Trading Tea for Elephants

February is a month all about love.  Our family memory verse for this month is "Let us love one another because love comes from God.  And everyone that loves is born of God and knows God.  He that loves not, knows not God.  God is love" (1John 4:7-8)   ....He that loves not, knows not God.  Those words came into my heart like a weight.  For months, okay maybe more like years, I have wrestled with how to love the people who act unloving towards me.  This month another word began to fester in my soul "forgiveness". A few weeks ago there was a huge women's event that was simulcast across our country, IF: Gathering.  Maybe you heard of it.  Maybe you went.  I'm sure if you participated in any part you have also been chewing on some things.  One of the women shared about a very difficult time she went through when her marriage fell apart.  She wrote out Ephesians 4:31 - 32 "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you,

There is some discussion globally about the effects of removing children from their country of origin.  I have read posts from those who are very against international adoption and do not see the benefits outweighing the loss of the child's birth culture.  As we began each of our adoptions, I wondered what the response would be from those living in our child's birth country and also those in our community who had immigrated from our child's home country.  What we have experienced is not only has the response been positive, but we have been welcomed into their homes and their lives. In both Ethiopia and China, we were told time and again how blessed our child was to be an American citizen.  And those in our community have echoed the same sentiments.  Often our friends who are first generation Americans cannot believe how simple the process is for an adoptive child to gain citizenship.  We know that adoption is birthed from a great loss, but we cannot deny the blessings o