A Note to OHOH Families

We want you all to be a part of this blog! It is always an encouragement to others to hear how the Lord is using your journey to adoption or fostering and we desire to give you a place to share.

If you would like to share something that the Lord is teaching you or a way He is growing you as you go through the steps to bring home a child we'd love for you to do that. You can send your blog entry to Amy or Monica via email and we will post it on the ministry's blog. If you don't have contact info for Amy/Monica please click on "comment" at the bottom of this entry and leave us a note and we will get that information to you.

Also, if you have a question about adoption/fostering or know of something you think would be helpful to other families to include here please let us know. (We are far from experts but we will search for the answer.)

It is a joy to serve the Lord through this ministry and we continue to be amazed as the Lord opens hearts for these children.

Are You Ready to Adopt?

You may be finding yourself drawn to orphan ministry but are not really sure exactly how to respond. There are many ways to care for orphans. Praying for the orphans that the Lord brings to your attention is one way or financially helping a family that is adopting is another. Providing respite care for a new foster or adoptive family is yet another. Maybe your role with the orphan is a short-term (or long-term) mission trip to an orphanage overseas. Perhaps collecting supplies for an organization that works with orphans that are not necessarily adoptable is your calling. The opportunities are great and come in all shapes and sizes!

The Open Hearts, Open Homes Ministry recommends our Adoption Bible Study as a first step. We have offered the study twice a year, spring and fall, for the last three years. Pastor Daniel has put together a great study of God's Word on the subject of the orphan. This is truly a Bible study that helps us to see the Lord's heart for the disenfranchised (that is my newest big word).
Whether your mind is made up or you just have a fringe interest we'd love for you to hear what the Bible has to say about reaching out to those that are without a family.

If you are wondering if you are ready to adopt I recently came across a very good guide on how to adopt and I thought it would be good to share it. The following is an excerpt from Shaohannah's Hope "Your Adoption Guide" (http://howtoadopt.org/).

Conduct a Self-Assessment

The self-assessment is the best way to find out if you are ready to adopt. Ask yourselves the following questions:

Do you clearly understand why you want to adopt?

Are both parents committed to adoption?

Does your lifestyle allow you the time necessary to meet the needs of the child you are seeking to adopt?

How will adoption change the dynamics of your family and do you have what you need to make it work?

Do you have deeper issues in your marriage which you are hoping the adoption will help with?

Do you realize that the notion of saving an orphan and their gratitude to you for doing so is not a foundational reason on which to base an adoption? Yes, in many senses, adoption can and does save orphans from ill fates; however, expecting regular expressions of gratitude from your adopted children would be like expecting biological children to live in a constant state of gratitude for and towards their biological parents.

Do you have support from your nucleus family?

Are you called to provide/care for orphans in other ways?

Finally, do you possess these needed characteristics?

Perseverance and patience; nearly all adoptions involve a significant "waiting" period(s) in the adoption process.

The ability to accept without judging, and to love unconditionally;

Awareness that healing doesn't always come quickly; once the child has arrived there is usually an adjustment period. (with an older child there is often a testing period — the child will want to know if your love is unconditional.)

Willingness to learn new things;

A belief in adoption and ability to commit;

Open to dealing with the child's issues as if the child was a birth child — adoption is forever and adopted children must be treated as equal to biological children;

Resourcefulness.

Please know that when you adopt, you are not only providing love and a home, you are also sharing your values with a child. An examination of your belief system can help you define your own needs and be aware of your expectations.

Parenting skills are essential to successful adoptions. If you are a first time parents, and particularly if you are adopting an older children, parenting classes are worth considering.

You can read the entire guide at http://howtoadopt.org/ and click on the "Your Adoption Guide" button. This entire site is a great resource for those desiring more information on adoption.

The Robertson Family

We are Evan and Emily Robertson. We recently brought home our 17 month old son from Vietnam. Evan is actually the one that first brought up adoption. Shortly after our first son was born, he began to bring up his desire to adopt our next child. I (Emily) was closed to the idea at first. After Evan brought it up some more, we began to seek the Lord through His Word and through much time in prayer. It was through God's Word and time on our knees that the Lord turned my heart 180 degrees. My heart began to understand that I was adopted by God through Jesus' death on the cross. I am now a child of God through adoption. The Lord also opened our eyes to His heart for the orphan. We saw in the Bible that God cares so deeply for the fatherless. Our hearts became more and more burdened as we realized what the Lord was calling us to. We researched adoption and prayed over our decisions for over a year before actually beginning the process. The Open Hearts Open Homes ministry began just shortly after we began the adoption process. As we bathed all of our decisions in prayer, we narrowed our country choice down to Vietnam mainly through the process of elimination. We felt strongly that the Lord was leading us to international adoption, and each country has different requirements and costs. We officially began the paper work process in September of 2006, and we brought our sweet Josiah home on February 17th, 2009. It was a long and hard process and there were many tears shed along the way, but we can honestly say that it was all worth it! We would go through all of it again for this precious child if we had to! Our hearts have been changes in many ways through this process, and we will prayerfully consider doing it again in the future. Currently adoptions are closed between Vietnam and the US. We are praying that they can come to an agreement, so that more of those precious children can find loving Christian homes!

The Park Family

We are Ken and Amy and this is our crew: Allison, Joel, Daniel, Natalie, Molly, Brandon, and Nathan. We began our journey about 13 years ago when we became foster parents. The Lord had placed on our hearts the desire to adopt, we pursued this originally through foster care. We had envisioned being a family that had many foster children coming and going, but that was not God's plan. We have had four foster children over time and three of them have become permanent members of our family.

Thinking that our quiver was full with six children we became involved in this orphan ministry. As we prepared to go on a short term mission trip to Guatemala in 2007 the Lord opened our eyes and our hearts to the need of children around the world. The Lord used that information to prepare our hearts for Nathan who came home this past summer from Guatemala.

We are both in awe and humbled by the way the Lord has put our family together. Our plan did not look like His plan for us but His plan is perfect. We are excited to see our children growing in their understanding of who God is.

We are excited to be a part of Open Hearts, Open Homes Ministry and to watch as the Lord works in the heart of His church on behalf of the orphan.

"And whoever welcomes a child like this in my name welcomes me." Matthew 18:5

The Rinkenberger Family

We are Scott and Heidi Rinkenberger. We have three biological children: boy-6, girl-5, and boy-almost three. We are in the process of adopting two one-year-olds (one girl and one boy) from Ethiopia. We started the process in Feb. of 08 with Christian World Adoption, and hope to bring them home this Spring. Adoption has been a streaching and humbling experience. It has been filled with emotional highs and lows. But, as I look back at the last year I can see God's fingerprints on what has happened, and I am thankful to be where we are. We are very ready to have them come home!!! As for why we chose to adopt, we got to a point where it was obvious that God was calling us to it. There are so many kids who need a home, and we have been given so much. We love being parents, and feel so incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to raise the ones God gives us- biologically or through the miracle of adoption.

Steven Curtis Chapman Adoption Testimony

In 2002 Steven Curtis Chapman shared their adoption testimony. They have since adopted two more little girls from China (total of 3), though their little girl Maria went home to be with the Lord last year.

Adoption is Greater than the Universe

(I apologize to Pastor Daniel's blog followers for the repeat of this video. I think you will find it worth watching again.)