Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Obedience = Adventure

Our hearts crave adventure. We were made that way. So, we often spend tons of money and time trying to grasp that elusive, amazing, deep-down-in-the-gut satisfying feeling we get when in the middle of an adventure.



But . . . . to be obedient to God is THE beginning of being part of His great adventure. When we are truly obedient and have our hands open in surrender, He never fails to call us to something that is truly an adventure that our hearts were made for.



Such is our adoption.



Adventures are not easy, otherwise they wouldn't be called adventures. They would be "rides", I guess, with not much effort for us to have to put in. But adventures are hard work and often scary, mixed with exhilaration, exhaustion, joy, frustration, fear and just plain silliness and fun (yeah, throw some impatience, anger and grumpiness into the mix, too, honestly). Thank God we are not called to an adventure on our own, but instead to walk next to GOD! How cool is that.



Such is our adoption.



I hope to keep stepping out in obedience no matter what. I hope to keep my hands open in surrender and ready to embrace whatever God puts before us. I hope to be obedient in the daily things, spending time with God and also stopping my own jabbering and being quiet before Him so I can hear HIM, and trust that He is good and that the adventure He calls us to is also good, no matter what. Are you with me?

OK, here are some pictures for those of you that don't read my post, but just like the photos.

These shots are from a recent camping trip we went on with several other families who have adopted or are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia in West Michigan. What fun! And what a privilege to have a group like this to support each other.

Here, you can see our new Beagle, Bo, in the background. Things are going ~pretty~ well with him. Wish he would figure out the electric fence better. What was I thinking???




Here is some of the group enjoying our time at the beach.

Jambo (no longer his name, but unless you come visit us, mum's the word) totally exfoliating in the sand.

Kume (again, her nickname) drawn to water at a pump like any typical kid.

About their names, we wondered how long it would take older kids like them to embrace their new names. Well, the answer in our case is about 2.5 months. We paired both their names together all the time, with a few slip ups here and there, and they easily slid into their American names, and now call each other by these names.

Also, since lots of people comment on their language development, just wanted to let you know they have spoken up to 8 word sentences. Genius? Boy, I hope not, we wouldn't have a clue what to do with that! We are enjoying it, though.

20 comments:

Jen said...

I love your blog. I know that once we have a new member in our family I will have to go back and read this entry. Being obedient when we are tired, hungry, overworked, under appreciated.... that is hard. It is easy when all is going well. And still, I can hardly wait.
Jennifer

mama becca said...

Oh I miss you guys!! What cutie patuties!!!!! Thanks for the update :).
love
becca

PrincessBrideJo said...

your kids are beautiful.

Mindy said...

So good to hear the updates! Looks like the family had a good time camping!

coffeemom said...

Oh boy, an update! So glad to see you all again! And great post, so very true. Following God's will for you is the BIGGEST adventure, hands down, every time. All the time. Good stuff, good to remember. ANd the pics, well, of course they are crazy cute and beautiful!!! Love seeing them.

Sparkz said...

Wow "Kume" looks like she has really grown since the last pictures! She is SO pretty. Its fun to see the changes! The camping trip looks like it was a BLAST.
Beagles can be very stubborn. You might try bitter apple spray to curb bad habits. However once you do it they know its coming and you'll more than likely have to catch your dog and open its mouth to spray it the next time!
I think its funny you mentioned "pictures for non-readers" I can relate (although I do read MOST blog posts)!!! A pictures worth 1000 words!

Sparkz said...

Oh! I almost forgot! I LOVE the God's adventure thoghts! So true! I have never thought about it quite that way before.

emily said...

Beautiful! I love the pics, though I do read the words too. :)

Apryl said...

Love the pictures, but I read ALL of the words :) I'm glad to hear you have had success with the name change. We obviously aren't as diligent as you guys as our daughter has about 15 names she goes by (Fettie, Fetya, Tia, Sally, Salomae, Mae...) Horrible, she's probably thoroughly confused.

Lookes like you had a wonderful time!
apryl

Beth said...

Beautiful! That is what comes to mind when I see all of your children.

Lori S said...

We're so close to travelling to bring home our 2 girls. I'm very excited AND nervous because I know there will be many challenges that come with the joys. Thanks for reminding us that God will be there all the time to help us through!
All of your children are adorable!

Amber said...

I enjoy reading your posts and how you are adjusting to things. Thanks for sharing.

Shelly Roberts said...

Great update!! ... think of you often and love hearing how things are going on your most great adventure. :) Blessings~ Shelly

atHisrighthand said...

I love the post Buttercup and seriously I did read what you wrote! It was beautifully written... You know what I think of the pics.. :)

Well the vacuum is a dyson... We found a floor model from last year for super cheap... I lovve it and would fully reccommend it to anyone shopping for a vacuum.. Plus for me in the wait... Well at least it give me something to do that I can see a little progress in. LOL.. :) Blessings to you!
Elise

Sparkz said...

I LOVE the new picture at the top of your blog! Its really neat!

mama becca said...

LOVE the new family picture... beautiful...

Ellen Enright said...

Those are great pictures and beautiful children!!! It looks like they have adjusted so well!

Wolfemom said...

Yeah!! Found another Michigan family! Your family is BEAUTIFUL!!

coffeemom said...

I forgot to tell you: LOVE the new family pic in the header....just a stunning pic of your beautiful family!

Laurel said...

Thanks for the post. (I might copy it onto my blog.)

After bringing home 3 children from Ghana five months ago ... adding to our 10 bio. kids ... our income was just cut to less than half. We are definitely starting a new adventure with the Lord, as we walk in faith.

My favorite acronym for FAITH is ...

Fantastic Adventure In Trusting Him


Laurel :)