It's been a long time...

Oh my goodness, it has been a long time!! The past month has been absolutely full of things to do and somehow I just never had the opportunity to sit down and write! So, here I am...
First, to update everyone on what has been going on with Lilie and the adoption process. Our home study paperwork is complete and we are preparing for our interview with the social worker on Saturday!! We are thrilled to be wrapping up this part of the process as it has taken us much longer than we anticipated. Who knew that paperwork could take so very long?! We are prayerful that all will go well and we will have an approved home study within a few weeks so that we can move forward with the next step. God has been so good to us through this all. Every financial need that has come along has been met just when it was needed. It has been amazing to see His provision and the generosity of others as well. It is an awesome experience to physically see God at work in your life!
Lilie is doing well. She is enjoying some new activities such as gymnastics and basketball at the orphanage. She also recently was able to go swimming and to the circus! She has been busy with school as well. We keep telling her that she needs to learn English, "study hard and practice" we say. She just laughs! She continues to look forward to our phone calls each week and giggles her way through each one. It is so good to hear her laughing. She is becoming full of questions and loves to share her thoughts with us too. She always wants to know what we are doing, what Rachel is doing, and she always asks if she has to go back to the dentist this summer!! Her director told us this week that she has been asking lots of questions about God and reading books about Easter and God. We were so glad to hear that she is curious and that she is in a place where her caregivers are willing and able to provide her with answers! She may even begin to attend a local church and be able to participate in Sunday School there! God is working out every detail and we are so grateful!
As we have mentioned before, when you follow God's calling and are doing His work, Satan always attacks. It seems that he does not want to give up yet. In our personal lives, we have been facing some challenges. We would like to share some of those with you now in the hope that you would join with us in prayer. The following are the things that we most need your prayers for:

- Bob's dad has been feeling ill for quite some time now. He is weak and tired. He runs high temps for no reason and his blood counts continue to be low. The doctors are trying to find out what is wrong and are running many tests, however we still have no definite answer. The stress of this is great on Bob, his dad and his wife, and on the whole family. Please surround him in prayer. Pray specifically that answers will soon come and that the family will move forward with whatever treatments are necessary. Also, pray for peace and strength for his dad as he battles with doubts and fears that cause his faith to be shaken.

- Please pray for me. I have a very difficult time asking for prayer for myself, however I feel that it is necessary at this time. I am not going to go into detail, but I will share with you that I feel that attacks of others are becoming stronger. I guess that my honesty and the passion that I have for ministry is being misinterpreted as judgement by others. I would like to say that I have never said anything that wasn't from my heart and said with honest and pure intentions. I am a  person who believes that God intends for us to share what He is doing in our lives so that others may be able to see Him and want what we have. Pray that my words would be tempered with a lot of love and that they may have a positive impact on those around me.  

- Finally, pray for our family and Lilie as we prepare for her to return to our home for hosting this summer. Pray that we will be able to implement the appropriate amount of structure and rules so that she will know what is expected of each member of this family. We feel that this is an opporunity to begin to integrate her into the family and begin to form attachments that will be so important down the road. We are praying for wisdom in handling behavioral issues and developing a healthy routine.

I would like to finish by saying that we are so grateful for everyone who reads our blog, keeps in touch with us through FB, e-mails, and phone calls. We feel your prayers and your support is one of the things that keeps up going. We will continue to pray for all of you. Our prayer is this, that everyone who follows our journey will be touched by God's amazing love and that this will motivate each one of you to action. We pray that whatever it is that God is calling you to do for Him, you will do it and do it well!!
If anyone feels that God may be calling you to host a child this summer or winter, please check out New Horizons website at  www.newhorizonsforchildren.org
The current child photo listing is available there if you complete a very brief pre-application (for safety and security reasons). Lilie is not alone and the other children who have stories much like hers are in need of hope and love too! Have a Blessed Easter with your families, and take time to remember all of those who have no family this Easter!!!

Blessings in disguise

As I sit here still basking in the glory of this day, I felt compelled to write it down. Amidst the normal everyday duties of motherhood and the sad news of a family member not feeling well, God shined today.
I spent this day not doing household chores or even work, but rather praying for my father in law and enjoying my life the way that it is TODAY. And, great things happened as they often do when I spend my day this way. Bob's dad is being discharged from the hospital with no major complications found, praise God! And, as we do each Friday, we spoke to our girl!
However, today was even more special and exciting. Rachel, who has been missing Lilie like crazy became very upset last night when our impending phone call was mentioned. Not surprisingly, as this has become a source of frustration for her every week. With the 7 hour time difference, we always call in the morning. Calling after school would mean waking everyone over there up out of a deep sleep! So, Rachel has missed every conversation only to hear about them from us later. Not today! Today, we decided that she should stay home from school until after our phone call. She was elated! And so it is that our girls were able to hear one another's voices for the first time in over two months...
Lilie has also been asking about Rachel you see. "How is Rachel?" "What is Rachel doing?" "What is she playing?" Etc and so on... It was so fun to hear them giggling and chattering back and forth on the phone. Lilie (with the help of a translator) wanted to know why Rachel was home, what time is it there, what are you doing tomorrow, Rachel, no school????? And, Rachel, all she wanted to hear and say was "I love you and miss you, big, big, big!" When we were getting ready to head out the door to school afterward, she said, "Mom, she sounds even cuter on the phone then in person!" That girl went to school with the biggest smile on her face. 
We are so excited that we are going to be hosting Lilie again this summer. While we would love to know that she never has to leave again, we are thankful for the opportunity to make memories with her and get to know her even more this summer. This time, when she gets on that plane, we will know with certainty that it's just a "see you later"! And, we pray that it will not be long until we are on a plane flying to her! Sometimes the things that are the biggest disappointments turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Our hopes of traveling in the summer slipped out the window a little over a week ago and we were devastated. But, we have chosen to rejoice in this opportunity to see her and hug her and bond with her through hosting. That's what we're going to do! In God's time, we will have her here forever...