God sets the lonely in families

That's how Psalm 68:6 begins: "God sets the lonely in families..."
We are so thankful for the opportunity to be the family that a lonely child will be set into. Even though our little girl may be excited to come home with us, I doubt she has any idea what she's really missing in a family.

I think this could be said of a lot of people. And not just orphans.

He sets the lonely in families. We were reminded of this truth again this weekend. Our church family (Heartland Church) donated their hard-earned money to provide us with a really nice Christmas bonus. This follows the recent collection gathered for Pastor Appreciation in October. I believe the first gift toward our adoption came last year (2006) in the form of a Christmas bonus. Throughout 2007, we watched the church adoption fund (originated by our good friend and worship pastor Matt) grow beyond our expectations. In addition to financing, Heartland has been a huge support through prayer and encouraging words. I don't know what we'd do without this family!

For nearly our whole married life, we have lived far away from any biological family. Needless to say, there have been many lonely times. But thankfully, God sets the lonely in families. He continues to build us up through the Church around us, as well as through the larger Church family--friends/family from all over who have supported us. I don't know how many times this year I've thanked God for the Church. And I don't plan to stop any time soon.

Gina