Adopt or Not

Ok, some of you may know this but I feel God has been pulling at my heart about adopting again. Now with that being said notice the words "I" and "feel." Because of these two words I need a lot of quiet time with God and ask for discernment. I need to know without a doubt it is God calling and not the mom in me. Sometimes it is hard to discern the two. Also notice the word me and not us. Mike is praying. He doesn't feel a no or a yes.
In reality, I can say "are you kidding me?" We are spread thin not only with our schedules, well Mike is, I am pretty flexible, but the money is a huge issue. For us to adopt again we would need a miracle. I am talking a parting the Red Sea miracle!
So for my blogger friends and family I came up with a prayer request/praise list. I am going to make a list of the obstacles that I believe stand in our way. I am asking not only for you to pray but to share my blog with your family, friends & co-workers and ask them to pray along with us. When you are seeking Gods will prayer is the first and most important thing you do. I love the fact that we can join together and pray even through blogs!
So list of obstacles:
1. Wisdom (not really an obstacle)
2. Peace in our hearts.
3. Understanding from friends and family. Though Gods word rules over their opinion it is just nice to have them in your corner.
4. Finances. $35,000 to be exact. This would include total estimate of adoption cost and bills that would need to be paid off so I could stay home and not work, except on Hug Away!
5 Staying healthy.
6. My age though only a number to me is a big deal to some countries so God would need to open doors in that area also.
*And the most important of all that God would be glorified no matter what!

It goes without saying that we serve a big God and if it is His desire for us to adopt again, He will make it happen. And if another adoption is not His plan for us that is ok too. We choose to be obedient in His call for our lives.
I chose the picture of Cody and Kennedy as a reminder how God can soften a heart.
Cody was totally against the adoption of Kennedy. In his words he thought we were "crazy" for adopting again. In his defense he was looking our for us. He really thought we were taking to much on. He didn't even come to the airport when I came home with Kennedy. A couple of days later he came to meet her and that was all she wrote. He was in love. That is how our God works.
Last night I was coming back from a Leadership class I am taking at church. As I drove home I thought "If we had not been faithful and adopted as God called us to do, I would be going home to a very quiet house." Mike and I were not meant to have a house with no kids. And even though I can't go to a spa, get my hair colored professionally, have new furniture, a new car and we know without a doubt God has blessed us beyond anything we could have planned for ourselves. He has and continues to amaze us. Our family is extremely close. Our kids have never been ashamed at any age to tell us that they love us or hug us in front of their friends. When they call never is a conversation ended without saying " I love you." The love between the six of our children is amazing to watch. It is a bond that can not be broken. Now I have to say my girls feel like they have four dads at times and Kennedy feels like she has three mommas, but in the big scheme of things that's not so bad.
What I know for sure is this, Gods plan for our lives is so much better than anything we could have ever planned for ourselves. I had planned on being a lawyer/photographer. I may have not made the lawyer status but the pictures I take of this crew is one of my greatest joys.
Because of adoption I found one of my purposes was to mentor, educate and financially help others about adoption. It also has lead me to help orphans who will not be adopted. God put these desires in my heart and I give Him all the glory.
Chuckle moment. When I tallied up the amount of money we would need to "clear" the way for another adoption, the human in me went "No Way!" But then I thought of all the bail outs going on in this country and it really didn't seem so overwhelming!
God is very good about putting things in perspective.

I hope you will join us in prayer. I know without a doubt God will answer our prayers. It will be amazing to see what His plan will reveal.
By the way I have my email posted on here somewhere so you can email me anytime. Someone asked me about that the other day because she is not comfortable postin a public comment and that is ok. If you can't find it here it is:
elainesgotseoul2@cox.net