Russian Adoption: Broken Hearts

Yesterday the U.S. State Department met with Russian government officials. Today the 1,000 or so families that were caught in the process when the Russian legislature, the Duma, enacted a ban nearly four months ago on American adoption were informed of the Russian government's official position on the issue.

Our State Department was told that the ban is a law with no room for negotiation. No orphans will be allowed out. No allowances will be made for special needs children or those who are hard to place because they are older or parts of sibling groups.

Our hearts are so heavy. Since December, we've held out hope the orphans who had already been matched with families, like the three brothers and sister we were hoping to make part of our family, would still be placed. Today our hope crumbled. We've held the four kids we planned on naming Timothy, David, Luke and Katherine so close to our hearts for a whole year now. The pain is deep.

Orphan Care: A Heart Check

Mrs. Beaver:

Amy (newly 3) in the arms of her orphanage director as we prepared to leave to unite her with her sisters,
Tatanya and Natasha,at their orphanage and then head take the three of them to their new family and home

It would be easy to think that the political move in Russia that threatens to eliminate the ability of Americans to give loving homes to kids who desperately need them is just an issue that affects those of us who have been led to adopt from that country.

But perhaps there's more to recent events than we might think.

Here's a link with some penetrating thoughts:

From My Heart

The post is long, but please at least scan it. Stare at her photos. And contemplate God's commands:

"Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean;
Remove the evil of your deeds from my sight.
Learn to do good;
Seek justice,
Reprove the ruthless,
Defend the orphan,
Plead for the widow." Isaiah 1:16,17

Now consider:

Is my desire for convenience and ease stronger than I realized? Has the craving for my life to be comfortable kept me from opening my home to a child?

Has fear held me back from being willing to parent a child who will come with emotional scars? Do I lack trust in God that He will get us through the toughest of times?

Do I doubt that God would provide the financial means if I said yes to adoption?

Am I afraid that the neat and tidy family we have might be changed in a way I won't like?

Have I held back because my current ministry might be hampered? What if God has something even bigger and more impactful in mind?

And one last question:

Empty-nesters and nearly empty-nesters: while you're yet young enough, what eternal difference could you make in the life of a child using those parenting skills you've honed for so long?

Now consider God's words at the opposite end of the book of Isaiah:

"Is this not the fast which I choose,
To loosen the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the bands of the yoke,
To let the oppressed go free
And break every yoke?
Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house?" Isaiah 58:6,7 ESV

God expects His people's lives to look markedly different than their culture. He calls us to live sacrificially, loving the least of these as our service of worship to Him who loved us when we were yet His enemies.

Our Adoption: We Met Our Kids!!!

Mrs. Beaver:

We're not allowed to post pictures of the kids' faces
until after they're legally our children.

 

We're too tired to share the story tonight, but we got to spend about one-and-a-half hours with the
Fab Four late this afternoon after attendning to several official steps in the adoption.

The introduction to the kids went wonderfully. Thanks for your prayers!

Children in Russia begin school tomorrow (yes--on a Saturday). We were told that the first day is a shortened time of celebration. That arrangement will allow us to return to the orphanage to see the kiddos again in the afternoon, Lord willing. Your prayers for that meeting would be welcome, especially that our daughter-to-be would feel comfortable with our attention. She was a bit shy today, nothing concerning though. All three of her older brothers were warm and welcoming and happy, happy, happy!

To God be the glory!

Continuing to Learn Love

Mr. & Mrs. Beaver:

Our family's guiding definition of love is, of course, drawn from Scripture. But we also appreciate the way that Paul David Tripp unpacks the God's word in ways that help us really grasp God's vision for love. He pulls from many Scripture passages in coming up with a summary definition as follows:

"Love is willing self-sacrifice for the good of another that does not require reciprocation or that the person being loved is deserving...

 Tripp goes on to unpack love at an even deeper level:

"Love calls you beyond the borders of your own wants, needs, and feelings. Love calls you to be willing to invest time, energy, money, resources, personal ability, and gifts for the good of another. Love calls you to lay down your life in ways that are concrete and specific. Love calls you to serve, to wait, to give, to suffer, to forgive, and to do all these things again and again. (Emphasis ours)

"Love calls you to be silent when you want to speak, and to speak when you would like to be silent. Love calls you to act when you would really like to wait, and to wait when you would really like to act. Love calls you to stop when you really want to continue, and it calls you to continue when you feel like stopping...Love again and again calls you away from your instincts and your comfort. Love requires personal sacrifice. Love calls you to give up your life." What Did You Expect??: Redeeming the Realities of Marriage, pg. 188

Although Tripp's book is intended to help couples grasp God's ways in marriage, the same concepts apply to all our interactions as a family. After all, where better to love than within the family?

So, as we prepare to enlarge our family again through adoption, this reminder from Tripp's marriage book is also helping us to prepare our hearts for the sacrificial kind of love that makes adoption... and family in general... work. It's the kind of love that makes adoption work, even when the world says it's impossible. It's the kind of love that makes adoption work, even when the world says it's too scary. It's the kind of love that makes adoption work, even when we're too exhausted to answer another question or wipe another messy face or solve another sibling conflict. It's the kind of love that only He can raise up in our hearts.

Waiting for Their Peaches

Last Saturday night we enjoyed an evening with a family from our church that is waiting to adopt. They hosted us for dinner and a few hours of fellowship in the evening. There were lots of laughs, good conversation, and all-in-all, a wonderful time!

Cassandra with our host, "Big Daddy"

"Dingleberry", our friends' dog, loves it when anyone will play tug of war with him over this stuffed Pooh Bear!

I found out during a game of two-hand-touch football that "Big Fella" is sweet option for the short pass route!

"Big Daddy" and "Bo" taking some time to catch up with each other

Although "Sunshine" (center) was disappointed that Tessa couldn't be with us, she found a distraction in entertaining the little ones

This entertainment for the little ones soon turned into entertainment for all!

Jaynie and twins "Rye Bread" and "T-Bird" provided us with some praise music later in the evening



We dearly love this family, not only for their love for us but also for their deep love for Jesus and those who are hurting in the world. They long for the call that will bring the news of which little girl God has chosen for them. Because of the depth of their desire to care for this little girl (whom they have affectionately nicknamed "Peaches"), the wait has often been painful for them. We continue to pray that they will receive their good news soon, and that until then, God will wrap them in His comforting arms!

(Our friends are the authors of the blog Room for More. Please consider following their blog and praying for them as they seek to follow Jesus in the area of caring for the vulnerable and in all areas of life!)

This row of shoes at our friends' front door is missing one small, special pair!

~Joe