What a week!

Early last week we spoke with St. Mary's about the status of our dossier.  We are chomping at the bit to get a referral and go get our child.  After speaking with them, they informed us that based on where we are in the process and the number of waiting families ahead of us, we probably would not be getting a referral until May or June.  Not what we wanted to hear, but we are reminded of the verse in Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  We have to be patient and know that God is working all of this out in His perfect timing and thankfully not in what we thought would be perfect.  With this time frame, we both will have to miss fewer days of school and have more time to save money and build our adoption fund up a little higher before heading over to Poland.  We were a little saddened by the time, but God is in control.

The other day my wife was on her way home with both girls asleep in the back of the van.  She decided to pull into McDonald's to get a tea and while ordering, Ryleigh sits up in her car seat and randomly says "cheeseburger" and immediately falls back to sleep.  Maybe she has some built in radar that goes off when there is happy meal potential. 

On Sunday, our church celebrated and recognized Orphan Sunday.  We worked with another couple to come up with a service geared to inform and challenge the congregation.  Our friends Dan and Stacy interviewed folks who had been touched by adoption and took their interviews and made a great video that was personal, had real people, and a real message.  It looked professional.  We also had a lady come and share her testimony of being a foster parent and mother of two adoptive girls.  It was awesome to hear how God put their family together.  She even wrote and sang a song about her experience.  Then came the sermon.  Our interim pastor would later admit that he forgot about Orphan Sunday until the service began.  However, he delivered one of his best sermons.  The challenge to the congregation to reach out to the "least, the last, the lost, the poor, the broken, the vulnerable, and the marginalized" was moving,  He shared personal stories from both he and his wife and how they had been raised by people other than their parents.  At the conclusion of both services, he invited folks up who had been adopted, who adopted, and who were adopting.  It was great to see some of our older members that were connected to adoption get up and come forward to support those of us in the process or some that had recently adopted.  In our second service, an older gentleman shared his testimony of adopting a child and years later losing him in a vehicle accident.  He cried.  We cried.  God moved in our church yesterday and is touching the hearts of many concerning adoption. 

The entire month of November is about adoption and orphan awareness.  Let's stand up and make a difference one child and one widow at a time.

Never take advantage of any widow or orphan. If you do and they cry out to me, you can be sure that I will hear their cry.     Exodus 22:22-23

Father to the fatherless, defender of widows — this is God, whose dwelling is holy. God places the lonely in families.      Psalms 68:5-6

Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows.      Isaiah 1:17