Not a fan of "wait" training

So....we have moved up the wait list to #3.  And that is exciting!! However, the reality is we may remain at #3, #2, or # 1 for a very, very, very long time.  Our agency has absolutely no idea or prediction when a child or children will become available for a referral....let alone then court and travel.


I'm not gonna lie to you this is really hard.  I am totally out of control and probably 5 out of 7 days of the week I am bordering on feeling like a crazy lady internally.  I am learning the power of praise and putting on a thankful heart.  I am really learning a lot...but the hard way....the kind of learning that comes through pain, and lots of internal dying.  Lotsa fun!  Yeah I'm not really the poster child for international adoption right now...BUT on the other hand my passion for adoption only grows each day. The more I learn and the more incredible families I meet and hear their stories...the more passionate I become for these children and what this journey can produce in people that submit their wills and their lives to do whatever the Lord asks.  And for the Chapmans the call right now is to wait with blind faith and complete trust in the One who is so very faithful.  Oh, and to do it with joyful hearts and God-honoring attitudes.  Sounds easy, right? Absolutely not easy.


I was venting (complaining) to a precious new internet friend who has brought her sweet daughter home from Uganda within the last six months and she told me that the only wisdom she had was to point me back to Jesus...to point me to Truth.  She shared this article with me and it has really helped....lots of it I already knew but I believe it is a great perspective that I will keep coming back to over the next few days...weeks...months...maybe years. I mean aren't I called to be obedient even if I never see the end of the wait?  Yes, yes I am...even though I don't like that answer.  


 Thank you to all you precious friends that help me get through each day...asking about our journey...bringing me chocolate...letting me talk incessantly about adoption details that you don't really understand at all...people that buy and wear their Ugandan beads (I LOVE seeing them!).......commenting on FB....getting excited with us about the little steps...praying for us...and keeping hope with us...THANK YOU!


This is one of the verses I'm clinging to these days:) 
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who called us is faithful.  And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.  Hebrews 10:24-25

Need an affordable Christmas gift idea???...

I am finally following through and posting pictures of the Ugandan bead necklaces we are selling in the ornament globes.

Aren't they pretty?  They have some white tinsel on the bottom of the globe, which is hard to see in this picture.  The top of the ornament comes right off so you can simply pull the necklace out after Christmas to wear it!  I also have some with the bow smaller, not as a hanger.  We are selling these ornaments for $30.  They would make a fun teacher gift and also great for an ornament exchange!


We can wrap them up for you like this!

We also have lots of the necklaces on their own for $25.  They all come with a tag that tells the story of the woman that make these beads. These women were making a living through prostitution or picking trash, but Amazima Ministries has helped them form a community and taught them this trade.  They now make a sustainable income making the necklaces.  147 Million Orphans purchases the necklaces from the women and helps sell them all over the world.  They have a special ministry to adoptive families like ours, helping us use these necklaces to raise funds to help us make our adoption possible.  So a portion of your purchase goes back to the women that make the necklaces and the rest goes to our adoption fund.

We have also found another pretty way to display the necklaces like this:

You can purchase these for $28.  We also are selling these starfish ornaments for $8.  

When we first decided to adopt we remembered the story of the man that was walking on the beach and saw hundreds of starfish washed up on shore and he saw a little boy throwing them back into the ocean one by one.  The man told the little boy that he might as well stop because it didn't matter and he wasn't going to save enough of the starfish.  But the little boy continued and said, "It matters to this one!"

That seems to sum up the way we feel about James 1:27 and our role as believers in fulfilling the call to help the widows and the orphans.  We can't adopt or help ALL the 147 million orphans.  But we can do what we ARE ABLE to do.  That might be adopt one, or sponsor a Compassion child or send an Operation Christmas Child shoebox or help with an adoption yard sale or cut the grass for a widow or buy a necklace or ornament....but it is still making a difference for one.  We are called to do for one what we wish we could do for all.

The starfish ornament also comes with a card attached that shares the story of the little boy and the starfish.  They can be hung on a tree or displayed for Christmas.

These really do make fun, unique gifts that have a story, a purpose and an opportunity to give back.  Let me know if you are interested in buying one!  You can email me at erikachapman74@gmail.com or leave a comment below!  Thank you!