Adoption workshop in Texas

For those of you in Texas that read my blog and might be interested in a great adoption seminar and workshop this is one to look into:


Adoption Ministry Mini-Workshop & Seminar
Connecting resources with East Texas churches
www.purereligionjames127.com
Pure Religion will host an event focused on better understanding the needs and processes involved with adoption, orphans and children living in the foster care system. This free mini-workshop/seminar is designed for enhancing the lives of these children through churches. Not everyone is equipped to foster/adopt, but everyone can help. The workshop will include complimentary coffee, snacks and literature.

Saturday, April 26th from 9:00am to 12:00 pm (We're anticipating 300 guests so come early for a good seat.)

Colonial Hills Baptist Church. 7330 S Broadway Ave, Tyler, TX 75703 (All denominations will be present.)

Michael & Amy Monroe, leaders of Tapestry at Irving Bible Church, will be leading the seminar. Their insight into an already successful church adoption ministry in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area is extraordinary. About Tapestry : "From the time this community began in 2000, we have focused on helping children and families as they travel the adoption or foster care journey. While all who have been touched by the miracle of adoption share a common bond, each journey is unique and presents its own joys and challenges" www.tapestry.irvingbible.org

Session A (9:30 to 10:45 pm):
Exploring the Possibilities - A Discussion About Domestic and International Adoption and Foster Care Ministry in Your Church. Facts, statistics, benefits & available resources. (Michael & Amy Monroe, Tapestry/Irving Bible Church) Designed as an interactive discussion about how some churches are living out God's heart for the fatherless in the adoption/foster care ministry areas.

Session B (11:00 to 11:50 pm):
Breakout B-1: What, Who, Where, When and How - Starting an Adoption/Orphan Care Ministry in Your Church ~Designed for churches that are just beginning to consider how to start a domestic or international ministry.
Breakout B-2: Practical Ideas and Resources for Adoption and Foster Care Ministry in Your Church (Michael & Amy Monroe, Tapestry) Designed for churches that are just beginning to start or have already begun an adoption or foster care ministry.

GRAND OPENING::::::

Pure Religion, JAMES 1:27 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.






A Project of East Texas Heart Gallery

Pure Religion, JAMES 1:27 will be on display marking the grand opening of this faith based recruitment effort. Heart Gallery has created a unique traveling exhibit that is designed explicitly for churches. Heart Gallery designs a maximum 3-week tour, a speaking schedule, materials for bulletins and/or hand-outs and a follow-up meeting for interested congregants specifically for each church. The ease and beauty of this exhibit make it the perfect system for a congregation to learn about the needs of these orphans. Pure Religion bookings will be taken at the workshop. (You do not have to start a ministry to book Pure Religion at your church.) www.PureReligionJames127.com

Available resources include: Many, many helpful volunteers, Azleway, Tapestry, Faith Connection, Mission Tyler, (CASA) Court Appointed Special Advocates, CPS Community Partners, Child Welfare Boards, Family Court Judges, United Way, Heart Gallery, Council on Adoptable Children, Foster Parent's Associations of East Texas, Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, Texas Baptist Home for Children and Forgotten Children's Orphan Ministries.

This will also be a great opportunity to meet and connect with resources as well as others in East Texas that are already involved in orphan ministry. Please e-mail the names, church/organization and your specific seminar interests to: PureReligion127@gmail.com or call 903-521-4570 (Denice Grugle) Invite anyone who would benefit.

Sandy Stuck & Denice Grugle - Volunteers

For those considering Adoption...

If any of you in the So. Cal area are interested in an adoption workshop the following may be of interest to you.

FamilyLife's If You Were Mine provides a relaxed, non-threatening environment where you can consider practical information about adoption from an objective and biblical point of view.

Find answers to questions such as:

* Is adoption for us?
* How does the adoption process work?
* How do we choose an agency that's right for us?
* Can I really love an adopted child?
* Can we afford adoption?

Join us Saturday, April 19, 2008, at Saddleback Church in Lake Forest, CA from 8:00 a.m. to 1 p.m. The cost of the workshop is $20 per person.

To register, go online now or call 1-800-FL-TODAY (1-800-358-6329).

An outstanding workshop for any couple considering adoption. FamilyLife's If You Were Mine adoption workshop offers practical, biblical information to help couples overcome the misconceptions and fears about adoption.
-- Steven Curtis Chapman, Christian Recording Artist

Special Guest speaker - JR Mahon

For those of you in town (or who would like to make a trip ;-), JR Mahon, will be speaking at Halogen this Sun. evening, Sept. 30th at 6pm. JR is the author of Starving Jesus and will be sharing his message at Halogen, "Love Everyone & Candy", which challenges people to foster, adopt, befriend, love and care for the American Orphan. Come on out this Sun. to hear JR's compelling message and his own story of adoption.
(Click on the Halogen website for address & directions- hope to see you there)
Also, Devin has JR on as a guest for the week on Real Fusion so check it out too!

Long Beach Press Telegram

The Fri. before I left for New Mexico I had a phone interview with staff writer, Adam Pringle, of the Long Beach Press Telegram. Here's a link to the article: Click here

The website is up!!

The Nat'l website is finally up and running...please take a look at it if you have time. I am excited to be a part of the festivities in Santa Fe, New Mexico this coming Aug 25-29th where I will be given time to address all the galleries from around the country. I'll also be participating in workshops to learn more about making our own gallery here in L.A. more successful as well as working alongside my sister to launch The Fresno Heart Gallery...Heart Gallery of America
Below is a video that uses photos from our heart galleries to give you an idea of the impact a picture can have...

Launching Heart Gallery of America!

I write this with such excitement as I just received an email from the founder of Heart Gallery herself, Diane Granito. The Los Angeles Heart Gallery has been working with Diane to have a Natl Heart Gallery that could be the main umbrella over all 80+ other heart galleries out there nationally. The movement spread so quickly after the first heart gallery received natl media attention that local galleries got up and running before a Natl one was established. I'm so honored that our own local Heart Gallery will be at the heart and soul of launching "Heart Gallery of America". We are in the planning stages of fundraising not just for our own gallery but the Natl one as well and should expect Nov. (Natl Adoption Awareness Month) to be the anticipated date of the gallery. What exciting news!! To top it all off, Victoria Rowell (an actress on the Young & the Restless, also a former Cosby child star is on board...she was in foster care for the first 18 years of her life so she has an amazing story). I look forward to updating you all on more info to come!
Below is the email I received....

Hi Matthew and LA's Heart Gallery,

This is an e-troduction regarding possible future collaboration with the Heart Gallery of Los Angeles and Matthew Straeb, myself and other Heart Gallery of America board members and supporters, re the initial fundraiser for Heart Gallery of America and how we could possibly tie this in with and benefit the Los Angeles area's next opening. Matthew will be in Los Angeles in the near future and would love to meet with you all about this.....it would be great to set up a conference call to discuss this. We have a commitment from Young and Restless star Victoria Rowell to work with us on this. It is in the very early stages, obviously!

Matthew, here is the contact information for the LA movers and shakers. Hope to hear from all of you soon.....and thank you!

California - Los Angeles

www.heartgalleryla.org

Jim Nicolay, President
(jnicolay@msn.com)

Arri Weeks, VP/Portrait Coordinator
(arriweeks@gmail.com)

Jena Ritchie, Treasurer/Internet Coordinator (jena@annabellaimagery.com)

Rebekah Negrete, Secretary
(kelneg@sbcglobal.net)

Sari Grant, DCFS Program Administrator, Director (gransa@dcfs.co.la.ca.us)

3017 Mineral Wells Drive

Simi Valley, CA 93063

805-583-9482


Diane Granito
Heart Gallery(tm) Founder
Statewide Special Events Co-ordinator
New Mexico Children, Youth & Families Department
Protective Services Division
PO Drawer 5160
Santa Fe, New Mexico 87502
Phone 505-476-1045

Light & Life 1st Annual Heart Gallery

I can hardly believe how fast time flies! It seems like only days ago that I suggested Halogen sponsor a Heart Gallery event and now it's already here and gone. The event was even more than I had expected. I had a wonderful troupe of friends that helped me set up the sat. before...thank you to my faithful friends, Jason & Traci, Izzy & Audrey, and my incredible husband Greg who supports me 100% in whatever I do. Fawnda, from DCFS (Dept. of children and family services) came that evening to help set up as well, thank you Fawnda for all your hard work too! Sunday morning Larry let me address the congregation on the importance of being involved in some capacity with the foster children in our own community. In the Lakewood/Long Beach area alone, there are at least 800 foster children waiting to be adopted! After speaking at both services I had a booth out front to answer questions and take sign ups for those interested in doing more. We had 47 names on that list by the end of the morning and several families were interested in specific children in the gallery. My next step is coordinating an informative class at the church where these interested families can come for more information and get signed up officially to start the paperwork in getting them approved to be host families, foster families, tutors & mentors, and some signed up to be a part of remembering the birthday's of foster children. The day continued with a special service at Halogen's evening service. Johnston Moore, a foster adoption advocate from His Children Inc., came as our special guest speaker and gave a compelling testimony of his own family (they have five children - three they adopted from foster care & two they are fostering that are in the process of being adopted) They were so inspirational and challenged the church on what they are doing to take care of the orphans. Devin followed up with a compelling message that also tied into the need for us to care for these children. During slow worship the church was asked to go around the sanctuary and read the children's biographies and look at their pictures and even more importantly, to pray for each one specifically that they would be placed in a loving family. I want to thank all of you who played a part in making LLCF Heart Gallery a hit, I can't wait to put it on again next year and bring even more attention to the need of our Foster children and what the church specifically can do to make a difference.

Heart Gallery May 3rd

Light & Life Christian Fellowship is hosting the Los Angeles Heart Gallery this Sun. evening at the Halogen service 6 p.m. at 5951 Downey Ave, Long Beach. If you can't make it for this special service you can view the portraits at the 9 a.m/11 a.m. services.

May is the National Foster Care Month - so come on out to learn more about what you can do to make a difference in a young person's life!

When love takes you in

10 Ways Every Christian Can Care for the Orphan

1. Give Them What They Need

If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and be filled," and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? James 2:15-16


2. Support Those Who Support Them

And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds . . . Hebrews 10:24


3. Provide Them a Safe Place

The Lord protects the strangers; He supports the fatherless and the widow, But He thwarts the way of the wicked. Psalm 146:9


4. Go Visit Them

Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. James 1:27


5. Give Sacrificially to Them

Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. II Corinthians 9:7


6. Cheer Them On

We urge you, brethren, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone. I Thessalonians 5:14


7. Plead with the Father for Them

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8


8. Speak Up For Them

Open your mouth for the mute, For the rights of all the unfortunate. Open your mouth, judge righteously, And defend the rights of the afflicted and needy. Proverbs 31:8-9


9. Give Them a Forever Family

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families . . . Psalm 68:5-6a (NIV)


10. Mobilize Your Church for Them

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you. . . Matthew 28:18-20