Just a couple of days ago, when it looked like our FSP on Reece’s Rainbow would never see any movement, I revised our “fully funded” amount to just $7,000. Honestly, I knew we needed more than that, but I couldn’t bear to watch us struggle for help from others any more than that. It was bad enough to ask for help at all! While we have never been against fundraising for adoption and have always enjoyed helping others, we completed most of our 8 adoptions on our own without help.
The unfortunate part about funding so many adoptions on our own without help is that we still carry A LOT of debt from those adoptions. Getting another adoption loan just wouldn’t be an option this time. The only way we could bring Jacob home to be our son, to reunite him with Hannah to be siblings forever, would be to ask others for help. We prayed people would see Hannah and Jacob’s story and want to be a part of it.
We were so thankful to those that helped us, but as of a few days ago we were pretty sure those who wanted to help had already done so. While I knew this put us in a more difficult position financially than we had hoped for with this adoption, this biggest disappointment was not financial but rather emotional.
We have been an active part of the adoption community for over a decade. We have rallied around others needing help with their adoptions, even while we struggled to pay for our own. We have donated, we have advocated, and we have prayed for other adopting families and orphans. In fact, in January when we got our tax statement for our donations to Reece’s Rainbow last year it was a bit surprising to see just how much we donated in a year in which we were adopting ourselves. We have also been very strong advocates for the Reece’s Rainbow 5/5/5 program, literally begging people every month to sign up for this great program, and I know we have helped that program grow substantially, a program that helps 60 families each year.
We have helped a lot of people in a lot of ways, and while doing so we have seen the adoption community come together countless times to help people get their children home. While we found it hard to humble ourselves enough to ask for help, at the same time we knew we would need it to get Jacob home. We knew we could give Jacob the love and care he needed if we could get him home, but with his adoption being our 8th special needs adoption it would take a village not to raise him but just to get him home!
Almost 2 weeks ago the “Anonymous Angels” group blessed us with a $300 matching grant. If we could get others to donate $300, they would then match it with another $300. We struggled for nearly 2 weeks to finally get just $300 in our account. I felt like giving up, which is why I revised our “fully funded” amount to $7,000. I was depressed. I didn’t understand why the community we had long supported didn’t want to be a part of Jacob and Hannah’s story. I also struggled with the idea of pulling away from the community for awhile after our adoption. We’d still donate to others, but I wasn’t sure I could be as heavily involved as before. My spirit was broken.
Then yesterday.
Yesterday our internet was out.
I didn’t have high hopes for our FSP. I had given up.
Then late in the evening a text from a friend came through on my phone that barely works, sometimes, only barely. The community had finally come together to support us!
I. Could. Not. Believe. It.
I had given up, but it was not over yet. I was in shock once I finally got to look at our FSP account today. We reached that $7,000 and kept going!!!
God knew our need was over $7,000. I gave up, but He didn’t! And neither did the adoption community. And neither have our friends and family.
If you are one of those who have helped to get Jacob home, whether it be donating to our FSP, supporting one of our fundraisers, sharing our fundraising links, and/or praying for us THANK YOU!!!!!
My spirit has been revived. I am no longer depressed - I am in awe!!!!
My desire to help others has only grown greater as the help we have been given has grown greater than I dared to hope.
I am determined to see the 5/5/5 program grow to over $10,000 a month, and my ultimate goal for it is $50,000 a month! That probably sounds crazy and seems impossible, but friends, NOTHING is impossible with God!!!
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:19
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throuhgout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen. -Ephesians 3:20-21
For some reason, I can't get the blog to upload any pictures. All my computer problems would happen while my husband is out of the country! If I can ever get it to work I will revise this post with pictures. Jacob is now in his Daddy's arms, and we can't wait for them to arrive home! Click here to see our FSP.
No comments:
Post a Comment