Life as of Late

Well, life has been pretty normal for us lately with little sprinklings of awesomeness. We've been at home a lot which sometimes means we are quite lazy and boring but lately we've been doing a lot of catching up with friends and family. I think the Captain has been happy for us to spend more time at home with him (and not taking him along on any road trips, although he does love visiting family).

We have been on a rice crispy treat kick, and have ingested more crispies than I'd like to admit. Just in the last 24 hours......

{yes, only two people live here. no, the cat doesn't eat them.}

The long weekend was AMAZING! After a big, fun party down at the river on Saturday, we did a lot of relaxing the rest of the weekend (along with cleaning the house, doing laundry, and trying to take a last minute plane ride with our pilot friend up to Williamsburg for lunch... but it was too stormy.)

The new school year has been pretty different than the first so that has provided lots of opportunity for flexibility and making adjustments. Stephen is working really hard and learning/practicing all dental-related material now so he's even more quickly on his way to Dr. status. More on that to come soon so stay tuned!

Work has been a challenge--our office manager took a different job six weeks ago (four weeks into her role at our office) so a large chunk of my time in my new position has been also filling in that role between and after the two late office managers. The two roles do overlap a lot; my job is bookkeeping for the client and the office manager does all of the firm bookkeeping, but I'm definitely anxious to get a long term employee into that position so that I can really get a feel for what my job is like now that I am pretty comfortable with most all of my work. Lately I've been working a few extra hours each week (which means extra $$$ so I can't complain!) but I've also been going at a crazy pace so that I don't have to work too late. My brain is ready to get back to a more normal pace where I can focus more on each project and double check behind myself.

On the adoption front, we have enjoyed a lot of conversations with y'all about the journey and are so appreciative of your support! It really means the world to us to know our families are standing behind us. We've talked with several different agencies over the last week which is what we had hoped would happen. Since we hadn't heard back from most places we were anxious to just get some answers. We imagined that we would talk with an agency that fit perfectly with the route we have envisioned for ourselves and wham-bam here we go!! However, that really hasn't been the case, which has been slightly discouraging. There are a couple agencies that could potentially be a good fit but we have a few more questions before diving into the process. And, as tired as we are of researching (since we've really been doing a decent amount of that over the last year and learning generally for a while before that), we may need to do a little more digging.

Our pastor preached a great (and convicting) message on Sunday that is definitely fitting for our situation. We have started a series on II Timothy where Paul is writing his last letter to Timothy, whom Paul has mentored. Paul is in prison and knows he will be martyred soon so his letter is pretty to the point. He is very clear on two points, both of which ring true in the lives of all Christians: 1) we should see everything in our lives as an opportunity to advance the gospel of Christ, and 2) we should expect to suffer for the gospel.

Currently, we don't suffer persecution for the gospel here in America. There are a whole lot of Christians out there who do suffer every day but here we live a pretty cushy life and are so very blessed. {Extremely sobering story here--just one of many, many thousands, I am sure. Please read!} As much as some Christians or pastors would like for us to believe, God doesn't promise that we'll go through life without friction simply because we follow Christ. Financial blessing and a life of ease are not the sole will of God for all believers. God does desire to bless us and brings good things into our lives, but His will is to use this life on earth to mold us into His image--and the most difficult situations seem to really shape us. Our pastor reminded us how the number of Christians in Communist nations and those where believers are oppressed is growing at such a rapid rate. I don't believe that is happening as much here in the US with our friction-free lives. When I see these believers willingly giving their lives and refusing to reject Christ I know that must be something real and worthy that they are living {and dying} for! So, I think we should welcome suffering. There have been several things lately that have caused me to worry and really wish that I could just make the struggles disappear, but then I think about how these things are the ones that really drive me to run to Christ and pour out my heart to Him, trusting Him and His plan in it all.

Tying this all together--one of the things I have recently been frustrated by the adoption process. We have willingly opened our arms and our home up to adopt a child and it feels like in our conversations with agencies all we have been met with is disdain for our desire to adopt rather than foster, and balking at our desire to adopt a younger child. I believe Satan wants us to feel this frustration and discouragement. He wants to do all he can to keep us from this path because we are viewing it as an opportunity to advance the gospel. This week has been a good chance to refocus and keep pushing in each of these situations, pushing back against Satan and not allowing him any opportunity to frustrate God's plan in our lives.

If you have a chance this week, I would encourage you to listen to this sermon and consider how it impacts your life. As always, thanks again for your support and encouragement in our lives!

Love,
Buckwheat