It's Find My Family Friday...

And Boy do I have a sweetie to share with you!! I have held this little guy in my arms, played with him & kissed his little cheeks. He is a doll! Super independent & smart. He's very loving and would fit easily into a family. Could this little guy be yours??? He's been waiting too long. Somebody scoop him up!!!!

Visit Reece's Rainbow to read more about this little guy

 “Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.” ~James 1:27

Respire Haiti

Respire is a Haitian Creole (and French) word which means to breathe and is pronounced Res-per-ray…

“The Spirit of God has made me, and the BREATH of the Almighty gives me life.” Job 33:4

Respire’s Story

Respire Haiti was founded by 24 year old Megan Boudreaux.  After visiting Gressier only one time before for about 45 minutes, God began working in her heart.  Later when she returned to the United States, He began to pull her heart back towards Gressier and the children there.  In December of 2010, God gave her a vision for this community and their children. With so many children not in school and so many families struggling to provide for their kids, she moved to Gressier permanently in January of 2011 and began helping the children and people of Gressier.

Read more about this amazing ministry HERE

Sid's Updates from his Visiting Orphans team of 13, that spent a week Loving Big at Respire Haiti:

Haiti day 1:
We started today off by going to a Haitian church. Always a Heavenly experience to worship in different languages.....can't wait to get to heaven and do it forever ! 
The view at church was awesome. Mountains rising out of the ocean clothed in lush green vegetation ...best view ever in church. This afternoon we went to a tent city (La Colene) where we had worship, face painting, whiffle ball and of course soccer. The kids here ,many of young mothers , came out to play and had a grand time. Some of the biggest smiles and laughs you ever heard. This was the first time for a group to go in and interact with the kids. We were very well received and hope we left a little light in a very dark place. Thank you Lord for this day.

Haiti day 2:
Started with homemade cinnamon rolls at respire cafe. YU-MMY!! We trekked up Bellevue mtn. As we got closer we could hear the kids singing "This is the day that The Lord has made" at the top of their lungs. Beautiful sound for sure. The view from the top is absolutely gorgeous. 
We proceeded to set up our tent and had music/ game time with 3 different classes of kindergartners. We taught them how to play Little Sally Walker. All had a great time.
This afternoon we went to help with English classes. another great way that Respire is serving the Haitians. I am guessing about 60 folks came today. They were so excited and committed to learning English.High point today was walking down the mtn. and singing praises to our King. I am so thankful to be " a child Of the one true King"

Haiti day 3:
Had a great nights sleep. I awoke with a fire this morning in my belly . We trekked up the mtn. and did bible stories and songs for the the kindergarten classes. The smiles , laughs, giggles and dance moves were off.tha.hook baby ! Watching the hearts of my team break and the God start putting them back together is n amazing sight and I feel so blessed to be witness to it.Block party this afternoon was amazing. Kids of ALL ages came and listened as we did our skit and praised The Lord. The high point of my day was playing monkey in the middle (keep away) with 2 -20 yr old young ladies. The laughed and played like little kids....it brought tremendous joy to my heart to see them let down their guard and just have fun. Thank you Lord for today it was grand!! 

Haiti day 4:
Team was up and attem this morning! We had a great breakfast at respire cafe and the proceeded up the mtn. to do worship and bible story time with the yunguns. It was really good this morning (our 3rD time with all of them) we sang and danced and had a grand ole time!! 
English class this afternoon was a blast. We sang praise songs and then taught English class with the lyrics. Who'd a thought??? It was a Jesus fest y'all. Loved it. I was reminded today of how Big God is and how precious the gift of music is. Thank you Mom and dad for making me be in the choir in 5th grade when nothing in me wanted to and for the guitar in 1990. Life would not be the same without it. Thank you God for a blessed day.

Haiti Day 5:
Way festive spirit at school this morning as it was the last day if school ! We performed our skit and did worship with all 3 classes again....sweet times. Class parties and meeting a lot of the moms was great. Had a little impromptu worship session between classes with the moms ! 
We had another block party this afternoon. We had a great group of yunguns today. 
Ha a good game of Sally Walker to get acquainted and then a Great devo on prodigal son with the kids and some really Good worship. Afterward we had free time with lots of activities for all.
Highlight of the day: meeting little Edenka.. A beautiful 8 yr old girl with downs..... I just happened upon her and her aunt. More to come on this....thank you Lord for a great day.

Haiti day 6:
Well today we marched up the mountain baby! Big party for all. We got to see the kids one last time this morning. Such beautiful faces and smiles with a warm spirit. I have grown to love this place. The spirit of evil is very heavy here BUT we know that the battle is won....this is ReSpire Haitis mantra .....doing life with them this week has been so encouraging....they just love on people everywhere they go.
Our final English class was great this afternoon. It started raining while we were still on the mtn. so it was a slick trip down for sure. All in all it was a great trip. Highlight of the day was meeting and visiting with Edenka and her mom across the street from Respire here. Edenka is the girl I spoke of yesterday (8 yr old with downs) that God placed in our path.....thank you God for the extra chromosonal blessings you continually put in our path.

The Spirit of God has made with me and the 

BREATH of the Almighty gives me life. ~Job  33:4

It's Another I Quit Thursday:)

If  you missed last weeks "I Quit" Post, check it out!

It’s Thursday. We can quit anything we want on a Thursday. I do, every week. Pick something, then quit doing it.  ~Bob Goff 

I'm finding after 4 weeks of "I Quit Thursdays" It's getting easier, & easier to just pick something & quit it. Although God seems to be telling me that what I quit needs to be more significant, more sacrificial, that it needs to hurt a little to quit whatever it is. So...

This week...

I QUIT drinking Dr. Pepper (for those that know me you know this is HUGE for me) I drink 1-4 Dr. Pepper's a day. Yikes! Prayers Appreciated! Ha! Lord Jesus protect my children this week.

I shall no longer worship you... Bye-bye my beloved DP. LOL

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 

~ 2 Timothy 1:7

I Quit

It’s Thursday. We can quit anything we want on a Thursday. I do, every week. Pick something, then quit doing it. — Bob Goff 

“Every single Thursday, I quit something,” says Bob Goff, Founder and CEO of Restore International, New York Times Best-Selling Author of Love Does

Love Does. Another book that has inspired us to take action. Because love doesn't just stop with thoughts and feelings; LOVE TAKES ACTION. Like Bob talks about we want to live in a new normal where we can reach out to people who are different from us and just be friends. We know that to make an impact you have to GO there and start a friendship. Friends do ---they don't just think about it. We realize life is about moving from the bleachers to the field. And that God is asking, "Will you take what you think defines you, leave it behind, and let Me define who you are instead?"

This Family Is taking action, no longer just talking about doing things but actually doing them. God is asking us to join His adventure. The bible says the only weapon any of us really have is LOVE. ~Love Does~

"That's one of the things about love. It doesn't recognize boundaries and never obeys the rules we try to give it" ~Bob Goff

"For me, it's Jesus plus nothing..." ~Bob Goff

Join us on I quit Thursday:) It's fun!

Here's some of my I Quit Thursdays so far...

May 30th - I quit worrying about what other people think of the choices I make when I know God has lead me to those choices.

June 6th - I quit being negative about homeschooling my children. No more fear. Full speed ahead!

June 13th - I quit chewing on my fingernails.

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Love Does shares powerful stories coupled with eye-opening truths and empowers anyone who longs for a better world and a richer faith.

You don’t need another Christian message or a self-help book. You need to have your paradigms about the world shifted into truth. That’s exactly what you get in Love Does. Have you ever noticed that the real change in your life-the growth that sticks and becomes a part of you-never happens with a program or the sheer grit of your best efforts? It happens over time, like a glacier slowly carving valleys through the mountains.

In this book of compelling stories coupled with eye-opening truths, author Bob Goff shows you a new way to live, a way that’s drenched with the whimsy of God’s love and the spontaneity of following where he leads when he says “Go!” In this book, you learn what it looks like to be secretly incredible and advance God’s kingdom everywhere you are and wherever you’re going.

For anyone who’s wanted to change the world but thought they needed money, a committee, and permission to get started, Love Does shows what can happen when you decide to do instead of plan, act instead of strategize, and fiercely, invisibly fight for the possibility God has gifted you to uniquely see.

Abreham's Safari Adventure

After Abreham's news from the doctor's at Tenwek Hospital in Kenya. I changed their flights to return to Ethiopia with tears in my eyes and thought, hmmmm... what could they do for a full 24 hrs until their departure. What adventure could Abreham and his precious Mama see that they might never experience again outside of the leper community they live in...
Why a Safari of course! Lions & Tigers & Bears. Oh, My!! Okay not Bears:)

Check out my sweet friend Kayla's Blog post about their adventure. Thank you Nurse Kayla for investing in the lives of these two precious ones. They are loved & they worthy.

CLICK HERE: 1 Broken Vessel

The Circle Maker

Back some months ago a dear friend had told me about a must read book (other than my bible) that I had to read! It sounded amazing from her vivid descriptions of which I quickly halted, 'cause I hate to ruin a good book by getting a detailed preview. Ha! I finally ordered the book & started it on a recent plane ride. I wept. On the plane. One chapter in. I'm sure people around me surely thought a loved one must have passed on to heaven. I seriously had to stop reading it just to let it all soak in! I've read a little bit here & there over the past weeks, stopping to let it soak, processing & seeing what God's word has to say about it. It has totally changed my thinking, altered my prayer life, and shown me how to BOLDLY Pray like I never have before! Like most people I love a good DARE. This book has seriously challenged me to pray prayers that change me and the world around me, prayers that are specific & prayers that seem impossible.

This family is...
Drawing Circles around HUGE things, 
                                                     BIG Dreams, 
                                                                   & GINOURMOUS World Changing Endeavors!

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A few of my Favorite Quotes from Mark Batterson's The Circle Maker:

"The more opposition we experience, the harder we have to pray, and the harder we have to pray, the more miracles God does"

"God is hunting you down to Bless You"

"His capacity to give is far greater than your capacity to receive."

"If you've never had a God-sized dream that scared you half to death, then you haven't really come to life"

"the Almighty is moved by big dreams and bold prayers."

"the more you have to circle something in prayer, the more satisfying it is spiritually. And, often, the more glory God gets."

"I'm not looking for the path of least resistance; I'm looking for the path of greatest glory."

What God's word says about praying boldly & courageously:

Because of Christ and our faith in him, we can now come boldly and confidently

 into God's presence. ~Eph 3:12

So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most. ~Heb 4:16

"Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you ~Matt 7:7

So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you." ~Deut 31:6

Wordless Wednesday

Abraham, This is NOT the end of your story...

UPDATE:
Abreham was seen today by 2 amazing doctors at Tenwek Hospital. After an extensive ECHO both doctors have agreed that it would not be in Abreham's best interest to undergo surgery. Because he is almost 4, he has missed the window of opportunity to safely undergo surgery. Because the risk is to high it is better to do everything we can to keep him healthy so that he may live a long life. He will remain on his medications, vitamins & be kept as healthy as possible so that he may continue to grow and be everything that God placed him on this earth for. We are so grateful for both doctors willingness and for their hearts for children with medical needs in Africa. We are thankful for the sweet nurse & translator that got them to Kenya, and spent time helping Mama to understand. For every person that donated, Thank you! Thank You! Thank You! We know that together we have done everything for Abreham and now it's up to us to continue showering him with prayer. Pray that his Mama will have peace that passes all understanding, that Abreham will be able to stay well, that he will continue to grow, develop & learn. And that he will continue to touch the lives of every person he comes into contact with. I can not thank all of you enough. 

This is just the beginning of Abreham's story...

Dear Abreham,
      Little man with big brown eyes you have touched the hearts of thousands of people. You are growing into such a mighty little man & I love you and your Mama dearly. That will never change. When God crossed our paths it was always about more than just your tiny little broken heart, it was about God's heart for you and your Mama. I have seen not only you get stronger, crawl & walk; but I have seen your Mama grow in Christ, I have seen her confidence grow & I have seen hope return to her eyes. Not a day goes by that I don't think of you and that moment when God ordained us to meet. I am forever grateful to a mighty God for doing a mighty work in all of our lives. I will continue to lift you up to our Heavenly Daddy every day just like I have every day since the day I saw your sweet little face with it's weak little smile. I will continue to walk beside you and your Mama for as long as God will allow me. Know that you are loved by me and so many, but most of all know that your Heavenly Father loves you more than words could ever express. He knows your days and there is no doubt that he placed you here in this temporary place to speak to others, to show others how perfectly perfect God made you, and to show others how you are treasured by the King of Kings. I Love you with ALL my heart!

For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;   your works are wonderful, I know that full well. ~Psalm 139:13-14

Oh, Sudan...

You have wrecked me all over again. I have been gloriously ruined by my precious heavenly Daddy & I. Will. NEVER. Be. The. Same! It's been 5 weeks since I climbed into a little plane, waved goodbye to my new friends, took off from a red dirt runway, and stared out the window with tears in my eyes.

Oh, Sudan I love your beautiful people...

I love your afternoon thunderstorms...

I love your red clay dirt that stains my feet...

I love how your people are filled with HOPE...

I love how eager they are to educate & train...

I love their willingness & eagerness to learn about our Savior...

I love it when they get jiggey with it...

I love it when they answer you with a head tilt & lifted eyebrows...

I love how they love one another...

I love how they live in community with one another...

I love how they desire to educate, empower & engage with one another...

I. Just. L-O-V-E...

Above all, love each other deeply...  ~1 Peter 4:8