the journey

Trust God in every part of your story - He is not done yet.

As I look back over our adoption journey, I can see how God was preparing us throughout our lives with different experiences and passions, for this part of our lives. Like how I always wanted to work in a third world orphanage...but God brought the orphanage to my house instead. But it wasn't until the summer of 2012 that our journey actively began. I remember praying that prayer, "God, break my heart for what breaks Yours." He started to reveal so clearly to me His heart for the fatherless, and continued leading us every step of the way to adopt our 10 year old daughter from Ethiopia in 2014. We're now waiting to bring home our 7 year old Ethiopian daughter as well, God willing.


Every stage of this journey has involved taking steps of faith and trusting God to be faithful. And of course, He has been!

There have been great highs. Oh, the excitement and joy of welcoming a new child to our family! We've been learning how to hear God's voice, above all of the other voices. We've felt the peace that comes from following that voice. We've seen His generosity through the giving of so many people. We've seen Him provide all the finances we've needed, even when it looked impossible in my budget plans.

There have also been deep lows. There's the helplessness of waiting, knowing our children are growing up without us. There's the heartbreak of hearing our daughters' stories. And these broken stories invaded our hearts and our home, breaking us as well. There's been plenty of tears and hopeless moments and repentance of my own pride, selfishness, and lack of love. To be honest, the valleys seem much more prevalent than the mountaintops. While I am often tempted to wallow in the pits of self-pity, I can truly say that I am thankful for the gift of the challenges we face in our family. I am utterly dependent on Jesus to grow me in loving like He does, unconditionally and sacrificially.

There are also those rare, peaceful moments in between where we are walking on level ground. Because we trust our good and loving God, we have hope and persevere, knowing that He is writing our family's story and He is not done yet! Though we experience the ups and downs that this journey has taken us on, our Rock that we cling to is never shaken.

"Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,

and there are no grapes on the vines;

even though the olive crop fails,

and the fields lie empty and barren;

even though the flocks die in the fields,

and the cattle barns are empty,

yet I will rejoice in the Lord!

I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!

The Sovereign Lord is my strength!

He makes me as surefooted as a deer,

able to tread upon the heights."

Habakkuk 3:17-19