5 years ago

On August 30th, Sofia will be five years old.  Time has flown by.  Our little girl is growing up way too fast.  To celebrate her birthday, we went to the movies and then to Chuck E. Cheese.  She was very excited about having a "5 candle" and getting to open presents (can you tell she loves Toy Story?).  By the end of the night, she was exhausted.  She had a great birthday.  Joey and I are very blessed to have such a special little girl in our lives.  We love you, Sofia!

For the sake of the call...

Recently I was driving in my car.  I was headed home and thinking about the whole adoption process.  I'm not going to lie, it can be very frustrating.  We are constantly waiting.  Hurry up and wait, hurry up and wait.  Just when I think we are getting close to the end, the time frame stretches longer and longer.  Anyway, I was driving in my car and one of my favorite songs came on, "For the Sake of the Call" by Steven Curtis Chapman.   There is a part in the song that says,

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call

No other reason at all but the sake of the call

Wholly devoted to live and to die

Not for the sake of a creed or a cause

Not for a dream or a promise

Simply because it is Jesus who called

And if we believe we'll obey

It hit me how hard this whole journey is going to be. But we didn't do it for a dream or a promise that we would have a perfect little family. Being foster/adoptive parents, we have to abandon everything (my comfort level, my fears, my time plan, my convenience, my perception of a perfect family, even the approval of our friends and family). We abandon everything simply because he called. No other reason. If you're like me then lots of people will say, "Well, if God is calling you to do this, then I'm sure everything will be fine." I'm learning that is not true. We don't do things on the promise that situations will be easy or "fine"... we are simply doing this because he called us to. I'd like to think that we are brave for doing that. No, things will definitely be hard.  Just like the disciples faced a hard life by following Christ, our lives are changed significantly by making that same choice. Our choice will affect our close friends and our family. But like the song says,

Nobody stood and applauded them

So they knew from the start

This road would not lead to fame

All they really knew for sure

Was Jesus had called to them

He said "come follow Me" and they came

With reckless abandon, they came

Empty nets lying there at the water's edge

Told a story that few could believe

And none could explain

How some crazy fisherman agreed to go where Jesus went

With no thought to what they would gain

For Jesus had called them by name

And they answered...

We will abandon it all for the sake of the call

No other reason at all but the sake of the call

Wholly devoted to live and to die for the sake of the call

The sake of the call

Drawn like the rivers are drawn to the sea

There's no turning back, for the water cannot help but flow

Once we hear the Savior's call, we'll follow wherever He leads

Because of the love He has shown

And because He has called us to go

We will answer...

Adoption Update

Yesterday we received some great news.  Our family was selected for Salha (pronounced Saul with an 'a' at the end).  Joey and I are thrilled that we will soon have a 15 year old daughter.  We are hoping to get to Houston within the next two weeks to visit with Salha.  The kids are very excited and from what the case worker said yesterday, Salha is most excited about having Jake, Andy, and Sofia as brothers and sister.  Who knew that the kids would be the biggest selling point for us?  God is good and he knows the plans he has for our family.  I can't wait to see what the next month brings.  Thanks for all your prayers.  Please continue to pray for our family as we are united.