producing a peculiar glory
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qyUPz6_TciY&feature=youtu.be
This amazing worship song is interwoven with a small clip of one of John Piper's sermons and he talks about our suffering "producing a peculiar glory"...
I hesitate to even claim suffering as I sit here healthy with plenty of food, clothes, healthy happy and active boys, a husband who loves well...
But we have been on quite a journey lately with our adoption.
December- we received pictures and a referral for a beautiful 8 month old little girl in a remote area of Ethiopia...
January- my heart was halfway across the globe for the better part of the month, longing to go hold this sweet little girl, knowing that our adoption process would likely take the better part of a year, praying night and day for a travel partner and funds to miraculously appear for me to go take that trip, but nothing ever quite falling into place and feeling just right...
February 11th-- we heard that our adoption agency's director had been arrested and charged with fraud.
Sick, awful feeling.
Still longing for that sweet little girl.
Stuck in the middle of so many unknowns, feeling like we had lost her, wondering if it wasn't God's will after all that we'd have a daughter.
Weeks of knowing nothing, praying praying praying.
We don't have all the answers yet, but we have to testify to His faithfulness... I could never even have imagined the connections that God would provide for us during this time... weeks after we felt like we had been dropped into a black hole with no way out, we slowly began to discern the fine lines of a web He was weaving to connect us back to our baby in Ethiopia.
--The private investigator we hired verified that our BabyGirl was truly an orphan in need of a family and there was not any evidence of wrongdoing in her case.
--A friend's father who lives in Ethiopia was able to directly call BabyGirl's orphanage and they were able to give him information to assure us that she was fine, being well taken care of.
--A friend of a friend has a mother who works in Ethiopia in BabyGirl's city and was able to go to the orphanage and ask about the children. Again, a good report.
--Bill Nelson not only responds to our requests for help but promptly sends us copies of the communications he has had with the Ethiopian Embassy and the State Department on our behalf. I heart Bill Nelson :)
--We find another adoption agency who is not only willing to do the very hard things involved in taking on our case but has worked in this region before and has established contacts there with the local government, which is crucial for any adoption to move forward.
--This new agency received clearance from the local government to take our case and start funding the orphanage where BabyGirl lives.
--After weeks of unanswered emails, yesterday I received a new picture of BabyGirl, in all her girly finery, looking strong and healthy.
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I wish I could share more but I feel like I have to be so careful with details, there is no way I am jeopardizing this adoption by sharing too much. But I just had to share the fact that though we are completely unable to accomplish anything, God is working on our behalf-- really on the children's behalf-- to place them in families. Through all of this I see Him growing in us an even stronger bond to our new children and a deeper appreciation of who God is and how much He provides for us in all the little details of our lives.
So, we give thanks and give Him the glory. It's not the journey we expected, but our Creator God produces a peculiar glory in keeping with the wildly unique Father that he is, drawing us closer to Him all the time in so many unexpected ways.
This amazing worship song is interwoven with a small clip of one of John Piper's sermons and he talks about our suffering "producing a peculiar glory"...
I hesitate to even claim suffering as I sit here healthy with plenty of food, clothes, healthy happy and active boys, a husband who loves well...
But we have been on quite a journey lately with our adoption.
December- we received pictures and a referral for a beautiful 8 month old little girl in a remote area of Ethiopia...
January- my heart was halfway across the globe for the better part of the month, longing to go hold this sweet little girl, knowing that our adoption process would likely take the better part of a year, praying night and day for a travel partner and funds to miraculously appear for me to go take that trip, but nothing ever quite falling into place and feeling just right...
February 11th-- we heard that our adoption agency's director had been arrested and charged with fraud.
Sick, awful feeling.
Still longing for that sweet little girl.
Stuck in the middle of so many unknowns, feeling like we had lost her, wondering if it wasn't God's will after all that we'd have a daughter.
Weeks of knowing nothing, praying praying praying.
We don't have all the answers yet, but we have to testify to His faithfulness... I could never even have imagined the connections that God would provide for us during this time... weeks after we felt like we had been dropped into a black hole with no way out, we slowly began to discern the fine lines of a web He was weaving to connect us back to our baby in Ethiopia.
--The private investigator we hired verified that our BabyGirl was truly an orphan in need of a family and there was not any evidence of wrongdoing in her case.
--A friend's father who lives in Ethiopia was able to directly call BabyGirl's orphanage and they were able to give him information to assure us that she was fine, being well taken care of.
--A friend of a friend has a mother who works in Ethiopia in BabyGirl's city and was able to go to the orphanage and ask about the children. Again, a good report.
--Bill Nelson not only responds to our requests for help but promptly sends us copies of the communications he has had with the Ethiopian Embassy and the State Department on our behalf. I heart Bill Nelson :)
--We find another adoption agency who is not only willing to do the very hard things involved in taking on our case but has worked in this region before and has established contacts there with the local government, which is crucial for any adoption to move forward.
--This new agency received clearance from the local government to take our case and start funding the orphanage where BabyGirl lives.
--After weeks of unanswered emails, yesterday I received a new picture of BabyGirl, in all her girly finery, looking strong and healthy.
I wish I could share more but I feel like I have to be so careful with details, there is no way I am jeopardizing this adoption by sharing too much. But I just had to share the fact that though we are completely unable to accomplish anything, God is working on our behalf-- really on the children's behalf-- to place them in families. Through all of this I see Him growing in us an even stronger bond to our new children and a deeper appreciation of who God is and how much He provides for us in all the little details of our lives.
So, we give thanks and give Him the glory. It's not the journey we expected, but our Creator God produces a peculiar glory in keeping with the wildly unique Father that he is, drawing us closer to Him all the time in so many unexpected ways.
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