Because He Loved Us First

For the last week I have been working with an organization, Fund the Nations, to customize a design for our adoption T-shirt. As we emailed back and forth trying to fine tune just the right image to portray our heart for adoption, I was struck by the difficulty to package all of my emotions concerning adoption onto a t-shirt front. Adoption is about redemption, family, hopes and dreams. It is about stepping out of your comfort zone and taking risks. At times it is about obedience. We tend to keep ourselves so busy and hurried that we often forget to listen to his call. We have definitely been there. We have had that argument with God in the past. "I have enough on my plate. I am too busy already. Adoption is expensive. I don't know if I could handle all of the special needs this child may bring into our family..." Our list of excuses to God of why another adoption is not in order seem endless. At some point, God's ways prevail though. Our Father has a way of breaking through all of our excuses and leading us gently to obedience. It is an obedience not done out of fear but out of love for my Father. "Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves His child as well. This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is to love God: to obey His commands. And His commands are not burdensome." I John 5:1-3.

Adoption is about love. Loving someone in spite of their past. Loving someone who may not be able to reciprocate at first or possibly ever. Loving someone enough to break out of your comfortable life. Loving someone on the other side of the world that you have never met or spoken to before. Loving, just because you were asked to love. Why would anyone do that? The cost seem so high. We love because Jesus first loved us. As His follower I want to be like Him. My salvation came with a high price and I recognize I am not worthy of the cost Jesus paid but He loved each us enough to do it anyway.

So back to the T-shirt...I think the message summarizes my heart for adoption. It really is all about His love.

Lou says we are going to lose money on this fundraiser but I would love to prove him wrong. My goal is to sell 75 of these lovely Ts. They are preshrunk 100% cotton and available in sizes Youth M-XL and Adult S-XXXL. $23 to PayPal to  rakoczy_99@gmx.com. Remember to leave your size and the correct shipping address if not local.

Raising the Ransom

It is not uncommon to question how families gather all the necessary funds to complete an international adoption. Most folks do not have an extra 30k sitting around. We are no different. We did not walk into this blindly though. We knew it would require hard work and some sacrifice from our family. As part of our fundraising efforts I take care of an infant full time in my home. This is not a new venture for me as I have taken care of infants both in my home and in facilities for almost twenty-five years. I truly enjoy working with families and nurturing their little ones as they grow and learn. This also allows me to be home with my children.

When we were full time missions we used these funds to make ends meet but now that Lou is working full time in the secular business world again, I would normally use this small income to pay for extras, such as lessons or excursions for the kids. In the future we will return to earmarking those funds for their extracurricular activities, but for now the children are foregoing any extras and we are setting aside the money to raise Daniel's ransom.

You see we have been called to bring this child home as our son. He needs medical attention for his hydrocephalus (water on the brain) that thus far has not received medical intervention. Fortunately, his cognitive abilities have not been affected by the swelling in his brain, but sadly he recognizes that his condition was definitely a consideration when his birth family abandoned him and that his larger head most likely scared other families from stepping forward to adopt him.

This is why I cannot make him wait any longer for a family. Every child regardless of their abilities or disabilities, their age or their sex, deserves to have a family. Older boys with special needs are usually the last to be chosen by families. It is so sad to think that at the tender age of six he is considered an older boy but that is the reality. So in addition to scrimping, saving and working full time in daycare, we will also be doing some fundraising. It is our hope that some of you will partner with us in raising this ransom so we can bring him home sooner rather than later. He has waited nearly seven years to know the love of a family. I do not want to make him wait a day longer than necessary. So without further adieu, I would like to introduce you to our first ransom raising event...

 Usborne Books

Angela, a fellow adoptive momma, who is also in the midst of raising her own ransom to bring home her child from China, has offered us this exciting opportunity with Usborne books. She is generously donating all her profits to Daniel's adoption! These books are absolutely wonderful. They will surely add value to your child's library or make awesome gifts. This link takes you to our e-party that starts today and will go for the next two weeks. Please take a look! They offer books for children of all ages. https://w3493.myubam.com/27502

Thank you, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.