Fundraising Totals Are In!!

Just a quick post to let you know that our totals are in from our Girls Night Out Fundraiser last weekend!  Thank you to everyone who came out to support us, who ordered jewelry, ordered books or had a spa service.  All total, we raised $500 towards our adoption fees!!!  This brings our total to date, to $11,500!!!  Yes, in just FOUR short months, we have been able to save/raise more than a third of our funds.  That is truly amazing and speaks so much more of God, than of us.  Thanks for walking this journey with us!


Kirsten

Radical

I have been pondering this post by Ann Voskamp this week because it is right where my heart has been for some time.  Those of you who follow either Ann Voskamp or Katie Davis are in for a treat as these two worlds collide!  For those of you who don't, make sure to hop on over to their blogs - they are awesome!!

So what does a radical life for Christ look like?   As Ann posed the question, "Is it even possible to be a radical Christ-follower — and own a mini-van, have more than one bathroom, order clothes from Land’s End, and lay your head down on a pillow when He had none? "  Obviously, we know that it is - and I do!!  But I can't help to echo the question - What then are we supposed to do?? 

As believers, how are we to "go into all the world" when we are wives and mothers with responsibilities HERE!!??!  How are we then ~ how am I then~ to impact this world for Christ?  I believe it is possible, but it will take a radical abandonment to Jesus.  Proximity, after all, isn't always as important as what we do once we're there.  Yes, some of us will be called to go, but others of us will be called to stay.  Not to stay simply to enjoy the benefits of the American Dream however. 

"From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted much, much more will be asked."

~Luke 12:48



Haven't we been given all we have to turn around and use it for His glory anyway?  Our fancy houses and beautiful cars, our designer clothes and lavish lifestyles.  Even those, who do not have much by American standards, if they have a roof over their heads at night, a means of transportation (including public), clothes and food, they are among the top 10% of the wealthiest people in the world.  I'm fairly certain, that if you are reading (or in my case, typing) this post on a computer, that we qualify. :)  I haven't been blessed simply for my own purposes, but to instead glorify Him, the Creator of all things.  To give like the poor widow in Mark 12, instead of out of a surplus of what is leftover.  That is the kind of heart I desire.  The kind of heart I am praying for.  A heart that is overflowed with love from above, so much so that it DESIRES to give away. 

So what does this look like in suburban America?  Perhaps it is taking a meal to a family in need.  Perhaps it is giving away "stuff" that is simply taking over our houses.  Maybe it is taking another child into your home. Maybe, just maybe, it is freeing up your expenses and living on less, so that we have more to give.  To the widow...to the orphan....to the shut-in....to the single mother of three kids....to the least of these....for His glory.....to spread His fame.

What if as Christians, we lived like THAT, instead of working to gather as much stuff for ourselves?  What if we lived as if none of it were ours anyway?  What if we acquired, only to give it away?  What kind of impact could we make globally?  What if....

In David Platt's book, Radical (HIGHLY recommend this book), he writes,

"The way we use our money is a barometer of our present spiritual condition.  Our neglect of the poor illustrates much about where our hearts lie.  The mark of Christ followers is that their hearts are in heaven and their treasures are spent there."


"For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."
~Matthew 6:21 

My husband and I have much soul-searching to do this week.  How do we fit into this global mission?  How does God want to use our resources for His glory?  What is He asking us to do for His name?  I challenge you to ask those same questions of God.  What if we all, not only asked those kinds of questions, but then DID what God showed us to do within our own sphere of influence?  What if we, as Christians, chose to live radically, instead of comfortably, even if we weren't the ones necessarily called to physically "GO"?

What if......

Kirsten

GNO Recap

Thank you to everyone who came out last night to our Girls Night Out Fundraiser!  It was a great time with friends and family and I left feeling incredibly loved and blessed.  Thank you to my wonderful sister-in-laws,  truly some of the most giving people I know.  From opening their home, to making TONS of delicious food and drinks, to organizing the whole night so that it ran smoothly.....they took care of all the little details effortlessly so that I was able to enjoy the evening.   I love you girls!!

For those of you who were not able to make the event, here are a couple pictures of our evening...



Our "spa" - set up in Sarah's bathroom. :)



Some of our guests....



It is NOT too late to order jewelry from Premiere!  Email me if you are interested in looking through the catalog.  I think I wanted just about everything, it is just THAT beautiful! :)




The chocolate fountain never fails to be a hit!



Along with mini-facials and eyelash tinting by a professional esthetician, we also had a massage therapist on hand!! 



My sweet Kaya (right) and her friend, Hailey, even got to join in on the festivities.  They felt so grown-up. :)



Our three youngest ladies. So sweet. :)



So there you have it!  A fun-filled night with friends, food and drinks, jewelry, facials, massages and CHOCOLATE!!!  Truly a girls night out!  We are still waiting to close out our jewelry show (this Sunday) before we will know how much was raised.  I'll make sure to post as soon as I find out!  Thanks again for all your support in this process!  We have really been blessed with some of the greatest friends and family ever! 

Kirsten 

Girls Night Out!

It's almost here!  Next Saturday is our big adoption fundraiser, and those of you in the area, I hope you will be able to make it!  I've tried for the longest time to copy and paste our Evite to the blog, but I'm just not that computer-savvy.  So....here is the information, not necessarily in a cute, well-put-together Evite package, but the info none-the-less. :)

Girls Night Out!

FOOD!  FUN!  FRIENDSHIP!

Join us for a Premiere Jewelry Demonstration and mini-facials by a professional esthetician!

Saturday, June 11th, 2011

7:00 pm

Harleysville, PA

All proceeds go towards bringing our child home!

Invite your friends!  Guaranteed to be a great time!



Email ckgregoire2@yahoo.com for more information.

So, that's all!  Hope to see you there!

Kirsten

Thank You!

Thank you everyone for your prayers and words of encouragement this week!  We were so blessed by email after email of people letting us know that they were praying for our home study visit to go well!  And....I think it did! :) 

My mother-in-law was so wonderful helping me clean my house from top to bottom (literally!!) and I spent weeks organizing closets and rooms.  I was so proud of the work we had done, and honestly, I don't even know that our case worker took notice or checked half of it.  Oh well!  At least I have a clean and organized home - for a couple days!!!  :)

So, anyway, at this point we are just waiting to receive our approval for our finalized home study.  Best case scenario?  It could be approved within the next week.  Worst case?  It could bounce back and forth between us and our case worker for a couple weeks because of revisions needing to be made (very normal!).  Obviously, we are praying though that everything goes through quickly!!  Pray along with us that we would have favor with God and man.

Thanks so much for pouring out your love on our family!  Can't wait to update you all soon. :)


Kirsten