifts to 4theVoiceless and IsleGo, over $7,000 was given toward the approximately $35,000 needed for the new House of Abraham.  Bracelet packets were sent out to six different ministry partners across the country.  We don’t know how, but we fully expect God to come through on behalf of these future leaders of Haiti.  It doesn’t stop us from being overwhelmed with joy as He does it, though!

2.  I had a chance to speak to a 6th grade English class this week about Hope for Haiti.  They had read a book about a kid getting a vision to build a deepwater well in Uganda and others coming alongside him to do it.  I had the opportunity to tell them about something like that going on real time, about Fenel Bruna’s vision to build leaders of integrity in Haiti, and about our efforts to help him to do it for the glory of God.  Imagine the teacher’s excitement when I came back for the afternoon class and reported a $7,000 increase in Hope for Haiti over the previous three hours!  The number one question that the students had:  How can I get involved?

3.  Recipes have begun to come in for the 4theVoiceless cookbook.  Sales of that cookbook will go toward our adoption fund, the major financial commitment of an orphan care ministry.  The cookbook will also raise awareness for the need for adoption through moving stories of adoption. We still need many, many more recipes, so click here to give us your best.

4.  A group of nine of us leave this afternoon for a weekend trip to the Baptist Children’s Village home in Star, Mississippi.  It is an all-guys (3 adults, 2 teenagers, 4 little guys) trip that’s sure to be entertaining; we look forward to having a great time serving the kids and those who care for them.  Please take a moment as you are reading this to pray for us.

Progress.  When you can feel God’s kingdom moving forward, it has been a good week. 

Thanks for reading.
Al