Upcoming Mission Trip

In a little more than a week a team of 18 believers (men and women and children) from WEPC will be heading to Managua, Nicaragua to serve the children at the Casa Bernabe Orphanage.  We are in final preparation mode.  As we finalize our plans, pack our bags and check things off our to-do list, we are in need of prayer - that God will complete our preparations and prepare our hearts for this journey and week of service.

Our team will be completing various work projects on the orphanage grounds, conducting soccer clinics and sharing evening devotionals with the children. For many, this will be their first time visiting an orphanage or even Nicaragua for that matter. We will be seeing things and hearing stories that will break our hearts. For that we need strength that only the Lord can provide. We will also be working alongside each other 24X7 for a week, which will bring the potential for stress. For that we will need patience that only the Lord can provide. Some of us will be apart from loved ones back in Richmond, which may make us anxious. For that we will need comfort and peace.

It is awesome to be going on this mission trip and know that we have the Lord with us and the power of prayer from our supporters covering us.

This Week

Wednesday, March 21st

6 P.M.

Steps Involved: Foster-to-Adopt, Training and Homestudies

 No R.S.V.P is needed. Room 35

Speaker: Laura Ash-Brackley

Director of Social Services

Program Director, Partnership for Adoptions

Children's Home Society of Virginia

In Virginia, there are approximately 5,500 children in the foster care system. That is a huge number of children without a family and a home to call their own. 

As believers we are in God's forever family. In response to His love and promises, our missional community group will be exploring ways we can be involved in the foster care system in VA. Our hope is to encourage the church to join with us as we equip ourselves to share God's love with the fatherless.

Coming Soon

Wednesday, April 18th

6 P.M.

Transitions: Helping youth move from
Foster Care to Independent Living

 No R.S.V.P is needed. Room 35

Surviving Your Home Study

The thought of an adoption Home Study can conjure up all kinds of emotions.  For some it is excitement about another phase of the adoption process, yet to some it brings up hesitancy and concern.  Will the Social Worker like our family?  Is my house clean enough?  Will they find some deep, dark secret about us?  Will we be approved?  Having lived through the Home Study process, our family can honestly say it was one of the more enjoyable and therapeutic phases of our three-year adoption process.

We were initially in the camp of hesitancy and concern.  How was I going to make my home look like June and Ward Cleaver’s?  I thought it needed to look perfect, peaceful, and immaculate.  That was impossible.  At the time we were pursuing a China adoption and we had biological children ages 7, 9, 10, and 12 years.   We were told that we needed three home visits before the adoption and two after we brought our adopted child home.   How were we going to create perfection in our home five times?  I soon found out that my perception of the home study was wrong.

 Before our initial visit with our Social Worker, I sat my four children down and explained that she would want to talk to them and get their perspective on adopting a brother or sister.  She may ask questions or get their opinion about our family.  At that time my three oldest children were somewhat quiet.  So I did what any “good” mother would do and told them I would give them a treat if they conversed with the Social Worker.  My plan worked beautifully for the older three.  However, I had not factored in the personality of my fourth child, who naturally was talkative. 

The day of our first Home Study visit arrived.  The house was perfectly clean -  this took about three days to accomplish.  Our Social Worker was a lovely woman who immediately calmed our fears and anxieties. We gave her a tour of the house and showed her where our adoptive daughter would sleep.  She sat us down and went over all our paperwork, asked financial, medical, education, and family questions.  At this point my fourth child remembered the reward for talking.  I am not sure he stopped talking for the remainder of her visit.  He relayed every family secret we have.  He told her that his oldest brother (John) did not want a sister that didn’t look like him; that the neighbor toddler had just killed all of John’s fish and he was sick of little kids; that when he was three we lost him and he was wondering our property with no shirt or shoes; that the neighbor found him and returned him home; etc.  We were sinking further and further into the couch.  There was no way to turn him off.  It was an interesting discussion, but an honest one that allowed the Social Worker to really see our family.  Although not scripted, our youngest child was the first family member to open and expose our family for what it was – a home full of love and laughter, but imperfect in many ways.  That was a tipping point in our relationship with the Social Worker.  We could all exhale.  The Lord knew that is what we needed.

The Social Worker had a genuine interest in our family.  She laughed and smiled frequently and took a few notes.   We realized that she was actually for our adoption and wanted the process to run as smoothly as possible.  She was our advocate and supporter.  

On her subsequent visits she reviewed safety issues with us (fire alarms, locked gun cases, fire place gates, etc).  She talked individually with my husband, our twelve year old, and me.  She instantly put us at ease and was therapeutic in discussing the adoption with all of us.  She often played the role of counselor and we quickly realized she had a depth of knowledge regarding adoption and the emotions that inevitably come into the process.  We actually looked forward to her visits!  It was a great joy for us to introduce our Social Worker to our adopted daughter knowing that she played an integral role in bringing this new member into our family. 

Our five Home Study visits turned into six as our wait for our child was extended due to the flow of China adoptions.  We came to love our Social Worker and look at the process in a different light.  Her job was to educate and support us, not to be critical and judgmental.   She never checked under the beds or looked at the dust on my ceiling fans.  I think she realized that perfection is not what makes a good family – thank goodness.  We will keep in touch with her forever.  She became part of our family during the long adoption process and gave us advice, hope, and care along the way. 

I came to realize that the Home Study process is something to look forward to, not to be feared!  Enjoy your time with the Social Worker, tap into their knowledge, be yourself, and remember, she is rallying for your adoption to be successful and smooth.

By Kim Eagle, group member, adoptive mom

Sorrow but Not without Hope

As I have grown into my role as a mother one thing as remained the same. My heart aches when I think of a child without a mother. And yet there are millions without mothers, approximately 143 million in fact. I can choose to get overwhelmed with this number and slink back into my bubble with a family of 5 (there is certainly plenty to keep me busy) or I can keep pursuing what it means to care for the orphans.

It is very clear that God calls his people to care for them. It is a mandate in fact. “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27

I am a logical, play by the rules kind of gal. Have you ever played Apples to Apples? Well, I stink at it! In the game, players chose a noun card from their hand that best matches the adjective card that was chosen for that round by the judge. Then the judge decides which noun is the best match for the adjective. Quoted from the rules - “This decision is subjective; the official rules encourage the judge to pick the match that is "most creative, humorous or interesting". Apparently, I cannot do that. I am far too literal, anyone can guess my answer after the first round. Even when I think I am intentionally not literal, I still am. I cannot help myself.

I think up until recently, I have approached orphan care in a very literal way. I have, without realizing it, separated my emotions from the tasks at hand. What should my involvement be? What can I do? Can I really do anything at all? The need is so huge. Do I believe that God is really caring for them? Why do I have SO much and they have (in my eyes) SO little?

I failed to realize and plan for (because I like to plan ;) an ever growing sorrow. The heartache began once I had children and it continued to grow when dear friends waited for their sons in Africa and now as I serve with our orphan care ministry. My heart has been slowly changing. But until recently, it still wasn’t personal.

I have continued to seek Him. He has continued to open my eyes and my heart. Now, it’s getting personal. Some days I am not sure my heart can handle any more and this is just the beginning. It hurts so much to see the brokenness of this world. But that hurt is awakening my heart. It’s painful, but it’s the kind of pain that goes seeking for more. I don’t think I could turn away now even if I wanted to. I know too much.

I get easily frustrated when I can’t “see” the Lord defending the weak and the fatherless (Psalm 82:3). The grand picture doesn't appear to be changing (in my little world view). I must realize that by softening my heart, he is doing just that. He is calling one more to his side. What a gracious God I serve, that I might be a part of “defending the weak.” What a gracious God I serve that He would allow me to feel just an inkling of his love for the orphans. How much more does our Father in Heaven love these children? Who am I to think for a second that He doesn't?

“We are to proclaim Christ with the same spirit Christ did. He not only preached the kingdom’s establishment but also demonstrated its character by performing the ultimate good work of laying down His life for His enemies. As the company of the Crucified, we must follow the example of our Lord by the strength that He gives us. Equipped with kingdom words and kingdom deeds, we have been entrusted with the responsibility to make disciples of the nations. All that is required is to love as we have been loved, to teach as we have been taught, and to serve as we have been served. If our King has sacrificed His life, how can we be His loyal subjects and insist on preserving our own?” Dr. Tom Ascol

By Ali Fogarty, group member

Why We Are Choosing Special Needs

I keep getting asked by folks why we are choosing to adopt both internationally and a child with special needs. I have a couple answers to that. 

First, I should just be honest with you and say, I don’t know.  We just want to obey God.  We are confident that he is leading us to adopt an Asian child with special needs.  We figure that will be easier to do to if we adopt a child from China and request that he has special needs.  It’s just a hunch, but there are probably more Asians in China than in America. 

And the need is great. With China’s one child policy, little boys with imperfections as minor as birthmarks and as profound as Fetal Alcohol Syndrome are literally abandoned in the streets. Is there a more special need than to not be left an orphan? 

Also, I’ve come to realize I have a pretty high threshold for weird. Things that would drive others batty make me feel comfortable. Speech delay?  Been there. Done that. Got the best speech therapist in my county on speed dial.  Born addicted to drugs?  Dude, I literally give speeches about that. Infectious Disease?  They already know me at MCV. Missing a limb?  I’m all over it. Deaf child? I’m friends with a woman who used to teach ASL at the college level.  Autism? I’ve got friends who are already giving me information. 

Don’t believe I’m being glib about this. I know special needs are profound game changers. I’ve cried alongside friends over the heartaches their children must bear. I know it will be hard. I know it will hurt. 

By being friends with some women who have children with special needs, I’ve noticed a couple of things.  Having a kid who has weekly doctor’s appointments or physical therapy sessions is simultaneously a heartache and a joy.  It is both a huge deal that changes everything and also just another thing you have to figure out.  My son will be my son and his needs will just be his needs.  And we will meet them as God provides.  We will struggle with making sure that Charlie doesn’t get all our energy and affection.  We will struggle with Henry and Grace learning that they may need to have fewer things because of Charlie.  We will struggle to relearn what our family’s “normal” looks like. 

There’s also a selfish part of this. I have a friend who has a son with Prader-Willi syndrome. You’ve probably never heard of that. It’s rare. And it is a difficult and complicated diagnosis. But my friend is also just a regular Mom Really. She’s awesome and I love her, but like most of us, she doesn’t always get to bathe every day, her house only gets really cleaned before company comes over, and, at any given moment, she probably has food stuck to her shirt. She doesn’t have wings or a halo. But here’s the thing—she looks more like Jesus than anyone I know. She is an advocate—at times knowing more about her son’s diagnoses than pediatricians. She is a cheerleader, a teacher, a comforter, a Mommy. The pain she bears for the sake of her son enables her to see many things rightly. She doesn't sweat the small stuff, because frankly, she just doesn't have time. And I want that. I want a family that reflects the goodness of God.  The end.

I want my family to be aware of its need for Jesus. I want us to never get so self-sufficient that we forget who is the Great Provider. I want for all of my kids to know what real love looks like—a love that doesn’t count the cost of suffering, a love that chooses to be uncomfortable for the sake of another, a love that values joy over happiness, redemption over ease, reconciliation over smoothness, grace over rightness, resurrection over complacency. 

And, there’s also this:

When I was lost, broken, spiritually paralyzed, and an enemy, Jesus came for me.  He left the comforts of heaven and came to the chaos.  For me.  And he was not content to just forgive.  He was not content to just make me right before the Father.  No, He adopted me.  He gave me a family.  He gave me an inheritance.   And there’s nothing like the surety of love to set you free from all your fears.

We can do this.

By Elizabeth Phillips, group member, adoptive mom, and writer at Elizabethtown-blog.com.