Zoe knows she has a family!

It's not often that the moment your soon to be adopted child is told they are getting a family is captured on film....not only in film but on video as well. What a precious memory she will be able to keep with her for life! This is the email we received from her caretakers..."last night we told Zoe that she is going to be adopted. She's very happy. Actually before that, Ms. Qin, the nurse who knows Zoe very well ask her a question: 'What do you usually pray for God?' Zoe said, 'I want parents.' Ms. Qin told her, God heard your cry and you are going to have parents. She has no face at the beginning, she is quiet and focused. After awhile, she smiled, when she looked at your family photos she was keeping her smile." Be still my heart! Please continue praying earnestly for her as she adjusts to this reality of being adopted. I praise God that because of her medical condition, she is in a Christian foster home and they attribute all the glory to God for answering the prayers of a sweet 7 year old girl. My heart breaks that she had need to pray for a family but I am so grateful that she is getting to see God at work in her life.

Just this week, we received updated pictures of Eli getting the package we sent him and pictures of him reading the letters we sent and we get this update on Zoe. God is so good and knows when we need some encouragement!

We've had several folks ask where we are at financially and this is my answer...I have no clue! I know what we currently have in the bank...we haven't been given a final number on what we need. We did find out that The Province where Zoe's orphanage is in a totally different province from where her medical records and foster home are. All of our official paperwork will take place in the province where her orphanage is and then we will have to fly to the province where her foster home is to get all her medical files and meet the foster family that has cared or her. This obviously increases our expense but once again...we have no clue how much! We are operating on what we do know...Bailey and Sheltons tickets are fully funded. We still need about $1200 to get Caleb there. Caleb is our bleading heart! If any of our children have been created for the mission field one day, it's him. He is a servant and loves deeply. I so want him there! I think when we get our travel approval in a couple of weeks we will know exactly what our expenses will be.

Please pray with us for Eli and Zoe...so many changes for them. Pray that God will give us the wisdom we need to comfort them. Pray for our kids that they would willingly embrace their new siblings and that Eli and Zoe's transition into our family would be amazingly easy.

I cannot wait until we leave the civil affairs office in China, there hands in ours and we are legally able to calm them our son and daughter. I realize there will be days of struggle and that they will grieve and hurt but I praise God that they will be orphans no more!