They're Here

Our family goes to the "early" (meaning 8:30 a.m.) service at church on Sunday mornings. We love going to this service. There is no child care available at this first service, so G-man and Sissy are with us, which we like. (We sit near the back, because while they are (normally) pretty quiet, they do move and squirm, and we don't want to distract anyone.)

Yesterday during the worship service as Jas and I held our youngest two in our arms, surrounded by our oldest four, we all sang "I Will Follow You."  One of my favorite songs ever.    I couldn't help but smile as the song began.  And then cry.



This song spoke to me so much four years ago in the aftermath of our Love the Least Conference that I changed the name of the blog from One Blessed Bunch to Following Where He Leads.

This weekend marked exactly four years ago that our Love The Least group hosted that adoption and orphan awareness conference. You know...to help educate others.

And it was during this conference that the Lord spoke to both Jas and I separately and let us know that we were to adopt again. He told us we were to adopt domestically.  Not once, but twice...and two little chocolate-skinned precious ones.

And now they are here. They're. both. here.  And singing that song, holding them...I couldn't help but cry.

He lead. We followed. And He blessed.

We mentioned this in the panel discussion last weekend, but the Lord has really been driving this home to me recently...short and simple...one word:  Obey

I need that point driven home, because...see...my sin-sick heart wants to plan, and organize and anticipate and....plan.  And do my own thing...because I've always got it all figured out.

Or not.

It would have been so easy to not listen four years ago.  It was a crazy idea, I thought.  I never wanted to adopt domestically.  I never intended to have an infant to care for, thankyouverymuch.

Thankfully - praise YOU, Lord - we had enough history with God under our belts by that point (he'd already been leading and blessing us through our first four miracles) that we knew better than to balk when He said to do something.  And these last four years have only strengthened our resolve to move when He says "move."

We get asked all the time if we are "done"...if we plan to adopt again.  Our answer:  We don't know.  We may very well be done.  We will stop adding to our family when the Lord stops prompting us to do so....and conversely, we will only add if he says "add."    What we think should happen (in any given arena) does not always match His plans...and we definitely want to follow His plans.