For the King and His Glory.....

Lately Acts 20:22-24 has become my verse...

"And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace. 

I am truly caring a burden...In my flesh all I really want to do is run in the opposite direction, but God is truly changing my heart! After going to Guatemala and standing in that orphanage and holding that dear child of God, I asked for him to change me and he did!! No longer am I content being in this horrible 'American Dream' I have been living.

The Lord is changing me and I am willing and ready to do his will!

'For the King and his glory I will rescue the little ones'

Use me, O'Lord, in whatever way YOU choose. AMEN!

While we wait...

"Once our eyes are opened, we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows what we know, and holds us responsible to act."

 

The following I copied and pasted straight from http://buildingtheblocks.blogspot.com/2010/09/while-we-wait.html

Once again, I don't think I could have said it better............

 

While we wait... they hope they can wait another day.

While we wait for more money...

they wait with nothing.

While we wait for a bigger home with enough room...

they wait for room in our hearts.

While we wait for others approval...

they wait with any dignity they can find.

While we wait for the ideal child....

they wait knowing they are not.

While we wait trying to decide if we can manage another...

they wait trying to manage on their own.

While we wait to see how much we have to give to them...

They are waiting to give us even more.

While we wait for God to provide...

He waits for us to take the first step so He can.

We must NEVER use 'waiting to hear from Him' as an excuse for not doing what He has ALREADY commanded in the bible for us to do... proclaim the truth, care for orphans, serve others, be His hands of justice for the poor, and show compassion.

So, what are you waiting for??

 

Great Blog to follow.....http://buildingtheblocks.blogspot.com

'there is no me without you'

So, I have been busy reading Melissa Fay Greene’s book, ‘there is no me without you’. It’s a great book about the Ethiopian people, their culture, their horrific aids epidemic, and their orphan children. I have not been able to put this book down!!

(I have to laugh because when I bought it on Amazon, one of the reviews clearly stated…..“Warning, do not so much as open the first page if you are facing any pressing deadlines or tasks (taking care of your children, for instance). Your laundry WILL pile up. Your children WILL go to school having eaten cookies and chocolate milk for breakfast. Your dog WILL look at you pleadingly to finally feed him, because you WILL NOT be able to put this book down!”)

Well, that warning turned out to be SO true! I might not have gotten much done around the house, BUT I have been busy learning so much about Ethiopia.!!! :)

Today, while reading, I read something good! I really liked the way it was written and I know it could not be said any better than the way it is written in the book.. ...

1)It is the first recourse of everyone ethically involved with intercountry adoption to place orphans with relatives with friends, or with families within their home countries; no one imagines or pretends that adoption is a solution to a generation of children orphaned be disease. It is one small and modest option, a case of families in industrialized nations throwing lifelines to individual children even as their governments fail to commit sufficient funds or to free up the medicines to turn back the epidemic.

(2)This life-changing opportunity will not come without a price, which the Ethiopian government weighs carefully; the adopted children will lose their country, people, faith, language, culture, and history. A child could end up the sole Ethiopian for hundreds of miles; another, the only child of color in his or her school. But the adopted child will gain the one thing on earth arguably worth more than a homeland; a family.

Need I say more! They will gain a family! A family! Might not be a perfect family, but it is a family that loves God and chooses to obey even when it don’t make any ‘American’ sense! I believe in these statements!!! When I am asked again about ‘Why adoption?’ ‘Why Ethiopia’ and all those other lovely Why? Why? questions, I will now have a ‘somewhat’ kind of answer…
 
I have put my book down for the day and am changing my plans to finally come up with our ‘family adoption brochure.’ Wish me luck……

July in pics

My how time seems to be flying! July is almost over!

Please summer slowdown!!!… It'll be fall before I know it...

Our adoption journey is still going. We are hung up on some papers we need to get filled out and cannot seem to get an appointment t to do so. Please be in prayer for us. I would really like to get this part of the process behind us!

Since I have seemed to run out of time this month, I thought I would share some of our month with you in pictures..I hope to blog more soon..But for now, enjoy our pictures and let me know if you have any questions!

Zoo time...Just Mommie, Mary, and Colby!!

 

My Young Man, Tyler, working at boyscout camp this summer!

 

Lake time, Mommie, Daddy, Justin, Colby, and Mary

 

Mary’s 1st ride on the Gypsy Hill Express....

Mary and Daddy feeding the ducks....

Justin and Colby working on turning the playhouse into a castle!.....

More pictures to come when it’s finished...

My Birthday present to myself...

I went and picked fresh blackberries and made a cobbler...

It was Yummy!

Stuarts Draft Fireman’s Parade and Carnival.....

Let’s us not forget  to savor the

precious moments of life....

 

As most of you know, we sell soap!!

 Tonight I redid our brochure and I thought I would put a short version on our blog.

If you would like to try our soaps, just let us know.

The money earned from the sales of these soaps

will benefit our adoption fund!! 

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Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT)

Soapy Sales

Luxurious Handmade Soaps

Cinnamon Soap

Spicy aroma is a real pick-me-upper

Sage Soap

Fragrant herd makes a mildly antiseptic soap

Clove soap

Invigorating to the touch

(not recommend for sensitive skin)

Oatmeal/Cinnamon

Very soothing to dry skin

Bran Soap

Gentle abrasive for sensitive skin

Golden Maize

Great-facial abrasive for cleaning pores

Oatmeal/Lemon

Very soothing to irritated skin

Fresh Day

the oils in this recipe are reputed

to have insect-repellent qualities

Milk-n-Honey

Age-old recipe for softening the skin

Fields of Lavender

Fresh lavender flowers and fragrance

Ginger Bars

Refreshing fragrant soap that warms your skin

Rosemary

Good body-bar for oily skin

Aloe Vera

Legendary for soothing the skin

Vitamin-E

Wonderful skin softener

Cocoa Butter

Very gentle on sensitive skin

Laundry Soap

We have used this for over two years in our HE washing machine and have had no problems, but please, you be the judge if you think it will work for you

Prices!!!!!

Bar Soap

*Med  $3.00     Large  $4.00     X- Large $5.00

(*Please note that most of our soap goes for $4.00. I have some med left, but not many. Most are large or x-large.)

Laundry Soap

2 Quarts (32 loads) $4.00          1 1/2 gal (64 loads)$10.00         

5 gal bucket (320 loads) $20.00

‘Thank you for your support’

Have questions??…Just Ask!!...

Nick and Danielle Brown

(540) 337-1837

eugena76@yahoo.com

Due to demand of certain fragrances, there is a small chance that we will be out of the fragrances you were hoping to get.

If that is the case, please understand it could take up to 3-4 weeks for bar soap orders to be fullfilled –

We will do our best to make sure this does not happen. Thanks in advance!!

If you have skin problems or history of allergies,

ALWAYS perform a skin test BEFORE using these soaps!

When and Where??

“Do not copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” Romans 12:2

As most of you know, Guatemala has been on my heart none stop since we left almost a month and a half ago. You also know that since we have come back, I have been so different. (You have to realize my eyes have been opened to so much!) I want to leave everything I have and go back right now! I am so tired of living this mean-less life I am living. Really, there are people out there that are dying without Christ, not just a physical death but also a daily spiritual death. I know that I know God has bigger plans for me and my family than what we are doing now. You ask ‘Why in the world would I want to give up everything that makes sense and move towards something that makes NO sense!’ Well, I just don’t know how to answer other than you are right…I am finally at that point in my life I feel comfortable. I love my life. We have a nice home, plenty of cars, a pool, three dogs, good jobs, 5 great kids, great church, and wonderful friends! I really could not ask for more than I have now! You are right, why would I ever want to give this ‘American Dream’ up? Well, I guess you could say ‘I have seen the light’! I realize this world is SO much bigger than me! I now know that there is a God and he has just been waiting on me to move…He is a gentle Dad! I know I’m starting to sound a little "crazy."But, I truly feel that He has begun to stir in our hearts the desire to seek out. We are just in the beginning steps of the next chapter of our lives. We have had our ‘blinders’ taken off and are just now are seeing there is a cause out there we have ‘know not about’. I truly feel confident that at some point, we, as a family, will be going "to the ends of the earth." BUT WHEN and WHERE? Only God knows. I just know we are open. ‘No more tomorrows!’

Patience!

So I set here in awe of God. What is it that he is trying to do in me? I’m still trying to figure him out; I know I never will; but I am trying. All of a sudden the world is so big and I am small. My problems are nothing compared to what he has opened my eyes to. Sometimes I feel overjoyed at where he has me; and then sometimes I feel exhausted and spent. Today was an in-between day. I was neither. So much is going on in my mind. All I can do is think and thinking has a way of making me blah. Why can’t he just show me where I’m headed? Really, I will go Lord-trust me. I just need to see a map or something.  Something Lord, just something!! I am still giving thanks in all things. I know if he would have shown me this part of my life 10 years ago, I would have laughed!! Never would I have imaged him using ME to do his work!! I will continue to wait. Patience – Patience!!  The dictionary defines patience as the ability to endure waiting, delay, or provocation without becoming annoyed or upset, or to persevere calmly when faced with difficulties. Patience is what I am praying for now.

But I have raised you up for this very purpose, that I might show you my power and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth. Exodus 9:16

 The start of my ‘blessing’ journal…….

1.       An empty Chick-fil-a for me and my daughter to spend some much needed quiet time together. (Loved the Christian music playing also! So encouraging – this is so what I needed!)

2.       The refection of my daughters hand prints.

Welcome to our family blog!! Many of you do not know, but our family started the adoption journey back on May 31^st. We have been lead to an international adoption from Ethiopia. I will be sharing not only our adoption journey, but our daily walk with the Lord. I hope this is a start to many more post. I will be honest, this is the first time ‘blogging’ and the thought of ‘one more thing to do’ is a little bit overwhelming. BUT, I am praying this will a place to share hope and encouragement; not just giving but also receiving. Thanks for reading and please feel free to ask ANY questions you might have. God Bless…..Danielle