Timing

So last Sunday I was teaching the kids in children's worship about Esther.  Talk about fun and funny!  I have always loved the story.  I would read that book of the Bible over and over again as a kid.  Esther was fairy tale with such a great ending.  It was great to share my passion for Esther with the kids.  I even made Hamantashen for the first time so everyone could enjoy a cookie that is part of the Jewish holiday Purim, celebrating Esther's story.  Plus it was hysterically funny as Keziah heard her sister Hadassah's name as I introduced the beginning of the story about this poor little orphan girl living in a foreign land.  (Hadassah is Esther's Hebrew name)

As I prepared for the week's lesson, I also listened to the CD's I have for Beth Moore's study of Esther.  I've started the study before with the best intentions of finishing it, but keep letting life get in the way.  I didn't make it through all the CD's before Sunday so I was listening to them again while baking cookies for Keziah's Cinco de Mayo fiesta at school and Josiah's soccer game.

The one I popped in the CD player today focused on timing.  How sometimes it is time to move forward with what God has planned for our life and sometimes we need to wait. 

UGH!  Waiting!!!  Okay, God must have LOTS to teach me about patience and waiting that I didn't learn with our first adoption because the whole adoption process equals tons of waiting.

But back to the concept of timing...

Christopher and I were chatting last night before we crashed and both realized a funny thing.  You see, I had been looking at our Hadassah's information on our agency's website for months while he kept telling me "NO!  It's not time."  I even emailed our agency on November 16, 2009, to request to be considered if ever it was time to send her file back to China and no family had yet adopted her.  I told them that it wasn't the right time for us to pursue an adoption.  All the while the kids and I kept praying for a family to adopt her and bring her home quickly.

So what's the funny part?

When we received the email in February letting us know that she had been placed on hold for our family and would we please officially apply, we never even asked one another if it was the right time.  We never stopped for a minute to question  if this was our daughter or if we were making the right decision.  We just said, "YES!"

Adopting both of my little girls causes me to question God a lot about timing.  Both of my little girls have been older children.  I wonder about all the time God has allowed them to live in China without their forever family.  Why so long?  Keziah was 6 1/2 years old before we could bring her home.  Hadassah will probably turn seven and celebrate another birthday without her family before we can finally bring her home.  Each day, week, and month that passes right now is agony while we wait.  Why can't she come home NOW, Lord?  And what about all those months Hadassah waited on a list?  Why wasn't it time for us to pursue her yet?

I wish I could say that God revealed so great, divine, and easy answer to me.  However, through all of this instead He has chosen to teach me to trust His timing, to trust Him. 

Keziah went to spend the night with one of her best friends a couple of weeks ago. 

They are such a funny pair!  Both girls are adopted - Keziah from China, her friend domestically as an infant.  They are just two peas in a pod.  So alike in personality that it is scary at times.  Her friend is also deaf, but has implants.  This puzzles Keziah.  Explaining "deaf" to her has been difficult.  Especially since her friend can "hear" with her implants.  Since I sign some and she can read my lips well, Keziah couldn't figure out why when they took a bath together at the sleepover at our home months ago her friend could "hear" me but not Keziah herself.

Okay, so one thing about the nature of deaf people that you may not know - they tend to be LOUD!  Funny since they don't hear themselves.  Our little friend can be quite loud.  As much as I shared with the mom about how loud Keziah is, she didn't fully understand and appreciate our volume control problems until the girls were together in their home for the night.  As we giggled over how Keziah can out loud her deaf friend, my sweet friend added some torture to our waiting for Hadassah by telling me that she will probablly also be loud like Keziah. 

Truthfully...I can't wait to hear how much louder our home will get (as if five kids and two dogs isn't enough).  As I hear Keziah's laughter and giggles ringing through our home, I wonder what the duet will sound like.  Waiting for God's perfect timing...and ear plugs.  Loving all my girls, both near and far.