#AdoptionRocks

In honor of National Adoption Month, I am recycling a post I wrote 2 years ago after our church did a month long series on adoption. I wasn't a mother when I wrote it and reading back through this post, my heart is in such a different place today. Recognizing and truly believing that God didn't leave me as an orphan, that He adopted me into His family...how undeserving am I?! I pray that this post stirs your heart towards adoption, physical, and spiritual, and you are reminded of God's great love for you.

#adoptionrocks

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Friends, I invite you today to witness such precious moments between our friends Dennis and Carita as they see their son, Jacob, for the very first time. 

As you wipe away your tears, remember the look on Dennis' face when he sees Jacob. Carita's too. It's full of awe, excitement, anxiousness, relief, wonder, love, happiness. If a sinful father can look at his son the way Dennis looks at Jacob, imagine how our holy, perfect God looks at us, His children.

We had the honor of attending The Austin Stone last weekend where the pastor, Matt Carter, shared what the bible says about adoption, how he feels about adoption, and the Chen's story. Let me tell ya there wasn't a dry eye in the house. I was lucky enough to sit across the row from Jacob, who will be 2 in March who pointed at the screen saying "Baba" at his dad. The crowd giggled when the video showed his precious rolls in the bath and Jacob had no idea the impact he made on so many hearts, present at church and not. The Chen's were our neighbors for a year and we say all the time, they were an answered prayer. We'd longed and prayed for Christian friends, other couples to show us it was okay to be young and choose for your life to revolve around the gospel. But they taught us so much more...they taught us the beauty of adoption. 

James 1:27 says "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 doesn't make sense without recognizing that God adopted us into his family. He adopted us out of death and into His Kingdom of everlasting love and life, the greatest form of adoption there ever was. Worship in it's purest form is caring for orphans in the eyes of the Lord. Adoption shouldn't be our plan B if natural fertility doesn't work...we weren't God's plan B. Our Heavenly Father delights in our adoption of those orphans and widows, we are displaying the gospel of Jesus Christ.


I grew up knowing people who were adopted, including in my family, but never made the connection to God's adoption of His people. What greater gift have we received?! And how wonderful it is that we can spread that gift here on earth. Dennis and Carita have been such an inspiration to our marriage and future as parents. We have plans, but do they coincide with God's plans? God's plan wasn't meant to hurt the Chen's for years of infertility but His plan for them was Jacob, and this video, and sharing their devotion and trust in Christ with not only their church but beyond. I will always remember a story Carita told me about a nurse at their fertility clinic telling her she appreciated her smiles and positive attitudes, which were fueled by Christ. What a captivating way to share the gospel and the great name of Jesus? This family has given us full faith in one day we too, will become parents whether it be biologically, through adoption, or both. The Chen's never stopped listening and trusting the good Lord's plan. And after a second of meeting Jacob, you know they would have waited many more years for him. 

Jon and I are praying that we can obey the Lord's commands in James 1:27 and that our lives would be directly impacted through adoption. We aren't sure when, where, or how but I know we will never understand the depths of God's love for us until that day come. 

This is one of my favorite pictures of all time...me holding Jacob at his 1st birthday party where we got to see his adoption video for the first time. (look at those cheeks!)

Thank you for letting me share your story Chen family! We love you guys!
 

for more information on the Adopted series, visit this link.

  

Our Easter

Our family had an incredible Easter! Holidays seem a lot more fun and magical (as cheesy as that sounds) when babies are involved and this was the first holiday that I feel like Ford could actually participate in. He didn't hunt for eggs but he sure did love shaking them and going through the goodies in his TWO Easter baskets! One from us and one from Mimi and Papa. We spent a few days at my parents lakehouse where Ford got his toes in the sand and had lots of playtime with Embry and we came home Saturday night to get some rest for Sunday's festivities. 

Our church, The Austin Stone, relaunched their West campus which happens to be closer to our house on Sunday. Even though our previous campus felt like home, The Lord was calling us to the new campus and it was perfect. We will now be able to serve our community, invite neighbors to church with us, and "do life" with those around us. Worship kicked butt, we witnessed submersion baptisms, and the sermon knocked our socks off. Jon and I were both so glad that our pastor, Matt Carter, didn't preach on the traditional Easter story rather preached on our heavenly inheritance and the first chapter of the book of Ephesians. It gave us hope in knowing as hard as we try to be successful and provide for our family and Ford, those things fade. Our heavenly inheritance will never perish or spoil. Matt also shared that "The Holy Spirit is like a down payment for our heavenly inheritance". Truth! It is amazing to me that once I enter the Kingdom of Heaven, I am at the right hand of Jesus. I am one of God's saints!! If you'd like to listen to the sermon, you can find it here. Do it. 

Managed to only get a picture of our family on my iPhone

After Ford's nap we headed to a potluck lunch and egg hunt with friends from church. I realized I only really took pictures of my baby but we had so much fun with old friends, new friends, and about 6 babies to oogle over. Life is so sweet when lived in community. 
Ford's new smile...

Ford and Ethan...BFFs and 8 days apart

Hope you had a blessed Easter!

Ford's Dedication

Yesterday Ford was dedicated to the Austin Stone Community Church. Jon and I brought Ford before our church and promised to raise him up in the love and care of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In our faith, we believe in believers baptism, instead of infant baptism. We pray that one day in the future, Ford will ask Jesus into his heart and accept Him as his savior, on his own and participate in an immersion baptism. Jon and I took a class and formulated family goals, commitments and rhythms that will help us lead Ford in His walk with the Lord. We are blessed with such a supportive family, church family, and friends to encourage, love, and with our family. It was such a beautiful and special celebration!

“Hear, O Israel, The Lord our God, the Lord is one.  You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise." Deuteronomy 6:4-7

My mom had her wedding dress made into a dedication/Christening gown for her grandbabies so we got some pictures of Ford wearing it looking like a little prince!

Church took a lot out of Ford because he slept during the first few hours of his celebration party! We had friends and family over to our house for lunch and if you can believe it, we were sweating on our patio because it was 88 degrees!

Yes my baby was in a diaper outside in the middle of November...and he was still sweating!

From the second we announced our pregnancy, Ford has received so much love and so many prayers from all of you and we couldn't feel more blessed, thank you!

Wholehearted Prayer

A few weeks ago in church, a sermon on wholehearted prayer rocked my world. Prayer is something that is important in my life and pretty darn important in my marriage yet when I pull apart the pieces of my prayer life, I see so much slack and brokenness. There are few things that are more essential to knowing God than prayer. Prayer is such a sweet blessing given to us by God through Jesus Christ on the cross and allows our interaction with him to be more than just facts but a 2 way relationship.
But we struggle with it.
With struggle with having passion, zeal, consistency with prayer. Our prayers seem supernatural, uncomfortable, and unattainable. There are many nights where I lay in bed waiting to drift off to sleep and remember a few things I wanted to pray about so I give God 30 seconds and I'm out of words. It's easy for us to think that is enough for Him but do we half ass our conversations with our spouses? Do we check the boxes in our heads of things we want to share when talking with our closest friends and family? How quick and efficiently can I get this over with? That is what prayer is like to most, if not all, of us believers. 
Tyler, who spoke at The Stone, really opened my eyes when he said often ties we feel like we need (and deserve) a next step rather than bended knee. Jon and I were talking about this very thing last night. We want God to provide the good yet when there is pain in our lives, we demand immediate answers and satisfaction and blame Him for not providing that. Our will becomes more important than His. Tyler also spent a good chunk of time talking about the amazing miracles God performs through people who lack theology or the bible, but have wholehearted prayer. Wholehearted prayer moves God to do the impossible. 
Through studying the gospel of Mark (specifically Mark 11:22-25), we uncovered 3 ways we must submit to wholehearted prayer.
1. Our prayers must be to God- there is no power in positive thinking or mantras unless you are praying to God. I know there are whole books and lifestyles about how positive thinking can change lives and I am not saying that is wrong, but God wants you to stop relying on yourself and cry out to Him for help. Unfortunately there are even famous pastors who preach positive thinking being the key to success in life. We are missing out on the power of God. Everyday I fall victim to thinking about my prayers than avidly participating in a conversation with God. Someone on Twitter asks for prayer and I respond I will pray for them, yet am I taking the time to beg for mercy on their lives and in their hearts? Is my heart in the prayer?

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2. Our prayers are through Jesus- because of the cross of Christ, we have full access to God. So when we pray, it's as if Jesus is praying to the Father. What a precious gift that we don't deserve! 
3. Our prayers must have faith- our prayers move God to act when we actually believe He can. The thing about our God is He is omniscient...sometimes that's easy for us to forget when we continue to sin and try to hide things from Him. God wants our hearts to be in it! 
"You desire but do not have because you did not ask God" -James 4:2
The fact that sat with me the most, and continues to weigh on my heart is that halfhearted prayers do not honor God. I give me all to my job, my friendships, my marriage, yet I can't give it all to the one who gave me everlasting life and freedom? One of the most amazing thing about our God is that through His sovereignty, He allows our prayers to play an active role in His will. He will be done, but He isn't the puppeteer of your life. Prayers are the means to the end, which is His will. The hard thing to remember and accept is He does say no to prayers. Even Jesus, who lived 33 years without sin, heard no from God (Mark 14:35-36 Jesus knows of the horrific death he is about to die and asks if it is God's will, for it to pass him). And because God told Jesus no, you and I are made blameless before the throne. Now that is some powerful stuff. Think back to the times you've heard no from God and connect the dots to the doors He's opened. He is good, His providence is incredible, and He has the power to do the impossible. 
This sermon was a lot for me to take in and just because I heard it doesn't mean my prayer life has ultimately changed and I do not struggle. This sermon opened my eyes to the areas that need improving, helping foster such a deeper relationship with The Lord in just 2 weeks. I find myself using the following phrase so much more, knowing that 2,000 years ago, Jesus said these very words. "Not what I will Lord, but what You will". I know I will never take the selfishness out of my life and my prayer but truly trusting that His will is greater, more powerful, more thought out, more precious, than mine, is a start. 
Jesus is better than any answered prayer, amen?
Wholehearted Prayer Tyler David, The Austin Stone May 5th, 2013

Why did Jesus have to die?

A few weeks ago we were studying the gospel of Mark at church and our pastor addressed a question that has been in the top 3 of the most asked theological questions in his time of ministry. Why did Jesus have to die?

If you are a believer or even remotely familiar with the story of Jesus and salvation, you'd know that Adam and Eve broke a promise to God in the Garden of Eden and thus, a barrier was created between us and God and sin entered the world. Many years later, God himself left heaven to become fully man and die to pay for that sin. But why? The easy answer is in order to reconcile us back to God. Again, why? Why couldn't God forgive us? Why couldn't He move past Adam and Eve’s sin and move on. Why did Jesus have to come from heaven and die the most brutal death on the cross? Jesus won through losing his life. He defeated evil through his suffering. But why did he have to suffer?
In Mark 8:27-31, Jesus tells his disciples that he must suffer, must be killed, and must rise again to save us. He doesn't say he is going to die and suffer, he says he has to. 
Anytime someone wrongs someone else, a debt is incurred, and for forgiveness to happen, someone has to pay. Matt made a great example. You are having a party at your house and a friend breaks your favorite lamp, even if it was an accident, he has wronged you and now a debt is incurred. Your favorite lamp cost you $100 so you either say 'hey buddy give me a Benjamin' or you absorb the debt. Day after day we continue to wrong God and fall short of His through our sin. Lying, cheating, stealing, lustful thoughts, blasphemy, idolatry. We can't escape it. The debt that is incurred when we sin is death (Romans 6:23, for the wages of sin are death) and it has to be paid. And because of the authority of God, it is an eternal death. For better explanation, think of it this way...
Everyone in this world has lied. And most of us do it on a daily basis, if not multiple times a day. We wrong someone with our lie and the debt incurred is based on the authority of the person we wrong. 
1. If we lie to our friend, we may lose the friendship. Sad but the world goes on right? 2. If we lie to our boss, we may lose our job. A little more serious considering your job most likely feeds your family, pays your bills, etc. 3. If we lie to the government (treason, etc), we may spend time in prison because the authority of the government is that much stronger than the authority of a friend or our workplace. 4. If we lie to God, we must suffer an eternal death...
But wait! This is where Calvary completes the story. When we sinned, God had the choice to make us pay and die yet he so humbly sent His son Jesus to die in our place, giving us hope and eternal life in our Lord God. Is that the best news you've ever heard?! Can you rejoice with me knowing that if it weren't for Jesus, our sin would keep us in bondage and separate us from God's holiness eternally? 
"He died because God so loved the world"- John 3:16
Jesus died to pay for your sin and the debt you incurred against God. Friends, we are righteous and completely made new and holy because Jesus died the death that was meant for us. The moment he took his last breath the veil was ton and there is no longer separation between us and God. And that's why Jesus had to die.
Why Did Jesus Have to Die?- Matt Carter, The Austin Stone

Work

Our church just finished up a 4 part series called "The Gospel &". Different pastors dug into worldy issues and opened our eyes to what the gospel says about certain topics. Sometimes it's hard for us as humans to look at a situation and say "well what does this have to do with Jesus and the gospel?". I am a repeat offender when the answer is in plain sight. I am punching the keys on my laptop right now because the son of God shed blood for my life and my freedom. I owe thanks for everything to Him... that is the connection! The Good News.

I wanted to highlight a few points from each sermon and share my thoughts on how powerful these were in my life but my notes are lost in a sea of baby brain, nesting projects, traveling, and more. So today I wanted to share a little about my reaction to the sermon on work. The gospel says to go out into all nations and make disciples, right?

The Austin Stone, The Gospel & Series
The Gospel & Depression
The Gospel & Sex
The Gospel & Money
The Gospel & Work

In my life, work is something that I take very seriously but I don't find my identity in it. I love seeing people who are so passionate (and have always been passionate) about their line of work, my husband included. Now you may be confused because Jon sells IT management software. How is he passionate about security monitoring and netflow? He is passionate about it because it is a calling from the Lord. Now I don't think the Lord will say to Jon at the pearly gates at the end of his human life and say, "Well done good and faithful servant, you sold millions of dollars worth of software to prevent network crashes and security breaches." But I think I have an idea what He will say. Jon gets to spend everyday interacting with people, connecting on much more than a professional level, to really understand their needs. Not a week goes by that he doesn't come home excited to share how God encouraged him to talk to a certain customer about his family or ask him more when a partner mentioned church. Unfortunately Jon can't go out and preach the gospel at his business meetings but boy does God have a way of allowing Jon to share the good news!! I used to be envious of this because I never felt my job gave me as much spiritual fulfillment as Jon's but I know my job isn't my ultimate calling. Don't get me wrong... I like my job... actually I like it a lot, but I know it is not my destiny. And I have a feeling God will reveal my ultimate calling in August when our baby is born. 

As a fellow 20 something, I look around and see identity crisis' happening everywhere around me. Friends who are 5 years out of college and haven't chosen a career path. Or friends who are 30 years old and can't seem to move on from their pasts to start living their lives in the present. Some of us are luckier than others, some of us are revealed our callings and identities much sooner than others. 

Determining your calling is a gradual process that takes place over time. Creation. Fall. Resurrection. Restoration. Redemption. 

Our pastor talked a lot about Jesus' work during this sermon. It is hard to forget that before Jesus went into ministry, he was a blue collar carpenter for 20 years! Do you ever feel under paid or under appreciated in your work? Look to Jesus. He was the most underpaid and under appreciated yet He remained faithful to joy and service. And  if the King of Kings can leave His throne to work as a lowly carpenter, we can get up off the couch and work, right? Amen?

The Lord calls us to work, but we are not to be defined by our work. We all know life is hard. It is unfair, uneasy, expensive, exhausting. But as Christ followers we can work hard when no one else can because we have the ultimate inheritance coming to us... we have the gospel! The gospel is absolute power to those who believe. 

So whether you are 45 years old and stuck in a mundane job you hate or are 15 years old and trying to discover your true talents and identity, reach for the gospel. The gospel applies to everything in our lives. 

How to Forgive

The day before the Sandy Hook shootings I shared about a sermon in church on forgiveness and what the bible says about it for believers. My world was rocked re-reading it in light of the tragedy. Yesterday morning we finished up the 2 part series and our pastor outlined 3 things that must happen in your heart for you to be able to forgive. I recommend reading last week's post before finishing this one, and I pray that it brings you some sort of healing or comfort. 

1. We have to get to a place where forgiveness is not a choice but biblical obedience

• As Christ followers we are commanded by the Lord to forgive in many parts of the bible. We are obeying God and not choosing to forgive when the circumstances are "good" for us
• Colossians 3:12-13- forgive as He forgave you. AMEN!
• If we are stuck in a place where we can't forgive, then we don't understand the depth of the forgiveness God gave us through His son Jesus Christ (and this should scare us to death!). If you are a child of God and can't forgive, you are waling in open sin and rebellion.

2. We must trust in the sovereignty of God

• Wow. Why is this so hard at times? Knowing that Romans 8:28 stands true in triumph and in tragedy  He makes all things work together for our good. If you don't believe that, then you will not be able to forgive. 
• Our pastor shared the story of Joseph and his coat. If you aren't familiar, Joseph was his father's favorite and gifted a beautiful coat that just lit his brothers on fire. They stole it and sold him into slavery. God raised up Joseph to be a powerful ruler and when his brothers come to beg for forgiveness, Joseph reminds them that he knows what they did was meant for evil, but God meant it for good (read Genesis 16-20). 
• Think of Jesus on his final day here on earth- betrayed by his own disciple and friend, wronged, and slaughtered on a cross. As he hung there on the cross, looking at all the people who had wronged him, he asked his father to forgive them. Because our God is sovereign. Jesus was absolutely innocent and blameless yet he obeyed the word of the Lord. (read 1 Peter 2:21-23).

3. You have to believe the gospel and make it the primary purpose for your forgiveness

• This point just rocked me to the core and I realized I had been disobeying the Lord with the drivers of my forgiveness.
• Matt told a story about a young woman whose husband had cheated on her. The next week she was in Sunday school with another woman, older than she, whose husband had cheated on her and caused her to be a bitter old lady. That night, the young woman went home and forgave her husband because she didn't want to end up bitter. Isn't this something we all fall victim to? I forgive someone to keep the peace. Or I forgive because it would be awkward to see that person if I didn't. Or I forgive because it's my husbands family and I feel like I need to. But I am commanded to forgive because I have been forgiven fully in Christ!
• Often times we forgive undeserving people yet who are we to judge when we are forgiven 7 times 70 times by the one who was slain for us? We are undeserving of the forgiveness that was given on the cross.
• Romans 6:23- For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord
• Now this part just made the hair on the back of my neck stand. It was our sin that killed the son of God, yet He forgave. And someday, I imagine not any time soon, those families of the children who bravely lost their lives, will forgive, because in Christ, they were forgiven and made blameless in the eyes of God. As I try to wrap my mind around this, what it would be like to lose a skinned knee, question asking, toothless little child, I shake my head and say I couldn't do it. No! But hearing Matt reinforce the seriousness of the forgiveness we were given as a free gift, it gave me hope. It will take time, tears, grieving, anger, law suits, and stuff I hope I never have to experience, but I pray that those families can see the sovereignty, goodness, faithfulness, and forgiveness of our mighty God.

I am turning comments off today and I ask in place of a comment, you pray for the families who lost sons, daughters, wives, friends....that again they can see the Lord in this awful tragedy and may cling to what is good. One of my prayers today is that I could be as brave and passionate about my life and what I stand for as some of those young teachers who lost their lives. 

To listen to the entire series on Forgiveness by Matt Carter, please visit The Austin Stone.

Guilty

We've been studying in the Gospel of Mark at church and last week hit me like a ton of bricks. The topic was "Sustainer of Faith" and we took a deeper look into Mark 8:1-26. The major theme was God finishing what He starts in His children. This isn't just portrayed in Mark but throughout the whole bible, both Old and New Testament (examples Jude 1:24 "He will keep you from stumbling" and Phil 1:6 "He will complete it!").

The thing that hit me was reading the story about the disciples pretty much judging the Pharisees in 8:15. The disciples were dilly dallying around and worrying about  how little food they had. Jesus was appalled! He basically said guys! How many times do I have to turn 2 loaves into 200 or 5 fish into 500? They had witnessed the miraculous work of Jesus on many occasions yet still couldn't put their full trust in Him. Jesus told them to "watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees". The disciples are no different than the Pharisees, who demanded signs that Jesus was the Son of God, day after day. "Leaven (yeast) is in our hearts". The discples wanted to put themselves on this pedestal and declare that they were so much better than the Pharisees, yet they were no better. Isn't that the awful truth? We call others "the worst" because w don't want the bad guys to look like us. Yet we are capable of the exact same sin. We aren't the good guys. The disciples aren't the good guys. Jesus is the good guy!

I think you can agree with me that we often think criminals/robbers/sinners/etc are terrible people and tend to demonize them and raise ourselves up a little bit. Well hey, I am not murdering people, stealing money, cheating on my spouse...so I am doing okay right?! But as humans, as sinful children of God, we need to be aware of what we are capable of. 

Can I get an AMEN?!

And it doesn't have to always be the extreme cases. How many times as a believer have you thought to yourself, 'well I went to church, she didn't, I am doing better.' or when it comes to tithing, bible studies, ministry, missions, serving, worshiping. We all fall victim. We all fall short to the glory of God. 

And back to demanding signs from God. I know we are always a victim of this. In fact, one of my favorite morning show hosts announced that he prayed to win the Powerball and it was God's time to show him that He existed. What?! These words from our pastor stuck with me like glue...

"...if you demand signs, you've fallen short of the glory you've been given and still owe your debt to God"

Isn't that what faith is all about? Knowing God has an omnipresence and believing in Him without manifest presence like Moses on the hill? Just because God doesn't part the sea of cars on I35 at rush hour for you or doesn't bring you a spouse at the ripe old age of 25, doesn't mean He doesn't exist, care, or is working hard in your life. Show me a sign God! How many times have I prayed that prayer? I know a hell of a lot more times than I've simply thanked God for the opportunity to be in relationship and community with Him. Or simply been still with Him. 

God will finish the work He began in His children. Hold fast to this friends. His work in you is not done...

Inspired by Tyler David's sermon, Sustainer of Faith, Austin Stone