Adopting...time to cross the line....

I have been wanting to post about this, but we haven't really been at a point where I thought I could state it as fact. We are beginning the adoption process. We are at that last point where we may have one more line to cross before it's official. I can't stop thinking about it....I can't stop reading about it....I can't stop talking about it. So many emotions involved and I am excited, but scared to death. Our friends waited so very long for their little girl in Ethiopia, one family I follow just found out that their little girl has tested for HIV and cannot be taken from the country of Uganda with such a medical condition, and then there is the money.....OH YES, the freaking money!!!! So this is what I've been faced with when I tell people we want to adopt from Africa: Why wouldn't you adopt from the U.S.? We have needy children here! Or if you can't give your own children the luxuries, why would you bring more into your family? And then there's this....Oprah and the U.S. take care of the people of Africa...they'll be fine.

If you see your comment in here...well, sorry...you've hit a nerve. Here is my answer for the four-hundreth, fifty-sixth time!!!! It is our choice to take a child from poverty and bring her into our home as one of our own. When God said care for the needy did he say only those who live in your city? Your state? Your country? No, he said to care for the helpless. We are all God's children. Can Oprah take care of all 147 million orphans? I think not. And they won't be fine....they are dying every day because of conditions that can be prevented (a whole other subject). And yes it IS sooo expensive!!! Is that right? Nope! But who would have to pay for that if we didn't go for it anyway? Those sweet babies! We DO live pay check- to- paycheck, but we have descent cars, a nice house (we think), and we have each other. Our kids are not neglected, they have the necessities, and they don't go without on too many things. So if I have to teach piano to them instead of getting them lessons....so be it! If instead of them getting riding lessons we try to figure it ourselves....so be it! They are loved and we do our best. I don't know how we'll do the money part. it's the one BIG thing that is holding us back, even though we are told that the bills don't all come at once. We are not accustomed to debt and we really don't want to start now. But God is pulling us in this direction and if we wait for the money to come we could be passing up an opportunity for our whole family. We don't want this after our own kids are grown and gone...we all want this experience now. The boys have been praying for this for months! I think I may have gotten a sign yesterday when I stumbled upon this blog. This was the first thing that popped out at me:

"He didn't put us here so we could have big houses, drive nice cars, have fancy clothes, and care about materialistic things. He put us here to love the orphaned and widowed, and love those around us. If just 8% of those who profess to be believers FOLLOWED what God wants us to do and adopted an orphan OR cared for a child in need, there would be no more orphans. That's 147 MILLION children without homes and love that would be given a family, and people to love them. "I'm too old"...Better an old mom than NO MOM right? :) and "It's too expensive" isn't an excuse because God will provide. I have seen him provide for the Oatsvalls, who started out without ANY money in their adoption fund and are now waiting to travel to go get their TWO children."

I decided this must be it....

God is telling me it's time. Time to cross that line.

Scared to death, but excited as ever.