..::Parenthood::..

Man oh man oh man!

What an amazing journey! I've been trying to find the words to put on this blog but in my feeble attempts I've realized that they just don't exist to show the pure joy that Coryn and I share. 

It's been three weeks now that we've had Daniel in our home. He's nothing but a pure blessing! He's starting to learn a slew of words and behaves like a little gentleman. It hasn't all been smooth sailing but we've loved every second

When we first brought Daniel home, There was definitely a period of adjustment. Everything was new and the only constant he had was Coryn, who had been at the baby home for the past 6 months. Although I had been around Daniel a lot in the weeks leading up to our court case, his adjustment to me was much harder than to Coryn. I'd say that it was hard on him but it would be much more accurate to say that it was hard on me. I wanted so bad for this little guy to look at me in the same way he looks at his mom. To run to me when I get home and cry for me when I have to leave. It was definitely tough on me but, praise God, it didn't take too long. Within a week Daniel started to trust in who I was and even started crying when I left. I know no parent likes to see their baby boy cry but those tears were the greatest things ever!

Coryn and I are also adjusting pretty well and learning new things everyday. I definitely think we've got it easier than most parents since Daniel already sleeps through the night. But twe're still going through the whole learning curve of figuring out what it means to be biblical parents and spouses at the same time! We're learning that, now more than ever, we have to constantly communicate everything; what we're doing, methods we're using to teach Daniel, and why we're doing it that way. Not to mention the regular day to day marital stuff! I can honestly say that, since it's only us here, we're learning to lean on each other more and more everyday. 

The last new bit of info to share with you is that we had our verbal interview for the babies home. They had some difficult questions for us the really made us think but all in all I think it went pretty well. We're really hoping that this is where God has us! We really feel this ministry has changed our lives and can serve to change the lives of so many children and parents.
With all that being said, I'd like to leave you with a few recent pictures of our incredible baby boy in the hopes that you'll print one out to remind you keep us in your thoughts and prayers! When doing that, please pray for our future ministry and the spiritual and financial well being of our home! We'd also love to hear any words of encouragement that you might have for us as being so far from friends and family is always hard. Thank you all and God bless!

From Monkey

From Monkey If you’d like to unite with us in this undertaking you may send donations to 3012 Herrington Ave. San Bernardino, CA 92405 payable to Africa Renewal Ministries and include "the Kisslings" in the memo line.

...:::chapter 2wo:::...

As many of you reading this well know, 2009 was a very unique year for us. It hosted a slue of firsts in our lives but has ultimately brought us closer together and, more importantly, closer to God. We packed up our things and left everyone but each other behind and headed off to the world of Uganda. A world, that up until then, we had only imagined through movies, books, and the World Wide Web.

Arrival here was almost whimsical! The new faces, sounds, smells, and traditions brought us spinning out of our comfortable Californian lives and into a renewed sense of being. Then, of course, that fanciful mind set started to fade with our own adaptation. Before we knew it, we found ourselves picking up new Lugandan phrases everyday and braving the frenzied city on our own two wheels (I love my bike!). We set into our routines and life here has become just that; Life!

To say we love it here would be a gross understatement. All the things, which at first, were strange and out of the ordinary, have now become a thread in the fabric that makes up who we are. We’ve completely fallen head over heals for the people here and the stories of who they are, where they’ve been, and where they’re going, each one with so much hope for their future. Our time here has also given us the ability to better evaluate the need here and determine exactly where we fit into it. That very evaluation has led us to an understanding that the place we belong, the place God is heavily calling us to, is not one we could simply walk away from in August as planned. That being said, we’ve made the decision to, once again, listen to the unmistakable voice of God’s direction in our lives.

So what exactly does that look like? Glad you asked!

First off, as many are well aware, we’ve been asking for your partnership in prayer for a really special little guy here; Daniel.
Daniel came into our lives about 6 months ago through the baby home that we’ve been volunteering with as part of our work here. Abandoned by his parents, and left on the steps of a hospital, Daniel was the first one to arrive at the home, and came dangerously malnourished and under developed. Not only was he severely emaciated, but he also arrived with congenital Cataracts leading to two very weak, underdeveloped, but beautiful eyes! I really think those two wandering, googly-eyes, were what initially drew us to him. Over the last 6 months, we’ve had the joy of being a part of his growth, seeing him learn to sit up, crawl, grunt, walk, and talk (kinda?!?!).

It’s been the greatest blessing and revealed something huge to us! We Love this guy! I mean, we really LOVE him!  We love him and we couldn’t stand the thought of leaving such a joyous part of our life behind!

Now at first, this feeling was much more in Coryn’s heart than mine. I mean come on, she’s a woman with an amazing heart. Of course it was! But for me, I just wasn’t ready to come to terms with what being this guy’s dad would look like. I prayed constantly that God would just provide Daniel with a good family that would be the blessing to him that he has been to us! That way, we could go back home to our comfortable life, guilt free. Pretty selfish huh?

Well, God answered that prayer, but not exactly how I’d hoped. At the end of the year, while we were in Gulu serving alongside our home church, ROCKharbor, I heard an unmistakable calling. We were all gathered for the morning’s devotion, which was on the topic of allowing God to speak in our lives. I had been praying with an inspiring woman, Frankie, Frank the Tank, Galaway, and suddenly had an overwhelming phrase go through my head. ADOPT DANIEL. I immediately dismissed it as my own convoluted thought but then it just got louder! ADOPT DANIEL! I continued dismissing the “thoughts” as my own but they were so dang consistent! Finally I found myself weeping uncontrollably, unable to utter a single comprehendible word! I realized at that point that truth had fallen on me. God answered the prayer I prayed so many times before, “Give Daniel a good home”.

That was it! The second I recognized that voice my heart open up wide to the new life staring us in the face. We came home from that trip and haven’t looked back since. After expressing our desires to the church and getting their blessing, we started the process. We’ve applied for foster care and had our home study done in the last week and are now awaiting our court appearance. After that, we’ll await the approval of our appeal for legal guardianship.

Sounds great right? Well it is, but it does come with a few strings attached. To adopt the right and legal way, one has to foster the prospective child in country for 3 years! Yup, 3 more years in Uganda! But even this has been a blessing.

Knowing that we’ll be around longer has encouraged us to step up our ministry efforts here. We’re currently applying to be the managers of the very baby home that cared for Daniel, and so many just like him! We feel a special connection to it and the vision we share with them; to provide the orphaned and abandoned children of Uganda with loving, Christian families. I can’t express enough the excitement we both have for the prospective future! If accepted, Coryn and I will serve side by side in ministry, just as we’ve always hoped.

So, with this new chapter in our lives, we’d like to ask you for two things…

First and foremost, Prayer! Pray for God’s continued covering in the adoption process. Pray for Daniel’s continued health and astonishing development. Pray for us as new, completely clueless, parents! Pray that we continue to put God at the center of our marriage through all this newness! Pray that God maintains His unexplainable provision for our new family as we continue to follow His path. And lastly, pray that we relentlessly open up our hearts and ears to the voice of God!

Secondly, and probably the hardest for us to verbalize is that of provision. Our family survives completely on our personal savings, which was only budgeted for one year, as well as the support of friends and family like you. We ask that each of you take a moment to evaluate both yours and our current situation. If you feel the work we’re doing here is of God and are able to commit to even the slightest amount to enable us to continue in it, please do so. Either way, we do really urge you to keep us in prayer constantly!

…and stay posted for the announcement of our hug n’ love trip home with Daniel in the coming months!!!

Thank you all for your continued love, prayer, and support!

~The Kisslings

If you’d like to unite with us in this undertaking you may send donations to 3012 Herrington Ave. San Bernardino, CA 92405 payable to Africa Renewal Ministries and include "the Kisslings" in the memo line.

Thank you Savior!

We just wanted to sincerely wish all our friends and family a very very merry Christmas. We especially want to thank God our father for the huge sacrifice he knowingly put into action on this day!

Tell someone you love them today and everyday after!

Don't let Christmas go back into hibernation at midnight!!!

...:::last two weeks = AWESOME:::...

A few months ago I was approached by Jeff Atherstone, the principal at Gaba Bible Institute (GBI), to join him and an American film crew in the creation of a handful of promo videos for ARM. I didn't really think much of it at the time, but have got to say that I feel so blessed to have gotten the chance to work on such a noteworthy project.

The First week had us all over Kampala shooting various projects and getting stories by the people affected by them and those affecting change. The stories have been so incredible and a true testament to what God's doing over here!
This week has taken the four of us, Jeff Atherstone, Jacob Lewis, Jeff Henson, and myself, to the North of the country. First Soroti, and then Lira. We've been documenting the struggles that Ugandan pastors face on a daily basis, and I gotta say it's really opened my eyes! It seems I've come so accustom to noticing the young and the sick, that I've never really thought about the welfare of the shepherds. It's really crazy to realize that almost every pastor here has had no training what so ever, and since their not really looked at as a big investment by their village, no one is willing to send them to bible school. Seems a bit strange but here's how it traditionally works;
A community will come together to fund a village member who shows a good amount of potential in the hope that that vary member will then return home and get a good paying job. That person is then expected to turn around and fund others in the community to enable them to achieve the same thing. The problem with this system is that most Ugandan's know that a full time pastor will most likely end up a poor man, making it less enticing to want to send them to school. It's a scary thing to think about since these figure heads are the ones looked to in times of crisis but will be the first to tell you how ill-equipped they are. 
That's why this week has been so great! Not only have I been able to work with an amazing group of guys on a fantastic team, but I've also grown in an understanding of what the church here really needs. Equipped Leaders!
I now want to ask you for two things...
First and foremost, PRAY!
Pray for the conditon of the church nt only here in Uganda, but at home and all over the world. Pray that God brings healing and colaberation to the many communities that are the church.
Secondly, I would ask that anyone who reads this will take a look at what GBI is doing and really consider how easy it could be for you to take part in the transformation!