Two Adoptions

This is how it goes:

we cannot start Obsi's adoption until Tamarat's adoption is completed... so they cannot be adopted together now... we can leave Tamarat there and not pick him up until Obsi is ready... but the adoptions will be 2 separate adoptions...

By completed, it means after Tamirat's case passes federal court and the adoption deed is issued, we can get the dossier and submit it for Obsi.

In regard to the dossier: Our dossier is submitted to the courts and reviewed by MOWA (Ministry of Women's Affairs). It is currently being used for Tamarat's adoption.. we cannot add another child to a case once it is submitted to court.. so because of the mother's illness, we needed to get Tamarat's case finished in case she passes away. Once it is done, we can get it from court and submit it for Obsi's case but even if we got Obsi's paperwork today, we cannot add it to Tamarat's case.

God's Will

The purpose of this post is for me to see how God will work. One of the adoptive moms wrote this on our YahooGroup page:

God's timing has been perfect, although we were required many times to walk in patience and trust Him to move mountains! .......... One thing I learned in this journey thus far is to write down the small miracles, the times you see God answer prayers and move mountains, the blessings....and then when you are standing in front of a large mountain...ask God to move it and He will, in His timing!!!!!! The journal helps so much as you are staring down the largest of all battles. It allowed our family to see and believe that God had started a good work on behalf of (their son) and he was surely going to finish it.

This is my mountain right now:

Tamirat had to be submitted to court. There is fear that his mother may not make it very long as she is very sick. It gets complicated if she dies before court.

Obsi's paperwork is not done. If it doesn't get done soon, we will have to make two trips. Seth and Alex will only make one trip. It is expensive for all of us to go. It is a hard trip. I do not want to make two trips. But yet, I don't want to have either boy escorted home, I want to be there for them. I want Seth and Alex there to meet them. I want it to be a family thing! I don't want anyone left out of the experience! The over-riding theme here is the "I" part. This is where I need to pray for God's will. I know he has it all planned out for our family. We will be blessed and I can't wait to see what he does with this whole situation.

There is also a potential problem of travelling close to the end of May. Seth has finals around that time...will we have to pull him out of school the week of finals? If we wait and take the boys with us to get Obsi, what do we do with Tamirat who won't have a passport or even be legally adopted in WI. We can't leave him behind!

We are being submitted to court on Monday and that is huge! Except, I am not excited. Don't get me wrong, I can't wait until we get Tamirat home with us. His little brother and sister can't wait to see him after a year's absence. "I" just want both boys to come home together. God has a plan.......

Court

Tamirat is being submitted to court Monday. His circumstances are such that he needs a court date. His dear mother is very sick. O's paperwork is still not done! We may need to make two trips to get the boys. I am not sure what God's plans are but I know that He knows best.

Count the Cost?

I wanted to post what Katie wrote in her blog yesterday because it really touched me as I read it. My faith is so shallow compared to Katie's. How much am I willing to give up? I am very aware of the plight of the African people. Yes, we are adopting two orphans. Is that enough?

Katie is only 21. She has adopted 14 children! 14! I am taking only 2 boys...pathetic! There are so many of us americans living comfortable good lives. We have godly families, great education, an abundance of food and clothing, more shelter than we need compared to the one-room huts in Africa, clean water, medical care,....it goes on and on. Why aren't more of us willing to share that with children who only want a family and to be loved? There are a group of boys over at an orphanage who wrote a note to the director of our agency that read:

Dear Sue,
Thank you for finding a new family for us to live a good place. May God bless you, keep it up.

yours friend,
T.A. (I can't post their names)
and
S.T.

The two boys who wrote this, don't have a family yet but three of their friends do, one of them being our boy. (Finding means looking here.) They get so excited when Sue finds a home for any one of the boys. They don't get jealous and mad....they rejoice! Our Obsi will leave behind his best friend, S.T. Yes, it breaks my heart and we may adopt more within the next year while our paperwork is still valid.

Here is Katie's post:

my heart spilled...

Disclaimer: This post was hard to write, and for some it will be hard to read. I prayed before I posted and I do believe that it is what the Lord would have me say. This is my blog, a place where I share my private thoughts and I invite you to remember before you comment that no one has forced you to read it.
She was eighteen years old and she had never been in love with anyone she could touch before. I mean, she had been in love with Jesus since she was little, but this was different, touchable love.
In her eyes he was perfect. He loved the Lord, not to mention he was pretty darn cute. He went to church with her and joined her on silly errands and at family dinners. He made her giggle by saying things that only she found funny. He made her heart flutter when he swept that one always-stray piece of hair out of her eyes.

They were the “perfect couple.” They were desperately in love; one lit up as the other entered the room. They could see their beautiful future together. After high school, they would go together to college, get married, work a bit, settle down and have children with his eyes and her big smile. They would grow old together, laughing at secrets and kissing each other goodnight.

And then God asked her to move to Uganda. At first it was just going to be a year. They could do a year. She would come back and they could still go to college together and all their dreams would still come true. When the Lord asked her to adopt her first children, it became a bit more complicated. She rationalized that her youngest was 7, so in 11 years, she could move back home and be with him. But her children kept getting younger and His call kept getting stronger. She would go back in 13 years, in 17 years, in 20 years. Finally she came to terms with the fact that God was just asking her to STAY. And that when He said He wanted ALL of her, He meant all. She would live in Uganda. But she held on to her love because remaining comfortable was so much easier than dealing with the hurt and the emptiness would be.

Her eyes were opened and her life was changed. She couldn’t pretend to be the same person. She couldn’t sit still in his world anymore, it made her head spin and her heart ache. And still she held on because she didn’t love him any less. She knew God could move mountains and she prayed He could change his heart. After all, such a love must have been God orchestrated.
He made her feel beautiful as she walked through life as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. He believed in her when the rest of the world said raising eighty thousand dollars or adopting ten children was silly. Even from the other side of the world, he cheered her on and he picked her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. His voice on the other end of the phone turned a rough day right around.

They were moving in opposite directions. They both knew it, but they both refused to let go.
So she asked God for a very specific sign. For something that she thought very unlikely if not absolutely impossible. And then something devastating happened. God gave her the sign that she asked for. So she kissed him goodbye and drove away and cried so hard that she doubted she would ever breathe again. She tried not to wonder if anyone would ever love her like that again or how she would do this all alone.

And that’s when He reminded her that she wasn’t. That HE would make her feel beautiful as a single mom covered in dust and spit up. That He appreciated her even when everyone else forgot to say thank you. That He believed in her when the rest of the world thought everything she did was crazy. That He would cheer her on and pick her up when she just didn’t feel strong enough. That His voice whispering in her ear would turn those rough days right around. That He would ALWAYS be faithful. That His love would be unconditional. That He, her ONE TRUE LOVE would never leave or forsake her and would give her heart’s desires. That He would make all things new, even her shattered heart.

* * *

A few days ago an American woman who had spent about three days of her life in a third world country looked at me and said, “I would SO love to do what you do. I would do it in a heartbeat. Oh, I would take 14 kids in a second!” It is a good thing that I was having a graceful day, because I said, “Aw that’s nice.” But my not so graceful heart was angry. And the not so graceful voice in my head wanted to say to her, “Ok then, do it. I can have you 14 orphaned, abandoned, uncared for children tomorrow. So here is what you have to do: Quit school. Quit your job. Sell your stuff. Disobey and disappoint your parents. Break your little brother’s heart. Lose all but about a handful of friends because the rest of them think you have gone off the deep end. Break up with the love of your life. Move to a country where you know one person and none of the language. And when you are finished, I will be here waiting with your 14 children!” I wanted to ask her what was stopping her, knowing that the answer would be her comfort. I wanted to look at her and tell her that my life was full and joyful and WONDERFUL, but I also wanted to tell her to COUNT THE COST. Because my life IS full and joyful and wonderful, but it is NOT easy. My life is NOT glamorous. I do not expect it to be. I do not think that anything about carrying a cross was easy or glamorous either.

Which brings me to my point. I am not actually that angry about what that woman said, it was just an offhanded comment. But it got me to thinking… How many times do we grieve our sweet Savior’s heart because we refuse to COUNT THE COST? How many times do we choose comfort instead of the cross?

In my NIV Bible, the header above Luke 9:57-62 says, “The Cost of Following Jesus.” Here it is, plain and simple, laid out for us by the Lord. “As they were walking along the road, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus replied, “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay His head.” He said to another man, “Follow me.” But the man replied, “Lord, first let me go and bury my Father.” Jesus said to Him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” Still another said, “I will follow you Lord, but first let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus replied, “No one who puts His hand to the plow and looks back will be fit to enter the Kingdom of God.” THIS IS SERIOUS STUFF. A little later in Luke 14:25, “The Cost of Being a Disciple,” Jesus tells the crowds gathered around Him, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes even his own life – he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry His cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to complete it; everyone who sees it will ridicule him saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Will he not first consider if he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and ask for terms of peace. In the same way any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.”

In Luke, in the days of Jesus, He expected EVERYTHING of his disciples. Do we believe that He requires the same today? We sure don’t act like it. If you ever read my blog or have heard me speak then you have heard me reference Matthew 25, the parable of the sheep and the goats. Jesus basically looks straight at the crowd and tells them that when He comes back, those who have seen the needy and met their needs will come with Him to heaven. He also says that those who have seen the needy and done nothing will be sent away to “eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.” Right, hell. This is heavy, I know, but I believe that it is TRUE. I believe that the words of Jesus are timeless and therefore still apply to anyone desiring to be His follower today. (Oh, and in case you think you can get away with saying that you have not seen Jesus naked or hungry or thirsty or in need and therefore you are off the hook, let me help you. 30,000 children will die today because of hunger or preventable disease. There. Now you know. Now you are responsible too.) Faith without good deads is DEAD, my friends. Yes, I believe fully in salvation by His grace alone. I do not believe that anything we do or work for will save us. I also believe that if we are indeed saved, meaning that He lives inside of us, we will desire to do what is pleasing to Him. That if we really love Him with all our hearts and all our strength, NOTHING will feel like sacrifice in light of the promise that one day we will get to be with Him forever. Automatically, we will help those in need, we will give our all, we will love our neighbor as our self, because our heart is aligned with His. But so many don’t. This then begs the question: If we are not walking in the words of Jesus, do we truly know Him? Do we really know and believe in the Jesus of the Bible. Because if we do, if we believe what He says is true, our lives will be powerfully, unimaginable, radically different than the lives of those around us. He requires EVERYTHING.

I wonder today if I had been one of the people listening to Jesus as He spoke in Luke 9 and 14, if Jesus would have convinced me to follow Him or if I would have walked away. I believe I would have really really wanted to say goodbye to my family. I wonder about “Christians” today. We wear Jesus on our T-shirts, we wear His cross around our neck and a bumper sticker with His name on it on our car. Have we just laid the foundation without being able to build the building? Does Jesus feel like I did when a woman I didn’t know told me she would love to do what I do but I knew that she never would? Do we claim the precious name of Jesus Christ without counting the cost? Without being willing to REALLY give it all? And does Jesus, in His infinite grace, look at us and say, “Aw, that’s nice,” but really with the furry that he flipped over the tables in the temple want to spit our lukewarm selves out of His mouth?

This is heavy on my heart. I have spent hours typing it to get the words out right and still I feel like I am rambling. If you would like more references on God’s heart for the poor, try Isaiah 56-58, Proverbs 14:31, 21:13, 28:27, Matthew 19:16- 30, Luke 6:20-25, 18:18, James 5:1… Please feel free to add more in your comments! If we believe that these words are true, the way we are living is not tolerable. How can we live in willful disobedience and claim to know Jesus Christ?

I do not claim to have the answers. I do not claim to be doing it right. I do claim to believe that the words of Jesus are absolutely true and apply to me, right now today. I want to give EVERYTHING, no matter the cost. NO MATTER THE COST. Because I believe that nothing is sacrifice in light of eternity with Christ.

Please take an hour of your time to listen to this sermon my David Platt of Birmingham, Alabama. I pray that it would drastically change your life: www.brookhills.org/media/series/radical

This 21 year old young lady puts me to shame! What is my cost to adopt those two boys? Money? Money isn't a cost! He blessed us with it but it is His. Maybe we need to help by giving it to people who want to adopt and can't because they have no money. I am watching a family adopt three children right now, with no money....none. They are relying on the Lord to provide and guess what? He is providing for them. Is it a cost to be blessed by two sweet boys? That is not a cost. It is my gain! Less room in the house, more junk laying around? We have way more room that most people and the junk...praise God we have junk. When our boys leave their country, they don't pack a suitcase. They don't even pack a backpack. They leave with the clothes on their back.

This post is way too long, bless your heart for sticking with me. If you took the time to read this and are interested in stepping out of your comfort zone, I can hook you up with Sue. She can hook you up with a baby, a toddler, an adolescent, a teen, boy or girl. The older boys speak English, are getting a Christian education, and are sweet boys who will bless your socks off!

I-171H Notice of Favorable Determination

We are officially approved! This is the last piece we needed so when we pass court, we can go pick up the boys. We need this approval for the embassy appointment.

Obsi's paperwork is still not done. The orphanage is 14 hours away from Addis. After they collect what they need, it is a three hour walk to get signatures on the paperwork. There is a cell phone tower in the village a 3-hour walk away. Other than that one cell phone tower, there is no way to communicate from the village unless you go there. No electricity! The roads have gotten very bad so it isn't an easy trip. Also, there is no rushing Ethiopians. It is not in their culture. They don't make appointments. If they do, they most likely won't show up.

There is nothing I can do but wait and pray. The Lord knows when we should travel. I can't wait to see what He has in store for our family!

T

No pictures or videos of T. I am thinking we won't get pics until we go get him. Darn!

O

Obsi is said to be very nice. He enjoyed the pictures we sent. The one taken from the helicopter really caught his eye! He is taller than we would think, guessing his height to be at 5'6". His english is good. He was told that he will go to the same school and church as M and N. He seemed relieved! He has a great smile and seems to be out-going. He joked around with M, N and some other boys.

(side note here: M & N will be adopted by friends of ours who go to our church)

I had bought Obsi some clothes, but they will not fit. I told Seth, he would have to share his clothes until we get Obsi his own stuff. Seth was great about it. Seth is 5'6" so Obsi should fit into all his jeans. I then asked Seth if he could pack clothes for Obsi when we go pick him up and he will! He just asked that we buy Obsi is own boxers and socks...of course! And he asked if he could keep his favorite basketball shorts for himself. Everything else is open for sharing! I love it when the boys have that attitude of sharing.

Obsi has a best friend he will leave behind. This friend wrote a note to the director, Sue, that he would like her to find him a family like O, M & N are going to. It seemed that this friend will be very lonely when O, M and N go home. There are two other boys already on the "Waiting Children" list that are part of that group and they will also get left behind. There must be some families in this area that would adopt these three boys? It would be so cool to have all six boys together in America!! They are all really nice boys who have dreams of a future and a hope and a family.

I was joking around with Angela who works at Celebrate Children and told her I was going to make posters of these three boys and hang them all over our church, hoping someone would be willing to adopt them. She said she would have to talk with Sue on that one. I had to tell her I was kidding....I know I can't do that! Sure wish I could!!

T

T is very quiet and is learning English. Because Pochi, who is the orphanage director, was still in the US, communication wasn't easy. There was no one at the ophanage who could translate. In interacting with the other kids, he seemed very kind and tender. He was shown on a map where he will be living, but not sure if he understood. He is reported as being a very cute boy.

We haven't received any pictures or a video yet. The last pictures we have of him are from June of '09. The video was from March of '09. I look forward to seeing an updated picture.

Word on "O"

This is what I just heard:

February 2 at 9:13am
Just heard from L! .....She said of all the boys she met in Kam, she would have picked our 3! Your O and our 2 boys are good friends with Al & Te. there is another very nice boy who is very good friends with your O. Sue is going to post him when she gets back. He wrote Sue a note asking if she could find a family like N M & O's he would be very thankful.

She spent allot of time with our boys and said that O is very tall for his age. I will let her fill you in more. Hopefully if they can manage the home coming exhaustion you will have pix tonight!But I am sure tomorrow at the latest

But L said the boys M,N & O are friends with are all good boys, very much alike and all good friends. They are happy when one of them gets a family.

We will not have a court date this week. Obsi's paperwork is still not done! Grrrr....

I just have to sit back and wait...and wait... I will put it in God's hands to provide a home for Al, Te, and O's friend. I am going to request that He finds them a home in Manitowoc County! Yes, I will tell God what is best.... It would be so awesome if we had all six boys near each other. I am sure God knows that!

Just for the record...I posted this on FB a few weeks ago:

8“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.

“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

9For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so my ways are higher than your ways

and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.
That would be from the book of Isaiah, Chapter 55 and I do believe it.


Until later, Happy waiting with me!!!!