China, Here We Come!

It’s hard to believe Kelli and I are leaving for China this Friday morning. We’ve been waiting for this day for over three years since our adoption journey began, and that day is almost here. And as we prepare for our trip, we’ve experienced a roller coaster of emotions this week. Excited. Check. Scared. Check. Overwhelmed. Check. I actually had to do some deep breathing yesterday to get me through a little trip to Kroger. You know, that same deep breathing technique I encourage some of my therapy clients to do. And yes, it does work. At least it worked for me yesterday.

I prayed again last night that we wouldn’t miss out on what God is doing during this part of our journey, and I still wait in anticipation to see all that he has in store. I really don’t want to miss a thing, and my prayer is that I won’t. I’m thankful that I did see him yesterday. God worked it out for us to get a interest free loan from Abba Fund for a huge chunk of our adoption expenses! What a huge blessing and relief that was. And as I was thinking about that last night, I remember the first time I ever heard about Abba Fund. It was a Christian counselors conference around 13 years ago. I remember seeing their booth at the conference, and I think I stopped by briefly to pick up some information. Little did I know that thirteen years later God would bless us through their ministry. If I hadn’t been at that conference, I might have stumbled across some information about the Abba Fund as we were considering options for the financial part for our adoption. But then again, maybe not. I like to think that God planted that seed years ago knowing that he would use the Abba Fund to bless us right now. Pretty cool, I must say.

Kelli and I humbly ask that you join us in prayer this week and in the weeks to come, and below are a few things that you can pray about specifically:

For safety as we travel

That we’ll be able to recover quickly from the crazy long flight so that we’re ready to meet Sophie on Sunday!

That we will be able to bond with Sophie quickly and that Sophie will be able to receive our love from the moment we meet

That there will be no problems with all of the legal hoops that we have to jump through while in China

That Bethany will be filled with peace while we’re gone and that God will protect her and her caregivers

For all of the friends and family who will love on Bethany while we’re in China

For good health for Kelli, me, and Sophie during our trip

For Sophie as she grieves the loss of everything she’s ever known

For the transition after we return

We boldly ask God to work in all of these ways, and we eagerly wait to see all that he will do during this chapter of our amazing adoption journey.

Well, we haven’t done the best job at keeping you updated on our puzzle fundraiser, but as of today, 54 puzzle pieces have been purchased through your generous donations. If you’d like to purchase a puzzle piece (or puzzle pieces) to help with our adoption expenses, we would be forever grateful. All you have to do is click on the Pay Pal "Donate" button on the right of this page. We look forward to putting together the puzzle of sweet Sophie’s face to hang in her bedroom after our trip. And we look forward to introducing Sophie to all of the wonderful people who helped to bring her home.

I hope to be writing in our blog and posting pictures on Facebook during our trip. So, be on the lookout for updates. Thank you again for blessing us through your gifts of prayers, donations, time, cards, and words of encouragement while we’ve been on this journey. God has known that we couldn’t do what we’ve done without all of those things, and we are truly humbled by your kindness. Friends and family, Sophie’s coming home, and we can’t wait for you to meet her!