Legal Presidings and Justification

This afternoon (of 4/9/15) we had the privilege of concluding the legal obligations in our mission of adopting our son. That's exciting. :)

This afternoon our advocate (Shannon Gregor) brought our case before the Judge. She was pleading with (petitioning) him, in light of evidence shared of the already completed work, to make John Luke Sembatya Tushabe the son of a new family (ours).

The Judge looked at the completed work and listened to the petition in order to make a rightful judgment in accordance with the law. His prerogative was to make sure the completed work was a sufficient fulfillment of the law. If it had not been, then parental status would not have been granted to us and sonship would not have been granted to our boy. Yes, we had been referring to ourselves as "Mom" and "Dad" and to him as our "son", but the reality is that we were not yet legally father, mother, and son. Instead the Judge needed to make sure the law had been fulfilled before the justification of us as father, mother, and son could be given.

Based on the completed work, which came through many trials, much testing, and much suffering for all who had a hand in completing the work the Judge's judgment was favorable for the creation of our new family. It is good to know that all of the trials, testing, and suffering were not in vain and may have actually perfected the work to make it truly complete. Then, in the moment that the justification came, John Luke Sembatya Tushabe received sonship and a new name. He is no longer John Luke Sembatya Tushabe, but rather Uriah Erling Tushabe Svaleson; and he has become an heir of all that our family is and has...he is our son.

Now he can freely grow in the truth that he is our son. He is free to truly become that which he is. He is free to be our son...Uriah Erling Tushabe Svaleson. That is his familial identity. That is now who he is.

Even though we had operated like a family (it is possible we could even have been called a family), the reality is that our familial relationship had not yet been decreed as being a family, but rather just legal guardians of this particular boy. Though it may have seemed like today's court presiding was just making this "official" or getting a piece of paper stating that which already was true, it was much more than that. Fatherhood, motherhood, and sonship needed to be justified legally or we could never be a family; our son-like boy would never be our son and never be an heir and never truly be free (or in the least feel free) as our son would be. Our fatherhood, motherhood, and sonship would never be true without this legal justification. This was a very important presiding...absolutely necessary.

All of the work that was completed on his behalf was presented by our advocate to the Judge. The Judge found it to be a fulfillment of the law and issued a justifying decree that John Luke Sembatya Tushabe has become Uriah Erling Tushabe Svaleson, the son and heir of Josh and Marissa Svaleson. He now has all of the rights of a son, including the right of sonship itself.

Praise the Lord. :)

This mission of adopting a son is a parable. I pray that you see it. (Here is just a little bit of help...)

"See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; AND SO WE ARE. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we ARE GOD'S CHILDREN NOW, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure." 1 John 3:1-3 (emphasis added)

"I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, 'Abba! Father!' So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God." Galatians 4:1-7

"In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins." 1 John 4:10

"My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments." 1 John 2:1-3

"..."It is finished"..." John 19:30

Praise the Lord. :)

Adoption Update!

Greetings from the Pearl of Africa!

We have been in Africa now for 1 week! First off, it’s BEAUTIFUL here and the people are beautiful as well! We are lodging just south of Kampala (the capital city of Uganda). It’s beautiful here and they are taking very good care of us! It’s also a long stone’s throw from the children’s home that the little guy is from. The question(s) you are all probably wondering is how are we and how is the little one? We are well and he is well! Look for our next update….

JUST KIDDING! Lol

We met our little guy on Sunday, August 17, 2014. He just blankly stared that day. He was very much in shock. If you think about it, how would you feel if you were going about your daily routine and just finished lunch, and then all of a sudden, people whom you have never met come in and take you to live with them! You would probably either scream or just go blank. He clung very tightly to us and slept a lot as well as stared at us. It was a great and emotional day for all 3 of us!

Monday, we went to town and exchanged money, got passport pictures taken and got groceries/toiletries. There was a very pleasant surprise from our little guy…it was our first time seeing him smile, laugh and yes, even SING! J

Tuesday was our first court hearing. Normally there are 2 or 3 hearings which takes 2 or 3 weeks and then there is a ruling which may take another week. Turns out, we only need the one hearing and the ruling will hopefully come next Tuesday! Pretty crazy! The ruling is whether or not legal guardianship is granted. Overall, it was a pretty fun and nerve wrecking day. However, we did see the beauty of the Lord of lords.

Wednesday and Thursday, we hung out at the guesthouse having fun, bonding, laughing, smiling and getting food and snot all over our clothes! Lol They were very enjoyable days! During these days, we saw a lot of growth in him! He actually is bonding quite well! Showing lots of emotion and expressing needs and building trust. There is a lot of work left to be done, but it is encouraging to see these steps;. We are also getting to see his personality-which we LOVE!

Friday, we went to the Buganda Parliament and Palace. That was fun! We got to learn about some of Uganda’s history and current state of affairs. This was neat to experience as this is part of his history and we were able to document these tours so that when he gets older he will be able to learn about the culture. We are also enjoying very much the company of the staff at the guest house. We are getting to know each other rather well. It has been fun to learn about our son’s culture through them (vegetation, language, history, lifestyle and food-which has been GREAT!)

Friday night we almost got no sleep, because the little man was crying for almost the whole night. We aren’t exactly sure what the reasoning was. It could have been constipation, teething, an overwhelming day and also the changes in his life recently. So, we are quite tired today! However, it was exciting to watch him stand for the first today!

We are very excited to visit to visit Sojourn Church tomorrow. They are located in Kampala and are part of the Acts 29 Network-the same network River City is a part of!

Thank you for your prayers, support and encouragement! Please continue to pray for us. For bonding and attachment, for our hearts to rest and delight in the Lord and to walk in the Spirit-preaching the Gospel as we are led, making much of Christ.

Love,

The Svalesons

 

Adoption is So Much More Grand Than Children and Family

As we draw near the time to leave (August 14, 2014) to, Lord willing, meet our son, I want to draw our attention to the true grandeur of adoption.

It is great that a child will be cared for. It is exciting that a family will grow in depth and breadth. Those things are blessings and workings of God's grace. Yet, those things pale in comparison to the reason that adoption exists. Adoption exists to be the most real display of the gospel of Christ. That is a bold statement; and it can be taken lightly, but shouldn't be. (Note: I did not say it is the greatest display of love; that would be laying down one's life for another [John 15:13]; though that is not necessarily void in adoption.)

Here are some implications of the statement "adoption exists to be the most real display of the gospel of Christ." That implies that orphans exist for the glory of God. That implies that parents that suffer greatly because of the difficulties that are unique to parenting adopted children are for the glory of God. That means that poverty is for the glory of God. That means that suffering is for the glory of God. Even though God is absolutely saddened that there are orphans and poverty and unique sufferings, He sovereignly has them exist for the glory of his name. Is God cruel? By no means. Here's why.

If the Lord is the ultimate and the most satisfying, then the best thing He can give us is himself. Problem: we were all children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3), not children of God. So, the best thing that we could have (God) is not what we had (God's wrath). How then could we be transferred into the family of God? Adoption.

How did that adoption happen? The Word became flesh (Jesus Christ) in order to live and fulfill the covenant established on Mount Sinai as the true Israel and to die and fulfill the covenant established with Abraham as the one who was obligated to fulfill the covenant. So then, we became heirs. But heirs with no benefit until we would die to lay hold of our estate (the kingdom of God). So, Christ was raised from the dead, ascended to the right hand of the Father, and sent his Spirit in and among all who would believe (John 1:12-13) such glorious news to not leave us as orphans (John 14:15-27).

We were adopted from the domain of darkness, of sin and into the kingdom of light, of holiness, of righteousness. We were once sons of wrath and of the "prince of the power of the air" (Ephesians 2:2), but now we are sons of the Most High God, Yahweh himself!

Reality: even though we have been adopted, we still struggle with identifying ourselves as children of God, and so we sin. Yet, He reminds us over and over and over that we are his and He is ours; and He graciously restores us, disciplines us, and gives us great delight and joy in him.

He, Christ, left his home for certain death to bring children into his family.

As we leave our home, we may not be going for certain death, but we are definitely going to die (to sin and self). We go to bring an orphan into our family that he may no longer be an orphan but rather a son. There will be times when he will think, feel, and act like an orphan and not "like a Svaleson"; but we will be there to graciously restore him, discipline him, and give him delight in belonging to our family (Lord willing :-). Oh, there is so much more grandeur to show!

(Let me make a quick note. We cannot draw every parallel. We are not rescuing a child from a lesser culture and area; Christ did that for us, but we are not doing that in this case. The United States isn't any better than other cultures.)

And all of this is done to display the glory of God in Christ Jesus. This is done to make disciples of Jesus who make disciples of Jesus. This is done because we want to make Christ's name the greatest, because his name is the greatest. Adoption exists to be the most real display of the gospel of Christ. And we are excited to be a living, breathing, walking testimony to that reality.

In Christ,
Josh

We've Been Matched!!!!!

Oli otya? (Luganda for "How are you?", a common greeting in Uganda)

We are beginning to learn Luganda, one of the most common languages spoken in Uganda (English is too, but we already know that). "Why?" you ask. Because, Lord willing we will be heading to Uganda soon to pick up our son!!!! :-) That's right, we have been matched with a child and accepted the referral!

"??!!!???!!!???" That's probably what you're thinking, right? Because that is pretty much what we thought. :) Well, here is the quick version of a long story......

So, there we were, sitting at number 12 on the waiting list (and we are still number 12...we'll get to that later) in February. Being at number 12, we figured it would be quite possibly years before we were matched with a child and received a referral. Then, out of the blue, on March 11, 2014, we received a request to send our homestudy to Uganda. Our international agency, Lifeline Children Services (fantastic agency by the way), had been working on getting things ironed out with a potential new partner in Uganda for quite a while, and our homestudy was going to be sent to that new partner, Oasis Children's Home. They had 3 boys that were potentially available for adoption, and requested homestudies for 3 families.

"HOLD UP!! How did you get to be one of the 3 families when we were number 12 on the waiting list?" That is a great question, and we are glad you asked. So, it turns out that there were 9 families on "hold" that were ahead of us on the waiting list. That means that for a myriad of reasons they were unable to be matched with a child and accept a subsequent referral (most likely many of the families were pregnant). So, we were simply next on the list of eligible families.

We were surprised to say the least.

Now, there is one big thing to note: there were no guarantees of being matched or referred or even of the children being legally adoptable. Lifeline (our international agency) doesn't give referrals until children are as close to 100% legally adoptable (that is orphaned), and that process can take months, at least 6 months most of the time. There was also the added unknown of this new partner, Oasis Children's Home, and the way they like to match children...no guarantees. All we knew is that there were 3 boys and 3 families being looked at, and that nothing goes as planned. :)

We figured it would be 6-8 months before we heard anything. And then maybe another 6-8 months before we could possibly go to Uganda. It was 1.5 months (April 29, 2014) when we heard HUGE news. We found out that Lifeline was going to be making a trip to Uganda to find out if ethical adoptions are still a possibility in Uganda. If they are not, that would mean program suspension, not closure, but suspension (we can talk about that with you if you are curious what that means). AND there is also a legal Act that is in the process of working its way through the court system in Uganda that would install a foster care type system that would probably eliminate all possibility of international adoptions. THAT is HUGE news.

Three options were given of possible routes if ethical adoption is deemed impossible or highly improbable and a suspension on the program occurs. Here is a summary of them.
1) Families can stay in the Uganda program and wait in case the suspension might be lifted.
2) Families can switch programs (that means leave the Uganda program adopt from a different country).
3) Our case might be unique...

At that point we were like, "Huh? Our case?". Yes, that is when we found out that we had been matched with a little boy! Would we accept this referral? Yes! The third option above included subsequent options due to our case being unique...interesting. :)

Anywho, a day or two later we found out that the little boy was about 9 months old and his name is John Luke. We received a picture of him from when he was taken in to Oasis Children's Home, and a few days later received an updated picture. Let's just say that he is cute. :)

There was a lot to do after receiving and accepting the referral. And, with the impending children's Act in Uganda, it seemed that it all needed to be done quickly. So many little bits to this that can only be described by saying that God is the one who is moving things as he sees fit, blowing up all kinds of probable timelines and situations, having probation officers and others in Uganda cooperate when they normally may not (kind of like when God moved in the hearts of the Persian Kings to rebuild Jerusalem recorded in the book of Ezra). It has definitely been crazy. :)

Now we are waiting for some paperwork to come to us so we can get it notarized and sent back so we can wait for a court date in Uganda. We are also waiting to hear from Lifeline regarding their findings in regards to ethical adoptions in Uganda. They will be making the trip May 29-June 7.

There are 3 main realities that come under 1 umbrella reality.
1) There is still no guarantee that this child will be a Svaleson. There is much that needs to happen for this to happen. It is even possible that we can go to Uganda, be legal guardians of John Luke for weeks, and then come home without him.
2) We are short on funds.
3) Everything that needs to happen can happen.

Those three fall under this one reality:
In all of this, no matter the outcome, God will be glorified. And THAT is what excites us most. As hard as it would be to have all of this fall through, or as hard as it would be to be parents of an adopted child, or as great as it would be if everything worked out, God WILL be praised by believers. And he IS working all things together for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose...to be conformed to the image of his Son. The reality that God will be glorified is what propels us to go forward, to follow him. And his glory brings a smile to our face and joy to our hearts. :-)

With all that said, here is our plan moving forward:
1) Be excited!..and grounded in reality.
2) Save as much money as we can.
3) Fill out more grant paperwork.
4) Learn Luganda.

There are a few other things we would like to share with you. So, look for some updates within the next 10 days or so!

Join with us in praising God! Join with us in worshiping Jesus Christ! Join with us in celebrating! Join with us in living for the glory of God's name because we have been united with him by his blood and Spirit! Join with us in ministering to others in Jesus' name! Join with us as we make disciples of the nations! Join with us in clinging to the promises of God in joy and in sorrow, the promises that we will be conformed to the image of the Son! And thank you for joining us!! :-)

In Christ,
Josh and Marissa Svaleson

Quick Update - February 4, 2014

Here's a quick update on our life!

We should find out this coming Friday where we are on the wait list for Uganda! So that's very exciting! We look forward to that email every month.

Though it is not adoption, we are in the process of becoming licensed for Foster Care. That is exciting and it's moving QUICKLY! It looks like we may have two kiddos in our care in the next couple weeks. They are cute - we have gotten to know them a bit already!

In case you are wondering, foster care is NOT taking the place of adopting from Uganda. We are still pursuing adoption from Uganda - while waiting we want to care for kids in our community.

That's a very quick update!

Thank you everyone for your support in both adoption and foster care. We REALLY COULDN'T fulfill God's call on our life without you. Neither waiting to adopt, nor foster care is easy :) . Please continue to pray for our family as we continue on this journey.

Love,
The Svalesons

Where we are

Hello everyone!
Marissa here. Sorry it has been so long since we have updated you on life and adoption! I felt the need to do so today! A lot has been going on!

First, I leave for Uganda in 3 DAYS!!! No, not to pick up our child (that would be AWESOME!) but, to go on a mission trip to learn about the culture and to love and serve the people there! I will be traveling with my cousin Marcy, my friend Mallari and her mom (who is also my friend) Noreen! I am SO excited to be a sponge for 18 days and to soak in as much as I can! I will be sure to post pictures and video when we return! I can't wait to teach you all about our child's culture, since you will all be a part of his/her life once we bring him/her home! You can read the previous blog post to learn more about this trip, and the organization New Hope Uganda. I can't wait to see how God moves!

Second, I am going to share with you all an update on our adoption process! First, I want to say that God is good...I hope you all know that. I know that I know that, but at times life is just plain hard. We are still number 23 on the list...haven't moved for a couple months. We got a phone call last week from our case worker in Alabama (the one who is doing all of our international adoption stuff) and she informed me that the wait for our child possibly could be longer than the 15-18 months that we were initially told. That news was so disheartening...it hurt....I felt pain...I felt sad.

Going back a couple weeks...I started reading a book with some friends of mine called "The Resolution for Women" by Priscilla Shirer. We wanted to help one another grow in our relationship with God, but also learn to just have joy in Christ, and know/believe that He is enough in every life circumstance! I was SO EXCITED to start reading this book! So, I open to the first section, and the first section is about.....(drum roll please)......CONTENTMENT! God sure knows what He's doing! So, I read the first "resolution" and it states this: " I do solemnly resolve before God to embrace my current season of life and live with a spirit of contentment." After reading that...I started to tear up. Tear up, because I know that God is working on trying to teach me how to be content. One of the BIGGEST things I learned is that contentment is something to be LEARNED....check it out:

"I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength." -Philippians 4:11-13

Paul says He has LEARNED the secret of being content...so, I must learn how to be content...not an easy task, but I know that God is working on changing me. You see, when you are content with whatever season you are in, you are able to live life to the fullest! You are able to see what God has in front of you RIGHT NOW, because you aren't so focused on what you don't have. I don't want to "wish away" my life so I can get to the next "bigger" or "better" thing...because then I fear that I will get to the end of my life, and not remember it...I was "there" but I wasn't "really there". You know what I mean?

I am so glad that God is choosing now to teach me contentment, instead of after I wished my life away...but boy is it hard! But, it is SO FREEING! I am able to call on the Lord, and He takes my sadness and pain, and fills it with His love, and reminders of what HE has done for me...and that my life purpose is to bring glory to Him! There is a lot more work to do in me, I know, but I am rejoicing in what He has changed already...and for that I am so thankful!

So, getting that phone call was so hard to receive the other day. It felt like we were taking a step back..but I know that God has a plan. I cling to His promises:

• Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

• Romans 8:31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

• Matthew 11:28-30  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

And so many more verses that speak of God's sovereignty and about His love for His children. I am so thankful for Him. If it weren't for Him, where would I be? I would be nowhere...and I am so thankful He has come and saved me. I couldn't get through this difficult period in my (our) life. He sustains me and gives me strength each and every day.

If you could, please keep our family in your prayers. Thank you for all the encouragement the last 3 years we have been in this journey. God has really blessed us with all of you, and we couldn't do this alone. I wanted to share one song with you, that I think is so beautiful. We truly do serve a beautiful, beautiful God.

"Beautiful" by Shawn McDonald...

Love,

Marissa

Blizzardy (an assortment of updates) Updates on Adoption

Hello everyone! We thought it was about time to give an update!

First things first, we have moved up to number 23 on the waiting list! (We started at number 31 in October of 2012!) Being that we get asked frequently, we would like to share that God has so graciously provided just over $16,000 for our adoption! That's INCREDIBLE! That means we have about $13,000.00 left to raise. Our total cost for the adoption is estimated just under $29,000! We are also in the process of completing (by completing, we mean we just have to send it in) a grant through ShowHope! We are hoping that God will provide for our adoption through a grant!

The CD that we mentioned a while back should be finalized very soon! We are hoping God will use it to encourage you and help us all lean on him in times of great sorrow and great rejoicing. 

Josh and I won a free photo shoot (thanks to many of you liking a photo on facebook) through Lou Lou's Photography! (http://www.loulousphotography.com/) Over half of the pictures we took were "Expecting Adoptive Parents" pictures (Like maternity pictures, except for adoption!) It was REALLY fun, it was quite chilly and we had a good time! Below are some of the sneak peeks! Sam did a WONDERFUL job capturing these moments! They definitely help with the pain in this moment of waiting for our child.

Lastly, we'd like to mention that Marissa has the opportunity to go to Uganda in May of 2013!!!! There are two main purposes: 1) To love on the children, and to be a light of the Gospel of Christ. 2) To learn about Uganda and the culture! She is hopefully going to be taking a lot of pictures and videos and absorbing the culture and area, and try to get Josh up to speed when she gets back! She also will be spending most of her time at "New Hope Uganda" (click the link to learn more: http://newhopeuganda.org/). Below is a short video to help you learn more about the place she will be going! She will be travelling with her cousin Marcy, friend named Mallari and Mallari's mom Noreen. We pray that this will be a time of growth, service and learning. God is good!

 God continues to give us many opportunities to share what He is doing through our adoption story. We've been able to talk with a number of people about adoption and also about our adoption into God's family through Jesus. So that's really cool! God's still not done with us yet, it looks like!

Thank you for your continued support and prayers! We greatly appreciate it! 

Love,

the Svalesons

Encouragement in the Christmas Season

Hey all!

We have some exciting news! We moved up to number 27 on the waiting list! :) It may not seem like a big jump, but hey, we're moving on up, by God's grace!

God has cheered our hearts and encouraged us. He has solidified over and again his calling for us to go get our child in Uganda. For that, we are so very, very thankful. No matter what challenges arise, no matter how often we lose heart, no matter how confused we may become, God never changes and he is faithful and encouraging. For him and to him we are most thankful. God continues to encourage us through his word, through prayer, through song, and through others (many of you!).

Let us say again and again with true joy, "God is good. There is no one like our God." :)

In the holiday season (I say "holiday season" because there is Christmas [woo!] and New Years in which many people have time off from working in the workplace to enjoy with friends and family), we want to encourage you to pursue the God that pursues and graces you. CHRISTMAS, oh what a reason to celebrate! The Word became flesh; Jesus was born! Emmanuel! Savior! Lord! LORD! King! He who came to bear our sin and to bring us into relationship with the Father, a RESTORED relationship with the triune God, is whom we celebrate, praise, and worship this season! It can be a time that brings up sorrow for various reasons. And the sorrows are legitimate and should not be neglected nor minimized. God's heart breaks with us in our sorrows; yet, God loves the opportunities that come in our sorrows. He loves to comfort and encourage us. He loves to be our provider. He loves to be generous to us. He loves to care for us. He loves to love us and show us who is is. So in this holiday season, celebrate God more than circumstance. He has given us the most wonderful reason to celebrate......himself! :)

In our last blog we mentioned that we are working on a project that we hope will let you in on some of how God is encouraging and strengthening us, and hopefully as something God uses to encourage and strengthen you in life. That project should be completed this month (December). We were planning on waiting to tell everyone what the project is until it was completed, but we think God may encourage you through knowing what it is. So, for all of you that might be wondering what it is (which may be none of you), here you go...........
We are making an album of songs we have recorded that we have sung to the Lord out of heartache and joy. We are leaving much of the "rawness" to songs because we want them to be accurate representations of us worshiping our holy God. So, you will hear wrong notes, maybe hoarse voices, possibly tears or sniffles, exuberant joy, some "unprofessional" instrument playing; but you will hear (and hopefully are invited in to) worship. We hope it will be something God uses to encourage you in Christ.

We do want to give a quick shout out of thanks to Bryce Neimiller and Elevate Rock School for allowing us to record, to Josh Barber in Kansas City for mixing the songs for us, and to some anonymous donors that wanted to add something special to the adoption journey.

We pray that God will strengthen you with the fullness of Christ. :)

The Svalesons

Waiting List!!!

Hello family and friends!
Picking up where we left off (3 months ago), which is us sending our approved homestudy to the government to be approved to bring an immigrant into the U.S...WE'RE APPROVED! We found out we were approved by USCIS (United States Citizen and Immigration Services) on Monday, October 1, 2012. We were BEAMING!!!! (and still are)

Now that we've been approved, we are on the Lifeline Children Services (Our agency in Alabama) waiting list! AAAAAAND, we've already moved up 2 SPACES since Monday....from 31st on the list to 29th on the list! Before you know it...............probably 12 months..........and WE'LL BE MATCHED!!! :) We joke about it, but seriously, sometimes, it's tough...so you know, on average, it takes about 12 months to be matched with a child.

Which brings us to some other potentially exciting news. We are working on a project that will give you all the opportunity to see a little bit of how God sustains us and pulls us out of the depths of despair. And hopefully, it will be an encouragement for others who are in trying times.

And because people keep asking, and it's good to note, we are almost half way to our financial goal!!! Praise God for that! That's really exciting! We still have about $15,000 or $16,000 left to acquire, BUT we are well on our way! What we've been told, is to try to get the financial things all taken care of before being referred/matched with a child. So, we would like to raise this within the next year. If you have any ideas, we would GLADLY like to hear them. Ideas for fundraising, simply working for extra money, ways to get grants or gifts would be greatly appreciated. You can get a hold of either one of us, or comment on the blog.

Even though times will probably continue to get even harder, God is so good and faithful. Please continue to pray for us to be patient, and to be transformed into his likeness through this journey. All glory is HIS. That's a huge reason why we're adopting; so help us keep that in the forefront of our minds.

Love,
The Svalesons

Homestudy Approved!

Hello everyone!

We thought we would update you! We have exciting news, but let us tell you the story of how we got to the exciting news!

As of May 21st, Atonement was no longer our church home. Josh no longer works there, but Marissa is still the secretary there. We now worship with River City Church, and are hoping to plant a new church someday (In the next few years). We are learning from River City how they planted their church. So, as you can imagine, life is VERY different. Josh works at a temporary part-time job as a home inspector for Blake Strehlow Property Management (Cass County Housing Authority).

We were waiting for Josh to get a full-time job to complete our homestudy. Our agencies (case-workers) need to know pretty much everything about our lives; so when things change, especially a job change, they need to know, which requires paperwork to change. An amendment needs to be added when there is a change, such as a job change, once the homestudy is completed. These normally cost a few hundred dollars. We wanted to avoid that fee and wasting money; so we decided to wait. We had been waiting for MONTHS. It was hard.

In talking with Lifeline (our international agency in Alabama) they mentioned that the fees for an amendment come from local agencies. So, we asked our case worker at The Village what the fee would be, and she said that it costs NOTHING! Had we known that MANY months ago...our process would be further along....BUT God has a plan, and His timing is perfect. So, we proceeded in finishing all of the paperwork for our homestudy! 

So, last Friday, June 29th, we went to the Village for a meeting with our Case Worker (to tie up loose ends). We were excited to finalize our homestudy...BUT we found out that their license was up June 30th....to remind you, this was a Friday, which means they had only one day to get it all done before the license expired. Changes needed to be done to the homestudy, signatures needed to be added and it needed to be notarized. They said it could be weeks before the license would be renewed. Marissa was very sad in hearing that, and was hoping they could get it signed before the license expired! Patience was being tested. 

Well, a good chunk of Friday went by, and we still heard nothing....so we assumed they didn't get our homestudy signed. THEN, we got a phone call from our NEW caseworker at Lifeline, and she said she got an email saying our homestudy was FINALIZED! We were so excited that God answered our prayers! But, we still didn't officially hear it from our caseworker here in Fargo. So, we waited to make it public. The weekend went by, and we found out on Monday, July 2nd, that they DID finalize it, and that it would be sent in the mail that day! 

So yesterday, July 3rd, we received our homestudy AND sent it out to immigration! It should be in the government's hands on Friday at 10:30 am! 

Now, we wait. The immigration process should take 2-4 months, then we get to be on the waiting list for a child! 

In the meantime, we get to apply for grants. Woo!

Please keep us in your prayers as we continue through this journey. We know God has a perfect plan that is in His perfect timing. It is hard at times to wait, but it is so sweet to be able to cling to Jesus and know that He is in control.

Thanks for your prayers and support. We really appreciate it.

Love,

Josh, Marissa & Lily Svaleson

Treasures Among the "Rough"

Hello everyone!
     It's Marissa! So sorry that it has been so long since we have posted a blog! We hope to blog more frequently to keep everyone more updated.
     I first would like to start off by saying, God is good, and God is faithful. I know that we say that a lot, but it is SO TRUE, and we can't deny it.
     A lot has happened since we last blogged. God has been doing mighty works in our lives. I wanted to blog today to tell you a little bit about what God has been doing in my life lately. I am sorry it is so long, but I promise it will not be a waste of time!
     First, I changed the look of our blog this morning. I was in the mood for something fresh, and new, because I feel like God has brought (and is continuing to bring me) into a new way of life. I looked and looked for a new background for our blog, and couldn't find anything. Then, I stumbled across the background you now see. It looked a little busy and crazy, but it caught my eye. I thought, "this is perfect!", and I will tell you why. It's hard to see, but if you look beyond the beautiful jewels, you see what looks like a white, dried, cracked surface. This is what it looks like before I placed it on our blog:

     Isn't it beautiful? I wish it would show this whole image on our blog. What drew me to this image is that despite all the cracked, dried, peeling surface, there is something beautiful. This is EXACTLY the journey that has brought me to the place I am in right now.
     Let me tell you all about this journey. The last few months have been very difficult for me. A time of deep sadness and confusion. I was in a place where I wanted a child so bad, I could barely stand it anymore. I was sad almost all the time. I was/am constantly surrounded by people who have children, which made/makes my desire to be a mom that much more passionate. I couldn't understand why we had to go through so much work to adopt a child. Why we had to do all this training and paperwork, to just love a child that is in need, and to love a child that God has called us to love. I was wanting so bad to experience what it would be & feel like to be pregnant. I wanted to know and feel that God was creating LIFE inside of me. I was confused...I was at the point where I didn't care how a child came to us...I just wanted a child. I couldn't understand why God was withholding something from me that I wanted so bad. I asked him, "What am I doing wrong? Is there something I need to do before you make Josh and I parents? What are you waiting for? Is there a lesson you are trying to teach me that I'm not catching on to?" etc...the questions went on and on.
     I reached out to people, I was "seeking" God, but nothing seemed to satisfy me. I felt really stuck, and didn't know if I would ever come out. My life seemed like the white, cracked, dry, peeling surface that you see before you. There seemed to be NOTHING good or beautiful about the life I had. But then, things started to shift just a little bit. There was one time I met with a friend at Teaberry! She told me something that I believe was straight from the heart and mouth of God. She said, "Marissa, God is the BEST at giving gifts, and knows the PERFECT time to give them. It's worth the wait." That was the first "jewel" that appeared to be in my dry, peeling, cracked life. Something I could hold on to. The promise that God knows what he's doing :)

 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." James 1:17 (NIV)

     After that moment, I had a roller coaster of a life. I would be happy in the life God had me, and then I would be sad, and felt stuck...but not as stuck as I was before, because of that one "treasure" of advice. God kept placing beautiful people in my life who encouraged me, and reassured me that everything was ok, and is in God's timing. People who truly were there for me, and truly empathized with me. What a blessing that was. The jewels continued to multiply. God continued to speak to me through his word. And then something so magnificent happened. You see, I was "seeking" God, but not in the way I should. I was seeking him, but was also frustrated with him, and mad at him (which is ok, because God can handle my emotions) BUT it was like I was telling God that I wasn't going to be happy until he granted me my wish; until he gave me what I wanted...because we all know that "I know what's best for me" (hint of sarcasm).

    

     I was crying to my husband one evening, because I had a rough day of struggling with these issues. I felt bad for him, because I felt like a broken record....I felt like someone who just couldn't move on. I felt embarrassed and ashamed that I wasn't seeking God the way I thought I should. My husband is so gracious, patient, loving and encouraging. He really told me what I and we needed to hear. I thought all this time that I was struggling with this issue by myself. I didn't think he struggled with it all. And then he told me that he also struggled with wanting to be a dad, and the wait that we have to endure. BUT here is the thing that has changed my life. I have heard it many times, but it really seemed to hit home this time. Josh told me that we needed to have joy. I at first was not very happy, because I didn't feel like being joyful. But, he was absolutely right. I read this quote once, "Joy is not the absence of troubles but the presence of Christ." That is SO TRUE. God did not promise us that our lives were going to be easy and without trials and suffering. But he did promise that He will never leave us, and that he knows what's best for our lives. HE is in control.

     I love my husband so much, and I thank him for telling me truths of God. What a blessing He is. Ever since that moment, even though I didn't feel like it, I told God that I was choosing to have joy, no matter what happens in life...I wanted to choose to have joy, that's all I could do. I decided that God's plan really is what is best for our lives. God is worth it...God is worth going through the suffering and trials. He endured the most painful thing anyone could ever endure. He suffered physical pain on the cross, but also suffered the heavy weight of all of our sins on the cross. And for that I am overwhelmed, and so thankful. Which makes me want to submit my life to him, and "Raise my white flag" as Chris Tomlin has sung in his newest song. I surrender to you Jesus...because that is the ONLY way to do this thing we call life. 

     I am so thankful that God is bringing us through this journey of adoption. I truly am HAPPY, and have JOY. I am happy with where we are in life right now, and am happy with waiting, because I know that it is worth the wait for whatever God has in store. I know we have a long way to go, and I am sure there is going to be many many more trials and suffering, but now I have so many more treasures of God to hold on to and to see. I can see the work he is doing in our lives, and I can read and see his promises in His word that are sweeter than honey, and are the most satisfying thing EVER. All the glory and honor goes to Him. I am nothing without Him, and I wouldn't be where I am in life today without Him. He is everything, and without Him I am nothing. Thank you to all of you who were there for me in those times I needed you the most, and for the encouragement that you shared. You were truly the hands and feet of Jesus in those times. I am sure I will be needing you again! lol 

     I am sure you are also wondering where we are at in the adoption process. We are still doing paperwork, but we see the end in sight! We have a little bit more of online training to do, half a book to read, and some joint paperwork and observations of our community/neighborhood to do, and then we will be done! (I hope) Our goal to have all of this paperwork done is the end of May! And then it will go through Immigration (which on average will take 3-4 months), and then we start waiting for a referral of a child! We still have about $16,000.00-$17,000.00 to raise. Please pray for God's will to be done in our lives. We know he will provide in His good time. God is good...all the time.

Love,

Marissa

We're Comin Along!

Since the last time we blogged, it feels like a lot has happened, when in all actuality, not much has happened in terms of the actual adoption process.

We received our paperwork for the Lifeline (our agency in Alabama that works directly with Uganda) homestudy. It's A LOT! When we first got it, it didn't seem like too much, because we thought we weren't going to have to do all of it since we already did a lot of the same things for our other homestudy at the Village here in Fargo. Then we got the news that we have to do all of the paperwork Lifeline sent us. There is A LOT! In all honesty, we became overwhelmed, and disheartened. And so, we took a break from doing paperwork.

Recently, in the last week or two, God has given us new gumption. Marissa struggled with being content in where God had her in life. She didn't want to wait for a long time to receive a child. She felt like she was scrambling to find the fastest way to get a child. She was then, by the grace of God, given advice from a friend who said, "Marissa, God knows how to give the PERFECT gift at the PERFECT time. He is good at that!" And that is something that she was able to hold on to and remember. Then, she came across a picture that touched her heart....a picture that was taken when she was in Africa in 2006.

This is Marissa's hand....it reminded her of why God wanted her and Josh to adopt...it reminded her of the lives over there that need help, and reminded her that somewhere over in Uganda their child is waiting for them, and they need to do whatever it takes to get to him or her, because God would and does whatever he can to get to us. Marissa is very thankful that God reminded her of this!

So now, we are working on our training for our homestudy. It involves a 10 hour online course for each of us about adopting from a "Hague country" which is a country that signed an agreement that gives rules for adoption (that's a BIG summary). Our goal is to get the online training done by March 14th (Dad, Grandma and Uncle Jerrys birthday! That will be a day of CELEBRATION!!). In addition to the online course, we have to read a book together, finish other paperwork, visit local events and observe the ethnic make up of the events, and interact with children the same age and race as our prospective child. So, there is still a lot left to do, but it's coming along!

We are pleased to say that we are up over $10,000.00 for adoption! To be exact, we are at $10,283.86! Praise the Lord for his faithfulness and provision! And thank YOU for your prayers and support!

We will continue to keep you posted!

Love,
Josh & Marissa Svaleson!

Which Way To Go?

Today was the end of the beginning of a really loooooong journey! It ends with figuring out where we are going to be adopting from, Lord willing!

Previously, we had thought that we would probably be adopting from Ethiopia. Obstacles arouse, and so we started to wonder if that was really where our child(ren) are coming from. So, we started looking into domestic adoption. One thing to note is that we did not see obstacles, necessarily, as something saying, "no, don't go!" but rather as something the Lord could simply overcome for us. With that, it lead us to implore the Lord about whether that was really where we were supposed to go. And so began a very interesting journey filled with lots of unknowns.

Ethiopia has virtually ceased adopting out children under the age of 3. And adoptions have slowed A LOT for children 3 and older as well. This is due to a lot of conflicts in Ethiopia currently. And our age range that we believe God has told us to pursue would be UNDER the age of 3. And so, as you can see, the situation in Ethiopia presents a problem OR an opportunity.

And so we looked at adopting African/American babies. We found an agency that we could use, and things looked like they would "fit" our life situation. This possibility was also rather exciting.

On Monday, January 9th, 2012, Marissa had her individual interview for our home study, and through that we began to see the urgency of knowing where it is our child(ren) are going to be coming from. And so began a rather intense time of prayer. We implored the Lord for two days of this intense time of prayer. We sought after the Lord, in particular seeking out an answer to our question of where our child(ren) would be coming from. Isn't funny how the Lord works? :) Through things that were seemingly unrelated to our question, God changed us in the way we were thinking to get us ready, and to test our faith for the answer he was about to give.

A major verse that fueled this change was Hosea 6:3 (NLT) "Oh, that we might know the LORD! Let us press on to know him. He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn, or the coming of rains in early spring." It says press on to know the Lord. PRESS ON to know the Lord! THAT was the purpose of this intense time of prayer. And so, though we continued to ask our question, we realized that the point was to press into the Lord, to know him, to seek him. You see, when we seek the Lord, we find his will. When we seek the Lord, he reveals to us who we are. The point of life is to seek the Lord.

In our family, the man is the head of the house hold, meaning all the decisions finally go through him. And so, with this as our reality, we knew that the Lord would confirm, through Josh, whatever decision would need to be made. With this in mind, this morning, Josh prayed that the Lord would reveal the place to Marissa, and that when Marissa would tell Josh the idea, Josh would whole heartedly agree. Thus, the revelation came through Marissa, and was confirmed by Josh.

This is what Marissa heard from God. She was prompted (by a friend) to look at a blog of a couple who had adopted from Uganda. After checking out this blog, she decided to look at possible agencies that worked with Uganda. She found an agency in which Josh and Marissa met all of the requirements! That was so exciting! She tried not to get too excited, but started thinking that this is possibly where God wanted us to adopt! While thinking about possibly adopting from Uganda, Marissa decided to read the Bible, hoping that the Word of God would help make this possibility clear to her. She came across these verses:

Psalm 29:1-5, 7-11

Honor the LORD, you heavenly beings;
      honor the LORD for his glory and strength.
 Honor the LORD for the glory of his name.
      Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.

 The voice of the LORD echoes above the sea.
      The God of glory thunders.
      The LORD thunders over the mighty sea.
 The voice of the LORD is powerful;
      the voice of the LORD is majestic.
 The voice of the LORD splits the mighty cedars;
      the LORD shatters the cedars of Lebanon.

The voice of the LORD strikes
      with bolts of lightning. 

The voice of the LORD makes the barren wilderness quake;
      the LORD shakes the wilderness of Kadesh.
The voice of the LORD twists mighty oaks
      and strips the forests bare.
   In his Temple everyone shouts, “Glory!”

The LORD rules over the floodwaters. 

      The LORD reigns as king forever.
The LORD gives his people strength.
      The LORD blesses them with peace.

 Marissa thought, "I think God might be trying to tell me to listen to his voice, because it is powerful." After prayer, she was moved, and started crying and felt a peace she has never felt before. She thought, "This has to be where God wants us to adopt!" She was so excited that this is possibly where God wanted them to go! She told the whole story to Josh, and he got excited, for he had prayed for this to happen (that Marissa would get the revelation from God, and that she would end up telling him about it!) Josh prayed about it, and confirmed that this where He feels God leading us to adopt! The smiles on our faces were HUGE! It feels so good to know we are following God's plan in where he wants us to adopt from! So, Marissa called the agency we will be using, and told them we were going to go forward with Uganda!


The answer of Uganda is so funny. When we first got the call from the Lord that we are going to be adopting (in March of 2010), Uganda was where Josh really wanted to adopt from. It holds a special place in his heart for some reason. So, we looked into adopting from Uganda and found nothing that would work, very few agencies with programs and most of them were pilot programs that we were ineligible for. So, we stopped looking. And now here we are, almost 2 years later, after looking at so many other places and nearly completely forgetting about Uganda for adoption, God has brought it back. :) My friends, when we seek God, He changes our desires. And then, He gives us the desires of our hearts. Josh's desire was to adopt from Uganda. After disappointment and struggles for 22 months, it is good to know that God placed that desire there. :)


We now (while working on our homestudy at the Village) need to fill out applications for this networking agency, and fill out more paperwork, and do some trainings. We are excited to get going on this! God is moving, and it's so exciting! 


We still have a long journey ahead of us, and possibly a long wait. But we have to remember that we are on God's time. So he can make it go as long or as short as he wants! We are willing to follow him! We thank you for your prayers and support, and ask that you pray for us, as we move forward in this exciting adventure to Uganda! Pray for the child(ren) that God has for us there, and pray that we follow his plan! 


We love you all,
In Christ's love,
the Svaleson's

God is still moving!

Hey everyone! I just wanted to update you all! I wanted to say that God is still active in this process! The Forum (Fargo-Moorhead newspaper) contacted us, and wanted to do a story on our adoption journey! Oddly enough, the wonderful lady who interviewed us went to highschool with me! She is a year younger than me, and did a WONDERFUL job interviewing us! She is kind hearted, and very caring!

I just wanted to share the link with you all to check out the story she did! Thank you to God for still moving in our lives. We trust YOU with our lives, and everything in it!

http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/345266/

Last of all, thank you to all of you for your continued support and prayers! It means so much to our family!
Love you all!

In Christ's love,
Josh & Marissa

T-shirt Update!! Please Check this Out! It's important!

We have a t-shirt update for you! There have been some difficult challenges with t-shirt orders! I will not make you read the whole story (if you want to know it just let me know! lol) We have run into some issues, but it's not as bad as I thought it was going to be, thanks to a good friend! 

Here are the changes: 1. We are so sorry, but because of the changes, we will not be able to have them for you before Christmas. Last I heard, the latest they SHOULD be here is December 30th....BUUUUUT I am not going to say that for sure! We will email you again once they finally get in! 2. There had to be a slight change to the "flower" shirt. We can no longer have multiple color inks on the shirt. We had to change the design to all black ink. So instead of the flower petals being orange, and red, they will just be black. I'm so sorry for that change! If you do not want to purchase this t-shirt anymore just let me know, and we will refund you! I will be receiving proofs of the flower shirt once they have changed the ink color, and I will forward that on to all of you, so you can see what it will look like!

Those are the only changes. Please do not hesitate to ask questions if you have them! Marissa's cell number is: 701-388-1726, and Josh's number is 701-361-5136. 

Enjoy your day thoroughly!  And thank you for all of your support! We love you all!

In, for, and with Christ,

the Svaleson's

Svaleson Adoption Update!

Hello everyone!
It's been a while :)

So here's what's new! First, we have both completed our autobiographies!! (17 pages each!) Let us tell you, it was a JOYOUS day in our household!!!! Words cannot describe! Thank you God! We are now just finishing up the rest of our paperwork, hopefully this upcoming week. That means we will be able to "officially" start our home-study in just a few weeks. It's very exciting for us!

Here is an update on the "Clothe Yourself With Compassion" campaign. We sold 54 shirts which is awesome! Thank you everyone for supporting our adoption! We will keep you updated as far as when pick up will be (for those of you who live in the Fargo-Moorhead area). We are hoping they will be done the week before Christmas....it might be the week of Christmas, but we will keep you updated once we find out more information! It looks like we may have extra t-shirts available once we finally get them. We will let you know what shirts, sizes, and colors if and when we get them!

We also had something very exciting and UNEXPECTED happen! The local FOX news station asked to do a story on our adoption journey. They came over to our place and interviewed us regarding why, where, how and what we are doing! It was lots of fun! And, they did a great job on the story! They didn't take anything out of context which was really nice! :) So thank you, FOX news, and in particular, Candace! If you missed it, you can view it at this link!: http://youtu.be/2sbNQSPAVYI

Here is an update on the "Adoption for a dollar" campaign! Currently, God has provided for us $5,265.33 through people!!!! We are between 1/5 and 1/6 of the way there! WOOHOO!!! God is good! We have also, due to requests, begun setting up a bank account that people can deposit directly into, instead of directly mailing us the money (if they want to do that). It is still getting set up, so we will let you know when that account is ready, and how to deposit into that account.

We have a prayer request for you all. Please pray for the adoption situation in Ethiopia. Things are a lot more difficult than it has been in the past. Younger children are very rare to adopt now, and the placements take a lot longer than they used to. Things are very uncertain at this time in regards to adoptions out of Ethiopia. Please pray for our nerves, for God's hand to move in Ethiopia and/or that He would bring clarity to where we are to adopt if Ethiopia is out of the question.

Thank you for being supportive and invested in our family! God's blessing us richly through you. It is quite fun to be a recipient of so much grace and love. :)

Love,
the Svalesons

Some Updates!

Hello everyone! We just wanted to update you on some information! WE ARE EXTENDING THE T-SHIRT SALES TO NOVEMBER 27TH!!! We will be cashing checks shortly after the closing day, which is November 27th. We wanted to let you know that so you could plan ahead! Also, if you plan on writing a check, you can write it out to Josh & Marissa Svaleson. One more thing....you do not have to pay taxes on the shirts!! woohoo!!!

Also, God's story of adoption was covered by FOX news, and will be on THIS FRIDAY (November 18th) at 9:00 p.m.! God is good!

On a totally different note, God deposited $3,000.00 in our adoption account at the Village on November 7th through an anonymous person! This takes care of our HOMESTUDY! Which is the amount of money we were trying to raise for our "next step" in adoption!

God is good all the time, and provides for HIS children! Thank you all for you support, and THANK YOU GOD for providing for our every need, on your timing! :) We love you!

Love,
the Svaleson's

Clothe Yourself With Compassion...

In John 15, Jesus beautifully explains to his disciples about the love he has and what life in him looks like. In verse 12 he says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” That’s a BIG statement. And it gets even BIGGER. Verse 13 “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.”

And so, Christ laid down his life for us, to demonstrate his own love (Romans 5:8) He demonstrated it through 1. Purchasing us to be brothers and sisters. We have been adopted by the blood of Jesus Christ. And so in Christ’s love, he has compassion. He feels for us, and he acts for us. 2. Jesus also demonstrates his love by simply helping others out, especially in times of need. For instance: he heals the sick, and feeds the hungry.

In light of the command to love one another as Christ has loved us, we are demonstrating the love of Christ by bringing a child(ren) into our family as Christ has brought us into His. It is important to note that God adopted us, because he loved us. In the same way, we have already developed a love for the children that God will be bringing into our family, though we have no idea who they are.  And so in that love, we are “laying down our life” , in a sense, in order to bring these children home.

So as we love because of, through, for, and with the love of Christ and have compassion, we are asking others to love as Christ has loved. We are asking for compassion upon children w/o homes, as well as the families that are giving these children their homes. And so “Clothe Yourself With Compassion” has been set up for you to do just that, to “lay down your life” just a little bit, with the love of Christ.

“Clothe Yourself With Compassion” is an opportunity to buy t-shirts that raise awareness and shine the light of the gospel. The t-shirts are designed to show God’s heart for orphans and widows, as well as His chosen people. Being that they share God’s heart, it is in fact the gospel message being portrayed. In addition to raising awareness, the love of the gospel is being displayed by helping us with bringing the child home; to bring them into our family, and to display the love of God-which is the gospel being lived out. We will be taking orders until November 21^st, so that we can get the shirts before Christmas! If there is enough interest after the closing date, we will eventually submit another order. If you have any questions, please feel free to let us know at svalesonadoption@gmail.com

So, if you would like to demonstrate the love of Christ in this way (this is obviously not the only way to love as Christ has loved), please click on the following link  t-shirt order form to download an order form.

The real point in what Jesus is talking about is for us to love with our entire being as he has loved, and with his love. Whether it’s partaking in this particular opportunity, or not, all we really want to see happen is for God’s name to be lifted high, so that His love is demonstrated and proclaimed by His people.

We want to give a BIIIIIIIIG thank you to Kayla Goebel who designed the t-shirts, made the order forms, and helped pull this whole thing together! God has blessed you with an amazing gift, and you are investing it well in God’s kingdom, just as he desires! So…. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In, for, through and with Christ’s love,

Josh and Marissa Svaleson

The First(ish) Part Of The Plan...

God is unveiling His plan for us to adopt our child(ren).

In June, when we started the adoption process, we found out that there would be a workshop that was offered in October, that would be needed to complete the Assessment (home study) that wouldn't be offered again until February of 2012. Two weeks prior to the workshop we got our official invitation, and were talking about whether or not we should go. We had planned to wait until February because of financial reasons. It was $300.00 to attend. BUT....then, God brought something to our attention. He reminded us that at that point in time, he had provided us with about $350.00 (ish) through our "Adopting for a dollar" event. We then realized that God had given us enough money to attend the workshop!

We were thinking about waiting until more money comes in, before we spend money we have, so that we could make sure we would have enough to continue the process. However, God said, "I'm providing for you now, and I will continue to provide for you as we go along. Just trust me." So, we went!

Outside of simply being a requirement, the workshop was VERY helpful. Our eyes were opened to a lot of new things. We saw that the main purpose of this process is NOT about us, and our selfish desires, but about what is best for the child(ren) that God will be bringing into our lives. This seems like common sense, but we were really challenged to truly evaluate why we want to adopt. We realized that we want to adopt to fulfill the wants that we have to be parents, and also to give a kid the best life possible, and show them the love of God. God brought to the forefront of our minds what is at the core of adoption, and parenting in general. And that is that it's ALL about the children.

We learned that it's important for us, as adoptive parents, to make memories for the child(ren) we bring home, while we are in the country. For example, learning about their culture, the environment they have (so far) been brought up in, their rituals, their routines, who was caring for them etc. are important. This gives the child(ren) a sense of identity.

Other things that we found to be important are: taking time while we are there to be with our child in their native country. Doing things in the city, or wherever it is they are from. Doing their normal cultural activities, and taking pictures (if possible), which gives them documentation, and concrete things to hold on to, about the beginning of their life.

Overall, it was really refreshing and helpful to see & learn from all the different angles of adoption.

If you have questions or want to know more about our past couple days at this workshop, let us know!

God is good. He cares for His children. He leads us beside still waters, and makes us to lie down in green pastures. He is generous, gracious, powerful and sovereign. He has provided for us in time of need through people. And so we thank God for using you, and we thank you for being obedient. God is good.

Love,
The Svaleson's

What God has been teaching...

Hello everyone! I know it hasn't been that long since I first blogged, but I just felt like sharing some things with you all! I wanted to clue you in to what God has been doing through "Adopting for a dollar." He has been doing GREAT things, and continues to show up when we least expect it...especially on the days that I doubt. When you look at the amount of $25,000-$30,000 to adopt a child...I get overwhelmed! I think thoughts such as, "We are NEVER going to raise this much money" or "I don't know how God's going to pull this one off...." etc...I have more of those days then I do positive ones. I know that God provides, but I (and God) have been examining my heart, and he has shown me that I haven't been FULLY trusting God. Nothing is impossible with God. (Matthew 19:26-Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.-NIV) God was showing me, and saying to me, "Yes Marissa, when you try to raise money on your own, and do things on your own, it is impossible to raise the amount you need...but you have to have faith and trust, and KNOW that with me (God) all things are possible!" I praise you God for showing this to me.

Our God is so faithful, and provides for us. And for that I (and I know Josh is too) am VERY grateful. I just want to share with you something that God has been showing Josh and myself. He is showing his generosity through people here on earth. People, and their generosity have been BLOWING us out of the water! Our "adopting for a dollar" fund is now up to $541.30!! We were NOT expecting this at all. Man, did we put God in a box. The support from people has been so GREAT, and it gives us so much encouragement. We are so thankful for support from our friends and family. We have been getting letters/money from people in California, Minnesota....people that WE DON'T KNOW....but God knows them, and has blessed us by putting them in our lives, and in our story...which is GOD'S story.

I just want to end with these verses that applies to our family's situation right now in life, but I know that it applies to EVERYONE'S life and story.

Matthew 6:33 - But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

Seek FIRST His kingdom...and these "things" (anything you ask for within the Father's will) will be given to you.
Thank you all SO MUCH for everything, and thank you to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, whom without Him, we would have nothing, and would be nowhere. We love you, and worship you, and glorify you Lord Jesus!

Love,
The Svaleson's