I am behind in writing, life here has escaped me once again... On March 19th, we received a letter in the mail from "Show Hope-A Movement To Care For Orphans." Show Hope was started by Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth back in 2003. They have 3 grown biological children (2 sons and 1 daughter) and had 3 little girls they adopted from China. Sadly, one of the girls, Maria, died in a tragic accident in 2008 (her story is here http://www.showhope.org/AboutUs/RememberingMaria/HerStory.aspx )
Matt never opens the mail, but he wanted to open the envelope, and I was paralyzed and just couldn't...I assumed that it was yet another rejection, there have been several...I WAS WRONG!!!
"Dear Matthew and Mary,
On behalf of ShowHope and the donors who make our grants possible, we rejoice with your family as you step out in faith to experience the miracle of adoption. Thank you for allowing us to be a small part of your adoption process. We are pleased to inform you that you have been awarded an adoption assistance grant.
I cried tears of joy and humbleness...I was shocked but at the same time in awe of what God is doing through Show Hope. We knew we could not complete this adoption without the assistance of others joining us. It was the beginning of a great week!!
During the past several months I have had many people ask, "is it expensive?", "how will you pay for everything?" The only answer that I have been able to give is that, "God will provide and we are trusting Him to do just that!"
When I first started this blog back in November, I was concerned about the "Chip In" account. I wasn't sure how people would respond. Two people responded to the Chip In. The first, I will not mention names, but she was almost a given...this "momma bear" just wanted to get it started, and for that we are thankful. The second one that came in was absolutely amazing. When I saw this person one day, he said, "It's the least we could do for what you are doing." WOW! I try really hard to be humble and let people know that this is us working for Him and yes it is a leap of faith, but look at what He did for Us...especially with this being Holy Week. This family we have known since we moved into our home 9 years ago. They have watched my children grow and have commented about what they may be later in life (Mason was pegged to be in the X-Games at around 2 years old, although now he may be an Olympic swimmer!!) We have watched their children grow as well, and their oldest left for college last fall. How has this time passed so quickly??? They are truly special people and we are honored to have their friendship (and borrow a few tools from time to time!!) I know you know who you are so AGAIN, THANK YOU!!!
The letter from Show Hope continues and explains how the grant is to be disbursed. They will forward the money to our agency and the funds will go towards our In-China Travel expenses. Once the adoption is complete, we will forward them a "short write up of our adoption testimony" (HOW DO I WRITE A SHORT WRITE UP???) and pictures, and we grant them permission to use the information how they see fit. We can't wait to FULLY share everything!!
The final paragraph says, "Our prayer for your family is that God will be glorified throughout the adoption process - as He proves Himself to be faithful, provides the finances from various sources, and as He reveals His great love and care for the child you are adopting."
We have the same prayers!!!
Show Hope is another act of Him providing for our financial needs and Showing us Hope so we can show hope to others!!! Thanks be to God! Amen!! Amen!!
