What's in a name?

I am not sure if this is like a “grand-unveiling” or not.  But many have asked for months what we were going to name LeWei when we get home.  After months of just looking at each other when people asked (like we had never thought of it), we are finally announcing that we feel like we have been given her name, after many months of praying and seeking.  Fu LeWei’s official English name will be:

Mary Beth LeWei McKnight

We are so excited to let everyone know this!  But we are more excited to let everyone know where her name comes from. 

First of all, I have claimed for many years that Jenn has the famous “red phone” in her communication with our Father.  You know, like the one you see in movies where someone has direct access to the President of the US?  That is what her relationship is like with her Father.  When she goes to Him to ask, speak and listen to Him, she has such a close relationship with Him that she knows that He is speaking to her.  It is really cool…..and something I seek.  After learning from her, I can now sense that it is possible for all of His children to have that “red phone” communication with Him as well…..and it is really cool to know that He has spoken and answered.  (BTW – If you know Jenn at all, you should also realize that she did NOT actually approve of me putting this part in the blog – just because that is the way she is.  But I feel it is important to know who she is and who she listens to in order to better understand this post better.  She is a really neat person and an inspiration to me.  J)

Back to the name….  Jenn has always loved the name of Mary, and she felt that our Father told her 10 years ago to name one of our children this name.  Luke was the next child born – probably not a good idea for him though…..  When Lauren was born, we did not feel the call to name her Mary.  We are pleased that He is patient with us and is providing another opportunity for obedience.  So about 2+ years ago, she started praying for what our daughter’s name would be when we would actually get to bring her home.  (That seemed like it would be eternity at that time.)  It was then that she was led back to name our adopted daughter the name of Mary that she admired so much (and is so much like Jenn, if you ask me).

When Jenn shared the name with me, I immediately thought of Mary, the mother of Jesus…..as most people would.  What a great person to be named after!  However, it was Mary of Bethany, that  is the sister of Lazarus and Martha, that she was led to name our daughter after.  There are three key passages in scripture that speak of her devotion to her Savior. 

The first mention of Mary (in reference to Jesus’ ministry) is in Luke 10:38-42.  Jesus had come to visit Mary and Martha.  While Martha was playing the role of the ultimate hospitality worker, running around making sure that everything was in its proper place.  She was offended that her sister, Mary, sat at Jesus’ feet while she worked so hard.  After complaining about it to Jesus, he gently reminds Martha that “Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken from her.”  What message does this give to us, when we are in the midst of planning things for ourselves or for others?  Our best option is to be like Mary of Bethany and sit at our Savior’s fee to listen and wait for Him. 

The second reference is mentioned in John 11:1-44 when Mary’s brother, Lazarus, died.  Lazarus has been sick for a few days, but Jesus did not come to him to heal him quickly.  Actually he waited until Lazarus had been dead 4 days before going to this place.  As Jesus approached their home to be with them, Martha got up quickly to meet Him, while Mary stayed in the home.  I am not a scholar enough to know why she did not meet Him on His way.  However, it is neat to know that Jesus asked for Mary…..no one else.  So when He asked for her, she immediately responded.  Is that how He wants us to approach Him, with the faith to know that He is there, He is coming, and He will answer?  Just like in the passage in Luke, she sat and waited for Him until He called to her. 

The last reference is mentioned in Matthew 26:6-13, Mark14:3-9 and John 12:1-11.  Just before the Passover (the Last Supper), Jesus went to Bethany, possibly in Mary’s home, to have a dinner in His honor.  It was that that time that Mary broke open a very expensive (one year’s wages) pint of pure nard over the feet of Jesus.  Then she proceeded to wash His feet with her hair and the nard.  Jesus explained to the indignant disciples that she understood His mission, and that she was preparing His body for burial. Matthew 26:13 is so cool when Jesus announces that

“wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

The message of Christ will be understood as Mary understood her Savior, and she will always be remembered for it.

That is a little explanation of Jenn believing that she was told our daughter’s name would be named after Mary of Bethany.  How could one argue with that?  Do I think I could come up with a better name or reason for a different name than that?  NO WAY!!!  Signed, sealed and delivered!  J

Over time we have been confirmed that this was going to be her name, with two of the last confirmations coming in the same week in early August.

I was leaving the CCU of St. Thomas one Monday night, after visiting with a dear friend and her husband who was in the CCU.  I was driving home and needed to listen to something  that was calming and a prayer to my Father, to intercede for my friend.  I pushed the button on my iPod to a song that I had never chosen before to listen to……but it was the song that  I needed, the song that confirmed who Mary of Bethany was in her heart…..and a prayer we need to realize daily.  Gateway Worship and Kari Jobe had recorded a song a few years ago called “The More I Seek You” that was a testament of Mary’s heart for her Savior.  The opening lyrics grabbed me, and they still grab me every time I listen to it:

“The more I seek you…….The more I find you.

The more I find you……The more I love you.

I want to sit at your feet.

Drink from the cup in your hand.

Lay back against you and breathe…..feel your heartbeat.

This love is so deep.  It’s more than I can stand.

I melt in your peace, it’s overwhelming.”

The moment I heard this verse, I felt my Father tell me that this is what our daughter’s name would be.  When I read the passages of Mary, and I hear this song, I feel this is what is going through her heart as she sat at Jesus’ feet, as she adored Him at His feet, and as she fell as His feet when she pleaded for her brother’s life.  She knew why her Savior came to earth.  We now have the opportunity for our little girl  to live with this hope that she may never had where she is now.  Our Father can do what He wants, with whomever He chooses.  We get to bring her into a home that will prayerfully give her the chance to live as Mary did – loving her Savior for who He was – a servant, a king, and our Savior!!  PTL!!!  We welcome His presence into our home as we bring her home.

The last confirmation was neat, and it sealed the deal for us.  Two days after I told Jenn about this song, she was introduced to a parent at school who was very interested in our adoption.  This sweet mother and her husband have adopted beautiful little girls from China and have fought for the plight of orphans across the world for years.  As Jenn showed her a picture of LeWei, she immediately said she thought her name should be Mary.  Then she said that actually Mary Beth would be better.  I would have loved to see the look on Jenn’s face as this mother said those words.  I know her mouth fell open when she said it.  I do not even think she was able to tell her that this was really her name.  The mother’s name is Mary Beth herself.  (And we firmly do NOT believe in circumstances! J)  So we look forward to sharing with this dear mother that this will actually be her name, and she played a hand in it.

We know that Mary Beth LeWei McKnight has a lot of letters in it.  But when Jenn married me, she actually has one more letter in her name than Mary Beth’s.  Even with the long name though, I do not believe there is any arguing with this name.  It will be her name, and we pray that she will receive it well when we meet her.  (This will be her 3^rd name in one year.)

Thanks for letting me share this long testimony, as I was looking forward to writing it.

May His message reach others as we seek Him!

Our Thoughts on Taking the Whole Family

It is interesting to see the looks on some faces of people when we tell them that we are taking all of our children to China with us.  Everyone is excited about the opportunity of us taking them.  But getting inside the heads of others is what would be interesting.  The biggest questions we receive are:

-          How much is that going to cost?

-          Boy, isn’t that expensive?

-          What about school?  They allow them to miss two weeks of school???

Anyone that knows Jenn and me know that we are two pretty tight individuals with our finances and with what we say (unless I am typing….then you get too much said…).  So to answer the first two questions, yes, it is expensive and only Jenn and I (and our Father) need to know what it costs.  In regards to the part about school, we have been blessed to be a part of a school that wraps itself around these types of opportunities.  So we have been cleared to allow all our children to go with us by the administration. (PTL!)

In regards to the cost of the trip, Jenn and I had to really consider the cost versus the benefit of taking everyone on the trip.  A lot of the decision goes back to the journey our family has taken over the past couple of years.   Last year at this time, we were 5 months into trying to sell our home, we entered the world of private school education for all 3 of our children (gulp), and Jenn was driving 70 minutes one way to school every day.  People were scratching their heads over our decisions….and sometimes we did as well.  At this time, I was praying and reciting Matthew 6:31-34 and Philippians 4:6-7.  If you had asked me if we were taking everyone on the trip, I would have told you that you were crazy and might see if someone would be going in my spot had this trip come up last year.  Looking ahead towards next year, I may have ask myself “What was I thinking last year???” 

However, none of that makes sense right now.  We know that traveling internationally like this is going to be expensive.  We treat this as an investment into the hearts of our children – not as a sunk cost (must bring up an accounting term J).  But how many times do you get to meet your little sister for the first time – as she meets you??  This opportunity may never come along again for them as children.  If we are provided the blessings to provide this for our children, we will use this season just for that – and trust in His provisions.

James 1:27 calls us to look after orphans and widows:

“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Our children have been given the passion for orphans  through our journey and being surrounded by many awesome families in our community that have adopted many children from all over the world.  Getting to witness this first-hand and having the possible opportunity to go to WeiWei’s orphanage and play with them will give them a new insight into the plight of the 147 million orphans worldwide.  Who knows what the Holy Spirit will stir in their hearts.  We do not want to take away that opportunity for His work to be accomplished.

Lauren has already informed us that she will be adopting when she gets older!  YES!!!!!  (One child at a time….PTL!!)

One more reason I had yesterday on my early morning jog was the reminder that WE are adopted as his children for HIS pleasure! 

Ephesians 1:5-6  “He predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves.” This is a realization that we must hold fast to as He sends us into the world to being Him glory.  Apart from our Father, we are alone, destitute and without hope…..probably like our daughter felt last October 7^th as she stood in a strange place, not knowing anyone and wondering what was going to happen.  Are we that much different as we attempt to walk this world without Him as our Father and Head?  And did you get the fact that HE CHOSE US for HIS PLEASURE?!?  He is the God of the ultimate universe, and He desires to be with us and call us His children!  As much as we want WeiWei as our daughter, and for her to totally transform our lives, our Father wants to be with us far above more than I can imagine.

And the fact is that He does not really need us to continue His work.  In the world’s terms, we are all considered rejects of this failing earth.  As rejects, we are worthless and not needed.  However, when Jesus came, He came to fulfill what is written in Hebrews 10:14:

“because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” 

He came to make us His children and seek the path of Holiness.  We are no longer considered rejects of this world, because Jesus came to save us for something so much better – eternity with Him!!! 

Do you kind of see our reasons for taking our children on this trip???  We desire and pray for their hearts to be changed forever as they take this path.  It is nothing that we can accomplish for them, but for them to seek His face when they see their little sister for the first time.  I still get choked up every time I hear the first verse of Steven Curtis Chapman’s song “Heaven Is the Face” (a must-hear for everyone).  Only my Father knows what we will do when we meet WeiWei…..and only He knows what we will do when we meet Him someday…. 

May we be more pleasing to Him every day!

What We Know of WeiWei So Far

As part of our initial packet of information we received on WeiWei, the orphanage included a “growth chart” about her to let us know what she was like and part of her history since she arrived there.  Instead of re-typing this, it is more real coming directly from excerpts from the report written by those in China:

Fu Lewei, Female, was found at the gate of this institute and then picked up and adopted by this institute on Oct.7 2009 without other belongings brought with her.  ……  According to her physical development, her DOB was decided as Apr.29 2006.  She was named Fu Lewei.  Fu means fuliyuan(welfare institute), Le means that the child will be happy all the time in the future, Wei is a nice name for girls. She was found had absence of left upper forearm.

Development of physical and intellectual ability

Fu Lewei’s absence of left upper forearm influenced her to do some things, but she is smart to use the right hand and deformed arm on the left, so the development of her physical and intellectual ability was not interfered greatly.  After admission Fu Lewei was able to run and jump, wash her hands and face, take off unlined clothes, count some numbers, read picture books, know the man and woman, address herself “I”, had self-esteem, compassion and was shy.  Now Fu Lewei can climb the ladder, put on her shoes, likes asking questions and watching cartoons, feed herself food and go to washroom.

Living habits

Fu Lewei is raised in a group in the institute and fed manually. Under the excellent care of caretakers she has good eating habits, regular living schedule, good sleep. She is looked after by 3 caretakers in turn in 24 hours per day, sleeps alone in a crib with lights off.  She usually gets up at 7:00, naps at 12:00-14:00 at noon, goes to bed at 20:30.

Personality and hobbies

Fu Lewei is extroverted, looks like a happy princess. Now she grows taller and gets some weight so she looks more lovely, she can adapt to the life in the welfare institute completely, plays with brothers or sisters everyday and totally like an elder sister. She is friendly to people, flings herself to caretaker’s arms when she sees she comes to work, even greets strangers. She is also a girl who loves to be beautiful, likes wearing new clothes and doesn’t want to take off. Weiwei is a good girl and always help caretaker to do some work, can take care of herself well, everyone says she is a good child. 

Sender: XXX

Social Welfare Institute of Fuling District of Chongqing City (Seal)

Mar.10 2010

This is the last update we have from the institute.  We would love to her how she has grown over the summer, but are not sure if we will receive an update from her before we arrive or not.

It was kind of funny that on Friday night, I had to remind myself that she was missing the lower portion of her left arm.  I had spent so many days looking at her picture, I was falling in love with her as someone who was very specialy, and it was not related to a "special need".  I was not even telling people that she had that type of a need anymore, as I had become blind to the fact of her arm.  I know that as she gets here, she may face some challenges with her arm, trying to acclimate to everything.  But she has face so many challenges already in her brief time that I will never experience.  This will strengthen her - and her family!

• Right now our daily prayer is for our Father to plant seeds of favor in her heart for her new family.  We are not oblivious of the fact that a family of 5 walking in to see her for the first time will not bring anxiety to her.  As you read above, the last time she possibly saw her biological parents, they left her at the doorsteps of a strange place.  How does she know that we would not do the same thing?  (The thought of that puts a pit in the bottom of our stomachs…)  This is the precise reason we earnestly pray – and seek your prayers as well – to soften her hearts towards us.

So as of today, we have 3 weeks/21 days before we get to see her for the first time.  Although she may have never heard of our Father, He is aware of her, and has known her before she was born. (Jeremiah 1:5)  We know that He can soften all hearts for His Glory.

In Him,

Mark

Our story of Fu LeWei

We were first introduced to WeiWei with a late night phone call on 6/21/2010 – 3 years and 1 day after our LID of our dossier` to China. Stephanie, at GWCA, was in charge of our account when it came to the Waiting Child (special needs) program. A list is sent to all adoption agencies 1-2 times per week – called the Shared List – with all new children who were admitted to the Waiting Child program in China. This program is growing in China, as they are having a lot of special needs children adopted more often than non-special needs children the past few months. We signed up to for this program in January of this year, after spending time in prayer, knowing this was the direction for us, as a burden was placed deeper on our hearts for all the orphans in China. We felt we were capable (only with our Father’s hand) to care for needs as they were presented.)


That Monday night, my phone rang just after 11:00. I had just gone to bed and did not rush to the phone. When I picked it up, it was a different area code, and I figured it was a wrong number, then went back to bed. After an early morning jog that next morning, I picked up my phone and checked my email at the same time. What I saw and what I heard on the voice mail caused me to drop to my knees in tears. All I knew was that Stephanie stepped out in faith that night to select our daughter…..and I did not know who she was. But I knew that she was our daughter. All I knew was that she had what some considered a “need” that we are receiving as a blessing.

Before I did anything (still on my knees), I picked up His Word and He led me to Psalm 139:13-16:
“For You created my inmost being; You knit me in my mother’s womb. I praise You for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”

My Father told me at that time that this was our daughter, and I could not wait to open the present that He was laying out there for us.

I woke up Jenn from her slumber (still early for Jenn in the summer….but who could wait?), and when the fog of what I said reached her brain, her first reaction was typical of this awesome lady. Without saying a word, she slid from the covers straight to her knees to pray. It was such a special time, and we knew that His plan was perfect, no matter what would happen….and still believe this four months later.

Later that morning, Stephanie sent over WeiWei’s file, and it was better than any Christmas package as I waited for the email to open up. What a doll!!! I could not believe that we would deserve such a little girl as this. I was like a proud papa already that morning.

I had to remember that at baseball practice that night. Jenn called me after speaking with our social worker, with both of them going over the medical records. As we reviewed the records, we all read something in the report that we misinterpreted, but did not know that until the next morning. I had to go back to our prayer that morning that no matter what happened, that this sweet little girl would be someone’s daughter, and I still had to believe that.

Early that next morning, Stephanie confirmed that the report was right, and we could breathe again. PTL!!! Then started the 36 hour rat race that reminded us of the paper chase that started this whole journey 3+ years before. We had until Thursday evening to get everything completed and back to GWCA to let the CCAA that we wanted LeWei as our daughter, and that we felt we could take care of her needs.

In case we have not told you in person, the special need that WeiWei has was caused by what the doctors believe was an “amniotic Band syndrome”, which caused her to be born without her lower left forearm. So she is missing her forearm just past her elbow. Special need???? As we have told many people, what is considered a need to those in WeiWei’s past is a special blessing that we will receive…..and we cannot wait!!!

Our Father has already opened so many doors to families in our community that have children with this same thing. The young ladies we have met are incredible, and they have neat stories of how God has used this “need” to show His Glory to those who desire to know more about them. We pray to give WeiWei the same opportunity.

We look forward to you meeting WeiWei is less than one month!

Soli Deo Gloria!!
Mark

Lauren's Baptism Sunday (9/12/10)!

I know this is not a direct story about the adoption. But this does have a whole lot to do with it.


Lauren was baptized today at church!!! Last night was better than any night before Christmas, as she has been so excited for this day for months.

My beautiful girls!!!

Back in the spring, Lauren came to Jenn to let her know that she was ready to receive Christ into her life. As Jenn and I discussed it, we thought she was so young, and if it was “real”, or if we just needed to explain a few more things to her. (Obviously she knew the answer…..and just waited for us to get there.) After 3-4 weeks of persistence, we were in a quandary on what to do. Jeff, a good friend at work, reminded me that it was obvious that Jesus already had her heart, He was just waiting on us to confirm in our words. WOW! He was right, and we needed to consider what HE wanted to do with her heart. So one Friday night, she and Jenn prayed to receive Christ as her Lord and Savior!

That then led to more persistence of wanting to make her public profession by being baptized with water. Our children’s pastor, Mr. Marty, at our church, Fellowship Bible Church in Brentwood, was great to sit with Lauren to walk through her experience and to explain the baptism experience. These talks made today so special, as he really helped Lauren understand her role in this, and that she was letting others know of this decision to let Jesus lead her in her life going forward.

This morning, I had the opportunity to share her walk of faith with the church before baptizing her. Her role in getting WeiWei home is so pivotal to this story. You see? Lauren has diligently and fervently prayed to receive a little sister for 2 years of this process. When her dad would forget to pray for her “baby sister” she was quick to remind me to continue to seek for her sister. She never lost hope that she would get a sister soon….and she taught her dad not to lose hope either. It was neat to express to the church body today, and it was so awesome to lower her body into the water (symbolizing that she was burying her spiritual death) and to raise her from this into her new life (with the water representing the cleansing spirit of her Savior). It was an awesome moment for me and Jenn , and I done few things that are cooler than this today.

I look forward to more opportunities like this!

John 11:40!
His servant,
Mark

My dad wanted to come with us......

One thing I wanted to mention was that I was absolutely blown away after Devin’s football game this past Thursday night. Jenn’s dad was obviously letting my parents know that he was going on the trip (since I had not said anything to them about it yet….not a good decision on my part). He then told Jennifer that it sounded like my dad showed a lot of interest in going to China with us. (WOW!!) I was taken aback when I first heard that. My dad – in China?!? I just never would have thought my dad would have wanted to go to China? I never would have thought he wanted to go that far away? I never thought he wanted to go with us on this adoption journey. I never thought he would leave home for that long of a time (and without mom). I never thought……enough to ask him. (Did you catch that each of my thoughts started with NOT thinking??? Boy, did I mess up!! (Tend to do that a lot with my dad.) I was so thrilled that he was excited about going on this trip of a lifetime, away from home, with our family – to get his next granddaughter. I almost lost my breath when she told me.




I sat in the parking lot and emailed Jenny at GWCA to see if this was even feasible. She told me that next morning that it was too late, but was glad that he was on board with us. After sitting a couple of hours and researching the costs and timing of expediting a passport, I tried one more time. She regrettably had to tell me that with all the intra-country plans already being made, it was not feasible. Man, two days earlier there might have been a shot…..if I had just thought.


I hope to get the opportunity to make this up with him…..and have another “trip of a lifetime” to take with him soon.
 
Mark

International Travel booked - Finally!

There has been so much to write this week, but am just now sitting down to get it all in a journal. After having an extra 72 hours to decide who is going and where we are going, we finally booked all international travel arrangements late on Friday.


To start, Devin struggled all weekend on whether or not he wanted to go. We had a discussion on his bed Monday night about what types of regrets he would have, whichever way he chose. It was obvious to us all that there would definitely be more regrets if he chose NOT to go. Really, how many times will you meet your little sister - adopted or by birth - when the rest of the family meets her?? This was a chance of a lifetime, and we felt he knew that. So we went to be that night, knowing this was his choice. On the way to school, he told Jenn that he did not want to go…..something about the food over there. She emailed me this before I arrived at work. I was done with the indecisiveness of it all. So I emailed our adoption agency first thing to tell her that the whole family was going, including GDaddy, and we would live with the ramifications of any disagreement. Devin’s principal emailed me to confirm that there would be NO penalties for missing school during the trip! (WOW!!! What a blessing!) I knew that was a confirmation that this was meant to be – no matter what Devin “thought” he knew.  At 12:01, I received an email from Devin’s teacher that he told her that “it had been decided that he was not going.” That was NOT any decision of ours. At 12:06, Jenn emailed me and in big letters, she said that Devin ran to her 2nd grade class to let her know that he DID want to go after all. We had to chuckle……adolescence…. It was nice to know that as parents, we knew best (at least this day we did!).

Once we thought we had gotten past the hard decisions, trying to decide when to go and where to arrive was a whole different story. If anyone is traveling overseas – like for an adoption in China – I highly recommend Delight Travel in the state of Washington. Lawrence Tung was fabulous, as he exhibited enormous patience with us and walked through all the options for us, steering us away from making financial and direction mistakes. It was nice that he is aware of what adoptive parents need and familiar with China in general.

After all was said and done, we will leave on the morning of Wednesday, October 6th (2 days earlier than expected…..for a reason the kids are not aware of yet) and will arrive in Hong Kong on October 7th in the evening. The next day is the surprise for the kids that they are not aware of yet. We were told by the Freeland’s that Hong Kong has a Disneyland – and it is much more affordable than the one in the states! And how many people can say they have been to Disney in Hong Kong?!? Why not treat the kids to something special, since they are going on this journey with us. So we are looking forward to spending this day in the Magic Kingdom in HK (no other parks in HK), before we leave for Chongqing on the 9th. (We hope that we can get to Noah’s Ark in HK before we leave on the 9th. Can you believe that there is an exhibit like this in China??? Look up the site to see what it is about. )

After all is done, we are due to land in Nashville on the evening of the 21st in Nashville. There are definitely lots of details in the middle of the trip. But we will get to that later.

In Him,
Mark

WE ARE GOING TO CHINA!!! (9/3/10)

The best email yet in this long journey came to us at 9:37 CDT this morning. Here is a snippet of it:

Congratulations! The American Consulate has confirmed your appointment for October 18th 2010 @ 10:00am!!!

YES!!!! It just seems more for real now that we have a date and a tentative itinerary to get WeiWei. October 10th or 11th are our potential Gotcha Days. (I will put the actual itinerary on the site as soon as it is confirmed later this week.)

Now we are spending this long weekend (thankfully more time) trying to determine how we want to travel, who is going, and where we need to go. Jenn is searching feverishly for possible options in Chongqing and Fuling now. It appears to be a very scenic and beautiful place to be. We look forward to spending a couple of days there with WeiWei before heading back to busy days in Guangzhou before coming home.

Devin is still trying to determine if he is going with us. He will not really give any indications of his reason to stay here. It could be school, friends, etc. We are great with whatever is decided. We just want him to be led by his Father on what is best, as we have confidence that he can make the best decision with Him at the head.

We did find out that Jenn’s dad (aka GDaddy) is going to go!! He loves to travel, and he has wanted to go back to China since his 2003 mission trip there. So having him with us will be such a great experience for all of us.

No matter what……we are getting our daughter in 5 weeks!!! Lots to do before then, but well worth every second.

Soli Deo Gloria!
Mark

I-171H Approved!!!!! (8/31/10)

It is hard to believe we are done with eight months of this year today!!


At 8:30 promptly this morning, I received a fantastic phone call from our awesome officer at NBC. She wanted to let us know first thing that she approved our file and wanted to fax us the approved I-17H approval, so we could get it to the GWCA. At 8:53, I received the scanned approval from NBC and forwarded it immediately to GWCA to start the appointment request.

By later that afternoon, GWCA emailed us to let us know that we were now in line to get an appointment with the embassy on October 18th. She also mentioned that she is working to get 18 total families approved on that same day in Guangzhou! Wow!! I never knew that many families might get to travel for adoption at that time. Our friends, the Freeland’s, are already approved and have a departure date for China in the prior week. We are so happy for them and Jessica! So we are praying that we can travel with them.

We are disappointed that we cannot travel in the next two weeks to get WeiWei. However, we know that Father knows best, and He knows we have much preparation yet to do before bringing her home. So we will plan to use our extra time wisely over these next few weeks to physically prepare to bring her home.

We are also praying daily for WeiWei to find favor for us in her heart. We realize this will be a HUGE transition for her, and it will be difficult for all of us. With her heart focused on her forever family before we get there, it will be a huge blessing for all of us. So please join us in praying for her during this time of waiting.

In Him!
Mar

A Day of Anticipation (8/30/10)

After a weekend of getting over not hearing anything for the end of last week, we did not say much to each other about “Will we hear anything today???” It was obvious we both thought of it and were waiting for an answer to our immigration approval.

My anticipation grew as I drove to work. As I arrived at work, a passage of scripture came over my email that referenced Psalm 27:14, and at that point, I muttered “Ok, Father, I get the hint…”:

“Wait on the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” (How did King David know I needed that word of encouragement today???)

I took note of the scripture and (tried to) rested on that command through the day. All the while, I was checking email and my phone for communication from the NBC. Jenn was sending short “Anything???” emails as well. But even after multiple emails to the NBC officer that day, we still got nothing.

Finally, I reached out to our awesome travel coordinator at GWCA to get her advice. She mentioned to ask for permission to talk to the officer through an email from me. Eventually, GWCA was able to get through to the officer at the NBC (who we know is swamped with many of these same requests). The NBC officer replied back to GWCA in just a few minutes of the email from GWCA. YAY!!! But she informed GWCA that she never located our home study that arrived last Thursday morning at the NBC office. That threw me off, and we grew a little frustrated at no response from NBC, while we could have done something more. But we had to let that go to know that eventually some headway was made today.

As I drove home that afternoon, I tried to get over the frustration of losing 3 days in the process, and I popped open my handy Bible that I keep with me pretty much everywhere I go and read back in Psalm 27. Psalm 27:8 is a verse that was another reminder that our Father knows best – and what He wants from us. King David (the psalmist) reminded me of the reason we wait (hope) in the Lord:

“My heart says of you “Seek His face!” Your face LORD, I will seek.”

This reminds us of being parents and having our children ask us of things, only to hear “Just wait a minute.” Then they follow us around to get the answer, all the while, they are seeking our response on our faces or in our voice. That is how our Father desires us to approach Him and His throne…..with anticipation…..seeking Him more. The reason we wait on our Father is to experience and see Him to show us His “good stuff”.

One more thought from today(promise)…. As I drove home, I recalled a conversation one year ago at this time with a good friend at work. We were in the arduous process of trying to sell our dream home, and Jenn was looking to get back into the teaching profession after 12 years of taking raising our children. I mentioned to my friend that “It would all be solved and be much easier if we could just sell our home and we knew the answer for what was best for Jenn as a teaching position.” Sounded like a perfect plan at the time. However, as we journeyed over the next few months and through the school year, we experienced the Lord’s provision and His hand of Grace over our lives that obviously gave us the answer that “His plan was the perfect plan”…..and we had to wait on it.

More tomorrow……hopefully!!

In Him,
Mark

Still Wondering..... (8/27/10)

Another day of unanswered emails and voice mails never returned left us feeling sort of lost by the end of the workday. While we both had lots going on at work and were busy throughout the day, we still wondered why the NBC officer was not getting back to us. So we both left work kind of lost – BUT knowing that our Father’s hand was still in control.

The good news is that we received Luke and Lauren’s passports today, after calling them yesterday to expedite them in case we are traveling in two weeks. Lauren is full-board planning to go with us. (So don’t try talking her out of it!) Luke feel pretty comfortable he wants to go. But we need to work on “upgrading” his diet before leave. He at least needs to learn to eat white rice in order to survive a few days without “western” food. But I am glad he is excited to go get his sister! Our kids are great and have been encouraging to us in the upcoming change of lifestyle once we bring WeiWei home.

For now, we will enjoy what comes of the weekend – since we know that we will NOT receive any news this weekend.

Keep serving!
Mark

Psalm 20:7 (8/26/10)

I spoke with the NBC officer yesterday morning, and she agreed that the wording was great, and she would start working the file, but could not complete it until she received the original signature. I called our social worker and gave her approval to put the home study in a UPS package, to arrive at the NBC office today.

As Jenn left for work this morning, I knew she was nervous with her first open house at school in almost 12 years of semi-retirement. I hoped that our Word would find some comfort for her, and Father led me to Psalm 27. I read and gave her some scripture from this passage that would prayerfully give her some comfort. And Psalm 20:7 was our verse over this process for the day:

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we will trust in the name of the LORD our God.”

The first prayer that hit me on this passage was that we could not count on immigration approval, China or anyone else for the day’s decisions for getting us to our daughter. We are to trust solely in our Father’s name for anything! Again, this passage reminded us to put it all in His hands to handle. What a cool (yet scary) promise. We are such a hands-on, controlling society, and we have such a hard time releasing these “tough” decisions to Him. When we were little, didn’t we always give our hard decisions to our parents to answer??? (Or if you are like me now, you give the hard decisions to your wife, right????)

As of the end of today, still no word from NBC. We will see what tomorrow brings.

In Him,
Mark

TA Arrived at GWCA!!! (8/24/10)

So far, it had been a great morning…..awesome time jogging early with the full moon bursting forth light and a great time of worship on the commute in to work. I cannot remember exactly how many people had asked me about the adoption that morning, but enough to make this day pretty cool. My response was “We are back in the waiting mode now.”


Coming out of a conference call that morning, I looked down at my BB and saw an email from GWCA that said she had received our TA (travel arrangements) to begin that phase of planning to travel to China…..and she noted that we might want to plan to leave the US on 9/9, and 9/16 at the latest! Nonetheless I was shocked and speechless. The thought of traveling to get our daughter in 2-3 weeks was breathtaking for me.

However some of that wind was taken out of our sails as I received a phone call from the NBC officer (at immigration) to let me know she had a problem with our home study. Our current home study did not match our I-600A application that we turned in back in April. In the I-600A, we applied for 2 children to adopt, as we wanted to be prepared that when we went to China, if there was a sibling, we wanted to have the opportunity to bring the sibling home as well. (That is a long shot, but better to be prepared.) However, our sweet social worker completed our home study after we were matched with WeiWei and changed the wording back to “approved for one child.”. With the immigration EVERYTHING has to match. So at that time, we knew that GWCA did not have everything to process our TA to make an appointment with the US Consulate in China.

After our social worker agreed to change the wording on the home study to match the I-600A, I forwarded the home study to the NBC officer for her review, and we hope to get final word that we are ok going forward.

Excited – frustrated – nervous…… that was our feeling tonight, knowing that we are so close, yet still so far from our daughter. However, earlier today, two verses gave us a “big picture” again of what is in store. Romans 8:28 is a huge promise of His plans:

“And we know that in all things, God works to the good of those that love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

My good friend Chris also reminded me of a verse he was working through on this same day, which is Proverbs 16:4:

“The LORD works out everything for His own ends.”

These verses do not inform us that everything will work out in our plans and to our good. But He will work things out to HIS OWN PURPOSE AND PLANS. His promise is not for our will to be done, but for His will to be done. And His will is for us to be more sanctified towards Him and seek His presence daily……not for our plans to always work out. Difficult…..but reassuring…..and ALWAYS an ultimate reward to know our Father better.

We will see what tomorrow brings as our officer gets the emailed version of the home study.

Soli Deo Gloria!


Mark