Homestudy!

All right...for those of you who have been wondering. We had our home study on Monday March 31, 2008 and everything went smoothly. The lady was nice and helpful with our questions. So now, she writes her report and sends it off to the state and federal governments and then they will eventually send it off to the Philippines. We will have other things to fill out at somepoint, like getting fingerprinted among others. This is where the real test of faith begins. And finances. Please continue to pray with us that the Lord is faithful in our areas of finances and time frame.
We cling to His promise...Mercy to the needy is a loan to God and He will repay in Full.
PS...sorry I was feeling very creative today ;-)

$15,000 Faith

As I was stood ironing in our kitchen, my husband came in from a church service. He leaned against the pantry door and said "Soooooo....." I have come to realize after 12 years of marriage that "Soooo..." means something big just happened.
What follows in a skinnied down version of our conversation...my thoughts are in parentheses.

"So a lady came up to me and said the Lord had put me on her heart"
(Oh no, not again. God are you sending us to Africa to be missionaries?)
"She said the Lord said it was about finances."
(Ha, not anymore we have Dave Ramsey ;-)
"He told her there was something we were doing that we needed money"
(Ok this isn't a joke, Lord, this is about our adoption!) Sidenote: this is where I started to cry
"She showed me her check register Trish, she wrote me a check 2 weeks ago."
(Oh, Lord, that is when we scheduled our home study.)
"I have right here a check for 5..."
($5000.00?! Oh my gosh, Lord...this is...)
"$500.00! Can you believe that?"
"Wow!", I replied. "That is amazing! Don't laugh, but I honestly thought you were going to say $5000.00. I just know how well He has taken care of us, and the crazy things He has done for us before, and it just wouldn't have surprised me if it was $5000.00"
"You know Trish, I think if we have $15,000 Faith He would do that for us too."

So, by the way...$500.00 was exactly what we needed to add to what we had already saved, to pay for our home study. (that was a lot of prepositional phrases). I believe He will give us everything we need in this process, because we believe He led us in the direction and His Word says He WILL provide all of our needs according to His riches.
I ABSOLUTELY HAVE $15,000 FAITH! DO YOU???????

Ode to the Adoption Journey

Teeter Totter bread and Water, Oh, But this is high!
Now I'm low and up you go, Almost to the sky.

Teeter Totter Bread and Water, What a Merry Ride!
Hold on tight with all your might, or off the board you'll slide

Teeter Totter Bread and Water, How the wind does blow!
Fresh & Strong it comes along, As upward swift I go

Teeter Totter Bread and Water

TEETER: We got great news today. Our home study is officially scheduled for March 31! YEA!!!! (details of the celebration cleaning party at our house to come later;-) How exciting! This is what really gets the ball rolling. We are so excited I can't even begin to tell you.


TOTTER: We got some disappointing news today! Our agency, Hand in Hand, sent a letter out to day from the Executive Director of the Inter-Country Adoption Board of the Philippines basically saying "we currently have very few children available for inter-country adoption. This would mean that there will be a longer waiting period for child placement" Our agency tagged on "As other countries’ adoption programs have either closed or lengthened or become more costly, an increasing number of families have turned to the Philippine program. Because the Philippines is so much smaller in size and population, there are not nearly as many children available for adoption as there is, for example, in China. So it is understandable that wait times might increase"

Boy was that like a teeter totter of emotion. The thrill of flying up into the air and then the kid on the other end hopped off. WHAM! Remember that feeling? But you know I always got back on. The thrill of flying was to alluring to give up just because of some big bump.
It is disappointing to realize that what could have potentially been a 2 year wait could now be longer...but I serve a big God. He will expedite this process or better yet, may teach us something through the lengthening of the process. I have to come to realize one thing in the passed few years....whether I like it or not, I am not in charge and I just need to let go and trust the Lord in all situations.
Game on...this is going to be interesting to see what He is going to do!

Coincidence? I Think Not!

I've been thinking a lot about this adopting process. So many questions, so many logistics, so many things unforeseen. But one thing I know for sure, God knows it all. We have been praying throughout this short journey (I don't know how people do it without prayer, honestly, whew!). The crazy thing is we are praying for a child we have never met. One who, in all likelihood, is not even born, probably not even thought of yet, more than likely not even conceived yet! We are praying for this child's *biological parents, who don't even know we exist. Now, some may say that it is fate, or luck, or coincidence. But, God told the prophet Jeremiah this, "Before I shaped you in the womb, I knew all about you. Before you saw the light of day, I had holy plans for you." I believe the Word of God and I believe that He has set apart a man and a woman in the Philippines who will soon make one of the biggest decision of their lives. I believe He is forming a young life that has been set apart to be a part of The LaGrange family, and that is No coincidence. You see, we believe in the God, who formed us and knew us before we were born, who loves us, who cares what happens to us, who wants to have relationship with us, and that He doesn't make mistakes, and He definitely doesn't make "coincidences".
*I know the proper term is "birth parent" but since there probably isn't a "birth" yet in this scenario I decided to go with the less PC , but more accurate term, "biological parent" ;-)

Who's in Your Camp?

Moses. Aahhh, what a man! Born Jew, raised Egyptian "prince", trained warrior, rich, MURDERER (we always gloss by that with Moses), desert wanderer, radically saved, friend of God. Wow, he had a crazy past didn't he? Yet God chose to use him in not only a big way but in a very historical way also; and He called Moses friend and talked with him face to face. Moses knew a lot about God. Amazing. Now what does this have to do with an adoption blog you ask? You see God gave Moses a great idea....lead My people to the Promise Land. Sounds easy. But of course it wasn't...and why? Because of the people in his camp! (I am not going to go into the whole story, you can read it for yourself in Exodus...2nd book in the Bible) The people in the camp grumbled, complained, tried to turn back denying all the miracles they had seen God do to get them out of Egypt. Moses got SO frustrated with these people he eventually disobeyed God and he didn't get to lead them into the Promise Land....his right hand man did. Ouch! (just as a side note...I would have struck the rock too and been in the same boat as Moses, no pun intended)
Sometimes God gives you a great idea, you know it, you feel it in your bones, you are ready to run with it and then the people in your camp try to discourage you, to dissuade you, to make you question what you KNOW God has put on your heart. If that is happening to you can I just say....... MOVE!!!!! Alright, alright, I know "moving" isn't always realistic, but find a camp around you that will encourage you, believe in you, and believe God with you. Moses had Joshua and Caleb. Sometimes just a couple of positive voices will drowned out the rest of the sounds of the camp! Be on your face before God, knowing His will in the situation. Moses said "I am not moving an inch, God, if you don't move with me." (Exodus 33:14-17) You just listen to God, talk to Him "face to face" and let Him take care of the rest of the camp!!!!

What's keeping You Sane?

So, Nathan and I had to do a psychological evaluation for our adoption dossier.
For those of you who know us, you laugh and ask "Did you pass?" All right people! Enough of the jokes ;-) We spent 2 hours and filled in 587 bubbles of questions like "Do you want to kill yourself" "Do you want to hurt yourself" "Do you like criminals", "Do you think smart criminals should get away with their crime?", "Do you want to hurt animals?", "Do you want to hurt others?", "Do you feel like smashing things?" and our personal favorites, "Do you want to do the work of a park ranger?", and "Would you like to be a florist?". Basically, all of those question except the last two, (and that could be debatable) are HEART ISSUES. What keeps me from wanting to hurt others, hurt myself, smash things.....is it my inherent goodness, the thought that somebody might be watching or even my overwhelming feelings of responsibility to society? Maybe for some people that is what it takes, but for me, I honestly believe it is my relationship with Christ. The fact that He has made me a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!), that He has transformed my behavior and response process by the renewing of my mind through His love and His Word (the Bible) (Romans 12:2 Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is).
I may want to smash something but I know that instantly I can cast that thought before the Creator of the Universe and He can instantly change my heart and my sanity!!!
So what is keeping you sane? Is is just social responsibility or is it the transforming power of the God who created you and loves you? If it isn't the latter, let's chat, cuz I would like to introuduce you to the sanest Man I know!!!!!!