It's not about us!

Ok it's been a bit of a delay in posting again. A lot has happened since my last post. We're just in the beginning of our adoption process & have already had several ups & downs!!!

We had chosen our agency, West Sands, and were ready to send in our applications & first fee when we were advised we may not be accepted due to health issues. This was devastating! We have to wait until our home study is complete to see what that says & if they believe we will be accepted. I don't know if this is an agency specific rule or Ethiopia. Of course God has a plan & KNOWS we are to adopt but maybe it's just to teach us patience or maybe we are to adopt with another agency and/or country. We mailed in our home study application & forms & are hoping to get started very soon so we can figure out what's going on.

Also in the last week we have decided that God is calling us NOT to adopt a “perfectly healthy” child but a child with a minor physical need. We don't know what that is yet. Maybe missing a finger, an arm, cleft lip, etc. We don't know what he has in store for us at this point. We were going to sit on a long waiting list for a “healthy” child which after thinking seemed counter-productive for us. Our goal was to adopt a child in need. Not that there is anything wrong with adopting a healthy child, I am not saying that at all but for US it didn't seem right. There are so many orphans out there with even minor issues that need a family & by asking for a “healthy” child they will be overlooked. This adoption is NOT about us & that is kind of how it was starting out even though I didn't want to admit it. I have also given up the idea of ONLY adopting a girl. Although at some time I do want to adopt a girl, that may not be God's plan right now. We may adopt an infant off of a waiting child list or may go through a regular program specifically requesting a “special needs” infant. You can specifically note which issues you are open to. “Special Needs” in international adoption is not what we consider special needs in America. A child could be missing a finger & considered special needs. We are in the process of researching different issues to see what we can physically & financially handle. Please be in prayer for us to be open to God speaking to us & making this clear. I know that God has the right child picked out for us already & knows what we can handle.

We also need to get started on collecting donations & fundraising. Once our home study is done & we decide on a child or agency, we will need at least $6,000 right away before we can start on any of the paperwork. This means we need to start collecting & fundraising now. If you have any fundraising ideas please let us know. What fundraisers would you support? We do have a coffee fundraiser set up already, check out our fundraising tab. We also will need direct financial donations to offset the approx $30,000 it will cost to complete this adoption. If you are feeling led to support us financially please contact us. I hate asking for money but I know that God will provide whether through direct donations, fundraisers or grants. This is HIS plan for our family so he will provide.

Thanks for all of your prayers & keep them coming! We have a long journey ahead of us. Be praying for our child wherever they are that God will protect them until we can come get them. Also be praying for their birth parents as I'm sure this is not easy for them either.