5 for Hope: "For this child, I have prayed..."

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

"For this child, I have prayed..."

~ 1 Samuel 1:27 ~

(Pictures from our first visit trip to Guatemala

when Ana was only 2 weeks old.)

~ Today marks the anniversary of our second trip

to bring her home. ~

Exactly one year ago today, we packed up the van, and headed to Detroit Metro to embark upon the greatest journey our family has ever experienced together. From Detroit, we boarded a plane to Houston, and in less than 10 hours landed in Guatemala City.

Bright and early the next morning, we were picked up at The Marriott Hotel and headed only a few miles down the street to Hannah's Hope Orphanage.

This was our first picture ever, as a family of five.

Joel and Grace were SO thrilled to finally meet their new sister. Joel was teary-eyed more than once that day.

I'll never forget handing my baby over to her big brother for a fast-paced van ride through the streets of Guatemala City - neither one of them in car seats or seat belts! (Yikes!)

Joel's expressions were priceless, though. He SO loves his little sister.

This was our first morning together on the veranda at the hotel.

The sisters sharing their first "snuggle-time".

A fun moment in the courtyard at the hotel.

Joel and Grace enjoyed playing with the kids at the orphange. We had brought all kinds of toys and sports equipment to share with them. They loved it!

We also spent quite a bit of time with Ana's birthmom, Vicky, and her other two children (Carlos and Sandra).

The kids had a great time playing together. With children - the language barrier is never an issue.

We invited Ana's birthmom and her children to spend a day with us at the hotel pool.

Then it was time for a trip to McDonald's!

Saying good-bye to them that day was one of the hardest things Brian and I have ever had to do.

Later in the week we took a day-trip to Antigua.

Grace was so thrilled to get her hair braided in the street across from Central Park.

We also went to the Guatemala City Zoo. It was really amazing! The kids were intrigued, not only by the animals, but by the banana trees!

What a great day it was when we finally had Ana's passport and Visa in our hands! YAY!!!

Ana's first photo as a U.S. citizen!

It is hard to believe that an entire year has passed since the completion of our journey. As we look back over the past year, it is incredible for us to see how amazing God's plan was all along. We prayed for over four years about our adoption decision, and all along, God knew that this child was to be ours. She is so very much a part of our family - we really can't imagine life without her. She is a constant reminder to us of God's perfect plan for our lives and living proof that His timing is perfect - if we only trust in His plan. How very, very thankful we are - that He chose us, to be Ana's parents. It has already been one of life's greatest blessings.

2 comments:

StacyApril 9, 2009 at 9:59 PM
Well said my friend! They were babies...where did they go? I remember living vicariously through you while we waited to go get Anaya. It seems like just yesterday we were having those long conversations trying to figure out when they would finally come home~and yet on the other hand, like it never happened, as if they have always been here with us! What a blessing! Happy 1 year!
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SusieApril 13, 2009 at 6:56 PM
I have been thinking about this day for 2 weeks, and then, in the midst of all the kids home for Spring Break I forgot to call you. I will never forget Jenifer...never! The miracles of God, the journey He takes us on and the Glory we get to stand in when we walk in Him. Lots of love friend, Susie
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Favorite Family Verses

The grace of God will not take you where the will of God can not sustain you.

I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul..."
~Psalm 131: 1-2~

"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."
~ Phillippians 4:13 ~
(Brian chose this verse to be engraved in Jen's wedding ring.)

"No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and His love is perfected in us."
~ 1 John 4:12 ~
(Jen chose this verse to be engraved in Brian's wedding ring.)

Our Thanks to You...

For those of you who have gone through the adoption process, you understand what a blessing it is to have a "cloud of witnesses" that surround you, uphold you in prayer, and agree to give up their time to assist in the incredible amount of paperwork that accompanies this decision. We have been incredibly blessed by the love shown to us by our friends. Many of you have spent hours filling out letters of recommedation, have made countless trips to the bank to have documents notarized only to find out that they need to be renotarized (and renotarized, and renotarized). Many of you have prayed for us, not only over the past few months, but the past few years, as well. Words can not adequately express our gratitude to you for the wonderful gift of your friendship. Thank you, from our entire family, for helping us to bring Ana Hope home to our family. And now that we venture forward, as a family of five, we continue to be blessed by your friendship, your prayers, and your constant support in caring for our family.

About All God's Children International

The following is "Heather's Story" as described in her mother's book The Strength of Mercy" (Jan Beazely). "Many years ago, when I was just eighteen, God called me to walk into the fields of the fatherless in Romania. There I was honored to find my sister Hannah. I had no way of knowing that Hannah’s adoption was just the beginning of what God had planned for my life. My call became my family’s mission as well. We were probably very much like your family, very ordinary, and one day God just asked us to answer His extraordinary call. Many people have asked me, “How did All God's Children International begin?” My answer is simply this... The first time I walked into a Romanian orphanage in 1990, I was overwhelmed by what I saw and I wanted to do something. Hopeless little orphan faces stared up at me and hardly responded when I reached out to touch them. I remember praying with tears running down my face, “Lord, there are so many…and their needs are so great… How can I even begin to help them all? God spoke back to me clearly. “Heather, you see the multitudes, but I know each one by name, all I’m asking you to do is to try, just help them one at a time.” So that is what I did. A month after completing Hannah’s adoption for my parents, AGCI officially became a Christian adoption and relief agency. I returned to Romania to help give the children I left behind the second chance they deserved. One child became two. Two turned into three and now over the last 16 years we have been privileged to give thousands of second chances to orphaned children not just in Romania, but Bulgaria, Russia, Guatemala, Nepal, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, Macedonia, India, China and now Ethiopia. Through our foreign adoption services, our orphan relief and child sponsorship programs, as well as our Hannah’s Hope children’s homes, AGCI continues to make a difference in little lives. We have indeed grown over the years, but my passion to rescue and care for children has never changed. I continue to help them one at a time. I understand now that the compassion I felt was there for a reason. God’s voice is never silent concerning the orphan. If you listen you can hear Him whispering in the darkness at night. He continues to shout from the rooftops at daybreak. He fervently lays before the world His concern for the orphan. So never overlook small beginnings, never dismiss the vision God plants in your heart concerning a needy child. I believe that you are not reading my words by accident, but rather by divine appointment. Thank you so much for listening to my heart. I am praying that I have encouraged you to ask, “What can I do?” For somewhere in the world today an orphan needs your help… they wait in the fields of the fatherless hoping for a second chance. There is nothing in life more overwhelming then to walk through orphanage doors around the world and hear the heartbreaking echo of the orphan's cry. Nothing more unforgettable than to watch countless children run toward outstretched arms longing for just one embrace. Nothing more painful then to gaze into silent orphan eyes pleading for someone to come and care. And there is nothing more humbling than to witness such desperate need and then not be able to give every orphan child the second chance they deserve. Together we can soothe their cries, provide the embrace they long for, and send someone to care."