HER Waiting... The Hardest Part

I know, I've been quiet lately about the adoption process itself. There are many reasons for this lack of blogging.

First, there's not much to report on our progress. Today marks day 38 of our wait for a match. There's nothing we can be doing right now to expedite our adoption.

Another reason for my silence is all the planning that's going into our November 16th Orphan Awareness Fundraiser. We are extremely busy with this and frankly, I am quite thankful for the distraction.

Lastly, I don't talk much about this wait because it's flat. out. hard. We knew to expect this wait but nothing could have prepared me for how hard it has been.

The hardest part about this step is not the waiting itself. Yes, we are eager to know who our daughter is, but that's not very difficult. This adoption is not about us. It's not about the desire to grow our family. Growing our family is an added blessing but it's not cause for anxiety.

The hardest part about this wait is knowing that Emily Hope (and so many others) is sitting in an orphanage, experiencing neglect on many levels, and the reason we are not being matched is a matter of processing paperwork. There are millions of orphans in China alone but only a small percent are being made available for adoption to families who are willing and able. I read testimonies of friends visiting orphanages and their accounts of the many orphans just waiting there. What stands in the way of these children being handed over to Christian families in the U.S.? Bureaucracy, indifference, politics, laziness, pride. Most orphanages in China don't even allow international adoptions. While ignorance, pride and resentment rest in their hearts, many of these children don't stand a chance.

She is waiting. And we are ready for her. That's the hardest part. We will continue to wait and pray. I cry out to the God who loves these children infinitely more than I do. Please remove the obstacles that are preventing files from being released. Change hearts in China to make "the least of these" a priority. Change hearts here in the states to reflect God's heart, by fighting for justice for these orphans. Adopt. Fund. Pray. Go. Then trust. Trust that if we are being obedient in living out the gospel, the Lord will provide.    

I highly recommend adopting a child if you are a control freak. Your inadequacy to trust in the Lord will be squashed over and over and over and over until you finally realize that the Lord's sovereignty that you so boldly preach about is relevant in your own life. Sigh.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=08s3GKRict8