Give Reviving

Though Garrick lives at Maria's Big House Of Hope we are not allowed to contact them directly to request any updates or information.  Any updates we get on him can only come from China's Welfare department and given to our agency to pass along to us. We get one update every 4 months. I know that sounds crazy but it is what it is and there is no fighting it.

I usually look at Show Hope's facebook page everyday just to check and see if they have posted an update of the kids at Maria's. I scour the pictures looking for the face that I know and love. There had been no pictures of Garrick since Easter. Then today I saw 3 new ones of him at one of the children's birthday parties!

  They were posted last week and I missed them! How did that happen? The only reason I can come up with is that God in his goodness and mercy knew that I would need them THIS week. He knew this week I would be worn and weary, sad, and weak. He knows my heart. He is a good and loving father and continues to bless and restore my soul.

Father for Thy, promised blessing,
Still we plead before Thy throne
For the times of, sweet refreshing,
Which can come from Thee alone
Blessed earnests, Thou hast given,
But in these we would not rest
Blessings still with, Thee are hidden,
Pour them forth and make us blest!

Let no people be forgotten,
Let Thy showers on all descend
That in one loud blessed anthem,
Millions may in triumph blend
Give reviving, give refreshing,
Give the looked-for Jubilee
To Thyself may, crowds be pressing,
Bringing glory unto Thee

In the waiting

There are many things about the adoption process that is stressful but I think the waiting is the worst part.
The waiting to be matched to your future child. Why did it take a year for China to put Garrick's file together? I said to our agency last year "He is already three years old!" Now he is four and I pray that he will not turn 5 without us. God, why so long?

The waiting for paperwork to come from one place just to send it off to another, then wait for it to come back to send off again. Every day the mailbox holds joy or disappointment.

Nothing moves fast enough. In two more months we can request an update on how he is doing. TWO MONTHS. Two more months I will wait to see how they are caring for my child half way around the world.

Busy. Stay busy. Nothing assuages the sense of urgency that builds in my heart day after day.

But when all that is done, and in the quiet hours during the night, I know I am helpless. There is no office I can call, postal truck to wait for, or children to care for. I cannot handle this myself.

It is in these times that I need to remind myself of who the Lord is. His character does not change regardless of how I feel or what my circumstances may be.

Who knows the mind of our God? 

Who can bring counsel to him? 

For from him, through him and to him is everything.

HE holds my life in his hand and has chosen this exact time to allow our adoption to proceed or to stall. Too many events have taken place to confirm that. I know without a shadow of a doubt that he has planned and orchestrated this from the beginning and it will all be on HIS timing and not mine. Who am I to think my time is better?

HE holds my son who is half a world away when I cannot. He is his eternal father and loves him just as fiercely as I do. Who am I to worry?

HE is the Provider. Who am I to presume I can do it myself? Who am I to worry about money, health or time?

In Christ alone my hope is found;
He is my light, my strength, my song;
This cornerstone, this solid ground,
Firm through the fiercest drought and storm.
What heights of love, what depths of peace,
When fears are stilled, when strivings cease!
My comforter, my all in all—
Here in the love of Christ I stand.

It is in these times of waiting when I know that I need him fully and completely. These are the times he is using to do a good work in me. Though the waiting is hard it will be good. Pray for us, dear friends, to fight the good fight and continue to draw near to him while we wait.

A sweet surprise

Yesterday we received some hard copies of our adoption documents including pictures. Gus was so excited to put Garrick's picture in a frame.

Right away he ran to our dining room and placed the picture with our other family photos.

"Garrick is my brother! He needs to be with us." I agree.

Why China?

I've had many people asking questions about why we chose to adopt from China. Truthfully, we would have adopted from anywhere. We did not have a preference, but once we saw Garrick's picture, we knew we didn't want just any child. We wanted him. It feels like he chose us. China chose us.

Once we said "Yes," we got a crash course in the history of China and it's adoption process.
More than 100,000 abandoned children from newborn to age fourteen (depending on the orphanage) are living a hard life in state and private-run orphanages across China. Over 95% of these unfortunate children are impacted by minor, major, or multiple physical conditions. As children with medical needs, they are considered "not adoptable" in a culture that has only, until recently, long rejected the practice of adoption.

However, many of these children are absolutely adoptable, and many of their physical conditions are either correctable or manageable through the advanced medical resources readily available in the US.

Why did we choose our agency CCAI?
When we contacted Show Hope about Garrick, we were told to contact CCAI, as most all the files of adoptable children in northern China will be designated just to them. Why is this? Well, CCAI was founded by two Chinese Nationals who saw a need and wanted to help fill it. More than 11,000 Chinese children have found homes since 1994 through CCAI, more than any other agency in the world. CCAI has been ranked #1 by the China Center for Children’s Welfare and Adoption (CCCWA) for overall assessment and placements. The CCCWA is China’s highest authority for international adoption affairs. Basically, CCAI is who China considers the most "Trust worthy."

Isn't it easier to get a girl than a boy?
Absolutely not! That may have been the case years ago but no longer. Now that it has been 30 years since the one child policy went into effect there is now 4 boys to every girl. China is no longer offering girls for adoption unless they have medical needs.

Is it safe to adopt from China?
When people ask this question, I know right away what they are really asking is this: "Will the Chinese government honor the adoption when you get there and will they increase the fees at the last minute?" The answer is "NO." Unlike some other countries, China is part of the Hague convention. This means that China and the US have signed a treaty (an international agreement) to establish safeguards to ensure that intercountry adoptions take place in the best interests of the child (e.i. no human trafficking) and conform to both countries laws; this ensures that both countries follow set legal guidelines during the adoption process. China has been participating in international adoptions for decades, they have a very thorough standardized system that they are legally required to follow and have done so successfully.

As we learned more about China, its people and its culture, we have been given a glimpse of a wider world view and great respect for the agencies and individuals who make international adoption possible. We have a desire to continue to encourage Garrick's Chinese heritage as he grows. We hope that he will be proud to be Chinese and to be American.


To learn more about us and help us fund our Adoption you can donate here: http://www.youcaring.com/adoption-fundraiser/germany-family-adoption-fund/330417

Be still my beating heart...

Friday morning is our first home study meeting with our caseworker. This is the first of 3 meetings in which she will determine that we are a suitable family. This is a mandatory process for all adoptions. It may sound scary but it really isn't, case workers are not out to find fault in a family they are out to find all the reasons why this is a GOOD family!
This is exciting as it is one more step closer to this adorable little guy!!

"What can I do?"

First, a word of gratitude to everyone who has been so gracious and generous as our family continues to work toward adopting Garrick. Your encouragement and support of us is so uplifting during a very stressful process.

We have a long way to go, so I wanted to let everybody know about a few projects we're involved in as we continue to get closer to bringing Garrick home.

First, We will be having a large yard sale this summer June 26 &27, where all proceeds will go toward our adoption travel expenses. Any items you would like to get rid of to donate to our sale will be greatly appreciated! We can pick them up (if they fit in our car) or arrange a drop off time. During the sale, if you have time and want to help us or just come give some encouragement we would love that!

Second, we are partnering with Just Love Coffee Roasters. You know Steven and I love coffee so this is a perfect partnership. If you order coffee through our page, a portion of the money will go toward our adoption. So if you want to help out with our adoption while also drinking delicious organic, Fair Trade coffee (they have K-Cups!), feel free to click the link and order something. It costs the same as coffee at the grocery store.

Third, we will be featured on Saturday July 25th at Righteous Que, our local BBQ restaurant. They have graciously offered to donate 10% of their profit for that day to our adoption! So please come out, bring your friends and join us for some good BBQ!

Fourth, a few years ago Steven and his friend Aaron recorded a worship album titled The Well. They are offering that album on Bandcamp for $5.00 (or more if you so choose). Go here to listen and buy.

So in summary, here are all the available ways to contribute (of course, please feel free to give nothing at all; we do not feel entitled to anyone's generosity; this is only for people who want to do something)-

Donate items to our Yard Sale or come help with the sale.

Buy Just Love Coffee

Come eat BBQ on July 25th at Righteous Que

Buy The Well's album

Make a donation at YouCaring.com

Thank you so much for your interest and your support. I'm sure we will be doing lots of other fundraising activities up until we leave for China. But these are just a few things that are active now.
Grace and peace be with you.

Steve & Christa

Orientation Day

Today we got to meet our caseworker at CCAI, our agency, to go over all the nitty-gritty details about our official paperwork and submission to China.
All the forms and official documents can be overwhelming but they walked us step-by-step through the paperwork. Which was awesome. We also talked about our Homestudy process; this entails the case worker making sure our home is a safe place for a child and that we are who we say we are. Home studies are required for all adoptions domestic and international. This also means a lot more paper work and obtaining lots of copies of official documents. We will then have to be fingerprinted and background checks done for the USCIS. Then we can compile all the paperwork we completed and send it off to be translated and delivered to China.

Whew! They aren't kidding when they use the term "Paper Pregnant".

She then went over in detail what our trip to China will entail. We will be traveling with other families in our group and we will have CCAI staff members and translators with us throughout the trip. All our in-country bus rides, flights, and accommodations will be arranged by them.

We will land in Beijing first. China requires that you are in country for 2 weeks, so the first week of our trip will be acclimating to the time change (12 hours forward. ugh.) and then touring. They have you tour areas of significance to help you learn and appreciate the Chinese culture. We will get to see the Great Wall, The forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, etc.
I was totally surprised by this as I did not think we would really get to see anything. Though I'm sure it is mostly just a really good distraction from the fact that we have to wait longer to get our child!

From Beijing we will then fly to Zhengzhou. It is in the Henan province located in central-east China. This is where Garrick is!! We will then get to have custody of him for 24 hours, once the 24 hour waiting time period is up we will sign all the papers to legally be his parents.
We will have a few days as a family until we move on to Guangzhou. Once in Guangzhou we will attend the US Embassy and Garrick we become an official US citizen. Then we will depart from Hong Kong.

So as you can see we have a lot to do! This meeting left us both excited and also with a sense of urgency to get everything done as fast as we can. But realistically, we are still 9-12 months from being able to go to China and get him. Once again, I ask of you friends to pray for us. We plan on doing a few fundraisers to help us raise the money needed to complete our adoption. Please consider helping us if you can, we need all the help we can get =)

Steve & Christa

If you feel led we do have an ongoing donation page:
http://www.youcaring.com/adoption-fundraiser/germany-family-adoption-fund/330417