Prayers for Emmie Day 11 & Day 12

Today (and yesterday....forgot to post :) we ask that you pray for my parents and Zack's parents, as they will be the primary care providers for Caleb and Noah while we are gone. We are so thankful for their willingness to care for our boys in our absence!

 Please pray that they have lots of energy and stamina to care for our energetic boys :) Pray also for wisdom and patience for them. We are so blessed with wonderful parents, and the boys are amazingly blessed with caring grandparents. Hopefully they won't have to see too many of these faces from Caleb and Noah while we are gone, and not too many from Emmie once she is home :)


I thank my God every time I remember you.
Philippians 1:3

Prayers for Emmie- Day 10

Today we ask that you pray for our time with Emmie while we are in China. As it will only be the three of us for almost two weeks, please pray that this will be a sweet time of bonding and getting to know one another, so that when we return home, Emmie will feel secure enough for us to also give the boys the attention they need.

Ephesians 4:2-6
  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.

Prayers for Emmie- Day 9- TWO WEEKS UNTIL TRAVEL!!!

Today marks two weeks until we leave for China! We are getting closer, but Zack and I both agreed this morning that the time seems to be creeping by....maybe because we are so anxious to meet our sweet Emmie Grace!!

As we think about travel, we would ask for your prayers for safe travel, both to and from China, and while we are in China. We should be receiving our travel itinerary tomorrow regarding our in-country travel, but we know it will be extensive! We will be flying 3 times just while we are in country! We will fly from Beijing to Emmie's province, Guangxi, then from Guangxi to Guangzhou for our consulate appointment, then back to Beijing to depart for the US. Please pray for the pilots, the aircraft, and for the weather conditions.

Proverbs 18:10 "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe."

Prayers for Emmie- Day 8

The next few days we ask that you pray for the very "basics" for Emmie once she is with our family. Tonight we pray for her sleeping. The reports that we have gotten state that Emmie is generally a good sleeper, but she will be adjusting to a new family, a new home, a new room, a new bed, a new night time routine, and of course a new time zone! Please pray that we will have wisdom as to how best help her with her sleeping habits the first few weeks she is with our family.

I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone Lord, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:8

Prayers for Emmie- Day 7

Today we ask you to pray for the House of Love, the home where Emmie currently resides. We received this very sad message from them yesterday....

To all our faithful donors and supporters,
It is with deep sadness that the Board of Directors of An Orphan’s Wish announces the termination of our work in Guilin, Guangxi, China effective August 31, 2013.

AOW was established 5 years ago to support orphans with special needs.  In fulfillment of that mission, AOW developed a relationship with the House of Love, an established medical and residential care home for special needs orphans in Guilin and agreed to financially support their work.  For the past 5 years, the children residing at the House of Love have been the recipients of our fundraising efforts and the beneficiaries of your generosity.

The Chinese Board and staff in China, which oversee all China operations at the House of Love, informed An Orphans Wish on May 15, 2013, that they had made the very difficult decision to close the House of Love.  The directors of the House of Love believe that changes in the political, social and legal environment in Guilin have made it impossible for them to continue to operate the House of Love as a foreign-run organization with the standard of care and safety that they wish to provide for the children. They felt that they were left with no other option than to terminate the activities at the House of Love in Guilin.  As a result of that termination, AOW's involvement in Guilin will end as well.

The entire team of An Orphan’s Wish is determined to do what is best for the children in these very difficult times, while honoring our obligations to our donors and supporters.
The closing of the House of Love will be a gradual process over the next several months to seek alternative placement solutions for the current children in our care.  This will include foster care arrangements, transfer to other foreign organizations with treatment facilities in China and advocating with the orphanages for the adoption paperwork of all the children who can be eligible for adoption.
During that winding down period, AOW will continue to financially support the children who are still at the House of Love.  We hope that you will continue to support the needs of your sponsored child until he or she can be transitioned in their new situation.  
 
AOW will attempt to maintain many of the volunteer functions provided to our adoptive families, supporters and our donors.  We will continue to share information on all of our children until alternative placements are made for all of our children.  We will maintain our advocacy function to increase our efforts to find families for the children available for adoption. We will also continue to maintain our records so that adoptive families will receive all of the information we have on their child after they return home.

We have loved every minute of our work in Guilin and have loved each and every child who has come to the House of Love. We are so grateful to all of you for changing lives, one child at a time, for the past 5 years.

At this time, the Board of Directors of AOW is exploring other opportunities to continue our mission of helping special needs orphans.  We have been blessed beyond our dreams by a community of people who truly care and who give from their hearts and who have supported us these past 5 years.  We hope and pray that each and every one of you will follow AOW on its continuing journey to serve the orphans.  We will continue to keep you updated as we move into AOW’s next phase and look forward to the hope and possibilities of the future.
Any questions regarding this announcement can be directed to info@anorphanswish.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
Sincerely,

Karen Maunu

Prayers for Emmie- Day 6

Today we pray for Emmie's physical needs- those we know about, and those that we may not know about.

 We know that Emmie has one leg that is shorter than the other leg due to a traumatic injury when she was very, very young. We know she requires an insert in her shoe so that she may walk, run, jump, and be active. We know that with this insert, she is able to be as active as any other child. We also know that some times children come home with physical needs that might have not been identified in the medical reports, for whatever reason. However, we know God knows all of her needs and that we can trust Him!

We have already been in contact with Shriners Hospital in Lexington, KY.  and plan on taking Emmie during the early part of August for an evaluation.

And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:19

Prayers for Emmie- Day 5

Today we ask that you pray for the relationship that will be forged between Emmie, Caleb, and Noah. Though they are super excited "in theory" about Emmie becoming their little sister, you never know what may happen the first few weeks she is at home :)

Please pray that they will understand the extra time and attention that Emmie will need, that they will feel secure in their place in our family, and that Zack and I will be wise in the way we use our time with our children, now more than ever. We have been preparing the boys for quite a while now in regard to the shift in time spent with them that might occur for the first few weeks Emmie is home- we pray it pays off!

Pray also that they will find things they enjoy to do together, that they will have a heart that wants to help Emmie with her transition to our family, and that God will forge a supernatural love and bond between them,  just as he had done with Caleb and Noah.

And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. Colossians 3:14