The Loving Care of Our Father God

God's Words:

Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.

~Psalm 27:10

This verse popped out at me in a big way this morning during my devotions.  See it circled in pen at the bottom? You are probably thinking right now to yourself, "Wow, she is highlighter happy".  Why yes, yes I am and happy to admit it!  I love me some God's Word!  By the time I'm 95 and about ready to crawl (or be carried by a very strong hospice nurse) into my death bed, I will probably have highlighted every verse in my much-adored Bible.

Anyway, as I read this verse this morning, it struck me that many children are forsaken by their parents, in many different ways; whether done on purpose or not.

There are foster children whose parents aren't capable for whatever reason of taking proper care of them.  Maybe these parents have been abused and are carrying on the horrible cycle of abuse to the next generation.  Maybe they are in the bondage of addiction, trying to numb their own personal pain, leaving them unable to give their children the loving care and attention each child desperately needs.

Then, of course, there are the children in abusive or negligent homes who haven't been rescued yet.  My heart aches so painfully for them and I wish I could save them all.  My own mother and her siblings were children just like this. They were never rescued from their extremely mentally, emotionally, spiritually and physically sick, abusive father...until the day he drank himself to death when they were all grown-up or nearly grown-up. And even now, many years later, they are each still carrying the wounds and bearing the scars of how they were hurt by the hands and mouth of their own father.

Yet, God always has a plan of healing and restoration for these hurting souls; they have only to reach out to the Savior Jesus Christ and find his supernatural healing from all their pain, shame, and bitterness.  And in Him they will also find forgiveness - not only for themselves, but also the ability to forgive those who hurt them.

In addition, this verse ultimately makes me think of all the millions and millions of aborted children in the history of the world.  Yes, there has always been abortion, you know; just not always a "legal right" where there are actual massively-funded centers in which a woman can "safely" have her child dismembered, sucked, and many other despicably-cruel-and-taboo-to-mention-methods of removal.

These precious, innocent lives may be forsaken by their very own parents whom they were given to by God to care for, love, and cherish for all their life long.  After all, this is an imperfect world with imperfect people suffering from many forms and degrees of pain and sin.

But all of these beloved of God are NOT forsaken by their Heavenly Father. He WILL receive them, somehow, someway.  It's a promise.  Right there in His Word.

I think of all the aborted babies being excitedly welcomed into heaven by their Heavenly Father and His angels when their earthly parents haven't chosen to keep them, for whatever reason.

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.

Psalm 68:5

As the wife of a pregnancy resource center director, I am more aware than the average person of the fact that many girls and women who end up choosing abortion have felt forced to do so. Some have no support from their family and friends, either financially or emotionally.  Some have boyfriends or husbands or parents who order them to kill their child.  Many others are ashamed to be pregnant in the first place and are desperate to hide their secret from the world. Or feel like their future will be ruined if they bring the baby to term, regardless of whether they choose to raise it themselves or give it up for adoption.

Unless one has been in the situation of an unwanted pregnancy, I dare say it is difficult to truly understand the excruciating thought and decision processes that these women (and their partners) go through before they make that final decision to keep, give up, or abort their child. And my heart goes out to each of them, because I don't think anyone really desires to be in that situation. 

Then I think of the many amazing people who have followed God's call to be foster parents. Oh, the selfless, self-sacrificing work they do, day in and day out, and throughout each night of caring for hurting little ones!  The stories I have heard firsthand from my fostering friends have made me cry, both in sadness and happiness.  Foster parents are my heroes (along with single parents). These specially-gifted people amaze me.  I am constantly in awe of their sacrificial love for needy children.  God comes to the aid of these children by providing temporary (and oftentimes long-term) caretakers:

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this:  to look after orphans and widows in their distress...

~James 1:27

Whoever heard me spoke well of me, and those who saw me commended me, because I rescued the poor who cried for help, and the fatherless who had none to assist them.

~Job 29:11-12

And I think of the numerous people who have followed the Lord's call to rescue orphans by becoming adoptive parents.  Now THOSE children are the especially "wanted" ones!  They are specifically chosen to become one's son or daughter!  Wow.  The gift of adoption is like none other and blows my mind whenever I really think about it.  God reaches out to these parentless children - in the form of new parents who want so much to have them be their very own children.

I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

~John 14:18

...for in You the fatherless find compassion...

~Hosea 14:3e

God sets the lonely in families...

~Psalm 68:6a

So the comfort we find in today's key verse is this:  Whenever a child is forsaken for whatever reason, God has promised, and always follows through, to receive them in one way or another.  He promises to provide for their needs, somehow, someway.  He offers them complete healing through the power of His compassionate love, His Spirit, and the saving, forgiving work of His Son which enables them to be set free and whole from the hurt of their past.  And He promises to love and take care of them, when they are unloved by seemingly everyone else. Even if that means joyfully welcoming them into heaven before they take their first breath on earth.

Have your ever suffered in some way by being forsaken by your parent(s)?  Or do you know of someone who has or is enduring this pain?  How have you, or they, been received by God?

Or perhaps you feel the call to help children such as this?  How do you feel God specifically calling you to reach out to them and be His arms and feet of love and care and protection for them?

In Christ,

Suzy

My Very First Guest Post at Hip Homeschool Moms!

God's Words:

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.

~Ephesians 3:20-21

I'm still on Cloud 9 about the fact that the awesome ladies at hiphomeschoolmoms.com selected my post about Thanksgiving for their guest post today!  This is a big, huge deal for a newbie writer like me, who will now be reaching hundreds and thousands of readers through this very cool website with the Word of God and the lesson He has taught me and my children about being thankful.

When I started writing this post two years ago, the very last thing from my wildest imagination was that God would give me the opportunity to have it shared like this and I AM PUMPED about it, to put it very mildly. The post is titled "Overflowing Thankfulness" and can be read at the HHM website here.

If you are a homeschool mom or considering homeschool someday, the Hip Homeschool Moms website is a really fun and incredibly helpful online community where you will find lots of up-to-date information on education, curriculum ideas, recipes and fun family activities and a whole lot more!  And, by the way, they didn't even ask for me to give them a plug, ha ha!  I am just genuinely enthusiastic about their awesome online resources that have already been so helpful to me as a homeschool teacher and mother.

So it's a dream come true to be included on their website.  Only God can work out things like that!  Just like the key verse states, I never imagined this would happen to me at such an early point in my writing career.  Isn't He amazing?

Hip Homeschool Moms also has a facebook page where they post even more helpful tips and ideas, plus post questions from moms like us who desperately need advice that really works from fellow homeschool teachers.  So it's remarkable to me how many encouraging moms comment back on each question, and the wonderful advice I have gleaned so far from these amazingly selfless women from all over the globe.

I hope you enjoy my article on the three effective ways I have found to teach my children (and myself) how to be more thankful throughout the year; not just during the month of November. Enjoy and God bless you and your precious family!

In Christ,

Suzy

Independent Homeschool Student Weekly Planner

God's Words:

Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.

~Proverbs 16:3

May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.

~Psalm 20:4

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future."

~Jeremiah 29:11

Just as a head's up, this post pertains to homeschooling.  So if you don't homeschool, I suppose this post won't interest you much...  Sorry! But stay tuned for future posts that might actually apply to your life.

Two school years ago, after much frustration with my hopeless search of finding a homeschool planner that works for my family, I finally gave up and created my own.  And since it is the new year and I assume we all are in need of a fresh start at organization, I thought I would share my planner on my blog, in case you might be able to benefit from using it for your homeschool.

The planner I created is specifically designed to be used by independent homeschool students.  However, if your child(ren) aren't independent learners yet, I suppose the planner could be adapted to be used as the teacher's weekly planner.  That would just take a little tweaking.  Either way, I hope you can make it work for you and your student(s).

What is this independent learning, you say?  Would that mean less school time involvement required of mom (and dad)?  Well, yes, yes it does.  Sounds pretty good, doesn't it?  Imagine getting more housework done during the day, instead of it piling up all week long because you're already too busy personally teaching all the school lessons.

Getting my children to eventually be independent learners in their schoolwork has always been one of my goals of homeschooling.  They will definitely need to be able to study and work on their own once they're in high school and college, so why not get an early start in training them to do so?

Once my eldest child started 6th grade, I felt it was time to get him used to completing most of his individual assignments independently.  And my then 6th grader is now an 8th grader, with his 7th and 5th grade sisters not far behind him, who are both also doing mostly independent work.  We do a few subjects with all my children together, such as Bible, history, science, health, and geography.  Wow, I guess that's more than a few.  Anyway, I wanted my middle-schoolers to have an organized, easy-to-use student planner that would help them be more independent with all their individual studies.  And free up my time to actually get most of my housework done each day.  Whoo-hoo!  Never thought I'd be so happy about that...

Here is what the independent student weekly planner page looks like:

There are check mark boxes, which the student checks off himself when finished with each assignment, so that Mom can easily see what has already been done (or not done) and also so that the student can quickly see which assignments need to be done next.

The first table, "My Daily Assignments", includes the assignments that must get done each day, such as Bible memory work, reading, and music practice.

What I love most about this student planner is the second table, "My Weekly Assignments", which lists all the subjects that the student can work on whenever he chooses, as long as he gets all assignments done by a certain time at the end of each week.  Our family rule is that you must get all independent work done by 3:00PM each Friday or you will lose all "screen time" for the entire weekend. I don't even have to tell you that we've never had anyone break that rule.

So for example, one week he might want to do all his math lessons in 2 days, with none to do for the remainder of the week.  Or all his grammar assignments in one day.  You see, it's up to the student, which will prepare him for the independent study necessary in college.  Mom's not helping out with college work.  Sorry, kiddos.  You're on your own by then.

The third table, "My Weekly Chores", lists that child's chores, when they need to be done, and check mark boxes for each day of the week.

The last table, "My Weekly Planned Activities", is like a calendar showing the child what day their special activities are on.  It's especially helpful at the beginning of each semester or season whenever a new sport or class starts, so they won't have to keep asking mom, "What day is football practice again?"

Now remember, we teachers might meticulously write out our plans for each day, each week.  But one of the most important lessons I've learned as a homeschool mom is to be flexible.  Because life happens.  God just may well have a different plan in mind for your family that day or week.  As it says in Scripture:

Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the Lord's purpose that prevails.

~Proverbs 19:21

You or a child might come down with an illness.  Dad might decide to work from home for the day (no school work's getting done when fun Daddy's home!).  An impromptu field trip, visit with friends, or a last-minute getaway vacation might present itself.  And there goes that week's schedule!

That's when the pencil and eraser come in handy.  Use it.  Embrace it. Flexibility is one of the best benefits of homeschooling.  So don't fill out the planner like you're chiseling in stone.  I advise only filling out 2 weeks or so at a time.  That way you won't have to erase a whole lot, because what homeschool family is going to choose a day's worth of schoolwork over a spontaneous visit to a friend's house if the opportunity arises?  Not this homeschool family!

There are 2 possible ways you can use this planner:

1. Click on the link below which will take you to Google Drive where this document is absolutely free for the public to use.  At the top of the web page there are several different options.  If you click on the "printer icon" you'll be able to print the document and fill in the blanks using pencil or pen (pencil is always, always, always preferred because you'll often need to erase and change assignments).  This is the more time-consuming method of using my planner pages because you will have to fill in all the necessary blanks each and every week.

2. The more efficient and personalized method:  First, you will need to have Microsoft Word (or another word processor software).  Next, click on the link below which will take you to Google Drive.  Then click on the "download icon" at the top of the web page, which lets you to save the document to your computer.  Once you open the document on your word processor, make sure to "Enable Editing", which will allow you to type in information and revise the template however you want to suit your child's needs.  You can add the student's name and grade to the top, which will save you lots of penciling in each week.  Also, you can type in all of your child's independent subjects and daily assignments into the table.  Then each week when writing down your child's assigned schoolwork, you will only have to fill in the assignments for that week, saving yourself lots of time.

If you don't have word processor software on your computer, no worries!  You can simply click on the "down arrow" at the top of the web page, which will give you several more ways to use the document with "Connected Apps". So, for example, if you already have a Google Docs account, then you can open the document with Google Docs, which is basically a free online word processor.  It may not have all the bells and whistles of Microsoft Word, but it works great and it's free.  Gotta love free!

Independent Homeschool Student Weekly Planner

I also designed a two-to-a-page independent homeschool student weekly planner to use when it's not necessary to have the child's weekly chores and extracurricular activities listed down each week.  This planning page saves ink and paper and can be simply cut in half to make two separate planner pages.

Once again, you can click on the link below to access this free template on Google Drive and follow the same steps listed above in order to use it.

Two Per Page Independent Homeschool Student Weekly Planner

Please let me know in the Comments section below if you find my planner pages helpful in your homeschool or if you have trouble downloading or using them with your word processor.  And I'll see what I can do to make any necessary adjustments.  Thank you!

May God richly bless the remainder of your school year with peaceful, happy learning and growing healthy, loving relationships!

In Christ,

Suzy

Part 5: Scripture Card Mini Clipboards

God's Words to Read:

I meditate on your precepts
   and consider your ways.
I delight in your decrees;
   I will not neglect your word.
~Psalm 119:15-16

In my third post last year of a series I started writing called "Spend More Time with God", I shared about how I write Bible verses I want to memorize on index cards and tape them up in certain well-frequented areas in my house where I can see them often to aid in memorization.  Although having white index cards taped up all over your home can be helpful to your Scripture memorization efforts, unfortunately, they're not very pretty.  I knew there had to be a more attractive, decor-friendly way to display my Scripture cards, but I just had no idea or inspiration of how to go about this.  So for years I've had white cards taped up by my kitchen and bathroom sinks.  Boring.  Kind of messy-looking.  Not a good thing for this clean freak momma.

So while I was in deep thought and prayer about writing this series on what I do for my personal devotions and spiritual growth, I experienced a moment of sheer creativity (which rarely happens to me since I'm not very artistic, so once I got over the shock I went with it!).  Here was my creative inspiration:  what about using mod-podged mini clipboards to display the verse cards?  Eureka!

Of course I immediately got busy shopping for supplies. I found 2 plain hardboard mini clipboards at Menards - each for just over $1 (I'm telling you, you save big money there).  Add in a bottle of Mod Podge, a few sheets of pretty scrapbook paper, some coordinating ribbon, a sea shell (Say what? You'll see...), a small 3M Command wall hook, and a small suction cup hook.  And now I have 2 very cute Scripture card clipboards that match my bathroom and kitchen decor!

What follows is how I made my very own mod podge clipboards.  I found instructions online for mod-podging clipboards at two different sites (Small Family Big World and Echos of Laughter ), but incorporated the instructions from both and made some adjustments to create my own.

You will need:

- mini clipboard
- scrapbook paper
- Mod Podge
- paint brush or sponge
- scissors
- X-Acto knife or box cutter
- pencil
- newspaper or other table cover
- 3M Command wall hook or suction cup hook (for hanging on mirror or window)
- embellishments (optional)
- glue/hot glue

Step 1:
On the back side of the scrapbook paper, trace around the clipboard.

Step 2:
Cut diagonal slits from each corner of paper all the way to each corner of traced section.

Yes, if you couldn't tell by now, I'm left-handed.  Please refrain from all left-hander jokes at this time, thank you.  I've heard them all by now anyway.  You try to sit in a school desk that has the attached writing table only on the right side.  Or have random people comment on your left-handedness nearly every time you write in public.  Like, wow, it's really that noteworthy.  Oops, sorry, a little sensitive about it.  But you know you noticed it and would have commented on it had we been together in person while I was cutting.  That is, unless you too are left-handed and then it just looks normal.

When you're done cutting the corner slits, your paper should look like this.

Step 3:

Lay back side of paper over the top of clipboard and using X-Acto knife or box cutter, cut around the clip part of board.  Also cut off the very top middle part of paper above clip part.

Please notice I put the box cutter on the right side for this photo to be fair and give visual aid to all you right-handers out there.

Now the back side of your paper should look like this.

And this photo shows what the cut-out part of the front side should look like, so that it will snugly fit around the clip.

Step 4:

Okay, now you're ready to mod podge.  Yay! Open a window, though.  It has a strong smell and I'm not so sure how good it is for the old brain cells.

First, coat the top of the clipboard with a layer of mod podge.  Remember to protect your table surface.  Mod Podge is really hard to wash off (learned that from experience, folks)!

Step 5:

Then quickly paint a coat of mod podge on the back of the scrapbook paper and gently press on the top of clipboard, carefully pulling the sides of paper around to the back of clipboard.  Press paper down on all sides of clipboard, gently smoothing out wrinkles.

Step 6:

Next, gently paint on 1-2 coats of mod podge over the scrapbook paper on the top, sides, and back of the clip board.  If doing 2 coats, let dry for about 15 minutes between coats.

This yellow clipboard is for my kitchen.  Pretty!  I love tone-on-tone patterns.

Step 7:
Embellish!  I glued on some coordinating ribbon.  Make sure to wrap it around the sides of the clipboard, gluing all the way around to the back.

I also tied a little ribbon to the clip.  Adds a little extra flair, don't you think?

I wanted to fit 2 verse cards on this clipboard, so I found these amazing sticky note holders at the local teacher's supply store.  They have an adhesive side on the back that sticks to just about any surface and is completely removable and re-adjustable.  And they are designed to hold up a piece of paper as thin as notebook or printer paper, or as thick as cardstock.  Love!  What will they think of next?

Step 8:
Hang it up where you'll see it often!  I hung up my kitchen clipboard with a 3M Command hook next to the sink, where I can easily read it while doing one of my most dreaded and never-ever-ending chores:  dish washing.

Yellow and green are such happy colors.  Perfect for the kitchen where I spend countless minutes each day (and not always happily enjoying what I'm doing in there!).

Now for my beach-themed master bathroom clipboard, I used 2 pieces of scrapbook paper - one is ocean waves (or lake waves!  I'm a big Lake Michigan lover!) and the other is a sandy beach.  I mod-podged the waves paper over the clipboard first.  Then cut a bottom section out of the sandy beach paper.

I mod-podged the beach paper over the bottom of the clipboard until it looked like...

THIS!  Cute, or what?

Then I glued on a sea shell my mom brought me back from a recent trip to Myrtle Beach.

Now, simply add a Scripture card...

Hang it up on the bathroom mirror with a suction cup hook and viola!  You are ready to memorize and meditate on a favorite verse while you floss your teeth!  But watch out for flying floss shrapnel.  You don't want to get your pretty Scripture card clipboard dirty.

I guess I'm not as artistically-challenged as I had previously thought.  Wonders never cease.

So, what do you think?  Are you going to make a Scripture card mini clipboard like mine or do you have any other creative display ideas to share?  I'd love to hear about it!  Please share in the Comments section below!

In Christ,

Suzy

My Bible Basket

God's Words:

I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.  I delight in your decrees, I will not neglect your word...I will obey your word.  Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.

~Psalm 119:15, 16, 17b, and 18

I try to have "quiet time" with God most days of the week.  This is when I read a little from His Word, spend some time in prayer and quiet reflection on what I've just read.  And maybe pray about the other prayer requests that are on my heart.  Some days it might only be 5 minutes; others a half hour or longer, but those are the rare days. And regretfully, of course there are the days when I don't make time for devotions.  Those are the days that tend to end up not being so good and I look back and think, well duh!

Since I am a stay-at-home, homeschool mom of three rather loud and exceptionally busy children, you are probably guessing that there isn't much "quiet time" available at our house.  Well, my friend, you are correct!  I usually find myself having to steal away somewhere that happens to be peaceful for the moment (sometimes this requires shutting/locking the door to keep the kids and my tag-along dog out).  It's all very random, time-wise and location-wise.  I never really know where I'll be for my next quiet time.  But you know me, I just live for spontaneity!  Not.

That's why I put together my "Bible Basket" so when I finally find a few minutes of peace, I can very easily and quickly grab everything I need for my devotional time and go get to it before the peacefulness is invaded once again!  Isn't it cute?  And notice the handle, so it's very mobile and, well...handy!

In my Bible Basket I keep my really, super-old, falling-apart NIV Student Bible that I've had since I was a senior in high school (please don't even try to estimate how many years ago that was, ok? I'm getting to be age-sensitive as of late).  But I love my personal Bible and just can't bear to part with it.  It has every precious highlight, note, and mark that I've made over the years since my young adult days.  Sure, you'll find that some pages appear to be completely highlighted, but each verse means something special to me!

Also in my Bible Basket are my Scripture Card File, Bible Study & Prayer Journal, and a pencil pouch with extra highlighters, pens, and pencils (ok, am I the only person that seriously loves the term "pencil pouch"?  It must stem from my adoration of school supplies).

I store my Bible Basket in my bedroom, so one day last year I decided I should decorate it to match the decor in there.  Hence the blue and green color scheme.  I found the ribbons at Hobby Lobby. LOVE that store.  Someone please help me not go there so often.  My son hates being "dragged through that place".  Hahaha.  Get ready, buddy.  Your future wife is going to love going there, too. It's a girl thang!

Some mornings I wake up before everyone else in the family and spend that precious time of tranquility communicating with my Heavenly Father.  I grab a cup of Joe and get comfy on the sofa.  I just have to make mention here that I am not a morning person, so this is very out of the ordinary at this point in my life. Someday I might turn into an early bird...  but I highly doubt it.

Most of the time I enjoy doing devotions in the peacefulness of my cozy bedroom.  Either before we start our schoolwork or activities for the day or once we're finally done with the busyness of the morning. Then the kids are off doing whatever they do when mom's not making them do schoolwork or chores. Sure, they might be making noise and quarreling amongst themselves, but that's when I make use of the door, and possibly its locking mechanism.  They know that if they knock and I say I'm doing my quiet time, that it's wise to back off and hush up for a few minutes.  Happy mom, happy life, people.  They really respect my need and desire for alone time with God. It warms my heart that they truly understand this.

But other times, I like to read my Bible while I enjoy a quick bite of breakfast or lunch. Nothing better than feeding your body and soul at the same time! And that's what I call multi-tasking.  What we moms do best!

On days when I have some writing to do or online devotions to read and need my Bible handy, it's so nice to be able to quickly grab my basket and have it nearby my desk.
















While looking through the photos of "Where is Suzy's Bible Basket Now?", did you also happen to notice the other item that is always present?  Did you find it?  I admit to maybe having read too many search-and-find books like Where's Waldo? with my kids over the years...  Hint:  I love coffee!

Anyway, I just thought I'd share how I do my quiet time and keep my devotional stuff all together, in case you also struggle with managing to steal away for your alone time with God.  What do you do for your quiet time?

In Christ,

Suzy

Welcome to Your New Family!

God's Words: 

Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.

~John 1:12-13

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.  For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.

 ~Ephesians 1:3-6

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

~1 John 3:1a

In honor of Mother's Day and Father's Day this year, I wanted to share with you a story about some amazing friends of ours who chose to become parents in the most unlikely, extraordinary, I-love-this-story-so-much-it-melts-my-heart-every-time-I-think-about-it way.  This newly married couple are the kind of people that just make you think "wow" and inspire you to be a better person; to look beyond yourself and your own life for ways to help others.  Even if that means personal sacrifice. We met this young couple when they were still engaged.  It didn't take longer than, oh, maybe a third of a second seeing them together to realize they were head-over-heels in love with each other.  Ahhh, young love.  So sweet.  So new.  So seemingly untried (or so I thought before really getting to know this couple). And then we were privileged to attend their wedding.  Now I have been to quite a lot of weddings, let me tell you.  Theirs was by far one of the best weddings I have ever witnessed.  My husband agreed.  Did I mention I've been to a lot of weddings?  Hello, semiprofessional wedding singer here.  I've been to all kinds of weddings.  And theirs stands out among the rest as extra-special.  I wasn't quite sure at the time why that was.  But now I know.  They are an extra-special couple with some of the biggest hearts I have ever seen in action.  Soon after getting married, Mr. and Mrs. Z went through the process of becoming foster parents.  Okay, can I just start off right now by saying that this, in and of itself, flabbergasted me?  I can't think of another young newlywed couple I personally know, or have ever heard of, who desired to become foster parents during their first year of marriage.  Aren't you supposed to focus only on each other and get to know one another better during that first year of romantic, wedded bliss? Well, I think I can speak for most married people by saying that the last thing most newlyweds would think of doing is invite a needy child into their brand-new family and home.  I simply cannot fathom the selfless, benevolent desire that this couple had to do just that, when they had every right to spend all their time and attention on each other during their first year, or their first few years, together. But not this twosome.  They were already thinking about adopting before they were even married.  And here is where the story gets good.  Really, amazingly good.  Do yourself a favor and go grab the nearest box of Kleenex right now.  Seriously, trust me.  Go get it. Okay, ready?  So before she ever got married, Mrs. Z (obviously she wasn't Mrs. Z yet, but you know who I mean) dreamed of either foster parenting or adopting, or both.  It was always a dream and goal she had for her life.  After she knew that Mr. Z was her Mr. Right, she shared with him this very important desire of her heart.  Though not quite sure of that dream for himself, Mr. Z went along with it. Yet, some time later, Mr. Z was hanging out with the guys and mentioned to them his girlfriend's desire to foster parent or adopt someday.  One of the men pulled Mr. Z aside and told him that his baby granddaughter had recently been taken away from her mother by Children's Protective Services.  And if Mr. Z and his future wife were serious about foster parenting and/or adopting, would they consider taking care of this little girl? The reason that Little Girl M had been taken away by CPS is that her mother had been found neglectful due to drug and alcohol abuse.  The grandfather also told Mr. Z that his son would most likely not try to take over custody of the baby.  Nor did it look promising that the mother would be able to regain legal custody in the time required before her parental rights would be taken away by the court. This is the part of the story that makes me cry sad tears.  Not only had the birth mother been neglectful in caring for her infant, but she had also admitted to drinking alcohol and doing cocaine during her pregnancy.  I have no idea what circumstances and struggles this poor mother has faced in her life that led her to drug and alcohol abuse.  I feel an achingly empty sadness when a mother loses her child - in any way.  I can only imagine the twofold pain of having your child taken away because you are seen as an unfit parent.  Just the thought of that happening to me seems unbearable.  So I am in no way casting judgment on parents who lose the custody rights of their children.  No, on the contrary, I grieve for them and their loss and pray that through God’s grace they will experience freedom and healing through Christ. However, because of this poor woman's life circumstances, choices, and addictions, Little Girl M was born with fetal alcohol syndrome.  By the time she was rescued from her unsafe home, Little Girl M was only one year old and very, very small, underweight, and underdeveloped for her age.  She couldn't talk or walk yet.  She was way behind developmentally, in all areas of growth.  Her doctors were afraid that she'd never be able to walk and would need a wheelchair all her life.  They thought she would also have many other special needs for the remainder of her lifetime. Little Girl M was taken in by a foster family that already had a few other foster children.  Both foster parents worked, so all the foster children spent much of their time at a daycare center.  This situation, although much better than what she came from, was still unfortunate for Little Girl M because she couldn't get the vital attention and therapy that she so desperately needed to start overcoming her rough start to life.  Things didn't look very hopeful for Little Girl M.  Or so everyone thought... Well, after talking with the grandfather, Mr. Z told soon-to-be Mrs. Z about Little Girl M.  They both felt like it was the right thing to do for them to start the foster parenting process so that they could someday, hopefully, adopt her.  All before they had ever even seen what she looked like or found out all the details of her special needs.  And all before they'd even tied the knot.  Simply…amazing. And this is where my sad tears turn happy.  I mean, they could have adopted a healthy, newborn baby, right?  But no, once this couple heard about this precious little girl who desperately needed the right care and a loving home, they were determined that they would be the ones to meet her many needs and love her for the rest of her life.  They would willingly become her new parents, taking her into their home, along with whatever physical, mental, and emotional problems she may have.  And commit to being her father and mother forever.  It just blows my mind.  The selfless, unconditional love for a child they hadn't even met yet. Eventually, once they were married and received their foster parent license, they were able to have Little Girl M come live with them.  Mr. and Mrs. Z immediately fell in love with the adorable, precious, pint-sized princess.  They just knew it was meant to be.  And everything that led up to the adoption went very smoothly, better than they could have hoped. Watching this new family interact just tugs the heck out of my heart strings.  Little Girl M is one incredibly blessed child.  To have the doting, adoring attention of a loving mommy and daddy (not to mention both sides of their family) is every child's ultimate need and desire.  And this very special little girl has all that and then some. Her new mommy takes her to all her many doctor appointments, physical, speech, and other such therapy sessions, works tirelessly with her teaching her sign language, how to talk, and walk, and so much more.  And now because of all this love and excellent care, Little Girl M has amazed her doctors by beating the odds.  At just a couple weeks away from turning three-years-old, she can already do so many of the things they thought she'd never be able to do.  Her future is full of hope now that she has a safe, secure home and exceptionally loving parents who do whatever it takes to help her grow healthy and strong. My favorite part of this story is the day that Mrs. Z got something special in the mail soon after the adoption was finalized.  She was so excited to receive a copy of Little Girl M's new birth certificate.  It had her new last name on it, with Mr. and Mrs. Z's names as her adoptive parents.  Oh, the elated joy the couple shared at this piece of paper! According to my state's adoption law, at the time an adoption is finalized, the original birth certificate (the certificate issued in the birth name of the child) is sealed and an amended birth certificate is issued in the adoptive name.  So this piece of paper stated that Little Girl M was now Little Girl M Z!  She had a new last name!  And a new family!  She had been especially chosen and loved by two people that weren't her birth parents.  Two people who chose her and love her in spite of her rough start.  In spite of her many special needs and medical problems, which they would have to spend much time and money taking care of. And do you have any idea what this story reminds me of?  If you read the key verses for this post, I think you might get the gist of where I'm going with this.  That this adoption story reminds me so very much of how God adopts His chosen and dearly loved children to become part of His family. John 1:12-13 tells us that whoever believes in Jesus Christ as Savior is given the right by God the Father to become His child.  This Savior Jesus Christ, God's Son, died in our place, in order that we can be forgiven of all our sins and reconciled to a right relationship with God our Father. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:  The old has gone, the new is here!  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:  that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. ~2 Corinthians 5:17-19b You see, when we start out life on this earth, we are born into a fallen world.  We are helpless, needy sinners in a desperate situation of being separated from God the Father by our sin.  We are like orphans with no hope or true, lasting love.  Our lives are full of pain, sadness, bitterness, failure, and guilt.  This reminds me of Little Girl M’s sad and unfortunate start to life and what seemed a hopeless situation for a helpless child. But because there were two people who saw her desperate need and chose to love her and have her become their daughter, she now has a new family, a new name, and a new life full of hope and promise.  And this part of the story reminds me of how, when we feel the love of God calling us to come to Him and find healing and forgiveness through His Son, and we accept those free gifts of grace and love, He takes us into His family and we become His children for all eternity.  We are washed clean of our sinful past and old way of life.  Healed of all our pain and despair.  We are given a fresh new start at life.  With a new name!  His name!  Thank You, Jesus!  The old has gone; the new has come. And the crazy-amazing thing about all this is that God the Father pre-planned (predestined) for this to happen to us; He chose us before creation to be adopted through Christ's sacrifice into His family, because He first loved us and was pleased to do (see second key passage, Ephesians 1:3-6).  Wow.  Just like how Mr. and Mrs. Z pre-planned and chose to adopt Little Girl M to become part of their family because they first loved her and wanted her to be their daughter.  What amazing love.  What a beautiful, perfect example of God’s unconditional love that He has lavished on us when He takes us as His own and calls us His children (1 John 3:1a).  And that is what we are! More verses about being God's chosen: But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. ~1 Peter 2:9-10 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with God’s people and also members of his household.  ~Ephesians 2:19 In Christ, Suzy