Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Our beautiful daughter is all dressed up for church. Fortunately, Jenifer lives at a Baptist orphanage with 35 other children. Thanks to the Jacksonville Baptist Association and individual sponsorships, these children in Haiti have a roof over the heads, eat three meals a day, go to school and receive medical attention if needed. Directly across from the Orphanage building is the Church. Haitian people come from miles around to worship our Lord. You know you have been to church when you attend a Christian Haitian worship service.Jenifer has accepted Jesus as her Savior. We were blessed to have witnessed her Baptism when we were in Haiti last June.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Waiting for Jenifer
Last June, my husband, Bob and I made our second trip to Haiti. We traveled with a wonderful group of Christian friends from Shindler Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Fl. Our purpose was to go and minister to the people of Bercy. First, by sharing the Hope of Jesus Christ and second to help with the many physical needs of the Haitians.
As on a prior trip, we were greeted by smiling faces and beautiful hearts. To be the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, it seems quite strange to find such loving and caring souls. We experienced joy-filled people praising our Lord Jesus.
To see pictures and the story of this trip, go to cabaretkids.blogspot.com, June 2007 archive.
The most life changing experience for us was meeting a 10 year old orphan girl, Jenifer. Bob and I both bonded immediately with her. Her language is French Creole. However, she was able to speak some English and said to Bob, "can I be your's and Linda's baby?" We spent as much time as we could with her. On the day we were leaving, we were advised to try and not become emotional with the children so as not to upset them. Jenifer was right by my side that morning knowing we were about to leave. She said, "I am going to cry because you are leaving". I told her not to be sad as we would be back. A beautiful smiling Haitian child took my face with her little hands and looked into my eyes and said, "Linda, I will be praying for you." We sadly returned to Florida knowing we were leaving this precious child and many others behind who struggle from day to day to survive.
Interesting, after returning God was dealing with us individually about this child. Approximately, 3 months after coming home, we started talking about what the Lord was putting on our hearts. We both knew that God was telling us to bring this child to Florida to live with us. For awhile, I was wrestling with God. Surely, you do not want us to do this. We are too old. We are retired. Our children are grown. We have grandchildren older than this child. In November, 2007, we started taking God seriously. We had received many confirmations that this was God's plan for our life for this time. In December, we officially started the process and contacted an agent in Haiti and the fun began.
After working for four months trying to complete the dossier (requires many individual steps) and a return trip to Haiti, we are very close to sending our documentation to our agent in Haiti. One purpose in starting this blog is to hopefully help those who are trying to adopt a child in Haiti. Along the way, I have made several mistakes that have caused time and money. As my husband and I are in the average income level, we are handling as much of this process as we possibly can. In future blogs, I will attempt to share ideas that might make your process easier, less expensive and time saving.
As on a prior trip, we were greeted by smiling faces and beautiful hearts. To be the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, it seems quite strange to find such loving and caring souls. We experienced joy-filled people praising our Lord Jesus.
To see pictures and the story of this trip, go to cabaretkids.blogspot.com, June 2007 archive.
The most life changing experience for us was meeting a 10 year old orphan girl, Jenifer. Bob and I both bonded immediately with her. Her language is French Creole. However, she was able to speak some English and said to Bob, "can I be your's and Linda's baby?" We spent as much time as we could with her. On the day we were leaving, we were advised to try and not become emotional with the children so as not to upset them. Jenifer was right by my side that morning knowing we were about to leave. She said, "I am going to cry because you are leaving". I told her not to be sad as we would be back. A beautiful smiling Haitian child took my face with her little hands and looked into my eyes and said, "Linda, I will be praying for you." We sadly returned to Florida knowing we were leaving this precious child and many others behind who struggle from day to day to survive.
Interesting, after returning God was dealing with us individually about this child. Approximately, 3 months after coming home, we started talking about what the Lord was putting on our hearts. We both knew that God was telling us to bring this child to Florida to live with us. For awhile, I was wrestling with God. Surely, you do not want us to do this. We are too old. We are retired. Our children are grown. We have grandchildren older than this child. In November, 2007, we started taking God seriously. We had received many confirmations that this was God's plan for our life for this time. In December, we officially started the process and contacted an agent in Haiti and the fun began.
After working for four months trying to complete the dossier (requires many individual steps) and a return trip to Haiti, we are very close to sending our documentation to our agent in Haiti. One purpose in starting this blog is to hopefully help those who are trying to adopt a child in Haiti. Along the way, I have made several mistakes that have caused time and money. As my husband and I are in the average income level, we are handling as much of this process as we possibly can. In future blogs, I will attempt to share ideas that might make your process easier, less expensive and time saving.
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