Editor's note: Let me introduce you to the Morris family. Lindsey and I had the great joy of traveling together in China last year when she was adopting her first Chinese son and I was adopting my first Chinese daughter. A kindred spirit from the beginning, her earnest love for adoption and God's heart for orphans won me over. We've stayed in close contact over the past year and a half and her family is soon bringing home their third child from China!
With that, I turn things over to my friend, who will tell their story in her own words. -Kelsey
We are the Morris Family!
I am Lindsey. Wife to Ryan, and Mom to seven kiddos under our roof right now, and one daughter still in China. From the beginning of our relationship, Ryan and I talked about adoption. It was a desire that God had given us both… even though we had no idea what it would end up looking like!
God gave us four birth children in five years. Our hands were surely full, but we still had a strong desire to adopt. We didn’t know ‘how’ to adopt. We began praying….putting one foot in front of the other…. Took each step one at a time. We ended up becoming a waiting family with our adoption agency in the fall of 2013 for a domestic adoption. We desired to have an open relationship with the birth mom and birth family. We wanted to be part of love, healing, and redemption in the life of our child’s whole family. Because of that we felt a clear calling to domestic adoption. As we went through the process, we knew God was calling us to be open to whatever child He had for us. We didn’t put any stipulations on what sort of medical needs, family history, etc. that we would accept. We knew that if God had a child for us through adoption, then He had a child for us through adoption!
In May of 2014 we got the call of a lifetime! We had a precious baby boy! He was at a NICU in a city close to us. We were scheduled to meet him the next morning. Our case worker was explaining to us that he was born with severe brain trauma, he was having seizures, and he wasn’t eating by mouth.….But, all I heard was, “you have a new baby boy!’ It was HIM! It was the child we had been praying for! We told our kids and planned to meet our new son! We went to the NICU the next day and we all got to go in and meet him. He. Was. Perfect. The nurse handed him to me and it was instant love. I didn’t see the wires attached to him, I just felt his sweet 10 pound body in my arms! I saw his dark hair, his sweet eye brows, his little mouth…. Our sweet Asher Levi. ‘Happiness’ that God ‘Joined to’ our family. A fearfully and wonderfully made little boy.
Asher was eventually diagnosed with Spastic Quad Cerebral Palsy. He is an amazing little guy who giggles when his older brother reads him Curious George books. He eats through a g-tube. He is learning to walk in a gait trainer. He loves southern gospel music. And, he has the biggest and brightest brown eyes I have ever seen!
God used Asher to open our eyes to special needs adoption! God used Asher to show us that children are all the same. They may have different abilities, but they are all the same….. fearfully and wonderfully made image bearers of our Lord. I am fully aware that Asher has Cerebral Palsy. But, I can say that I honestly don’t think of him as having special needs. They are just Asher’s needs. And, he is our son, so we do our best to meet those needs!
God used Asher to lead us to our next two sons. They are from China and they both have Down Syndrome. They are amazing little boys who happen to have an extra chromosome! Extra chromosome, extra awesome!! They fill our home with smiles and giggles and LOTS of cuteness! Our older kids are often asked, “What is it like to have two brothers with Down Syndrome?” Their answers always fill my heart with joy. They usually say something like, “I don’t think about them having Down Syndrome…. They are just my little brothers!”
While in the adoption process for our second son from China, God began to burden our hearts for the older children who are still waiting for families. When we saw a video of our sweet Penny, we knew she was ours! We knew she was a Morris! She has a smile that lights up a room. She has cerebral palsy.
She has a contagious giggle. And, she gets around in a wheel chair. We didn’t know how, but we knew that God was making room in our hearts for Penny! He was making room in our home, in our budget, in our time, in our hearts, and in our resources. God made room for each of our children. Love, Himself made room for us when He called us into the family of Christ, and Love Makes Room for what He calls us to do! We were given the joyful call of being Penny’s Mom and Dad. We would be honored if you would buy a t-shirt as part of a fundraiser to bring Penny home. We hope that as you wear the shirt you will think of Penny. We hope you will think of how God makes room for you in His family. And, we hope that you will ask God how He would have you make room for what He is wanting to do in your heart and your life.
-Lindsey
Bonfire Funds t-shirt fundraiser, available through December 9
AdoptTogether crowdfunding, open until Penny is home!
I am Lindsey. Wife to Ryan, and Mom to seven kiddos under our roof right now, and one daughter still in China. From the beginning of our relationship, Ryan and I talked about adoption. It was a desire that God had given us both… even though we had no idea what it would end up looking like!
God gave us four birth children in five years. Our hands were surely full, but we still had a strong desire to adopt. We didn’t know ‘how’ to adopt. We began praying….putting one foot in front of the other…. Took each step one at a time. We ended up becoming a waiting family with our adoption agency in the fall of 2013 for a domestic adoption. We desired to have an open relationship with the birth mom and birth family. We wanted to be part of love, healing, and redemption in the life of our child’s whole family. Because of that we felt a clear calling to domestic adoption. As we went through the process, we knew God was calling us to be open to whatever child He had for us. We didn’t put any stipulations on what sort of medical needs, family history, etc. that we would accept. We knew that if God had a child for us through adoption, then He had a child for us through adoption!
In May of 2014 we got the call of a lifetime! We had a precious baby boy! He was at a NICU in a city close to us. We were scheduled to meet him the next morning. Our case worker was explaining to us that he was born with severe brain trauma, he was having seizures, and he wasn’t eating by mouth.….But, all I heard was, “you have a new baby boy!’ It was HIM! It was the child we had been praying for! We told our kids and planned to meet our new son! We went to the NICU the next day and we all got to go in and meet him. He. Was. Perfect. The nurse handed him to me and it was instant love. I didn’t see the wires attached to him, I just felt his sweet 10 pound body in my arms! I saw his dark hair, his sweet eye brows, his little mouth…. Our sweet Asher Levi. ‘Happiness’ that God ‘Joined to’ our family. A fearfully and wonderfully made little boy.
Asher was eventually diagnosed with Spastic Quad Cerebral Palsy. He is an amazing little guy who giggles when his older brother reads him Curious George books. He eats through a g-tube. He is learning to walk in a gait trainer. He loves southern gospel music. And, he has the biggest and brightest brown eyes I have ever seen!
God used Asher to open our eyes to special needs adoption! God used Asher to show us that children are all the same. They may have different abilities, but they are all the same….. fearfully and wonderfully made image bearers of our Lord. I am fully aware that Asher has Cerebral Palsy. But, I can say that I honestly don’t think of him as having special needs. They are just Asher’s needs. And, he is our son, so we do our best to meet those needs!
God used Asher to lead us to our next two sons. They are from China and they both have Down Syndrome. They are amazing little boys who happen to have an extra chromosome! Extra chromosome, extra awesome!! They fill our home with smiles and giggles and LOTS of cuteness! Our older kids are often asked, “What is it like to have two brothers with Down Syndrome?” Their answers always fill my heart with joy. They usually say something like, “I don’t think about them having Down Syndrome…. They are just my little brothers!”
While in the adoption process for our second son from China, God began to burden our hearts for the older children who are still waiting for families. When we saw a video of our sweet Penny, we knew she was ours! We knew she was a Morris! She has a smile that lights up a room. She has cerebral palsy.
She has a contagious giggle. And, she gets around in a wheel chair. We didn’t know how, but we knew that God was making room in our hearts for Penny! He was making room in our home, in our budget, in our time, in our hearts, and in our resources. God made room for each of our children. Love, Himself made room for us when He called us into the family of Christ, and Love Makes Room for what He calls us to do! We were given the joyful call of being Penny’s Mom and Dad. We would be honored if you would buy a t-shirt as part of a fundraiser to bring Penny home. We hope that as you wear the shirt you will think of Penny. We hope you will think of how God makes room for you in His family. And, we hope that you will ask God how He would have you make room for what He is wanting to do in your heart and your life.
-Lindsey
If you would like to help the Morris family bring their precious Penny home, follow these links below!
Bonfire Funds t-shirt fundraiser, available through December 9AdoptTogether crowdfunding, open until Penny is home!
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