Summit 9

    Summit 9!   “I am writing this post as part of the Summit 9 Blogger Giveaway. Check out all the details at www.summit9.org”.

     Each year I read the articles pertaining to the Summit and I dream. I dream of going and gleaning the wealth of information available.  I think of the beautiful people I will meet who are truly stepping out for vulnerable children.  These people are doing Kingdom work every day and walking in faith at the Father's Call.  This event is more than I can begin to describe.....I don't know this from experience, but from just simply reading the speakers involved, knowing that the Christian Alliance for Orphans is fighting daily for these children and hearing the experiences of other's who have attended.  It is like college for those of us in orphan care.  Just sharing with other people who "get it" on a whole new level is enough to make me dance for joy!  We want so much to grow our Legacy Ministry at our church.  It already is the fastest growing ministry at our church, but we want to reach out way beyond us into our community and beyond.  This conference has the tools to teach us, to refresh us and to help us make lifelong friends in this journey that will walk along with us.

     I was fortunate to attend the Together 4 Adoption Conference several years ago in Austin and it was spectacular.  It carried my vision further and was rest for my weary day to day fight for this country's "invisible" orphans, our foster children.    The Summit takes it even further!

     Our family is a foster family of almost 4 years.  God called me years ago to foster, but it took fervent prayers from me for my husband to realize the dream and hear the call as well.  We have had 9 precious ones in our home and have adopted 2 with our current child potentially heading towards adoption.  The road has been rocky, joyful, draining emotionally, spiritually, physically and financially and yet we wouldn't turn back for anything.  God's hand is ALL OVER IT.  It has been life changing and earth shattering in a spiritual realm!  It has turned our family on a completely different path, causing us to view the world entirely differently.  We used to long to live in the "christian culdesac" to borrow a term from Tim Kimmel, but now we have stepped out in to the lost world and know God wants us there.  Our children are changed for the better and we have grown in ways we couldn't have imagined possible. God has lifted the scales from our eyes to show us pain and to know that he has called us to that pain for his precious son.  We are fighters and we will continue to inspire, uplift, train and encourage others to step out of their box and consider for once that Jesus just might want them to struggle for HIM.  To struggle and cry out in anguish for the lost and truly understand that Jesus absolutely LOVES the lost.  He loves the lost children, the lost parents who lose their children, the weary and lost caseworkers or nurses or therapists or whomever we might come in contact with.  He loves people...all people and we are called to walk with them.

    This year my husband and I decided that this Summit was for us.  Do we have the money?  Not really. Does he have the time off?  Sketchy at best. Can we get respite?  We couldn't when our 20th anniversary came around so why would this be different?  Can we find someone to care for our other 5 children (both biological and adopted)?  Uh.....who knows.  We just jumped and made the decision and now we are planning it.  We are calling it our 20th anniversary trip to get to be together, learning and sharing and encouraging others of like minds.  God has so far paved the way!  We have a respite provider!  My husband was granted the days off!  We have almost lined up the various sitters for our children.  Another fantastic part is that we are going with a couple from our church that we enjoy so much.  They raised their children, he retired from the police force and they decided to adopt two pre teen boys and one has major heart problems.  They are our heroes.  Another friend is going as well.  She and her husband went from zero kids to 4 ranging from 7 to 14.  Amazing family!  This is going to be the highlight of our year.

    We have gone back and forth on which breakouts to take.  We have color-coded them, cross -referenced and prayed hard.  We are so thrilled to know we can buy recordings of them all to share with our ministry team.  No, we haven't registered yet, but we are close!  Get ready folks this conference will impact the world.  Each individual will move in a direction that will be different from the next person, but it will have an impact in this great orphan care need. I am thankful that God called me to a task bigger than myself so that I will depend solely on him for everything.  I believe even more than ever that he doesn't call the equipped, but equips the called.  Step out in faith!