One Year Later

One year later and we have so much to be thankful for.  We don't have new information to share but I want to share how the Lord has blessed us this past year as we wait for our daughter.  James recently wrote the following article for our Orphan Ministry newsletter at church. 

Adoption isn’t Easy

12 months have gone by since we submitted our application to our adoption agency to begin our journey to our daughter.  The past year has been filled with paperwork, fundraising, waiting, praying, and a growing desire to bring our little girl home.  It has been busy and hectic at times and dreadfully uneventful at others.   I wish I could say that we have possessed nothing but good attitudes and patience throughout this past year, but the reality of adoption is that it isn’t easy.  I wish it were.  I wish if a loving family wanted to adopt a waiting child that is longing for a forever family it would be a simple process.  As I reflect over these last months; however, I sense that God has been using this time to prepare us to bring our girl home.  He has been growing and maturing us.

If adoption were easy, I’m sure I would be missing the truth of how special adoption is.   It is too easy to depend on ourselves when something is easy.  This adoption has taught us to depend on God for many things.  When we started, there was a mountain of money required for the process.  We didn’t have it, but God did.  It is 12 months later and we have all the money we need to get our girl.  When we started, we didn’t realize how much our family and our little girl are loved by our friends and family.  It is 12 months later and I’m still amazed at the generosity and support that has come from the special people in our life.  When we started, we thought we’d be able to control the process more.  It is 12 months later, and we realize how much God is orchestrating to bring us to the right time and to the right place to meet our little girl who He has chosen.  If we had been able to get our girl 12 months ago I think we would have missed out on knowing and loving our precious Father so much better.

God never tells us things will be easy if we just believe in Him.  I actually believe He wants areas of life to be difficult.  He wants some things to be beyond us and our power.  When we encounter those hard areas of life that we can’t do in our own strength, then He gets to work at full force.  We are left to stand back and marvel at how only God could have accomplished such an amazing feat.  God uses these hard areas of life to teach us how amazing He is.

So, its 12 months later and we still don’t know our little girl’s name or when we’ll bring her home.  I’m sure we’ll still be battling impatience and frustration in the days to come just like we have over the last year.  I’m sure we’ll have our moments of trying to control things and do it our way.   It won’t be easy.  Even after we bring our girl home, things will be hard, but that’s ok.  By depending on God, we’ll get to stand back and marvel at how He takes care of the hard stuff.