Here, there ... wherever!

Who is the orphan? Is it a child who is fatherless and motherless? I'm just asking because lately it seems that there is confusion around me to what the Lord intended when he said to care for the "orphan". Who are they? Where do they live? There seems to be a definition to the word that I have been unaware of ... and it has come to light that the Lord and our world have two totally different thoughts.

From a stream of circumstances, and conversations lately, it seems that the vision and call to the church about caring for the orphan isn't all to all clear. Recently, I was made aware of a conversation where a pastor told a family that he had no desire to be educated on Orphan Awareness and then went a step further by saying that one shouldn't use the word "Orphan" as it makes people think your talking about starving children in third world countries.
WHAT? That's the same thing that I said. Are we not? What then do you figure I call a child who is without a home, a mother, a father? What did the Lord call them? I'm confused .... and left to wonder. By the way, what then do you call a child HERE, without a father and a mother? I'm just saying ...
A second instance occurred when a well intended and precious adopting father told me that I shouldn't use the word "Orphan" when naming an adoption and orphan ministry as it might alienate those families who are looking domestically into adoption. He believed that although the assumption was wrong of our church, that most believed that the word "orphan" referred to children internationally and not those in our own back yards. Once again I was puzzled as I didn't know that we could distinguish one child from another when talking about the Lord's children ... and those whom he calls "Fatherless".

So I have sat in these conversations for some time .. though I admit that I wasn't any part of the first one and the accounts of what transpired only come through the mouths of those whom were present. I have sat and STEWED in that pastor's words and the words of what I know is an amazing man. For me, it clarified what I already know ... we must educate the church on the cry of the orphan. We must stop being divided when we speak of adoption. When the Lord calls us to his children .. he isn't distinguishing one from another and our attempt at trying to be politically correct, we have watered down what we know is true. The children in our country are also orphans. They don't live in "boys homes" ... they live in orphanages. We just have decided it doesn't sound right to say so.

In the meantime, I attended a local adoption agencies meeting on their Foster and Foster to Adopt program. Now, I will say and admit, I was not there with any interest in their local program but was invited to attend because this specific agency was working with another international agency to bring in children from Haiti to San Antonio. Through a stream of different circumstances, the Lord had already opened my heart to a possible opportunity of being a home for a child from Haiti and so with great interest and in obedience, I decided that I should check out what this agency was doing ... I mean, who knows how and when the Lord will bring your child home.

So I went ... and listened.

During the meeting the director began to share many things about the agency and their awesome work. Through her bubbly and zealous presentation, I could tell she was passionate about Foster care and adoptions through the domestic process. YAY ... I too am an advocate of adoption - of ANY KIND! BUT, then the presentation took a wrong turn when .... SCREEECH ....
the gal said these words "Some people just can't afford 30,000$ to adopt a child overseas and besides, if you could, why not just send the $30,000 there and let them care for many children in the orphanage and then adopt through us .. for free".

WHAT? Did she really just say that?

The navigation continued to follow wrong turns as her presentation quickly turned into a sales pitch about why one should stay here locally and adopt through them. "It's FREE" she said over and over ... and you even get paid to be a foster family. She then added, depending upon the age of the child at adoption and their race, you can also be paid for them even after adoption and get their entire college education paid for!

HMMMM ... now, let me make clear that I think it is awesome that our government gives incentive to adopt children domestically. I'm all about adoption and I'm all about providing families a way to adopt .. but let's make one thing clear .. it's not FREE ... we're all paying for it through our taxes. And that education your talking about, we're paying for that too.
BUT .. that's the lesser of my points. I'll clarify in a moment after I discuss one more dreadful comment.

As the presentation continued and she had first made her free children sales pitch and thrown international adoption under the bus ... inferring that it's o.k. to leave those children in orphanages, she then makes this statement in regards to those of us who showed up specifically to hear about the Haiti children. As she sets the stage for the comment, she tells us that she will take 2 minutes total to discuss the children coming in from Haiti. She then says "If you'll swim across the ocean, will you be willing to swim across the pool"?.
In other wards, if you'll go to the lengths to bring home a child from across the globe, then why not just bring one into your home from here (and hey ... she's already said it's FREE).

My jaw about dropped into my lap. I couldn't believe she just said those words. Did she REALLY mean that? Aren't they all orphans? Does it matter where they are coming from?

You can imagine, at that point ... my heart closed it's wide open door and it was everything I could do from not taking off my shoe and throwing it at her!

You see, I don't at all believe that adoption and orphan care is about a place or a dollar amount. Do you think the Lord cares that it costs you $30,000 to follow his calling on your life? Bigger yet, do you think that amount is too great for him to provide? I don't. What I know is that the Lord funds what he favors ... and he favors setting the lonely into families .. wherever they are from!

I also don't believe that international adoption is in competition or should be in competition to domestic adoption. Isn't the bigger message as believers ... "Where is he calling you and GO there"! I believe the Lord knows exactly where YOUR child is. He tells us in Psalm 139:16 "All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be". If this is true, then the child that is being formed in the mother's womb .. that will become an orphan ... is no surprise to our Lord. He knows them and he knows the days before them, including if you will be the one he calls their mother and father.

For me, this gals entire message went off course that night when she began to put each "orphan" at odds against one another. Her message went off course, when she decided to guilt families into walking the road of foster/foster to adopt rather than promoting following the Lord's leading. The Lord didn't define a place when he spoke of caring for the orphan. He defined the need. The need is great .. here, Africa, China, Rwanda and beyond, every child without a Mom and Dad is an orphan and deserves a home!

Doug and I love to talk on adoption. It is our passion ... something we feel that the Lord has called us to do .. ADVOCATE! When we do, we always make clear that WHEREVER he is calling you is where your child is. I'd love to turn that same comment around on the director of that agency that night. I'd love to ask her "If your willing to swim across the pool (for free), would you be willing to swim across the ocean (for 30K, 40K, 50K, or 60K?"
It's not about being free. It's not about being 60,000$. A child isn't about their color or their origins. They aren't about being from China, Rwanda, Ethiopia or Texas. The Lord doesn't care. That child is HIS child .. every single one of them.

And for the pastor who said don't use the word "Orphan" as it might make one think you're talking about the starving child in a third world country. Well I am! I'm also talking about the one in your back yard that might not be physically starving but is indeed starving ... to have his/her heart claimed!

And for the man who told me not to use the word "Orphan" in a ministry that the Lord is birthing in my heart as it might alienate those families who want to pursue local or domestic adoption/orphan care, then would you and could you please clarify what you'd like those children to be called and clarify who you believe they are. Ah, yes, the Lord did .. he said this "I will not leave you as orphans, I will come for you" John 14:18.

Fighting for the hearts of the fatherless ... the orphan ... until every one of them has a HOME!

BIQA coffee giveaway

I have a winner in the BIQA blog coffee giveaway! To find out if you were the winner go here. Thanks to everyone who joined in on the fun!

He sees me!

So, if you've been following me along in this journey of life then you'll know that one of the many adventures we have been on has included my health. In October it started with 6 weeks of swollen lymph nodes and the possibility of lymphoma. From there, the symptoms morphed and changed and have settled into pain in my rib bones and aching in my joints. Through this journey, i have embarked and yes, paid for, every medical test under the sun!
Let's see: CT scan, Echocardiogram, Pulmonary Function test, Mammogram, Sonogram, Bone Density Test and this week ... a total body Bone Scan. On top of all those SCANS .. I have had a huge range of blood work done. All praise to God, those tests ... all of them with exception to a few little blood things .. have come back NORMAL! The blood work that was off .. the "ACE" levels are now within a completely normal range. I'll give that recovery to prayer alone!

As I have walked in this journey through what felt like the wilderness on some days, I have had my days of ups and downs. I have always known in my head that the Lord knows every detail. I have known that he would either reveal or heal ... but I just didn't know when. That's the hard part of any journey with him ... we have NO CLUE of his timing! Two weeks ago, I felt so frustrated and was beginning to feel so discouraged with the lack of answers. All those things I know in my head seemed to be stuck there .. and not penetrating my heart!

I went to church on that Sunday morning and for the first time, I found myself with the inability to open my mouth during worship. As I sat and stared at the words of each song, I couldn't hold back the tears. I quickly found myself with the inability to read every word, clouded by the burred vision they brought. As I sat there, I didn't question the Lord .. nor did I question the words in those songs. But what I did do, was realize how easy it is to sing those songs and to worship him in the midst of joy. It is in the trials that we find ourselves really asking "Do I believe everything I am saying". For me, the tears came from knowing that I do ... and from realizing that so often, I worship out of joy of the blessings he has given me and not out of thankfulness for who HE IS ... all the time .... even in the midst of a wilderness!

That evening I attended one of my dearest friends "House church". It was their little ones first birthday and so with grateful hearts we all gathered to celebrate Gracie during what is their weekly church that meets in their home.

During the course of the evening, Larry began to teach about the time in which John was in prison and he began to ask if Jesus was really who he said he was. Appropriate to what I was walking with in my own life, I absorbed every word. We began to discuss the story and began to discuss who John was and Jesus's response to questioning him. You would think it would be a negative one but instead, Jesus honored him and told John that he was the "Greatest man to have ever been born of a woman". So yes, even John had a moment when he asked "Lord, are you who you say you are?" When he did, our Lord honored him .. did not judge him. Doesn't that tell you something of the heart of our father!

As the evening progressed, their "family" asked if they could pray for me. They sat a chair in the middle of the room and each of them began to lay their hands on me to pray. First, in spanish, I heard sweet Lizzie stand before our Lord on my behalf. As each prayed, I was overcome in his love!

I rewind this story a little to tell you about a sweet girl who had called me and shared with me that she had recently been to her Rheumatologist .. a week prior to my house church visit. In her visit with Dr. Kempf, she shared with him just a small portion of my story. Without hesitation, he told her to have me call his office, that he'd be happy to see me. I was elated and overjoyed that just possibly the Lord was directing me ... and would finally do what I had prayed "reveal". I was also overcome by a friend, whom I don't share a lot of time with, being prompted to respond on my behalf in such a way! I did call the office and the receptionist on the other end knew just who I was. She told me right away that she had already scheduled me for their first available appointment, APRIL 26th! UGH .. so far off! She told me she'd put me on their "waiting list" in the event that something came up before. So I trusted and moved on.

The next day after house church, I went on like any other day .. doing the things that a Mom of 3 does. BUSY! At 3:00 that afternoon, the phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, I saw that it was the Rheumatology office that I had spoken with the week prior. As I answered, the girl on the other end said "Hi Mrs. Martine, we have an appointment that has come available, can you come in TOMORROW at 2:00". My eyes began to swell in tears .... "Of course, I can".

That call was like a love note from my Lord. It was just a little reminder that HE SEES ME, and he KNOWS EVERY DETAIL!

I went to that appointment and it went AWESOME! With assurance, Dr. Kempf felt he could rule out the big ones .. RA, Lupus, Fibromyalgia. He also felt that their was a big possibility that what I could be dealing with is something called "Reactive Arthritis" brought on by none other than yes, a virus! The other possibility could be "Post Viral Syndrom". He said that a few times a year he actually sees patients whom come in feeling like total crud .. for 6 months and even up to a year after a virus. He said they have arthritic like symptoms etc. He said, that a virus can settle into the joints and present itself as such. REALLY? WOW!
I felt so much peace in that Dr's office and left knowing .. the Lord finally had directed me to a place for HIS ANSWERS!

Dr. Kempf decided to do a small round of blood work and ordered a total body bone scan .. apparently, not just the Lord will see me now. HAHA. I did the scan this past Wednesday .. it took a LONG hour to do after receiving an injection of a radioactive isotope and waiting 3 hours for it to settle into my bony areas. I await those results with anticipation of good news. I am believing in the best. In the meantime, the Doctors office called to tell me that I had extremely LOW Vitamin D levels and guess what .... that that can in and of itself create bone pain and joint pain.
So, yes, the Lord directed my paths and is slowly revealing what I believe will be his answers. I am so encouraged to know about the Vitamin D and to be now taking prescription level doses that will help me be back on track. Praise the Lord for that!

I look back over the past few weeks and see how the Lord has done for me what he did for John. I found myself in the middle of this wilderness ... admittedly asking "Lord, are you who you say you are". And yes, the Lord in all that he is answered "Cristie, I see you, and my daughter born of a woman, I do not condemn you for your questions .. but honor your honesty in asking ... I AM who I say I am".

Valentine's Day BIQA COFFEE Giveaway!

O.K. friends! I'm having my first ever BLOG GIVEAWAY in time for Valentines Day and in honor of my new found love, BIQA Coffee!!
So, here's how you play! Go to our new BIQA blog and read our first post here. Leave us a comment there and introduce yourself! We will put all the names into a hat on Sunday, February 14th and draw a winner for ....

ONE POUND OF BIQA PERU COFFEE! We will post our winner here and there! I will ship you your coffee on Monday February 15th!

Where do you go, GO HERE!
Don't forget .. I need your NAME!
HURRY! Time will run out!

BIQA ... you like?

Hey friends

O.K. so I have added a few links to the side ... the BIQA Coffee Company website and the BIQA blog. I hope you will follow us along and check out our coffee. Be sure to check in on the blog to see what the Lord is doing through the hands of BIQA. We hope to give you a window into the world of our growers from all over the globe. It won't always be a rosy picture as everything comes with it's ups and downs and our desire is to show you the entire picture. WHY? Well, simply put, we are working to be the catalyst to change the lives of our growers by empowering them with the tools they need to spread their harvest. This is all encompassing, from educating them on how to grow a superior bean, how to cup their own bean, how to grade them and how to negotiate out their contracts with roasters to ensure they indeed are getting fair market. BIQA also has plans to be working in their communities and yes, even with their ORPHANS! You know I love that!
Many of the families have nothing .. no esteem, nothing! The goal of BIQA is to partner with them and to be the vehicle for them to grow a superior grade crop and then through our relationships with them , we get to take their bean and introduce it to the world ... and you, fellow coffee lovers, through our awesome coffee roasted right here in San Antonio!
There are so many exciting layers of BIQA. I can't wait for you to learn and see all of them! In the meantime, the best way for you to plug in and start helping us make a difference is by simply .. drinking our coffee! So stop on by the BIQA website and order you a pound! If you live in San Antonio, you can even shoot me an e-mail with your order. I can get it to them and will happily deliver your bag! Now that is SERVICE!
Don't be shy now. Seriously, you have never tasted a better coffee!