Thankful in the Wait

Oh so much has happened and on the other hand so much has NOT happened.  Apparently China is now on national holiday, AGAIN, and so we might find out something on Thursday.  It is almost laughable.  I mean tomorrow marks 13 WEEKS waiting for TRAVEL APPROVAL!  Really?!  Questions rage in my mind at times.  Why the delay?  Does China not want us to adopt her?  Is there a person on a personal vendetta against us?  Is our agency not advocating for us enough? (ad nauseum)

Peace in a house of five children is a rare commodity, I honestly cannot believe we are adding ANOTHER one.  AND SHE'S 4 1/2 YEARS OLD!  We've missed the baby years.  Though we expect her to be developmentally delayed we will never have those first four years back (and we started this process when she was three).  We have never been in that situation before, except for a foster respite child and that was only for three days, not a lifetime.  How I still pray for --- and that God can reach down and heal the hurt in her little heart.  And now here we are eight years almost after our first respite care and we are looking at being the forever family for a special little girl and month after month is ticking by where she is not with our family because of Chinese bureaucracy and the processes still being developed for the "copy dossier" process.

I imagine you are thinking how can this woman title the post "thankful in the wait" when she just wrote that tirade?!  Well on Sunday I heard this wonderful communion devotional talking about "being thankful in the wait".  The speaker compared Noah and Jonah.

Noah obeyed God in building the ark, God had told him that he would send a flood.  The ark was not something Noah could build in secret, it was longer than a football field, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high.  Not something you could hide in a garage.  So of course he was ridiculed, it hadn't even rained yet in the world.  Well about 100 YEARS later it finally flooded.  100 years!  That's a LONG wait in my opinion.  Yet, "Noah did everything just as God commanded him." Gen. 6:22  He obeyed in the wait.

Then there is the story of Jonah.  Jonah finally got to Nineveh and delivered God's message and then he went to sit and wait for Nineveh to be destroyed.  Jonah wanted God to immediately destroy Nineveh because of their wickedness, but because of the Ninevites repentance, Jonah was sorely disappointed in his wait.  He then told God, "I would rather die".  (Jonah 4) Jonah was angry that he had to wait for Nineveh's destruction (it was destroyed much later).  It was a sinful place and he didn't want to see God be gracious and compassionate toward them.  (How often is this us?  We are wronged and we want the person who wronged us to pay.)  Not anything is recorded of Jonah in the Bible after his anger that God had compassion and didn't destroy Nineveh.  Jonah became angry and let that anger destroy his ministry in the wait.

So am I going to be thankful that we have the opportunity to adopt from China again?  I am going to be productive in our wait for TA and do the things God has already given me?  Or am I going to become embittered and angry because things are not happening on my time schedule?  I chose to be thankful.  Thankful for our wonderful children who are in our care.  Thankful that Lillyanna will join our family in HIS time.  Thankful for our home.  Thankful for plenty of food.  Thankful for Mr. Incredible's job (though he does travel a lot).  Thankful that I am the daughter of a caring Father who loves me, knows what is best for me and has my best interests at His heart.  Thankful?  Thankful.

But if you would like to pray for God to hurry this along, I would be thankful for that as well. :)