It has been EXACTLY 2 years and 2 months since Jason gave me a card for Mother's Day. We had been more divided over an issue than we had ever been before. For months, he had said, "No." The cost was too high for our family in so many ways. I first opened the handmade cards that I always cherish from our children, and then he handed me a card that I knew was from him. With children gathered around, I began to read aloud what he had written in the card. In two paragraphs, he described how God had been causing him to reflect on the cross and the sacrifice made for him, Jason, to be a child of God. It was a beautiful description, but I couldn't quite figure out where this "pouring out of his heart" was leading. I continued to read as he listed the "costs" that had consumed his mind in the months that we had considered adoption, the cause of our great divide. In an instant, I could barely breath and tears flooded my eyes so that I couldn't finish the last few sentences. Our children began to squeal as they realized where his note was headed, and after clearing my eyes, I finally read his last words,
It's time for us to answer God's call for our family. It's time for us to enter the journey of adoption.
Just six weeks before, I begged God to change my heart or Jason's as I prayed about this conflict that had led to one of the most difficult times in our marriage. In the quiet, the word "surrender" was all that I could hear. That day, I wrote SURRENDER on one page in my journal and nearly shook as the word glared at me from the page. That morning, I trusted God completely. I stopped talking and prayed for unity in our marriage. If you know ANYTHING about me, being quiet about something for which I was so passionate was only possible through God's strength. I can't tell you how much I struggled.
Three or four weeks later, Jason was restless during the night. I noticed that he wasn't sleeping well and left our room for quite some time. When I had asked the next morning if all was ok, he simply explained that he was up and had been praying through some things during the night. He seemed fine, and I didn't press any further. I prayed for him without knowing any specifics, and we didn't talk about that night again.
Fast forward to Mother's Day...
After a precious day of worship and time with family, we finally settled in for the evening. I asked Jason to share when he had reached the turning point and knew that we should walk forward together in adoption. He explained, "Do you remember the night that I couldn't sleep? I was wrestling with God, and He drew my heart and attention to the cross. He kept telling me to, 'Surrender.'"
The word that had been so difficult for me had also been the word that God used to unite our hearts. Over and over, "surrender" has been used in various contexts as we have twisted and turned through these last two years.
So...
after 792 days since we took our first step, and
252 days since we saw their first picture, and
49 days since we they officially became Wileys,
we have received news that we are most likely on the final step before leaving to bring our children home!!! There is an important interview that will take place Wednesday at 1:00 PM in Ethiopia (7:00 AM local time). It is likely that we will receive word of our fast approaching travel date following this interview if all goes as planned. With that said, we will be booking round trip flights for us and ONE WAY tickets for our three little guys very soon.
Above all, we covet your prayers for our family. So many have asked how they can help. A friend, and recent adoptive parent, designed a shirt that has captured our story in three words to help us with our final costs of travel and expenses. We will be selling a ladies cut soft style tee (heathered orange) and a standard cut soft style tee(heathered gray) until Friday, July 19. The cost of either style is $20/tee. For multiple tees, the cost is 2 for $35, 3 for $50, or 4 for $60. Shipping is included in the cost of the tee.
Sizes:
Adult Small, Medium, Large, and XLarge
Please note that the ladies cut is a smaller cut. We suggest that you order one size larger.
GOSPEL + SURRENDER = ADOPTION
To ORDER:
1. Please click the DONATE button under "Help Us Bring Them Home!" This will take you to PayPal.
2. After you login, you will see:
Please enter your donation amount.
| Purpose | Donation amount | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ThreeItWillBe | $ | $0.00 | |
| Total: | $0.00 | USD | |
Enter the Donation Amount for the # of shirts that you plan to purchase in the box under "Donation Amount".
Example: If you want to buy 3 shirts, enter $50 in the box provided.
Login and you will see:
To complete your payment, review the details below and click Donate. Visit Funding Sources to learn more about PayPal policies and your payment source rights and remedies, or to change debit card processing options.
| Purpose | Donation amount | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ThreeItWillBe | $50.00 | $50.00 | |
| Total: | $50.00 | USD | |
3. Click on the "Add special instructions to recipient" and please tell us:
*the color and size of the tee you would like to order
*your shipping address (1 per order, please.)
*email address where we can reach you if we have a question
Example:
1 Orange - Large, 1 Gray - XLarge, 1 Gray - Medium = 3 Total
Ima Sample
123 Green Street
Anywhere, GA 12345
adoptionfan@gmail.com
4. Click the Donate button at the bottom of the page.
If you do not have a PayPal account, feel free to click on the Contact Us button, and we will be happy to make arrangements for you to place an order and send us a check.
Love to you all!
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