Do children go to Heaven?

Mark 10: 13-16, Matthew 19:13-15, Luke 18:15-17 [from the message]

Mark:

13-16The people brought children to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus was irate and let them know it: "Don't push these children away. Don't ever get between them and me. These children are at the very center of life in the kingdom. Mark this: Unless you accept God's kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you'll never get in." Then, gathering the children up in his arms, he laid his hands of blessing on them.

Luke:

15-17People brought babies to Jesus, hoping he might touch them. When the disciples saw it, they shooed them off. Jesus called them back. "Let these children alone. Don't get between them and me. These children are the kingdom's pride and joy. Mark this: Unless you accept God's kingdom in the simplicity of a child, you'll never get in."

Matthew:

13-15One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off. But Jesus intervened: "Let the children alone, don't prevent them from coming to me. God's kingdom is made up of people like these." After laying hands on them, he left.


It always amazes me when people ask "Do children that die go to Heaven?". I am always floored, and immediately on the defensive [not that God needs that from me!!!]. How can you know God, know what you know about Him, take what you have learned from the Bible as truth, and yet think He would sentence a child to eternity in hell???

I picked the scriptures from The Message because they speak more toward the heart of God than the other versions. In this version each scripture reference states "DON'T GET BETWEEN THEM AND ME!" OR "DON'T PREVENT THEM FROM COMING TO ME!"... It has been brought to my attention before that this is one case where Jesus was angry! I think it is referenced in Mark.

If Jesus is IRATE/ANGERED about the fact that the disciples wanted to prevent children from coming to Him under these circumstances, do you really think Jesus will not fight with all that is within Him to have them gathered into His arms for eternity??? He states, "THESE CHILDREN ARE AT THE VERY CENTER OF LIFE IN THE KINGDOM!" ....

I don't know what your personal beliefs are on the matter, but I believe that you can not KNOW GOD and believe He would condemn a child to Hell. It does not say that in the bible. In fact, referencing these verses, I believe it states the opposite!

Dear Yana

I want you home sweet baby girl! I want you here so bad my heart hurts! I saw this video and thought "I want this for you!". I pray you are doing well, staying healthy, and laughing! Someday soon you will be my little girl to have and to hold!

Love, mama

**** Please copy and paste the following link to view the video! It is worth your time!


http://hannigans.blogspot.com/2009/09/amazing-company-d.html

First Day of Fall!!!!

Ecclesiastes 3

1.To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven

I LOVE Fall! It is my favorite season, my favorite time of year...

I love cool air. I love the smell of dried leaves. I love the smell of dampness. I love apple cider, chili, wiener roasts, football games, and snuggling with my sweetheart on the deck under a blanket. I love cloudy days! I love it when it gets dark early. I love candy corn. I love the way the cool wind blows through my hair. I love the colors of the trees. And I LOVE wearing jeans and sweatshirts! It has always been my favorite thing to wear [ask my mother, I drove her nuts when I was younger!]

"Jacket weather!", there just isn't anything to dislike about it!

USCIS FINGERPRINT APPOINTMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I GOT THE LETTER FOR THE APPOINTMENT IN THE MAIL TODAY!!! THEY ARE SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 8TH, WHICH MAY I SAY IS A LONG TIME FROM NOW! BUT, AT LEAST THEY ARE SCHEDULED!!!!!!!!!!!!! *** The appt. times are an hour apart. Does it really take that long?????

PRAISE GOD!!!!

Getting closer, and closer ...

Dossier almost complete:

I need:

employment letter
family picture pages

I need to have mailed to me:

USCIS clearance
FBI fingerprints
my Passport

THAT IS IT! THAT is ALL we need! CAN you believe it????? I am praying these things all come quickly. Our check sent to USCIS has cleared so at least they are doing something with it, we put our fingerprints in the mail yesterday, and my passport was sent off to be processed on Monday. So... now... we basically do what we have become quite good at... we WAIT!

WARNING: Mothers heart under construction....

... and the paint is still wet! God is just not finished with me yet!

I am not a very good person. I TRY hard, but the "internal me", the "worldly me", the "sinful me" just pops up every now and again.

I am making slow but steady progress on our dossier to be sent to Bulgaria. God has renewed my mind enough to look and think about the paper work that needs done yet, and put some thought into some much needed action. Apparently, I have found, I have a "condition" that makes my mind shut down at the thought of piles of paperwork! Seriously!

But I am reading this WONDERFUL book, called "Adopted For Life" by Russell Moore. The other day I read these words:

"Fill out the paperwork "with a good will as to the Lord and not to man [Eph. 6: 5-7]. Yes, some of the paperwork and some of the exercises are overlapping, mindless, and trivial. Imagine, though, that Jesus himself is asking you to fill out this stuff, and do it with joyfulness and gratitude."

What a lovely kick in the pants that was! I NEEDED that reminder!

Got time for some honesty? I have found that there is a side of me I dont' like. It is the side that sees others getting donations over and over, of getting a sudden windfall, of getting a step further in this whole adoption process and I don't like it!

Well, its not that I dont' like it, because I do rejoice with them GREATLY!!!! I pour over their stories as they go meet their children and as they bring them home. I absorb and am inspired by the faith that sustains and drives them! I even cry tears of joy with some of them. The stories of the ransom of another child into a Christian family is just so much like looking directly at the heart of God! How can one not be moved to tears and an almost reverent wonder!?

But I HATE that initial feeling of ugliness that pops up before I can stop it! I want it GONE, SHUT DOWN, and OBLITERATED!!!!! Because GOD is moving in their lives and that is all the reason I need to fall on my knees and worship!

BUT, HE is lovingly and generously giving me another reason! HE is moving in my life as well! Slow but steady progress IS BEING MADE! WE are getting closer! HE is in control! I will continue to fight for my girls! But the cool part is they don't really need me to. They have the greatest warrior, protector, advocate, and parent of all time. GOD is on THEIR side!

So rejoice with me as we continue to move forward one document at a time! Rejoice with so many who are moving forward with their adoption journeys! God is moving, HE is setting the "solitary into families"

I am so happy so many are willing to share in my journey as I share in theirs.

One more child soon to be adopted!

James is 8 years old. The other two are Quincy, she is 9, and Lucas who is 3 1/2.

We received great news today! We are signing the APA [adoptive placement agreement] for James on Monday morning! This has been a long road as we were ready to adopt him over a year ago! But here we are, in the final stretch! He is very excited, as are we!

We talked of changing his name, at least his middle name as a way to celebrate the change in his life. But we are undecided. His birth father writes to him, and he is a "junior" named after his birth father. We are very happy to have that connection, but I think it might be hard as he gets older to have the only name in the family not chosen by his parents.

He thinks that it is fine. Even wants to change his first name sometimes... LOL... not anything we would use! :) Anyway, just something to think over!

It will be so good to have it done! He will feel "normal". We can stop keeping up our foster care license "for now" :). The kids are SOOOO excited to be able to put the trampoline back up! And we can go out of town on a moments notice! HOORAY!

AND we were blessed to get a small subsidy, keep his medical card, and have all the adoption expenses paid for!!!! He is not even dealing with any special needs, just possible because of his life history.

Like I said, I am feeling very blessed and excited! He is already going by our last name at school so that the change will be nothing new there.

Can't forget the little ones....

The back says "Jesus Loves ME".



The front says "Adoption, embraced by God!"

New Tshirt design. I love it! Do you?

What do you think of this one? The front says "Adoption", and under that "embraced by God". The heart is red, with a cross in the middle. The back lists lots of bible verses that have to do with adoption, faith in action, and Gods heart for the orphan. And at the bottom is my blog address. I have to order 20 shirts to get the price under $20/shirt. :( But I do like the design and it is a unisex T-shirt. Still not sure if it is worth it... but considering it.

sample shirt....

This is the color I liked best. The front has a pink angel outline, and white letters. The back the letters aer white and the design is pink. Notice the shadowed person is a girl. Its a girls T.

Front:



Back:



Here is the exact same design, but black shirt, hot pink outline, and white lettering.

IT HAS ARRIVED! ...

My I800a arrived at USCIS at 11 am yesterday! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My check hasn't cleared yet, but I will keep calling! :)
I suppose I should think about finally getting my passport huh? :)


*** Also, I have scheduled a meeting with my Pastor on Wed. this next week to talk about the churches possibles role/roles in this adoption. This is brand new to me! I have gone to church all my life, but never been a member of a church where I would ever consider asking for support, help, genuine prayer etc. We switched churches jsut over 2 years ago. It was a big thing. It has been so wonderful! I thank God all the time for my church now, and I had never done that before either! :) The problems were not with our old church, but that it wasn't a good fit for us and there were things I felt were needed that weren't there. I really believe God led my to Revolution and I am just so overjoyed that we followed His will for our lives! :)

Please vote!

Do you like the 2 tone hat or the single tone or neither? I was thinking about giving out a limited number of hats. One for each person that donates over a certain amount toward the girls adoption.

Design #1:




Design #2:




Design #3:




Design #4:



Design #5: similar, but with a font change.









*** part of the point being the hat leaves you thinking and hopefully people will ask questions... does it make sense? 147 million orphans world wide, minus our 2 girls that "you" helped to bring home! :)

My sister sent this to me... Can't wait to read the book!

Moore: adoption & Gospel go hand in hand
By: Jeff Robinson
Original article can be found here, http://www.bpnews.net/bpnews.asp?Id=31173.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (BP)--What does the adoption of children have to do with the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the local church?

Everything, says Southern Baptist Theological Seminary's Russell D. Moore.

Moore -- who together with his wife Maria adopted two sons from a Russian orphanage several years ago -- argues that the church should view the adoption of orphans as a crucial part of its mission precisely because God has adopted helpless sinners to be His sons. Moore serves as dean of the school of theology and senior vice president for academic administration at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Ky.

In his new book, "Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Children Families & Churches," Moore weaves together the personal story of the adoption of his two sons with the biblical teaching of God's adopting of His sons and daughters through Christ.

"Adoption tells the story of the universe, and it encompasses everything about what God has done for us in Christ. Some people misunderstand what the apostles mean when they speak of adoption," Moore said.

"We assume the Jewish Christians in the early church were the 'biological children' of God and the Gentile the 'adopted children' of God. No such distinction was made, since both received the adoption (Romans 9:4). Abraham, after all, wasn't a 'natural born' child of God. He was born in paganism, and brought into the household of God."

As Christians more clearly grasp the Gospel, Moore says, they will naturally grow more aware of the necessity of earthly adoption and will grow more missional because of the very nature of adoption.

"We were all orphans," he said. "Jesus became an orphan for us so that we might be brothers and sisters of Christ. Adoption is a Gospel issue … at the missional level.

"We care for orphans through adoption and foster care and mercy ministries not simply because it helps those who are hurting. We do so because the satanic powers hate babies, and Jesus loves them. Jesus pleads for the widows and the fatherless, and so we, if we share his Spirit, find ourselves doing the same, loving him by loving the least of his little brothers and sisters."

Messengers to this year's Southern Baptist Convention annual meeting passed a resolution encouraging every Southern Baptist family to pray about whether God wants them to adopt or provide foster care for a child or children. The resolution also called on Southern Baptist and other evangelical churches to devote a Sunday each year to emphasize "our adoption in Christ and our common burden for the orphans of the world." The resolution was submitted by Moore and was changed only slightly by the Resolutions Committee, the panel that formally presents resolutions to messengers.

In "Adopted for Life," Moore recounts the difficult lessons that God has taught him as he has reflected upon Scripture in light of his family's adoption of Timothy and Benjamin. One profound lesson Moore said God has taught him is that those who are united to Christ possess a family identity that transcends physical bloodlines. He argues that a Christian's true identity is not found in an earthly gene pool, but in Christ, a truth that should make adoption a priority for local congregations.

Moore tells his and his wife's personal struggle with infertility and their journey toward adoption, and he examines practical issues, such as: how to know if you should adopt, how much it might cost, how churches can encourage adoption, and how Christians must think about those who grow up adopted.

"The book took me longer to write than anything I've ever written. It's not because I had to spend so much time thinking and researching, it's just that it was so intense emotionally," Moore said.

"But every time I see my two little boys -- and remember the orphans they were -- I'm reminded of the number too great to be numbered of orphans languishing in the shadows right now. Writing the book then became, for me, an act of wrestling with demons, fighting for orphans."
--30--
Jeff Robinson is director of news and information at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Copyright (c) 2009 Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Press. Visit www.bpnews.net. BP News -- witness the difference! Covering the critical issues that shape your life, work and ministry. BP News is a ministry of Baptist Press, the daily news service of Southern Baptists.

The impossible

As I sat paying bills, I was once again struck by the impossibleness [is that a word?] of raising not only 7 kids, but soon to be 9 kids, on our single family income. And to top it off, once James' adoption is final we will lose the $600s a month that we get for foster care. There is no subsidy. And in this void of monthly income there is also the need to find ways to finance the remaining very large sum that we have left to gather to bring the girls home.

I should be worried, some days I AM worried. But usually, like today, I sit waiting on GOD, because I KNOW that He is wanting these 2 little ones to come home to us! He continues to reaffirm this over and over!!! Did you know there are actually days that I hurry to the mailbox in anticipation wondering if God sent me a check to fulfill our financial need to bring the girls home. Each day it isn't there just makes me more excited to find out just HOW He is planning to amaze me with His provision.

That may seem weird to a lot of you. It seems weird to me too, until I ponder just WHO my Heavenly Father is and the fact that there are no limits, no boundaries, no rules that we as humans can put on Gods!!!! HE is who HE is and had always been!! He will provide to "set the lonely in familes!" to "take care of orphans in their distress!"

And, to answer a question that so many have "Why not adopt locally or domestically? Why adopt from another country when so many children in the US need families?" Well, GOD doesn't see countries, boundaries, or limits. He sees the needy, the forgotten, the suffering, the least of these, the orphan and HE open hearts, doors, and pocket books to bring them home to a family!!!

So, amid all the confusion, worry, nervousness, dread, and oppositional opinions of the world we choose for our house to serve GOD! He has asked us to bring Yana and Shawnee home and we have said "YES!". We are relying on Him to show us how, to know what need before we even need it, and to provide! Praise God!