For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
This verse has been especially meaningful to our family in the past few months. God had been growing a desire in our hearts and we didn't even know it, for a while. Then, one day we were kind of slapped in the face with it.
The LORD was pretty clear to us that the PLAN He had for us was to adopt. Jeremy and I had MANY discussions about this. Should we, shouldn't we. But what about the money, but what about the fact that our kids are older now and our freedom is at our fingertips. The LORD didn't like any of those excuses! Because they were from the evil one. After MUCH prayer and more prayer we decided that this is what we were being called to do. The kids were more than excited! Haylie was a big part in our decision, she had all the answers to our questions, as all 11 year olds do. :)
Then it was time to decide on where our new addition was going to come from. There were not a lot of choices, believe it or not. After doing some research, and after talking with family, we decided on Lesotho, Africa. We have some connections to this country through Haven CRC in Zeeland, MI and really felt that this was the path that God put us on.
Then it was time to decide how old, what gender. That was a hard decision. But we decided we are going to add a little girl to our family under the age of 3. We cannot wait!!!! But we have to.......
We contacted our agency and got the ball rolling and sent our application in on Friday, June 21. By that Monday, we had an email that we were accepted into the Lesotho program. WHAT??? That was fast! Our next step was to find an agency here in Michigan that would do our Home Study, our placing agency is in TN. I contacted AAI and they were willing to do our home study for us.
We finished our application to AAI on July 2. It took a while for them to get the ball rolling. But finally on July 30 we received our requirements for the home study and started working on that.
So now we continue.....we continue with paper work and dr. appointments and all that comes with getting a home study and dossier done.
We would love nothing more than for you to pray for our family. Obviously this is a hard road, waiting is never easy. The unknown is never easy. We are trusting Jesus that he will guide us through this. My main motto in life has been....."If He brings you to it, He will bring you through it" We are clinging on to this promise right now.
We do plan do to some fundraising. Not sure what that will all look like right now. But for starters....we are doing a Jewelry Show!!! My cousin has generously agreed to do a Premier Designs Jewelry Show for us and donate close to 50% of all sales to our adoption fund. So, if you would like to come to our home and support us in this way please feel free!!! It is on September 5 at 6:30pm. I can get you directions if you need them. If you can't make it to the show, there will be other ways to support us in the future. Stay tuned!!!
In Him,
The Freriks
