Full Circle

         Two years ago at Darla’s, (Cory’s mom), house I saw a Christmas card that changed my life. Usually I know everyone in her cards, so when I saw this one and asked about it Darla told me about Aaron and Charity Clayton and their story of adoption of their son Sam from Kazakhstan. She told me about their blog, and when I read it, it struck a cord in my heart and I never forgot it or Sam’s little face.

Last summer I found myself at Super Summer (leadership youth camp). I was praying, and asking God to just let me know how I could follow him better. Through a few different methods, he showed me that I needed to go on the mission trip they were offering the next summer, and that I needed to quit my job as a nurse and become a teacher. I am not the sort of person who does irrational crazy things like that, so I told God that I would take one application to one place to be a teacher, and if he opened that door I would walk through it. So I made a resume and drove it to Hardin High School, simply because it was the closest to my house. Two weeks later, after getting certified, I was hired. I became a teacher, and then signed up for the mission trip that they had talked about at Super Summer as well.

Ever since Cory and I first got married we had talked about adopting. And since I saw Sam’s picture and subsequently read his parent’s blog, we knew it was something we wanted to do. At the beginning of this year we changed in an idea for something more tangible, as we started contacting adoption agencies. Cut to now, and we are neck deep in this whole adoption, just waiting on pictures and medical information to show up any day now.

I spent the last two weeks in Paris, France on that mission trip that God called me to go on. The day before I left I was in a little town close to Dallas, at base camp to prepare us for the trip. One of the speakers was Aaron Clayton, the father of Sam, whom had turned our hearts to adoption. When we broke for lunch I saw Sam running around the cafeteria. He was older now, but I knew it was him as soon as I saw him. I watched him for a while and then saw him run up to his mom. I finally got myself together and went over to her and told her everything I could, about how Sam’s picture and blog had inspired Cory and I to adopt, and now we were in this pursuit for Jonah and how much their story had inspired me. She was so nice and so informative. She told me that today was Sam’s birthday. “How old are you Sam?” I asked he smiled and said “4”.

I called Cory and told him how everything had come full circle. To me it seemed that everything from the moment that I had first seen Sam’s picture two years ago at Darla’s house had led up to that moment, from quitting my job to becoming a teacher to going on this mission trip. I was so thankful that for a moment in this crazy process of adoption that God allowed me to see some of the puzzle pieces as they fit together. Even though he didn’t owe it to me, he let me see how a few steps of obedience had put me exactly where I needed to be, and yet the strength I had to be obedient hadn’t even come from me but from him. Thank you God, for adoption of me, just as I was, sinful and wretched.

We are just the shoreline...

Jonah 1:17 And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

I know it has been a while since we updated. The last two weeks have been full of Super Summer and Youth camp. Along the way we met and told so many people about adopting Jonah. We have been so blessed by their responses.

 In the middle of all of our travels, we decided to buy a new car.  The number one thing we were looking for is a car that would be good for Jonah. Yesterday we were driving and Cory turned the air vent toward the back seat and said “There you go Jonah” and we laughed. Our hearts yearn for our son. Every time we see a little boy we smile at him and watch him and wonder how old he is and it makes us think of our son. We want nothing more than to be holding him already, comforting him already, and protecting him already.

We got the rough draft of our home study yesterday. We edited it and sent it back to our social worker. She will send it to our case manager (tomorrow I think) so that she can make sure that it is up to all the Russian government standards.  After that, it should only be a few months until we receive our referral.  The process is moving quickly, and we are thankful for that.

About a year ago Cory was teaching the youth group from the book of Jonah. As we went through the book he said something that stuck out to me. He said that the fish swallowing Jonah was actually God’s way of saving Jonah. God appoints the fish to swallow Jonah. Growing up I had always perceived the fish as the punishment of God, but never as the grace of God.

Our son was born into a crazy situation. He was thrown overboard into turbulent waters. He was floundering in the sea. He can probably relate to the prayer: “The waters closed in over me to take my life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head at the roots of the mountains” Jonah 2:5.

But at just the right time God appointed a fish to swallow up our Jonah.  To some, the orphanage he is in might seem like a terrifying place to be at, but we understand that it is the vehicle that is carrying him from a turbulent sea to a calm shoreline where we are.  Some days time crawls by as he is in the fish but at just the right time “the Lord will speak to the fish, and it will vomit Jonah out upon the dry land! Salvation belongs to the Lord!” Jonah 2:9-10

At times we as Jonah’s parents may get confused and think that we are the fish. But we are just the shoreline. We are just the lucky ones who get to experience this, and get to have an opportunity to love a little boy, and increase our faith in our God as each payment gets met and he provides for our every need. We are just the shoreline, waiting for a fish, appointed by God to spit up our son.

So many people to thank...

So here's what's going on in the pursuit:
This week we are trying to get everything finished and sent in by Friday so that Kathy can finish writing the home study.
We have had some friends and family step up in some big ways this week to help us get this finished. God has blessed us with so many different people with different talents. Last night my brother, Chet, was here from the time he got off work until 10 pm measuring each room and drawing a scaled diagram of our house. Thankfully he is a talented guy who took some drafting classes with his pipefitting!
Today our friend, Chris Rayburn was here from 8 am to almost 11 am taking pictures of the inside and outside of our house. I mean this guy didn't just take pictures, he staged each room with extra lighting and the pictures are so good I want to sell my house almost.
Yesterday I went to the courthouse and got the 4 marriage certificates, my birth certificates, and Cory's birth certificates. Then I went to the vet to pick up Romo and Sophie's shot records so that we could send those in as well. My superintendent and Mrs. Carol got an employment letter for me, and Cory's sent one as well. My uncle who is a police officer is helping us get background checks going.
All in all its a busy time but things are going well.
Friday Cory and I both have doctor's appointments for physicals for the adoption. Not so excited about that but thankfully our doctor is Brandon and we know he will make sure that all of our paper work is done and turned in. We actually switched doctors so that we could have someone we know actually cares about our adoption in charge of sending all our medical papers in. (After being a nurse I know that many doctors have a tendency to lose paperwork.)
I am so thankful that so many people are so willing to help us. We could't do this alone and we can't believe how blessed we are. One day Jonah we read this and realize how blessed he was by so many people who hadn't even met him yet, but loved him already.

Hey this is Leah!
Today is my 26th birthday and I can't believe that most likely before my next birthday I will be a mother. Adoption has been on my brain so much lately I can't even explain it... An old friend from childhood got in touch with me this week and I have been enjoying reading the journey of their adoption of their daugher Lily from Ethiopia. I was able to get a lot of information about taxes, finances and support from her blog. (Thanks Terra and Sharon)

Well Saturday we had our home study. To get this done we spent like $400 dollars at walmart the night before on fire extinguishers and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. (Yeah I know we should have probably already owned these!)  At the home study, our social worker Kathy, stayed for almost 5 hours. She really didn't look around the house at all our newly acquired detectors as we had suspected. Instead she spent most of the time asking us questions and explaining to us what we could expect when we get Jonah home.

Out of the five hours of talking there is still one thought, one picture I can't get out of my head. She said that when we bring Jonah home that we shouldn't leave him alone in the room, especially at night. She went on to explain that he had probably never been alone in a room before. She also told us that in the orphange, up to 30 babies are usually all in one room with 2 or 3 caregivers. I started to think about this: about babies, all night long, turning in cribs and rolling around, and just constant noise of little ones and never quiet. Two very close friends are having babies next week. They are both due on June 22.. I think about all the joy we have had planning their showers, and how we have watched their bellies grow. I think of how much fun I had when I went to Gradee's house last night and saw how beautiful Teegan's room is and looked through all her beautiful things just waiting on her to wear them. Then I think of Jonah rolling around in his crib in a place where he is never alone and it is never quiet and my heart breaks for him. I wonder how his mother felt with him growing in her belly and how different it was for her than it is for my good friends.

I know Jonah's story will be different than a lot of his friends, and I know that it will be for his ultimate joy and God's glory, but just for tonight I am praying that he is safe, and that some how in all of the noise of that room with all those babies that there would be this silent moment where he knows he is loved already.

The more I think of the adoption of Jonah the more it makes me realize our adoption as children of God. When we get Jonah, it won't be because he was the best baby in the nursery, or because he is the cutest. He won't love us first, because we already love him and he doesn't even know we exist. But for no reason of his own he will be adopted as a son and all the rights of sonship transfered to him. Its not a perfect example, but God has definantly used this experience so far to teach me more about the gospel and how I am like Jonah. I have done nothing to deserve being adopted. This is the gospel and its everywhere and in everything. We just have to let God reveal it to us. Praise God we are adopted as sons and daughters.

Home Study Madness!!

Hey everyone! I am sorry for the delay between posts.  I have already been scolded by my mother and brother for waiting so long to update!  Hopefully you all will forgive me!  haha  We have been very very busy in the last few weeks.  Leah is winding down her first year of teaching at Hardin, Super Summer is coming up in about 8 days, and youth camp is the week after that!  Add all of that to the mound of paperwork associated with the home study and dossier process for the adoption, and you can see why we have not had time to update!  I am going to remedy that now!

This Saturday, our social worker is coming over to complete the home visit part of the home study.  This has been an area of concern for us over the past few weeks.  We really have no idea what to expect.  I understand that our social worker will look around our home.  She will take photos of the rooms in our home.  She will photograph the yard.  All of this to ensure that Jonah will have plenty of room to live and play.  She will also complete a fire safety checklist. We currently have no smoke detectors!! (Guess what I will be doing tomorrow??!!)  The visit is going to happen at 5 pm, so I am planning on cooking dinner for her in hopes of winning her over with pork loin and baked potatoes!  Always works on me! 

Our social worker is named Cathie.  We really like her.  We actually chose her agency to complete the home study because she was so easy to talk to on the phone.  The good thing about Cathie is that we feel like she cares about our adoption as much as we do.  That is really big for us.  We have cleaned, we have baby proofed, we have gotten the dogs groomed.....we think we have thought of everything!  Hopefully we have! 

We may not know what to expect, but we know who is in control.  It is so easy to get hung up in the details and forget that a sovereign God is at the helm. We can only do as much as we can do, we have to rely on God to spin it in motion, and he has never failed to do what he says he is going to do.  We feel so privileged to have been chosen by God to be family for this child who, otherwise, would not have one.  God knit (or will knit) our son together in his biological mothers womb with Leah and I in mind.  That is an awesome thought!  Continue praying for us and we will update you guys, letting you know how the home visit goes!

Your support means the world to us,

Cory and Leah

The Pursuit of Jonah....

Well Hello!  If you are visiting here, then we must assume that you have heard the news!  We would like to thank you for being willing to follow our long journey of adoption.  It is a road that we have thought long and hard about going down.  We changed our minds at least a hundred times, but in the end, it was very clear what the Lord was calling us to do, and international adoption was it.  Leah and I began talking about adoption around 2 years ago.  We both felt like it was something we would like to pray through and see where it led.  After a few months of praying, we were both sure that the Lord was leading us to adopt.  We were not really sure where to start, so we just began by googling agencies and reading other's online stories of adoption.  Let me give you a word of advice, if you are thinking about adoption, do not read other's online stoires of adoption early on in your process.  They tend to be full of disappointment, heartache, and other things that would scare you off, and scare us off they did.  We tabled the idea, and even began talking about having a baby.

We wrestled with this for a few months, until one day, Leah came home from her small group and said these words to me, "Cory, delayed obedience is still disobedience".  She was talking about the adoption.  See, we had pushed the command that God had made in our life to the side in exchange for the comfort of doing things the way we wanted.  In that moment, we both knew that it was time to begin the adoption process.  The next day we applied for adoption through Christian World Adoption, and were accepted later in the week.  Soon after that we decided that Russia was where we felt led to adopt from.  We were assigned the region of Volgograd.  It's due south of Moscow in the Southwest part of Russia.  We know that we will be adopting a boy and we know that he will be less than two years old.  At this point, that is all that we know.  We are currently covered by a mountain of paperwork that has to be done in order to be referred a child by the Russian government.  Above all things, we know that this adoption is in God's hands.  Nothing happens here that doesn't first pass through his fingers.  There is a lot of comfort in that thought.  We have been told that we will get the opportunity to choose our child's name when we get referred.  We are going to name him Jonah.  Even though we know nothing about him, giving him a name makes him seem like he is already a part of us.  The name of this blog is "The Pursuit of Jonah", and that is what this adoption process is.  We are actively pursuing our son, just as Christ actively pursues us day in and day out.  For this we owe him everything. 

We are going to blog during this experience so that you that choose to follow the blog will know how to pray for us and for the process.  We want to use this blog to be open and vulnerable to you guys as we go through this process. We want to show our friends and family the very grace of God that has brought us to this decision and that we believe is going to lead us through this entire process. We know that there are going to be things and days that are hard, but we believe that by living this out loud that we can somehow show others what happens when we allow others into our own private lives.

We also want you to know that we covet your prayers! We truly believe that God hears our prayers and just knowing that you all will know exactly where we are at and what we need prayer for is so important for us.  Here are the things you can be praying for right now:

1.  Jonah (he may or may not be born yet, we don't know.  Pray for his biological parents also.)
2.  Volgograd
3.  Cory and Leah as we plow through all of this paperwork
4.  The home study process
5.  Finances (This is a very pricey process.  God will provide.  Keep this in your prayers)
6.  Pray that we would be carriers of the Gospel every step of this process.
7.  Our families. 

Thank you so much for your prayers.  Check back frequently as we will be updating this blog regularly.
Until then, the pursuit of Jonah continues.......