Ethiopia Guest Home - Where we will be staying

www.EthiopiaGuestHome.com

We are looking forward to our trip to Ethiopia...though being away from Ezra, Olivia, and Camille is going to be hard. We are starting to prepare them for our time away.

Our travel is still dependent on some paperwork getting to the right people in the right time...but we are trusting the Lord that we will still be traveling for our scheduled court hearing.


Ethiopia Guest Home is where we will be staying during our time in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Go read about their website. The video below explains their heart and their vision.

What we love about the opportunity to stay here is that revenue goes to help local ministries (run by Ethiopians) to serve the people of Ethiopia and bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them. The guest home not only provides a great place for adoptive families and ministries to stay, but it employs many Ethiopian people.

Watch the video, catch the vision and considering staying there if you are traveling to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Dave McIllrath and his wife are the ones who started this home/ministry. He and his wife have a passionate heart to love and serve others. We count it a great joy to be able to stay here and look forward to writing further posts about our stay here.



Ethiopia Guest Home - More Than a Place to Stay from Session 7 Media on Vimeo.http://www.ethiopiaguesthome.com/

Paperwork Sprint Update!!

If you read the previous POST...you knew we had to do some things very quickly. The Lord was very gracious and allowed all the paperwork to get collecting in the course of 5 hours and sent off to the Secretary of State in WA.

Here is a little recap of the day.

* The two people who wrote references for us, rewrote their reference paperwork and got them notarized.
* Go down and pick up a certified copy of our marriage license.
* Meet the Bade's to pick up reference letter.
* Go to doctor office to have them do a new physical and rewrite letter on their letterhead and notarize.
* Meet social worker to pick up notarized documentation from her so we can include it in our cover letter.
* Pick up 2nd reference letter
* Back to office to write out cover letter to send to Secretary of State.
* Go to bank to have cover letter notarized.
* Go to Post Office and send documents before 5:30.
* I looked at the clock as I left the post office...5:23!!!!

This all happened in about a 3 hour window, which is kind of amazing. The Lord was very good and gracious to us in allowing this all to get done in such a quick time period...and as far as we can tell, each and every day matters.

Next Step: Wait until we get the paperwork back from the Washington State Secretary of State, then we have to send it to our courier service in D.C. who then takes it to the Department of State to have it authenticated and then to the Ethiopian Embassy, then to our agency, which will hopefully get it to Ethiopia very quickly.

Please Pray - Paperwork Chase and Authentication

Ethiopian adoption procedure is always changing in one way or another.

We found out from our agency this week that any document over 2 years old within the Dossier needs to be updated before the Ethiopian gov't will hear our adoption case, which is set for the 28th of January.

 Because we began our adoption paperwork in December of 2008, several of the documents are out of date and we have to scramble to get them ASAP. So please pray for us as we pray and work hard to get all the documents in and timely.

 This is a big deal for several reasons, but especially because we have already spent $3,030 in purchasing our tickets.

* My heart really is at peace (though working hard at getting this all cleared up and taken care of)...that is a gift from the Lord. Although we have already booked tickets, etc. we know the Lord purposefully does that which will cause us to depend and trust Him completely.

Ways to pray
* Pray that we are able to get all the documents in a timely manner (Updated Home Study, Reference Letters, Medical Physicals, Police Clearance Letters)
* The WA Secretary of State is quick and efficient and sends back our documents quickly.
* Our Courier service in D.C. is able to work efficiently in getting our new forms and paperwork to the Department of State and then to the Ethiopian Embassy...stamped and approved, then to our Agency who will then send it to Ethiopia for it to be translated in a timely manner, so all the documents can be to the MOWA (Ministry of Woman's Affairs) 2 weeks prior to our court date.
* This all really needs to happen within the next 2 weeks, which gives us more reason to see the gracious hand of God in all of this because it is the holiday season and who knows if any of these people/organizations will be working between Christmas and New Year's Day.

Susan Parr Travel

When we traveled to Ethiopia for the completion of our adoption of Ezra a few years ago, we used Susan Parr Travel to arrange our flights and travel. One of their specialties is coordinating travel arrangements for adoptive families.

In a day in age when travel agencies have nearly gone out of existence because of the ease of coordination of flights, hotels, etc. due to the internet...Susan Parr Travel is a shining example of a great business that has bucked the economic curve and has found a way to stay in business and thrive as a travel agency.

The first call I made after we confirmed our adoption court date with our adoption agency, was to Susan Parr Travel. I was quickly connected to a Adoption Travel Consultant who within a few hours had sent me several options for travel via the different airlines.

She kept in great communication and I was notified about a special that was going to be ending soon. Due to their promptness, they intuitiveness and alertness to all the scheduling of flights and available deals and specials, she not only arranged our flights but saved us about $250 per ticket for acting quickly and not delaying important decisions (which I have a bad habit of doing).

Three days later I received our tickets in the mail, other helpful information about preparation for travel, FAQ's, and a nice folder to keep our tickets and passports in.

So, if you are taking a trip and want someone to assist you in a professional manner, consider Susan Parr Travel.

If you are traveling is related to issues with adoption, court dates, embassy dates, etc... SUSAN PARR TRAVEL is such an asset, such a service, such a blessing to many families, especially ours.

Also, Kathy Carver was our representative. She put up with my countless phone calls and emails and was always eager to be of help to us and the important decisions we needed to make.

She even answered one of my emails at 11:30 pm. Crazy!

From the first person we talked to on the phone, through our final flight reservations, everyone at this company has been extremely helpful, professional and wonderful!!!

Here is the link to the Susan Parr Facebook page.

Favorite Parts of Voyage of the Dawn Treader (the book)

C.S. Lewis was a brilliant and gifted man who painted vivid and amazing pictures with his words. I recently reread Voyage of the Dawn Treader with anticipation of the upcoming movie which comes out this weekend. Each page of the book is full of words, sentences and conversations that are so vivid you can taste them. It has been a while since I read the whole Chronicles of Narnia series, but I think Voyage of the Dawn Treader might be might favorite (of course I'll say that until I read the next one). Below are so of my favorite parts of the book. (I do hope that the movie captured Lewis' heart in the biblical imagery scattered throughout the book).

Favorite parts of the book (we'll see if the movie holds up to the book)

1. Aslan's redemption/healing of Eustace the dragon

2. Caspian's call to his sailors to be on mission

3. Reepicheep's boldness to continue on mission, knowing it will cost his life. (His preoccupation with Aslan and Aslan's country makes no cost to great for the joy of being united with Him.)

4. Aslan's loving firmness with Lucy to resist vain glory

5. The beauty, purity, fullness, wonder, unending joy of Aslan's Country (heaven)

1. Eustace Clarence Scrubb - Story of Regeneration

     Our first introduction to Eustace is in the first sentence of the book, 'There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it'. Angry, self-centered, without friends because he was an annoying pebble in your shoe that you can't get rid of.
 Yet, about half way through the book we get to a climax of the scene with Eustace and Aslan. Eustace's greed has turned him into a dragon. There is nothing Eustace can do about his dragonness. He was horrifically miserable, dreary of his condition, he tries ripping the scales off his body, but all to no avail. He scratches and scratches until his scales are off, but as he tore the dragon scales off his body, they just grew back.

 Eustace could do nothing on his own merit. Aslan then spoke to Eustace, 'You will have to let me remove your scales'. Then the story goes on...

'The very first tear he made was so deep that I thought it had gone right into my heart. And when he began pulling the skin off, it hurt worse than anything I've ever felt. The only thing that made me able to bear it was just the pleasure of feeling the stuff peel off'...'He peeled the beastly stuff right off-just as I thought I'd done it myself the other three times, only they hadn't hurt-and there it was lying on the grass: only ever so much thicker, and darker, and more knobbly looking than the others had been. And there was I as smooth and soft as a peeled switch and smaller than I had been. Then He caught hold of me...'


Beautiful description. It goes on in further description, but this was a masterful way to describe our own inability to change, to rid ourselves of our sinfulness and it is only through Christ Jesus that we can be cleansed, purified, and made a new creation.

What was/is your favorite part of the book?

First meeting with an Attachment Therapist

*I write this down because I think there are others out there who are wrestling with similar issues in the adoption/foster care world, and this will be a bigger and bigger issue as more and more adoptions occur. By no means am I offering counsel, just recounting some of our process and what we are working through. It serves as a means of clarifying my thoughts also. We are very much at the beginning of this. 

Today we had our first meeting with an attachment therapist. We had no clue what to expect. We'd be lying to say that we weren't a bit nervous. What should we expect? What is normal? Is he going to act like 'normal' and show no signs of any issues? Are we just being over-sensitive and making all this stuff up?

So we get into the house and get comfortable. Instantly the kids (yes, we brought all of them) wanted to play with all of the toys she had, but first she wanted to get to know us a little bit and ask us a few questions. 

(I am briefly summarizing a 2 hour session). She was very warm, gracious, kind and helpful. 

Hannah: 'Ezra, could you tell me about your mom and dad? Tell me one thing about your mom?'

Ezra: 'Well, she lets me help her do the dishes'. 

Hannah: Great. Thank you for answering the question. High Five! Hugs for daddy and mommy.

 Now could you tell me about your dad? What does your dad do for work?

Ezra: "Well, he does the dishes." (Which I do try and do, but not for work.)

Hannah: 'Ezra, I want you to tell me what you dad does for work'.

Ezra: 'He leaves the house'. 

For the next 35 minutes, Ezra says different things and is trying to maintain control. He gets so frustrated with the process that he starts crying and goes and sits in mommy's lap and is held by her (which is a good thing). Hannah then trys to move onto a different question and come back to the 'What does daddy do for work' question.  We were greatly encouraged that Ezra went into Heidi's arms to be held by her (that is a good thing).

So Ezra stands up and looks at Hannah in the eyes and she asks...

Hannah: 'Ezra, what color are my eyes?'

Ezra: 'Purple'. 

Hannah: 'Ezra, I am sorry, my eyes are not purple.' (As a four year old, he knows his colors).

This goes on for another 10 to 15 minutes. 

Hannah: 'Ezra are you ready to answer the question.'

Ezra: 'Yes.'

Hannah: 'Ok, what color are my eyes?'

Ezra: 'Black'.

Hannah: 'Sorry Ezra, that is not right'.

* It is very easy to see that Ezra is trying to maintain control here and do things on his own terms and not on Hannah's terms. 

Daddy's Thought and Question:

About half way through this, I jump into the conversation. Heidi, we don't talk a lot about what I do for work, do you think this is something Ezra knows and knows how to communicate? 

Hannah: 'Possibly, but the fact that Ezra hasn't tried to answer correctly is something I want to pursue a bit further. It isn't that the answer has to be perfect, it just needs to be on topic and somewhat specific.' (As opposed to 'daddy washes dishes for work' or 'he just leaves the house'.

In Daddy's mind: (Maybe he is getting confused, maybe the questions should be asked in a different way.) Reality Check: These are really simple questions to ask/answer.

After doing some strong sitting, sitting on mom's lap and seeing her sister play with Superman and other toys, he says he is ready to answer.

Hannah: 'Ok Ezra, what does your daddy do for work?'

Ezra:  MY DADDY WORKS ON HIS COMPUTER AND SELLS HOUSES. 

(Word for word from his mouth. We had given him no further information since the beginning of our time. He is a very smart boy!)

Everyone: At this point we congratulate him, give huge hugs, big high-fives, and kisses, and communicate with him that we are super excited for him to tell the truth.

After answering that correctly, it took another 30 minutes to answer her second question correctly.

Hannah: 'Ezra, what color are my eyes?'

Ezra: 'Your eyes are blue'. 

Everyone Again: At this point we congratulate him, give huge hugs, big high-fives, and kisses, and communicate with him that we are super excited for him to tell the truth. 

Over the course of the hour and fifteen minutes of this, there were simply 2 questions Hannah focused upon because they were trigger points for Ezra.

1) What does your daddy do for work?

2) What color are my eyes?

You might be thinking: Wow, you went and spent 2 hours with someone just to answer those 2 questions. No...those questions and his answers reveal some deeper attachment issues. Why lie over the course of 20 times about what your daddy does for work and what color someone's eyes are? Maintain and keep control for the purpose of a safety mechanism. 

What is next?

- Time of thanksgiving to the Lord for our son. We cherish that God has graciously gifted our family with Ezra and soon Musse. 

- We are going to listen to and read Taming the Tiger while its still a Kitten. There are a lot of practical helps in working with children on helping them attach and gives us plenty of things to work on with Ezra over the course of the next few months. 

- Work on some of the things Ezra missed in his first year of life that he needs now. Additional holding, loving touch, looking into eyes, etc. You might think this is weird, but there are so many things that occur in that first year of life that we need to take a step back and work on with Ezra. 

- Ezra needs to know (the experiential know) that daddy and mommy know what is best and he doesn't need to try to maintain control. Helping him learn to TRUST us is essential. 

Other Thoughts:

- It isn't that we are trusting 'therapy' to change his heart and cause him to be born again, that is a gracious gift from the Lord, and only by the Lord. 

- Ezra is such a blessing and joy to our family and is full of smiles, joy and encouragement...but he is also hurting and needs help and does try to control and 'lead' as a means of coping. 

- If your child had a broken thumb and needed surgery and repairing, you would get physical therapy for him, right? The hardest part about attachment issues is that when brain development gets involved causes and treatments get a bit more tricky. There is no one unified voice, especially biblical voice, that addresses the issue the way physical therapists would respond to a broken thumb and what to do to get it back to functioning normally. 

If this post has been unclear, please comment and ask questions so I can clarify it.

P.S. A few posts I am going to do before we leave for Ethiopia are going to be focused upon 'What we learned from parenting an adopted child the first time around & what we are going to do different our 2nd time around.'

Be expectant when you read

I am finding that I am not very expectant when I read a book. I often read something because someone recommends it. That isn't bad in and of itself, but often I pick up a book without really assessing WHY I am reading this book and WHAT I hope to gain from it, and what is going to CHANGE as a result of reading this book.
 If I write out and answer some of those questions, I am a lot more focused, purposeful and accountable for the time I put into reading.

So, here are 2 questions I am going to ask of every book I read from now on.

1. Why am I going to read this book?


2. What do I hope to gain from reading this book?


3. What is going CHANGE as a result of reading this book?


* Obviously 2 and 3 are not going to be able to be spelled out with perfect clarity until the end of the book (and sometimes not even at that point) but I know I will be a lot more focused and attentive to actually THINKING while I read, instead of just breezing through words, sentences and paragraphs.

P.S. If nothing changes as a result of reading whatever I am reading, I am wasting the time the Lord has entrusted to me. Be on Mission!

For those of you who read, are their specific questions you ask before you read a book to make sure you are getting the most out of it as possible?

World AIDS Day

Russell Moore has some thoughtful reflections on World AIDS Day. You know you need to read it when you read in the first paragraph that JESUS HAS AIDS. Read it.


Here is a video done by CBS about the Twietmeyer family who started Project HOPEFUL and have adopted several kids from Ethiopia, and a few who have HIV. You can read their God-wrought story HERE. At least, watch their video...I learned a lot in 3 minutes.


Lisa Qualls is another blogger who has a lot to say regarding adoption & AIDS and her blog is always worth reading. She gives 5 specific ways you can help on World AIDS Day. She is also very active at From HIV to Home.

We got our Court Date - January 28th

We got our court date today. We will now be making flight arrangements and other accommodations for our trip in the last week of January!!!!!!

Holding Babies is Spiritual Warfare

Some friends of our recently were licensed for foster care here in Spokane, with the hope and intention to adopt when possible.

I went and saw them at the hospital last week and was struck by the beauty of the foster parents holding, gazing, feeding and nurturing this newborn child.

It struck me, Satan wants nothing more that this child be abandoned, discarded, left to cry without someone to care and nurture the child. Holding babies is spiritual warfare for believers. In such a simple act there is worship if attention, prayer goes to our maker and creator. The fact that this or any other baby makes it outside the womb is a miracle from above and another stage of spiritual warfare enters as we nurture young infants.

This couple does not know if they will be able to adopt this child. They might have this care in their care, custody, love, care, and protection for months or years and not be able to finalize the adoption...the Lord only knows. Yet, their confidence is not in 'a system' or 'a program', but in the good and perfect plans from the Lord. They are confident the in the Lord, in His purposes, His plans, and His ways. My faith is strengthened, stretched, exhorted as I see them walking in God's will for them.

Over the Thanksgiving time, I told them it is such a joy to have friends who are waging spiritual warfare and entering this hard road of life and ministry, especially with so many unknowns ahead.

Their response  to this encouragement was so biblical and God-centered. "We are confident we are in the will of God when He led us down this road. There is no real risk when you are walking down the road God has for you. We are so grateful He has called us to ministry." Preach it, declare it on the mountaintops. O what a great God we have!!!!

Desiring God Live with Darrin Patrick

Darren Patrick is lead pastor at Journey Church in St. Louis and vice-president of the Acts 29 church planting network. He recently authored the book Church Planter and recently sat down with the crew at Desiring God for an interview.

I watched this for a few reasons, but one because I bought the book and wanted to get a little more background on the context of the HOW and WHY the book was written.

The promo video for the book is excellent and worth the 5 minutes it takes to watch.

Here are a few thoughts, quotes, etc. I walked away with from the interview:

- In Darrin's testimony, God used an assistant high school football coach to bring the message of the Gospel to him when he was a junior in high school, had just gotten kicked off the football team for drinking, kicked out of school for fighting and was sure he had just gotten his girlfriend pregnant.

The below quotes have a full context within the interivew to understand, but they are worth noting.

"You can always take the commands of God back to the character of God"


"I saved you, so now you can obey me" (not the other way around)


"You cannot make God smile bigger at you than He already is because of what Jesus has done"


"There is a difference between surface idols and source idols" You'll have to listen to the interview for him to unpack this.

Disaster is 'when the story and glory of a church becomes bigger than the story and glory of God'.

"A BAN is not a boy, not a man, prolongs adolescence and many do this because they don't have dads."

What is the posture God wants to use us in??? Weakness II COR. 12.

'When people look around at you and aren't impressed with you but with Jesus, that is a great thing.'

The Grace of God in our Circumstances:

Below is a link to a article I found worthy of thought and prayer.

May the grace of God compel us to go reach the nations!

The Grace of God in our Circumstances: Why you weren't Born as an Impoverished Child in an Unreached Nation:

The Unreached People Groups

A few weeks ago, one of the men I have gotten to know over the years preached at our Sunday gathering of believers.


He and his wife have given their lives in taking the Good News of the Gospel to bibleless people groups. This family has given their life work in partnership with Wycliffe Bible Translators to reach people who have never been able to read the Word of God in their own language.

His message is HERE if interested, it is titled Proclaiming Christ where Christ is Unknown.

Some good friends, Troy and Stevi, live in Austin TX and a apart of The Austin Stone Community Church.

This church has made a huge concerted effort toward reaching the unreached and have a great website helping spread that message, called the 100 People Network.

They also hosted the Together for Adoption National Conference a few months back.

A week or so ago, I saw this video below of a couple who is preparing to go, though they don't know where as of yet. 

This video is very well done and is a great to watch, PRAY, and consider.

#35 and #36 of 100 from The Austin Stone on Vimeo.

HT: (Spirit of Adoption)

Adoption is the Gospel

Below is a great Adoption video I found via the Orphan Sunday website.

The aspect of this video I love the most...

Adoption isn't about 147 million orphans...

Adoption isn't about Poverty...

Adoption is the GOSPEL.

Orphan Sunday 2010 from Matthew Wilson on Vimeo.

"They learn from what I am excited about..."

"It’s worth asking ourselves regularly: Is it clear to others that nothing excites me more than the gospel of Jesus Christ and him crucified?"  Here is a blog post to read and consider.


D.A. Carson:
If I have learned anything in 35 or 40 years of teaching, it is that students don’t learn everything I teach them. What they learn is what I am excited about, the kinds of things I emphasize again and again and again and again. That had better be the gospel.


HT: CJ Mahaney via Justin Taylor



The sermon at church ran along the same lines as this article, but this blog post is worth taking note of.

Here are the questions I am asking myself in response to reading this article:

- I need to be regularly asking my wife and others around me: Based on what you see in my life, my time, my money, my attention, what would you say I am the most passionate about?

- Do I put hope, confidence and assurance in some technique or parenting style instead of the Hope of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?

Greed, Gideon, and Goodness of God

For the longest time I have thought that God was going to use me to give millions and millions of dollars away to the work of His service for the advance of His name...I don't think so anymore.

I have always been thinking about, trying to be creative toward, finding the next big business that would explode, the money would just start flowing like a waterfall (into my wallet that is, not out), and I would then have millions and millions of dollars at my disposal to give to the Lord's work as He so leads. Give ridiculous amounts anonymously, rescue children from horrific situations, plant churches, give financially to start care facilities, etc.

These are all incredibly important things that I believe are very close to the heart of God. YET, the Lord knows where I am susceptible to succumb to temptation. Here are some things the Lord has been revealing to me:

1. I can say 'I want to honor the Lord' and worship the false god of greed in the same sentence'

2. God is so gracious to keep 'good things' from me because He knows how quick I am to get comfortable, trust in bank accounts, clients, myself...so that my trust remains in Him and not in the things of this world.
What if the Lord 'blessed' me with $2.5 million and it was all used for good causes, but at the same time it caused me to trust in myself, and hardened by the deceitfulness of sin? What a tragedy that would be. Thank you Lord for keeping me dependent upon You.

3. If I had to much $$$ (prosperity, security in worldly possessions, etc) I would WHORE after them. (Scary imagery, but biblical).

4. I am easily snared, trapped, deceived, snookered, by the love of money.

Father, thank you for your gracious hand of love and patience. Thank you for keeping vast riches from me, though I tell myself I would use it to proclaim Your name. You know my frailty, my temptations, my weaknesses. Thank you for Christ Jesus who was vastly rich and became forsakenly poor so I, Dustin Conrad Greenup, could know the riches of knowing Christ Jesus.

I truly do thank the Lord that there are Christ-Followers who love Jesus and whom God has allowed to make millions and millions of dollars. I pray that God would bless them and cause HIS face to shine upon them and that their resources would be used to magnify Him to the ends of the earth and to proclaim that He is God and not stuff.

About a month ago our growth group (community group, small group, etc.) was studying Judges chapters 6 through 10 and it was some incredibly challenging passages regarding the life of Gideon.

  God was so good, gracious and patient with Gideon and consistently took him through faith building situations in which he could not trust in himself, but in the God who would provide for him.


   8:27 And Gideon made an ephod of it and put it in his city, in Ophrah. And all Israel whored after it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family.

Tri-Cities Adoption/Foster Care Conference

Heidi and I went to a conference in Tri-Cities a few days ago that was put on the by Adoption/Orphan Care ministry of the Calvary Chapel in Kennewick. (Heidi and Camille were sick for most of it, so we only got to go to about 1/2 of the sessions, but we are very thankful we went down.)

We went for a few reasons.

1. The Lord has increasingly placed a desire/burning upon our souls to see God's name exalted in families in the Spokane community and we wanted to see how this conference was organized/focused/etc. to get a glimpse and continue to think through if the Lord is desiring us to be involved in something similar in Spokane in the coming year/years, etc.

2. There were several breakout sessions that seemed of interest and very applicable in some of the struggles we are currently wrestling through.

Great Connections
This is the 2nd year that this church has put this conference on and they had about 150 registrants. There are many people in this church who have gone down the road of foster care/foster to adopt/domestic adoption/international adoption.

There is a group of people/churches in Spokane that are passionate about seeing the local church dive into this area of life and ministry and the believers in Tri-Cities have been a great resource for us.

Instead of summarizing the whole thing, let me give you a few links of people/ministries that were/are great resources:

Forever Homes: Lynn and Jennie have started to help many many couples who have struggled through Attachment issues. They have 'foster to adopted' 3 children (I think) and have gone through a lot and they are passionate about helping others who are feeling emotionally drained, weary and in need of practical help.

The Vickerman Family: They were along with many others instrumental in organizing this event. Thank you.

Julee Fesser - Mom of 27 children, (I think). In her breakout session, titled 'life with a multi-Racial, multi-Ethnic, Mult-EVERYTHING family, she shared her/their story of how God ministered to them, called them, and blesses them in this journey. The majority of people who attended her breakout session were wondering answers to questions like, 'How do you survive, how do you get everything done, how do you spend time with each of your children, etc.' She was very gracious to answer those questions, but the main thrust of her story is God! When he calls you to something, he provides the necessary strength and stamina to carry through. She was very honest and transparent and clear that just because God's calls you to something, doesn't mean that it is going to turn out great. For example, He might be calling you to go overseas and serve an unreached people group...and you might get there and within a month die of Malaria. Just because that were to happen doesn't mean it was a mistake or wasn't something God was calling you to. God sometimes works in that manner. Their life and ministry has been devoted to honoring the Lord by giving a home and family to those children who most people would not adopt. Children with Down Syndrome, Spina Bifida, others issues. She was a normal person who had a Great Big view of God and thus followed Him in light of His greatness and glory.

'His Purposes are Right and Will Stand'...especially during suffering

Below is a wonderful video a family who is spreading the love of Christ in the midst of cancer, foster care, adoption. Let this be an encouragement and know that what the Lord is teaching you in these moments of life He has purpose for His glory in them.



The Watters' Story from Children Desiring God on Vimeo.


Desiring God is hands down one of my favorite ministries. God exalting, Christ-centered, and full of great resources.

Blessed by Local Churches in Spokane & Beyond

These past few weeks we have been so blessed by so many. I thought I'd share a little.

1. We have a dear friend who is a student at Whitworth and this past Sunday, she had been given some $$ to serve others with. She wrote us a gracious note and wanted to help toward the cost of bringing our son home. We were so blessed by her and her church as a result of this.

2. Heidi and I went down to the Tri-Cities and attended an adoption/foster care conference at the Calvary Chapel in Kennewick. Though we weren't able to get to all of it because Heidi and Camille were both kind of sick, we were blessed by this event and the people we met. (I'll post a bit more about this soon).

3. Some good friends of ours, who are also in the process of adopting from Ethiopia, invited us to come to their local community of believers, Vintage Faith, and share a bit of our story regarding international adoption. Though we were only there for a little while, we were so blessed to hear how they are starting an adoption fund for families within their church who are being called by the Lord to pursue adoption. We look forward to see how God work mightily

4. Christ the Redeemer, another local body of believers in Spokane, also had an adoption/orphan care kickoff on their Sunday morning gathering this past Sunday. I have yet to hear how that went, but looking forward to hearing about it. They set up a blog, it is worth checking out. I love the name of what they called it, 'Off the Wall Ministries.'

5. Faith Bible Church, the local body of believers that our family is a part of has started to connect families who have experienced adoption, foster care, etc. with new families that are starting down that road. We have some dear friends who just got their foster care license a week ago and one of the other families who has adopted once through the foster care system and hopefully will be completing their second adoption shortly had them over for dinner to help encourage and prepare this couple for the road ahead. 

"Reactive Attachment Disorder...whatever" and "The recovering Pharisee"

      I used to be that guy who rolled his eyes (probably not visibly, but definitely in my mind) when someone told me that their child was having attachment issues or had a Sensory Processing Disorder. I used to think that stuff is just a bit fu-fu and if those people would just parent 'the right way' their kids would get over those issues. 'It must be the parents fault'...'bad parenting.' If they would simply implement 'these' techniques, then the kids would turn out. Oh how this bleeds excessively of legalism, moralism, and nauseating religiosity.

 My whole testimony of God's grace and sanctification in my life is a 'Used to be Pharisee & saved by Grace'.

If you are not familiar with the terms 'RAD or Sensory Processing Disorder', you might be rolling your eyes at me know thinking I have gone off the deep end and have surely lost it. That's ok, because there are people out there who know what I am talking about.

As Heidi and I started to pray and think more through this and talk to parents who have adopted children, we realized that what we were seeing/feeling/sensing was real stuff and we were not alone on an island in realizing what we were going through with Ezra.

I am very thankful for blogs because it is a place where people share their life, joys, struggles, hurts, etc.

A few years ago, we met a couple, Russ and Lisa Qualls, at an adoption conference. They had 7 biological children, and then followed the Lord' call on their life to adopt 4 children from Ethiopia. She has been very transparent on her blog and one specific article she wrote was very helpful to me to drop my pride and ASK FOR HELP. This article is SO HELPFUL, so freeing, so raw and transparent.

If you click the link that follows, another adoptive parent explains a day in the life with a child with attachment issues. Read it here. (Not all attachment issues are are severe as she describes, but some are).

A few ways the Lord has grown me over the course of the last few months as we wrestle through, think through, pray through these issues of Reactive Attachment Disorder (and parenting in general).

1. Compassion - Both for Parents who are trying to help their adopted children with RAD and compassion for Ezra as we seek to love him and serve him.

2. Kindness and Gentleness - A soft answer turns away wrath (rage, fury, anger).
   The kindness of the Lord is meant to lead you to repentance.

3. Less Judgmental - Like I said in the title, I am a recovering Pharisee and God is doing a good work in my/our heart to love others and have more sympathy towards people who deal with rough kids and situations.

Quick list of resources for RAD and other sensory disorders:

Empowered To Connect - Karyn Purvis wrote and excellent book, The Connected Child. Dr. Purvis and a few others wrote a FREE study guide to go along with the book, called Created to Connect. 


Adopting for Life Conference: Earlier in 2010, there was a conference in Louisville, KY, there was a conference that had many resources. One of those resources was a sermon titled, Attachment Disorders and the Gospel: Building the right adoption DNA into your family.


Attachment.org : We are currently reading a book, When love is not enough, and feel like it is a good resource to have in our toolkit. She has a lot of other good resources available, though we haven't used any of them yet.

I thank Jesus for His gracious, forgiving love and how he continually reveals to me that I am a in need of a Savior, on a daily basis. I thank the Lord He has had us go down this road of adoption but it has not been easy, care free, all smiles, picture perfect.

 But if it were, why would I need trust Jesus for His sustaining grace?

For those of you who have read this far, please comment on other resources you have found helpful as you trust the Lord in working with children with attachment issues?

Adoption Update, Waiting on the Lord for a Court Date and Ezra praying

Sorry it has been so long since I have posted.

We don't really have any new information about the progress of our adoption as we wait for application for a court hearing.

We talked to our case worker yesterday and this week's rounds of court application appointments occurred, but our case was not one that was heard.

Each Wednesday new courts appointments are given, so we'll have to wait until next week to see if our case will be on schedule.

Crazy thing is that the latest court appointments were for January 21st, 2011. So even if we did get a court appointment next week, the actual court date and traveling to Ethiopia wouldn't be until at least the last week of January and maybe even February.

How to pray for us & Musse
1. Please pray that with us that we will get a court appointment soon. Our heart is so desirous to get over there and see, hold, touch, care for, nurture, feed, smile with, our son.
2. Please pray that our hearts will remain hopeful in the times of waiting. Without a doubt the Lord has magnificent purposes in seasons of waiting and we want to trust Him completely.
3.  We got some updated pictures and what a joy to get those...it is like Christmas getting new pictures, especially ones where he is smiling. Quickly brought me to tears of joy and of longing to be in Ethiopia to hold my son, but pictures are a huge blessing.


It has been such a joy to see Ezra and Olivia begin to pray for Musse on a daily basis. Ezra really has taken this seriously and prays for him on a daily basis without any initiation on our part. He usually prays as follows,

 'Dear Lord, please be with Moses Hudson today. Please help him have someone who will give him something to eat and will watch out for him until we can come and get him. Help us be able to go get him soon.'

A story of God's provision

I read the story below via the AbbaFund Blog.

Wonderful!!!!

So I just wanted to share some super exciting and overwhelming news… My husband has been working part time as the pastor of our church for the past year, and also working for the postal service. He finally left the post office and went full time with our church last week. Well, this past Sunday, they called us up to the front to give him a card and express their appreciation for him (evidently October was pastor appreciation month). So we came up, and one of our elders gave him the card and told him to open it then. So he opened it up, and inside was a little certificate that said:

“Just as your adoption into the family of Christ has been fully paid, so also has the adoption of your daughter been fully paid.”

And there was a big “$11,500.00″ written on it. Which is the amount that we still needed to save to cover our remaining costs. And then after we read it, the whole church stood and started clapping!

WOW!! I have no words for how shocked and how thankful and how amazed we were/are. It’s insane. I can’t even express. Our church is NOT big. We have around 50 members, and about 100 total regular attenders. We have no idea where the money even came from… except that it came from God!

I just wanted to share this, because it’s so awesome and we are so thankful and I hope that it will encourage someone. We had no idea where we were going to come up with the money for this adoption when we started… but we never worried about it. We always knew that God would provide. We just didn’t know He would provide such a large sum at one time, haha! He is so good and so faithful! Praise God!

Liv
ethiopiansisty.blogspot.com

Go San Francisco Giants - Jeremy Affeldt dealing with Adversity

Meet Jeremy Affeldt. Relief pitcher for the San Francisco Giants in the World Series. Local Spokanite also. As impressive as pitching at the pro level or on a World Series team is to everyone, learning to trust the Lord and depend on Him in trials and adversity is far more impressive...if you ask me.

The video below is Jeremy sharing what God has taught him while He was on the Disabled List. Great testimony of God's graciousness and Fatherly Love.

Go Jer! Go Giants!!!




(HT: Jeremy's Blog)

A place of 'BIG NEEDS'

I was having a conversation with a gal at the office today and she mentioned that she had just attended a World Vision sponsorship luncheon and she and her husband and daughter are going to help a child with a goat, some milk, clothes, etc.
 She asked which country we had adopted Ezra from. I was able to tell her Ethiopia. She explained she really wanted to pick a country with 'some big needs'.

I am grateful for this conversation and it was a good reminder that every story, every photo, every video, every trip helps people understand the way life outside our American 'dreamland' is really like.

So, to you bloggers out there...blog, help others understand what life is like outside middle class america and that there are 'BIG NEEDS' everywhere.

P.S. I am getting really excited to go to Ethiopia (Though we don't know yet when we will be traveling). Getting outside the U.S. (and my neighborhood) is important to do...it is life-changing...especially if you go to a 3rd-world country.

Meet the Williamson's - Bible Translators in Ethiopia

* I have never met this couple, but they are friends with my cousin and they attended Moody Bible Institute together. I didn't know that until I looked at my cousin's facebook page and saw some pictures.
* I ran across their blog today, I forget how I got there. Blog Linkage I guess.
* They are doing language translation work in Ethiopia!!! This is the 1st couple I have 'met'/read about/etc that is doing this type of work in Ethiopia.
* Pray for them, Learn more about their work, etc.
* Here is the link to their blog: Travis & Andrea Williamson

                       Link to Post with Picture: First Brushes with GMZ language

                                   Link to Post with Picture: Night Birds and Stones

                                          Link with Post to Picture: The Great Pumpkin

Go read about them. Maybe when we go to Ethiopia we could even get together with them and learn more about them. 

Photos Matter

                    

I read about this on a blog yesterday and felt it was important to pass along. Pictures are life-changing.

Jennifer Rego:

  For myself, the power of the photograph is precisely that it is the reminder that I need that defending the unborn is not simply “a cause”, or an “issue”, because people are not causes or issue, they unique, unrepeatable human beings that I have a relationship with simply because we both share our human dignity, and it is simply because of that, that I have an obligation to defend them.

Rest of the Story...

(HT: Take Your Vitamin Z)

P.S. For all those photographers out there...take photos that can/will change the world, for the good, for the helpless, for the fatherless, for the unborn. Photos Matter!!!



Do Orphans need Saving?

This is a very important read regarding adoption, orphan care, etc.

http://www.rageagainsttheminivan.com/2010/10/do-orphans-need-saving.html

Our Adoption Referral

A little Background
On the morning of October 1st, 2010, we were sitting down for breakfast and I leaned over to Heidi and asked, 'I wonder when our agency is going to call us? Maybe our specifications for a child are too narrow (boy, under 6 months old)? Heidi graciously replied, 'Dustin, the Lord knows the situation and His timing is perfect.'

October 1st was also Heidi's birthday!!! This was a great birthday gift!

I was headed out to leave for work and she had picked up her phone and realized that she had a voicemail from our adoption agency caseworker....which we know only means 1 thing...a referral.

Heidi talked with our caseworker and sure enough, it was referral day!

His current name on the paperwork: 'Musse Unknown' (When there is the word 'unknown', it means that there is no record of the father and mother. Very similar to Ezra's story, a police officer came across 'Musse' and brought him to the orphanage. He was 5 days old when the officer found him and directly came into the orphanage. He was/is extremely malnourished and in need of good care quickly. Before Musse would be available for referral, he needed to be at the orphanage in the village/town for 2 months, in case anyone in the area claimed him as their son or relative in any way. So, in mid-September, Musse was legally/officially ready to be adopted.

What does the name Musse mean???
The name if pronounced "MooSAY" and the English equivalent to 'Moses'.

Some might think he was 'abandoned' but if you are unfamiliar with the vast poverty, famine, etc. you will realize that he was really being set free for an opportunity for life and survival. The mother of Moses in the Bible loved him without a shadow of a doubt, but knew his life was in extreme danger if she didn't act and do something. In the same way, this biological mother, who we will never meet in this life, did so for Musse.

The Lord has answered countless prayers thus far and we look forward to continuing to see him answer many prayers.

What is the next step?
Our agency applies for a court date and then we travel. Hard to say exactly when that will be...but probably sometime in December or early January.

Can you put some pictures online?
We cannot until Musse is legally our son. Sorry.

It is October 13th and you got the referral on October 1st...why so long in sharing information?
Our agency STRONGLY encourages all adoptive families to take photos, medical information, etc. to a pediatrician or a pediatrician specializing in adoption situations. So we did that and felt it was important to wait until all that information was taken care of prior to broadcasting it across the world via our blog.

Do you have questions?
We know there are those out there that are considering adoption, are in process and confused, or have a host of other questions. No guarantee we'd be able to answer them, but we'll provide an open ear if that is what you need. Feel free to go to the Contact Us page if desired.

God story...The Howerton Family

This is wonderful! A God story is right.



God Story: The Howerton Family from ROCKHARBOR on Vimeo.


HT: Together For Adoption

Ezra makes us smile and laugh in many ways. Below are two ways he makes us smile and be full of laughter. He loves to sing and he loves to dance.




Ezra dancing to 'Very Superstitious'

If you ever want/need to Contact Us

Lately, we have started to get about 1 inquiry a day related to adoption/orphan care/foster care.

We love being a resource however the Lord might allow us to be.

We want to remove any barrier toward not being open to contact...so below is the best way to contact us.

Email: dustin@changeyourworldforone.com (If you have questions specific for Heidi, it will be forwarded to her)

Email: dustin@greenuphomes.com

Dustin Phone: 509-435-1107

Heidi Phone: 509-435-3089

Facebook: Dustin Greenup

Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader

Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader trailer:

Francis Chan sermon on Pride, Humility, Loving Christ and Loving Others

Francis Chan's sermon at the Desiring God National Conference. Watch and be changed.

Meet Missy from "It's Almost Naptime"

Meet Missy - She blogs at It's Almost Naptime

I don't even remember how Heidi and I ran across her blog, but once we did, we were hooked. In short, she is poignant, HILARIOUS, advocate of the orphan, real, transparent, loves the Lord and a great writer.

The Together For Adoption conference was the past weekend in Austin, TX. Go to their website to learn more. Hopefully some audio, video, and other resources might be available soon.

Missy did go and she does a great job helping summarize the Theology of Adoption.

Take a read -  Theology of Adoption

You might also like...

I don't want my children to be happy (Summarizing dealing with questions regarding adopting and how it will keep you from being able to pay for college for your other children.)

Isaiah's Story - Watch this

Isaiah's Story from 31Films on Vimeo.

HT: Together For Adoption

One Less - Matthew West

Change Your World For One is spelled out in this song by Matthew West.

One Less by Matthew West (The Story Behind The Song) from emicmg on Vimeo.

Young Ladies Helping Hudson Home

* A month or two ago, some young ladies contacted us about wanting to do a fundraiser to raise funds to help bring our son Hudson home.

* At first they wanted to do a car wash, but that didn't work out.

* So, they decided to do an event in which families could drop off their young children for a few hours while the parents went on a date for several hours.

* These young ladies are incredibly intuitive, innovative, passionate, and caring.

* The event went over very well and 4 families dropped their kids off for a few hours while the parents went on a date event.

* They didn't just 'watch' the younger kids and put them in front of a TV, they taught the younger children. They did crafts with them, help teach them about Jesus & His resurrection. It was a

* I talked with their mom and the mom explained how the girls came up with the idea by themselves and it was from their desire that this idea was born.

* About a week later, we received a note in the mail from them and a cashier's check for $205.17.

* We were completely humbled by this $200+ donation, but even more than the actual $$$ amount, was the heart that these young ladies put into the event to help us get our son home.

* These young ladies used their God-given creativity to give of their time and expertise (teaching and training younger children) to help us raise funds to complete our adoption.

* To everyone involved, in this both in the young ladies who ran the event, the parents who helped them, and the parents who dropped their kids off...THANK YOU!!!!

Adoption From Rwanda

A friend (Mark & Alison Struska- who are currently adopting from Burundi) linked to the blog below to a family who is currently adopting from Rwanda.
Both The Struska's blog and The McClennan Family blog are very encouraging.



McClennan's blog

Meet the McAlpine's...rejoicing in the Lord

Meet Clinton & Amanda McApline: I love the name of their blog: 'Walk by Faith - seeking joy over happiness while waiting in the darkness.' Beautiful.

This past weekend they had an Adoption Fundraiser in Minneapolis, MN.

Please read...it is a very encouraging post. CLICK HERE

Pray for them also. They are waiting for a referral of a sibling group from Ethiopia. Waiting is hard, but good.

My wife's Birthday!

Jesus has been so good to redeem us, change us and sanctify us. Heidi has been/is/will continue to be a priceless gift from God in my life and the life of our children, and others God sovereignly has her touch with her life.

She is...

Robert Huggins Photography

Amazing
Beautiful
Caring
Discerning
Eager to serve
Forgiving
Gentle
Hilarious
Intoxicating - :) Check the book of Proverbs for what I mean by this
Jesus Lover - She knows that God has forgiven her and made her His own, thus she loves Him.
Kind -
Loyal
Mends
Noble
Open
Patient
Quiet spirit
Respectful
Surprising
Trustworthy
Unlike any other
Vivacious
Wise
XXVIII -
Yearns - ...to know the Lord, to walk intimately with him, to serve her family & others.
Zealous -

Together For Adoption Conference - Livestream

Pray for this conference, read about it, watch the livestream of the event.

Fatty Fast Food

See the infograph that depicts the Fast Food epidemic.

InfoGraph

(HT: Tim Challies)

The Wall Street Journal on the Christian Orphan Movement

Read Article Below:

The Wall Street Journal on the Christian Orphan Movement

Edward Albrecht - An answer to prayer today

I am in Seattle area for 2 1/2 days for a Windermere Real Estate conference. The events don't start until tomorrow, so I had a chance to walk around downtown Seattle some this afternoon before I met the other agents from my office for dinner.

Edward Albrecht - An answer to prayer
for me

As I was walking I began to pray, "God, I'd really love the opportunity to take someone to lunch who is really in need of it" and before I finished that silent prayer Edward Albrecht, a homeless man around 33 years old, turned around and asked if I had a few dollars to spare for lunch. I was kind of taken aback (but I know I was heard by God) by the quickness of the answer, but Edward and I proceeded to go to McDonald's and share a meal together. He was very open to talk and converse about all things.

It was such a joy to be able to share with him that 3 seconds before he turned around to me I had just prayed and asked God to provide me with someone to take to lunch! Tears started filling his eyes as he just stared out...thinking and pondering.

See the sidewalk: That is where Edward
slept the last 2 nights

I asked Edward if he had ever trusted Jesus to forgive him and confessed/repented of his sin. He was refreshingly honest and shared that he is a very angry man and he knew about God in his head but not in his heart. (Those were his words). It was such a joy to be able to read some Scripture to him and pray that God would work and save him.

He asked if I could help him get a bus ticket which was a privilege to do. We walked over to the bus station and Edward was on his way back to Shoreline.

So, if you think of it, please pray for Edward. I asked if I could take his picture...it will help remind me to pray for Him.

Robert

After this I continued to walk around downtown Seattle and got close to the restaurant we were all going to be eating at. I had about an hour before everyone was going to get there, so I saw a guy and struck up a conversation with him. Robert had fallen on some hard times, but had a lot of joy. We started talking and proceeding to share with me that a month ago he was born again and became a follower of Christ! Wow, this was an awesome day...full of joy and sharing with people and God using others to encourage and exhort me.

Pakistan in need - In pictures

Pakistan in need - The Big Picture - Boston.com

Greenup Family Outtakes

Often people post the best pictures of their kids. Understandable. Once in a while, like 1 out of 134 digital photos taken, turn out with everyone smiling, looking, etc.

Yet, if that was all we ever posted, we'd be giving everyone an unrealistic idea of what normal life is like.

Below are a few photos. And that is that.

Justin Buzzard on Idolatry

Justin Buzzard wrote the following:

The idolatry in our lives is like a pacifier problem I recently observed.

My friend has a two year-old son who is always sucking on his pacifier. Always. He sucks on his pacifier all day long. He sucks on his pacifier all night long. Two years of all day and all night pacifier sucking has caused a big problem: this toddler’s teeth have hinged forward and up like an old fashioned garage door because of the constant shape and suck of the pacifier.

A pacifier is a good thing. But a pacifier becomes a dangerous and idolatrous thing when we give it our ultimate allegiance–when we suck on it all day long, all night long, for two years. This pacifier has changed the structure and appearance of this little boy’s mouth, and now significant corrective action is required.

Read the Rest: