Live For Christ

  Jesus turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men."
  Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."  Matthew 16: 23 - 28

I was reminded of this verse today while my daughter, Hannah, was diligently memorizing it. Many people say to us when they hear that we are adopting again, "You are saints." Well, actually we are only saints because that is what the Bible calls the believers. Anyone who is a believer in Jesus Christ is a saint. It has nothing to do with the number of good works that you do. You cannot earn or work your way into heaven. I am really a sinner with a sinful nature just like anyone else. The difference is that I have been saved through the grace of Jesus Christ. I read and study my Bible everyday so that I may know and hear from God through his word. That is why we are able to love "the least of these" and bring them into our family. We take up our cross daily and follow Him.

Yes, we have to sacrifice. But it's worth it. I can't turn my back on the orphans of this world and live my nice suburbia, American Dream life. To turn my back on them is to turn my back on Christ. We will all have to stand in front of Jesus one day and give an account of our lives. I wouldn't want to hear him say something like, "You're an American! I've given you everything! What have you done with your life?"

Last year, David and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary. How did we celebrate it? We went bike riding in the Cuyahoga National Park near our home. We had a wonderful time. I love bike riding and the park is so beautiful. No trip to Hawaii, Cancun or a cruise. One cannot afford these things of the world when adopting an orphan.

Is it worth it? Absolutely!!  Someday, when I look back on my life I will have no regrets. I am surrounded by  lots of hugs and kisses and I am never lonely (literally). I once heard a story of a woman who only had two children because she was living during the Great Depression. Now that she is old, she said that she regrets not having more children. She didn't have more children because of fear of providing for them during the depression. To live in fear is to say that we don't trust God. No one ever looks back on their life and says, "I wish I had spent more time making more money." I am investing in the kingdom of heaven and the lives that one day will be with Christ and me forever in heaven. I am seeking the eternal not the temporal things of this world.

The Care Package Is Off

Here is our care package we sent to Luke!
It's so exciting.
We sent him a blanket, stuffed dog, coloring books with crayons and markers, a teddy bear holding a heart that says I Love You (but since he is deaf, I don't think he'll understand), camera's so the orphanage will take more pictures of him, and a photo album of our family with him in it (and the dogs). And we can't forget about the 250 suckers for the orphanage :) 

Hooray!

Good news! We got our fingerprints back from Homeland Security and our paperwork is finally in China. It will be translated in 1-2 weeks and then we will have our log in date (LID).
After that we will be put on the fast track since we already have our referral. Hopefully we will travel in 4-6 months to get our beautiful little boy. I'm thinking it will be in July since that is when we traveled for Nathan.

June will be a busy month for us because our son, Adam, will graduate from Ohio Virtual Academy High School. We'll be planning a party for him as well. So, I know the Lord's timing is perfect and I'm sure he doesn't want us to miss this monumental event in our oldest son's life.

A Christmas Blessing

We want to thank everyone for their loving and generous donations for our adoption. We can't thank you enough! The outpouring of love, support and prayers has shown us the love and care of our Heavenly Father. There have been  so many times people from our  church family would suggest resources for us to use for Luke;  fundraising ideas, adoption funding websites, sign language teachers, speech and hearing centers, etc. All of this shows us God's care for Luke and that we don't need to walk this road alone. So many times, even now, I still ask the Lord if he is sure that he wants us to do adopt this little boy. It is going to be so different and difficult at times. But the Lord always answers me with his reassurance of his deep love and care for the orphans, the least of these. If you want to see the kingdom of God, visit an orphanage, see the despair on their faces, and you will see God.

Recently, there has been a many robberies in the county where we live. It has been so numerous that our sheriff's department called everyone to make them aware of the problem. Now I started thinking about the mission trip that our church recently went on to Ethiopia to bring eyeglasses and shoes to the people in the Amhara region.
 They were so grateful, you would have thought they brought them a new flat screen TV. Many of them needed eyeglasses badly and the others had never worn a pair of shoes before. To put things in perspective, I started thinking about the robberies. No one would ever steal my shoes nor my eyeglasses. They would steal the things that we bought because we desired them and not because we needed them.
For the people in Ethiopia, for the orphan, for the people around the world without clean drinking water, etc. their needs are great.  We have so much in this country. We can live with less and give more!

Our Dear Pastor, Mark Spansel Writes About Our Adoption

Dear Friend,

One of the core characteristics of God is His Fatherly care over His children.  It is no surprise then that James calls caring for the fatherless orphan one of the truest expressions of religion (James 1:27).  Whether through hardship, war, abandonment, or death, there are millions of children who will never experience the tangible love of a human father.  Thanks to families like the Duryeas, yet one more beautiful child will not only experience that parental love and care, but will be taught of the Heavenly Father’s love and care.  I can’t tell you how much I admire David and Laura’s faith to trust God in the leadership of their home.  It is nothing short of a divine calling that they have from God and they are simply doing all they can to delightful obey what the Spirit has told them to do. 

Please pray for them, partner with them, and support them as God has provided you with the means to do so.  In the days we all have remaining here on earth, may we use them with the kind of purposefulness that this family is.  Let their example inspire you to greater faith as well!

By Grace,

Mark Spansel

Lead Pastor, Leroy Community Chapel

Meet Luke

We now have online approval!!!!!

Our dossier paperwork should be in China by the end of this year!

Next, we will be waiting for final approval.

Meet Luke, our new son.

He is three years old and deaf! He was abandoned when he
was two years old and has been in the orphanage for a year now.

Please pray for us, as we learn sign language,
and make preparations for this new little boy
that God has brought into our lives!

Learn to do right; seek justice.
   Defend the oppressed.
Take up the cause of the fatherless;
   plead the case of the widow.
Isaiah 1:17

Happy Adoption Day Rebekah Lu

Hosea 14:3 In you the orphan finds mercy.

 Rebekah Lu Duryea

from Chongyang Hubei Province, China

Born: December 9th, 2004

Adopted: October 25th, 2005

Once upon a time I held a child,

whose eyes did not match mine.

Its hair a different color,

Its smile was just divine. 

This child was not born 

from my womb,

but given by another,

For me to love and give a home,

to one day call me Mother.

No greater gift

will I receive

or cherish more than this.

Thank you Lord

with all my heart

for granting me my prayer.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, that comes down from 

the Father.