The Fruits of Our Labor

I was sitting out on the deck last night catching up on reading my devotionals. I believe that some days when I do not get a chance to read my devotionals, it is because they will be best left unread until the time is right for the words that are written to have the most impact. That was most certainly the case last night. It was a peaceful night, the stars twinkling above, peeking at me through the canopy of trees that is above our back deck. I had several candles lit, and the sounds of nature filled the quiet night with peaceful, unobtrusive sound. The temperature could not have been more perfect, and I settled in the chair with the soft glow from the kitchen illuminating the page of my book. As I read the entry for April 26Th, from "Streams in the Desert", I was pulled into understanding of a truth that was elusive.

The glory of tomorrow is rooted in the drudgery of today.

As I looked around at the oasis I had created on my deck (with God's help of course), I was taken back to last week when I worked several hours on my hands and knees scrubbing the deck boards until all of the mold and grime from the past was removed, and only the bare boards remained. I worked tirelessly until all was done. Then I waited for a few days and went back to work painstakingly removing every single piece of debris that was lodged between all 58 cracks between the deck planks. I used a one and a half inch flat putty knife and a rubber mallet to inch my way along the lines until all was clear, and every last piece of broken acorn shell, and every last twig, and every last wayward dried leaf stem was removed and no longer an obstacle to my next step which was staining. I found my brush, and on my hands and knees, started the process of applying the stain that would transform the weathered old boards into a beautiful floor. As I brushed each stroke, and saw the promise of what would be I could not help but allow excitement to quicken the beat of my heart. As I moved along, my daughter Kelly came out to work beside me, and her determination to meet my strokes was heartwarming. She was there beside me to cheer me on, and to do her part and share the burden of the work. Then Wubby returned from the ball fields where he had been umpiring for the past five hours, to change his clothes and pitch in to complete the project. Wow. When we were finished, I could hardly wait for the next day, the 24 hour drying time, to enjoy the fruits of our labor. Kelly and I took what energy we had left and put it into planting the flowers we had purchased earlier that day, so that as soon as the deck was dry, we would be able to assemble our summer oasis. Before starting all of the work, I could only see the drudgery, and hard work that stretched out ahead of me. I knew of the faint glimmer of hope that it would be a wonderful work when finished, but getting to that "wonderful" was going to involve lots of sweat and sore muscles. Drudgery, for sure. This drudgery gave way to the glory of the finished project. No longer just a deck off of the kitchen, but a place of shade and refreshment. A place to lounge, or chat, or read and sip iced tea or coffee. A place where I can gaze around at the colors of summer, and smell the fragrance of flowers in the air. A place to lean back, and to gaze upward at God, and thank Him for the drudgery, and tell Him that I would do it all again, although He already knows that I would.
I cannot help but realize the similarities between this work and the work we have put into bringing our daughter home. At times there has been such drudgery. But I will keep reminding myself, "The glory of tomorrow is rooted in the drudgery of today."

Easter

We grabbed the camera and took a couple of shots before the kiddos changed their clothes. There is even one of me and the Wubby :-) This was the first Easter that our oldest son was not with us. It was very strange and sad and ,well, a milestone of sorts. He is growing up as are all of my children, and I will cherish all the times we do have together. It is a time in my life that I knew would one day come, and as I turn the page in this chapter of my life book, I know I will always go back and re-read my thoughts to remember what details I can of the childhood that I was able to give to my children. My youngest son graduates from high school next month, and I realize that for all of the struggles we all go through as parents, one common goal is to see them through graduating from high school. I feel so blessed to have gotten them this far, and know that it is only by the grace and mercy of God that we are here today. Thank you Jesus for being my constant companion as I mothered these beautiful lives you have given into my care. They are your children, and I ask that you bless them and keep them safe from all harm. Guide them in your ways, and use me in whatever way you need to to accomplish your work in them.
Amen.

Baby Shower

Okay, Okay, I know you all have been faithfully visiting only to find that I was not home. I apologize. I am here now, and will give you some updates on what I have been doing. First of all, a few weeks ago my sweet friend Krissy hosted a baby shower in honor of me and our sweet daughter we continue to wait for, and the proceeds went to Hannah's Hope Guatemala, the orphan care home where our daughter resides. Krissy has such a heart for adoption, and will indeed one day be bringing her very own child home. Did I mention she has four beautiful children already, and her heart is making room for more!! Gotta love her, she is amazing!!
The picture is of the cake that was home made by my friend Jeni, and she even hand made the edible chocolate sea shells on top!! Delicious!! Our theme was "The Starfish Story" , and we had a wonderful turnout!! We collected about $700 in cash, and 50 pounds of relief supplies to be delivered to Hannah's Hope!! Thank you everyone who made this day so very special for me and for the children who make their home at HH, and who depend on the body of Christ, you and me, to provide for their every need.
I love you all so very much.
Peace and Blessings,
Robin

Longing.....

Good Morning out there!!
I have been trying to update this blog of mine for a few days, and finally have a minute to do so. I will probably need to make two entries, but we'll see ;-)
First of all, I want to put your minds at ease. We have heard absolutely nothing in the past 30 days about our case. Nada. Zip. Our wait continues...
Now on to my title of this post...LONGING. I once read a statement that said, "Stop longing, and start living." Those words meant a lot to me at the time. I took them to heart, and picked myself up off of the floor, and swept the "poor me" attitude out of my head. I started living day by day, in the here and now, keeping my longing at bay. That worked very well for me. It helped me tremendously when I needed to be present in the present.
Then there is the elapsed time...we come to today. Here I am still living in the present( for the most part), very hopeful of the future, and WHAM!!! I was reading a reflection from St. Jude. (I just love St. Jude. He is such a powerful patron saint, and friend of Jesus. I love how he talks with Jesus, and reminds Him of all I keep praying about. You see, I pray, then I put St. Jude on the job of pestering Jesus about answering my prayers. Jesus loves His friend, and will honor that friendship. It is a win/win situation :-) That is my secret!! Oh, of course I always involve The Blessed Mother Mary, too. After all, God the Father told us to "Honor thy Mother and they Father" , so if Mother Mary is asking Jesus to do something, He, as her son, very well cannot refuse to honor her!! I just keep reminding Jesus in my prayers that His Mother needs to talk with Him about me :-)
Anyway...on to what I read today about longing.

Day 29 -- March 25th

We take a moment this twenty-ninth day of Lent to reflect with contrition and resolve:

Accept your longings. Know that the desires of the heart are always with us, and we must learn to live with them in peace. With the changing of the seasons comes renewed hope.

Please send your special intentions for Lent to the National Shrine of St. Jude today.

OK, so now I have to live with my longings, not stop them??? As I reflected on this, I realized that that is just what I am doing. My longing to bring my daughter home is always with me, however, I have learned to live in peace with this longing. Until she is under my roof, I will have this longing. It is not going anywhere. It will one day be replaced with other longings. Not longings for her presence, because she will be here with me, but new longings for the fulfillment of the wonderful life that God has planned for her.

Marching On

Encouragement.
I love to get and give it, so I will share some with you today.

A verse from Hebrews 3:14. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly til the end the confidence we had at first.

I pondered this over and over. I thought about the confidence I had in the beginning of our adoption process. I had LOADS of it. I started with such a sureness of heart and mind. I JUST KNEW the end result. A negative thought never crossed my mind. Why? Hmmm. I wonder why I felt that way? I answered myself. It was because of my communion with my Lord. He was guiding me. He was showing me the path He wanted me to go. He was dispelling all doubt and fear. WOW!!

What changed? Not my mind. Circumstances? They are always changing, aren't they? True there were ups and downs. There have been delays, and more delays, and obstacles, and shut-downs,and missed milestones and fingerprint renewals, and death itself even touched our lives. What about HIS mind? None of these things have changed His mind either. Did I hear His voice in the beginning? YES I DID! Do I still hear His voice? YES I DO! What do I think He is saying to me right now? He is saying, "The greatest challenge in receiving great things from God is holding on for the last half hour."
I really feel like this is the "last half hour".

I know I have walked the breadth of many valleys during this journey to my daughter. There have been many mountain top experiences too! There have been pictures and videos of the sweetest little girl in Guatemala. There were two times that I treasure the most, the times that I was actually with this precious daughter of mine, and was able to hold her close, and permeate as much love to her as I possible could. That miraculous day last summer when our case worker called to tell us our adoption could continue!! If that wasn't the Lord opening a door someone else tried to close, I don't know what is!! The Lord has been faithful to me. He has never once told me to quit. He has always kept us on track. He has never failed us, not once. My confidence that overflowed in the beginning is back in abundance!! The Lord is faithful, and will complete this wonderful work He has begun.

Week in Review

My Dear Friends,
Thank you for visiting my little corner of the world :-) I must say, that the Lord has been sending me many blessings lately!! Thank you Jesus!!
I have a lot to share with you, so sit back with your favorite beverage and catch up with me as I review the encouragement and power God has shown this past week.

Tuesday, Feb 17th:
From my devotional Streams in the Desert came the words, "Lift up your head and begin praising Him right now for the deliverance that is on its way to you!"
Now, I obeyed this command, and deliverance came the next day!
The reading for the day from Genesis 7:11 ...in the second month, on the 17th day of the month: it was on that day that All the fountains of the great abyss burst forth, and the floodgates of the sky were opened.
Hmmmm, the second month (Feb for us) the 17th day...that is TODAY!! God's word/promise to Noah was fulfilled on this day. I will wait in joyful expectation to see what my Lord is going to do today in my life!

Wednesday, Feb. 18th:
Streams again: Whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.(Mark 11:24) Jesus says, "Get up and lets go on to the next thing."
Now, today Wubby and I had a conference call with our lawyer in Guatemala and with our case worker. Basically, the judge in Minor's Court who is handling our case gave permission to our lawyer to submit our request for permission to sign the final adoption decree. This has to be signed by the Mandatory because of our birthmother's untimely death. Judge #2 will review our case a final time, and come back with a decision on whether or not our home is the place Y will spend the rest of her life.
We were told that on average, it takes 1-3 months for a decision to be rendered. We, of course, are praying for a speedy decision if God will permit it:-)
I guess we are "getting up and going on to the next thing."

Thursday Feb 19th:
This is the 6th day of prayer for the St. Jude Novena I am praying. St. Jude has always interceded on my behalf to our Lord Jesus. St. Jude is a very powerful intercessor!! He always brings speedy help. Thank you St. Jude!! Every time I have prayed this novena, we get movement in our case!!

Friday Feb 20th:
A reading for today Psalm 33:11
...the plan of the Lord stands forever.

Saturday Feb. 21st:
From Streams: God's promise is equal to His presence. His purpose in waiting is to receive more glory through it.
My thoughts on this:
The beginning of this adoption was about a desire placed in my heart. That desire, I truly believe, was placed there by God. Then somehow, I took over. It became "my" adoption. I was taking full credit for this. As the months and years have passed, as I have waited for "the vision to have its time", God has humbled me and disciplined me. He has shown me that the only part of this I have had any control over was my "yes" to His calling. After that, no credit is mine. No paper filled out, no fingerprint taken, no overnighted mailings, not the selection of us by our birthmother, not PGN approval, nor even the letter written to the judge. All of these things are the property of my Lord. HE has done a great work. HE has a divine plan that is, well, divine. My part is to be obedient, to say "yes". No credit for me. Don't need it, don't want it, didn't earn it. The credit all goes to Him. This isn't about me. It is all about Him!
Now, the judge that has our file is supposed to be very hard. I smile at that today. Why, you may ask? Because it isn't about her either. The harder she is perceived to be, the more glory my Lord will get when she says "yes"!!

Sunday Feb 22nd:
Streams: ...Everything is possible for him who believes.

Psalm 37:5 "
Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him and He will do this."

My personal prayer today:
Jesus, thank you for my waiting.Thank you for the closeness we share.Thank you for showing me more and more of your heart. Thank you for helping me see you in the details. Thank you for reminding me to share these things with others, so that they may see too, and so that they will seek you in the details of their lives.
Jesus help me as I raise Y. Help me to be the best mother to her that I can be. Be my guide and my strength as she grows up and develops her relationship of love and trust in you. Help me to show her how much she can depend upon you to answer all of the questions she may have. Help me to bring her to you, where she will find love, peace, comfort, wisdom, healing, and so many other graces that you have waiting for her. We are all so blessed to have such a loving, caring, personal God. You care about every detail, and I am humbled by the fact that you care so much for me.I love you Jesus. Amen.

Monday Feb. 23rd:
Today the paperwork will be submitted to Judge #2 in Minor's Court. My vision for our lawyer is of her surrounded by a legion of angels. They are protecting her, and the very important paperwork she carries. Her path will be straight and not a single pebble will cause her to stumble. Not a single obstacle will cause her to delay. The judge in Minor's Court is waiting...the Judge of Heaven and Earth is in control. "Lord, your will be done."

Streams: And there came a lion.
Every difficulty and temptation that comes our way, if we receive it correctly, is God's opportunity.
This passage reminded me of Daniel and the lion's den. Very significant to me today because of Y's middle name....cryptic I know :-) God protected Daniel, and shut the mouths of the lions. He will do the same for the lion's who prowl around ready to devour Y!!!

Tuesday Feb. 24th:
Psalm 37:4 Find your delight in the Lord who will give you your heart's desires.
A reflection on this verse from the Living Faith magazine: God never forgets the desires of our heart; after all, He put them there in the first place.
Mark 9:37
"Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the One who sent me."

Just wanted to share a tidbit of encouragement I got today. Wubby, Summer Rain, and I were discussing Y's name last night and the ability to pronounce it correctly and pronounce it the same every time we say it. We really don't do this very well. So we thought about others, and her life here with a name that no one will have an easy time with. We don't want her to experience that stress. So, we were talking about her middle name. Pretty easy to pronounce and pretty much everyone will get it right. No stress! We can still keep the name her birthmother gave her, but use her middle name. My oldest son goes by his middle name, so she won't be the only one in the family that does this. Now for the encouragement part... I was praying on and off today about "Judge #2" and our case. For some reason I felt the need to look up this new name we might be calling Y by. I searched name meanings and there in black and white were the words: ******* means God is my judge. Sorry Judge #2, but there is another Judge, THE Judge, that will be handling our case!

Wednesday Feb. 25th:
2Corinthians 5:20-6:2:
...Working together, then, we appeal to you not to receive the Grace of God in vain. For He says,"In an acceptable time I heard you, and on the day of salvation I helped you." Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

I am pondering these words, and wondering what my Lord is doing now!!

I received an e-mail from my case worker. Our paperwork got submitted on Monday as it was supposed to!! YEAH!!

Well,
I hope you were able to "stay awake" with me for this hour :-)
Peace and Blessing be with you all

Growing up too fast!

This picture of Summer Rain was taken the night of the Indian Princess father/daughter dance last Friday night(before she left). She was so lovely in her pink dress! I cannot believe how big she is getting to be. It seems like only yesterday my baby was a baby!! She had fun wearing "real" lipstick and dancing the night away with her Dadda.
Ahh, these moments are priceless:-)