Why a special needs adoption?

My husband has had a heart to adopt children since shortly after we became christians, because of the understanding that we had been adopted into the family of God, through faith in Christ Jesus... "for as many as receive Him, they shall be called children of God." God impressed on his heart that we should welcome a child with out a family into our home. At that time, I was not ready-- I thought we would one day, but it wasn't on my heart yet. We then had 5 children, going to seminary smack in the middle of them. Over the years God has been opening my heart to adoption as well, through reading His word and coming to know God's love for orphans and His commands to care for them, through messages we've heard, and through families we've read about or known. The "Above Rubies" magazine inspired us, to see families opening their home to children from Liberia and other countries. At first we thought perhaps God would have us welcome a child from another culture, maybe even a hard to place oler child. But our vision changed this past year, when a family we know adopted a special needs boy named Sean.

This little boy is profoundly disabled...I do not remember all the diagnoses, but know he was having frequent seizures and was given a poor prognosis and needed constant care. Our family was amazed as we saw this family take him in and love him for Christ's sake. After several months when we saw them again, we saw the wonderful difference that a home of love was making in this boy's life...as well as in the parents and his brother as they loved him as one precious to God....we saw God's hand in it, and we were touched.

After that, we began thinking about special needs adoption, and looking up information about it. A good friend of ours had relatives that were at that moment overseas adopting 2 little girls with Down Syndrome through a ministry called "Reeces Rainbow." So we looked them up and we were forever changed. When we learned about the great need for adoption of special needs children overseas we were truly grieved--us and our children. We began praying for them, and investigating, and God gave us a desire to help in some way. After much talk, prayer, and asking tons of questions (thanks to Andrea, the founder of Reeces Rainbow!) we decided as a family that God would have us adopt a little boy from Eastern Europe. On this blog we have changed his name to "Sean," which is the name we are leaning toward calling him once home. We had thought of Sean Paul, and then we realized that it had our friend's child's name in it, which then seemed fitting, since he inspired us on this journey.

Please check out Reeces Rainbow at http://www.reecesrainbow.com/ , or you can click on the picture link (once I get it on!). You can view pictures of some of the children, with Down Syndrome and other disabilities as well as learn about ways that you can help these orphans to find homes, from praying for them, to giving money, to having a fundraiser, to telling others about them, or welcoming one into your home.