Ready to Travel

This morning, Morgan and I received an invitation to travel to Kyrgyzstan! A two-year-old little boy will be waiting for us there and we will spend ten days in country bonding with a child who will soon become our son. This process has been long and difficult, but we are so grateful for all of the family and friends who have faithfully supported us along the way thus far through prayer and financial help.

There are really no words to express the range of emotions we are feeling today, but the most prominent is thankfulness to the Lord for his gracious plan. Many have prayed for a Merry Christmas for us, and it looks like that prayer will take on a whole new meaning as we travel over the Christmas break. We will travel many hours (over 24 hours one-way including layovers) over the holidays. It is no coincidence that we will be traveling in advent season.

Advent is the time of year that we celebrate Jesus traveling the greatest distance (from heaven to earth) in order to adopt children in to God's family. The sacrificial life of Jesus Christ that was inaugurated on Christmas stands as a monument and testament to the length God was willing to go in order for us to go from orphans to sons and daughters. We are so grateful that we get to be a part of this story during advent.

We hope to update more often now that we have some real movement. You can follow Morgan and I on social media for adoption approved updates throughout. We will also try to update the blog as we find the time.

Our international fees are due before we travel (roughly $11,000) and our travel will be very costly as well ($5500 for airfare and more for hotel and food). If you feel the Lord put it on your heart, you can give HERE and all of the proceeds will go toward bringing Jonas Marley home as soon as possible.

Updates & Fundraising

June Update

Kort and I would like to thank everyone for your continued support and prayers in our adoption journey. During this portion of the adoption process, many people tend to ask, "What's next?" Unfortunately, the answer is pretty uneventful. "We wait." Many adopting families refer to this part of the process as adoption limbo, where we have done everything we can do as far as paperwork is concerned, and where we are simply waiting to be matched with a child. From what we've learned, the ministry of Kyrgyzstan must translate our dossier, process the paperwork, and then proceed to the matching process. There is probably a lot more that has to take place, but we aren't really privy to that information. Let's just say that the Lord has been teaching us patience- a lot of patience.

With that being said, many of you know that Kort and I are busy bodies. We have a hard time just sitting and waiting, so while we are eagerly awaiting our phone call, we are also continuing our work in raising funds as much as possible. As we've mentioned in previous posts, once we receive the referral phone call (where we have been matched with a child), we will be expected to board a plane within a very short amount of time and spend over a week in Kyrgyzstan for the bonding trip. With such last-minute news, we will undoubtedly come across higher expenses for flights, hotel stays, and more. In addition, we will be required to make our second deposits to the agency and the adoption ministry. We are looking at around $10K for this next portion of the process. This is a lot of money for us, as it is for many people. But we also trust that God will provide the finances in the many unique ways he usually does. 

We invite you to help support us in this process if you feel compelled. As exciting news, we have recently partnered with one of the top photographers in Houston to help us in this endeavor. Rebecca Jordan is a well-respected, professional photographer in our area, and she has so generously and graciously offered to help us by offering mini-sessions and donating all of the proceeds to our adoption fund. If you and/or your family have been eager to get some great photos, we encourage you to book a session as soon as possible! Simply email me or Rebecca for more information:

morganNmarley@gmail.com
rebecca@giddyandgold.com



As usual, you can also support us financially by visiting our GiveForward page:

https://goo.gl/3W6Uig

We appreciate your continued support, and we covet your prayers. We can't wait to meet our child, and we are forever grateful to those of you who have helped and who will help make that happen.

In Christ,
Kort & Morgan Marley

Ten Reasons We Are Compelled to Adopt: Part Two-International Adoption and Racial Reconciliation

Morgan:

When we tell people we are adopting internationally, there are usually a few basic reactions: 1) the “wow”, that’s amazing face 2) the “that’s interesting”, pensive look 3) or “why would you do that?” confused expression. It’s enjoyable to watch. But in all honesty, these are the same inward reactions Kort and I had when the Lord was tugging us in this direction. It was a whirlwind of emotions, and we weren’t sure what he was doing. We always said that if we adopted, we would pursue the domestic route. We always said we wanted to help the children that were right around us. We have always been locally focused, hence the whole church planting thing. But God was pushing us out of our comfort zone with this one. He kept bringing us back to His word, gently reminding us that true religion is caring for the widow and the orphan (James 1:27), and that we are missionaries, not only to our city and our country, but we are also held responsible for ministering internationally, to be his “witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). So it is to the ends of the earth (a.k.a Kyrgyzstan) we will go, rescuing one child and fulfilling this ministry he has called, not only us, but all believers to pursue.

With this being said, Kort and I understand the cultural and racial implications that this process brings. We by no means think that because of our white skin color, we have all of the answers and the responsibility to “rescue” our child from his/her race or culture. Indeed, it is quite the opposite. As believers, we have been called to racially reconcile, to love and care for all races and cultures. And this does not mean converting them to the White ways of life. Yes, naturally, our child will spend the majority of his (I’ll use “his” from now on for more clarity) life in a suburb of Houston, and he will adapt to a new culture. But we hope to only nurture his heritage and show him the Lord’s love for all races and backgrounds.

The other day, I had a doubting moment. It was a tough day, and I was discouraged about the whole process. I started to question our decision to adopt internationally, wondering why we chose the international route. It is triple the cost of domestic adoption and potentially triple the waiting time. I thought, “Isn’t there any easier way to do this?” But as always, the Lord was gracious to put my soul at ease. That Sunday, Cory preached a sermon on racial reconciliation, challenging us to be more multi-culturally focused as a church as the scripture calls us to be (check out the sermon HERE). And in that moment, I felt the Lord gently confirm our internationally calling. This is a way he has called us to reconcile racially, by adopting children unlike us, by committing to them and raising them in the truth of the gospel. And although this is our unique story, this isn’t only a call for the Marleys. This is a global, church-wide call. Adoption is a means through which we can celebrate and display the great news of the gospel. The international side peels back a beautiful layer of gospel truth; all peoples are now one people in Christ.

…

Kort:

The current climate of our society is one of racial tension. Growing up as a child of the  ’80s and ’90s gave me a unique perspective on race. My parents were children of the ’60s and ’70s and were always vocal in reminding me of the equality of races. I knew of the civil rights movements and understood the significance. Yet, I also always felt we were kind of “over it” as a society. I had friends of different races and I didn’t see them as beneath me. I kind of figured it was a thing of the past.

The news stories coming out of Ferguson and Baltimore in the recent past reveal a different story. Terms like “systemic injustice” and “White privilege” dominate the headlines, while Christian articles online underscore the significance of a whole different idea entirely, namely “White guilt.”

The Scriptures are not silent on the issue of race and injustice. From Old Testament to New, God is seen as the great liberator of slaves (Exodus 20:2) and the one who pleads the cause of the stranger and sojourner in foreign lands (Exodus 12:49; Exodus 22:21). However, like most issues, we do not see a more clear response from God to racial inequality than in the person and work of Jesus.

Jesus was a Galilean carpenter who was raised under Jewish law. Racial and ethnic squabbles were common in his day, as Roman rule was so widespread that the kingdom itself touched most of the ancient world. Jesus commonly leaned into racial and ethnic tension with clear, objective truth. He sat with a Samaritan woman and dialogued about worship (John 4), he boldly discussed ministerial priorities along ethnic lines with a Syrophoenician woman, ending the conversation with a strong commendation of her faith over his Jewish brothers (Mark 7:24-30). Jesus came to preach the gospel to the house of Israel, but his message of ethnic inclusion and racial reconciliation was so strong that it almost got him killed in his hometown (Luke 4:14-30).

The power of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection towards racial reconciliation did not come to full fruition until after his ascension as his disciples looked to respond to his mandate to make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18). The message would no longer be a Jerusalem mainstay, but would be proclaimed all over the world. Samaritans would believe (Acts 8:4-13), Ethiopian officials (Acts 8:26-40) and even Italians would soon be reconciled into the fold of God (Acts 10). Paul, speaking to the Gentile Ephesians writes:

“Remember that you were [once] separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” Ephesians 2:12-13

Paul acknowledges that there was a cost that had to be paid to bring in the distant nations of the world who were ignorant and had no knowledge of God. Israel had the covenants and the promise. They had the law and ordinances of God. He had revealed himself on Sinai and countless times throughout history. But now, a new people were to be brought near. This people who were far off and ignorant to God and his ways. The blood of Jesus has brought both the near and far together under one glorious name. Paul continues:

“And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God.” Ephesians 2:17-19

As the story unfolds, we begin to see God’s precious tapestry of grace displaying a snapshot of the heart of God for all people.

Adopting a child internationally is not namely about doing a good deed for the unfortunate. It is not about making up for our ancestors shameful history to appease the “White guilt” that we may subconsciously carry. No, it is about joining in the glorious work of redemptive history. International adoption is about being a magnifying glass to the world and revealing God’s grandiose plan to redeem all nations, tongues, ethnicities, and races unto himself. And not only does he bring us in to make us citizens of his kingdom, he makes us children in his house.

In some odd months or years, Morgan and I will make the arduous trek to the Kyrg Republic. We will be take two or three plane rides, each for over 24 hours, and land in a foreign country. We will pay a high cost to be there. It will be taxing and tedious. We won’t know the language, we won’t know the culture, and we will incur all the risks. Our hearts will be on the line. And once we stand before the judge and receive the rights as full parents, we will do a few glorious things.

We will change our child’s name. He/she will bear the name of his/her mom and dad.

We will change our child’s citizenship. He/she will have a new country – a new nation.

We will bring him/her home to our house. He/she will have a new home – son or daughter.

We will pay the price. He/she will never pay a dime or do a thing for this love. It is the cost we want to pay.

We will be one family. He/she may have different skin tone, different heritage, different genes, but we will all share in the same great God and Savior.

International adoption is about more than just getting a kid and pursuing racial reconciliation. It is about the glory of God.

Adoption Update:

Thank you to everyone who has helped us financially, emotionally, and spiritually through this process so far. It has gone very smoothly, and for that, we are extremely grateful. To update everyone, we just completed the Home Study and Dossier portion of the adoption, which we have been working on since June. It was a lot of paperwork, a lot of scanning & signing, and a lot of talking, but the Lord was gracious enough to sustain us through it all! Just this week (October 14th to be exact), Kort drove to Austin to take our papers to get apostilled. Strange word, I know. In layman’s terms, the state has to put their stamp of approval on all of the notarized documents we have, verifying that everything is legitimate. Now that that portion is complete, we will send that off to our Kyrgyzstan representative, he will send it to the ministry of Kyrgyzstan where it will be translated, and they will begin reviewing and examining our whole lives on paper. In the meantime, we are going to begin our USCIS process (dealing with immigration for our child). This process can take a couple of months. Again, thank you all for you support thus far.

We ask that you continue to pray for continued fluidity in the next several months, and more importantly, that we would be placed on the referral waiting list sooner than later. In addition, we are coming up against some major financial responsibilities. In the next couples of weeks or so, we are going to have to shell out close to $10,000. We have a small portion of that ready to go, but we are short about $7,500. Deep breaths. In all honesty, we completely trust the Lord in this. We know he will provide the money we need along the way. With that being said, we still understand our responsibility to take action in order to raise and gather the funds. This blog series serves that purpose- to remind our friends and family (and strangers) of the wonders of adoption and to allow the Lord to move on hearts to give. If you cannot give financially, we ask that you would continue to pray for us! Though it is not tangible like green paper, it is even much more crucial to the process!

If you would like to give financially, you may do so here: http://gfwd.at/1fbehpp

Thank you for supporting the Marley family and for helping us bring our little one home.

Ten Reasons We Are Compelled to Adopt: Part One

When I was a kid, I remember the first time a friend of mine told me another girl in our class was adopted. I wasn't sure how to feel. First, I wasn't really sure what it all meant. Secondarily, he was telling me in a hushed whisper with a hint of cafeteria food from my elementary school on his breath which left me with a sense of uneasiness. This was my introduction to the world of adoption. I felt bad for the girl in my class. Was she sad at home? Did she even like her adoptive parents? There were so many unanswered questions.

When I became a Christian, I was introduced to a whole different idea of adoption. I started meeting families who had adopted from a place of deep love. I met children who delighted in their parents and who weren't ashamed of being adopted at all. On top of all of this, I met parents who had chosen to adopt despite having no infertility issues of their own. Adoption wasn't their plan B. This made me start reconsidering the view of adoption I had gained from my musty-breathed elementary school buddy.

Adoption was never meant to be a hush discussion held in the corners of classrooms. Adoption is the highest prize of gospel truth, and the proclamation of God's great love for his children.

"In love [God] predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ." Ephesians 1:5

God, in eternity past, chose to adopt me into his family as a son. He counted the cost and thought that it was worth the sacrifice of His only begotten son on the cross to adopt me. Jesus went willingly to the cross to pay the price to have me as his little brother. And once I was adopted, he didn't keep it hush. He celebrated it, proclaimed it, and commissioned me to tell the world about it.

Everything about adoption is immersed in the gospel of Jesus Christ:

Earthly adoption comes from a heart of love. Our heavenly adoption is rooted in God's love for the world. (John 3:16)

Earthly adoption requires sacrifice from the adoptive family. Our heavenly adoption was secured by a perfect sacrifice. (Hebrews 10:13-14)

Earthly adoption is very costly. Our heavenly adoption was paid for at the highest price. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Earthly international adoption requires the parent to travel a long way to get their child. Our heavenly adoption was made possible through the ultimate travel; Jesus traveled from heaven to earth, from throne to manger in order to make us sons and daughters of God. (John 6:62)

Earthly adoption gives the child a new name. Our heavenly adoption allows us to bear the precious name that is above every name. (Philippians 2:9-11) (Revelation 3:12)

Earthly adoption gives the child a parent who takes responsibility for them. Our heavenly adoption was secured by Jesus taking responsibility for sins that were not his. (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Earthly international adoption gives the child a new citizenship. Our heavenly adoption makes us a holy nation and citizens of the household of God. (1 Peter 2:9) (Ephesians 2:19)

Earthly adoption takes children from orphanages and makes them your children. Our heavenly adoption takes us from orphans and makes us sons and daughters. (Galatians 3:6)

Earthly adoption gives this child the inheritance of his/her father. Our heavenly adoption made us the beneficiaries of God the Father's inexhaustible inheritance. (Galatians 3:7)

Earthly adoption gives a child a home forever. Our heavenly adoption included a promise that Jesus was preparing an eternal home for us. (John 14:1-3)

Our first reason we are compelled to adopt is because we are adopted. This story is meant to be proclaimed, not pitied! We want to be a part of the most amazing story that has ever been told.

Many adoption agencies use a phrase to communicate what they are looking for in adoptive parents. They say "we are hoping to find a forever home for these children." God the Father has adopted us into his glorious family and we have a forever home eternally secured by Jesus!

Our prayer is that you would consider your place in this great big story of adoption. Perhaps you are not called to adopt yourself. Don't let that hinder you from being a part of the story though. We hope that you would consider two other ways to join in this story.

(1) Pray for us.
The international adoption process is a beast. It has already taken us countless hours to go through the paperwork and we are still not done. There are home studies, trips to Austin to certify documents, and even then we are only at the referral stage. We will have to take 3 trips to Kyrgyzstan with large amounts of time in between without being able to bring our child home. It will be financially, emotionally, spiritually and physically costly, but it is SO WORTH IT! Please consider praying for us as we walk through the process.

(2) Give toward the gift.
We are humbled by the generosity of many already in word and deed. The total cost of this adoption process could total above $45,000. Although we have been brainstorming creative ideas to fundraise, none of this will be possible without the buy-in from family and friends who believe in the cause of adoption. Please consider following this link and giving. We are eternally grateful and we're convinced our child will be as well.

Give Forward: The Marley Adoption

The Road to Adoption

Children of God

“In love, He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will…”- Ephesians 1:4b-5

“I will say to the north, Give up, and to the south, Do not withhold; bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the end of the earth…”- Isaiah 43:6

These words have never rung more true in our hearts.  The doctrine of adoption is littered throughout the scriptures. There are close to 100 scriptures that speak directly to adoption and countless others that allude to it. Adoption is at the heart of the gospel message as God the Father graciously adopts us into the family of God through the vicarious death of His Son Jesus. Jesus, as our elder brother, goes to great lengths to ensure we are not orphaned.

J.I. Packer highlights the significance of adoption well in an excerpt from Tony Merida’s book, Orphanology. 

”…adoption is…the highest privilege that the gospel offers: higher even than justification…”

For Packer to assert that adoption is a higher blessing than even justification is high praise for this biblical truth since justification has been deemed the very heart of the gospel since the Protestant Reformation. But what makes Packer so confident to say this?

Adoption is not only God’s lavish grace in forgiving us of our trespasses and making us forensically righteous and blameless. It takes the scandalous act of grace one step further. The criminal is not only pardoned, but changed and brought into the fold of God; we are made sons and daughters of God himself.

Adoption is such a great and glorious act because it reveals the very heart of the gospel, which is namely that God desires to do more than forgive us, but to make us his family.

You may be asking why we are outlining our biblical beliefs in adoption. After many prayers, many tears, and many years, Kort and I have decided to adopt a child!

The Redemptive Road

Adoption had always been a conversation between us, even before marriage, and we would be lying if we said we had not talked about it throughout our struggles about children. It had always been on the table, but only as a future option. We never considered adopting our first child. Some great friends of ours did this themselves, and they offered great encouragement to us.

We wish we could tell you about a magical moment where we had epiphanies simultaneously. We didn’t. In fact, the decision was made in a manner that was rather anticlimactic. Yet, the result and realization of God’s purpose through this entire process has been a magical, simultaneous barrage since the moment we decided to adopt.

Parenthood is not about us. The Bible is a book about God our Father lovingly bringing his family back together again. Marriage is an integral part of this process, and although I (Kort) had officiated numerous weddings over the last couple of years, the spiritual realities still had work to do on my heart.

We had constantly encouraged couples in their pre-marital counseling classes, “Marriage is not about you and your desires. Marriage is about God and His glory.” And so it is with parenthood.

This entire time, we had been struggling with the problem of not having a child. We had selfishly considered only ourselves in the entire process. How unfair was God for withholding this from us? What did we do wrong?

Again: this is not about us.

Currently, according to UNICEF, there are approximately 153 million orphans around the world. This statistic is misleading because this only accounts for children who have lost their parents, not including the millions of children around the world who have been abandoned or trafficked and lost.

Let that sink in. There are millions of children who are parentless all over the world. And we have a God who has not only given us the ultimate model of adoption in the gospel by making us part of his family, but he has also Scripturally mandated that we reach into these orphans lives and live the gospel by becoming their earthly parents.

“True religion is this; care for the orphan and widow.” James 1:27

God miraculously shined his light of grace into our cloudy muck of childlessness. He revealed our sinful selfishness, only to give us the greatest gift we could ever ask for - the call to adopt a child.

The Kyrgyzstan Road

Before this process, we had never even heard of Kyrgyzstan. In fact, we had only ever considered adopting domestically. But as usual, the Lord had different plans.

We began praying about where He was leading us, and because we probably would have missed it, we asked him to make it very clear. And so he did. Kort began reading a book on Adoption (that I would read later), and in the book, it talked greatly of international adoption. Story after story pointed to international adoption being a great need.

For starters, compared to the U.S., international countries do not have foster care systems, meaning the children are all piled in orphanages, waiting for someone to take them home. There is no in-between for them. In addition, the conditions of these orphanages are alarming.

Out of curiosity, we began exploring international adoption agencies. Some friends of ours, who adopted from Ethiopia, had a wonderful experience with America World, so after some prayer and conversation, we submit an inquiry request. Based on our conditions (desired time period, gender, age, etc.), the email we received stated the country that best fit our profile: Kyrgyzstan.

In addition, it “just so happens” that we began a prayer campaign at our church. Some of our best friends, who lead the Prayer Team, asked Kort what he thought about praying for unreached people groups through our home groups. As he looked on the link they sent him, the first country to pop up was Kyrgyzstan.

We don’t believe in coincidences, but only divine scenarios pre-destined by God. We believe in God’s providence. In our spirits, we felt that this was his clear answer.

There aren’t too many practicals we can offer that can outshine the most important, inexplicable driving factor- the call to Kyrgyzstan. A fellow believer understands this word “call”. It is a tug, a pull, or a compelling push towards something that can only be explained by God’s Spirit. It is a leap of faith.

Sharing the Road

Normatively, we are a pretty private family. We talk about very little with very few. For the most part, we are social media recluses as well. We are not really sure why this is, other than personal preference. However, we felt that this process was not meant to be private.

We are convinced that our journey is meant to encourage others in their circumstances and give them the courage to take a leap of faith and adopt as well. Statistically speaking, 1-10 people struggle with infertility. If you find yourself here, we ask you to consider our testimony and ask the Lord where he is leading you. We want to be clear. We do not consider adoption our plan B. We consider adoption God’s plan A for us all along. It just took us a while to see it. God uses a myriad of circumstances to reveal his purposes and plans. This season is how God taught us.

But we are not special. God desires to do this in many other families as well. If we can play a small part in encouraging others to take a leap of faith and begin this process, we feel that this blog is worth it. Also, many others (friends and family) have adopted and played a special role in encouraging us in this process. God uses community. Our prayer is for our story to be the seed for many others. 

The Starting Line

Although we are eager and excited to start this process, the road is a marathon and not a sprint. We are in the middle of filling out piles of paperwork and scheduling appointments from background checks to home studies. This summer we will be building a document called a dossier, which will be sent to Kyrgyzstan for us to receive a referral for a child.

If you are curious, these are the specifics of our future child:

Gender: Either

Age: 0-4 years

Time period: 11 months- 4 years

Although we hope to use this blog to keep everyone updated, encourage others and raise funds, we will be limited as to how much and what kinds of information we can post. The adoption process seems to be more covert and cryptic the more we learn.

The total cost of the adoption will range around $40,000-$45,000. If you are gasping, don’t fret; we did too. However, this is not an uncommon cost for international adoption. In fact, it is pretty average. In light of the price that God was willing to pay in the death of His only son to adopt us into his family, we are unwavering in our faith that he will richly provide here too.

And so, we will end with a plea.

Please pray for us. We need God to not only provide for us in every way, but also to prepare us for the greatest endeavor we have ever undertaken and for the great call to adopt a child. We need God’s grace.

Please consider giving. As a teacher and a pastor, we don’t intend to be able to fulfill this financial obligation of adoption on our own. We are willing to do whatever it takes to finish the process, though, and we have discussed the lengths to which that may take us. However, perhaps God has moved on your heart through this blog to assist us financially.

Perhaps also, you feel the tug to care for the orphan as God has commanded us to do as well. Maybe you have struggled with infertility and are asking why it is so. This is an opportunity for you to share in the precious calling of adoption. We encourage you to take the leap of faith.

If you feel led to help us financially, you can do so here at our GiveForward donation spot:

http://gfwd.at/1fbehpp

We appreciate your support and thanks for taking the time to read about what God is doing in our lives.