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Are Just Some Moms for Orphans?

March 3, 2013 //  by Ashley Nolan

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 The past few days I have been beaten down by illness, the third one in

two weeks, and it put me out of commission completely for three days.

Sickness is ALWAYS something that Satan uses to derail my heart. I

haven’t quite gotten the hang of joy in the sickness or gratitude in

that particular kind of suffering-anyone have any advice on this

matter or particular disciplines that work for you?

Now, that I am back among the living I am heavy hearted over many

friends struggling in the adoption process. The tension when someone

is hurting is to disengage, to say “I’ll pray for you,” sort of a good

luck with that, (glad I’m not in that situation,) and walk away.

Unfortunately, I have done this so many times.

As a wife, mom of three, daughter, sister, friend and volunteer I

carry around many roles, much like each of you. Of course there isn’t

“time” for one more need, for one more to-do on our list, but as

daughters of the risen King, I think we must engage. We must fight for

the hearts of the ones we love and the people God has placed in our

lives, not at the expense of our family but perhaps because of our

family, and because of the story we hope God writes into our family.

I’m not talking about doing more,

I’m talking about engaging on a heart level.

Truly praying for someone that God has laid on our hearts, fasting

alongside someone who is waiting on an answer or direction from God or

serving them in some way that makes sense without killing ourselves in

the process.

We are not meant to go through this life alone, not in the physical

sense, because we can always keep ourselves surround by people.

Spiritually.

We need allies, and we need to become the friend that the friend we

are looking for is looking for. (I kinda stole that from our pastor.

He used it in the sense of looking for a mate but I think the same

thing applies for friendships.)

Since we are all moms here we can all relate to the time when we have

waited to get pregnant or waited to meet the baby we have been

carrying around for close to a year. We have been showered, we have

been touched by strangers who just can’t help but love on our

protruding bellies, we have been celebrated and many wait with us in

anticipation for the arrival of that precious little bundle to take

its first breath.

Friends, I want to invite you into something that is going on around you.

Imagine someone tells you that you will never carry a child.

Imagine someone tells you that you will not be able to expand your

family in a biological sense to the number you were hoping for.

Maybe you have experienced this before or seen someone go through this.

Imagine you humbly CHOOSE to invite sickness, abuse, abandonment,

special needs, disease into your family and you watch as woman after

woman gets pregnant, showered and celebrated, while you attend

celebrate and shower the bellies all around you.

No one is celebrating the one you are waiting for.

No one is supporting you financially.

The best you get is, “Wow that must be hard. I will keep your family

in my prayers.”

Imagine the message to your heart.

Rejected.

Lonely.

Afraid.

Scared.

Angry.

Hopeful and . . . . . Alone.

Friends, if you know someone today who is in the process of adoption,

maybe they just decided that is what they are going to do or maybe

they have a referral in hand and are waiting to fly across the globe

to go pick up their treasure they need YOUR support.

Let’s be the body of Christ to these families. Let’s shower them.

Let’s send them notes of encouragement. Let’s fast with them as they

make decisions about who, when and how these treasures will come home.

If you are adopting or have adopted,

tell us your story by:

1. Posting your blog link below, so we can visit and encourage you

2. If you don’t have a blog, just share in the comments below

We are here for you.

Category: Adoption & Orphans, Mom's Walk with Christ, Mother's Heart

About Ashley Nolan

Ashley is on an exciting journey to know God more intimately through a fresh prayer life and a renewed perspective on suffering. In her free time, she enjoys helping her kids discover their passions, and going on dates with her handsome husband. She has an intense passion for supporting families in the adoption process, as well as being an ambassador for Care for AIDS. Her family and several friends, support a Care for AIDS center in Kariobangi, Kenya. They enjoy hosting several events in the Atlanta area to support clients trying to find healing and restoration from AIDS. Check out www.repromatlanta.com and eastcobbredrun.com to get involved. She loves to talk with people about the restoration happening in Kenya, and looks forward to taking trips to visit friends there with her husband and kids.

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Greetings from Texas! I’m not an expert. I’m your friend. I love when faith comes to life in families. That’s what I’m doing most days of the week. Or, apologizing to my kids for the mess ups. Come in and get comfy. Start here.

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