Adoption Day

For the past six years we have celebrated Adoption Awareness Month at the church I attend, which happens to be Arrow Heights Baptist Church in Broken Arrow, OK :)
We have an awesome Pastor who from the day I came to him with this idea he was all for it.
Our goal was to educate our congregation about adoption. Since that first Sunday in November 6 years ago, I know of 1o families who were lead to adopt. We now have several who are in the process or praying for guidance. We also started a Family Adoptive Group. We are so blessed to have a church that supports adoption, not only

with a hug and donations, but they pray for the families in the process.
So today was very special. Aaron Hamilton and his wife Stephanie and their son Ayan ( cutie pie pictured above) who they adopted from Kazakhstan came to visit. They are former members but they are one of the families who were lead to adopt during one of these celebrations. Anyway, Aaron wrote this beautiful song about their thoughts, prayers and feelings during the adoption wait. He needs to RECORD this song. It was so beautiful.
Then a wonderful young woman named Sarah who I met 2 years ago came to share her story. She had a decision to make when I met her, abortion or adoption. She chose adoption and now shares her story from a birth mothers perspective.
I can not think of one year since we have began celebrating adoption that at least one or more families will call me later and tell me "we have prayed about this and today God confirmed it in our hearts, we are going to adopt." I can't wait to see who calls this year!

Please remember the orphans. I have said this a hundred times and will continue to say it, we are not all called to adopt, but we are all called to help. Some stats for you.

Orphan Statistics
These are not just numbers and statistics, these are LIVES, CHILDREN with little hope! What part will you play in relieving the plight of orphans??!!

Every 15 SECONDS, another child becomes an AIDS orphan in Africa

Every DAY 5,760 more children become orphans

Every YEAR 2,102,400 more children become orphans (in Africa alone)

143,000,0002 orphans in the world today spend an average of 10 years in an orphanage or foster home

Approximately 250,000 children are adopted annually, but…Every YEAR 14,050,000 children still grow up as orphans and AGE OUT of the system

Every DAY 38,493 children AGE OUT.

Every 2.2 SECONDS, another orphan child AGES OUT with no family to belong to and no place to call home

In Ukraine and Russia 10% -15% of children who age out of an orphanage commit suicide before age 18.

60% of the girls are lured into prostitution. 70% of the boys become hardened criminals.

Many of these children accept job offers that ultimately result in their being sold as slaves. Millions of girls are sex slaves today, simply because they were unfortunate enough to grow up as orphans.

Reliable statistics are difficult to find, even the sources often list only estimates, and street children are rarely included. But even if these figures are exaggerated by double, it is still an unacceptable tragedy that over a Million children would still become orphans every year, and every year 7 Million children would still grow to adulthood as orphans with no one to belong to and no place to call home. They are totally vulnerable and easily fall prey to predators and slave recruiters.

According to figures from the United Nations. These statistics include children in the American Foster Care system.

Infants may stay as long as 18 years while children who become orphans at an older age stay a shorter time.

To AGE OUT means to grow to the age where a child is forced to leave the orphanage or foster home with no place to call home.

If only 7% of christians in the world would adopt, there would be no orphans.

So what will you do too change the life of an orphan?