What We're Doing...and Why

First, NO we are NOT moving to China...as many of you were assuming.

I did not mean to be melodramatic, or tease anyone, by posting what I did on Monday. I was just so FULL, it felt so good to write that post. I apparently just shouldn't have actually "published" it until we were ready to really tell what was going on.



But now we are ready to tell:

We are adopting again. But the Lord apparently wants to shake things up this time.

We are adopting domestically this time, through our agency's African American and Bi-racial Program.

How did we come to this decision?

For me it began about 6 years ago actually. Right after we got home with Elisabeth one of my favorite magazines (Above Rubies) had a series of articles on American couples adopting children from Africa. Liberia, specifically. I was very touched and very drawn in. I did internet research. I made phone calls. I was told that Liberia was very unstable and they recommended Ethiopia instead.

But it wasn't time for our family to adopt from Africa.

We brought home Noah.

And then we brought home Daniel.

When we started the process to adopt a fourth time, we prayed hard about where we were supposed to adopt from. I really thought it might be Ethiopia this time. After much prayer, Jas said "China." And so it was...and now we have our precious Lily Kay.

And for months now I've looked at our family picture...and felt we were missing some faces.

And that the little faces we were missing were black.

Over the past year I've heard more about couples adopting from Uganda.

So, Uganda? Ethiopia? I never felt a peace about either one of them.

And then...Suzanne (who spoke at our conference last weekend) did this post a couple months ago. My heart was pricked. My eyes were opened.

After talking with Suzanne and Mike this past weekend...I felt strongly that domestic African American adoption, of a boy, is what we're supposed to do.

So after the conference when I was biting. my. tongue. what I would have told Jas was that I felt we were, in fact, supposed to adopt again and...by the way, we're supposed to domestically adopt an African Amercian baby boy. But (for the first time in history!) I kept my mouth totally closed and said to the Lord, "If You want us to do this...you will most certainly tell Jas. And you are most certainly capable of handling this without me sticking my nose into it!" NOT that I think I should never give my $.02...I do think that's fine...and then leave it with Jas to decide, as head of our house. But this particular time, I felt very strongly that I was not supposed to say one thing.

And then Sunday - 24 hours later - all 6 of us were driving in the car to go get pictures taken (post to follow in a few weeks with those). Jas pulled out our church bulletin from that morning. He had several bullet points of things to make sure he remembered to discuss with me. Among them: he wants to go hunting on Friday morning, and Oh, by the way - He's ready to adopt again!

After I picked myself up off the floormat...I said "Where do you think we're supposed to adopt from?" (I had a fleeting thought, "What if he thinks we're supposed to adopt from China again?")

But Jas said "I think we're supposed to adopt domestically...and I think we're supposed to adopt a little African American boy."

I'm pretty sure I heard the Hallelujah chorus playing as the heavens parted in front of us.

Nah, but talk about an awesome experience. I just praise the Lord for His love and mercy...and that special gift to me of the way He orchestrated and confirmed this for us.




Now, we are not naive. We do not have our collective heads in the sand about this. We know how difficult domestic adoptions can be.

What we are? We are Christ-followers.

And He? He is leading...and boy, we wouldn't dare not follow when we know He is leading the way.