Isaiah 55:8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,” declares the LORD.”
God has done amazing things in our lives – far above whatever we could have ever imagined. (Eph 3:20). We have seen Him working in each detail. When we first began hearing Him call us to adopt again, we found an amazing little girl that we wanted to claim as our own. But as we went forward, we found that we would not be allowed to adopt through this agency due to some areas that we could not come to agreement on with them. As we prayed about it, we knew we needed to move onward and we began another adoption with a different agency. But we didn’t understand why God had closed the door. We could not forget her beautiful little face.
When we were about halfway through our new adoption, through a series of circumstances that could have only been directed by God’s Hand, we found out that this little girl was available to host for the summer. We were completely shocked and once again began praying that God would show us what to do. The hosting agency contacted the government of Mary Lauren’s country and were told that we would be allowed to go ahead with her adoption as soon as our other beautiful daughters were home. We were amazed and scared all at the same time. Another set of back-to-back adoptions… another step out by complete faith. God gently pushed us forward and we hosted “Mary Lauren” this last summer. We are completely and utterly in love.
As we discussed it at the time we thought God may have arranged this because He knew we would be so worn out from the current adoption, that it would be easy to ignore a little picture on our fridge. But we could never ignore a little girl that we had held and loved and rejoiced in!
However, we know now that His ways are not our own. God, in His Sovereignty, chose to take one of our new little daughters to heaven just 4 days after coming home. Our hearts are broken. But as we have wrestled in prayer, we know we cannot leave our girl in China though our hearts are crushed. We realized that it would not bring our daughter back nor would it honor her memory to leave another child without a family. So we are once again trusting Him, in a whole new way, as we continue forward to bring “Mary Lauren” home, whom we will call Lucy.
UPDATE! The family will also be bringing home Quentin!
Follow the family’s adoption journey on their blog at redemptionwhispers.blogspot.com
1/7/16—DOSSIER EN ROUTE (DTC)