Psalm 136:1"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever."
Last week was Spring Break. We went to Steamboat, Colorado with the Youngbloods and we had a great time. We got 30 inches of snow while we were there. It was great to get away from the hustle and bustle of Birmingham. Coleman and Laurel took snowboarding lessons and they did great. We had no injuries, thank the Lord. The condo we stayed in was beautiful! The fellowship was great and yes we skyped Africa about 4 times while we were there. I day dreamed about how next Spring Break could be. If the good Lord is willing, we will need room for two more. I picked out a ski jacket for D but his friend, Turner, said he would not want to wear the one I had chosen for him. I guess I will wait on making that purchase until the children get here. Turner was probably right. Suzanne and a group of people went to Kampala to visit the Sozo kids and Suzanne, Jon and Joel were kind enough to include J and D to spend most of the week with them. Suzanne said Derrick was quiet the first day. Joel has always said, "Derrick is a quiet guy". But, after one day he livend up and wouldn't stop talking. Some of my high lights from skyping was teaching them their names and our names in sign language. They were glued to the computer and did everything I did. It was great to see how attentive they were and how fast they picked it up. On one of the skype's, Derrick started saying, "moma, moma, moma" and pointing at me. The next time we skyped, he was saying, "I love you moma, I love you daddy, I love you Laurel, and I love you baby". For some reason, he calls Coleman baby. Joan signed to me "Mom, I am going to sleep with you." Yes, I cried through most of the conversations because they are beginning to communicate with us. I'm not sure they understand when we are coming but they know we are coming to get them and they no we love them. I hope that one day when Joan learns more sign language she can tell us what she was thinking during this time of waiting. Words cannot describe how sad I was that Suzanne and her group were having to come back to the US. I loved knowing that for that week, they were fed, they were clothed, they were warm and they were loved. The day Suzanne was coming home, my computer started ringing at 3:15a.m. which would have been 1:00p.m. in Africa. I jumped out of bed and answered it. Joan was sitting in Suzanne's lap and she looked sad. I know she knew they were leaving. It broke my heart. She sat with her head under Suzanne's chin and hardly moved. The little girl that was making her new dress spin and dancing to the angel's singing was sad. Through all of the poverty, sickness and suffering she has witnessed, what made her sad was that Suzanne's loving arms were leaving her and she knew it. Thank the Lord for Joel. He is many of those children's "constant". Right now, he is my hands and feet of Christ. He is getting some of the paperwork completed for me. He brought J and D's dad to Sozo one day and we got to meet him. Their dad doesn't speak English so Joel had to translate. All I can say is once again God was faithful. He wanted me to know that he would help in any way he could and that I didn't need to be scared that he wasn't going to change his mind. He praised God that we wanted to take his children. Oh my goodness! What do you say to that? He blew me kisses and I cried. I can't wait to meet him. Did I tell you he has a hearing problem too but he could hear some because Joel would scream some things in his ear. J looks just like her dad. It was amazing. I am praying that God is going to move each person that comes in contact with J and D or that reads this blog to become the hands and feet of Christ for the children in Africa. God is not going to stop with just J and D. There is hope to build a school that would house the rest of the 298 children at Rays of Hope with the 17 children of the Sozo orphanage. I am really having a hard time living one day at a time. From what little I know about international adoption, nothing is happening the way things "normally" happen but it is all good and it is all GOD. Please pray for our family to continue to focus on God and not on ourselves. Pray that we serve Him well and that he shows favor on our paperwork as it is beginning to be received in Uganda. Pray for J and D to feel the love of Christ while they are waiting and while they are trying to comprehend all of the changes they are about to be going through. God has already blessed us beyond anything I could ever imagine!
In His Grip,
Amiee
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