Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!!!

Our next meeting is this Thursday - February 16th - Noon - Carinos in Loveland

1455 Rocky Mountain Avenue

Run for Orphans Coordinator Meeting - 11:30 - Last year this was a huge success in raising needed funds for the projects that you are involved in. Please send your race coordinator to this brief meeting. The race flyers are ready for distribution.

Our Agenda:

- Michelle Betsch - Adoption Exchange

Michelle is the North Region Coordinator for the Adoption Exchange. She is connected with many of the resources that adoptive and foster parents need for adequate support. http://www.adoptex.org

- Tom Ewing and Larry Goode - Larry is back in the US for a couple weeks sharing about the Orphan Ministry that he has started in Peru. www.lostchildrenofperu.com

- Clarke and Kris Stoesz - Ukraine Orphan Outreach - http://www.ukraineorphans.org/

- Sean and Tiffany Cherry - Guatemala Bound -

July 2012 - Sean and Tiffany will be running a guest house specializing in hosting teams for the purpose of Orphan Ministry. They will be able to help churches connect with orphanages that need support. timberlineorphanministry@gmail.com

- Run for Orphans Update - Karen Markel - markelfamily@comcast.net

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans

Thursday - April 21 - noon - Carinos in Loveland -

1455 Rocky Mountain Avenue

If you want to know more about what is going on in Northern Colorado regarding adoption, foster care, mentoring and orphan ministry, come and join us this Thursday!! :)

On our agenda this month:

**River Run for Orphans organization and ministry coordinators meeting will begin at 11:30.

- Siri Newman, Foster Success program at CSU. There are many ways that we can be involved in the lives of these students and be a blessing to CSU as they reach out to them.

http://www.9news.com/news/story.aspx?storyid=169984&catid=188

- Ryan and Kim Mayeda - Through their journey in infertility and adoption they have started a non-profit that will be a blessing to many families.

- River Run for Orphans Update. This is our last meeting before this event on May 7. Please bring items that your organization would like to put in the goody bags to this meeting. Also, bring any prizes that you would like to donate for the our prize categories. We want the prizes to reflect what your organization or ministry is raising money for.

- Orphan Summit VII - It's not to late to register.

http://www.christian-alliance-for-orphans.org/summit-vii

Welcome Child Ministry Team Meeting

It is time for our Quarterly Welcome Child Ministry Team Meeting!

Tomorrow, Sunday April 17 in Room 213 at 5:00pm at Timberline Church.

This is a great time for us to connect with you and share what is happening in Welcome Child ministry here in our church, in community and around the world.

You will be hearing from our ministry leaders individually and from Nick and Kelly Mortellite about their Orphan Ministry Trip to Ethiopia where they spent 1 month serving children at an orphanage.

I am grateful to all of you who are now and for those of you who in the future will be a voice for those who have no voice. God continues to open doors of ministry because of your faithfulness and obedience to serve.

I am looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night!!!! :)

Orphan Summit VII May 12-14

Orphan Summit is a great place to connect with others who are passionate about advocating for children in need in your community and around the world.

If you are a pastor, ministry leader, lay leader, adoptive parent or are just seeking information on how you can get involved - this event is for you!
God will use each general session, each break-out session and each conversation that you have with people you have never met before to confirm His will for you in Orphan Ministry.
You will be encouraged, equipped and motivated to press on in the areas of Orphan Ministry where God is nudging you to serve.
In all of the general and break-out sessions, you will receive take home information. There will also be opportunities to meet face to face with representatives of local and global ministries and organizations who are hosting table in the exhibit area.
It is good to come together as the body of Christ in this larger setting, so that we can be better equipped to go back to our church homes and communities to walk out in faith and obedience what God has put on our hearts. :)

To find out more about the speakers, the break-out sessions and to register go to:
http://www.christian-alliance-for-orphans.org/summit-vii

River Run for Orphans - May 7th at The Ranch

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans is hosting a 5K event to raise awareness and support for adoption, foster care and orphan relief organizations.

Date: May 7th, 2011

Where: The Ranch, McKee Building

Race time: 8am

Kids run: 9am

Website: http://www.nocoriverrun5k.org/

Each participating organization, agency or ministry will be raising funds independently for their prospective projects.

Welcome Child/Timberline Church is specifically raising money for the areas we are involved in Orphan Ministry and for an Adoption Fund that we will be establishing through Lifesong for Orphans that will support families in our church that say "yes" to adoption. :)

How you can help:

- sign-up to run or walk in the race

- become a business sponsor (levels are available beginning at $250)

- volunteers are needed to make this event a success:

- collecting donations from area business

- race day registration and activities

For more information please contact our Race Directors:

Chris Branchflower - brancch@hotmail.com
Karen Markel - markelfamily@comcast.net

Holy Ground

There are so many joys and anticipation in our adoption and foster care journey's. There are also undeniable challenges that come our way.
Sometimes when we are in the middle of a difficult time, it is hard to say these words:

"For the ground on which you walk is Holy".
I have been told that I view most things through the lens of adoption and orphan ministry. That is probably true, as these are always foremost in my mind and heart. In my devotions this week I read a poem titled "Desert Traveler". It really confirmed in my heart what I know can be true when we are obediently to say "yes" to God's call on our families to adopt or to provide foster care to children in need.

Desert Traveler

by Kathleen Long Bostrom

Before you stretches nothingness,
barren, endless, vast,
not even a horizon
on which to set your course.

Here, in the desert,
fists of fire beat upon you
and darkness settles
like a shroud.

Here, in the desert,
you must leave behind the load of rocks
you drag with you through life.
Cast aside the stones of shame, regret, control.
Their weight will kill you here, in the desert.

But carry only the cup of new life,
and sip from its cooling waters.
Or pour it out upon you head
and be baptized in the dust.

For from the dust we have come,
and to dust we shall return.

Remember,
It was the Spirit who led Jesus to this place. (Matthew 4:1-11)
So take off your shoes.
and step upon the scorching soil,
then bow down and kiss the earth,
For the ground on which you walk is holy.

It is great to remember that although it can be lonely, dry and dusty in the desert, when we walk in obedience we truly are standing on holy ground. There is life in the desert place where you may find yourself right now.

When we say "yes" to the call of adoption and foster care we are placing ourselves in a powerful position to do battle for the child/children that God places in our lives.

Ephesians 6:10-19 tells us exactly where are battle lies and how to equip ourselves with the armor of God.

In the desert we have to trust God for the horizon.

In the desert we have to trust God to carry us through.

In the desert we have to trust God for the Victory!!

:)

Open Our Eyes - God's Passion for the Fatherless

Northern Colorado Orphan Care / Foster Care / Adoption Event

Hosted by Resurrection Fellowship

Sunday March 20, 2011

6:00-9:00pm

Event Schedule:

5:30 PM - Doors open

6:00 PM - Introduction and worship with Tom Ewing and the NoCo Worship Band

6:30 PM - Guest Speaker, Tom Davis - God's passion for the fatherless

7:00 PM - Connect with orphan, foster care, and adoption organizations

For more information and free registration go to: http://openoureyes.eventbrite.com/

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans

This Thursday, February 17th is Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans meeting at Biaggis located in Centerra at Noon. If you want to know more about what is happening in Northern CO in regards to adoption, orphan care ministry, foster care support - this is the place to be. Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans is a Regional Alliance for Christian Alliance for Orphans. We are uniting with churches all around the US to advocate for those who can't speak for themselves.

Our agenda this month includes:

-Eric Shanfelt, Open our Eyes - God's Passion for the Fatherless an Adoption, Orphan Ministry Event at Resurrection Fellowship on March 20th. http://openoureyes.eventbrite.com/

-Jeff Dillon, Embryo Adoption, Nightlight Christian Adoptions

http://www.nightlight.org/

-Tom Davis, CEO of Children's Hopechest and author of several books including Fields of the v Fatherless, Red Letters, Scared and Priceless http://www.hopechest.org/

A word from Tom:

http://www.vimeo.com/19097292

We would love to have you join us this week. :)

Please email me if you would like to attend:

Karalot9@gmail.com

Family Life - Moments with you

The devotional below was posted by Family Life - Moments with you. Fields of the Fatherless is probably my all time favorite book because it lays out so beautifully and directly God's call to the church to care for the widow, the lonely and the orphan. If you are considering adoption or starting an orphan ministry in your church this is a must read book. Tom Davis has also made a DVD that goes along with this book if you use it in the form of a study with a small group or ministry vision group. :)

January 30

Adopting God's Heart

Vindicate the weak and fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and destitute.
Psalm 82:3

In his book Fields of the Fatherless, C. Thomas Davis writes, "If you searched the Bible from front to back, you'd find many issues close to God's heart. But you'd also notice three groups of people coming up again and again. They appear so many times, in fact, you have to conclude that God mentions them purposely to make sure they are at the top of our priority list."

They are orphans, widows and aliens (or strangers).

God demonstrated His care and provision for these three groups through His instructions to the Israelite farmers in Deuteronomy 24:19: "When you are harvesting in your field and you overlook a sheaf, do not go back to get it. Leave it for the alien, the fatherless and the widow, so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands" (NIV).

Similarly, if we want our Christianity to be its purest, we too must actively exercise our concern for the left-out and the abandoned: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world" (James 1:27-28).

Caring for the fatherless is not simply a compassionate act. Adoption is not merely an additional means of growing our families to the desired size. Caring for orphans is about obedience and expressing the heart of God.

Perhaps God is calling you to the redemptive task of adoption, as He has Barbara and me. If not, each of us can be part of supporting, praying for and encouraging those who are in the midst of adoption, those who are seeking to acquire God's heart for the fatherless

Discuss
Discuss how you can express the heart of God in caring for orphans. Also ask yourselves, Is there a reason why adopting a child would not be a possibility?

Pray
Promise the Father that you will pursue His heart for the fatherless and orphaned, in whatever way He directs you to do so--orphan care, foster care, adoption or mission work.

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance for Orphans is a regional alliance of Christian Alliance for Orphans. We exist to unite the body of Christ in ONE voice to advocate for the needs of orphans in our community and around the world.

We will be meeting at Biaggi's at Centerra, Loveland - 5929 Sky Pond Dr. Loveland, CO at noon on Thursday, January 20th. A Buffet lunch will be served - $10.50 w/water and $12.50 with soft drink or tea (includes gratuity).

Joining us this month:

-Dr. Sharen Ford and Brian Mavis will be sharing about the new Heart Gallery Colorado that we will be displayed in churches in Northern CO. Your response to host the Heart Gallery has been amazing - WE ARE THRILLED that we have this opportunity. Thank you to the State of CO for giving us this opportunity.

-Chris and Sarah Padbury - Project 1.27 will be sharing with us about the upcoming Orientation at Timberline Church on Feb. 18th. They will also be sharing the new journey that they have been on the last few months.

-Lorraine Meyer - Birthmother Ministries will be sharing about what their role is and how they are partnering with agencies and local organizations to minister to women who need extra support during their pregnancy.

If you would like to know more about what is going on in Northern Colorado regarding adoption and orphan ministry related issues please join us!!!! :)

You can make a Difference!!

Sixseeds.tv interviewed Jedd Medefind, President of Christian Alliance for Orphans about adoption and how the church is responding. It is a great article. He mentions what is happening in CO regarding adoption! Please leave a comment after you read the article. For every comment posted CAFO will receive $2!! You can support Orphan Ministry Nationwide just by reading this article and posting a comment. :)

http://sixseeds.tv/s/content/adoption/691-adoption_the_christian_alliance_for_orphans#comments

Welcome Home by Kristin Orphan

I have had a lot of people ask about a song that Kristin Orphan and The Finally Home Band performed at our Dare You to Move Event. It blessed a lot of people. The words reflect how we feel about the children that God calls us to adopt. Here is a video letter that Pastor Mark and Kristin put together for Sadie. :)

Welcome Home by Kristin Orphan

Looking at you, it's hard to believe

All that you've been through and all that you've seen

You built wall so high of your fears, disappointment and sorrow

You're too brave for tears

You've waited so long just to laugh and to play

Yesterday's gone, you're here today

Welcome Home, This is where you belong

Welcome Home, You don't have to be strong

Precious child, you're safe now here in my arms

Rest your head, be at peace, welcome home

All that we have is yours now, too

Hope, love and faith, we give to you

And in return, we ask just one thing

Open your heart and believe in your dreams

And when you stumble or feel all alone

Just call my name and I'll lead you home

Welcome Home, This is where you belong

Welcome Home, You don't have to be strong

Precious child, you're safe now here in my arms

Rest your head, be at peace, welcome home

What is a family, what does that mean?

You've Asked that question, now I hope you see......

It's a home, where you belong

It's a home, you don't have to be strong

Precious child, you're safe now here in my arms rest your head be at peace

Welcome Home, This is where you belong

Welcome Home, You don't have to be strong

Precious child, you're safe now, related by love

Rest your head, be at peace, you're finally home.

Cry of the Orphan

FROM FOCUS ON THE FAMILY, SHOW HOPE, HOPE FOR ORPHANS, MARK SHULTZ AND FRANCIS CHAN.

:)

You........ are God's Plan for the Orphan

The United Nations reports that the number of orphans around the world waiting for help is more than 140 million.

This global crisis is present even in the United States where over 120,000 children now wait to be adopted from the foster care system.

But God commands every Christian to act and to care for orphans and we would like you to join us this fall as we serve the orphan.

To help raise awareness of today's orphan crisis, we, along with our friends at Hope for Orphans^®(a ministry of FamilyLife^®), and Show Hope^®worked together to produce Answer the Cry, a special video program hosted by bestselling author Francis Chan. Answer the Cry features musical performances by award winning artists Steven Curtis Chapman and Mark Schultz and highlights our own Jim Daly. Answer the Cry also addresses ways that every Christian can have an impact on the life of an orphan.

This special program is available to you at no cost--visit CryOfTheOrphan.org to learn more about the video and how you can utilize it for an orphan awareness event in your community.

Will you also consider joining us on Orphan Sunday (November 7) to stand for orphans, to defend the fatherless and care for the least of these? More details on how to get involved are atCryOfTheOrphan.org.

One Less - Matthew West

We are all called to do something in the life of an orphan. Not everyone is called to be a foster parent or to adopt a child. But, each of us can do something. Check out this new song that Matthew West is working on to encourage us all to do what God puts on our heart. :)

One Less by Matthew West (The Story Behind The Song) from emicmg on Vimeo.

10 Ways Every Christian Can Care...

for the Orphan and Waiting Child.

1. Pray for them

2. Speak up for them

3. Provide for their needs

4. Support those who support them

5. Protect them from harm

6. Visit them where they are

7. Give sacrifically to them

8. Encourage them to press on

9. Adopt them into your family

10. Mobilize your church for them

To find out more detailed information about these 10 ways that you can be involved in the life of a child go to:

http://www.hopefororphans.org/images/mmDocument/HFO_Ten_Ways_Poster.pdf

:)

www.hopefororphans.org

Meet Sasha

This past summer we were able to host The Russian Orphan Choir that was brought to CO through Nightlight Christian Adoptions. We were so blessed to be able to be a part of these children's lives for the few days they were here. Those few days have left us praying for these kids. Praying that they come to know Jesus as their Savior, praying that they feel loved and protected, praying that they know in their hearts how deeply they affected all of us and how much we care for them. Sasha touched mine and Jeff's heart while she was here.

Sasha was hosted by the Cherry family here in Northern Colorado. I asked them if they would share a little bit about Sasha with us:



Sasha is an outgoing teenage girl with a heart for people. She has a very good sense of humor and likes to have fun. When she lived with us for a week, she would always make sure she was pleasing us. She would also make sure everyone was taken care of. At one point I was sharing with Sasha about the work we were doing at an orphanage in Haiti. I showed her some videos and some pictures and she began to cry. When I asked her what was wrong, she said that she was very happy that we were helping them and wished she could help them too. :) Sasha was a typical teenage girl with the good and bad but certainly deserves a forever family!

Please pray for Sasha's future.

Jeremiah 29:11 states this amazing promise:

For I know the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

All of the children in orphanages in Russia need our prayers, especially those who are close to aging out of the orphanage system. If you would like information about how you can help these children – or information about adoption from Russia, contact Nightlight Christian Adoptions at: 970-663-6799. :)

Northern Colorado Christian Alliance For Orphans

A Regional Alliance for Christian Alliance For Orphans is forming in Northern Colorado. Our goal is to unite churches, organizations and agencies for the common goal of advocating for orphans, locally and internationally.

Please join us at Johnny Carinos at noon this Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010.
The address is: 1455 Rocky Mountain Ave. Loveland, CO 80538

Email me if you have any questions: Karalot9@gmail.com

Russian Orphan Choir

We at Welcome Child and Timberline Church have the amazing honor of hosting this group of orphans from Russia. They are in the states performing to advocate for adoption and orphan care.

They will be performing at Timberline Church in the South Auditorium at 6:00pm on Sunday, July 25. Please come and meet these precious children. Their greatest desire is be adopted into a family. :)

For more information please contact Kari Stewart - Karalot9@gmail.com

A Backpack of My Own

You can make a difference!!!

Timberline Church is partnering with Foster and Adoptive Families of Larimer County to provide filled backpacks for foster and adoptive families of Larimer County. Thank you to all of you have signed up to fill a backpack. A personal note (attached on the outside) on the backpack is not required, but I can tell you that that kids and the parents are so blessed by those notes. In fact those were the first backpacks selected last year. If you have not signed up yet, it is not too late. Our drop-off dates are July 31/Aug.1 and Aug. 7/8 during all services in the mall area. Filled Backpacks can also be dropped off at the church office.

Recommended Supply List-

Elementary:

24 pk crayons

1 pk markers

1 pk colored pencils

5 glue sticks

24 pencils

2 blue pens

2 black pens

yellow highlighter

5 spiral notebooks

5 2-pocket folders, different colors

ruler - inches and metric

scissors

pink eraser

5x8 schoolbox

1 box tissue

4th and 5th graders - basic calculator

Middle School:

3 1" 3-ring binder

3 pkgs loose leaf notebook paper - wide ruled

24 pencils

blue pen

black pen

1 pkg markers - 12 ct

1 pkg colored pencils - 12 ct

pencil bag

3 2-pocket folders - 3 prong

5 spiral notebooks

divider tabs - 2 sets of 5

calculator - basic

protractor

highlighter

High School:

3 1" 3-ring binders

3 pkgs loose leaf paper - wide and college ruled

divider tabs - 2 pkgs of 5

24 pencils

blue and black pens - 5 each

2 2-pocket folders - 3 prong

calculator

combination lock

book covers for text books

protractor

index cards - ruled and unruled

highlighters

Extra Items Needed:

Scientific Calculators

flash drives

graph paper black sharpies

sticky notes

hand sanitizer

Thank you for your faithfulness to help with this outreach.

For more information contact: Kari at Karalot9@gmail.com

:)

"Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it for Me." Matthew 25:40

Why Every Christian Is Called to Rescue Orphans

From Jedd Medefind of Christian Alliance for Orphans: July’s CHRISTIANITY TODAY: Why Every Christian Is Called to Rescue Orphans It’s a beautiful thing. For Christians who yearn to see the Church grow impassioned for the Gospel and the orphan, the newly-arrived July edition of Christianity Today is little short of thrilling. The cover declares, Abba Changes Everything: Why every Christian is called to rescue orphans. Inside, an excellent introduction framing the magazine is headlined, “Adoption is Everywhere. Even God is into it.” That the leading print voice of evangelicalism in America would choose to make orphan care and adoption the center of its July magazine underscores what many of us already knew: God is stirring His people to again be known as those who “defend the cause of the fatherless” (Is 1:17). Page 18 begins a tremendous article by Russell Moore, which gave the magazine its cover language, “Abba Changes Everything.” I’ve heard Dr. Moore articulate this message from the podium, via radio and over the dinner table, but I must admit I felt my heart expand against my ribcage as I read this fresh expression. Beautiful and heartbreaking; daunting and inspiring; and profoundly rooted in the ultimate reason for it all: the Father-love of our God revealed through the Gospel. Page 23 starts the cover story, “Coming Alongside Parents: Churches are getting real about adoption’s challenges—and helping families after the child arrives.” It shares the experience of Summit VI and highlights the robust growth of orphan ministry within churches. Writes author Carla Barnhill, “…[T]he Summit drew more than 1,200 attendees, most of them ministering to orphans through their home churches. Watching those gathered, I knew this was not my parent’s generation.” Finally, page 52 carries the section “My Top 5 Books on Orphan Care” that I had the opportunity to provide: Russell Moore’s Adopted for Life, Dr. Karyn Purvis’ The Connected Child; Melissa Fay Greene’s There is No Me Without You; Tom Davis’ Fields of the Fatherless, and Doug Sauder’s The One Factor. (Several others came to mind after I’d submitted that I wish I’d included as well, but five was the limit). These articles are available to read on-line at: http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2010/july/10.18.html?start=1 I love this quote in the article: "there are no "adopted children" of God, as an ongoing category. Adoption tells us how we came into the family of God. And once we are here, no distinction is drawn between those at the dinner table" This article is full of powerful truth. Be blessed and encouraged that you are on the journey God has called you to. He has equipped you and will never leave you wondering where to go next. Ask - He will answer!!! :)