Growing Continents Apart

Our first choice for our second child is adoption.

The Hysmiths have begun the process of adopting from Ethiopia! If your geography is a little poor, that would be Africa.

For as long as we can remember, adoption has been a part of our family plan. The where, when, and how many were usually not really something we thought about and just put the topic of adoption in the file drawer labeled "someday." Soon after Brody was born we naturally (as good, content people do) started planning and talking about the next steps for our family. How close together do we want children, where will we live when we have more than one child (because there is NO way our kids can share a room and we have to have a guest room..duh), and what kind of car should we get to accommodate our rapidly growing family?

During this time of "planning" I was following internet stalking some people's adoption stories. I would share with Ryan all of the triumphs and the sad moments that these families were experiencing and then I would cry big tears when I saw their pictures of airport homecomings and meeting their precious babies for the first time. I looked at families I knew and searched the blogosphere, looking for that perfect answer on "When is the best time to adopt?" As I did this, I got a little "unsettled."

What started out as a whisper started to become a shout.We began to pray for direction and for an answer to our question, "God, is this what you want for us right now?" Through God's Word and by the example of some people we really respect we have come to know these things:

• The things of this Earth will pass away. The things we are able to accumulate don't matter at all. The things we do to affect other people and bring others to His Kingdom really matter.
• Skin color does not matter. Any kind of prejudice or racism is a sin. We need to look at people the way God does, as  precious children of His.
• God has a plan for everyone and He guides us each step of the way. 
• We have been given so much...and we feel like much is required of us.
• We love being a mommy and daddy and that is not going to be limited to children that grow in my tummy.
• God has aligned my and Ryan's hearts and minds for a reason. 
• The more a married couple studies and meditates on God's Word together, the closer they become. 
• RIGHT NOW is the best time to answer God's call for you. Whatever it is, if you feel a little tug or urging to do something, right now is a great time to start that. 

So now....We wait. We pray. We hope. We love. We trust. We work.We grow. We pray. We wait. We pray. We pray. We pray.