Family is a Blessing

A couple of weeks ago, I was showing Avery a world map that we have posted up in our laundry room. She was excited to see all the countries but wanted to see where Oregon was in comparison to China. I started to point out where the bodies of water were in comparison to the countries, and then drew a line with my finger from Oregon to China. She wanted to know if we could drive there, and I reminded her that a large body of water separates the two, so we'd have to fly.

So, she thought about that and then began to use her finger to draw a line between the two. As she did that, she remembered she would have to fly in a plane to reach China, so she began to build a little arch into her finger drawing.

That night at dinner, Avery burst out with an "aha" moment she'd had from our earlier time together looking at the map. She exclaimed, "mom, if you draw your finger from our house to China, it makes a rainbow".

With tears in my eyes, I looked at her and told her how her words had just blessed my heart. She had no idea the power of the words that she used but oh my, it blessed my soul. And you know what, she's right. A rainbow.

A rainbow, a promise and sign from above......and we hold tight in our belief that our precious promise is waiting for us on the other side of the rainbow.

My cup runneth over.........oh, how my heart swells with joy to think about our rainbow of love.

It's cold outside today. The blustery rain has continued to beat down on the pavement, on our cars and on all the miscellaneous toys scattered around the yard. Pumpkins are carved, and Halloween decor is up. It's the beginning of the "crazed" holiday season, and I am already playing Christmas music. This is always a most favorite time of year for me, however this year, it's even more meaningful to not only me, but our whole family, as we embark on a life-changing "calling"....our journey to adoption.

Many years ago, when I was an early teen, I remember hearing about a "growing need" for adoption, specifically in China. At that time, there were countless baby girls being abandoned and/or orphaned, which caused a "cry" around the world to save these precious girls. Was this my calling? Was this something God had planned for my life? I didn't know. However, as time passed, the Holy Spirit continued to burden my heart for adoption, even though I had no idea when or how it would happen. The burden turned to longing and the longing turned to passion....and it was this passion that spurred my heart to pray for God's discernment and direction. I knew the Lord was calling me on an amazing journey. I felt like He'd given me the globe but without any directions or legend on how to reach my destination. All I knew deep in my soul, was that I needed to trust, and as great as our God is, He would provide the answer, in HIS timing.

Years later, I met a handsome man at church, who has forever changed my life. The love of my life and my soul mate, Chris. I remember on our second date, discussing children and how many we wanted to have (wishful thinking). When he asked me how many I hoped to have, I told him I wasn't sure. Perhaps two or three but I've always had a heart for adoption, and I asked him about his thoughts on that topic.

Chris was a bit taken aback I guess, as he'd never considered adoption. Not because he didn't support the idea or understand that we are all adopted as sons/daughters into God's kingdom, rather he had a negative association with it due to his family's experience with a couple of neighbors boys that had been adopted. Although their experience was "the exception", and not the rule, the lasting impressions that were left on Chris's heart were anything but loving. As Chris got older, he heard of many wonderful adoption stories but the events of the past were still haunting. So when I asked him about his ideas on adoption, he said that he had never considered the possibility, and the Lord would have to grow that desire in his heart for that to be the right decision.

God delights for us to bask in his presence and be in communion with Him. God desires to see our joy complete in Him (John 16:24). The more often we are in communion with God, the more aligned to His will we become (John 15:7). There is nothing to big or small for our amazing and loving Heavenly Father to help us with, or accomplish in our lives. He is not only our God, he is our friend. He wants the best for us and promises to live that out through our lives, if we are willing, until the day He calls us home (Phil 1:6).

After our memorable and very fun second date, I knew that if this was the man that God had ordained for my life, then I could not worry about what the future held or how adoption would fit in. I also knew that there are no accidents with God, and although the road signs ahead were blurry, God knew where Chris and I were headed and my trust in HIM outweighed everything else. So I simply prayed. "God, if it is your will, please do a mighty work in Chris's heart AND if it isn't your will, please take this desire from me, even though I feel it is from you." This prayer was prayed for 7 years........until one day, God began unfolding his plan.

It was the summer of 2008, and we had just experienced our 2nd miscarriage. God was so gracious in wrapping His arms around us during that time, and although our loss pales in comparison to the losses some close to us have experienced, God knew our pain and the grief that followed. What I didn't see at the time, was that God was beginning a work in Chris, to open his heart to adoption for our family.

Over the coming months we began researching several adoption agencies to learn more and we began to pray that if this was God's will, that He would give us the peace to begin within six months. Much to our surprise, we found out we would soon be expecting our son, Benjamin. Although this was incredibly wonderful news, we both had to reboot our way of thinking, as God obviously had different plans for us, at this specific time.

Was this the end of our adoption story? Were we in fact not being called on this journey after all? Had I completely misunderstood God's calling all those years ago? Of course not. God doesn't calls us down a road without giving us the strength to accomplish His will. However, He does expect His servants to trust and obey with a full and steadfast heart. This wasn't the end of our adoption story, it was only the beginning. ;-)

Both Chris and I are eternally thankful for the healthy children we have been blessed with, and realize what an amazing gift they are from the Lord. However, we've known for some time that our family isn't complete, and our "call" to adoption has continued to burn inside us both. We knew the time was coming......we just didn't know when.

It's now October 2012 (4 + years later), and we have heard His call like a resounding gong in our souls. "Come my children, it's time". Thank you Jesus!

With overflowing hearts of love and inexpressable joy, our family, in faith, has begun our adoption journey. There are so many details that could be shared about why we have made the choices we have as it relates to: age, gender, country, agency, etc. but the most important is that God's handprints have been a part of our story from the beginning, and He is the one that has led us to where we are today.

The Lord has called us to International Adoption and we have begun a relationship with Bethany Christian Services. We feel the Lord is calling us to a little boy (age 0-2), with a minor corrective need (referred to as a Waiting Child or WC) from China. A minor corrective need can be a whole host of things but some examples include: a club foot/hand or cleft lip/pallette.

We have already been assigned our China team and next up, we begin our Home Study.
Our understanding is that the documentation required by China is extensive, and can take anywhere from 3-6 months to complete. However, once our dossier is logged in with the Chinese government, we have up to a 13 month wait to bring home our little boy.

Although we know the road ahead is uncertain, we are walking in faith that some day soon, we will be united with our precious promise and gift from above. Nothing is for certain in life, and adoption is no different. We've heard so many beautiful stories of adoption from friends and those that have been touched by adoption over the years. With that though, we have heard tough stories too. We are not naive to believe that we will escape hiccups along the way, however we are so hopeful that we are answering a very specific call for our family, and trust God is capable to work out the details which we may or may not be privy to.

There is no shortage of tears in our house as we wait but we are full of peace and joy that only our Heavenly Father can give. We know that every journey in life is different, and we are all not called to the same passions, however we are all called to live out God's purposes for our lives....and we delight in seeing His plan for our lives revealed.

With love and adoration for our Lord Jesus Christ,
Chris & Jenn