WE ARE GOING TO ETHIOPIA!!!

Friday, December 16, 2016 we got the call we have been waiting for since seeing our sweet boy's face in Oct of 2015.
I had just finished putting the ingredients in the crock pot to take to a Christmas party that evening when the phone rang. It was our agency...

All I remember saying over and over is "are you kidding me?" I hit my knees in the kitchen and put the phone down saying thank you Lord, thank you Lord. I'd pick it up and tell her I needed just a one more minute and put it back on the floor. I finally got myself together enough to understand her say "call your husband and ask him if Thurs, Dec 29 will work for court and call me back." I called Roger, Momma & Emily. I just remember literally jumping up and down for a min and then being on my knees sobbing.

I had been wondering what in the world this moment would be like.

The next few days were a mix of shock, overwhelming gratitude to the Lord, joy, anxiety, couldn't eat, couldn't sleep, could barely think. I knew one thing I couldn't wait to get to the Lord's house on Sunday. We scheduled flights and started packing. We were to fly out Fri Dec 23rd and land Sunday, Christmas Day. Because we were going to be in country our agency moved our Court Date up to Tuesday the 27th.

We planned Christmas with our families for the Thursday night before we left and began packing & tying up loose ends with work.

The emotions were coming and going like a wave and honestly it was almost too much. I asked the Lord just to settle me down. Give me a peace. Calm me. We took the kids to see Star Wars and I was just fine and then right in the middle of it another wave came. It was a roller coaster of emotions that were difficult to manage.

Thursday Dec 22 came and our #3's cough turned in to a really bad can't breath painful circumstance that ended up with us in ER and before I knew it the dr was telling me he would be transported to Macon to the children's hospital. Elim began to cry. I sat down on the bed and looked into his eyes and said "You are more important than an airplane. Remember what we talked about this morning? What does Immanuel mean?" I asked him to tell me out loud and he did "God with us." "That's right baby boy, God is here with us, right here in the hospital room and everything will be just fine."

We were supposed to fly out the next day to Ethiopia.

I remember thinking... Is this really happening? Like, is.this.really.happening.

Roger was at home with the other kids with my daddy & I sent him a text that read "I need you here now."

What is happening? What's wrong with him? How long will we be there?
Can our court date even be moved? Do we cancel our flights?

A call from a brother in Christ reminding me that I have died and my life is hidden in Christ (Col 3:3) was exactly what I needed to hear.

I called our travel agent (HUGE Shout out to Erica Shubin with MKI travel. That girl!) she helped me focus,  asked a few questions and within about 1 hour had alternative flights for a few days later.
I called our agency and she said no worries, we'll put court back to Thursday the 29th.

Roger and E drove away in the ambulance and I stood there with Reid praying.

At this point there were 2 different decisions we could make.

Get really angry with the Lord.
OR
Trust Him and not my own understanding.

We decided to trust the Lord. I went home, took down all of the Christmas decorations, cleaned the house, and piled up on the couch with my boys and we watched Pete's Dragon while we waited for updates from Roger.

Slowly the peace came. He was there. Immanuel, our God with us. There with us on the couch, there with Roger in the ambulance. God is so good to us. In the midst of utter chaos He sustains, strengthens, assures, provides, all the while giving the Body of Christ the opportunity to pull together and pray and encourage. Text message after text message from our church staff and family and from FB friends offering their homes if we needed a place to stay. If there's one thing the Lord does in a difficult circumstance is He brings unity & generosity! One our people came up there and stayed with Roger spending the night & most of the next day! OUR VILLAGE GAME IS STRONG PEOPLE!! 

We discharged from Macon on Friday, the 23rd around 7pm and came home. They ended up treating him for acute asthma and gave us 2 inhalers. He is home and fine taking it easy.

Deep Breath.......

We are leaving tonight, Sun, Dec 25 to drive to Atlanta for our flight at 5:30am in the morning. 
We'll land in DC and catch a new flight that will take us directly to Ethiopia landing on Tues, Dec 27th around 7:30am. We have court Thursday the 29th and at that point we will take custody of him and SHOW YOU HIS BEAUTIFUL FACE!!!!!!!!! 


We may never know this side of heaven why our time was delayed here but we trust in our sovereign God.
I do know that the devil hates anything that is of the Lord and adoption is a picture of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Lord has a heart for the orphan and the goal of our enemy is to steal, kill, and destroy anything that is of the Lord.

I do know that the Lord has the final say and in the end HE WINS. He always has the victory.

This situation with Elim has settled me emotionally. No more waves of overwhelming emotions.
I am peaceful and ready for the task at hand relying solely and placing all confidence in our God.


Roger, Cameron and myself will be traveling and Roger and Cameron will be returning on Tues, Jan 3rd in Atlanta around 2:30pm.

I will stay behind with #4 & obtain the paperwork necessary to BRING HIM HOME!! Prayerfully this can be accomplished in a week or 2.

Ways to pray:

*For many opportunities to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with many.

*Safe traveling

*For immediate connection with our son

*For open doors & favor with government officials and all involved finalizing his documentation so we can exit the country.

*For Cameron. This is his first time on a plane & in another country. This was a specific prayer request that the Lord would financially provide so that we could bring him. We are praying the Lord would use this to reveal Himself to Cameron is ways he has never experienced, that He would draw Cameron closer to Himself and that He would use this later in His life. (It gets me so excited to think about!!!)

*That God would be glorified in every aspect of our time there and traveling.

*For our children back home. For E to remain healthy.


THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING!!


We are going to ETHIOPIA!!!

last picture of us!! *tears*

May the things of Earth grow strangely dim in the light of His glory & grace,

Kim