Monday, October 6, 2008

The Call, The Day, The Details




Well, now that we have been able to actually think, breathe and process some information I want to share with you the blessings that we have received this day. As we reflect on the past several days of waiting we realize (not like we didn't already firmly grasp this truth) that God's timing is absolutely perfect. Last week, on Thursday we received word that God had provided everything that we needed for our adoption, it was his perfect timing that we would not received our referral until after that time. On Friday my dearest friend retired from his career as an electrician and celebrated his 60th birthday. Today I was not planning to go to work until noon because of an evening meeting that I was having. I am giving you all this background information to help you understand the awesome providence of God in our lives and this journey of adoption.
I thought I had "The Pattern" figured out (if you are a Fringe fan, it is not that "pattern"). Referrals seemed to come on Friday afternoons and occasionally on Tuesday afternoon. Then last night as we were reading the latest referral blog we saw that they received their referral call on a Tuesday morning, well I just assumed that this was some sort of anomaly and did not figure it into my logic.
I was home this morning with our family (we homeschool) and we were just enjoying a rather leisurely day when the phone rang at about 11:00 am (Eastern). I answered the phone and heard the sweet voice of our Caseworker Natalie on the other end. She said that she had good news and that it was our referral. I said "that certainly is good news, I'll call you back on our cell phone so we can all hear on the speaker phone." I think I may have even actually hung up on her (sorry Natalie).
The whole family then gathered around the speaker phone and computer. It made me think of a conversation that we had with Steven Curtis Chapman when we received our Show Hope grant and how he explain how they received their referral pictures of their daughters over a fax machine!!
Natalie explained the details of baby "A"s life and we all took in the beautiful pictures. She was found abandoned in the capital city and has been in the care center for a little while now. She is healthy, has a great smile and is just gorgeous.
After we finished talking to Natalie we emailed our family and friends and spent alot of time on the phone. One helpful thing that we had planned ahead of time was a "Call List" this was the folks that we wanted to be sure to call as soon as we got the referral and what order we would call them in. You really are in a fog for the first several hours after the call. Well shortly after we called my dearest friend (the newly retired electrician) he showed up at our home because he wanted to see the smiles on our faces and us dancing around the table, and of course pictures of baby "A".
We were blessed tonight by a celebration party with our vocational pastor and his wife. They have been such an important part of our lives over the past 14 years, I wish I had time to tell you about how intertwined our lives are, but you will just have to buy the book when I write it...
The wait for this day was truly hard, even exasperating at times. It caused us to rely even more on God an his promises, to lean on our dearest friends and family, to find strength as a family and to understand the power of prayer from all of you. We understand now more than ever the perfect timing of our Lord and know that he does all things well according to the counsel of his own will. We had been facing some pretty difficult trials over the past couple months (nothing adoption related) and through it all our God was faithful, his mercies were new every morning and he gave us the strength to run the race with perseverance and endurance. To those of you that are sharing this journey with us, thank you for your thoughts and prayers, for the pictures and video that you have sent even today. We are so thankful for the network of people that have a heart for orphans..this is truly a reflection of James 1:27, not just in thought but in deed. To those of you that are still waiting for the call..know that we are praying for you and that all the anxious feelings will pass away like a vapor when you receive that precious call.

8 comments:

Shelly Roberts said...

Thanks for sharing ...... thrilled for your family. Arsema got SO excited when I was looking at baby "A's" photo today .... "baby ... baby", she kept saying. :) Blessings, Shelly

Sparkz said...

Very exciting! Congrats. Thanks for sharing the good news and great story! Isnt God good!

emily said...

His timing is always perfect- such a great story.

Lori S said...

I am so excited that you finally received your referral! Congratulations!! God's timing is perfect. We can USUALLY look back and see how everything worked together for good!
God IS good!

CHRISTY said...

Thanks for taking the time to share the details of your call. I look forward to following the remainder of your journey to baby A. So exciting!

Jen said...

What a wonderful moment! Congrats.

Cindy said...

I am so thrilled for your family! Congrats on your sweet daughter!

Elisabeth said...

Thrilled for you - I get goosebumps with your story!

ellen