The Firstbrook Five

Check it Out - Meant to Be

Each of our girls, whether born from my flesh or born from my heart, are Meant to Be . . .

Meant to Be loved by us and by the Father.

Meant to Be taught of Christ's great saving love for them.

Meant to Be used mightily by God for their good and His glory!

Guest Blogging

I'm the Guest Blogger over at My Crazy Adoption. My post is an oldie, but a goodie.

Check it out:

Kari is on a Missions Trip to Africa right now and she has different bloggers from all over filling in for her.

I love her blog . . . I lover her heart for adoption . . . I love her passion for orphan care.

Orphan Sunday

Creation Groans from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.

Sunday Snapshot - Becoming Kelsey

A little over 14 years ago I met the most incredible person. She was just a wee little baby then, but even in the moments just after giving birth to her, I knew I loved her like crazy and couldn't wait to see who she would become.

She was quiet as a toddler, happy to play by herself and use her imagination. She spent hours playing with her babies and Barbies, caring for them, feeding them, and loving on them. She'd give you the shirt off her back if she thought you needed it, or even just liked it. We knew even back then that she was becoming a nurturer. 

This girl has a tender heart for those in need, so it wasn't surprising while we were adopting Katie Mei that she spearheaded The Knitting Project and had us all knit scarves to send over to older orphans. She was becoming a ambassador of love and caring.

When she and I went to China this Spring to love on and serve orphans living at a Special Needs Orphanage, we really had no idea what to expect. I was pretty sure that at 14 it might be pretty hard to love on little kids with an array of special needs. I was pretty sure that it might be tiring for a 14 year old to love and serve and give, day after day. And while I was correct in my thinking, it was hard at times, this 14 year old gave her heart and her hands and her love, hour after hour after hour. She was becoming a servant.

This little girl wasn't always easy to love on. She could be demanding and hard to understand, but what was clear is that she loved the older girls and wanted to be with them. She wanted to be physically close and she wanted to be loved. And so this 14 year old loved on her, patiently, consistently and with the love of Christ in her eyes.

Often times I wouldn't see my girl for hours on end . . . I was busy somewhere else in the Orphanage and it would be awhile before I'd go looking for my girl. And then I'd find her somewhere like this, with someone like this:

I look back on this young girl, fueled by a desire to help older orphans in China

And now see this

A young woman who is becoming more and more like Jesus. I'm thankful for Kelsey . . . and I'm thankful for a God who loves her and stretches her and provides her amazing opportunities to be used by Him and for Him!

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This post is part of Sunday Snapshot . . . a round up of bloggers sharing Snapshots of their family, their life, and their faith.

Read me my story again!!

I'm not sure if it's a ploy to stay up a few minutes longer, or if she really does love having us read from her book . . . but lately we've been hearing a lot of this phrase:

"Read me my story, again! Pleeeeeeeeease!"

What exactly is her story, her book, you might be asking?

It's her Lifebook, aptly entitled "Becoming Katie Mei."

I know, I know . . . now you are asking what exactly is a Lifebook, right?

A Lifebook is the "story" of your adopted child's life, from birth on. It's an opportunity to teach your child that every minute of their life has value and purpose, and even though their story includes loss, it also includes gain, redemption, and purpose.

I had always intended to create a Lifebook for Katie, but always got stuck on the wording, choosing the right pictures, making sure it looked just so. Somehow I always got sidetracked and never completed her book. But when Katie went to Preschool last year it became very clear, very quickly, that she needed to understand her story better and we needed a way to present her story to curious classmates.

We've always been good at talking to Katie about her beginnings in China, but somehow a 4 year old explaining the complicated and amazing process of adoption to another 4 year old just wasn't working.

So I got over myself and worked on her Lifebook. I somehow managed to cut back on my words and make more of the meaning. (That's hard for me, you know. Verbose is a word often used to describe me!)

These days Katie's Lifebook can be found by her bed, on the coffee table, sitting on the bookshelf or laying on the floor. It's beautiful. It's meaningful. It has nice words and pretty pictures.

But more than being nice to look at, Katie's Lifebook is meant to be read. Over and over and over. It's meant to honor her beginnings and the country from which she has come. It's meant to show her that God created her in her birthmother's womb and that He always has and always will have a plan for her life. It's meant to show her that our family loves her very, very much and we will always be her Forever Family.

Really, it doesn't matter if she's headed to bed early or late. If that ridiculously cute little girl calls out, "Read me my story again . . . pleeeeeeeease," we will answer her request . . . every.single.time.

Click here to view this photo book larger

Be Strong and Courageous

I read a great blog post tonight from another adoptive mom. She has just returned from Ethiopia with her son. She shared a bit about her trip and the experience of seeing, praying for and loving so many orphans left behind. She had so much to say, not the least of which was . . .

SO–since 2004, adoptions have cut in HALF in the U.S. There are MORE orphans in the world TODAY than any point in HISTORY–YET, there are fewer families adopting NOW than ANY year in the last decade. Seriously?! Yes, there is a wait. There has ALWAYS been a wait. It takes time for the red tape in the U.S. and then more time for red tape in foreign countries–and then of course more time for court and more time for empty beds. And yes–the wait for those of us who are following the call is beyond hard and frustrating…and for those of you waiting–DO NOT GROW WEARY…BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS…trust in the Lord and wait upon Him! But–it’s not the wait that has made those statistics drop. The rising cost? Well, we are supposed to count all things loss at the cost of following Him…right? So…I’m really not sure why the drop. Are we distracted…have we lost sight of what is really happening and that there are millions of children who need families or at the very least need believers to advocate and pray for them or visit them in their distress?

What I am having a hard time processing now…is if 2% of professing Christians adopted–the 143,000,000 orphans would be dissolved as they each became a son or daughter of someone.

No, we aren’t all called to adopt.

But I really—really—really believe…that we are all called to do something.

Why don't you read the rest of her amazing blog post here.

Stories from China - Meet Annie

When we went to China in 2006 to bring Katie Mei home, we had two fantastic guides from our agency, All God's Children. The first was a seasoned veteran, Angela, and the second was a young gal who was in training, Annie.

We quickly grew to love both our guides, but found a special place in our heart for sweet Annie. She was new to the job, had traveled very little before, quietly and graciously served our family and was a general joy and delight to get to know. Annie lived at the GM Orphanage where we had sent our Knitting Project scarves to and she was able to tell us so much about the children in the photos!

We loved spending time with Annie, knowing she lived and served the children we had fallen in love with through scarves and pictures. Annie clearly loved the Lord, loved her new job, and loved serving children and families. She was quiet and her English was broken much of the time, but she graciously shared with us about her family, about herself, about her future goals.

Towards the end of our trip, Annie took us to the zoo for a day of relaxation. Annie had never been to a zoo. She had never seen many of the animals that were so common to us. In fact, at her request, we walked by the elephant several times because she was so amazed to see one in real life! She and I took a picture by the elephant so she could take it back to the kids at GM Orphanage and share with them what she saw!

When Kelsey and I went to China this past April we took along a small photo album of pictures of our family and friends. I included this picture of Annie and I in the photo album in case anyone at the orphanage remembered Annie and could give us an update on her. Not only did the director of the GM Orphanage remember her . . . he called her on the phone and passed it over to me! Within seconds I was talking with my dear friend Annie . . . reminiscing over our trip and updating her about families we had traveled with! What was even better was that Annie promised to take a taxi over to the orphanage on Sunday morning so we could see each other in person!

Sunday morning came and we went back to the orphanage one last time to share a special Sunday morning Service with them and to give one last round of hugs and kisses. It was a lovely, encouraging, hard, emotional time. To be honest, in the midst of all of that, I forgot that Annie might show up.

We had just said goodbye to the kids and walked away from this

when a taxi cab drove up and out popped Annie! Gone was the shy girl with a quiet voice, and in her place was a confident young woman, bursting with love and joy and anxious to hear about our trip, our lives and our God! We only had a few minutes together as our team was packing up to leave for the airport, but in those few moments God gave us such a gift!

Annie was carrying with her a large picture of our travel group from 2006. The picture was clearly well worn and well loved. On her wrist was a rubber bracelet that one of the families from our travel group had given her. They had sold the bracelets as a fundraiser and then brought them to China to share with our group. Annie asked about each child from our group by name, remembering amazing details about each one. We quickly shared what had happened in our lives over the past 4 years, crying tears of joy as I shared about family members who have come to Christ since we had last been together.

It was a joy to hear of Annie's life now. She no longer works for the orphanage or for our host, but is teaching English in Beijing. She and her best friend work and live together, now saving all of their money in the hopes of opening their own English School in the next year or two. Their goal isn't to open just any English School . . . but to open a school where they can teach English, but more importantly, to teach the Truth. She asked if our family would pray for them as they work and save and start this new venture. She asked if we would come back to China and help them serve and share.

Of course we'll pray for you, Annie.

Of course we'll come back for you, Annie.

Will you also join us and pray for Annie?

Will you pray that the Lord would multiply their funds and enable them to start the school quicker than they image.

Will you pray that the Lord will continue to protect them and allow them favor with those around them, especially the government and other leaders?

Will you pray that their faith will continue to grow and grow and that the Lord will continue to teach them and stretch them.

And will you pray that maybe someday, Lord willing, you would be willing to go back with us to China to work with Annie and to share and love and teach the Truth?

Orphan Care/Adoption focus of Christianity Today

This is exciting news . . . . the July issue of Christianity Today (the leading print voice of Evangelicalism in America) is focused on the issue of Orphan Care and Adoption! I can't wait to pick up this magazine!

Here's a preview of what's inside the magazine from the Christian Alliance Blog :

It’s a beautiful thing.  For Christians who yearn to see the Church grow impassioned for the Gospel and the orphan, the newly-arrived July edition of Christianity Today is little short of thrilling.  The cover declares, Abba Changes Everything:  Why every Christian is called to rescue orphans. Inside, an excellent introduction framing the magazine is headlined, “Adoption is Everywhere.  Even God is into it.”

That the leading print voice of evangelicalism in America would choose to make orphan care and adoption the center of its July magazine underscores what many of us already knew:  God is stirring His people to again be known as those who “defend the cause of the fatherless” (Is 1:17).

Page 18 begins a tremendous article by Russell Moore, which gave the magazine its cover language, “Abba Changes Everything.”  I’ve heard Dr. Moore articulate this message from the podium, via radio and over the dinner table, but I must admit I felt my heart expand against my ribcage as I read this fresh expression.  Beautiful and heartbreaking; daunting and inspiring; and profoundly rooted in the ultimate reason for it all:  the Father-love of our God revealed through the Gospel.

Page 23 starts the cover story, “Coming Alongside Parents:  Churches are getting real about adoption’s challenges—and helping families after the child arrives.”  It shares the experience of Summit VI and highlights the robust growth of orphan ministry within churches.  Writes author Carla Barnhill, “…[T]he Summit drew more than 1,200 attendees, most of them ministering to orphans through their home churches.  Watching those gathered, I knew this was not my parent’s generation.”

Finally, page 52 carries a list of list and descriptions titled “My Top 5 Books on Orphan Care” that I had a chance to provide:   Russell Moore’s Adopted for Life, Dr. Karyn Purvis’ The Connected Child; Melissa Fay Greene’s There is No Me Without You; Tom Davis’ Fields of the Fatherless, and Doug Sauder’s The One Factor.  (Several others came to mind after I’d submitted that I wish I’d included as well, but five was the limit).

If you can, pick up a copy of CT from the newsstand today.  If not, all these articles will come available online over the month ahead, and we’ll post them on the Alliance blog as they do.  In the meantime, advocates of the orphan care take heart:  God continues to build both passion and action in His Church for these children He so deeply loves.

Stories from China - Hurting vs. Helping

So many stories yet to tell from our trip to China . . .

We first arrived at the orphanage on a Monday morning. That first day was pretty overwhelming in terms of getting to know the kids, attempting our VBS "program", getting the lay of the land, etc. We spent the entire day at the orphanage singing, hugging, telling Bible stories, playing, and laughing. It was a great day.

And then Tuesday happened.

Really, for most of our group, Tuesday was much the same as Monday. More VBS. More coloring. More games. More hugging. More laughing and loving. But I was struggling. Seriously, hard core struggling.

It wasn't that I was struggling to love the kids because they were hard to love . . . I was struggling to love the kids because I knew we were leaving later that week.

Almost all of the children at the orphanage we were serving at were orphans. A few had families that could no longer care for them, but most were orphans without a father and mother. What all of these children had in common was loss, whether it came at birth or during their toddler years, or in the case of one brave young man, it had come just months earlier at the age of 16.

And here we were . . . walking in and playing and teaching and laughing and loving freely . . . and trust me, the kids were freely receiving all of this, and enjoying every minute of it . . . but I knew what was coming . . .

We were leaving.

There would be another loss.

And so on Tuesday I struggled through. I went to quiet corners and cried and prayed. In between the stories and games and laughing and loving I found empty places and cried out to the Father to help me to continue, to show me if what we were doing was right, to enable me to continue to love freely.

Back at the hotel that night I sent out an email sharing my struggle and asking my husband and friend to pray. I wrote:

"I'm loving spending time with these kids, but I am sick in my heart to leave them on Thursday. It just seems like another cruel kind of loss in their lives. I am really wondering if we are helping more than hurting. I know in my heart that the Lord sent us here and that we are making a difference in many ways, but I can't stand to think of hurting them when we leave. I'm not afraid to hurt . . . but the thought of inflicting pain on these kids is just too much."

That night I tossed and turned and lay awake most of the night, struggling through in prayer. I begged God to show me His purpose.

After a few hours of sleep I woke up Wednesday morning with a reminder from the Lord . . . what we were doing, all our loving and hugging and bonding and praying for these kids was exactly what we had prayed would happen to our Katie Mei while she waited for us in China. For the 10 months we waited for our referral we constantly prayed for our then unknown little girl. Each time we wrote a blog post about her, we asked that everyone would pray that Katie Mei would "be tenderly loved and cared for while she waits for us." It dawned on me that morning in China that our team was an answer to prayer from these little one's future parents. Many of the children at this orphanage will be adopted into loving families, and we were answering prayers, both uttered and yet-to-be-uttered by future families. Prayers that these precious children would know love and tender care. Prayers that someone would look them in their eyes and tell them that they are loved. God had graciously answered that prayer in our Katie Mei's life, and now He was using us in these little lives.

Monday might have been a day of shock.

Tuesday was certainly a day of struggle.

But Wednesday, that was a day of supernatural love. Love that flowed from a powerful yet tender God, through His people directly into His little children.

Until She Comes Home

It's an amazing, miraculous, wonderful, life changing and life giving thing when a family decides to grow by adoption.

It's also difficult, time consuming, heart wrenching and to top it off, expensive.

We know from experience the miracle of adoption is worth all of the time, money and effort. While those things will never be forgotten, they will certainly fade into the background when God creates something new in your family.

We also know from experience that adoption just isn't possible without support from family and friends. You desperately need others to come alongside of you and pray, encourage, work and give.

It is a great privilege to partner with a family while they are working towards their adoption . . . and so we are privileged to come alongside our friends, the Gilson's, as they process paperwork, submit fingerprints, give interviews and spend lots and lots of money, all in the effort to bring home an older orphan from China.

Their adoption story is already miraculous, but because God hasn't finished writing this story, we can't share all the details yet . . . but we can support. We can pray. We can give.

And so we ask you to buy a bracelet . . . or better yet, buy three or four! They are only $5 each and you can pay directly through PayPal. As you wear (and share) a bracelet, remember to pray for the Gilson's and their waiting daughter in China . . . UNTIL SHE COMES HOME.