Build Your Kingdom Here

Okay...I don't mean to sound like a music snob, but I am pretty particular about the music I listen to. As a result, I have a hard time finding Christian music that I truly enjoy so when I find something, I like to pass it along for those of you in the same boat. This song actually came on the radio and then I came home and listened to it again. I love the message! Here are the lyrics: 

Come set Your rule and reign
In our hearts again
Increase in us we pray
Unveil why we're made
Come set our hearts ablaze with hope
Like wildfire in our very souls
Holy Spirit come invade us now
We are Your Church
We need Your power
In us

We seek Your kingdom first
We hunger and we thirst
Refuse to waste our lives
For You're our joy and prize
To see the captive hearts released
The hurt; the sick; the poor at peace
We lay down our lives for Heaven's cause
We are Your church
We pray revive
This Earth

Build Your kingdom here
Let the darkness fear
Show Your mighty hand
Heal our streets and land
Set Your church on fire
Win this nation back
Change the atmosphere
Build Your kingdom here
We pray

Unleash Your kingdom's power
Reaching the near and far
No force of hell can stop
Your beauty changing hearts
You made us for much more than this
Awake the kingdom seed in us
Fill us with the strength and love of Christ
We are Your church
We are the hope 
On Earth

Another Home Study Visit

Last Thursday we had another home study visit. This time it wasn't actually at our home, but in the Lifeline office in Huntsville, AL. Prior to this visit Dan and I had to complete a VERY extensive autobiography that included everything from our relationship to our parents when we were young to our marriage life. There were questions like: How did your parents show affection to you and your siblings? What were your hobbies, interests, activities in high school? What are the emotional roles in your marriage? The list goes on and on and on and on. While it was very time consuming to complete I understand why they want us to provide that information. They need to get to know us and understand us as best they can. Like I said before, it seems as though they want to be able to help with any issues that need addressing not try to uncover things that deem us unfit for adoption. Our visit went great! We could not be more pleased to have the social worker we were assigned. She has made us feel very comfortable throughout the entire process.

Our next scheduled visit is July 1st. This one will be in our home and our children will be present so our social worker can watch us interact as a family. Before that visit we have to complete a set of discussion questions as well as a transracial exercise. We are also to be working on all the education pieces they have for us including: reading a book called The Connected Child,   reading quite a bit of information on Ethiopia itself, reading some information on our agencies (un)Adopted program, and completing a 10+ hour Hague training. We are almost finished with all the education already, which is great!

In other news....Thanks to Aly (http://erpbyalyson.com/blog/) I have new portraits of my three girls!!! Could not be more excited! Here are a few....

A Child's Eyes

The girls and I were listening to Ethiopian music today, during one of our dance parties, and images of the musicians were pictured while the songs were playing. My middle daughter, Lilly Jane, commented how one of the artists looked just like one of our family friends. The family friend I am referring to is white, while of course the Ethiopian singer was black. The funny thing is at closer inspection he did look very similar to our friend.

I love seeing things through the eyes of a child. To them the color of someone's skin is irrelevant. It is just another trait like blonde hair versus red hair, blue eyes versus brown eyes, or being short versus being tall. My prayer is that as my children get older they will maintain this same viewpoint, that skin color won't matter to them. Of course they will see color, we all do just like we notice if someone is short or tall, but it shouldn't effect how we view someone or how we treat them. I pray that having a little brother who has a different color skin will help them to view people in that manner and that not only will they be able to see beyond race but beyond social status, intelligence, etc. I want them to learn to love all people which is what Jesus himself commanded of us. 

"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." John 13:34-35

We are all created in God's image, each and everyone one of us no matter how different we are and we are all worthy to be loved. 

So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Genesis 1:27

God loves us exactly how we are and we need to learn to do the same. I pray that as our family becomes multiracial in the near future that we will help to break down some of the racial barriers in our community. That our children will learn to treat all people with love and that we will show others how to do the same. This is just one of the many things I am excited about as we move forward with our adoption process! 

...and of course I can't post anything without including a few pictures of the kids....