the completed miracle

Our journey to SarahJoy is coming closer and closer to its culmination and she is becoming more and more a part of our lives. It is hard to believe that we are just a few months away from holding her in our arms and bringing her home!!!

So what’s next? We are waiting for a Letter of Approval from the Chinese government which will give us a better idea of when we will travel. We continue to pray that we could bring her home before Christmas! In the meantime we are gearing up for another child and continuing to pray for our miracle, that God would provide 100% for our journey.

I think it is safe to say that we are a bundle of emotions. Our hearts are full as we can now look at our little girl and imagine her home. The miracle of adoption is at work - I can see that sweet face and love her to pieces and know that she is mine. If I am honest, I am also freaking out. Not sure what five kids are going to look like. I do know that oftentimes four kids looks a little out of control! (How often do children need a bath??? Do they really need three meals a day??? And besides, shoes are completely overrated.)

And well, if I am brutally honest, I am beyond weary. We have been on this journey for the last 9 months. And we have been pleading with God to provide. He has done miraculous things – crazy generous gifts to our family, people I don’t even know giving us money, anonymous piles of cash left on Eric’s desk. It really is truly miraculous. And yet, it is not yet the completed miracle we are praying for. We still need a bit over $6000. I had (unwisely) set my hopes on receiving a couple of grants and those doors have almost completely closed. So I am just tired. I am tired of waiting on God. I am tired of relying on others. I am tired of asking people to give or to participate in a fundraiser. It is so not a comfortable place to be. It is humbling (dare I say, humiliating?), it is exhausting, it is frustrating.

So there’s the ugly. I am still holding the banner high that God is going to provide and he is going to use SarahJoy’s story to encourage and empower other families to take the leap of faith into international adoption. But my shoulders are burning and my hands are shaking and everything in me wants to let that banner fall.

So as you pray for our family, please pray for strength to keep pleading with God for his provisions. We have no doubt there is a spiritual battle going on. SarahJoy’s story has the potential to shout God’s name to a lot of people and we know there are powers working against that. Please pray against discouragement, frustration and exhaustion. We cannot finish well without the prayers of those around us.

And pray for sweet SarahJoy. From her pictures, it would appear she is in a very caring environment. But who knows… And she is super tiny (the average size of a 10 month old and she will be 2 in November). So continue to pray for her nutrition and health.

We could not walk this adventure without you. Thank you, from the deepest part of our hearts.