The true Spirit of Christmas

UPDATED: 


One of my incredibly generous friends just blew me away with her generosity and donated the remainder of the adoption agency funds needed. I love you friend.  You are AMAZING!!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!!!  

You can can still donate to help offset medical and travel costs if you wish.

We have some incredible friends and many of them are facing what seems like impossible situations. Each one inspires me in different ways. In fact, I was telling someone about a serious medical issue our family is experiencing yesterday and she commented on how calm and accepting I seemed.  I immediately told her "Well, I am surrounded by brave people doing incredible things and that humbles a person quickly."

One incredibly faithful and brave family we know is really following God's call.  Karen and my husband, Dave have been friends since high school.  They have remained friends for all these years.  She was one of the first people he introduced me to when we first started dating.  And honestly, I was a little intimidated by her back then.  She was a successful, smart and beautiful business woman jet setting around the world.  I was a new professor fresh out of grad school.  Anyway, I have seen Karen transform.  I am no longer intimidated by Karen but I am certainly inspired by her and all that she does.

She is now a believer and married to a wonderful man and she is a mom to 4 almost 5!  She is a step Mom to Doug's older children and she and Doug have adopted Becky and Katie from China.  They are about to take a 3rd trip to China to bring home a VERY special  9 year old girl. Cami was severely burned and then found in the streets of China with no family.  Her burns are so bad that she cannot open and close her mouth to chew properly and the skin under her eyes is tearing.  She is badly disfigured from her burns according to her chart.  She needs immediate surgery.  Most people would be very hesitant to adopt a child with such needs.  But Karen and Doug see beyond the burns and the surgeries that Cami needs.  God specifically showed them Cami and led them to adopt her.  They have a lot on their plates already as their daughter, Katie also has some special needs and many people would walk away.  But they are following the call and bringing Cami home to be a part of their family.  I cannot tell you what an inspiration they are.

{This is Cami.  I cannot wait to see her blossom in their love!}

Karen leaves on Sunday to bring Cami home and they need a little more money to finish the adoption.  They are a little over a thousand dollars short of what they need.  I get 1500 or more hits a day on this blog and I am thinking if y'all gave just a dollar or a few dollars or whatever you can give...YOU could be a part of this miraculous story.  You could help Cami come home to a loving family.  This is what Christmas is really about....giving to others as God gave his only son to us.

You can make a donation by going to their site Casa De Alegria and you will see the donate options on the sidebar OR you can go directly to the agency site to make a tax deductible donation.

Regardless of whether you can help with a donation or not, PLEASE pray for Karen as she makes this journey of a lifetime. Please pray for Cami as she adjusts to a new life and multiple surgeries.  You can only imagine the emotional scars that run even deeper than her physical scars.  Cami's story has taught me that no matter how tough things might seem, there is always hope.  You can follow Cami's story here.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
Philipians 4:13