Treasures in Jars of Clay

First let me start by saying thank you for the sweet comments, emails, and for your prayers for Kylie. I know that God is still working. Yesterday I was thinking about what to post on the blog. In the adoption process, we have been in the "waiting period" for almost 2 years so it's only about once every month we receive an update from the adoption agency. (The next referral batch will be for the February 2006 LID, our's is July 2006). So I began to pray and ask God to help me what to say. I believe that the Holy Spirit living inside me does give power to my words so it isn't just me, it's God speaking through me. He truly is amazing! I was thinking about and remembering my friend, Paige Pickard, this morning. Today is her birthday. She would have turned 33 today. God took her home to heaven when she was 17. I always remember Paige as being a one-of-a-kind friend. She had a glow and sparkle about her that I had always envied. Paige wasn't like most of my other friends when I was a teenager. She lived that separated life (that I now know about). What made her different than my other friends? Paige loved Jesus. She lived a godly and holy life. After she departed this earth, God used Paige to have an impact for Christ. I heard things at her funeral that I had never heard. I wanted what she had. God used Paige to plant seeds in my life and then God did the rest. I didn't surrender my life to Christ right away; in fact, it was 5 years later when I gave my life to Christ and trusted Him as my Savior. I thank God for Paige. I want you to know that if you are going through a difficult season in your life right now, hand it over to God. If you don't have a personal relationship with Him then tell me, I want to pray for you. God will not waste a single hurt that we endure. He is loving toward all He made and is faithful in keeping His promises.

I know of other people who gave their lives to the Lord after Paige's death. Thinking of Paige, I am reminded of how our lives here on earth are so short compared to eternity, whether it's a really short time like Kyler's or someone who lives to be 100. James 4:14 says, "Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist (or vapor) that appears for a little while and then vanishes." I realize in my own life I need to be doing more for Christ. Think of all the persecuted Christians in other countries that are being imprisoned or even killed for telling about Jesus. How I pray to have more boldness and courage in witnessing to others.

I am weak, that's why I need Jesus. Those of us in Christ are His personal representatives. 2 Corinthians 4:7-8 says, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed." How I pray that we draw attention to the treasure that is inside us and not to ourselves. I want to end by asking you all to please pray for continued strength and comfort for Paige's mom, dad, and sister. I think Casting Crowns' song "Who am I" would be perfect to listen to. Enjoy.

Love & blessings,
Jennifer

"Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4)

Hi~as I mentioned in the previous post, in December 2004 God gave me the desire to adopt a baby girl from China. At the same time, I also wanted to be pregnant again. After a year of Brad and me earnestly praying for God's direction in this matter, I still wasn't pregnant, God had taken away the desire for me to get pregnant, and He had given both of us a strong desire to adopt. We knew without a doubt that God had chosen us to be parents to an orphan girl across the world. As I titled this post, Psalm 37:4 had become evident in my life. Let these words sink in--"Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart." Does that mean that God gives us everything we want? No it doesn't. God wants us to delight in Him, have a passion for Him. God says in Jeremiah 33:3, "Call to me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things which you do not know." God wants to pour out His blessings on us. He loves each and everyone of us.

You may be wondering where we came up with the name 'Kylie Hope.' Just three months after Kyler Braden entered into heaven, Brad and I had picked out names for a girl and boy if God should give us more. 'Kylie' is of course named after Kyler and 'Hope' is, well, there is hope in Jesus. We know that we have the hope of heaven someday, meeting our Savior face to face, and living forever with Him, worshipping at His feet, and being reunited with Kyler forever. That is what we cling to. Revelation 21:4 says that God "will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away." Let me go on to verse 5: "He who was seated on the throne said, 'I am making everything new!'" I hope each person reading this knows that there is more beyond this life. The only way to heaven is through Jesus Christ. Put your faith and trust in Him. God is faithful and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).

Let me get back to telling you about our adoption process. In January 2006 we started the paperwork. God was so faithful in providing the money everytime an installment was due. Which reminds me of the next verse in Psalms I was mentioning earlier. Psalm 37:5 says, "Commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him and He will do this." So we delighted in Him and He gave us the desire to adopt Kylie. Then we committed and trusted in God and He provided what we needed. God is the God of wonders. Originally, from start to finish, the whole process was only supposed to be 1 1/2 years. Do the math and yes it has been 2 1/2 years. I have learned that God is not on my timetable, but that I am on His. God has taught me much the last couple of years about waiting and patience. God's timing is perfect and we all know that we will get our daughter in His perfect time because we serve a perfect God :-)

Our dossier (paperwork) was sent to China June 29, 2006, and our log-in-date (LID) is July 14, 2006. That's when the official wait time begins. It continues to increase but I am holding on to Mark 9:23, Jesus speaking, that says--"Everything is possible to him who believes." God is huge so we are trusting Him. We know that He is still at work even if we don't see. Afterall, that is what faith is--believing what we don't see. We are now waiting for her referral which is her picture and identity. Once we receive the referral, we will travel approximately 8 weeks later and will be in China for 2 weeks. In addition, Karsten is so excited about his little sister. He had just turned 4 when we started the process. He prays for her everyday and asks regularly when we're getting Kylie. I ask that you especially pray for him because you know how time seems so slow when you're a kid. Karsten is already a great big brother.

Words cannot express how much we appreciate everyone's prayers for Kylie and us. Our family, church family, and friends are always so caring by asking about our little girl and through their encouraging words. Kylie has been growing in my heart for 3 1/2 years now. Am I in labor or what? I don't even think the gestation of an elephant is that long :-). Kylie is so loved. So many people have been praying for her before she was ever born. Oh, and for those of you who may not know, Kylie will be around a year old when we get her. We look so forward to that day!

Love & blessings~
Jennifer