My Heart's Desire this Christmas

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

Our family enjoyed an un-stressful, un-eventful Christmas today and for that I am thankful.  I truly mean that.  No presents had to be pre or post assembled.  No worries about not having the right size batteries.  Thanks to a generous gift certificate to Honey Baked Ham, I hardly had to do any cooking. 

Our day starts with the usual Christmas traditions I grew up with.  Once everyone is awake, and surprisingly teen age boys can wake up early at least once a year, we pass out the stockings.  Just enough of a Christmas treat to keep everyone occupied until we finish breakfast.  We gather on the couch and read the Christmas story together and pause to remember why we celebrate this day.

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David,

a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." 

Then the presents! We try to prolong the day as much a possible by only allowing one person to open a gift at a time and everyone watches and ooohs and ahhs over their new treasure.  Today was no different.  As the wrapping was ripped off and the surprised faces were caught on camera and posted to social media we laughed and enjoyed the splendor of the morning. 

Today, though, my heart didn't swell with the usual fulfilled feeling that Christmas brings.  Instead, I found my thoughts drifting to a face I have never seen and a place I have never been.  I  found myself wondering if the little girl God has chosen for us had presents to unwrap or a camera anxiously awaiting to capture her precious smile. Was their a hot meal to warm her little belly? Did anyone tell her the true meaning of Christmas?  Did anyone hear her hearts desire for a family to love her forever?  
Among the hardest parts of being a "waiting" adoptive mother is that you do not have a due date to look forward to! We continually are asked by friends and family if there any updates or new news and we repeatedly smile and say "We're waiting".  My heart aches every time I say those words. 

Praying for our little girl that this is her last Christmas to be with out her forever family.  Praying, believing God to bring her home in 2014. 

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

I Sure Could Use a Little Good News Today

Without much news to share, we haven't been diligent at updating our blog.  After 19 months of "being in the process" all we can say with certainty is that we are waiting.   Waiting on a foreign government to put the needs of orphaned boys and girls as a priority and work quickly to match them with forever families......families who are waiting with anxious and longing hearts to see their faces and hold them in their arms. 
We've been told that the matching process could take up to 2 years and we have officially only been in the Bulgarian system for 9 months.  Our wait could still be a while longer. 


God has been faithful to us in the waiting.  We have been able to build a house that allows her and our boys to have a room of there own. Her room is almost ready and is just missing the little girl who will call it home. 

 

 

While we continue to wait on God's timing, we've been able to see how the process is molding our family, both immediate and extended, into the family who will love her as our own.  I am confident that when the wait is over, it will have been worth every month, day, hour spent longing for a little girl whose face we have yet to see. 

 

To those using our Amazon and Just Love Coffee links - Thank you! To those who pray for our family - Thank You!    We are grateful for your support. 

 



HOPE

Hope

noun A feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen. "Hope" is seen 130 times in the King James Version of the Bible Job 11:18 And thou shalt be secure, because there is hope; Ps 33:18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his mercy; Ps 33:22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hope in thee. Ps 38:15 For in thee, O LORD, do I hope: thou wilt hear, O Lord my God. Ps 39:7 And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee La 3:26 It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation of the LORD Ac 2:26 Therefore did my heart rejoice, and my tongue was glad; moreover also my flesh shall rest in hope: Ro 8:25 But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it Why all the fascination with HOPE?  Yesterday, we recieved a letter in the mail that we had been awarded a grant from Show Hope, an organization that raises and distributes money to families who are adopting.  We had applied for this grant back in December of 2012 and quite honestly, had forgotten.  Atleast it wasn't on our immediate radar.  We are overwhelmed with joy and gratitude at the many ways God chooses to bless this adoption and remind us that when He calls us to something, He WILL provide a way for it to be accomplished.  As I have thought about it today, it brought me to wonder about HOPE.  What is HOPE?  What does the Bible say about HOPE? Clearly, God's word has much to say about HOPE.  HOPE misplaced can lead to failure.  HOPE correctly placed in God will lead to blessing. Our HOPE is that God will use our family to bring HOPE to one little girl.  Our HOPE is that God will use our faithfulness to His calling in our lives to cause others to be open what God has for them.  Our HOPE is to see every boy or girl without a forever family placed in loving home.  Our HOPE is to be able to be a blessing to other adoptive families and help them on their journey.  Our HOPE is that God would be glorified in all that we say and do.  Because of Christ, we HOPE.

When THANK YOU Doesn't Seem To Be Enough

After several months of chasing paperwork, we've had a chance to catch our breath and review what the last several months have required of us, emotionally, financially and spiritually. 

Emotionally, it's been a roller coaster of ups and downs.  Overwhelming excitement prevailed at times, when we didn't think we could wait another day to finally see the face of the daughter we would call our own.  At times, we just felt like robots, only going through the motions of what was asked of us.  Then there were times where we were fearful and stressed. Could we really do this?

While reviewing the financial side, I was overwhelmed with gratitude as I realized how much we've been blessed by YOU, our friends and family.  Since beginning this process in April of 2012, we've paid out $12, 940 in adoption related expenses.  If you looked at our personal bank account, you would immediately notice, that we didn't have anywhere near that amount of money "saved" for this adventure.  In fact, when we submitted to what we felt God was asking of us, we didn't have any savings set aside, ear-marked, specifically for this adoption. 

So, how did we manage to be able to pay nearly thirteen-thousand dollars, in the last 9 months.  Well, I was wondering that too.  We've done an adequate job of keeping records of receipts and expenses and this is what we noticed:

DONATIONS: To date, we have received almost $3000 in cash donations from friends and family. Time after time, we found a check in the mailbox or someone would hand us an envelope in passing. We've saved every note or letter and intend to make them part of her Lifebook.

 

James 2:14-17  "What good is it my brothers if someone says he has faith, but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food and one of you says to them, Go in peace, be warmed and filled, without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself without works, is dead."

    

FUNDRAISERS: Thanks to the help of friends and families, $1000 has been raised so far. This has been done through a garage sale, our ongoing Just Love Coffee and Amazon links and a Tupperware sale.

 

PERSONAL SAVINGS:  As I said before, we did not have a savings account set aside with hundreds or thousands of dollars. God has shown up time after time, just in time, to provide exactly we've needed. Some of this came from income tax returns, some from a company stock owed to us from a previous employer, some even came from an overpayment to a chiropractor from two years ago.  God continues to work in ways beyond our comprehension.

 

Phillipians 4:19-20 "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen."

 



We continue to be shaped spiritually by the testing of our faith and trust in a God who is more than deserving of all our worship and praise. 

For now, all of our expenses are paid!  We are now saving for the next big fee - our international agency fee, which will be due when we accept a referral.  We have two grant applications waiting to be approved.  One of those applications is scheduled to be reviewed in March, the other in April.  We are trusting God that He will provide through those as He desires. 

Thank you for being a important part in changing the life of one little girl, half a world way.  Because of your love for our family, she will one day know the love of a Forever family! 

Thank you, just doesn't seem enough.