The Garrisons


Follow our journey on adoption #3 for child #8!

Monday, March 2, 2009

Purposeful Waiting

http://www.stmarys.brighton-hove.sch.uk/moodle/file.php/1/images/number_5.jpg

Well, I'm a day early, but as of tomorrow (March 3) we will have been waiting for 5 months for our referral! I cannot believe it. We should be a little more than half way on that wait! I hope the second half of the wait will go as quickly as the first.

While we wait, I have had lots of time to soul search and think about what is next for me. I will be resigning my position at the school I teach at to focus on our family. I have mixed feelings about this....I am more than thrilled to be home again (I was home for almost 9 years when my kids were little) and am excited to be home with our new little one as well. I also have loved my time at Judah and have made lots of good friends there. I will miss my days there.

Ever since we started this adoption journey, I have felt God tugging on my heart to do more for the cause of the orphan. This has sometimes been dismissed by others as "just needing to get my baby", but that's not it. I feel a strong desire to be purposeful and to work towards helping these children - even if it's only a few. I, of course, cannot even put a dent in the number of orphans in the world, but I long for God to use me to make a difference to the few I can help.

After much prayer and thought, I am stepping out to begin an orphan ministry at our church. I do not yet know exactly what it will look like or who will come along side me, but I have a passion and excitement about the possibilities. We are in the baby beginning planning/brainstorming phase and I will be attending the Orphan Summit in April to learn more about how to get started.

I know that many of you reading are also adopting or care about orphan causes and are possibly involved in similar ministries yourself. If you are, I'd love to hear your ideas and stories. If you are local and want to get involved, let me know that, too!

My hope and prayer is that this time waiting will not be wasted. My hope and prayer is that somehow God will use our experiences and our adoption to intrigue others and that they might consider the possibilities for their own family. My hope and prayer is that we will make a difference.

1 comment:

kim said...

Congrats on 5 months Garrisons!!! The rest of it is going to go by so fast.

Blessings,
Kim