Operation Sucsessful!

I opened my email this morning and those are the words I read. Then I saw this picture:

Praise the Lord! The boxes made it! That makes it worth it. I now have to fight with Fe*Ex to make them see I don't owe $2400 but I know that will all be ironed out in the wash. I just had to share the news.

Also if you want another reason to Praise your socks off hop on over to Striving for 31 and read my bloggy friend Amber's post and you will be jumping for joy twice as high!!

Thank you God for meeting every need.

I will tell you this much when He shows out like this it really convicts me that we haven't filed our paperwork yet...anyone know what the health rules are like for back issues?

Well that is another post for another time...right now it is 4:17 am, and I woke up and couldn't sleep so I checked my email and well the rest is history!

God Bless!

In Christ Alone,

Sherri

Adoption

I am copying this from another blog....http://theheidaway.blogspot.com/2008/03/reality.html

But it is exactly how I feel about adoption...I know others feel the same!

Imagine a building with many windows and one door. Inside that building are orphans of every race, suffering in every color, pain of every degree. You KNOW what is in there. Now imagine that every day thousands of people walk right past that building. Some are too focused on their own lives to even take a peek in the windows. Some take a peek, can't bear the pain that the sight brings to surface in their own hearts, and then shield their eyes and continue on their way. Some peer inside, shed some tears, and feel a bit of compassion for the ones suffering. Then some, a few, actually step inside the building. They engage with the hurting souls. They look into the eyes of these children and mothers and fathers and see their own. Their own flesh and blood. And then they do something about it. Because, once you have engaged with the suffering, you can't NOT do something. You can't go back to your suburban American capitalistic dream and thank the Good Lord for blessing you with your comforts, food, wealth, and health. You can't do it. You shudder and realize, Woe to me for not seeing this suffering before. For not seeing these souls as my own. For not doing unto others as we would have done unto us. As we would want done unto our own white children.

I pray that God uses that blog to reach so many people that it amazes the author. I know it reached me.

Strike Lord Strike!

Truth is truth, and in the end God, like lightening, is looking for a conduit. ~Unknown


I read that today. I re-read it. I let it sink in and then I came straight here to post.

God is like lightening and he is looking for a conduit...

The definition for conduit is: means by which something is transmitted.

Hmmm so that means God is looking for a means to transmit himself to this world. You know that is exactly what happened with Operation Giggle. I said "God I want to do something awesome for these kids but I can't do it on my own. I don't have enough. Not enough money, not enough knowledge, not enough help, not enough strength, not enough power." It's like He said..."oh you are willing but don't have enough...well guess what...I'M ENOUGH!" That's all it took...I posted a blog and BOOM the lightening of God conducted himself through not only me but all of you and these 130 children were shown love. It's amazing. It's outstanding. It's exceedingly abundantly above all that I could ask or even think...HOW? well, according to the POWER that works in me...(remember I'm not enough so...) that POWER is JESUS CHRIST! *This is Ephesians 3:20 if you didn't know* That POWER is what saved me, it's what has kept me since I was saved at 13 years old it's the POWER I use to get up in the morning and the POWER I use to be a mother, wife, employee, sister, friend, daughter, ect, ect, ect. HIS POWER IS ENOUGH!

So now that we have that settled I feel led to tell you about the next phase of my life that I will have to trust in his POWER to take care of. My husband and I sent in our preliminary adoption application on December 1st. I know that God has led us to this place. I feel his POWER all over me when I look at the faces of those without a home. I know that God has a plan...A GREAT PLAN...full of POWER to get this adoption done. But I don't have a plan. I have no clue how to raise the $25,000-$30,000 that it will take. I have no sewing ability, I can't make bows...I blog, I scrapbook, I teach, I preach, I organize, I work...those are the things I do...so I have no clue how God will turn those things into the money we need but here is the amazing thing...it's not about what I do. It's about what HE does, and HE PROVIDES, HE LOVES, HE CARES, HE IS IN CONTROL, and of course HIS POWER is enough for whatever I go through. So God you are the lightening...we are standing here in the middle of this new place with our arms extended in praise we are just waiting on you to strike. Please pray for our family as we take this journey. God Bless You All!

In Christ Alone,

Sherri

Oh how He loves us!

He is jealous for me

Love's like a hurricane,

I am a tree

Bending beneath the weight of

His wind and mercy

When all of a sudden, I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory

and I realize just how beautiful You are and how great your affections are for me.

Oh, how He loves us so

Oh, how He loves us

How He loves us so.

(x2)

Yeah, He loves us

Oh, how He loves us

Oh, how He loves us

Oh, how He loves.

(x2)

We are His portion and

He is our prize,

Drawn to redemption

by the grace in His eyes

If grace is an ocean, we're all sinking

So heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss and my heart turns

violently inside of my chest

I don't have time to maintain these regrets when I think about the way

He loves us,

Oh, how He loves us

Oh, how He loves us

OH, how He loves

(x2)

Yeah, He loves us

Oh, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves.

Yeah, He loves us

He loves us

He loves us

He loves.

Yeah, He loves us

Whoa, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves

He loves us,

Whoa, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves us

Whoa, how He loves

This is my new favorite song. You can search for it on You Tube. It's great. I love the picture...notice it has 5 trees...

Ok...so I can't add!

Just wanted to update you on the New Day shipping...if you know me outside of the blogging world you know that I am BAD with math. It is a running joke around here...well I just double checked my Excel formulas and it turns out I had added two "cells" in two times each so our actual total is $952.75 and $18.97 of that is Milk Money so we have $933.78 toward shipping. We still need to raise $566.22. If you haven't sent your gift in yet please include a donation to help ship it if at all possible. If you did not sponsor a child but still want to help you may do so by clicking the donate now button on the right side of this blog.

Just in case you haven't looked at the comment posted by a reader (Meliske) below I wanted to repost it here...

Oh my goodness! What a small world this is! This weekend some very close family friends traveled to Ethiopia from Washington with 4 suitcases- 1 suitcase of clothes and 3 suitcases of gifts donated for the children in the orphanage! Brian and Alex, daddy and big brother (9 yrs old) carried the gifts you sent. They were not charged any extra fee, due to what was inside the suitcases, and they arrived in perfect condition. Thank you for your prayers, as they protected some people who are very dear to my heart. Alex and Brian have met their newest addition, a beautiful 21 month old girl, and they will all be returning to Washington this Saturday, where mommy and another big brother and a big sister are waiting.


Praise God for his provision and protection over this family. God is SO good! Pray for this family as they continue their journey home!

I hope that you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!!

In Christ Alone,

Sherri

In Christ Alone

This morning as I get ready to go outside of my comfort zone and go speak on the radio about Operation Giggle I can't help but think about an awesome hymn. In Christ Alone. The first verse says all I need to know. He is my hope, my light, my strength, my song, my cornerstone, my solid ground. No matter what storm I face He has heights of love and depths of peace! The last part says When fears are stilled, when striving cease, My comforter, my all in all, Here in the love of Christ I stand! I am so glad that I have a God who holds me in His hand.

We have had 9 children spoken for as of this moment in the YWAM group. Please continue to forward information to your friends and family, post links on your blog, and most of all pay for provision of our needs.

If anyone that is near TN has access to a 20lb pallet (2 to be exact) we need them! We also still need shipping funds for NEW DAY!

Our God will provide I have no doubt!

I leave you with the lyrics of "In Christ Alone"

God Bless!

In Christ Alone,

Sherri

"In Christ Alone"

In Christ alone my hope is found;

He is my light, my strength, my song;

This cornerstone, this solid ground,

Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.

What heights of love, what depths of peace,

When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!

My comforter, my all in all—

Here in the love of Christ I stand.

In Christ alone, Who took on flesh,

Fullness of God in helpless babe!

This gift of love and righteousness,

Scorned by the ones He came to save.

Till on that cross as Jesus died,

The wrath of God was satisfied;

For ev'ry sin on Him was laid—

Here in the death of Christ I live.

There in the ground His body lay,

Light of the world by darkness slain;

Then bursting forth in glorious day,

Up from the grave He rose again!

And as He stands in victory,

Sin's curse has lost its grip on me;

For I am His and He is mine—

Bought with the precious blood of Christ.

No guilt in life, no fear in death—

This is the pow'r of Christ in me;

From life's first cry to final breath,

Jesus commands my destiny.

No pow'r of hell, no scheme of man,

Can ever pluck me from His hand;

Till He returns or calls me home—

Here in the pow'r of Christ I'll stand.

Words and Music by Keith Getty & Stuart Townend

Copyright © 2001 Kingsway Thankyou Music

Sarah's Hope

I realized that I needed to let everyone know that Operation Giggle is being done as a ministry of Sarah's Hope. Sarah's Hope is a non-profit organization started in April of this year by My father, Jack L. Epperson and I. Sarah's Hope will be a maternity home for unwed mothers over the age of 18 living in Bradley County and the surrounding areas.

Sarah's hope is named after my daughter Sarah. In April of 1999 I found out that I was pregnant with Sarah. I was 18 and unmarried and scared to death. My family rallied around Sarah's dad (Mitchell) and I and we were married and because of the grace of God we made it. Without the network I had as an 18 year old girl I have no clue where Sarah and I would be today. The thoughts of other young mothers struggling alone to bring a child into this world and raise him or her is unbearable. God began to speak to my dad about opening up a home for those girls. He began to have conversations with New Life Pregnancy Center and learned that there was a great need for this ministry. In April we hired a lawyer and began pursuing our Non-Profit status. We are currently saving money so that we can purchase a home to remodel and get ready to house our first 2 or 3 ladies. One of the Pastor's at the church I attended and his wife have raised three children and have agreed to move into the home and be the House Parents.

I am excited at the doors God is opening in my life and I want to serve Him and worship Him in every second of every day. I know that many of you have this same desire! Thank you so much for your support of Sarah's Hope and Operation Giggle.