perfect provision - an adoption update

I am just in awe of God's provision, wisdom, and direct, specific, immediate answers to prayer!

Let me share with you.

Three days ago, I blogged about how God had answered our prayers and we had found a placement agency! The reason I write down the specific details of everything is mostly so that I can look back some day and see how God was right in the middle of everything, making a way and answering prayers. I also write it all down because I believe God will use our adoption journey as a powerful testimony of His love for His children, His will being worked out in the lives of those who love Him, and to hopefully encourage others and lead them to the Lord.

In that blog post, I asked for more prayers, specifically that we would find a home study agency in our state that met all the qualifications we needed for an agency, and quickly. That was on a weekend day, so I knew I had to sit patiently and wait until Monday to make some phone calls to home study agencies. 

Monday came around and as soon as 8:00 AM hit, I called some home study agencies. I left messages at a couple places, got a "disconnected line" message at another place, and talked to someone for a good five minutes at another place, until she told me they don't even work with international adoptions, so that was a waste of a phone call. I had called all the places I had down to call, so I put my phone down and prayed.

Just half an hour later, I got a call back from a home study agency less than two hours away from us. I asked her all the questions I had, and her agency met all the requirements we needed for an agency and she told me she wanted to come start our home study in less than two weeks! She said after her home visits with us, should could have our home study completed and turned around in two weeks. !!! Home studies are usually a 3-6 month process, people! I was shaking so hard with excitement that I could barely hold the phone up to my ear! She gave me all the info I needed, told me what to print and fill out and mail to her, and what to do next. We already have our first two home visits set up and scheduled (for 11 and 12 days from now!) and we have our list of other paperwork we need filled out, copied, signed, checked off, etc.

It's a bit overwhelming! Last night, I stayed up until past midnight (which I never do - I'm usually out like a light by 9:30 pm!) and filled out all the paper work that I possibly could on our list of 30+ items to get completed. When I have something to get done, I want it done yesterday. Some of the forms have to be signed by employers, we have to make copies of all our birth certificates and other documents, we need proof of income and employment, fingerprints and background checks... the list goes on and on!

I didn't think we'd have a problem getting any of the forms filled out by our first home visit on October 24th... until I got to the medical form. Marcus and I both need full physicals as well as lab work, done and signed by a physician (not a nurse). We were told that the number one reason for a home study delay is the parents' medical forms/examinations, because it's usually hard to schedule an appointment quickly. 

Well, up to this point, God has been working things out pretty quickly and answering our prayers specifically and immediately, and I had no doubts that He could do it again. Marcus and I prayed, and then I called our clinic this morning to schedule our physicals. I explained that the physicals were needed for an adoption home study and that we really would like them scheduled in the next two weeks, and I was told that the soonest openings for physicals (because we would both be new patients with new doctors - neither of us have primary care physicians currently) were in February. Meaning four months away. Meaning our home study would be delayed four months. This was the one thing we realized would hold us back from the two-week turn around that our home study case worker had in mind. I was disappointed, but the receptionist at the clinic gave me the number to a clinic in a different city that I could try to get in to. 

So, I called. They weren't open yet. So I prayed some more. I told God that He had come through for us so far, and that I really needed Him to come through for us again. I prayed for a miracle and I specifically prayed that Marcus and I could both get physicals before our October 24th home visit, and that Marcus wouldn't have to take off work for his appointment.

Then, I called back. No answer. I left a voice mail and went to a play group. 

Less than two hours later, I got a call back. The woman at the clinic understood my situation and told me, "I have two openings for physicals and I hope you can fill the them because otherwise we don't have any more openings for a while." I held my breath and asked her what the dates were.

"Thursday October 22, and Friday October 23."

HOLD THE PHONE. Those two dates are both before our home visit and Marcus just requested those two days off of work to prepare for our home visit so he won't have to miss work to go. 

SHUT THE FRONT DOOR!

Thank you Jesus!

So now, our physicals are scheduled just in time for our home visit!

We still have lots left to do before our home visit. If we can get all of our paper work done and hand it to our case worker in person on October 24, that makes her job go a lot faster and we can get our home study approved in hopefully less than two weeks after that!

Which means our adoption can move forward that much faster.

We know that there is a reason that God is opening doors and moving this along quickly: we found our placement agency, home study agency, and got our physicals scheduled all in less than a week. Three huge prayers answered. I am completely confident that there is a purpose to our home study being scheduled and working out so soon. This is not typical for an international adoption case, but with God, anything is possible. He has His hand in all of this, and I can't help but think that our children are in Africa, waiting for us, and God gave us the nudge, and once we finally stepped out, He had us dive right in head first and get the ball rolling! I have a feeling that the Lord wants us to welcome those children into our home soon, and He's making a way for it. 

God is good. God is almighty. God is faithful.

Thank you for your continued prayers! We have a lot left to do before our home visit and lots of paperwork and forms to complete. It's slightly stressful and very overwhelming, but we know God is holding us. Prayer is powerful - keep interceding for us if you would! We appreciate all the love and support.