Hard times and Halloween

We have hit on some rough times in our adoption journey. 

It seems like everything has gone wrong all at once. You know the scene in the Batman movie

where he stands in the middle of the cave surrounded by his greatest fear, the bats, and he just 

oh, so incredibly stands tall? 

I often feel like that. 

I feel like I am regally standing in the midst of my fears... only in real life as soon as you stand tall some horrible, unforeseen enemy swoops down and knocks you right onto your toosh.

Kinda takes the wind right out of your sails.

Whoosh. Thud. So much for standing tall...

Real life isn't glamorous. The bad guys don't wait for you to get your batman suit on, they just come at you when you least expect it.

If only they did wait, because I would so ROCK the batman suit.

We scrambled to get all of our paperwork done and ready to be sent to be authenticated and sealed only to be told first by our agency that they forgot a step. (a big, huge step that cost us weeks and money)

Then to be told once we finally mailed it that it was all done incorrectly.

However, there is a slight chance it will still pass.

Slight.

But my God is bigger than slights and however's and mountains standing in the way.

So, we are stepping onward in faith and getting our next round of paperwork ready to go as soon as we hear the word. 

That's it.

...maybe I should be batman tomorrow for Halloween...

Conversation starters

Adoption has opened my eyed to so many other devastations in the world. It has opened my eyes to the needy widow in another country who can't feed her children. It has opened my eyes to the divorced mother in my own church who struggles to raise her children without their father. It has opened my eyes to the issue of human trafficking. It has opened my eyes and broken my heart.

There is something to be said for the fact that once your eyes have been opened there is no turning back. The eyes of a million hurting people haunt my soul. I want to spark a flame for others to research and find out what is going on in the world beyond the doors of their own home. Take a look around you and see and feel the ache of a world that has no hope in Christ. They have no hope.

We need to start conversations with our pastors and elders in our churches. What are we doing as the body of Christ to actually BE His body. Are we helping the hurting? Are we at the very least vocalizing their pain. Silence is our sin. If we know of atrocities and remain silent we have sinned against the God that has created us. If we see pain in others and remain silent we grieve our Father.

I don't claim to have any suave answers to these problems in our world today. I don't even claim to know where to begin. I don't claim that it's not controversial. But what I do know is that we need to be having these conversations. We need to be having the hard conversations in our homes and in our churches. We need to speak of the unspeakable atrocities that are occurring within our world and within our own country. Put a voice to the nameless faces. Name them out loud. Name the atrocities. Name the people.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Road-Lost-Innocence-ebook/dp/B001EL6RIS/ref=pd_sim_kstore_3

http://www.amazon.com/The-Lost-Executioner-ebook/dp/B00509W8QU/ref=pd_sim_kstore_10

http://www.amazon.com/God-Brothel-Undercover-Trafficking-ebook/dp/B005FQB4CM/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1350413490&sr=1-3&keywords=sex+trafficking

http://www.amazon.com/More-Than-Rice-trafficking-ebook/dp/B004INHV4I/ref=pd_sim_kstore_2

http://www.warinternational.org/

Start the conversation. Ask the questions. Refuse to be silent. 

Slow Moving

Really...moving...slowly...ugh

That's about it for the update.

Just kidding. I'll fill you in a little more than that, but really that IS the gist of things. We got fingerprinted last week at the immigration office. That was pretty cool. I got to see all those people waiting and applying to become a part of my country. Then I got to apply to bring an immigrant into my country myself. Nostalgic much? I think so.

Now we wait for the confirmation back from immigration. Our agency said to call and nicely remind them this week to please rush it for our boy. Then our stack of paperwork that we turned in at the beginning of September goes to the consulate in New York, then back to Michigan then to China!!! Woot. There will be cake on that day, my friends.

We received over $6,000 from that company hosting a fundraiser for us. Amazing. God is good. He always provides. We applied for a matching grant from Hand in Hand. We should hear something early next week. We also applied for a JSC grant. They have recently changed their process so I'm not holding my breath too much for that, but just the same am praying and praying that it will come!!!

We are also holding our breath for some updated pictures of our little guy. Hoping and praying to get those soon. That would be a breath of fresh air. 

All in all we are doing well. We are learning patience and more patience and yet some more about patience. 

Let the Children Come

I had the opportunity to write in a guest post for Give1save1 Asia today.

If you have a chance be sure and check out their work. They are amazing for any family that is adopting. I love,love,love what they do!

Let the Children Come

Matthew 19:14

But Jesus said, "Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

When we started our journey of adoption we got a lot of questions, from well meaning people, about our current biological children. I think there is still the stigma of adoption belonging only to couples that have no children. So, when some of us that have children step out to adopt we are automatically watched simply because we are out of the “norm.”

A few people thought we shouldn’t tell our kids anything at all until we were further in the process. Some, when we they discovered the severity of our new son’s (still waiting in China) medical condition questioned if we were acting in the best interest of our children.

So, I want to take this chance to expound on children in the midst of adoption. First, I honestly don’t see how it would be possible to keep such information from them when it consumes your life for months while you work on paperwork and have an agency come into your home and even question your kids. Throw that thought out the window…not gonna happen. If your kids are above the age of two, they will know fairly quickly exactly what is happening. Keeping them in the dark will only add confusion.

Secondly, life is hard, really hard. Sometimes it is full of heartache. As parents we naturally want to shelter our children from things that hurt. We hover over them constantly on playgrounds. We pad them from head to toe when they head out on their bicycles for the long trek…down the entire driveway. So, the thought of doing something that you know is going to stretch them and possibly bring heartache is something very foreign to our minds.

God tells us in Matthew to, “Let the children come.” Let them be near to the heart of God. Let them join in the work for His kingdom. Let them sit at His feet. Can we really say that dressing them up in expensive dresses and sending them down the hallway to Sunday School Class really teaches them about serving their Savior? Being near to the heart of God means seeing things as He sees them.

My purpose as a parent has changed through this journey. I want to stop teaching my children to be Sunday morning Christians. I want to teach them to be in the trenches serving their Savior. I want to teach them to love the Lord their God with everything that is in them.

Should the day come when we bury our son, their brother, then we will guide them through grief and teach them of how great God’s love for them is and how much He loved their brother. I want my children to know deep within their souls how God loves the “least of these.” I want them to see how He would go to such great lengths to place one dying child into the arms of someone who will love them even if it is for a short time. I want my children to understand that this life is short. This life is just a picture of the beauty that is coming. I hope they will learn what it truly means to be the hands and feet of Christ. I want them to see and understand that following Christ is not always the easy way, but it is the most beautiful, the best way to live your life as a Christian.

Let your children be a part of your journey. Let them sell cookies to help you fundraise, let them see your grief and watch you lean on Christ. Let your children see the heart of Christ through you. Let them serve right along side you.

Let the children come.

The process

I've been asked a few times now where we are in this process. Sometimes I don't even know myself! There are so many steps involved and paperwork gets sent here, then there, then somewhere else, then who knows!

We have our fingerprinting appointment for immigration set for the 25th of this month. I don't know why but they did not agree to expedite it. We're trusting that God is going to watch over this process and help us get everything to China in time.

That's called the I800a.

We collected all our paperwork for our dossier and sent it to our agency. It has to be notarized and sent to the consulate in Washington D.C. and then back to our agency and then to China before the 15th of November. They have to wait for our fingerprinting to come back from immigration to mail any of that.

That's called the dossier.

After that all gets to China then we wait for our Log in Date.

Known as LID

Then we wait for the official referral. Then we are sent a letter of confirmation and usually you are matched and then send in a Letter of Intent, and are given back your Pre-approval status.

We have already done the Letter of Intent and Pre-approval.

Those are known as the LOI and PA

So after our dossier is sent in to China then we will be waiting for our referral and Letter of Acceptance. (this can take months)

Then we file for I800 immigration and visa. (about 3 weeks)

Then we wait for Article 5 from China (2-3 weeks)

Then we wait for travel time!!! (2-4 weeks)

On the really short end of things (which we are praying for) it could be as little as three or four months after our LID. It could also be much, much longer before we are allowed to bring him home. I've been told to throw out the timeline and I consider that good, sound advice so that I won't be upset when it doesn't go as I had planned in my mind. We've done our part at this point and just have to wait and pray for each step as it is given to us. I'm learning a whole lot about patience on this journey...a whole lot.

The god of what-if's

Running is often my only chance to have a few uninterrupted (usually) minutes with my Savior. It's refreshing. It's when I talk to Him. Yes, I talk out loud. Sorry, neighbors if you hear my ramblings being whispered, sometimes shouted, to the heavens. 

The truth is I have struggled, really deep down struggled. Those who know me best know that the times I am the quietest are the most dangerous. I have been quiet...nearly silent. I have struggled with the what-if's. Those pesky questions from the god of what-if's that suffocate all the promises of my Savior. They have broken the barrier and been shouting into my ear. 

What if my agency blew it and we can't get our dossier out in time?

What if China rejects our petition at the last minute?

What if I find out I'm pregnant? (funny, because that's impossible)

What if tragedy strikes and we can't complete the adoption?

What if Jiang dies before we get him?

What if Jiang dies when we get him home?

What if he dies after we have him home and have loved him for years and heartache is that much worse?

You get the picture. 

So I went for a jog. I went to have it out with my God. I went before His throne.

Two songs came on the radio:

Mighty to Save

Overcome

 

I don't believe in coincedence. I believe in providence. They were providential. They provoked my heart. They squeezed the truth out of my lips.

I cried to the Lord. I shouted to the Lord my God. I prayed for my son. I prayed for all the what if's. 

My Savior is truly mighty to save. His hand is not short and his love is everlasting. He has conquered the grave. He is glorious in His wonder. He will move these mountains. He will save this one. He will save my son. With all that is in me I will come before His throne and ask for His mercy to extend to my son. I will kneel at His throne and ask. I will stand boldly before His throne and say to Him, "This one, Father. Mark this one for Your Glory. For the sake of all Your followers that are asking, You will mark this one. You will set Your seal of salvation on him. You will shatter the darkness. He will know the love of You. I will shout it to the heavens. This one, Jiang Hurst, is untouchable. He is marked for the glory of the heavens. He will sit in the high places and he will sing. Hear it now, He will sing the praises of his Savior. Jesus, You will move this mountain."

To the god of what-if's, "You cannot have him. He no longer belongs to you. My Savior is calling his name. He is claiming this one. You. cannot. have. him. Jesus Christ has heard his cries in the night.  Jesus Christ has marked him for His kingdom. God has heard. He has answered. He is redeeming Jiang Hurst. You cannot have him. The blood of the Lamb is sealing him. He. belongs. to. Christ. "

I refuse the what-if's. I claim the promises.

Gratitude

I have no idea how to go about saying thank you for something so huge as our give1save1 week. I have pondered how to write this out for days and still haven't come up with anything that sounds amazing or expresses the true depth of our gratitude. I feel like I should at least have some eloquent way of saying thank you. I feel like I should give at least that back to all of you.

Instead I am left speechless as I stare looking at $2,000, much of which came from strangers that I have never met. How do I say thank you for caring about my son's life, a boy you will never meet? How do I say thank you for being a part of saving his life? He's my son and there are no words that could ever express my love for him and so there is no way to express my gratitude for saving him either.

But I thank you all, with every part of who I am I humbly thank you for your giving. I think this is the most encouraging thing we have been a part of to date. People from all over the world (literally) gave to save this boy. You all cared about us and about him and about the Christ who calls us to care for orphans. Thank you.

Through our journey last week we raised $2,000, but we were also told that a business (that will remain anonymous) was going to host a matching grant for up to $5,000 for us. That would be another $10,000 if they meet that goal. To say we are speechless is an understatement.

I have seen the hand of God at work in humanity this week. What I would have said was impossible is proving possible. What I worried over for months has been tossed away and I am reminded that I walk with a God that knows no boundaries. Why He should care about one little boy and one family I can't  answer but I sit at the foot of His throne and give thanks to Him for His great love. I serve an Almighty God.