Introducing Orphan's Ransom!

The Children Pray...
O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?
Psalm 123:1 (NLT)


The Lord's Reply...
My mercy and justice are coming soon. My salvation is on the way. My strong arm will bring justice to the nations. All distant lands will look to me and wait in hope for my powerful arm.
Isaiah 51:5 (NLT)

Our Call...
“Anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not only me but also my Father who sent me.”
Mark 9:37


I must admit I was disappointed to not be able to attend the Orphan's summit this past weekend and I know many did go and were blessed and challenged!  I can't wait to hear more about it!  I wanted to go because my heart is heavy for orphans and families wanting to adopt.  The Lord has placed a vision in my heart and I was hoping to attend but not going does not change the fact that the Lord has placed a burden on my heart and I'm excited to share with you what's happening! 


As many of you know we started our Nepal adoption journey with no money but we knew the Lord had told us it was time to begin the process again. We have learned that when the Lord tells us to do something....we do it. Obedience and faith is important to Him. Through this adoption we have had to fund-raise, share the need with others, apply for grants and through all of it the Lord had continued to remind me that when people give they are not helping Mike and I they are helping this little boy(s) from Nepal. In all actuality they are helping to pay his Ransom to be set free and placed into a family who will love them and teach them about Jesus and His love for them and that He has a plan for them!


As I think about a Ransom being paid for orphaned children I can't help but remember there was a time when all of us were orphans. And just like we pay a ransom to free a child, a ransom was paid for me and you so we would no longer be orphans. That ransom was the blood of Jesus!

Are you a child of the King? Have you been adopted by God the Father? If your answer is yes than a Ransom was paid for your life so you would be set free!

Do you know there are 147 Million orphans in this world without the love of a father or mother. They need and want to be adopted into a family! A Ransom needs to be paid to set them free.

Can I share with you what the Bible tells us about orphans.

1.God calls Himself the Father of the fatherless.

·        Psalm 68:5, “A father of the fatherless and a judge for the widows, is God in His holy habitation.”

2.God considers spiritual service the purest when His people are taking care of orphans.  (and)  A religion that does not care for orphans is no religion at all.

·        James 1:27, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.”

3.God’s people are commanded to care for orphans.  To see an orphan afflicted, and to turn a deaf ear, is sin, even rebellion.

·        Exodus 22:22, “You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.”

·        Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, plead for the widow.”

·        Isaiah 1:23, “Your rulers are rebellious, and companions of thieves; everyone loves bribes, and follows after rewards.  They do not defend the fatherless.”

4.We can be the hands and love of Christ Himself by providing practical care.

·        Deuteronomy 10:18, “He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing.”

·        Psalm 10:14, “But You, O God, do see trouble and grief; you consider it to take it in hand.  The victim commits himself to You; You are the helper of the fatherless.”

·        Matthew 18:5, “Whoever receives a child in My name, receives Me.”

·        Matthew 25: 45, “Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of the least of these, you did it unto Me.”

5.Orphans are to be taken care of with the same honor and provision as a Pastor or Priest.

·        Deuteronomy 14:28-30, “The Levite (priest), because he has not portion or inheritance among you, and the alien, the orphan and the widow who are in your town, shall come and eat and be satisfied, in order that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do.”

6.A portion of all that we possess is sacred and belongs to the orphan.

·        Deuteronomy 26:12-14, “You shall say before the Lord your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and also have given it to the Levite and the alien, the orphan and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed or forgotten any of Your commandments.”
**taken from Tom Davis's blog**


Orphan's Ransom is a non profit ministry that wants to link arms with Christian dads and moms who are answering the call of adoption but do need help with paying the ransom that has been placed on the life of their child. Our thought at Orphan's Ransom is that if every adopted child of God was doing something it would eliminate the cost of adoption for all families! Wouldn't that be wild!

Orphan's Ransom is parachurch non profit organization. We operate solely on monthly donations.

Orphan's Ransom is a no-strings attached ministry meaning you do not need to attend a specific church, you do not need to pay back any money the list could go on...trust me. The only requirements that need to be met are...

1. You and your spouse must be born again Christians.
2. You must have an approved home study.

Orphan's Ransom wants to help any adoption....

international
domestic
private
using a facilitator
foster care
basically if you're adopting and you have a financial need we want to help you!

Orphan's Ransom grants are available to any family in any state!

How this is going to work...

We are looking for at least 200 churches, business or individuals to commit 25.00 a week/100.00 a month or 500 to commit to 10.00 a week/40.00 a month.That would be 20,000.00 a month! Obviously the more sponsors we have the more Ransoms that can be paid! Every dollar helps! All donations will be tax deductible.


So that's what the Lord has put on my heart and I'm excited to see what's going to happen! Really I'm praying Orphan's Ransom will be much more than a grant ministry but we have to start somewhere. We are filing our paperwork right away!!! More details to come!

Would you please pray and ask the Lord how he would want to use you in the life of a child?

If you want more information or want to be involved you can call Tonya at 207-825-3511. Be looking for Orphan's Ransom on Facebook soon!


" ... Once our eyes are opened, we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls knows that we know, and holds us responsible to act ..." -- Proverbs 24:12
Blessings!
 

I don't like having this private! I find I never get on or look at anyone elses. So I'm back. Hoping to post something soon.

Have a blessed Resurrection Sunday!!
The price of our adoption pales in comparison to the price HE paid for me!

One more note.....I hear there is movement in Nepal!!! Those who got referrals in September now have travel approval! Praise the Lord for this! I know many of us have been agreeing in prayer for this!

A statement I hear a LOT....."if I had the money"

This gal answers this question perfectly in my opinion!

Take a few minutes and read her post. Pray and ask the Lord to challenge you. I know that most of us don't like being challenged...especially by the God of this universe but it can be a good thing.

Psalm 139:23 & 24 says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.

I am convinced that God's heart is for orphan! Pray and ask yourself...What am I doing for the "least of these"?

Matthew 25:39 & 40 "When did we ever see you sick or in prison (living in an orphanage on the street, without a family is a prison) and visit you? And the King will say, I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!"

Words in bold are my thoughts.

Click HERE to read this post.

The Call of Christ!

Will We Be One Of The 180?

So since the last post we did get word from our adoption agency and there does appear to be some movement in Nepal. Here's what they said...

Dear Nepal Waiting families,

Much information regarding Nepal's intercountry adoption program has been disseminated recently. We have been in constant contact with our representative in Nepal to fully understand and provide accurate information to you. Recently, several official announcements were made by the Nepal Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare (http://www.mowcsw.gov.np/). The Ministry has decided to delay for a few months accepting new applications for 2010 while they continue the matching process for the dossiers submitted in 2009. They report that they received 534 dossiers (world wide) in 2009. They expect to be able to match approximately 180 children with adoptive families very soon. The Ministry is planning to continue the matching process through March and the number of referrals will be based on the availability of children within the age/gender parameters set by the adoptive parent's application....

There was more to the letter but this is what I was excited to read! I am praying along with the Harrell's that because we are requesting boys up to age 3 we might be part of the 180! Wouldn't that be wild!!!

This morning I woke up to a wonderful email! Mike and I have applied for a couple adoption grants and this morning we got word that we had been awarded the full amount of $5000.00 from one of them!!! We are still waiting to hear from the other one. The Lord has been so faithful to provide all we've needed so far! The money has not come early and it's not ever been late....it's always been right on time! Which makes a person wonder IF perhaps we are one of the 180 and just maybe we'll get our referral soon!

Thank you Jesus for blessing this adoption! May You get all the praise and be glorified throughout this entire journey!

Could there be some movement in Nepal?

So for some unknown reason I can never find any up to date news about adoptions in Nepal. I do however have a friend who is also adopting from Nepal and she is able to find some! Good to know you Elissa! She had some interesting news to share on her blog today and thought I'd go ahead and copy and paste some of it.

"There are two bits of news coming from official sources today that I may as well report, although I'm still taking them with a grain of salt.

First, Nepal has announced that they will accept the alotted 10 dossiers per agency from April through July of this year.

The timing is interesting in light of what the US Embassy is reporting, that Nepal has told them that they plan to process all 2009 dossiers (that's us) by March of this year. The Embassy adds that they are doubtful that such a large number of matches could be made in such a short period of time, but it proves consistent with the rumors that have been circulating. I'm not sure that makes it any more likely to be true-- an untrue statement that is often repeated is still not true. However, I would be happy if they even started back on the 2009 matches in March and finished them by the following March. So my expectations are rather low, but perhaps more realistic.

I have resisted the temptation to even predict when our referral will arrive, mostly based upon the fact that there is practically zero data on which to base a prediction (unlike China where there were at least monthly referrals that could be counted on). But based on this post from our family blog yesterday, I'd say there's a good chance that we will get a referral this summer and be home with Little Bro in the Fall. But please realize that is based purely on what would be the most ironic timing for me-- not on reality whatsoever, so please don't take it to the bank."


Now see! Wasn't that a nice little glimmer of hope! So we continue to pray the Lord moves mountains and Nepal adoptions will get moving! To read exactly what Elissa posted click here.

Jiang Xiao Hong Has A Family!

Many of you have been getting the word out about Jiang Xiao Hong and many of you have expressed an interest in adopting her. It is with great relief that we can let you all know that she has found her family! Thanks to all of you that spread the word of her need. She may never know just how many people worked so hard to help her. And thanks to all of you that expressed an interest in adopting her. There are many more children who need homes. Some about to age out and others with special needs. Please keep them in your prayers also.

Dick and Cheryl Graham