Waiting to Adopt

While I was pregnant with Thing 2, my husband and I began to feel a strong calling to add to our family through adoption. We began talking about it, praying about it, and searching out what God's word says about adopting. We knew we felt like we should adopt, but once we began studying scriptures about it, we knew we were going to adopt.

We shared the news with a few people. Some were supportive and others were what some may call "realists", providing reminders that "adoption is expensive", "there's so much paper work involved", and my favorite "you don't know what your going to get" (yes we do....it's called a CHILD)! When God calls you to something, all of those things become irrelevant. We didn't (and still don't) have a plan perfectly written out, step by step, before us, but we had enough.

We knew that we were supposed to adopt, so we began to act on what we did know. We began searching out our options, which ultimately led us to domestic adoption (within the country) from a private agency. We prayed, researched, and received confirmation about a specific agency, made the call, and began the process. There was paperwork to complete, classes to take, books to read, questions to answer, and checks to be written. Amazingly, none of this was overwhelming. I think that it could have been, but knowing that God was in this, allowed us to see the big picture. It allowed us to see that little hand wrapping around our fingers instead of stack of papers to fill out. We saw a child being raised to fear the Lord, instead of bouncing in and out of foster homes and prison. We saw the promise of life, instead of money leaving our bank account. God showed us the eternal picture, and that was enough to act on.

Now we are just waiting and expecting. It's sort of like being pregnant....except we don't know the due date. What's a due date anyway! My first was a week early, and my second was two weeks late. Due dates don't really tell us much as we want them to. Psalms 68:6 tells us that "God places the lonely in families". Thing 3 will be added to our family when God sees fit. We don't need a due date. For now, we are just waiting. Waiting and praying for our baby and the courageous woman who chose to give him or her life.

Our ways are not His ways

I hear giggles coming out of my bedroom, and hear a little voice saying, "tail, tail". I know exactly what that means. Thing 1 is "playing" with the dog. By playing I mean squeezing, wrestling, and tail pulling. Our dog, Caesar, is a 9 pound, hairless Chinese Crested that scared of his own shadow. He will literally go flying across the room at the mere sight of a plastic, grocery bag.

While I know that Caesar is not very likely to bite or nip at the boys for playing rough, he is still a dog. So, I go into my room, and get Caesar, and let Thing 1 continue playing. Thing 1 was a little upset about this. (on a side note: he "used his words" instead of throwing a fit. this is something that we have really been working on lately). He didn't understand why I took his wrestling partner from him.

This got me thinking. How much are we (grown ups) like this when it comes to our own lives. Sometimes God keeps something (or takes something) from us for our own good. We become like whiney little toddlers, fussing and complaining, when God was doing this because He loves us. Isaiah 55:8 tells us, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways", declares the Lord".

Our thoughts and our ways are so different from God's thoughts and ways. We don't know what He is up too. We always know what He is protecting us from, or preparing us for. So, next time God keeps something from me that I really want, I will try think about this, and realize that He has something better for me. Hopefully, I'll "use my words" instead of throwing a tantrum, and trust God to work in my life.

so NOT super mom

Recently, while I was fixing supper, Thing 1 was sitting at his little table coloring, and Thing 2 was in his crib napping. I starting thinking to myself how "together" I had everything! The house was clean, the boys were clean, Thing 1 was occupied in a fairly stimulating activity instead of watching TV, and I was going to have supper waiting on the table when my husband got home from work. Come to think of it, I think I might have even managed to take a shower and put on make up that day! Wow...I really had it together! I must be really getting the hang of this "mom" thing...or so I thought. Until I turned around to see this......

All over the couch!!!

This brought me back down to reality real fast!!!

Proverbs 16:18 does tell us: Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

It might sound a little dramatic. I know that crayon on the couch is hardly considered "destruction", but I it was enough to cause me to check myself! I don't want to fall into the trap of pride. I'm so thankful that God was able to use this to bring me back down a little. I think it's easy to take pride in something when you feel you've put a lot of effort into it and you begin to see results. So many times we want to give our worries to God, yet we are not so quick to give him the glory when things are going right! I think this was God's subtle way of letting me know that I am NOT in control. The good times and the struggles are all equally His.

But.......come to think of it, we were getting kind of tired of this couch anyway. We've been wanting to do a something a little different! But I was thinking something more along the lines of some new toss pillows or something! Maybe something more like this....