To Answer Your Questions....
These are questions that we have been approached with, not all necessarily from friends or family but we will address them none the less. We hope this gives you a better pictures of our hearts and will allow you to understand better what the Lord is doing in our lives. If you have other questions you may leave them under the comment section and we will address those as well.
What happened with Anna Li?
To make a very long and complicated story (that most will never get unless they have been in our shoes) short: The Lord called us to bring Anna Li home. Bringing her home was far from a mistake. It was actually one of the best things that could have ever happened to us. The Lord used this period of our lives to open our eyes to so much and to bring us closer to Him. He also worked through us to share the gospel with Anna Li and as a result she is now a Christ follower. Letting Anna Li go was one of the hardest things we have ever had to do. It was done in the most Christ honoring way possible. It was decision made after much prayer and guidance from the Lord. He placed her family in our path. He knew it was exactly where she needed to be. It was what she wanted, and it was what she needed. We still consider her our daughter and she still considers us family. We keep in touch with her on a weekly basis. She is an amazing little girl (who is now 16!), and she is thriving in her new environment. She needed to be in a large family with many adopted brother and sisters she can relate too. We have said many times- we did not lose a daughter… we gained a family. God is good and God is faithful. This story isn’t over. He is still working in our lives, Anna Li’s life, as well as her forever families. We have a feeling that the Lord is going to do great things through Anna Li and we are so proud to share that she continues to be on fire with Jesus and shares Him with everyone she meets!
What makes you think it will work this time?
We do understand that losing Anna Li was not just hard on us but for many of you. This may be the very reason you are having trouble embracing our new son…fears of it not working out and being left to explain it all again to those in your circle. Will it work this time? Our hope is in Him. We have sought the Lord with all our hearts in this. We were not seeking adoption but seeking a closer relationship with the Lord when this little guy came into our lives. We were willing to give up the dream of adoption (asking Him to take the desire away if it was not His will) when the Lord made it clear that Nathaniel was to be our son. It wasn’t subtle, it was loud and clear. It is not about our wants and desires but about being obedient to the Lord. We hold on to His promises (Matthew 6:33; Proverbs 3:5,6; Hebrew 13:5…) and put our trust in Him.
Why adopt? You have your own children.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27
And the King will answer them, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” Matthew 25:40
These are just two of many verses that pierce our heart and call us to act. It’s what we feel the Lord commands us to do, as Christians. The Lord specifically gave us a heart for the orphans and we want to be obedient to Him.
Why China? There are plenty of orphans here to care for.
Our hearts ache for orphans- here and around the world. I wish everyone’s heart did and then there would be no more orphans in the world. We are taking care of “our own” because we are taking care of a human being. The body of Christ is made up of all colors, all races, and all nationalities. As Christ followers, we have to love and care for all humans not just the ones that share the same color of skin or the same zip code. From the beginning we looked at all our options as we prayed about bringing an orphan into our home. The Lord led us to China both times. Why? We are not sure but we do know the Lord has given us a heart for the people of China. Our hearts long to see the gospel brought to these people. We pray that as we take another journey to China the Lord will give us many opportunities to share the gospel. As we travel this journey of adoption our hearts want to be focused on our own personal adoption story… how Christ came to this earth for us (all of us- no matter where we live or what color skin we have) so that we could be adopted into His family.
Why are you fundraising? If you can’t afford to adopt you shouldn’t!
There is a great need- a great need for people to step up and care for the orphans. I could go on to tell you of the terrible conditions they live in, how many will die needlessly due to lack of medical care, or how they will never feel the loving touch of another human being. I could tug at your heart strings in hopes you too would see this great need and act- through adopting a child or supporting a family that has answered the call to adopt. But it’s not about guilting you to do something you don’t believe in. We are acting in obedience to what the Lord has called us to do. We know He will provide- If not through you, through someone else. What we ask you to do is pray about it. Seek the Lord in this matter and be obedient to what he leads you to do. He may lead you to give, to send words of encouragement, or to become a prayer warrior for our son. We cannot afford to bring him home without the help of others, but we can afford to care for another child. We can afford to open our home to a child that doesn’t have one. We can afford to give him clothes, food, medical care, and most importantly love. I can’t see how fundraising to give a child a chance to experience the love of a family is a bad thing. I can’t see how fundraising to give a child the opportunity to be raised in a home that will share the love of Jesus with him is a bad thing. I can’t see how fundraising to make one less orphan in the world is a bad thing. I can’t understand why so many want to take the attitude of “if you can’t afford to adopt you shouldn’t do it.” Can you not hear the King… “Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me” (Matthew 25:45) Would you say it to the King?
How can you put your kids through this again?
It has been a joy to watch my children grow to love and care for the orphans even though it has not always been an easy road to travel. We don’t take parenting lightly and feel that we have a huge obligation to the Lord to raise them to be arrows for Christ. They are not our kids but His and we pray that He will use each one to make a mighty impact for Christ in this world with the time they are given. There is only one thing we want for our children and that is for each of them to have a true relationship with Christ. In Matthew 10:16 Christ says, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.” It is our job to equip our children with the word and to teach them to walk in His ways. Our children know and have seen first hand that life can be hard but they have also seen the work of God in our lives. They know God’s word is not meant to be brought out on Sunday morning and put away during the week. They know God’s word is meant to be lived. As James 1:22 states, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” They know if we fall down the Lord is always there to pick us back up. So, yes like all of us, our children will experience trials and tribulations and it is our responsibility to equip them with the tools to survive.
Again, if you have any more questions please leave them in the comment section or email us at grayfamilyof6@yahoo.com.
What happened with Anna Li?
To make a very long and complicated story (that most will never get unless they have been in our shoes) short: The Lord called us to bring Anna Li home. Bringing her home was far from a mistake. It was actually one of the best things that could have ever happened to us. The Lord used this period of our lives to open our eyes to so much and to bring us closer to Him. He also worked through us to share the gospel with Anna Li and as a result she is now a Christ follower. Letting Anna Li go was one of the hardest things we have ever had to do. It was done in the most Christ honoring way possible. It was decision made after much prayer and guidance from the Lord. He placed her family in our path. He knew it was exactly where she needed to be. It was what she wanted, and it was what she needed. We still consider her our daughter and she still considers us family. We keep in touch with her on a weekly basis. She is an amazing little girl (who is now 16!), and she is thriving in her new environment. She needed to be in a large family with many adopted brother and sisters she can relate too. We have said many times- we did not lose a daughter… we gained a family. God is good and God is faithful. This story isn’t over. He is still working in our lives, Anna Li’s life, as well as her forever families. We have a feeling that the Lord is going to do great things through Anna Li and we are so proud to share that she continues to be on fire with Jesus and shares Him with everyone she meets!
What makes you think it will work this time?
We do understand that losing Anna Li was not just hard on us but for many of you. This may be the very reason you are having trouble embracing our new son…fears of it not working out and being left to explain it all again to those in your circle. Will it work this time? Our hope is in Him. We have sought the Lord with all our hearts in this. We were not seeking adoption but seeking a closer relationship with the Lord when this little guy came into our lives. We were willing to give up the dream of adoption (asking Him to take the desire away if it was not His will) when the Lord made it clear that Nathaniel was to be our son. It wasn’t subtle, it was loud and clear. It is not about our wants and desires but about being obedient to the Lord. We hold on to His promises (Matthew 6:33; Proverbs 3:5,6; Hebrew 13:5…) and put our trust in Him.
Why adopt? You have your own children.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. James 1:27
And the King will answer them, “Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” Matthew 25:40
These are just two of many verses that pierce our heart and call us to act. It’s what we feel the Lord commands us to do, as Christians. The Lord specifically gave us a heart for the orphans and we want to be obedient to Him.
Why China? There are plenty of orphans here to care for.
Our hearts ache for orphans- here and around the world. I wish everyone’s heart did and then there would be no more orphans in the world. We are taking care of “our own” because we are taking care of a human being. The body of Christ is made up of all colors, all races, and all nationalities. As Christ followers, we have to love and care for all humans not just the ones that share the same color of skin or the same zip code. From the beginning we looked at all our options as we prayed about bringing an orphan into our home. The Lord led us to China both times. Why? We are not sure but we do know the Lord has given us a heart for the people of China. Our hearts long to see the gospel brought to these people. We pray that as we take another journey to China the Lord will give us many opportunities to share the gospel. As we travel this journey of adoption our hearts want to be focused on our own personal adoption story… how Christ came to this earth for us (all of us- no matter where we live or what color skin we have) so that we could be adopted into His family.
Why are you fundraising? If you can’t afford to adopt you shouldn’t!
There is a great need- a great need for people to step up and care for the orphans. I could go on to tell you of the terrible conditions they live in, how many will die needlessly due to lack of medical care, or how they will never feel the loving touch of another human being. I could tug at your heart strings in hopes you too would see this great need and act- through adopting a child or supporting a family that has answered the call to adopt. But it’s not about guilting you to do something you don’t believe in. We are acting in obedience to what the Lord has called us to do. We know He will provide- If not through you, through someone else. What we ask you to do is pray about it. Seek the Lord in this matter and be obedient to what he leads you to do. He may lead you to give, to send words of encouragement, or to become a prayer warrior for our son. We cannot afford to bring him home without the help of others, but we can afford to care for another child. We can afford to open our home to a child that doesn’t have one. We can afford to give him clothes, food, medical care, and most importantly love. I can’t see how fundraising to give a child a chance to experience the love of a family is a bad thing. I can’t see how fundraising to give a child the opportunity to be raised in a home that will share the love of Jesus with him is a bad thing. I can’t see how fundraising to make one less orphan in the world is a bad thing. I can’t understand why so many want to take the attitude of “if you can’t afford to adopt you shouldn’t do it.” Can you not hear the King… “Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me” (Matthew 25:45) Would you say it to the King?
How can you put your kids through this again?
It has been a joy to watch my children grow to love and care for the orphans even though it has not always been an easy road to travel. We don’t take parenting lightly and feel that we have a huge obligation to the Lord to raise them to be arrows for Christ. They are not our kids but His and we pray that He will use each one to make a mighty impact for Christ in this world with the time they are given. There is only one thing we want for our children and that is for each of them to have a true relationship with Christ. In Matthew 10:16 Christ says, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.” It is our job to equip our children with the word and to teach them to walk in His ways. Our children know and have seen first hand that life can be hard but they have also seen the work of God in our lives. They know God’s word is not meant to be brought out on Sunday morning and put away during the week. They know God’s word is meant to be lived. As James 1:22 states, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” They know if we fall down the Lord is always there to pick us back up. So, yes like all of us, our children will experience trials and tribulations and it is our responsibility to equip them with the tools to survive.
Again, if you have any more questions please leave them in the comment section or email us at grayfamilyof6@yahoo.com.
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