Great article…and a few finishing touches:)

I just ran across this article from CNN on one of my favorite chefs. A couple of things that makes my heart smile about Chef Marcus Samuelsson…

1. He was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

2. His mother died of tuberculosis and a nurse took he and his sister under her wing–and took them to an orphanage to be registered. He and his sister were both adopted by a family in Sweden where he learned his love for cooking from his grandmother.

3. He didn’t realize until he was a teenager that maybe it wasn’t normal to have 2 white parents.

4. He considers one of his biggest gifts in life getting to meet his birth father and his half siblings.

5. He told CNN: “I always feel like the biggest luxury I have is that I am connected to poverty. I come from a clay house in the country in Addis. No water, no electricity, no nothing … I think it is my responsibility to represent poverty. Talk about it and also show there’s lots of happy togetherness, family and love.”

And then on a personal note…

I added a few extra statistics to our slideshow. And one little note at the end:). Just a reminder that following God’s plan isn’t always easy–but…IT’S WORTH IT. OK…so you’ve probably already watched this once, but aren’t Gotcha Day/Family Day slideshows the most fun to watch over and over again;)?! Ok..so if you are a numbers person–you might like the added touches to this one:) Can you tell I’m cocooning and not getting out much;). I’m busy trust me…but my blog is my outlet these days;)

And a statistic I didn’t add—but found overwhelming. Did you know???that if you took every orphan in the world and got them to hold hands you could go around the entire world THREE TIMES on the equator? Ok…so that may be hard to imagine—so let me break it down. If you had these orphans hold hands in a line, you would see over 1,700 orphans per mile. If you were to follow that line of orphans holding hands, driving 60 mph, you could drive 24 hours a day seeing 1,700 orphans every mile, hour after hour, day after day without stopping for over two months, and you would still see orphans holding hands. (taken from Orphan’s Hope)

Can you imagine–driving and driving and driving and driving…nonstop driving…and STILL seeing orphans…face after face after face…heart after heart after heart—and this is the reality of how many there really are. They are here in the U.S.–they are in the Foster Care–they are in institutions and camps–they are across the ocean severely malnourished. And to think—WE can stop driving…stop our busy lives…stop our spending and change OUR LIVES for just one. Yes, I said–change OUR lives. I’m learning more and more…I’m the one being changed most here at our house. I am the one being blessed. I am the “lucky” one.

I once heard an adoptive mom say, “I feel sad for families who don’t get to experience this.” It’s hard. It’s trying. But, it’s the gospel. It’s what we were made for. I wasn’t made for manicures, vacations or even the luxury of a good night’s sleep. I was made to store my treasures in heaven and to shine Jesus out of my heart. After just 2 weeks of the hard stuff, I can totally see why people keep growing their families through adoption, why foster care families continue to love by giving their hearts away and why orphan care ministry staff work for little to nothing. Loving with His love and living through His power is addictive…it’s powerful. And there’s no other way I would want to live.