2 Days 'Til Court!!!

Hard to believe, but true... in two days (Tuesday night here is Wednesday morning in Ethiopia) our case will go before a judge in Ethiopia and our fate and that of our children will be in his hands. Actually, this is only true from a visual perspective, because behind the scenes, an all-powerful and all-knowing God who loves us and cares about the details of our lives has ultimate say! Now that, I can live with! After all, who else loves our kids in Ethiopia more than He does?!

I'd love to say that it will be a slam dunk and I am definitely praying for a first-round knock-out punch making further rounds unnecessary... but there are some large hurdles before us. Last week, 5 cases were presented to court from our same orphanage and all 5 were delayed as the judge is asking for additional paperwork from that orphanage. It all sounds so simple, but getting one little paper can take weeks or months sometimes in Ethiopia. From a human perspective, I would say that the odds are not in our favor to pass court this Tuesday/Wednesday. I haven't been able to find out from my agency if they have the coveted paper, and Monday is a holiday, so I might not know at all before court... this is where faith comes into play :).

This morning our pastor spoke about the 12 spies in Numbers 13 & 14, scouting out the promised land and how 10 came back with "No way, the giants are waaaaay too big" and the 2 came back with "Yes, the giants are humongous, but of course we can, with God on our side." It was such a good reminder to have eyes of faith and to remember what God has promised. I fully believe that He wants us to pray for miracles. This is our way to participate in His glory that will be revealed through those miracles.

There are so very many challenges to be faced in the world of adoption and so many reasons why it doesn't usually make sense from a practical viewpoint. I'm continually reminded of this as we move through this process. As the 10 spies did, it's so easy to see all the reasons why you shouldn't move in to a place where you are dependent for God to do things that only He can do. In this process, as in so many things in life God asks us to do, we are constantly having to rely on God for things that only He can do as almost everything is outside of our influence. I am also reminded to continue to seek the mindset of the two spies as we are confronted with various obstacles.

That being said, I am overjoyed to see how God has been working and can't wait to experience more of this as we move closer to bringing the kids home. Watching God work reminds me of what it feels like to watch a dancer who was just meant to dance, performing on the stage pouring her heart into each move, or a singer who can bring you to tears through the beauty of his voice, emotion and interpretation of a song. The only thing better than watching God at work is getting to participate with Him as He works! To use an imperfect analogy, maybe it's a bit like being the caddy for Tiger Woods, who's finesse with a driver and on the green leaves both the wannabe and avid golfer in sheer awe.

If we are one of the 10 spies, we will miss entirely the beauty and perfection of God's finesse and victory in our lives. The timing of this message for me was very interesting and not coincidental IMO. God rejoices when we see our world and the problems through His perspective, remembering who He is... the God of the universe who created the world in 6 days - an all-powerful, omniscient God, yet who still knows how to meet us where we're at. These hurdles and set-backs we face are so small in light of who He is :o! May I not be guilty of placing God on the same level as me and the humanity I relate to...

All that to say - I'm facing this giant of a court date with confidence and fervent, heartfelt prayers that God will defeat these giants. If He chooses not to, that is His right... He is God after all... but it won't be because I didn't pray and believe with all that I am with eyes of faith! May I be one of the 2!

TrueMom
P.S. BTW - In case you didn't know or just forgot... all 10 spies who "played it safe" and told the Israelites not to go where God called them cause the giants were too big, died of a plague... only Caleb & Joshua - the 2 spies with eyes of faith - were allowed to enter the Promised Land...