Merry Christmas Eve Eve, everyone! As we prepare for this wonderful celebration of our Lord's birth, we wish you a very Merry Christmas! Today is the day before Christmas Eve...Christmas Eve Eve, as we call it. Due to a power outage last night, I am behind schedule in some preparations but hopefully I will get caught up today.
Yes...a power shortage occurred in our county last night and it was very, very dark in our neighborhood...even around 6 pm.. As I was lighting candles around the house, I was reminded how much the darkness is pierced with a single glow of light from a candle. Of course with my analytical mind, I made a comparison to life with that. :) But it is true. No matter how dark life can be at times, a single glow of light makes all the difference! A hug from a friend, an unexpected phone call, a note of encouragement, a moment of good news....are all wonderful blessings on a long and weary journey. At just the right time, we are encouraged, refreshed and renewed by a relatively simple reminder that the journey continues in His perfect plan and timing.
As I shared with you recently, our last few months have been challenging. In fact, 2011 has been full of blessings but there have been some interesting "detours" in our journey, as well. So we are always thrilled when precious "lights" illuminate our path along the way. Today is no exception.
First, we are reminded that our lives are never without purpose, love, hope, peace and joy. The fact that God's own Son became a baby in a manger so He could come to save us is amazing! God...with skin on...here on Earth...to love us and sacrifice Himself for us...so we can be with Him eternally...is a tremendous Light on our journey! That's what Christmas...and life are all about! Our lives are never the same when we hold onto that truth! I hope we are all able to realize and remember that in the midst of so many activities during the Christmas season...and beyond.
Additionally, we received news today from our adoption agency. Our initial Travel Letter has already been sent back to China. The agency said they would let us know when, (not if, but when), the new Travel Letter arrives! That sounds so very hopeful! That means we should have an extension of three months to trust, prepare and anticipate the long-awaited trip to China to meet, hold and bring our baby daughter home. How precious that on Christmas Eve Eve, we celebrate the coming of our Lord....and the news of another baby who will enter our lives in a few months! Wow...thank You, God!
So...our hearts are filled with more light...and joy...and celebration today. Our very long journey seems to have brightened at just the right time! Seeing little Jenna Beth Song's ornament displayed on our tree...and a precious Panda Bear toy her brother placed under the tree for her...are tangible reminders of the beauty and hope of Christmas.
Merry Christmas Eve Eve, dear family and friends! Cherish this season...and the message it brings to all of us each moment of every day of our lives. We thank God for you...and for the gift of hope.
Cherishing His Light in the journey,
Terri & Family
Jenna Elizabeth (aka "JennaBeth") Song Lorenz
Waiting For Our Little One To Come Home From China!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Sunday, December 18, 2011
A Glimpse of Hope...
It's exactly one week before Christmas and life is busy, as always. The tree is up. Wreaths are hanging on the doors. Secrets are held close with smiles, mystery and laughter. Last minute trips to the store are planned with "just one more thing" to add to the list. Christmas music fills the air and our family enjoys each moment of being together...again...finally.
We are enjoying the Season...the celebration of our Lord's birth. We are enjoying the Hope that His Presence brings into our lives. We are once more reminded that because God loved, He gave...and a precious Baby Boy traveled here from Heaven to bring eternal Hope, Love, Joy and Peace.
We are thrilled. Our Rachel is moving back to our town soon to begin her new job at the local hospital. As we make moving arrangements, apartment arrangements & packing arrangements...we are so glad that she will no longer be over 120 miles away...but around six miles instead. There's just something about having family closeby to share life with in good times and not so good times. There's truly no place like home.
We are thankful. Micah's long and challenging semester at UK has come to a close and he feels a sense of accomplishment and relief. He is now home for three weeks and we love having him closeby. He brings so much joy to our lives and we cherish each moment he is with us. As I watched him put up the Christmas tree recently to surprise his Dad, I thanked God for our precious children who are amazing gifts from God.
We are encouraged. Our adoption agency believes that China MAY extend our travel time another three months since we are going through so many schedule conflicts presently. Hopefully...we can bring yet another precious daughter home from China sometime in early spring. We continue to seek God's direction, provision and protection as we face more "faith-building" challenges with documents, health, expenses, etc.. But we know we are never alone because God still holds us...and all these challenges...in HIS hands.
We are blessed. Although our 2011 has been full of challenges and unexpected situations, we are truly blessed to have amazing family, friends and faith that carry us through each moment. We believe that Hope changes everything...and we choose to focus on Hope through Him no matter what lies ahead.
May you find hope, joy, peace and love in this season and in each moment of your journey. We appreciate you...and your continued prayers so very much. Know that you are always in our hearts, thoughts and prayers, as well.
Cherishing the blessing of Hope in Him,
Terri & Family
We are enjoying the Season...the celebration of our Lord's birth. We are enjoying the Hope that His Presence brings into our lives. We are once more reminded that because God loved, He gave...and a precious Baby Boy traveled here from Heaven to bring eternal Hope, Love, Joy and Peace.
We are thrilled. Our Rachel is moving back to our town soon to begin her new job at the local hospital. As we make moving arrangements, apartment arrangements & packing arrangements...we are so glad that she will no longer be over 120 miles away...but around six miles instead. There's just something about having family closeby to share life with in good times and not so good times. There's truly no place like home.
We are thankful. Micah's long and challenging semester at UK has come to a close and he feels a sense of accomplishment and relief. He is now home for three weeks and we love having him closeby. He brings so much joy to our lives and we cherish each moment he is with us. As I watched him put up the Christmas tree recently to surprise his Dad, I thanked God for our precious children who are amazing gifts from God.
We are encouraged. Our adoption agency believes that China MAY extend our travel time another three months since we are going through so many schedule conflicts presently. Hopefully...we can bring yet another precious daughter home from China sometime in early spring. We continue to seek God's direction, provision and protection as we face more "faith-building" challenges with documents, health, expenses, etc.. But we know we are never alone because God still holds us...and all these challenges...in HIS hands.
We are blessed. Although our 2011 has been full of challenges and unexpected situations, we are truly blessed to have amazing family, friends and faith that carry us through each moment. We believe that Hope changes everything...and we choose to focus on Hope through Him no matter what lies ahead.
May you find hope, joy, peace and love in this season and in each moment of your journey. We appreciate you...and your continued prayers so very much. Know that you are always in our hearts, thoughts and prayers, as well.
Cherishing the blessing of Hope in Him,
Terri & Family
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
A Long Overdue Update...
Well, it seems like a very long time has passed since I last wrote on our blog. Much has happened and I apologize for the delay. I don't really know where to begin so please bear with me as I try to explain.
To say that our adoption journey has been a rollercoaster ride recently is a major understatement. We have been so thrilled about the Referral of Song to our family. We truly hoped that we would have her home...or almost home...at this point. But that is not the case so far.
Once the Referral was made, we received our Pre-Approval, Letter of Acceptance and Travel Letter very quickly. However, there were repeated issues with our USCIS form that made our trip to China impossible in the expected time frame. It has been frustrating but we kept working...and working...and calling...USCIS...and we hope it has been resolved for now.
However...in the meantime...other issues have developed and, quite frankly, we do not know what will happen in our adoption journey in the coming weeks or months. We will not be able to travel in the alloted time frame due to a vital surgery date in our family. Other concerns have presented themselves, as well. So...our hearts are aching and our prayers are rising continually.
We love little Song so much. We have her pictures on our fridge, on our cell phones and have shared them with relatives and friends. We have named her...and have received gifts for her. Yet...we realize that the present complications could cause major obstacles in our adoption process. We have been so stressed over this...and our hearts ache over what may...or may not...happen.
Our journey of blessings has been very long...extensive...expensive...and intense. It is so easy to begin asking "whys" and "hows" at this point. However, we know that we began this journey trusting God...and we will continue to trust Him in this season, as well. He knows what is best...for Song...for our family...and for His honor and glory. Only He knew that the initial adoption "estimated journey" of eighteen months to two years...would turn into almost triple that time frame...as we begin to see the six year mark next spring/summer. Only He knew the twists, turns and reasons for each step of the journey, And only He knows how this journey will proceed. He is the God of yesterday, today and tomorrow...and we have trusted Him long before this journey began...and each moment since then. And we trust Him now..and in the future. We simply ask you one thing...
Please, please pray. Please pray for His will in all of this. Please pray for what is HIS will in little Song's life. Please pray for what is His will in the lives of our family. Please pray that our hearts, minds and lives will know peace, hope and joy in Him through it all. If He allows Song to join our family, please pray that He will work as only He can to make it happen on every level. If His plan is otherwise, please pray that we will accept, trust and believe completely in His plan...even when we don't know what lies ahead. Please pray that He will hold little Song in His loving arms to protect and provide for her always. And please pray that He will always be first and foremost in her life and in ours.
I will try to keep you updated better than I have done recently. I was quite ill the entire month of November. Our daughter was also ill and was brought home to recover. She now has a job change and a move back to our town in the near future...and our son is finishing his week of finals this week. Tim is working long hours and so much continues to keep us busy. Of course, it is Christmastime and we have much to do as we prepare for that.
May your Christmas be blessed...and your New Year be healthy, happy and holy. May your journey of blessings be peaceful, purposeful and postive. May you always know that you matter to God and to us. Thank you for your prayers as we continue our journey of blessings in His perfect plan.
Cherishing the blessing of trusting in Him,
Terri & Family
To say that our adoption journey has been a rollercoaster ride recently is a major understatement. We have been so thrilled about the Referral of Song to our family. We truly hoped that we would have her home...or almost home...at this point. But that is not the case so far.
Once the Referral was made, we received our Pre-Approval, Letter of Acceptance and Travel Letter very quickly. However, there were repeated issues with our USCIS form that made our trip to China impossible in the expected time frame. It has been frustrating but we kept working...and working...and calling...USCIS...and we hope it has been resolved for now.
However...in the meantime...other issues have developed and, quite frankly, we do not know what will happen in our adoption journey in the coming weeks or months. We will not be able to travel in the alloted time frame due to a vital surgery date in our family. Other concerns have presented themselves, as well. So...our hearts are aching and our prayers are rising continually.
We love little Song so much. We have her pictures on our fridge, on our cell phones and have shared them with relatives and friends. We have named her...and have received gifts for her. Yet...we realize that the present complications could cause major obstacles in our adoption process. We have been so stressed over this...and our hearts ache over what may...or may not...happen.
Our journey of blessings has been very long...extensive...expensive...and intense. It is so easy to begin asking "whys" and "hows" at this point. However, we know that we began this journey trusting God...and we will continue to trust Him in this season, as well. He knows what is best...for Song...for our family...and for His honor and glory. Only He knew that the initial adoption "estimated journey" of eighteen months to two years...would turn into almost triple that time frame...as we begin to see the six year mark next spring/summer. Only He knew the twists, turns and reasons for each step of the journey, And only He knows how this journey will proceed. He is the God of yesterday, today and tomorrow...and we have trusted Him long before this journey began...and each moment since then. And we trust Him now..and in the future. We simply ask you one thing...
Please, please pray. Please pray for His will in all of this. Please pray for what is HIS will in little Song's life. Please pray for what is His will in the lives of our family. Please pray that our hearts, minds and lives will know peace, hope and joy in Him through it all. If He allows Song to join our family, please pray that He will work as only He can to make it happen on every level. If His plan is otherwise, please pray that we will accept, trust and believe completely in His plan...even when we don't know what lies ahead. Please pray that He will hold little Song in His loving arms to protect and provide for her always. And please pray that He will always be first and foremost in her life and in ours.
I will try to keep you updated better than I have done recently. I was quite ill the entire month of November. Our daughter was also ill and was brought home to recover. She now has a job change and a move back to our town in the near future...and our son is finishing his week of finals this week. Tim is working long hours and so much continues to keep us busy. Of course, it is Christmastime and we have much to do as we prepare for that.
May your Christmas be blessed...and your New Year be healthy, happy and holy. May your journey of blessings be peaceful, purposeful and postive. May you always know that you matter to God and to us. Thank you for your prayers as we continue our journey of blessings in His perfect plan.
Cherishing the blessing of trusting in Him,
Terri & Family
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