Growth...of our family...in our walk with Christ...in all things to worship HIM!

Friday, August 24, 2012

Back in line!!!

We have been waiting...
waiting for news, waiting for a birth certificate, waiting for God to move mountains...

I have been asked if I have learned patience yet.  I am not sure I know the answer to that one.  

I can tell you that it has been painful waiting. 

It has been prayerful waiting.

I am not sure it has been patient waiting. 

BUT.....TODAY...another obstacle was moved!!!

I love it when we cry out to God in a certain situation, and then HE answers our prays in ways we do not understand.  It takes the human factor out of things and clearly shows that it is ALL HIM!!  

We learned this morning that the passport agency of the Philippines will issue a passport in the name of "baby boy"!!!  


Because of this our dossier will be put back in line to be presented to the ICAB for referral!!!!!!  

How is it that it can be done now and it couldn't in March when we learned that Aaron could not be hosted??? Or why not all those months in-between?  

My answer is so very simple....BUT GOD!!!   

He has a plan and purpose for our son, and our family as a whole.  

HIS timing is perfect!

HIS ways are perfect!!

HIS plan is perfect!!!

There is a LITTLE part of this story that makes it all so much sweeter!!!  

After telling me the fabulous news this morning, and hearing a very loud squeal in her ear, the fabulous gal from our agency went on to tell me more.

She told me that earlier this week they learned that we would not be able to get Aaron's corrected birth certificate until DECEMBER!!! 

If that happened, we would then have to go back in line for a referral (which could take weeks to months considering how the ICAB is already backed up and the fact that government offices are closed most of December)...then we would have had to wait the three months it usually takes to get visa approval to travel.  

All that to say...it could have been spring or summer of next year before we traveled for our son!!!!!!!!  

So you see...this new turn of events is nothing short of God's gracious answer to many prayers from those around the world specifically praying for our Aaron!!

I do hope that one day God will reveal the reason we needed to wait longer.  I love looking back and seeing his sovereign hand in our lives!!!

But until then...we will shout out his faithfulness from the rooftops!!!

I have been working on some new children's worship the last few weeks...one of my new favorites completely expresses how I feel today:)

Have a listen...


Finding our groove

We have not fallen off the face of the earth...
just spinning to find our way back to some sort of normal schedule.  

School began Tuesday and we are finding our groove!!

Some of us get very cozy during essay writing

Some of us were rockin' out the vocab 

But all of us were super excited for a special worship night at our church with Kari Jobe!!!!!!!
(yep, she is the gal I pretend to sing like in the shower...shh don't tell)

Our church was PACKED OUT!!

But we were so very blessed to worship with her from this distance

Kari does not do performances...

She engages in authentic worship and pours her heart out to the Lord.
What an evening of total peace and surrender!!

I spent the evening and into the night crying out to God concerning our adoption delays!!!  

Stay tuned...I cannot wait to share how God is movin' and shakin' on sweet Aaron's behalf!!


Thursday, August 16, 2012

Wearing a Crown...

As the day approached anxiety ran high for one crowning princess.  

The closer we got to the date, the more she questioned wearing a crown.
  
After years of diligent work she wavered in finishing the very last small assignment.  

You see, the enemy of her soul did not want her to take a stand for Jesus.  
he didn't want to see her honored for the things of Christ, 
nor feel beautiful as a princess....daughter of the most high God.

She overcame the temptation to quit and completed the last assignment.  

Then the ugly nothings that were whispered in her mind questioned her beauty, 
her ability to be loved and accepted.  

She is a gorgeous young lady who was created by the one true God 
to do great things for HIS kingdom!  
She is treasured, she is valued, she is loved, and she is wanted.  

But somehow those ugly whispers rang stronger than our words of affirmation.

Somehow she believed that if she could just change her appearance,
THEN she would be seen as beautiful and worthy of a crown.  

But the tempter is a snake...a liar...a thief.  
His goal is to rob, steal, and destroy.  

Once we step over the line to listen to the whisper, he screams words of condemnation...
that we are not worthy, that we will never amount to anything, 
that no one will want us because of the ugly of our sin...

The truth is...we are ALL sinners, saved by grace!  
All sin is ugly...but Christ trades beauty for our Ashes.  

So in Christ's strength...our baby girl put satan under her feet...and a crown she wore!

She was honored for the work she accomplished,

but more importantly she boldly took a stand for Christ!!


She stood with seven of her peers 

Was reminded that God made her beautiful, and HE longs for us to see what HE sees....

I pray that the truth of this special event resonates in my sweet girl's heart.  

She is a beautiful princess...daughter of the the Most High God!!!

She has beautiful wrapping paper, but her true beauty is on the inside!!  

May she shine like the stars of the universe for HIM all the days of her life.  
May she find her identity and worth in the ONE that created her for HIS special plan and purpose!!
May she walk BOLDLY for JESUS, putting satan under her feet, all the days of her life.  


Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.  Proverbs 31:30


















Wednesday, August 1, 2012

choosing to rejoice...a different part 3

Well friends...I have been gearing up to write Rejoicing part three (a referral for Aaron)!!

We received a verbal approval of our  I-800A (US immigration clearance) on July 16th 
and got the hard copy in the mail on July 21st.  

The social workers present dossiers to the ICAB (Inter Country Adoption Board) on Fridays.  
So we waited anxiously to hear if we were approved for our Referral on July 27th or if they will present us on August 3rd.  

Today I received a conference call from the director of our agency and our agency contact for Philippines adoptions.  

I was SURE they were calling to tell me that we have a referral!!!!

Instead, they called to say that we still do not have a birth certificate for Aaron.  (remember that this was what prevented us from bringing Aaron home for the summer hosting program)

We do not know where things are in the process or how long it might take to get it.  Unfortunately it appears that the ICAB will not give us a referral without the appropriate birth certificate.  

We have had so many opportunities to see where our hope rests throughout this journey.  

We have told Christ that we will praise him when things go well, and when they do not!

So, I am once again humbled and reminded that the timing...and the journey as a whole is not mine:)

My mama's heart is having a hard time today with this setback.  
The enemy of my soul wants to discourage..whisper ugly nothings in my ear that once again we will not be getting the littles that our heart longs for.

But I am choosing to walk in truth and rest in the knowledge that our God is greater than this problem!!! 

 God is MY refuge and Strength, and ever-present help in trouble!! (Psalm 46:1)

  "Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress;
my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief...

But  I trust in you, Lord; 
I say, "you are my God."  
My times are in your hands...

Love the Lord, all his faithful people!  
The Lord preservers those who are true to him, but the proud he pays back in full.  
Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord." (from Psalm 31)

Once again I am reminded how very easy it is to rejoice in the Lord when all is well, when we get what we want, when our hopes and dreams all fall into place the way we plan.  But we are not to stop rejoicing when things look bleak, when there is a setback.  

"Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.  Let perseverance finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."  (James:2-4)

So today, I rejoice...
I rejoice in the fact that I am loved by a heavenly father who gave HIS SON to pay for my sins

I rejoice that the enemy sees us as a threat for the kingdom of God

I rejoice that God has blessed me with a fabulous family

I rejoice that HE has hand picked Aaron for our family and in HIS time our sweet boy will come home

I rejoice that through this journey HE has given us a heart for littles around the world that are in need of love and a family

I rejoice that HE knows my heart even when I cannot articulate what is held there

I rejoice in our journey knowing that this setback is so little in the big picture of 
ALL GOD PLANS TO DO IN AND THROUGH US