If you have been following this story from the beginning you will know that my decision to travel with Show Hope to Maria’s Big House brought about quite a bit of teasing from both friends and family. From the very beginning I had to repeatedly tell people I was NOT going to China to find another child to adopt. And, yes, I was very serious when I made these statements. But now I was heading home with the love of a child on my heart and knowing full well I was going to face even more jokes and loving harassment when I began to tell people my story. So, ready. Deep breath in... Set. Firm jaw and head held high… Go!
When I first arrived back in Maryland my parents were staying at our house having taken Jolene for a few days of the time I was away and now spending the weekend with us before heading home. I didn’t feel comfortable sharing my new found love with them quite yet so I laid low in public, but behind the scenes I did bring up the topic with Dan. I wasn’t exactly sure how he was going to respond, but I also knew that another adoption was not off the table for us as a couple and that the Lord had obviously brought this child into my heart for a purpose so that gave me some much needed confidence. So, late one night, away from anyone else who might hear, in a quiet voice, I broached the subject with a bit of trepidation… Okay, hold it right there. I have to be honest. I was scared to death! What if he just thought I was crazy? God’s calling or not, I still had to get the words out of my mouth and that was harder than I thought. Thankfully, Dan did not say I was crazy. And he didn’t throw any pillows at me either. Ha!
Actually, he was far more receptive to the idea than I thought he might be. As much as I knew this was a God thing, and as much as I knew I would share the whole story with him, I also figured I would have to do a bit of convincing, but really not so much. But then again, Dan is just like that. It’s like God just tells him stuff and he says, “Okay.” I would like to tell you that I am like that too, but I also know you have been reading this blog for a while and know that that just ain’t so. I am far more likely to make stuff way harder than it has to be. Thus, the reason it’s taken me so long to tell this story. Just think how quickly I could have informed you of how-we-got-here if I had just heard God speak at Maria’s and said, “Okay. I’m in.” Kinda makes me look pretty silly, huh? But, oh well, this is who I am and at least I can smile while I type about it – especially since we’ve already concluded that I am a dork and God’s okay with that. :-)
Anyway, back to the story… After a few of these late night conversations, Dan and I made the decision that we were ready to pursue this adoption option and see what needed to be done to make it happen. Keeping in mind that finances were going to be a major issue along the road, it was our desire to crunch all the numbers, see how far from eligible we really were, and then develop a plan for bridging that gap. Step one - find our old financial paperwork from our previous adoptions and use those forms as a template for this adoption. Step two - send away for an information packet from Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI), the only U.S. adoption agency currently allowed to arrange adoptions from the Luoyang Province where Maria’s Big House is located, thus the agency we would be using. Step three - find all the possible ways to calculate your net worth and pray for a miracle.
Well, the results of step one were just as we suspected. Looking at our old financial forms there were some major changes to be made. In the assets department we had to remove the numbers linked to owning, and thus having equity in, a house. We also had to adjust balances in savings and checking accounts. On the liabilities side we were able to remove all of the numbers and replace them with zeroes – no car payments, no credit card debt, no home loan, etc. All together, this did not get us the net worth totals we needed, but thanks to all those zeroes we weren’t quite as down and out as we thought we would be.
After doing a bit of research online and looking at several different net worth calculators, it became very clear that we had other assets available to us that we never had to consider before. You see, when we adopted the first two times, we were both working full time and those salaries alone made the net worth issue not a concern. That said, when we did all of the paperwork for those adoptions we never needed to include assets beyond the obvious. What that means in simple terms is that we never needed to include our retirement or stock balances before. This time, however, those numbers were suddenly very important. In short, all those years I spent in the classroom, combined with the money we have invested with Thrivent Financial over the years, were very important! The inclusion of those numbers combined with the giant goose-egg sitting in our liabilities column (thank you again, Dave Ramsey!!) actually pushed us past the necessary net worth requirement. Hallelujah! There was our miracle!
What does that mean? It means all those worries and doubts and crazy thoughts I had been having from that first night in Chicago were all for naught. We qualified. We met the standard. We were in! Now all we had to do was leap blindly by faith into the adoption process and pray that the Lord would provide the funds needed to complete the journey. You see we qualified to adopt, but only because of the lack of liabilities and the few thousand dollars we had in the bank. We were in the game, but not quite in the big leagues. If we were to either spend a great deal of what was in the bank or borrow large amounts to pay for adoption fees all of that net worth stuff would change – and not in our favor. Like I said, we were in, but this was going to take a huge amount of God to supplement a huge lack of funds.
Luckily, four months later, He has yet to let us down. We’ve had to arrange to pay a couple of bills in pieces rather than a lump sum, and we have submitted some fees via multiple checks from friends and family through our fund raisers, and we have written some big personal checks, but we have not missed a payment yet and don’t see ourselves doing so in the near future. Through the generosity of friends and family and Six Seeds, and the strange timing of army reimbursement dollars, and God's good grace, we are right where we need to be to pay each of the next group of fees. Thanks be to God! He never ceases to amaze us, and for that we can take absolutely no credit.
We still have a long way to go. If you look at our bank account balances you will note quickly there is no fund that will cover our in-country or travel expenses. We certainly are not out of the woods yet, but also aren't walking blindly. Okay, maybe blindly by faith, but not blindly as in lost. God has brought us this far, there is no doubt He will take us to the end. How? I have no idea. Some days I find myself hoping that yet another great gift of money, like the Six Seeds thing, will just fall from the sky. But then I think, where is the faith in that? Given His track record lately, it seems God is much more likely to make us wait it out until we have no other option but faith and then step in to provide right at the right moment. I mean, come on, you've been following this story, doesn't that seem about right? And you know what? I'm okay with that. Not my first choice - to wait and see how it turns out rather than having all my ducks in a row where I can see them, but I'm okay with that. Just think of what a great story we have to share. Far more exciting than "Hey, we needed the money so we just wrote a check."
So, there you have it. The whole story of how we got here. At this point the story picks up with my early blog, Making it Fun! posted on September 24th. If you have never read it, I encourage you to read it now. It is a wonderful testament to the completely mind-blowing control God has over this entire situation. We took that first leap of faith not even knowing if Jack was eligible for adoption and yet God’s grace abounded from the moment we chose to jump. And if you have read it before, I invite you to return and read it again. I, myself, was reminded of little details of this journey that seems to have just flown by. I am so glad that I decided to write this dear little blog-thing, and that I have such great documentation of this entire experience. I cannot think of a better way to be reminded of just how BIG our God is.
Oh! And I have to tell you, for those who have read all of my little “Nothing Philosophical” posts, about that other family… The one I was convinced was going to adopt my little boy because they could and I couldn’t… Well, it turns out they did leave China with plans to adopt, and they hit the ground running when they came home from Maria’s. But those plans were set for adopting a little girl with completely different health issues, not our little one at all. Go figure! Guess that was just another mountain of doubt that Satan created and tortured me with. I can’t say I’m disappointed with their choices, but I sure am happy we are on this adoption journey alongside their wonderful family. I can’t think of a better way to travel this road. We love them and their beautiful baby girl, who should be home in just a few months, and we are so blessed to watch their journey of faith unfold and to see the real-life miracles being worked in their lives as well. I’ve said it before but it definitely bears repeating – God is GOOD! And His love endures FOREVER!
Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your children from the east
and gather you from the west.
I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the ends of the earth—
everyone who is called by my name,
whom I created for my glory,
whom I formed and made.
Isaiah 43:5-7
I remember very well when you were preparing to go and reassured everyone that you were not looking for another child. It is wonderful how God does not share our plans sometimes:) I love your story.
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