I can't tell you how much we have been blessed, since we shared our news last week! It has taken some time to read and cherish the kind words everyone has spoken to us. We feel so loved and strengthened to know that so many are cheering us on in this adventure. You have embraced our child and that means the world to us.
We have also been able to hear from many families, and complete strangers, that know and have met our little "Sue". It's amazing that you can be connected with people all over the world via email and facebook. This huge world can instantly seem so small and close. And so connected together. Just like Someone is weaving our story of life so intricately. I know my God is amazing...but He reallyis amazing! His ways are perfect and He writes our stories so uniquely.
The fun things we continue to learn about or little Sue....
She knows how to fist pump (awesome)
She "demands a room" with her big personality
She, indeed, is a girly girl of all girls. Every picture we have received this week is full of tulle, bows, rhinestones, lacy socks, and wings on shoes!
She is friendly to all
She is smart
She is loved by many.
The most touching thing we have learned....so many people have prayed for Sue during her little life. I can't tell you how many people have told me that they met Sue years ago, and that they have prayed for a family to adopt her.
They have prayed for Wilson.
They have prayed for me.
Long before we knew our little girl even existed. During the years of our infertility. During the nights of tears. During the times that we prayed to the Lord, that He would show us the way in which He would bring a child to our family. They were praying for us. We were already parents and didn't know it.
And they were praying for our little girl.
When she was lying in a crib so small. When she was learning how to crawl and walk. When they were seeing their child for the first time. When they were taking them home. They stopped and remembered our little girl...and never forgot her. They said prayers for all of us. She was a daughter and didn't know it.
I will always treasure that in my heart.
Psalm 66:16-20
Come and hear...let me tell you what he has done for me...I cried out to him with my mouth...God has surely listenedand has heard my prayer. Praise be to God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld his love from me!
Here are some answers to your questions:
Sue is going to be turning 7years old soon.
It will still be months before we can bring her home...we don't know when (but we hope it will come quickly).
She is itty bitty and doesn't look her age.
We will meet her, for the first time, when we travel to China to pick her up.
I can't believe the day has come....where we can shout from the rooftops that the Lord has given us a child!!
We would like to introduce everyone to our daughter. (I can't believe I can say that)
For security reasons, we will be calling her "Sue" while using the internet and social media.
Where do I start!? We saw this little face on the waiting list months ago, and the Lord would not let us forget it. The first time I looked at her information, I was just curious about her. She looked different from all the other children and I wanted to know more about her. Wilson and I were able to watch videos and look at pictures that they had at our agency. We started falling in love with her!
She has quite a personality! She has spunk and giggles that will make you melt.
We learned that she LOVES anything pretty. Pretty clothes, jewelry, etc.
She LOVES to read, and would rather look at a book than play with a toy.
She dances, she colors, and she plays...all with smiles.
She is special! A rare jewel indeed. 1 in 1 million in all actuality.
We believe our girl has a very rare genetic syndrome called Carpenter Syndrome. We have a journey ahead of us that will be full of doctor's visits, surgeries, and unknowns. But we feel honored that the Lord has given us the privilege to walk through this journey with her. She is ours!
I love this video and song by JJ Heller. I can just imagine our gorgeous "Sue" at home one day. Playing in fairy wings and eating ice cream. The words I pray and sing over her now:
"My love, may you dream of beautiful things
'Til the dawn of the day bright and new
Wherever you go, I want you to know
When I dream, I dream of you"
"Sue" I pray that you will dream of beautiful things until we can finally come get you!
There is a day dawning that will be bright and new! You will have a Mom and Dad and we will have YOU!
Wherever you go and whatever you will be doing until that day....I want you to know:
In 2001, I traveled to China with a group from my church. That trip changed my life if so many ways! It was the first time that I had traveled outside of the United States. It opened my eyes to the world and gave me a better understanding of what life was like outside of the United States. I have traveled to other places since China, and I'm always reminded of how "comfortable" I live. How much I take for granted....and how much I appreciate when I get home. Oh, how I love American toilets. Oh, how I appreciate having forks and knives. What a privilege it is to be able to attend a house of worship with no fear. I'm blessed to own a personal copy of God's Word. I can read it, walk around with it, and write sticky notes with scripture on my desk at work. We have so many freedoms and comforts that we take for granted.
The two weeks we were in China changed my life. I remember falling in love with the culture and the people. Such beautiful people we met on that trip! But there was a great heaviness I felt as well. Such a need for the people to know the Heavenly Father and to have the hope of the Gospel. This trip sealed the call on my heart for full time missions. I just knew that God would call me back there to serve!
When I returned home, I jumped on the opportunity to go back to China. I spent months applying to the mission board, and felt an amazing peace that this was where God wanted me! It was all so very exciting. I had gone all the way...applications, references, paperwork, interviews......
And then the Lord said "wait".
Wait? No, Lord, I'm pretty sure this is where you want me to be.
Wait.
Those words began a struggle that lasted for many years. I was so confused and couldn't understand why He would have brought me this far...and then ask me to wait. It has taken a lot of time, but He has helped me accept His answer. I didn't really understand why He said "wait", but I finally came to a place where I could accept that answer. When we had the chance to go on our first mission trip to Mexico, I felt like he was finally saying "Yes!". In fact, the first year we traveled to Mexico, I pulled out the journal where I had recorded my trip to China. I figured I would journal my trip to Mexico as a continuation of where the Lord was taking me. As I sat on the plane for Mexico, I realized that it had been exactly 10 years TO THE DAY that I had sat on the plane heading to China. How neat is that?
But never. Never, did I expect to go back to China. That door had closed....
So I thought.
The last couple of weeks, I have been reflecting on my first trip to China. I think it's quite amazing that He would call us to adopt a child from this same place. There are things I purchased on my trip (scrolls with art and Chinese lettering, jade figurines, etc) that I have displayed in my home from time to time. Some things I began to tuck away for safe keeping, but I couldn't bring myself to depart with them. As this new journey unfolds, I have been pulling items out to look at them again. How the memories of that time come back! I look back at pictures from the trip and remember the faces of the people I fell in love with. You wonder where they are now, and what their life is like. Do they know the Lord? I pray for them.
The lyrics from Hillsong United "Oceans" has spoken to our hearts as we have began to pursue the China program.
Funny....those words reflected the prayers I had so many years ago as I thought about going to China to tell people about the Lord. I was willing to allow the Lord to lead me wherever He wanted me to go...even if it was across the world. My trust had to be without borders, and I knew He would make me stronger in my faith. I believed being on mission would be THE place where my faith would be made stronger.
I see now, my faith has been made stronger as we have walked through infertility. As we have waited and longed to welcome a child into our family. And as He has called us to go to China to bring our child home. My faith seems to be challenged even more with that last statement...even more than what my heart was challenged with in 2001...
Lord, you are taking me deeper than my feet could ever wander....and there were times I felt like I would drown.
But now, I know that my faith has been made stronger
"And I will call upon Your name And keep my eyes above the waves When oceans rise My soul will rest in Your embrace For I am Yours and You are mine Your grace abounds in deepest waters Your sovereign hand Will be my guide Where feet may fail and fear surrounds me You've never failed and You won't start now"
Lord, thank you for the events and opportunities in my life that have made me uncomfortable. In the darkness and painful times, it has taught me how deep your grace can be.
What a journey these last few years have been! The song that plays in my mind as I write these words...Steven Curtis Chapman's "Glorious Unfolding"
The Lord has certainly been unfolding a glorious story in our lives. And, it is definitely not anything like I thought the story of my life was gonna be! And amazingly, the story is FAR from being over.
We have walked through the season(ssss) of infertility and the dark path that has been. We have walked through the process of starting a domestic adoption...waiting...being looked at by birthmothers...waiting. In the midst of that waiting, we were drawn to the listings of children that were waiting for a forever family in other countries.
The scriptures say...........
Psalm 68:4-6
"Sing to God, sing praise of his name, extol him who rides on the clouds; rejoice before him--his name is the Lord. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing....."
I could see that the Lord had set the lonely in our hearts for a child. In the faces of these children, you could see the lonely in their hearts as well. Our hearts broke for them. The Lord began drawing us to this list, over and over. Then, He began drawing us to the children in China. Then, He began to show us individual children to pray for in China.
WAIT!!!! This is not what we planned, Lord! We are ready for a baby...an infant. We have a crib, and baby bottles, and newborn diapers waiting in the BABY room. We have gone through the months of preparing for a baby. We have been waiting and dreaming about a sweet smelling, prune like, crying infant. We are finally done with the adoption process for a newborn, and now we are thinking about changing....and going across the world? Really?
Yes. Really. The Lord began to reveal His plans through so many ways. Sermons, scriptures, people, circumstances...things that happened that we could not deny His presence was in it. But it hasn't been all dreamy and beautiful. It's been full of fear, questioning if we are doing the right thing, questioning from others if we are doing the right thing. We have been completely overwhelmed with fear. We have struggled in our marriage. We have been close to calling off the whole thing (having a child).
He has reminded us through the scriptures:
Genesis 16:13--He is the God who sees. He sees us.
Romans 8:14-17--He has reminded us of our own sonship in Christ. Our own adoption into His family.
Romans 8:31-32--When we feel opposition to our decision, He reminds us that He is for us! And if He is for us, who can be against us? He will provide all that we need to finish out His plan. He will never leave us nor forsake us.
And many, many other scriptures have encouraged our spirits!
So I get excited when I hear Steven Curtis Chapman sing:
God’s plan from the start
For this world and your heart
Has been to show His glory and His grace
Forever revealing the depth and the beauty of
His unfailing Love
And the story has only begun
And this is going to be a glorious unfolding
Just you wait and SEE and you will be amazed
We’ve just got to believe the story is so far from over
So hold on to every promise God has made to us
And watch this glorious unfolding
Romans 68:19,20; 32-35
"Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Our God is a God who saves....Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth, sing praise to the Lord, to him who rides across the highest heavens, the ancient heavens, who thunders with mighty voice. Proclaim the power of God, whose majesty is over Israel, whose power is in the heavens. You, God, are awesome in your sanctuary; the God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God!"
He continues to show us His glory and His grace. He has stretched our faith. This stretching has caused my heart to fall even more in love with my Father. I'll hold on to His every promise.
All praise and glory to God for what He has done, and what He will do....
