Now why this fear?

Now why this fear and unbelief?
Has not the Father put to grief
His spotless Son for us?
And will the righteous Judge of men
Condemn me for that debt of sin
Now canceled at the cross?

This song struck me to the core in worship on Sunday. I have to confess:

I. Am. Afraid.

I am a do-er. List maker. Give me things to do and I will get them did. But, now that most of my paperwork is done..... the room is ready......the necessities are all in place.....all that is left to do is wait. Wait on the Lord for the funds needed (which I have no doubt whatsoever that He will provide) and wait for the baby to be born. I am not a good wait-er.

Complete atonement You have made
And by Your death have fully paid
The debt Your people owe.
No wrath remains for us to face
We’re sheltered by Your saving grace
And sprinkled with Your blood

What if something happens to the baby? What if he is sick when he is born? What if he needs surgery? What if he has to stay in the hospital for an extended amount of time?

How sweet the sound of saving grace
How sweet the sound of saving grace
Christ died for me 

What if she changes her mind?

Be still my soul and know this peace
The merits of your great high priest
Have bought your liberty
Rely then on His precious blood
Don’t fear your banishment from God
Since Jesus sets you free 

The news is "out there" and soon his name will be announced. : - ) It is real. This is happening.

People see me and think I have it all together. I don't. People think adoption isn't hard. It is.

Because it is all about TRUST. Not trust in me or my abilities. Not trust in her. Not trust in my plans. Trust in MY FATHER who adopted me. Redeemed me. Purposed me for such a time as this. Lord, help me to trust YOU!

Jesus, all my trust is in Your blood
Jesus, You’ve rescued us
Through Your great love 

Please be praying for us while we wait!

jennymo

{If you want to donate to our adoption fund, you can make a tax deductible donation via Paypal here, or you are welcome to mail a check, made out to Project Hopeful to us at 6166 Eagle Point Circle Birmingham, AL  35242}

My review of the docmentary film STUCK....and who is to blame.

(I meant to write this post soon after seeing the STUCK premiere...however, April 15th happened to also be the day I got the call that a birth mom had chosen US! You can read all about that here if you like)

As I sat on the STUCK tour bus on April 15th speaking with Craig Juntunen (Executive Producer) I had the uncanny feeling that something was missing from this picture. And then like a wave it hit me.

I had made the incorrect assumption that any documentary film about children needing families would be motivated, at least to some degree, by a love for the Lord and a desire to be obedient to Him in caring for the orphan. But this was not the case. I quickly became aware that this movement sweeping the nation was very simply an effort to get the masses fired up about the politics behind International adoption, and get Washington's attention in hopes that the way things are would eventually turn into the way they think things should be.

I became increasingly uncomfortable throughout the 1 and 1/2 hour long film as each and every person on the screen opened their mouths and never, never, never, never did one person utter the words

Jesus
God
Church
Bible

I was uncomfortable, not because the film was inappropriate or entirely wrong, but because I felt as if I was watching someone else do my job....

.....and God was watching me watch someone else do my job.

Like a mother standing in a room watching while someone else comforts their crying child.
Like a father watching a stranger teaching his son how to ride a bike.

Like the Church, watching the world do our job. 

And we wonder why people call us hypocrites.

There are many issues with the way International adoptions work in this country. Do we need better oversight of our US adoption agencies. Oh yes. Do we need to improve the way the Hague Convention operates? Yep. Do children all over the world deserve to be in families rather than stuck in orphanages and institutions? Of course. But guess what friends? We can make legislation and perfect the process until we are all in happy agreement, but unless more Christian families STEP UP to ransom these children, what will be the point?

This is the part of the program where most Christians start to zone out with the "I am just not called" excuses. Let me just say this: We need more Christian families to step up for the orphan, but not every Christian family should adopt. If you give God the blank check with your life and your family and He doesn't lead you to adoption, then support someone He does lead. Same thing with International missions. You can either be a zealous go-er, a zealous sender, or disobedient (stole that from John Piper). Just DO SOMETHING.

We have many, many problems in this broken world friends. One of them is the millions of people who have not been reached with the Gospel. Another one is the people who have been reached, who claim Christ but only offer Him lip service instead of their lives.

50 years from now people will look back on today and they will think:

Adoption: Humane Society
Orphans: Brad & Angelina
AIDS: Bono
Poor: Government Welfare


What will they say the Church did?

What will they say you did?

Did you coast it out in your comfortable life, giving the bare minimum required to be able to keep your Christian club membership card? Did you warm a pew once a week and write a check, most of which will ultimately cycle back to serve you. Or, did you realize that your life is not your life at all. That we are here merely to bring Glory to our Father and serve Him alone while we are on this earth.

Ultimately, without the power of the Gospel this will simply be another movement. And, without Jesus himself coming back, nothing on this earth will truly ever be made right. We live in a fallen world and until He returns that will remain the case. But in the meantime, He left us with work to do.

And CHURCH, we are not doing our job.

I don't know how to put this but........it's kind of a big deal.

A BIRTH MOM CHOSE US!!! We are having a baby BOY!

This is our surprised face. Yes, I have dark circles under my eyes.

I am told her words were:

"I choose Jenny, Aidan and Ella Mae to raise my baby."

Wow. I am still very much in shock. 

What a wild ride it as been. When we started the adoption process we were hoping to bring home a 3 or 4 year old child with Down syndrome from China. God almost immediately showed me that He had different plans!

Soon after starting that process, we found out about a local newborn boy who had Down syndrome and might need a family. While seeking to serve in any way possible in that situation, God showed me that He wanted me to go through the process to become a licensed Foster Parent. I also felt His leading to register with the National Down Syndrome Adoption Network. I wanted to be obedient so I did it, but I would have NEVER imagined anything would come of it! Who would EVER choose a single mom out of the HUNDREDS of "whole" families in the network?!?!?

The local baby ended up being able to stay with his family, but I continued to follow through with what God said and completed the classes to become a Foster Parent. VERY soon after I finished, I got a call from the National Down Syndrome Adoption Network that a birth mom in Texas had chosen US!

This story started with a newborn boy with Down syndrome, and it looks like it will end with one…God's perfect plan in HIS perfect timing!

So what now?

Well, I have spent the last 10 ish days filling out a whole bunch of paperwork. On Monday I will do the first interview in my home study process.Once all of the paperwork is done, we just wait for the call that it is time for the little guy to be born, likely the end of  JUNE!

The birth mom originally wanted a closed adoption, but has since decided she wanted to have contact with me. Communicating with this mom has been by far THE most humbling experience of my LIFE. She does want us to be there when he comes, so we are just hustling to get all of our little ducks in a row to be ready by then!

What can you do to help?

I am so glad you asked :-) Obviously I have been moving full speed ahead in the Foster Care direction, so I have pretty much all the baby "stuff" I will need, but I have done NOTHING in the way of fundraising. Did I mention I am in shock? :-) So the main need we have right now is simply funds to pay for the process, agency fees, travel to Texas etc.

There are 2 ways you can pitch in:

We would be honored for you to be part of our FIG family!

1. You can make a tax deductible donation to our FIG (Family in the Gap) account via Project Hopeful. No amount is too small. We would be honored for you to be a part of bringing our little guy home!

2. Make a purchase from my Noonday show! I will be having an in person show with a few friends soon, but you can purchase online via this link:
http://www.tesneydavis.noondaycollection.com

Be sure to put my name in the Customer Note field (right under billing address).

I am admittedly a very, very, very cheap person....BUT...I LOVE Noonday. Purchasing and wearing something that you know allows another woman to keep her family together and provide for them. I think helping a mom to keep and feed her child is a really great reason to spend a little more than normal on a piece of jewelry....and it makes you feel really good when you wear it!


 Our passion at Noonday Collection is to connect you with the lives of artisans struggling for a better future while styling you along the way. Fashion and design are a vehicle for opportunity and change. You, too, can be a voice for the oppressed! Every Noonday Collection piece has a story behind it...a story of the artisan who makes it being provided with a pathway out of poverty and given an opportunity to provide for their family. Many of our pieces are named for the artisans and their children.At Noonday Collection, we also believe every child belongs in a family.

 

We also would love it if you would all pray for us! This is going to be an adventure to say the least, but it feels AMAZING to do this knowing that we are right in the center of God's will!

 

Blessings!!

 

Jenny, Aidan & Ella Mae

I just couldn't give them back. Thoughts on foster care.

"I would LOVE to do Foster Care, but I just don't think I could give them back."

If I had a nickel.

Imagine with me for a moment:

Imagine you and your husband (or boyfriend, or friend) are cooking in the kitchen. He spins around to put something in the sink and accidentally nails your child right in the eye with his elbow. Child falls backwards and hits her head on the corner of the cabinet. Ouchie. You take a trip to the ER. Child checks out fine, but a social worker has to talk to the family about the "incident" because it is protocol.

A few weeks later you are on your way home from work and you get pulled over. You have an expired tag ticket from years ago you forgot to pay. And you were speeding. Woops.

What if (we are imagining here...work with me), you get taken to jail. What if your husband (boyfriend, friend) is out of town on business. You have no family in town. Babysitter has to go home. Kids have no where to go DHR is called. 

I know this is a big stretch on normal events, but my point is very simple:

IF something happened to YOU and YOUR CHILD was placed in Foster Care for some crazy reason, whether it be for an hour, a day, or a week, who would you want to be caring for your child while you couldn't? 

AND......would you hope that they would be willing to give YOUR CHILD BACK?

Not one of us is immune to the effects of this fallen world. "But by the grace of God go I" is what keeps playing over and over in my head.

Giving a child back that has been in my care for a hour, much less a year or more..................... IS GOING TO BE HARD. 

But, when did we decide that God doesn't call us to do the hard? 

Quite the opposite if you look at scripture. To be Jesus to a child, whether it be for a day or a year or forever. The opportunity to pour love in to a child who has never experienced the love of Jesus. A child who may never again experience the loves Jesus. It is life changing stuff people. It can be eternity changing. Just think about that.

So then why doesn't the church do it?

Why don't you do it? 

It doesn't cost a dime to get started. You simply attend classes that will teach you more than you thought you could learn about Foster Care. Once you have completed the training you are not obligated to anything. You can move forward or decide to wait a while. You can do respite care for Foster families (a huge need). There are so many ways you can help. Contact Alabama Baptist Children's Homes to learn more.

The need is great and the CHURCH should be meeting it. We are not.

"It's too hard" is not a good excuse.

If God is tugging at your heart strings, I suggest you just take one tiny step toward Him....it may not be easy, but I promise it will be worth it!

Blessings,

jennymo

Adoption update...sort of....and why I didn't just "bring one back" from Africa.

I wanted to give everyone an update around Christmas, but there really wasn't anything to update yet.

Many of you have asked me:

"Do you have a particular child in mind to adopt?"

"Do you know what country?"

"Did you get one while you were in Africa?"

First off, you can't just "get one" while you are in another country. I am sure most people know that, but comments like "bring me a couple of brown babies home" and "why didn't you just get one while you were over there?" probably aggravate the stew out of people who have actually gone through the whole process of International adoption. The process is long. And hard. And expensive. Much like pregnancy and child birth. If someone had told me to grab them a baby from the hospital while I was on the way there to deliver one of mine I would have probably punched them in the face.

I have walked along side many friends who have gone through this process on this side of the world. Now I have seen the faces of moms on the other side of the world who are desperately going from one appointment to the next in a strange and unfamiliar place, often on the back of a strange and unfamiliar motorcycle. Tackling one hurdle and setback at a time with hopes that they will soon be given the "yes" they need to travel home with the child that their heart already recognizes as their own.

But, similar to child birth, we tend to forget the terrible parts as soon as we hold that sweet child and bring them home to start a new life. It is HARD but it is so worth it. Adoption is the same. Exactly the same. Except is doesn't involve your uterus. I digress.....

So, back to me. These last few months have been a crazy whirlwind. As you know, I started this process seeking to follow the Lord in His prompting to pursue a child with Down syndrome. I originally thought this would happen through International adoption. I also originally thought that I would seek an older child (2-4) rather than an infant. But, through a series of crazy circumstances, God has sent 4 children across my path in the last 3 months. All boys. All newborns. All with Ds.

None of these children turned out to be mine, but I know God had a plan in all of it. Of course He did. One thing He showed me was that in order for me to be available to take a child who may be abandoned because if a Ds diagnosis here in the US, I would need to be a licensed foster parent. Although this is not what I had planned, I have done a lot of praying for God to make the path He wants me to take clear, and I think He has.....and His plans are always better than mine!

I will be starting the training to become a licensed foster parent next Thursday the 17th through Alabama Baptist Children's Homes! After 10 weeks of classes (1 night a week) I will be be ready to have my homestudy and get started.

I am really excited about this new chapter. Please be praying for us and I will keep you updated....as soon as there is something to update!

Blessings,

jennymo

I slept with a girl.....and I didn't catch HIV.

She is four years old. Her name is Leah Grace and she is the daughter of my friend Deb (the one I just went to Africa with). She contracted HIV through no fault of her own. She takes her meds every day like a good girl. Because of those meds, and the love of her family, she is a perfectly healthy normal little girl.

While in Uganda, I wiped her snot, drank after her, shared food with her, helped her in the bathroom....all of the things I would do with my own daughter. About halfway through the week we had some friends come and stay with us for a few nights, which caused us to have to do a little shuffle of the sleeping arrangements. I am no stranger to having kids in my bed and all up in my business while I sleep, so I didn't think twice when Leah Grace wanted to bunk with me.

But then right before I fell asleep, 1987 came back to haunt me ......for a split second.


What if she has a stomach virus and throws up on me during the night?
Is HIV present in urine? What if she wets the bed?
She got a cut on her nose today...what if it opens up while she is asleep?
 

The truth is sometimes ugly, and I really don't want to admit it.....especially since I am on staff with Project Hopeful, and our whole objective is to shine light on the facts about HIV and to advocate for children who live with it. 

But then I realized, that if I KNOW the facts, and 1987 still crept in to my mind for a split second, how would my friends react in the same situation? How would I have reacted a couple of years ago?

Please friends, for the sake of this sweet girl and so many others like her, educate yourself!

Here are the fact about HIV.....most of them are very straightforward and the only thing you can do with them is read/understand them and help educate others......

....but 2 of these facts are things we can CHANGE.....YOU can change....right now.....today.............can you find them? Will you?

You NEVER have to fear contracting HIV through casual contact with an HIV+ person.

HIV has NEVER been transmitted in normal family living conditions. Never.

HIV FACTS

#1: HIV is spread in three main ways: Sexual contact, IV drug use (through the sharing of dirty needles), and mother to infant (through pregnancy, birth or breast feeding).

#2: Medications called ARV’s can mean the difference between life and death. Children who receive treatment are expected to live a normal lifespan.

#3: HIV is not found in sweat, urine, feces, tears, saliva or snot. It is found in blood, semen, vaginal fluids and breast milk. While HIV may live for a short while outside of the body, HIV transmission has not been reported as a result of contact with spillages or small traces of blood, semen or other bodily fluids. This is partially because HIV dies quite quickly once exposed to the air, and also because spilled fluids would have to get into a persons bloodstream to infect them.

#4: You don’t have to fear catching HIV through day to day activities with people who are HIV+. You are free to share plates, cups, utensils, food, toilets, towels, linens and other household items without risk of transmission. –American Academy of Family Physicians

#5: Today, HIV is considered a chronic, but manageable disease, much like Type II Diabetes (though Diabetes cannot be transmitted).

#6: If a pregnant mother does not receive medical treatment, there is approximately a 30% chance she will transmit the virus to her child. By treating mother and infant, doctors can reduce that rate to approximately 1%.

#7: A persons HIV+ status is protected medical information. There are US laws in place to protect the privacy of individuals living with the virus. There are also laws to protect citizens from being discriminated against because they have HIV/AIDS should they decide to disclose their HIV status.

#8: Social stigma is perhaps the greatest challenge an HIV+ individual will face.

#9:  A persons viral load is the amount of HIV found in their body. Through the use of HAART treatment it is possible for a patients viral load to become undetectable in laboratory tests. Having an undetectable viral load does not mean a person is cured. It simply means the medications are working to prevent the HIV virus from replicating within the body.

#10: In 2009 the Kaiser Family Foundation conducted a study titled “Survey of Americans about HIV/AIDS” which found that levels of knowledge about HIV/AIDS had not increased in the US since 1987.

#11: Families should use universal precautions whether or not someone in the family has HIV. Kids should be taught not to touch anyone’s blood anyway! This enables them to offer assistance to injured persons in a safe and healthy way.

#12: In the West, HIV is now considered a chronic illness rather than the terminal disease it used to be. Sadly, this isn’t the case for those children infected with HIV who are living in resource-poor settings, where 50% of infected and untreated children are not expected to live past the age of two.

#13: Today, 6,500 people will die as a result of AIDS. 6,000 of those people will leave children behind. Those children will join the already 15 million children who have lost parents to this treatable disease. (note: HIV is NOT AIDS. Patients receiving treatment for HIV (with ARV’s) can be expected to live long healthy lives without ever developing AIDS. In the U.S. ARV’s are readily available, however this is not the case in most developing parts of the world)

#14: There is no reason to fear that a mosquito or other insect could transmit HIV from one person to another through HIV-infected blood left on its mouth parts. Studies conducted by the CDC and elsewhere have shown no evidence of HIV transmission from mosquitoes or any other insects–even in areas where there are many cases of AIDS and large populations of mosquitoes. Lack of such outbreaks, despite intense efforts to detect them, supports the conclusion that HIV is not transmitted by insects.

#15: There are no documented cases of HIV being transmitted during participation in sports. The very low risk of transmission during sports participation would involve sports with direct body contact in which bleeding might be expected to occur. If someone is bleeding, their participation in the sport should be interrupted until the wound stops bleeding and is both antiseptically cleaned and securely bandaged. There is no risk of HIV transmission through sports activities where bleeding does not occur.

#16: No incident of food being contaminated with HIV-infected blood or semen has been reported to CDC. Furthermore, CDC has received no reports of HIV infection resulting from eating food, including condiments. HIV does not live long outside the body. Even if small amounts of HIV-infected blood or semen was consumed, exposure to the air, heat from cooking, and stomach acid would destroy the virus. Therefore, there is no risk of contracting HIV from eating food.

#17: Many scientific studies have been conducted to examine all the possible ways that HIV is transmitted. These studies have NOT shown HIV to be transmitted through air, water, insects, or casual contact.

Blessings,

jennymo

How do you explain Africa?

I just don't think you can explain this place. Pictures, words, and even video are just not adequate. You have to be here. You need to get the red dirt on your feet. You need to hear the sounds of the birds, bodas, cows, cars, music, drums, traffic, people. You have to see the city, villages, babies, people, mountains, trees. Uganda has a smell….but it isn’t like anything else. So how do you explain it with words? Words just don’t suffice…..so a quick update on our trip will just have to do!

The kids have all been great. Zechariah is a little dream of a child and smart as a whip! His English is already excellent and the siblings have bonded well over the past few weeks. He is the perfect fit for their family. He wants to help with everything, he follows instructions well…..he is a tender little man. Did I mention he is smart? : - )

He says “I am” instead of “I want”. So all day long we hear:

I am chicken.

I am potty.

I am mommy.

I am get out of car.

So precious.

The LONG process is almost finished. Deb has an appointment tomorrow afternoon at the embassy to get Z’s Visa, then once that is picked up they are all done and ready to head home! Deb knew that I only intended to stay 10 days max since I miss my babies, and this is my VERY busiest season of the year with work, BUT, I really wanted to be able to “complete my mission”, so to speak, so I am sticking around to fly home with them as planned! Lord willing, they will be home Wednesday afternoon and I will be home Wednesday evening!

We have had the privilege of going to a number of awesome ministries while we have been here. First on the list of course was Ekisa. We traveled to Jinja to see them, but unfortunately when we arrived we learned that one of the children they have been caring for had passed away. It was a very sad day for them, so out of respect, we simply left the 3 suitcases full of supplies we had brought for them and we went on our way. I am so thankful to all of you who made the delivery of all of those supplies possible! I know they will be greatly blessed by all of it!

Since we had some time and we were already in Jinja, we were able to stop by another ministry that Project Hopeful has helped out in the past, ate a little lunch at the Source Café and headed back to Kampala!

A couple of days ago (it is all starting to run together now) we were able to visit an amazing place called Malaika Babies Home. It operates under a foundation out of Europe called Child's i Foundation. I have been to a lot of ministries to children and babies in Uganda and Kenya (side note-the solution to every problem is NOT to start a new non-profit…there are already plenty) and I can tell you that I have never seen anything like this place. I didn’t take any pictures (which was literally painful for me) so I will just have to try to describe it, but I promise my words won’t do it justice. They have a separate room with a designated nanny for each age group (0-6 months, 6-9 months etc) with a printed sheet posted on the door with the names, details and care instructions for each child. The clothes are all organized by size and in their own individual cubbies. The nurses have an immaculate room with detailed files neatly kept for each child. In each bathroom, they have a towel for each child on a hook and labeled with their names. The whole place is that way. Did I mention they did not know we were coming? This wasn’t “clean up for the mzungus” stuff…..this is their normal day to day life. They have 7 social workers on staff….SEVEN! Their mission is to keep abandoned children for no more than 2-3 months while they get them healthy and the social workers can find their families. Then they re-settle them back with their own biological relatives. If none of their family can be located, then they have a list of hundreds of Ugandan families who are on a waiting list to adopt them! So amazing. The last resort is to have them adopted by non-Ugandan families, and even then they try to place them with International families who are currently living in Uganda (and surprisingly there are a lot). Malaika is a perfect example of the fact that the solution to worlds problems is NOT to adopt all of their children into the U.S. or to Westernize everything. Seriously I was so impressed. Can you tell? : - ) Please check out their website!

Yesterday we went to a village outside of Kampala called Ssenge. It is a very rural spot, and just 2 short years ago the hundreds of children there had no where to go to school, much less a place to be taught about Jesus, be fed etc. We were invited by one of Deb’s very good friends who runs the school to attend a big celebration there to end the semester. The people from the village were there, as well as the families of all of the students….we didn’t realize until we got there, and were ushered to the front row (of hundreds of guests) that we were going to be introduced over the loud speaker to everyone! This place has come a long way in just 2 short years due to the hard work of a handful of people. The children danced and sang….it was a beautiful thing to see!

Today we went to church. Would it be totally un-reasonable to fly here once a month for church? Just wow. We went to Watoto church…..I love that this place is a relatively famous church/organization across the world, but their church is still simple. Yes it is in a big building, but they have done little to “western-ize” it which I think is awesome. The worship was fantastic…of course. I can’t attend Africa church without tears.

A lot more has happened on this trip and we are doing all of it with 3 kids in tow, so that has been an adventure in and of itself! More pictures to come soon…..ish, but for now, I will leave you with two pics (which only took 2 hours to load) of my first ever boda boda (motorcycle) ride with Seth, and one of Deb on the boda in front of us, with the other 2 kids…..and of course the driver.

Blessings from Uganda!

jennymo