Claim His Promises

In Numbers 32:1 we learn that while God was poised to give His chosen people the absolute best land - the land He "promised" to their forefathers - the tribes of Reuban and Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh chose to stay east of the Jordan where the land looked good for supporting their livestock. Why would they willingly choose less than God's best for them? 

Why do I?  When God presents me with a fork in the road, do I choose the easy path, the one that "looks good" for supporting my "stuff?" I am very afraid that too often, I do. The path that holds God's very best is not often the one that appears the easiest. 

It has taken us many years to get to the point of realization that God's best is not always the choice that it seems we should make. Certainly not the choice that the "world" supports. Our life was going along pretty smoothly five years ago when we decided to say yes to God and bring Patrick into our family. I shudder to think of what we would have missed. Then, God plucked us up and moved us to the desert - figuratively and literally we have walked through a very dry place these past few years. Saying yes to that move was among the hardest decisions we have ever made. 

Now, God is doing a NEW thing. He has once again presented us with a fork in the road. We are coming out of the fog of a cross country move, uprooting our children, leaving a life we had come to love and all of our support. We are once again finding support and people to "do life" with and things seem "good enough." But, God does not desire good enough for His children. God wants us to claim ALL that He has for us. 

So, as we embark on the next step of our journey, I am rejoicing in all that He intends to do. We don't have a clue what that looks like - we don't have a clue what we will face with our new son. What we do know is that once you get through the initial spiritual battle (and just ask our kids, these past couple of weeks have been intense) -- then there is a peace that reigns. It is a peace that can not be explained and could never ever come from the world. China said YES to us today - and as soon as we received our official pre-approval papers, a cloud of absolute serenity fell over our home.  

It reminds me of the CS Lewis quote, "We are like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slums because we can not imagine what is meant by a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased." 

These life changing decisions are heart wrenching and absolutely paralyzing sometimes if we allow ourselves to over think them. I do not expect that this "otherworldly" serenity will totally define the rest of the process.  I expect that more tears will be shed, a few tempers may flare, and the enemy will do his level best to discourage us.  And when that happens we will remember.......

We will remember all that God has done.  All that He has promised.  We will remember Exodus 23 when He said, "Behold, I send an angel before you, to guard you on the way and bring you to the place that I have prepared."  

And sometime in the next few months, we WILL set our feet on Chinese soil and we will bring home the little one that God planned for us before the foundations of the world.  We will, because He has said so.

Please don't forget the "match" fundraiser we are holding.  When we bring our little one home, another child will also be able to find his/her forever family.  YOU can be a part of that.  Click HERE to donate and please please share on your blogs, twitters, facebooks......