Big Announcement....We're Adopting!

Along with all the amazing things we experienced this summer, one HUGE thing happened...God affirmed to us the decision to adopt a little girl from Honduras! We have been praying about adoption for at least a year, and in His timing, we have come to a peace about His will for us. In addition to preparing our hearts for this adoption journey, He has given us one confirmation after another. While in Honduras this summer, we began to realize that the doors for adoption that had previously been closed are slowly but surely beginning to open. When we arrived home and headed to the SBC, we continued to be prayerful, and we received a very clear answer. The SBC has begun an adoption grant for pastors and missionaries to help with part of the cost. There were multiple testimonies given about the amazing impact adoption had on these families. At one point Corey looked over at me, and we just knew we were being called to adoption as a family. God placed in my heart a desire for a daughter long ago...I truly believe that God knew He would bless us with two amazing boys and then use that desire for a daughter to lead us to adoption.

Some of you may wonder why we are adopting. Other than what I've already shared, we absolutely love the picture of God's love and redemption for us that adoption gives. Those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ have been adopted into the family of God. We are now co-heirs with Christ...isn't that amazing? He saw our great need and He reached out and not only met our needs, but has given us the promise of an eternal inheritance. He desired a relationship with us, sought us out, paid the high price of His only Son Jesus...and we were worth it to Him.

Our boys are so very excited about having a little sister! If you've been around them lately, they've probably already told you about it! They cannot wait...but will have to :) The process will likely take at least a year. Some other answers you might be wondering about...We did consider adopting domestically...we actually had our information at Tomorrow's Hope, our local Crisis Pregnancy Center, for several months. We looked at other agencies, but simply felt this is what we are being led to do. We do not have a specific child that we are adopting. We just know that she will likely be somewhere between 0-3 years old. We honestly don't know what the final cost will be...somewhere between $15,000-22,000 probably. Wow! I know...but how many times do people spend that much money on a car in a lifetime without blinking. Honestly, this has been one of the huge faith barriers God has brought us through. We don't know exactly how, but we know that He will provide. He has always provided and been faithful to us when we've followed His will...and He will this time, too. We are in the process of a home study right now. This includes interviews with our family and a visit to our home. It also includes lots of paperwork, background checks, fingerprinting, etc. When we finish the home study, the US government will review our paperwork and have to approve our family for adoption. We will then send all the information to the Honduran government and they will begin reviewing our dossier (all the required paperwork). Then they will match us with a child that fits our request. This can take anywhere from 6 months to over a year. At the end of the process, we will travel to Honduras twice...once to meet our daughter, go through interviews with the government, complete paperwork...And then we'll have to come back home without her for about 2 months. We'll return a final time to finalize the paperwork and then she'll be ours! It seems so far away right now, but I am praying God will allow the process to go smoothly and give us much patience!

I know this has been a long post, but there is just so much to share. Please know that we are all very open to answer any questions anyone might have...we love you all so much and are so happy to be transparent and share our lives with you.