Redemption

We have been home for one month now with LillyAnn and Levi.  I have wanted to update for a long time, but have not found the time to do it.  Imagine that!  I kept thinking that I cannot let what's on my heart and mind slip by without sharing God's goodness.

It has been a whirlwind of a month.  We're learning what routines work.  We are diligently working through behaviors, fears and attaching to our children.  Each of our family members is building trust with these two new permanent residents of the Sellers household.  A lot of our day is very intentional from routine to touch to language.

Over the weeks since we scooped up LillyAnn and Levi in our arms, we've seen so much fear and insecurity.  We've seen signs of possible abuse in their past.  We've watched them hoard food and cry when we're done eating because they've probably spent many days with hungry tummies.  We see them scoot and scurry to get to us anytime one of us grabs our shoes or coat.  They think we are going to leave them.  It's heartbreaking.

BUT GOD....

 God is redeeming their sweet little lives.  I looked up the definition for redemption.  One read "rescue or deliverance."  God is daily rescuing them from their fear and feelings of being unloved.  Their eyes seem to get brighter every day and their smiles more and more frequent.  It is beautiful.

Levi has joined the family with no reservation.  It has been fun to see that he realizes that we love him.  He loves to come up and give (and get) hugs.  He loves to rough house with Matt.  He makes the sweetest giddy sound, grins from ear to ear and his eyes disappear when he likes what we're doing.  He is a sponge.  He has mastered several signs already that we use and he's initiating them when he wants something rather than always mimicking.  Matt and I have said on a number of occasions "what if" we had ignored God's tug at our hearts for Levi.  We had originally said "yes" to LillyAnn and found out about Levi a month into the process.  We took a several weeks and prayed and prayed over his file.  God, are you sure this is what you're saying?  I cannot imagine not having him.  He is so much fun and I can't wait to see how God uses him.

LillyAnn was reserved from our introduction.  She quickly attached to me and didn't want anything to do with Matt or the boys.  She slowly warmed up to Matt and now, she loves her Daddy.  She doesn't want to be too far from me.  She is very timid with other people.  As people have come to our home, a slight panic sets in and she wants to be with me.  She, too, has already mastered "please, more" and "all done" in sign language!  She is doing great.

We have been going to a number of appointments.  As soon as we returned from China, we had our pediatrician look them over to make sure there weren't any immediate concerns.  Other than being under weight, they seem healthy.  We're concerned that both LillyAnn and Levi have trouble seeing.  We have eye appointments for both of them this week. Levi will have a front tooth pulled right after Christmas.  It was broken and obviously causing him pain.  We also have cardiology appointments set up for both of them.  They both had heart surgery in Beijing, China to repair their hearts.  We'll have them checked out here to make sure their hearts are healthy.  It will also give us a chance to learn about their condition and see what the future will look like for their hearts.

We are doing really well.  I can't say enough about how thankful we are for all the support we've received from so many.  We are excited to see what the future holds for all of our children.  Sometimes I think about "what could have been" for Endale, LillyAnn and Levi.  It breaks my heart to let my mind go too far.  There is talk in the adoption community that it's easy to forget about the orphans of the world until you see their face.  Then, they become more than a number.  They're a living, human being created by God for God.  I cannot imagine life without them.  I wonder what their futures will be like.  I wonder will they ever truly understand who God is and what Jesus did for them.  My prayer is that we can show them the Father's love in our family.  Chris Tomlin's recent song, "Good, Good Father" says it beautifully:

You're a good, good Father
It's who You are, it's who You are, it's who You are
And I'm loved by You
It's who I am, it's who I am, it's who I am

That is it.  Each of us, every one of our children are labeled by one thing:
YOU ARE LOVED BY GOD.
IT'S WHO YOU ARE.

Exciting Days Ahead...

THE WAIT IS OVER!!!!

 We're packing and getting things in order to travel to meet Lilly and Levi and bring them home. This has been a long journey. We first saw Lilly's face in January. We felt God's prompting although we didn't know how it would happen. In time, we felt the call to bring home Levi as well. God has done immeasurable more than we could ask or imagine. He gave us this call and it was not without being in complete control of the outcome. He is faithful. We cannot wait to wrap our arms around Lilly and Levi and show the Father's love to them.

We would love to share what the days after arriving home will look like for our family. We have spent hours studying, taking courses, watching videos and reading to prepare for this (and our previous) adoption. There are some things that are crucial in helping Levi and Lilly adjust. The first is that for a time we will limit contact and interaction with others. It is vital that Lilly and Levi begin to understand that Matt and I are their new parents and caretakers. They have had numerous people taking care of them in and out of their lives.  To help their bonding and attaching, we will be the ones meeting all their basic needs such as feeding, holding them, changing them, etc.  There will be some interaction that will be necessary such as doctor visits, but it will be limited within the first few weeks.  They need to be able to see Mom and/or Dad at all times for the first few months.

We will also spend some time "cocooning". We will take some time and stay at home. This helps them establish that our home is their new home. Everything they will be experiencing is new...new people, new language, new home, new food. We want to keep them from being too overwhelmed and help them feel secure.

We've been trying to help our children understand what this experience could be like. We've been dreaming of meeting Lilly and Levi for months. They, on the other hand, may not know that we're even coming for them. They will be stripped of everything they know and left with people that don't speak their language, don't look like them and that they don't know. That is scary. There is typically a grieving that takes place with children when they're adopted and we're trying to brace for that especially since Lilly and Levi are older. If you see us regularly, we ask that you are gracious to these blessings and what they're walking through. Please be patient with our family as well as we adjust.

We are so thankful to all who have been a part of this story. It has been amazing to watch the body of Christ come together to care for these two orphans who will soon be orphans no more!

*If you'd like to see pictures and updates from our trip to China, make sure and join the "Longing for Lilly and Levi" Facebook page.  There is video of Lilly and Levi too on the FB page!!*

The Countdown is on!

Countdown Clock

We Can See the Finish Line!!

We are closing in on the last few steps of the adoption process.  We are talking dates, making tentative reservations and getting plans in order.  Last week, we got our I-800 approval from the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services).  This approval says that Lilly and Levi will be U.S. citizens upon arriving in the U.S.  It also gives us permission to apply for their visas to enter the U.S. since they will be coming home with a Chinese passport.  We have submitted their visa applications and they will be forwarded to the Consulate in China where we will have an appointment during our stay there.

From October 1-7, China is shut down for a holiday.  There will be no movement the next few days for our case, but once it opens back up, a courier in China will drop off a packet of information for U.S. approval called the Article 5.  It will then be picked up and moved to the China side of things.  From there China will issue us a Travel Approval to come and get Lilly and Levi!  Our agency will immediately request Consulate Appointment date choices.  The Consulate will send back our Consulate Appointment day and we can book our plane tickets!

We will travel for 2 weeks.  The first part of the trip will be in the capital city of our children's province.  It is there, shortly after arriving, we will meet them!  The next day we will sign paperwork.  We will remain in their province to wait for the adoption decree and passports to be issued.  From there, we will fly to Guangzhou, China.  This is where the Embassy and Consulate is.  All adoptive parents have to go through this city before coming home.  It is here, our children will have an Embassy Medical Appointment. We will also have our appointment at the U.S. Consulate.  We'll await their visas and then we can come home!!!!

God has been so faithful through this process and provided every step of the way.  We started with a financial need of $55,000 for 2 adoptions.  We are down to needing $3500 before travel!  Praise God from Whom all blessings flow.  He has made a way that we could not imagine.  We are so grateful for His provision.  We have two more ways for you to be a part.  See the details on our FB page about the American Girl doll give away that ends this week.  Our last and final fundraiser will be a Haircut-a-thon!!!!  Who doesn't need a haircut?  Grow out your hair and mark your calendars for the evening of October 18.  Watch for details next week on our FB pages.  Thank you again to all who have supported us in all of our creative ways as we've raised our funds. Thank you for being willing to be a vessel used by God to provide for His children.  You are making an investment in the lives of two beautiful children forever.  Thank you does not seem adequate.

Here's what our timeline over the last few months looks like!  We've crossed off so many steps! 

Sign Commitment to Adopt Paperwork     2/8/15

Letter of Intent to China     2/9/15  

Agency Application     2/13/15 

Pre-Approval from China    2/28/15 

Received Pre-approval for Levi 4/3/2015  

Home Study Complete 4/6/2015

File I-800a with USCIS 4/2/2015 

Receipt Date 4/22/2015 

Fingerprint Appointment  5/11/2015

Receive I800a approval letter 

Documents Authenticated 

Dossier to China 7/15/15 

Logged In Dossier in China 7/27/15 

Receive "soft" Letter Seeking Confirmation or LOA  8/19/15 

Received and sign "hard" LSC/LOA  8/24/15 

File form I-800 to USCIS  9/2/15 

*RFE issued=delay 

I-800 approval from National Visa Center  9/23/15 

Complete DS 260 Forms (Visa applications for L&L) 9/29/15 

Article 5 drop-off (Approval from US)

Aritcle 5 pick-up 

 Travel Approval

Schedule Consulate Appt

Go to CHINA and get Lilly and Levi!!!!! 

God is good. To God be all the glory.

Jehovah-jireh

Jehovah-jireh

the LORD will provide (Genesis 22:14)

As God stirred our hearts for adoption, our biggest fear was not about loving a child that didn't come from our womb or even caring for a child with special needs.  It was the cost of the process. Adoption is crazy expensive.  Both times God has called us to pursue one of His children through adoption, we were certain this was what He wanted us to do; however, we questioned how it would happen. "Uh-hum...excuse me Lord...Creator of the Universe, all knowing God...have you seen our bank account??" As quickly as we questioned the funding of this adoption, God hit us with a perpetual brick upside our heads.  

Have I not already proved my faithfulness?  

You move when I move you and I will make a way. 

BOOM.

 God showed us with Endale and provided every penny needed to bring him home....actually more.  As Matt left Ethiopia with Endale, he had a hand full of cash left that he was able to bless a new friend in Ethiopia from God's abundance in our process. Why would we question it again when He called us to something radical once more?

When we added up agency fees, USCIS fees, travel fees, in country fees, home study fees, and post adoption fees for two children, we had a financial need of $55,000 to bring Lilly and Levi home.  We've sold all sorts of things from our home.  We've had 3 garage sales.  We have our ongoing "Adopt an Envelope" fundraiser.  We had a Pancake Breakfast.  We have applied for adoption grants.  And....God is and always has been faithful.   God has used so many people and avenues as His Provision in this process.  Our hearts could not be more thankful and in awe of all God has done.

  

We are about 8-10 weeks from traveling to China to pick up Levi and Lilly.  We are needing just under $5000 to meet our financial goal to travel.  We are excited to share 3 more ways you can support our journey if you feel led.

1.  Envelope FLASH sale!  

My slightly obsessive mind really needs to see all the envelopes marked off of our board.  So, all envelopes are only $10 each!  But wait...there's more.  We have had a beautiful, brand new with tags, Michael Kors purse/bag (retailed at $358) donated to give away.  For every envelope adopted from now until midnight Friday, September 4, you will be entered in a drawing for the purse.
1 envelope = 1 entry, 3 envelopes = 3 entries, 5 envelopes = 5 entries etc. Drawing will be Saturday, September 5.  *I will ship to friends outside of Albuquerque area if you win!*
(Sidenote: It is super cute!!)

To adopt an envelope, click on the DONATE button under PAYPAL to the right.

2.  T-shirts!

Matt designed some super cute tees.  They read, "Trust without Borders".  This has been our biggest growth as we've adopted.  God has showed us so tangibly what He is willing to do when we trust Him without borders.  You can purchase by using the link below and they will be shipped directly to you. Please share, share, share with your friends. Who doesn't love an awesome shirt? To order your shirt today, click here:

https://www.bonfirefunds.com/longing-for-lilly-and-levi 

3.  Noonday Jewelry Party

My friend Juli is hosting an online Noonday Jewelry party.  All commission will go to our agency to be applied to our adoption costs.  This is a beautiful organization with great products.  You can order anytime now through September 22 using this link:

http://www.noondaycollection.com/pws/SarahKuhn/eventstore10202/AMUS/default.aspx

We are on the home stretch and anxious to reach the prize. Thank you in advance for your prayers, support and encouragement.  God deserves all the glory for the beautiful story He is writing in our family.

Letter Seeking Confirmation!!!!

We woke up to GREAT news from our adoption agency this morning.  China issued our Letter Seeking Confirmation (LSC) also called Letter of Action (LOA) for both Lilly and Levi!!  This is probably the most important step in the process.  This means that China has translated and reviewed our dossier and has APPROVED us to adopt Lilly and Levi!  As you can imagine, my head has been spinning all day!  I can hardly believe it.  We will most likely travel the first couple weeks of November.  

From here, we have several steps to complete.  China has issued the letter in their system.  A hard copy will be sent to our agency and they will forward it on to us.  We should have it middle of next week.  We will sign the Letter Seeking Confirmation saying that we agree with the decision to adopt our two children (ahhh!) and send it back to our agency who will forward it back to China.

In the meantime, we will fill out the I-800 form for the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  This will be to receive approval that Levi and Lilly will become U.S. Citizens once they are on U.S. soil.  Once we get our I-800 approval, we can apply for their visas.

I'll save you all the crazy intermingled details.  Basically, we have some work to do on the U.S. side.  Once it's all done, it is sent over to China.  Then, China will issue our Travel Approval (TA) to enter the country to pick up our babes.

After TA is received, we request a Consulate Appointment which once received will determine our travel dates.  The trip will be structured around that date.

If you're a list maker, here is what our list looks like.  We're ready to check the rest of these off our list!

Receive and sign "hard" LSC/LOA

File form I-800 to USCIS

I-800 approval from National Visa Center

Complete DS 260 Form

Article 5 (Approval from US)

Travel Approval

Schedule Consulate Appt

Go to CHINA and get Lilly and Levi!!!!!

Thank you for your continued prayers and support. It looks like we're going to have to set two more places at the table for Thanksgiving this year!!!

Look What LOVE Has Done

Love.  

What comes to mind when you say "love".  I mean, in our house, we love pizza, cookie dough and the Packers but I also love God, my husband and my kids. The word "love" has a broad spectrum in the ways it is used.  But there is a great Love that out measures them all.

I've said before that our adoption of Endale changed our family.  For me personally, it changed me in so many different ways.  The one thing that stands out far above all the blessings and growth from bringing Endale home is my view of love.  Not just any love, but God's love for me.  I grew up as a Pastor's Kid.  My parents tell the story of me being born on a Wednesday and in church the very next Sunday.  So I have known of God's love for me and have loved God from a very early age.  I never really knew any different.  I may never truly understand God's love for me this side of Heaven, but after experiencing adoption I grasp God's love for me better than I ever have before.

It wasn't until our adoption process and then homecoming of Endale that I "got it".  God's love for me.  You see, earthly relationships can skew our perception of what love is supposed to be.   The earthly relationships that we have are imperfect.  Do you have a relationship with someone who has conditions or boundaries?  Do you have a relationship with someone who doesn't show grace and mercy?  Is there a relationship where there is no forgiveness?  Do you have a person in your life that says they love you, but they don't pursue a true relationship with you?

If you're like me, you fall into all or at least one of those in your relationships.  The struggle of trying so hard to have a relationship with someone who doesn't want it.  In the end, you wind up hurt and confused. We spend so much time and energy trying to earn or even keep love.  God's love isn't like that.

Adoption is the perfect earthly picture of God's love for us.  Our adoption story went something like this.  When we started the process of adopting (all three), we studied everything we could find out about them, their birth country, their pictures.  We wanted to know them.  We knew everything we could about Endale before he knew us.  

We started the adoption process.  There were heaps of paperwork and hoops to jump through to get to Endale.  It cost a lot of money that we didn't have.  We pursued him.  We did whatever it took to get to him.  

We wanted Endale.  Our agency told us that another family from Spain had committed to adopt him.  When they found out he had Down Syndrome, they decided not to adopt him.  The agency also went down their waiting family list to if anyone wanted to adopt him.  He had this "label" of Down Syndrome.  That didn't matter to us.  We wanted this child.  He was chosen.

 God's adoption story of us is so similar!

God knows us.  He knows everything about me...my quirks, my personality, the things I really don't like about myself, my struggles, my fears....and HE LOVES ME.

God pursues me.  He wants me.  He is there.  I don't have to go anywhere.  He had to sacrifice for me.  He did whatever it took to get ME.   HE GAVE HIS ONLY SON FOR ME.

God wants me.  I am really good at thinking of all the reasons someone wouldn't want to get to know me or want to spend time with me.  I can feel completely unworthy of love.  Or I think to myself, there is no way someone could love me.  God wanted me.  He wanted me with all my "issues", with all my failures and imperfections, He wanted me.  HE CHOSE ME.

His love is relentless.  His love doesn't give up.  His love doesn't keep records of my faults.  His love doesn't have boundaries.  His love won't give up on me.  His love is unstoppable. His love is for me.  His love can rescue me.  When I feel completely unlovable, His LOVE sets me free.

"There's no limit, no condition,

There's no boundary for His love

Nothing greater, nothing stronger

Nothing like the LOVE of God"

-Love Can-Central Live-

For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 

Romans 8:38-39 

NOTHING can separate us from His Love.

*If you don't know the love God has for you, please message me.  I would love to share with you the greatest love you will ever know.*

Dossier to China

This week our dossier was sent to China.  There were points in the last two months I thought this might never happen.  It is such a relief to know it's on the way!

From this point, we wait for it to be logged in, translated, and reviewed.  Once those steps are complete. China will officially "match" us with Levi and Lilly.  They will then issue a Letter of Approval (LOA).  It will be sent to us.  We will sign on the dotted line saying we want to join Lilly and Levi to our family!  This is a VERY important step.  Once the LOA is signed by us and sent back to China, they consider us Lilly and Levi's parents!

After sending back the LOA, a few more steps to follow.  We have to apply again with our children's names to the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) and wait for their approval to make Lilly and Levi U.S. citizens.  China waits for that approval from USCIS.  Once that is issued, they grant us travel approval (TA) to come to China and pick up our children.  We will request a Consulate Appointment and once we have one, we can book our tickets to our babies!

The adoption process has a lot of steps, but we're getting SO close.

Sign Commitment to Adopt Paperwork     2/8/15
Letter of Intent to China     2/9/15
Agency Application     2/13/15
Pre-Approval from China    2/28/15
Received Pre-approval for Levi 4/3/2015
Home Study Complete 4/6/2015
File I-800a with USCIS 4/2/2015
Receipt Date 4/22/2015
Fingerprint Appointment (Actual 5/18/2015-walked in 5/11/2015)
Receive I800a approval letter
Documents Authenticated
Dossier to China 7/15/15
Logged In Dossier in China
Letter of Action from China
File form I-800 to USCIS
I-800 approval from National Visa Center
Article 5 (Approval from US)
Travel Approval
Schedule Consulate Appt
Go to CHINA and get Lilly and Levi!!!!!

Please continue to pray for the Lilly and Levi as they wait for us to come.  One specific way you can pray is that China will grant our medical expedite.  After reviewing Lilly and Levi's files, our pediatrician was gracious to write a letter to China pleading with them to expedite their cases.  They both have heart issues that are common with Down Syndrome and it would be best if we could get them home as soon as possible to be checked out.  The doctor's letter accompanies our dossier.  It is up to China whether or not they see fit to expedite our adoptions.  If they do, we could travel earlier than anticipated!
 

You can also continue to pray for our funds.  God is so faithful and He has kept us tethered to Him in faith giving us just what we need for each next payment.  We've applied for several adoption grants.  Please pray that we might be granted assistance through some of these organizations.  If you're local, we'd love for you to come to our Pancake Breakfast, August 15.  All the details can be found HERE.

We also still have lots of envelopes to be adopted,  if you're interested in investing in the lives of Lilly and Levi.

God has blessed us over and over again.  He has provided in so many indescribable ways.  It is amazing to see His love for our children that we haven't even met yet.  Thank you each for your prayers and support in our journey.  

Our hearts long for Lilly and Levi.

Frequently Asked Questions and Comments

I thought I would take a moment and address some of the questions and comments that we have heard a lot since we shared that we are adopting again.  I wanted to respectfully share our feelings, and also gently combat a few of the negative things we've heard.

Why adopt?

Simply put, this is God's command.  He showed us how to love.  He has adopted us into His family through the death and resurrection of His Son and we are adopted.  James 1:27 says, "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for the orphans and widows...".  Furthermore, we have given our lives to Christ.  We want to offer ourselves as living sacrifices for Him (Romans 12:1-2).  The world says buy more, get more, be the best, have the best.  That is not our desire.  Our desire is to live and breath our every breath for the glory of God our Savior.  So, when asked "why adopt?", I say "Why not?".

Why go to another country when so many kids need homes in America?

I understand why someone might ask this question.  God begin growing our hearts for children with Down Syndrome before we were married.   Our direct calling was children with Down Syndrome.  We know that in other countries children with special needs and specifically Down Syndrome are seen to have little or no value.  They are placed in institutions where many die from lack of nutrition and physical interaction. One blessing in America is that there is a Down Syndrome registry of families that has a waiting list of families ready to adopt children with Down Syndrome should a family feel the need to place them up for adoption.  Not as many families are willing to travel to other countries to give these precious babes forever families and their futures don't look as promising simply due to the country they were born in.  For us, distance is not an issue, after all Jesus came all the way from Heaven to Earth to rescue us.  (A side note to add, the Bible does not say care for the orphans only in America).

Have you thought about what your future will look like?

Of course, we've embraced what our future will look like.  We certainly did not go into adoption with any sort of naive thinking.  We have been praying for this for years.  I love that in our relationship, the two of us are on the same page.  Neither of us care about living in a giant house or having fancy things.  Simply put, we want to serve Christ with our all.  We are excited to know that God has called us for such a special purpose and that we have gotten a front row seat to watch His miraculous hand.  We get to see the Gospel lived out.  We get to see redemption right before our eyes.  We get to understand the Father's love for us better than we ever have before.

Where are you going to put them?  You don't have room in your house.
False.  We have room in our house.  It might not be a huge house and all of our kids won't have their own bedrooms, but we have room! We have been to Costa Rica, Ethiopia, Brazil, and Cuba and we have seen families living in one room huts without running water or even a door or window.  I would say we live in luxury compared to most of the world.  Will our children have to share a room?  Yes.  Is that a bad thing?  Absolutely not.  I pray that our children will learn to share and learn that they don't "need" their own room.  God has blessed our family and has always provided for us.  Everyone of our children will have their own bed to sleep in, a chair at the dinner table, the love of a family and better than all that....

they will know the Father's love for them.

How can you afford to adopt?

Does the financial aspect of raising $55,000 scare us?  Yes.  We live on a modest pastor's salary and we have always committed for Christy to stay at home with our children.  God has ALWAYS provided for our family.  We did not and do not have the money stashed away to pay for our adoption.  We knew that God was calling us to adopt.  We kept saying..."uh, but have you seen our bank account God?"  God reminded us that He's always been faithful through every journey.  He is all we need.  We are trusting Him every step of the way.  Do we know where the rest of the money will come from?  No, but we are trusting and believing in God's faithfulness.  I can tell you that we have had our minds blown over and over again throughout this process as God has proved His faithfulness.  

That's awesome, but we/I could never do that.

Actually, you could/can do this.  God is calling us to something bigger than ourselves.  This life is not about us contrary to what our culture shouts.  This life is to glorify God and honor Him with every breath He has given us.  What is God calling you to do that is out of your comfort zone?  It may not look like our calling, but He wants to use you!  May you have the faith to get out of the boat into the ocean and watch Him hold you up in the waves.

I don't like to read about your story, because 
it makes me feel bad like I'm not doing enough.

One thing we weren't prepared for was some of the harsh comments we've gotten.  We can't compare our unique calling with anyone else.  The calling on our family was to do ministry, plant a church and be a forever family to children with Down Syndrome.  Your calling is not necessarily going to look like ours and that's okay; however, plug into how and where God wants to use YOU!  Not everyone has agreed with us pursuing adoption.  Not everyone understands why we're adopting.  We're certainly not trying to "outdo" anyone.  We're trying to live ALL IN for Christ.  Period.  Ultimately, we are only trying to please our God.  He has given us all and we want to live all in for Him.  When the comments get icky, we have to keep our eyes on the One who called us out of the boat.  He is the ONLY One that will keep us from sinking.

He alone is my Rock and my salvation, 

my fortress where I will not be shaken.

My victory and honor come from God alone.
He is my refuge, a rock where no enemy can reach me.

O my people, trust in Him at all times.

Pour out your heart to Him,

for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62:6-8

*To God Be the Glory*

New Pictures from the Far East

We received some new pictures of our Lilly and Levi... here is a peek at two of them.

God's goodness

The main reason I wanted to have a blog was to have a place to share all God is doing through this adoption process.  There is one thing I know....when you do what God asks you to do, even when it seems impossible or scary, He is going to move in a mighty way.  Matt and I want God to be glorified in all that He is doing in our lives especially through this process. 

God has poured out His goodness on us this week.  In the last 5 days, God has done so many things to lift us up.  I could make a list of how He has done more than we could ever imagine in the last few days.  Some ways were small ways that had His fingerprints all over it.  He knows what we need.  Some have completely blown our minds.  I received a phone call yesterday morning that left me speechless due to tears of sheer awe and gratefulness. God knew the weight on my shoulders and I felt as if He physically lifted it off of me yesterday.  I don't understand why God would be so good to us, but I know it is HIM and only HIM.  Thank you God.

We took a huge step of faith when we said yes to adopt.  Then, we were called out even farther into the water when we said "yes" to TWO at one time.  We know this is not something we can do alone.  We got out of the comfortable boat, fixed our eyes on Jesus and He is carrying us.  Many people ask why we are doing what we're doing.  It's way beyond us.  We want to live with total abandon and serve Him faithfully until our last breath.  This is what God has purposed us for.  He has been so very good to us.  Sometimes I think about how many times in the past have I missed out on God's blessings, because I was too afraid to act on what He was calling me to do.  If God is gently nudging you to step out on faith and act, do it!  He wants to show you in a tangible way His mighty hand and shower His blessings on you.  Fix your eyes on Jesus and get out of that boat!

To God be the Glory

Against All Odds

Over the past few weeks I have been reading A Compassionate Call to Counter Culture by David Platt.  Normally it doesn’t take me this long to work through a book but with Counter Culture, every chapter is a heavy topic with pages full of thoughts and actions to digest.  Each chapter is a hotly debated cultural topic, and the first ones it tackles are poverty, abortion, and widows & orphans.     You would think, as we are going through the adoption process to bring two abandoned impoverished children into our family and our home that the two chapters that would hit home would be poverty and widows & orphans… and while both of those chapters lowered the boom and hit me right in the gut, the one that blew my mind was on abortion.

The chapter starts off with the stat that 42 Million Babies are aborted every year worldwide.  That is 115,000 babies every day.  (stats taken from abort73.com).  After 18 pages of thought provoking material, Platt concludes with a personal touch that hit home for me.

Here is what it said…

“As I bring this chapter to a close, I think about a mom who lives in one of those countries of the world where baby girls are not favorably looked upon.  Over thirty-five thousand children are ripped from their wombs every day in China, and over half of the women there have had at least one abortion. (allgirlsallowed.org/forced-abortion-statistics) Some of these abortions are voluntary; other are mandatory.  Government officials enforce abortion to ensure population control.  Women in rural villages are routinely checked to make sure they neither are pregnant nor have given birth recently.

I don’t know all the details about this particular mom, but I do know that when she became pregnant, she believed she was not able to take care of her child.  Yet she refused to have an abortion.  Instead, she brought her child to term and gave birth to a precious little girl on her own.

Then she took that newborn baby girl, wrapped her in a light-blue cloth, place her in a brown paper box, and in the middle of the night laid her in front of an orphanage for children with special needs.  The orphanage found this baby girl the next morning and conducted a search for her mother only to come up empty.

Though I don’t know who that mom is, I thank God for her.  Because of her courage to refuse abortion, and because of her compassion for the unborn, a little girl was able to live.  And every day when I come home from work, that little girl comes running up to me with a smile spread across her face, jumps into my arms, yells DADDY and gives me the biggest bear hug you can imagine.”  (Platt, pg 75)

As I read that all I could think was… we are waiting on paperwork and funds to go get two kids… a little girl with special needs and a little boy with special needs who had mothers who helped these kids make it to birth against unbelievable odds.  Then, realizing that they could not care for these kids, they found an orphanage that some day could adopt them out to a family that could give them a chance to live life.

Every day I look at Endale and thank God for him and the way God worked out all the details for that little boy to come to a home that loves him.  To come to a place that could experience his mood-changing smile.  To change the lives of so many people that he has met (AND THAT IS ONLY IN THE FIRST YEAR - what is in his future?)

As I look at him, I think of Lilly and Levi and the impact they are going to make all because God brought them, against all odds, to a family that loves them and excited to see how they will change their world.

It is an amazing process that all of us get to be a part of.  Thank you for supporting us in all of this and we ask for your continued prayers as God’s plan continue to unfold.

Double the Fun

We are so excited to share with you that we will be bringing TWO home from China!

When we started looking into the China adoption process, Matt and I talked about adopting more than one child.  There are a lot of children in China with Down Syndrome that need families.  Unfortunately, we didn't meet the financial requirements per person that China required.  Our agency made us aware that China typically issues a waiver for families that wish to adopt children with special needs.  So we proceeded with committing to adopt Lilly and China gave us our pre-approval (PA).  We begin looking at files of a couple more children in Lilly's orphanage.  There is also several boys that have Down Syndrome.  One in particular stole our heart.  We looked over his file for several weeks.  We prayed over him.  We asked God what He was telling us to do.

We didn't want to make an emotional decision.  We wanted to make sure that God was leading us.  Matt and I and our children all agreed that God wanted us to bring him home too.  We submitted the form to commit to adopt him and then we waited.  We had to wait for  China to give us the "okay"...the PA for this sweet boy we had already fallen in love with.

This morning, we received word that China granted us pre-approval to proceed to adopt this sweet boy!  So we will be bringing home TWO from China at the end of the year.  God is SO good.  Our family is SO excited.

Meet Levi Nan Jun

Levi means Joined by God

Small me, BIG GOD

^" Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, 
according to his power that is at work within us,  to him be glory...."
Ephesians 3:20

  

First, let me say that every blessing this week has been GOD given and He deserves the glory.  We had a garage sale for two days.  We are so thankful for all the items that were donated for our cause.  Our garage was completely full.  We even had to leave furniture outside overnight, because we had no where to put it!  Thank you to all who donated their items. What may have seemed like a small thing to you is helping to change a child's life.

We are also VERY thankful for our friends who gave their time and helped unload our garage, organize bags of items, and manned the garage sale while all the customers came!  We could not have pulled it off without their help.  THANK YOU to all of our friends who helped and those who stopped by in support!

I was hoping we'd make around $1000 for both days.  I knew we had some big items and figured that was a decent number to project.  After the first day, I added up what we had so far and we had already made $1700 in day one!  Then, when I woke up Saturday morning, it was as if the garage sale fairy had visited and had left more stuff.  Our garage was still full after selling $1700 the first day!  To my amazement as we added everything up after two days of the garage sale....

$2354 !!!!

  

God did IMMEASURABLY MORE than I imagined!!!!!  
Praise Him.  Praise Him.  Praise Him.
He is so very faithful in our obedience. 

Join us in praising Him today.

Revelation 5:13

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb
    be praise and honor and glory and power,
forever and ever!”

 

Check! and Check!

An update at where we're at in the process...

This window of the adoption process is about the only part that we have control over how long it takes.  Some families take months to complete their home study.  We've been blessed by a wonderful social worker who has been diligent at doing her part, so we can get our home study in hand quickly.  

The home study is an approval through a state agency that says we're fit to adopt a child.  Some of the things that have been required of us to complete our home study:

-examination of our lives from birth to this point

-interview every family member

-medical exam for every family member

-inspection of our home

-police background clearances

-fingerprints

-documentation to prove everything

We've worked hard at completing everything quickly.  We've completed our 4 face to face interviews that are required.  Now, we wait for our home study to be written.  We'll proofread it and our adoption agency will proofread it.  Once approved on both ends it will be notarized and be done!  We're hoping by the end of next week, it should be complete.

Once our home study is approved and complete, we can apply with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).  We will submit an application with our home study and $805 each to seek approval to adopt an orphan and bring her back and make her a US citizen.  USCIS will send us an appointment letter in the mail with a time to go and have our fingerprints done at a USCIS office.  Once approval comes from USCIS, we can submit our dossier to China!

There are a lot of steps to this process.  We have to take it one step at a time.  

If you'd like to be a part of bringing Lilly home, you can adopt an envelope HERE.

Thank you for supporting us through prayer as well.  If you'd like to pray for our family, we would love to give you some specifics:

Please pray for Lilly and her care takers as she waits for us.

Pray for the Lord's leading as we have a big decision to make in the coming days.

Pray that God would continue to provide as we've trusted Him in the journey.

Join us as well in thanksgiving as He has been so faithful already. 

Pre-approval!

We got a call from our agency last night sharing the great news that our case has been pre-approved to adopt Lilly!  This is one of the first big steps on the legal side of things.  From here, the process will be approximately 9-10 months until we travel and bring Lilly home.  

From here, we will spend the next few weeks updating our home study to make it Hague accredited for China.  Our new home study will also include Endale.  This is the only part of the process we have a tiny bit of control over how long it takes.  We are still at the mercy of a few people and processes, but we can start checking things off our list!  We want to do whatever we can to get over to Lilly as soon as possible.  After walking the adoption journey with Endale in Ethiopia, we're encouraged at the stability and predictability that China offers.  According to our agency, China's adoptions go "by the book".  Sounds good to me!

These are the steps we have to take to get our Lilly home:

Sign Commitment to Adopt Paperwork     2/8/15

Letter of Intent to China     2/9/15

Agency Application     2/13/15

Pre-Approval from China    2/28/15

Update Home Study

File I-800a with USCIS

Dossier to China

Logged In Dossier in China

Letter of Action from China

I-800 to USCIS

I-800 approval from National Visa Center

Article 5 (Approval from US)

Travel Approval

Schedule Consulate Appt

Go to CHINA and get our Lilly!!!!!

Jehovah Jireh: The Lord Will Provide

I don't want to miss a single chance to give God the glory as we walk through this adoption process once more.  He has already caused us to sit back in awe of His hand in the process.

As we began praying about the potential of adding Lilly to our family, as I shared before, God reminded us that He is faithful and He has shown us His faithfulness.  He simply asks us to obey.  Sadly, for a moment our faith failed us as we questioned what we both knew He was asking us to do.

 

Our biggest fear in pursuing the adoption of Lilly was not where we were going to put her or if we could love another child with special needs.  We have another seat in our car and a spot at our dinner table.  We have a place for her to sleep, siblings to spoil her and more love than she has probably ever experienced all just waiting here for her.  Our biggest fear was raising the funds to pay for the actual adoption process and the travel to get her.  We are completely capable of caring for her and providing for her, but the cost of the process is steep.  The crazy thing about this fear is that we have seen God diminish this fear in our previous adoption!

  I had the honor of being a guest on a friend's blog a few months ago and I was able to share about how God provided throughout the adoption process with Endale.  He was there at the beginning from providing my desire to love a child with Down Syndrome all the way to getting him home.  You can read it {HERE}. 
We have certainly seen God provide.

Weeks into this process, God has already showed up and I want to share with you and give God the glory.  Matt and I decided that we would sell our pop-up camper, so we would have money for some of the initial payments to the adoption agency.  Matt listed it on Craigslist.  In less than 5 minutes, his phone rang with a potential buyer.  The family asked if they could come see it that afternoon.  They came, loved it and made an offer on the spot.  Now, like any good business person, we listed it high knowing we'd most likely get a lower offer. The family made their offer.  It just so happened to be the next fee amount that we owe our adoption agency!  And, it was $1000 MORE than what we initially paid for it!!  To make this story a little sweeter and more laced with God's goodness....the family had two adopted daughters from China.  Goosebumps.

We also launched our "Adopt An Envelope Fundraiser" this week to help with our adoption costs.  It allows anyone to be a small part of caring for an orphan who will soon have a family to call her own.  We have been floored as we've seen God's faithfulness through people--some who have been a part of our lives for years and some only a short time--take part in loving a little girl they've never met.  Tears flowed down my cheeks as I read messages from dear friends just wanting be a part of this.  Psalm 34:8 says, "Taste and see that the Lord is good."  We have seen His goodness over and over again in our lives. Our journey to Lilly will be no different.  We can certainly taste and see His goodness this week.

Where we are at is a terrifying but beautiful place to be.   We are fully relying and depending on God to come through for Lilly.  To quote a dear friend of mine, Dr. Allan Sawyer:

"God challenged me to do things 

so far out of my comfort zone 

that if God doesn't show up,

then we are going to utterly fail." 

The amazing thing is....we KNOW He will show up!  We are His vessels and get to be used by Him in the process.

Meet our girl!

Lilly Rao Ann

Lilly Blooms In Our Hearts

 Adoption has changed our lives.  It has changed our family.  We have been praying for several months asking God what He would like us to do next.  Since we met Endale in Ethiopia, we knew we would adopt again. We looked into all sorts of options being completely open to wherever and however God led.

Once again, He handpicked who was supposed to be in our family.  He opened our hearts to a little girl named, Lilly, in China.  Lilly has Down Syndrome and is 2 1/2 years old just like Endale.   We fell in love with her through pictures.

As God nudged our hearts, we pushed back.  The process of getting to her seems daunting after just recently completing an adoption.  Matt and I begin to seek the Lord's wisdom.  We prayed.  We asked the kids to pray and ask God to even lead them as to what we were supposed to do.


With the whole family feeling like we were supposed to adopt Lilly, Matt and I started looking at timelines, fee sheets and all of Lilly's medical files.  We knew what we were supposed to do, but how?  As fear crept in, it was if God gently reminded us both...

"Have I not already showed you My faithfulness?"


God has showed us His faithfulness in adoption already!  He is worthy of our trust.  Hebrews 13:6 says, "The Lord is my Helper. I will not be afraid."

People will think we're crazy--although they probably already do.
People will question what we're doing--but we've received our orders from God.
People will ask how--our God says, I am faithful just keep your eyes on Me.

God has called us to live radically for Him and we are ALL IN.  This is the calling on our family and we all know it.

So we boldly say, "YES".

Proverbs 3:27 says, "Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act."

So now, we long to bring Lilly home.

This blog will serve as a way to share God's faithfulness as He writes this chapter in Lilly's story and joins her into our family.