The Post I’ve Been Waiting Eight Months to Write

FINALLY! I am FINALLY allowed to write what I have been bursting to share since January. It’s been a long, grueling, frustrating, yet incredibly exciting eight months. We have had many long days, late nights, tense moments, and even a few tears. We’ve had our faith stretched, and we’ve seen God answer our prayers in some amazing, unexpected ways.

It’s been an interesting year. We’ve had ups and downs and in-between times, and one of the hardest parts of it all was not being able to share this news with everybody. I have so looked forward to the day when I could just blurt it all out to the world.

It started in January. It got exciting in February. It got crazy in May. It got frustrating in June. It got even crazier in July. Each month brought a new milestone, but also a new challenge. And each month I had to work extremely hard to keep myself from getting on here and spilling the beans to my millions of followers. Or at least, to the two of you who read this blog – one of whom already knows our secret... (Hi, Mom!).

*Cough* Anyway… The time leading up to this moment of revelation seemed to be unending… Kind of like this introduction…

Okay, okay. I just thought that since I had to wait so long to announce it, y’all should have to feel some of my pain by reading a bunch of long-winded nonsense. Now, FINALLY, our big, exciting news:

         

WE ARE ADOPTING!!!!

That’s right! We are in the process of adopting a young child from Ethiopia. We have been accepted by an agency, our home study is complete, and we are now seeking immigration approval. In a few more months our dossier will be ready to send to Ethiopia and then we will be put on the waiting list to be matched with a child!

Joshua and I are incredibly excited about expanding our family through adoption. We feel so blessed that God has given us the opportunity to begin this journey sooner than we originally thought possible. Adoption has always been close to our hearts and the desire to adopt is one of the first things that attracted us to each other. We began looking into it two years ago, compiling a notebook full of research. The timing was not right to begin the process, but we did a lot of praying about it and looking into what it would involve. When we moved up here to Michigan, God opened doors and we suddenly found ourselves in a position to begin the journey. In January, after lots of prayer, we took a step of faith and submitted our application. On February 3, we were accepted.

We wanted to wait until our home study was finished before announcing our plans. There were some delays, miscommunication, and a major change of course (which I will hopefully blog about in the future) so it took a little longer to complete the home study than we expected. But, now it’s done! We are approved to adopt!

God has taught us some big lessons these past few months about dedication, trust, and doing what is right now matter what. He has provided the necessary funds for each step of the way. He has put people in our lives as sources of encouragement and strength. He has opened so many doors that I thought were brick walls. We truly serve an amazing God.

So far, God has enabled us to pay for all the expenses we have faced out of pocket. Now we are coming to a point where we need to do some fundraising in order to proceed with the next steps. We currently owe our agency $2,666 in order to move on to the next stage. Also, the immigration approval and fingerprinting will cost close to $900. These are our immediate needs. If you would like to contribute to our effort to bring our child home, please visitwww.youcaring.com/awalkhome or contact me at servingfromhome@gmail.com. We would greatly appreciate your financial support!

More than that, we covet your prayers. This is a long, hard process. It is emotionally draining, with many highs and lows. If you have been there or are currently in the process, we would love to hear your story and advice! We know that we do not know everything that we will need to know for every part of this journey, but we do know that God provides just what we need for each step of the way. Please pray for us as we seek His will and glory above all else.

Ephesians 3:20-21, “Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”