Wednesday, November 12, 2008

The last few days have been interesting. I believe I especially am being tested as to why we might want to add one child to our more than full plate. I am struggling with the daily challenge of Owen's four year old behavior. We know that the surgery next week to remove his adenoids and tonsils should eventually cause him to sleep much more soundly. His sleeping has been so compromised and of course that is part of his defiant behavior. It is hard to remember that his daily challenges are so minor in the scheme of life. I have been praying the last few days for patience, quiet responses to my children when I am frustrated and answers when it comes to how to effectively reach them during their wild times. In the midst of it all, I have found myself wanting to apologize for evening considering adoption at this point. Of course that is as self defeating as ice cream on a PMS day but with the stress I have felt doubt. Here is what I am working hard to remember when the doubts creep in. I am not in control of my world. I make choices yes but I need to continue to let God take the helm. We are praying for a safe surgery for Owen, for noticeable change in his behavior and a refreshed attitude about the little girl who awaits.

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Into Our Arms Forever!

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welcome home ava! from melanie Strobel on Vimeo.

Meeting Ava during our first trip to Ethiopia

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Meeting Ava Ethiopia Trip July 2010 from melanie Strobel on Vimeo.

Korah- Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

During our recent visit to Ethiopia I felt very called to the village of Korah in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. There have been numerous rumblings lately about the tremendous need to help the children of Korah who are growing up in and around the local trash dump. The village was established 75 years ago as a place to send people with leprosy who were said to be cursed. Now there is a 3rd generation of people living in Korah with nearly 100,000 suffering from such things as leprosy, HIV, misc disease and of course malnutrition. There are many children of Korah who have been forced to live and work at the trash dump in hopes of finding food and possible items to sell in Korah's center of town. With the start of the Great Hope Church in Korah and the building of a shelter, along with the ministry of local Sammy Liben and Sumer Yates, there is now a feeding program and a sponsorship program in place to rescue the forgotten children of Korah and send them to boarding school where they can escape the horror of the conditions of living and working in a large trash dump. For more information please visit: www.help4korah.blogspot.com or www.p61.org where you can learn more about how you or your organization can help the people and the children of Korah. Please send me a message or email Erin Allen at erin@p61.org to request sponsorship information. I will soon be posting the photos of my day recently spent in Korah. I must tell you it was life changing and beyond anything I have ever done to stretch, change and rearrange myself. God helped me to help the people who I met. Much of what I could offer was nothing more than the snap of my camera or a warm touch or an inviting smile. The needs in Korah are beyond our wildest imagination yet God is over Korah and there is already amazing work being done. I invite you to view the following videos to learn more about the beauty and the needs of Korah's people.

CLICK HERE TO LEARN HOW TO SPONSOR A CHILD

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Hannah's Hope Orphanage- Ethiopia

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