In The Thick of It

I am sitting here with such a heart of gratitude that I don't even know where to begin being thankful! God is doing amazing works and I have to stand back and watch in amazement the same way you might at a spectacular fireworks display. There are the obvious blessings like the generous donations we've received towards Francis' adoption.
I reached out with some reservation as we are not adopting a cute, cuddly baby this time around but an almost-full-grown teenager. I wondered if people would feel led to help us this time around since we were helped last time. I prayed that our vision and calling would not look like something else, something self-serving in the eyes of our friends and family. What a relief that those who know us best really DO understand.
My thankfulness goes beyond the financial realm and into the logistics of the adoption process. I found out we only need a homestudy update and not an entire new study. I discovered that our immigration paperwork will be much easier this time as we only need to file an extension of our immigration approvals and not new documents.
I am not naive enough to believe this whole process will go off without a hitch, though. This is our fourth adoption and if I've learned anything, it is to expect the unexpected. Paperwork gets lost, government offices close just when you need them most, clouds of ash or typhoons effect air travel, etc. etc. If I didn't have
full confidence that God is sovereign, there is NO way I could sign up for this process again without losing my mind. If I didn't have the pictures and paperwork of that precious young man to look at each day and to remind myself WHY we're doing this, I would not be able to fill out one more form or write one more check. But I DO have those things. I have so much more. I have the prayer and support of friends and family. I have a husband who is just as convicted as I that God has called us to this. I have a savior who "knows my name" - as we sang in church a couple of Sundays ago. He also knows our new son intimately and has decided we are the right family for him.
WOW! So much to be thankful for . . .