(Written Oct. 30)
In the Summer of 2000 Joel boarded a
plane for his very first trip to China. Many of you that knew us
then probably still remember a lot from that time. Joel and I were
dating and I was committed to praying for him daily. After his
return there were 2 things that he told me: 1. He knew he was
supposed to live in China one day. 2. He wanted to adopt in the future.
He had spent some time visiting and
loving on the orphans while he was there, and there was one child in
particular that was very difficult to leave behind. When Joel told
me about his experience there was no hesitation in my thoughts, “I
think that would be awesome to adopt!”
From that time on those two thoughts
were always in the back of our minds.
We married in the Fall of 2002 and
started working in Memphis. Our first son Isaac was born in 2004,
and we quickly began planning the birth of our second who was born in
2006—a girl, Autumn. After the birth of Autumn we began finishing
up our roles in Memphis and we finally made the move to China in
2007!
We both really wanted another baby and
in 2009 I found out that I was pregnant again but this time with the
bad news that something was terribly wrong. Honestly I held out hope
and did a lot of praying, but we never saw the face of that sweet
little one. After some much needed healing, we wanted to try again,
but month after month I discovered that it just wasn't happening.
In the early months of 2013 we started
talking more about adoption. Maybe it was God's timing—especially
since it seemed like the door had been closed to have another
biological child. We met with others who had adopted and we talked
with some counselors, and then we committed to pray for 30 days
before we started any of the paperwork.
During that time, God did nothing but
confirm to me that HE did indeed want us to adopt. I began doing
some research while we were praying. I also downloaded some of the
forms to fill out, but I never started any of the process. I was
very committed to following through with our month of prayer. Every
day God was confirming to me more and more—I had no doubts!
Towards the end of that time I started
feeling very emotional and yes, you guessed it. I was pregnant!
Excited as I was, there were also a lot of other thoughts in my
head... “What about the adoption?” “How do I know this baby is
ok?” “What if....” God continued to confirm to me even
through my doubts that He was giving me another child and that He
still wanted us to adopt!
11 months ago today we welcomed Stephen
Josiah into our family, and he is a huge blessing from the Lord. We
love him and and are so thankful for him! God heard my many cries,
and when I least expected it He surprised me with amazing news—that
I was going to have another baby. He loves me!!! I love Him, and I
love His surprise!!!
“I already have 3 kids; people are
going to think I am crazy to adopt a 4th.” I have
thought this so many times—you have no idea. However the truth
remains. We are both very sure that God has asked us to adopt—even
while those around us WILL think it is crazy.
We have started the adoption process.
We don't know any specifics right now. We hope to adopt from China
but it will all depend on whether or not we qualify to adopt from
here. If not, I know that God already knows—even down to how many
hairs are on that sweet child's head. The process will take about a
year from everything that we have heard—could be longer.
We covet your prayers during this time.
- First, that God will protect our child. That He will provide love and care for this sweet child who may already be living somewhere in this world.
- Second, that God will protect our family. Please pray that God will strengthen the bond of our family and that when people look at us they will see a reflection of Christ's love.
- Third, that God will guide this whole process—every aspect. Please pray that when we look back on this process we all would be able to point to God's hand over the entire thing!
We will share with you more as we find
out more. We are so excited to see what God is going to do in and
through our family.
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