God worked in our hearts and led us to “select” two brothers to join our family.  They’re 6 and 8 years old (or maybe 7 and 9 – nobody is certain).  We’ve seen pictures, read their bios, prayed (and prayed and prayed).  Then we saw video!  They are adorable and we enjoyed seeing them interact with the other children, widows and visitors.  Of course, a lot can happen with the courts and so forth, but we’re pretty sure they will be in our home before the year is out.  They’ve already got a home in our hearts and we pray over their beds all the time – now we can pray their names. 

We’ve got to say that having the responsibility to select was almost more than we could handle.  We want them all!!!  With time and prayer, God impressed upon our hearts that He wants us to have these boys in our family.  We could not have made the decision without time spent with Him.

Please pray for:

• Sary-Jo’s birth certificate to arrive quickly from Puerto Rico
• The boys (“F” and “B”) to learn some English and that they will adapt to a major culture shift
• Our work in the dossier – that it would be assembled properly and accepted rapidly

We finished our part of the homestudy, which included three informative meetings with our Social Worker.  Now she will write up her study and send us a draft to proof-read next Monday.  Next, we’re putting the finishing touches on our dossier, which will make its way to Ethiopia after it’s validated by the US State Department.  We’re waiting for a couple things (such as a certified copy of Sary-Jo’s birth certificate), we’ve got a few things to write (for example, a letter to Ethiopian officials explaining why we’d like to adopt Ethiopian children), and we need to put some documents together with notarization.

We plan to finish our online adoption training this weekend!  Also, please pray for clarity and God’s guidance as we consider which of the “waiting” children to bring into our home as our kids.  The burden of decision is more on us than we anticipated and, on our own, we don’t feel like we’re up to the task of choosing.  We desire to be obedient and to be led to the kids God already picked out.

Our first visit with the Social Worker is Wednesday, Feb. 4, in the evening.  Those praying for us, please pray for honest and open discussion that will equip us to better parent the kids God will be placing in our care.