Sixteen

What were you doing when you were looking forward to your sixteenth birthday? 

It is such an exciting time of life; you were probably in the middle of high school, learning to drive, enjoying the opportunities that came to you.

I was raised by awesome parents who made sure that I had good opportunities... As I looked forward to my sixteenth birthday, I had so much to enjoy. I played the harp in the local youth symphony. I entered music competitions. I was preparing for an orchestra trip to China.

I also met my husband the summer before I turned sixteen, and spent the next three years becoming best friends with him before our marriage when I was nineteen.

Turning sixteen was one of those exciting, magical things that I looked forward to so much.

Not every teenager looks forward to their sixteenth birthday, though.

http://reecesrainbow.org/59838/ally

Ally turns sixteen in August.

When she turns sixteen, there won't be a big party. She won't be starting on a lifetime of opportunities and success.

When she turns sixteen, her chances of being adopted are OVER. That is it. All she has to look forward to is being rejected in her own country.

Because her birthday is SO soon, somebody needs to move fast. Someone needs to have their home study done and be ready to hustle.

Would you pray with me that she would get the best sixteenth birthday present ever? Would you pray that she gets to know the love of mom and dad? Would you pray that she does indeed get the lifetime of opportunities that most of us enjoy (and that I often take for granted)?

She isn't the only one aging out. Go to Reece's Rainbow, look at the older children, and pray! They need homes just as much as the little ones.