I have a few friends that hosted last year and I remember stalking their pages watching their beautiful stories unfold and tucked it in my heart that someday we too would be able to open own homes in such a way.
Then this past April, God resurfaced this calling through another precious friend of mine who was preparing to host this summer. I read her posts. God spoke.
I dismissed it.
Our house is too small. Now is not a good time to add another kiddo to our clan.
Not right now God. Maybe later.
God persisted. Drawing me back in. Calling me upon the waters.
I cried out HOW? How can we do this right now? We are two weeks away from closing on our house. What if something happens and we don't get this house? I just can't make a commitment like that and not be able to follow through with it.
Not right now God. Maybe later.
God persisted. Drawing me back in. Calling me upon the waters.
For days I wrestled with this decision.
I finally decided to mention it to Adam. I spent years "convincing" him of my crazy God ideas. Sometimes He follows but most of the time I get the "look" :-)
And I just knew this time I would get the "look" and honestly it was one of the first times I wanted it. Because then I would have him validate what I was feeling and we would be off the hook to step out in this right now.
So I presented the hosting video to my husband. And waited. Waited for that famous "look"
And I waited.
But the "look" didn't come.
He then turns to me and says " How do we sign up to do this?"
Whaaaat?! The one time I want you to say not right now. You say YES.
Ah God seriously has a sense of humor my friends :-)
I start praying " Ok, God. I don't understand how this is suppose to work. Nothing makes sense right now. Nothing is in order for this work. Please onfirm this.
And 10 minutes later I am scrolling through my facebook newsfeed and see this quote...
" God does not call you based on your circumstances right now. He calls you based on where He knows you will be AFTER you obey Him"
And that was it. I knew it was TIME. Time to step out of the boat and start walking toward Him.
I filled out the application and began searching through the photo listings of the children praying over which one God was calling our family too.
Our first choice was a sibling group. A girl and boy. But after talking with their previous host family God made it clear those were not the children we were to host. And so we kept praying and looking...
Our initial choice was to host a girl. It just made sense considering our daughters are the older ones. And it just seemed like the more "comfortable" option.
But then...
I seen V. My heart skipped a beat. I knew God was up to something.
I read his profile over and over again. And then showed my husband. His response was a " I am not sure about a teenage boy"
And then the fear crept in... A 15 year old boy living under the same roof as my 13 year old daughter for 5 weeks?!
We had fears and concerns as would any parents. We knew V was ours but in that moment our faith was colliding with our fears.
And we brought all of those fears before God and asked Him to help us trust Him and He began to remind us that He would be with us, to have courage even when doesn't make sense, and to not let the fear of the unknown keep us from stepping out and to trust Him with every detail of this journey.
And so we gave Him our YES again!
And made the decision to place V on HOLD! Oh the joy that was to come from that decision!! :)
And over the next two months we watched God show up BIG time. We raised the funds needed to host him in TWO weeks. We closed on our house ( after waiting 13 years to own our first home) a MONTH before V arrived. And God provided us with a new van a WEEK before we picked him up!
Seriously yall. God was in EVERY. SINGLE. DETAIL. of this journey.
And little did we know THIS moment right here was only just the BEGINNING of this Glorious Unfolding...
" A boy who once had no hope, no future, no family. Now has ALL of that and more!"
V changed our lives in so many ways. From the moment I seen his precious face I knew God had sought this boy out and flew him across the world and placed him in my arms. He was my son. And I was his momma! We will forever be changed because of this incredible experience. And we just stand in awe of all the things God has done and continues to do in our lives as we take the steps to bring our boy home FOREVER. And may God's glory continue to shine through this beautiful story that is still unfolding!
Throughout our journey, I have gotten so many messages asking about how YOU too can host a child. Oh what a BLESSING to be apart of not just V's life and story but also to now advocate for so many other orphans looking to be hosted and possibly find their forever families!
NEW HORIZONS ORPHAN HOSTING PROGRAM:
What is hosting?
Christian families (like you!) can invite an orphaned child from Latvia, Ukraine, and the Philippines to become a member of your family for a period of time. We offer orphan hosting programs twice a year. 5-6 weeks in the summer (Late June – Early Aug.) and 4-5 weeks over Christmas Holidays (Mid Dec. – Mid. Jan.). Being included as a member of a family and receiving unconditional love gives an orphan HOPE for a better future. Learning they do have a Father, the same Father in heaven who loves us all, gives an orphan the promise they are never alone.
How much does it cost to host a child?
To host a child from Ukraine or Latvia, the actual cost of their travel and program expenses is $2950. (This covers the child's airfare, passports, visa, insurance etc)
How do I find out more info about hosting??
NHFC website: http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/
NHFC facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Orphanhosting
* WINTER HOSTING is now OPEN!!*
Go here for more details: http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/orphan-hosting/view-available-kids-here/
YES its scary. YES you will be walking on some DEEP waters. But follow HIM into deep waters friends. I promise you He is there waiting to give you a life beyond anything you could ever imagine. He is faithful. So very FAITHFUL. Amen.
~Amanda
I start praying " Ok, God. I don't understand how this is suppose to work. Nothing makes sense right now. Nothing is in order for this work. Please onfirm this.
And 10 minutes later I am scrolling through my facebook newsfeed and see this quote...
" God does not call you based on your circumstances right now. He calls you based on where He knows you will be AFTER you obey Him"
And that was it. I knew it was TIME. Time to step out of the boat and start walking toward Him.
I filled out the application and began searching through the photo listings of the children praying over which one God was calling our family too.
Our first choice was a sibling group. A girl and boy. But after talking with their previous host family God made it clear those were not the children we were to host. And so we kept praying and looking...
Our initial choice was to host a girl. It just made sense considering our daughters are the older ones. And it just seemed like the more "comfortable" option.
But then...
I seen V. My heart skipped a beat. I knew God was up to something.
I read his profile over and over again. And then showed my husband. His response was a " I am not sure about a teenage boy"
And then the fear crept in... A 15 year old boy living under the same roof as my 13 year old daughter for 5 weeks?!
We had fears and concerns as would any parents. We knew V was ours but in that moment our faith was colliding with our fears.
And we brought all of those fears before God and asked Him to help us trust Him and He began to remind us that He would be with us, to have courage even when doesn't make sense, and to not let the fear of the unknown keep us from stepping out and to trust Him with every detail of this journey.
And so we gave Him our YES again!
And made the decision to place V on HOLD! Oh the joy that was to come from that decision!! :)
And over the next two months we watched God show up BIG time. We raised the funds needed to host him in TWO weeks. We closed on our house ( after waiting 13 years to own our first home) a MONTH before V arrived. And God provided us with a new van a WEEK before we picked him up!
Seriously yall. God was in EVERY. SINGLE. DETAIL. of this journey.
And little did we know THIS moment right here was only just the BEGINNING of this Glorious Unfolding...
" A boy who once had no hope, no future, no family. Now has ALL of that and more!"
V changed our lives in so many ways. From the moment I seen his precious face I knew God had sought this boy out and flew him across the world and placed him in my arms. He was my son. And I was his momma! We will forever be changed because of this incredible experience. And we just stand in awe of all the things God has done and continues to do in our lives as we take the steps to bring our boy home FOREVER. And may God's glory continue to shine through this beautiful story that is still unfolding!
Throughout our journey, I have gotten so many messages asking about how YOU too can host a child. Oh what a BLESSING to be apart of not just V's life and story but also to now advocate for so many other orphans looking to be hosted and possibly find their forever families!
NEW HORIZONS ORPHAN HOSTING PROGRAM:
What is hosting?
Christian families (like you!) can invite an orphaned child from Latvia, Ukraine, and the Philippines to become a member of your family for a period of time. We offer orphan hosting programs twice a year. 5-6 weeks in the summer (Late June – Early Aug.) and 4-5 weeks over Christmas Holidays (Mid Dec. – Mid. Jan.). Being included as a member of a family and receiving unconditional love gives an orphan HOPE for a better future. Learning they do have a Father, the same Father in heaven who loves us all, gives an orphan the promise they are never alone.
How much does it cost to host a child?
To host a child from Ukraine or Latvia, the actual cost of their travel and program expenses is $2950. (This covers the child's airfare, passports, visa, insurance etc)
How do I find out more info about hosting??
NHFC website: http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/
NHFC facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Orphanhosting
* WINTER HOSTING is now OPEN!!*
Go here for more details: http://www.newhorizonsforchildren.org/orphan-hosting/view-available-kids-here/
YES its scary. YES you will be walking on some DEEP waters. But follow HIM into deep waters friends. I promise you He is there waiting to give you a life beyond anything you could ever imagine. He is faithful. So very FAITHFUL. Amen.
~Amanda
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