So, today marks 16 months for us on the Wait List. That's pretty dang exciting because that means that any day now we can be expecting a phone call from our caseworker with our referral! The crazy thing is that while it could be tomorrow, we might also be waiting till December. Who knows?!
So.... here's the game: Leave a comment below with the date you think we'll get our referral and whether you think it will be a boy or girl. I'll set up a list over on the sidebar and we'll see if anybody gets it right. And just to make it a bit more fun, I'll add an incentive - for those of you who live in the continental US (sorry friends in Kenya, Ecuador and England) - I'll bake something for you if you get it right! How fun is that?! OK..... GO!
Our monthly conference call with Gladney was this week, so I thought I'd post a little update.
Based on the official statistics given by Gladney and the unofficial list of waiting families, we think we could receive a referral in November or December. As we all know, this is subject to change. And while things are moving s-l-o-w-l-y in Ethiopia, they are actually moving, so that gives us hope.
For those of you who've been praying, I want to thank you. The Lord used this month's conference call to give me the perspective that I needed to wait patiently and not remain discouraged.
A Gladney mama who recently returned home from Ethiopia with her two children talked about their adoption experience and gave some words of wisdom. First of all, she talked about the respect she has for Gladney's ethics and how so many people in-country recognize how far ahead of the pack Gladney is in terms of ethical standards in caring for children - not only those who are available for adoption, but those who will never be able to be adopted. She also noted their high standards in ensuring that children are legitimately orphans and their commitment to not processing adoptions that are questionable. Even though that's not even remotely the first time I've heard that, I never get tired of hearing confirmation that we picked the right agency.
The other thing she said that has stuck with me all week is that the waiting is hard, but parenting is harder. She gave some specifics from their current situation, but also likened it to having biological children: when you're pregnant, you can't wait for it to be over because then you'll be comfortable and the baby will be here and you can finally get some sleep - only to realize that you get less sleep and now you have an infant who needs constant attention. Obviously I know nothing about having a biological baby, but I've seen enough sleep-deprived friends to know it's true.
And so it just got me thinking about what Mark Driscoll says about functional saviors (The whole thing is really good, but the functional savior part is about 6:30 in.):
For me, the bottom line is that if I can't be at peace now, trusting in the Lord's sovereignty, then no matter what my situation is, I'll never be at peace and be able to trust in Him. Is waiting hard? Yes. Is parenting harder? Yep. If a baby is my functional savior during the wait, who or what will become my functional savior once I'm a mama? It's really a never-ending cycle because no one or nothing satisfies like Jesus because no one and nothing can truly save. He is the only One who can who can bring true and lasting peace.
So, once again, to those of you who prayed, thank you! I was in great need of some perspective and the Lord provided just that. It's not always easy to trust Him, but it sure beats idolatry any day :-)
