"Joyfully" blessed today!

Just had to share this video with you! Our precious JoyAnna has been home for 15 months now! Here is a side by side photo of her. On the left in the orphanage and on the right from last week!

This little gal has been through soooooo much! Unnecesary surgeries, tied to a crib, infrequent human interaction. 

The difference is astounding!

This video is from this morning:

Are you interested in helping us to make this kind of difference in the life of another little girl?? Check out the side of the blog. There are MANY ways to help!!! 

Thank you! To God be the Glory! 

I Got Mail!!!

Yesterday was a very hard day on many levels. VERY hard. Some days are just like that. That's the reality of my life here. 

But you know what?? God knows ALL of that, and His Grace is sufficient for me, and His power is made perfect in my weakness! 

And so I brought my weary body to my bed last night finally around 11:30 and found this card on my pillow. 

It's from my 16 year old daughter Elisha. We rescued Elisha from foster care when she was 10. She and her twin brother. She is an amazing young woman! She has an incredible gift of encouragement. You can ask so many people about that! She has over 35 penpals! Let me share with you what this card says:  On the front it says:  Praying for you, and then it says:  Sometimes it's hard to understand why God allows us to go through certain situations...

On the inside it says:  Dear Mom, I was just wanting you to know I'm praying for you. I was also just realizing how MANY things you do each and every day to keep this place running smoothly. So many things you do that go unnoticed, or unrealized. You are an amazing Mom. I honestly coudn't and wouldn't ask for another one! You've done so much to invest in my life. And not just my life...All of us! And you don't just teach me daily chores and things! You also instill in me Biblical character and qualities that'll last forever!! I'm so thankful for you and all that you've done to invest in me! I love you so much Mom! May the Lord richly bless you as you seek to serve, honor, and glorify Him! 

Little is Much when God is in it! I love you! Elisha Winslow

printed on the inside of the card is:  but please remember that no matter what, God is there with you through it all and that others who care are keeping you in their prayers!

Bible verse:  "Call unto Me, and I will answer thee and shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not!" Jeremiah 33:3

Of course I cried buckets, got down on my knees and thanked my God for giving us Elisha, and then went upstairs and woke her up to hug her and thank her! 

What a blessing! 

These Are The Heroes!

These are the heroes...

Just ordinary people....

Lying down their lives 

like angels in disguise.

They're weak but ALWAYS willing...

They dare to do the hard things...

And in the dark and desperate places

NO ONE else goes....

You'll find the heroes. 

These photos represent the real heroes! Let's love them, and support them! 

Want to know more? Want to help?

Help the Horton Family as they rescue their Victoria on in a few short weeks! 

They have a GREAT need! They need about $7,000.00 more to be fully funded! Their support page needs to read $25,000.00!

We can do this! I know we can! Let's be the hands and feet of Jesus and truly help this orphan in her distress! Please also pray without ceasing!

Thank you Lowman Family! Our new prayer warriors!

Rainbow Family Warrior for the Winslow Family

See this big ole family....they are our dear friends in
Real Life.

Doing life with this gang is always part of OUR
 adventure....
their daughter Grace teaches piano to our kiddos,
 some of their
daughters run Bright Lights that our daughter
Kiara is a part of,
camping trips, Alert Cadet trios together,
retreats, and even home
 school days together.  But.....
the coolest thing about their family
and ours is our LOVE for Jesus
and the Orphan!

Our journey began around those last two 
things and we have walked
 along side their family through 
all of their adoptions....
it has been fun to see them
 grow in size as well as experienc

What does that mean?

Our job is to support them in prayer...
.we are working 
on a prayer team right now to lift up their 
needs as they come in.

They have stepped up to bring 

home this little sweetheart

 and make her a part of their family.

We thought it would be fun to step up 
for them to be 
their Reece's Rainbow
 Family Warriors....

What does that mean?

Our job is to support them 
in prayer....we are working 
on a prayer team right now to 
lift up their needs as they come in.

We also put their financial needs out there....
did you see their blog?  
They have a matching grant 
right now from LifeSong...
.it needs some boosting folks!  
There is a deadline on that..
.what a GREAT 
way to double your money ...
more bang for your buck!

We are also working on a fund raiser.
...look for that soon.  

Check out their blog at .
winslowsix.blogspot.com

So....check back often for
the latest and greatest on this
 new endeavor at our home ....
so excited for the
Winslow Gang and their new sweetheart..
..oh, and
I thought I would add this
 photo from our camping trip
together this summer at Moosehillock in NH.

WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO??

Got this note today from my friend Elizabeth in Texas: 

This evening I got a phone call that changed my life. My sweet, precious Heavenleigh is dancing with Jesus. My heart is shattered, but she is whole and so very loved.

Last night, I posted a question about her on a baby wearing Facebook page, and since, my blog has had over 15,000 views. People saw my baby. People saw the darkness. 

She is a world changer and I am so very thankful for her.

I love you, baby girl.

Dear friends....she was in the same orphanage as our Zoey and our JoyAnna. Please read what another adoptive friend has said...it's the truth:

Heavenleigh died.

Unless you are part of a very small group of people, this probably doesn’t mean anything to you.

Heavenleigh died never knowing the love of a Mom or Dad. She died alone, without the comfort of a family, or a circle around her of friends and loved ones. No one ever got to tell her that someone, somewhere loved her so much that they were coming to take her home, forever.

The saddest part might be that there was a family desperately working to get to her in time, but that the process and the finances got in the way. Elizabeth Sherley and her family did everything in their power to bring her home in time, and are heartbroken at her loss. 

But I don't let this affect me. I’m too good at shutting things out to let it. I just do the same thing as everyone else – focus on the rest of my life: my family, my work, my hobbies. Because I know that if I think too much about all the children in need it will make me upset, and there’s no way to do anything about it anyway, because there are just too many of them. Besides, I’m too young to adopt, I can’t afford it, I don’t know anything about kids and I definitely don’t have time to take care of a kid.

At least, those were my excuses, but then I’ll also be the first person to tell you that I am a selfish, egotistical, arrogant jerk. I have a temper, I have a drinking problem and I have serious issues with authority. But none of those things disqualify me in God’s eyes from doing what he has called us all to do.

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27 NIV

Please, please don’t think that I am trying to hold myself up as an example of someone who is getting it “right.” The point that I’m trying to make is that if someone as screwed up as me could try get half of the first part of this verse right, then just about anyone could do even better than me.

To backtrack a little: there are too many. Way too many. Some estimates are that there are 130 million or more orphans in the world right now. So go ahead and insert your own Mother Theresa or Gandhi quote here, because we’ve all heard them. But it’s as simple as this: if it were your child, or your nephew or grandchild, wouldn’t you want someone to help them? Wouldn’t you give everything you had to keep them healthy, safe and feeling loved?

Heavenleigh didn’t die from medical complications, a disease or a chronic condition – she died from starvation and neglect, in an orphanage. She was 5 years old and weighed 10 pounds. 

Orphanages are not acceptable homes for children. They’re not a safe place for them to wait for years and years. They should be a temporary place for a couple of kids to be cared for and loved while their families book their flights to come get them. 

5 years old. 10 pounds. 

This needs to end. 

Get involved: Adopt. If you can’t adopt, Foster. If you can’t Foster, Sponsor. If you can’t Sponsor, Volunteer. If you can’t Volunteer, Donate. If you can’t donate, Educate.

This is a picture of my daughter Nicole when she first came to our home. She was 5 years old! She was 50 lbs! NOT 10 pounds! 

Dear, dear, friends...this is real...this is true...WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?? YOU NOW KNOW THE TRUTH AND YOU CAN NOT HIDE FROM IT ANY LONGER!!! WHAT, WHAT, WHAT, WHAT, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?????? This is National Adoption Month!!! 

DO SOMETHING!! DO IT NOW!!!!