Walk By Faith

It seems so strange to just now be posting this blog, but things have been extremely busy and exciting the past few weeks. In addition, I now need to be a bit more general in my comments. With that said, I am excited to share that on November 23rd I purchased two airline tickets to Russia! My brother and I leave on December 11th to meet an adorable little girl. So many of you have been so faithful to pray for little Annika for the past three years. We have prayed for her before she was born, before we knew who she was, and we all continue to pray for her safety and journey home. Would you all join me in praying for a few specific things?


*Her health: There a few things on her medical reports that are a bit concerning; however, it is difficult to determine the true scope. Please pray that she is truly a healthy little girl that just needs to be loved.


*Our trip: God has graciously answered many prayers and allowed me to travel before the first of the year. This means my brother Bob can go with me!! We leave on Saturday and will arrive in Russia on Sunday. We will get to see her on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday then return to Kansas City late Thursday night. Please pray for safe travel and a wonderful time visiting Annika.


*Our Health: I have caught something and am a bit under the weather. Please pray that I recover quickly and I healthy for the trip and feel well enough to get everything done for the trip plus at work. Please pray as well that Bob stays healthy.


God has been so gracious during this entire journey. I know that He is in control of every detail of my life as well as little Annika’s . He chose her to be my daughter and for that I am so grateful. I am also grateful that God has shown me a glimpse of those countless details. I love details and I so love an awesome God that knows how to comfort His children. Whenever I have felt anxious or nervous the last few weeks, He has reminded me of the specific details He has revealed.

Sorry for the confusion

Dear friends,

I was recently asked by my agency to update my blog. It is a critical time as far as the process is concerned and there was some information that needed to be changed. My edits resulted in a repost of a previous message.


As an update, please know that the process is moving forward and I hope to have good news to share within just a few days.


Thank you so much for all your prayers for little Annika!

Annika's Guardian

This past weekend, I attended the FBC women’s conference with 108 amazing ladies. As we stood together to worship, I was struck with the amount of life experiences within that room. My roomies are a perfect example of the beautiful women that I am so thankful and honored to call my friends. I have so much to learn from the precious ladies of FBC.

Last night I went to bed a little early attempting to catch up from the lack of sleep from the weekend but instead I ended up reviewing my notes from the retreat. Lately I seem to be looking at everything from the perspective of “Annika’s Mom”. This weekend proved to be no different. There was one verse that I kept going back to that I would like to ask you to join me in covering Annika.

“God’s your guardian, right at your side to protect you. God guards you from every evil, He guards your very life…He guards you now, He guards you always.” Psalms 121:5, 7-8 msg

As I wait to finally hold Annika, I know there is only one that can truly guard and protect her. The accounts of the Russian orphanages seem so dismal, but I believe He will guard her and keep her from harm. I have often prayed that she would somehow feel God’s arms wrapping tightly around her. This is one verse that I plan to pray for Annika throughout her life!

Early Morning Thoughts

It is just after 2 AM and I finally got up after lying in bed stewing. Yes I hate to admit I was getting more and more frustrated as I laid awake thinking. At times I have woken with a strong desire to pray for Annika, but this time I finally decided I also needed to blog.

This week many of you prayed I would finally hear from the agency with the much anticipated news of a referral. Well, it is Friday and still no real news. What I hear is “we will let you know as soon as we know”. I know, this is not what we have all been praying for. Who could have known this journey would take so long!! A few times this week I have wanted to scream “God I know you are in control, but please can you just show me how you are working”. For me struggling through the waiting has not been doubting that God is in control, it is day by day or even moment by moment choosing to resist the urge to grab at that control. If we are truly honest with ourselves we all struggle with this repeatedly throughout our lives.

It is easy to say to someone “God is in control”. Yes He is and those are well meaning words, but through this week God is showing me that people often need more than that. We all need the precious help of family and friends as they encourage, listen and pray for us. I could not have gotten through this much of the journey without the love and support from all of you! Unfortunately this week has not brought answers to when the next leg of the journey will begin, but it has made me more and more thankful for each of you. After all, we are all on some type of journey and without the tender touch from family and friends our steps would be so much more difficult.

Today I write this post early in the morning to update all of you, to release some of my frustration, but most of all to someday let my little girl know how much I truly loved her before I held her in my arms and whispered “I love you sweetheart”.

Scrapbooking Fundraiser

Yesterday a wonderful group of ladies joined me for a day of scrapbooking to help raise money for Annika. After 14 hours of scrapbooking, eating, laughter, a great auction and fun conversation we raised $280!!! A special thanks to sweet friends that donated items for the auction/door prizes and provided two delicious meals. I am once again deeply touched by the amazing generosity of so many dear friends.

Agreement Reached!

Details have not been released, but an agreement has been reached between Russia and the US. The agency is confident this agreement will not result in any major upsets for those adopting through them. In fact, their Russian partner agency is highly respected and accredited. This wonderful news!! Now I am just waiting to get "the call".

Mother's Day in the Hospital

On Thursday Mom had her knee replaced. She really did a great job and is already walking around the hospital floor. Today I brought homemade strawberry short cake and chocolate chip cookies up to her room and shared them with nurses. Bob, Sara and Elli came by as well for a couple of hours. Corey and family called to wish Mom a happy Mother's day and see how she was feeling. She is really doing well and should go home tomorrow. We all had a wonderful day!!

Hundreds Effected by Russian Freeze

With a very heavy heart, I must share with you news that has made national headlines. Today, Russian officials have requested that all adoptions to American families be frozen. This week a mother sent her 7 year old adopted son back to Russia by himself.

As you, I can not fathom how a mother could do such a thing to a child. The Russian officials and people are outraged. Russian officials are calling for a freeze on all American adoptions. This freeze would effect hundreds of American and Russian orphans. You can read more about this sad tragedy on line. www.foxnews.com/world/2010/04/09/russia-urges-adoption-freeze-american-returns-boy/

I plead with you to pray this freeze is quickly lifted and no major restrictions are placed on Americans adopting. I would also greatly appreciate you forwarding this prayer request to all your friends and family. We serve a mighty God and He promises to hear the prayers of His children. The Fox article reminds us that there are 740,000 orphans in Russian and each one of them need a loving family. I believe Annika is one of these sweet children that needs our prayers more than ever.

Thank you so much for all your prayers for Annika, negotiations between Russia and America, the lifting of the freeze, all the orphans and the countless people waiting for their son or daughter to come home.


"Evening and morning and at noon I will pray, and cry aloud, and He shall hear my voice." Psalm 55: 17

Beyond One Little Girl

For the last several months a friend I met last September at our church's Women's retreat and I have been meeting together and dreaming about establishing an adoption ministry at First Baptist Warrensburg. A few weeks ago Merilee and I meet with the pastors at FBC and proposed starting an Adoption/Orphan Ministry. They overwhelmingly supported our ideas and gave us the blessing to proceed with forming this new ministry.

We prayed, promoted and planned for our first meeting for weeks. This past Sunday we had our first meeting. We were so excited to have 12 people attend this meeting!!! Everyone decided to begin meeting once a month. It will be absolutely amazing to see how God works through these individuals.

Passion as well as Patience

For years I feel like God has been asking me to wait and learn patience; however I believe He showed me a whole new perspective today. I am reading "The One Year Book of Inspiration for Girlfriends" during my devotional time. The combination of Ellen Miller's words and her quote from Rick Warren's "The Purpose Driven Life" struck a deep cord.

"The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfullment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It's far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on the planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose."

I often find myself praying for patience as I wait for God to answer all my many prayers. Sure praying for Annika to come home quickly, getting married someday (soon!), the healing of loved ones or even the sale of my house are all requests that should be taken before the Lord. Today I was reminded that life is not about me, my dreams or why God has not given me my hearts desire. I no longer want to focus on being patient as I wait for God to answer my prayers, but have passion for what He is doing in my life right now.

Today I might not be a mom or wife, but I am a daughter, aunt, sister, friend, co-worker, etc. Daily God gives me more opportunities than I will ever realize to pursue His purpose for my life. My desire is t0 humbly lay my hopes and dreams at the feet of my Lord and pursue His purpose for my life with passion. I spent several hours today with my beautiful little neice. It was awesome to know Elli was excited to see me plus there are few words in this world more precious than "I love you Aunt Kirsti". Today I embraced with passion the sweet moments I share with Eilli. Someday God will allow me to pursue new roles, but until then my desire is to not just wait patiently but passionately live the life God has blessed me with.