One of the reasons (actually, probably the biggest reason) we are in Korea is because Richard has had a heart for orphans for about ten years. When he become unemployed and was asking God what we needed to do, an opportunity opened up in Korea, so he came. Then we came three months ago.
Richard volunteered and looked into different orphanages, but he didn't feel led to any of the organizations. Actually, he was very disheartened because many of the orphanages in Seoul have too many volunteers and too much money, and the focus was not on ministering to the children. Actually, at some of the orphanages, there were groups from many different religious organizations all ministering at the same time. He took a break from his search until we arrived in Korea.
He had heard that orphanages outside of Seoul don't get as much support as the orphanages in Seoul. So we decided to find an orphanage outside of Seoul. I pulled a list (about 6 pages) off the internet of orphanages in Gyeonggi Province, which is about one hour from Seoul. There were so many orphanages that I didn't know where to start. After researching a few, I just asked God where I needed to look. At that moment, Steve Morrison of MPAK (Mission to Promote Adoption in Korea) came to mind. I emailed him and he connected me with the international adoptions director at ESSW who directed me to Jacob's House in Pyongtek. We were looking for an orphanage that was around an hour from Seoul and one where the kids were younger than our kids. The children at Jacob's House are all under 40 months. How perfect! I also felt there was some connection because our daughter was adopted from ESSW. I also know that they are a Christian organization.
I called Jacob's House and told them our family would like to volunteer. She asked if I could come during the weekdays because the weekends were all full. I told her my children have school and my husband works so that weekdays were not possible for us. She said there was no possibility of volunteering on the weekends. She then asked how old our children were. She mentioned that they only accept high school students. It would not even be possible for our daughter to volunteer with us. It was looking bad. Then she asked how I found Jacob's House. She wanted to know if we were introduced through an adoption agency. I explained that Sebene was adopted through ESSW, and that I was connected to Jacob's House through ESSW. Then her tone changed. She said, "Oh, you adopted through ESSW. Let me think about this and call you back tonight."
She called back and then said the third Sundays were available for us to volunteer. We could volunteer from 9-12, or 2-5, or we could even volunteer the entire day. We start next month! I am so excited about how God is leading our family. I am overwhelmed at how He has orchestrated every little detail so far. I don't know what this will lead to, but I do know that as long as we follow God, He will show us exactly what we need to do next. This journey of faith is very exciting! God is so very good!
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Sentence Diagramming
On Tuesday evenings, we have a family bible study. We are studying through the book of Jonah using the Precepts Inductive bible study material. We read each passage several times and ask the 5 W & H questions: Who, What, Where, Why, When and How. The kids are getting pretty good at analyzing the bible passages.
This week we read Jonah 4. We all read individually, marking our bibles. Suddenly, Jeremiah says, "I marked the sentences." Richard didn't know what that meant, so we showed him how to mark the sentences with the parts of speech. I asked Jeremiah to diagram the sentence, but he said there were some things he didn't learn yet. So, Sebene volunteers to diagram the sentence. When I was in school, this would have been a total "nerd" thing to do. But I was so proud of my children that they take their academic studies very seriously. They indeed must be learning.
This week we read Jonah 4. We all read individually, marking our bibles. Suddenly, Jeremiah says, "I marked the sentences." Richard didn't know what that meant, so we showed him how to mark the sentences with the parts of speech. I asked Jeremiah to diagram the sentence, but he said there were some things he didn't learn yet. So, Sebene volunteers to diagram the sentence. When I was in school, this would have been a total "nerd" thing to do. But I was so proud of my children that they take their academic studies very seriously. They indeed must be learning.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Encouragement
We as a family have been adjusting fairly well to our new life in Korea. Jeremiah the other day said he enjoyed his new tennis academy and the people in it. He said things are also very convenient in Korea, and that he could get used to living here. Things were going well. Then just last Friday, I was hit with this massive sadness. I missed home. When I told Richard I was homesick, he said, "All your family is here. How can you be homesick?" So then I started to miss my oldest son, Jinkyu. I started to miss the hot weather in Texas. I missed Chipotle. I missed all the land. I just missed my life back in America. It was a very difficult day. I started to doubt whether we really needed to be here or not. It was really tough.
On Saturday, I was spending time with God asking Him to just comfort me and show me that I was indeed suppose to be here. During my prayer time, Sebene walks in and says, "Mom, I have a word for you. Ephesians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Then she just leaves. I was so lost for words at God's perfect timing in encouraging me. Yes, indeed I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I am so thankful that my daughter listens to God.
On Saturday, I was spending time with God asking Him to just comfort me and show me that I was indeed suppose to be here. During my prayer time, Sebene walks in and says, "Mom, I have a word for you. Ephesians 4:13. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Then she just leaves. I was so lost for words at God's perfect timing in encouraging me. Yes, indeed I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. I am so thankful that my daughter listens to God.
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