Malaria

Malaria kills. It is no respecter of persons. It doesn't care who you are, how old you are, how wealthy you are. Children are especially venerable. It is preventable, but most countries that are plagued by it are so poverty stricken, the people cannot afford to even buy a simple net. Help prevent this terrible illness from taking another life. Visit this website, play a silly game, and they will send a life saving mosquito net to someone who needs it, on your behalf, for free. Can't be any simpler than that.

www.nothingbutnets.net

What Happens Next?

"What happens next?" I have been asked this question quite a bit over the last couple of days, so I thought I would fill everyone in. Now that we have our USCIS approval, a court date will be scheduled. I really have no idea when to expect this to happen. From what I understand we should have a court date sometime in the next four to eight weeks. Once we have the court date scheduled we will book our flights for travel, to arrive a few days before then. Then begins the craziness that is Uganda. We are taking an "expect the worst hope for the best" mentality with this. The one thing that we know to expect in Uganda is the unexpected. We will have to go to our court date, receive a verbal and written ruling from the judge. Then we will have to get the children's passports. Then finally their visas. This sounds so simple...but it really is not. We have been told our stay in Uganda will be about three weeks. I know of a couple of adoptions through Welcome Home, that happened last June, those families had to stay four weeks...so that is what we are planning for. One thing that we are so thankful for is the lawyer that Welcome Home uses. This makes all the difference in the world with the officials. This is the main reason that there tends to be fewer complications than some other families come up against. We are fully aware that may not be the case for us, but we are trusting God. We know that this is not about us, and that it is not even fully about William and Melissa joining our family. It is about our Lord and Him receiving glory. We pray that we will be willing vessels, to be used by Him, in a country and with a people we love so dearly. We are praying about what supplies to bring and are praying that the Lord will put us with people who need to hear the glorious gospel, and with His people, so that we might serve them in some way. We deeply need prayer in this area, that when there are delays with our adoption, we will remember that God's will cannot be thwarted. That what may seem like delays to us, is really our Sovereign Lord working out His perfect plan.

William and Melissa should be receiving the scrapbook of the family that we sent to them soon. Any day now they will find out that they have a family, that they have been chosen. We pray that one day they will understand that they were predestined for adoption, from the foundation of the world. That what the enemy meant for evil in their abandonment, the Lord meant for good. We pray also that they would recognize the great gift of Jesus, who made THE way for them to be adopted children of the Most High God.

For two years now we have been seeking the Lord's will with our longing and desire for Uganda. After Richard came home from his trip there, he was changed. His heart has never really been here in America, it has been longing to go back. (I am sure he never dreamed it would be for this reason that he would return again) The Lord has placed in Him such a love for the people of Uganda, especially the children. His love has spilled over on to me and our children. It is so hard to explain, but it is so very real. I can only imagine my heart changing all the more once I am in this beloved land of his. We are praying that during this trip, the Lord would reveal His will for us in this. That He would bring us together with the right people, and that He will guide our steps, that we might know what to do with this burning desire the Lord has placed with in us. We ask that you join us in this prayer.

There is of course the issue of finances. We are short a lot of money, but the Lord has been gracious (as He always is) and given us a great peace in this. We know that He will provide, we have no idea how, but we know that He will.

WE GOT IT!!!

I just opened the most wonderful piece of mail I think I will ever receive our I-171H, which is our approval from USCIS. Uganda here we come!!