First off, I would like to announce that the judge said yes to Yulia Kathryn Thorpe being our daughter! It was a sweet time! We were prepared for everything, thank goodness for Natasha once again holding our hands!!
The court room was hot, windows open, sounds of construction going on outside! It was kind of funny sometimes b/c you couldn't hear much b/c of those sounds! After some questions from the judge and couple of others, after them asking Yulia some questions, they went out to make their decision! When they arrived back in the courtroom, the judge read the decree, and we were all so excited!
This is the moment we had waited for! Six months ago we started this journey, and it is complete! We do still have a waiting period of 10 days, then we can finish up all the paperwork, and reunite our family as a whole! We should all be together by mid-August!
Following court, we went and had a nice lunch, well late lunch and talked and laughed! It was a beautiful time together, then we all came back and rested! I don't think any of us got much sleep the night before, b/c we were all so excited!!
Now, onto some transparency and things the Lord is doing!!
As I've said before we realized when we answered God's call, it would be "spiritual warfare", we realized we were fighting for a life that the enemy thought he could have. We have been preparing, praying, taking each step one day at a time! I look back of some of the time preparing for this trip at how hard things were then, the attacks of the enemy. When I look back at them, I kind of laugh to myself, b/c they were nothing compared to the battle that's raging now!
As we are walking this out, I'm realizing just how much I need to take Amy out of the equation, as my friend Bill would say! I have been hurt, rejected, offended, and at other times loved. I have struggled with wanting to react in my flesh, and at times have. But my prayer is that I will react with love, that I will not act according to my feelings. I want God to get the glory from this entire adoption process, including in my responses to things!
I realize how deep the hurt goes for our sweet girl. Well, maybe I don't even realize that just yet. But I know there is hurt and rejection that she has felt. I know that in her 14 years of life, that she hasn't had anyone really care for her or be there for her. This is all foreign to her, almost as foreign as we are to her. We want nothing but to lavish love on her, but at times, I'm not so sure she knows how to receive it. She understands saying it and hearing it, she understands the hugs, but that's about the depth of what she understands. She doesn't know how to be loved, to be shown love through actions. She doesn't know how to respond to this.
I love to love, lol! I love to show others how much I love them. This is hard for me, to express my love in actions to her. But I know this obstacle will be overcome and it will all be okay, and it will all be worth it!
In this journey, we knew that we would be "fired upon" so to say from the enemy. He wasn't just going to roll over and take it, he was going to fight full force! I'm thankful that God has given us a supportive prayer team back home! The Bible clearly says that "no weapon formed against me shall prosper". He didn't say there would be no weapons!!
We've had an area in our life attacked that we thought was "safe", completely unprepared for it and not quite sure how to make it all out! The Holy Spirit quickly brought it to life, and we were able to stop that weapon before permanent damage was done! The enemy wasn't very happy about this, so the next day we were attacked in another area.
We are still working on this weapon that has been formed, and we KNOW that it will not prosper. We know that all we have to do is speak the name of Jesus and the enemy will flee. We know that the name of Jesus is probably the only word that needs to come out of our mouths for the next few weeks while we are here! We know that the enemy is mad and won't give in quickly or easily!
So, do I think we are fully prepared? Maybe not as prepared as we should have been, but God is graceful and merciful and is holding our hand! Some things we had been prepared for and told about, but not fully realizing the magnitude of all that was going to take place!
God is molding us and shaping us. He is teaching us a new level of love. He is moving us into places that I never even imagined I could go! As a friend said, "There must be some kind of calling on you all and on that girl that makes the enemy's kingdom shutter. Remember what you are fighting for!" I will remember what we are fighting for, and I will not give up.
My friend Lori also shared this with me.......2 Corinthians 5:18-21 English Standard Version (ESV)
18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the MNISTRY OF RECONCILIATION; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling[a] the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
This so ministered to my heart!! I believe that God is going to turn all these ashes into beauty! I already see some turning, but there are more, so many more that He is currently working on! I know He goes before us to prepare the way.....even when we don't even realize He's working on my behalf!
I pray that through all this I will be able to bring Him glory! I pray that others will see that through the trials and triumphs in this journey, that God is to be praised. We are honored to this calling, and we see no other way than to be obedient. He never never said it would be easy, but He promised to never leave us. We will come out of the valley with our hands raised high to worship and praise His name!
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