The Author of the Puzzle

Last November, Stan and I began a great walk of faith, when we made the first contact to find out if Drew's file was still on the shared list. We weren't planning to adopt, and if you've never read that story or if you would enjoy a walk through the memory of God's call, click here.

And, I've mentioned before that our walk on the water has been through some major storms. I'm growing ever more convinced that Satan has planned these many attacks, attacked at the weakest links, with every intent to destroy us and stop Drew and Zeke from joining our families.

In Sunday School, our unit lessons for my 3rd-5th graders are about Joseph. What a testimony his life was to God's completion of his ultimate purpose for a life, despite all adversity. I've really begun to ponder what God's plans are for our boys. A friend recently reminded me that this story is NOT just about adoption, though we know Drew's and Zeke's lives will be forever changed when they come home to their forever family. This story will bring about the salvation of two precious souls, souls who will become a part of a church where their pastor already prays for them diligently, souls who will begin an abundant life brought about by Jesus and begun here on earth.

I've done some studying on faith recently, particularly after attending a funeral of a dear saintly mother who left this earth much sooner than those who loved her ever imagined. As the pastor read through the Hall of Faith, I began to consider....

Consider where we are on our faith journey. By faith, Abraham went out, not knowing where he went, looking for a city whose builder and maker is God. By faith, Moses forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king. By faith, they walked through the Red Sea on dry land. By faith, the walls of Jericho fell down.

By faith, we will bring Drew and Zeke home to our family.

When the Hall of Faith chapter ends, chapter 11 of Hebrews begins, "seeing we are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith...."

I know the writer of Hebrews referred to the great could of witnesses as those who have gone on to be with our LORD, the many saints whose great faith is recorded for us, one in that cloud who just joined heaven last week. Forgive me, though, as I wonder if we couldn't include the great cloud of witnesses who are here on earth. There is such a great cloud of witnesses who have encouraged us on our journey. And, they are all part of the puzzle, part of the cloud of witnesses who are making it possible for Drew and Zeke to come home.

If these words resonate in your heart the emotions and impact that they are having one me, would you consider.....

After much prayer and thought, we are beginning another major fundraiser, a puzzle fundraiser. We believe Jesus is both the author and the finisher of the puzzle, including every piece that will bring our boys home.

The photo above is a 1000 piece puzzle I ordered this weekend. We are asking friends, family, and any who feel called to consider "sponsoring" a piece of the puzzle.

We plan to write the name of sponsors on the back of each piece of the puzzle and work our way toward completing it as a family. As we work toward completing the puzzle, we will be reminded of the GREAT cloud of witnesses joining us on our faith journey. When it is complete, and the boys are older, we can look back at the names of the people the AUTHOR of the puzzle used to write the awesome story of Drew's and Zeke's Forever Family homecoming.

If you'd like to join the cloud of faith witnesses, click on the Donate link on the right. We are suggesting a donation of $10 for each piece. You can sponsor one piece or 10. You may also consider sponsoring pieces in the names of your children or others. If we have all 1,000 pieces sponsored, we will have enough money to pay the required orphanage donation for both boys.

So many of you, probably most of you who visit our blog regularly have already contributed. If you are unable to contribute, you would honor us if you shared our story with others and experienced the joy with us as the cloud of faith witnesses grow. We would love to know that your are sharing our story on your blog, or sending out emails to your friends and family, directing them our website. Help us spread the word and watch the cloud of witnesses continue to grow.

Thank you for being part of our Journey to our Boys~!