Watching

I wasn't keeping up with the situation in Egypt at first. Mostly because it seemed to come out of nowhere and I guess I suspected it would stop as quick as it came. Then I saw where their internet access had been shut down and suddenly realized this was getting much larger than what I expected.
And when it came to the earlier protests in Tunisia, I had no information, period. This article actually clarified a lot of my questions about Tunisia and Egypt and their similarities and differences.

I can't offer comments on either, because I know absolutely nothing about the whole situation, except what I learned sifting through articles and commentary tonight. My mind can't even fathom the protests that have been occurring and I am at a loss about what it may be causing across the rest of the world.

Personally, my eyes have been on Sudan for the past few weeks during their voting. The residents were voting on whether to continue as one country or split into two, creating Africa's new country. But the government is shaky and despite their agreements there's an uncertainty that the President will allow the country to split even if voted for. (Results from the vote are expected in early February, with the latest date for an announcement being Valentine's Day.)
Sudan's north and south regions have been at war for years, and their President is wanted for war crimes for the mass killings and rape in Darfur.
If the south splits, their going to have to not only figure out their leadership, but also potentially deal with the thousands of displaced people that may return. (Current estimates say 2.5 million people are displaced due to the Darfur conflict.) There is also the large issue with the oil wells - the oil is in the South, but flows through pipes in the North for exporting.

As always with the Mideast, there is more going on here than meets the eye. Please keep all these thoughts, countries and people in your prayers this week.

This article is being continuously updated about Egypt if anyone wants to keep up.

And I've seen love make heaven ring.

Adoption Update:

My cousins leave this Friday for Ethopia and their final court date is the 12th! Ahhhh!

After that, they have to wait on their embassy date before they can come home. The embassy date, to my understanding, is final preparations for Tate to enter the US (passport, etc).

Here's the deal: My cousin Brian only has a few weeks of vacation. The embassy dates possible are either late October, early November or the middle of November. While early November would still be okay, if it's the middle of November he'll have to come back early. And leave his wife and new son in Ethopia until the embassy date.
So. Ideally here, the embassy date will be late October or possible early November. Either way, even if it ends up being in the middle of November, God is still in control. But if you would pray towards it being one of the earlier two dates, that would be lovely and very appreciated by all of us. :)

I was considering their trip this past Sunday during our church's invitation. The thought popped into my mind that I was jealous. Jealous? I thought. I considered. Jealous was the right word. But not the right context. Jealous of them? No. I kept internally poking around. That wasn't it. Then it dawned on me. Ahhhh....jealous for them?

Yes. Jealous for them. That was it.

Jealous for them, in the sense, that they have this unique opportunity and they're taking it and I am so very happy for them!
Jealous that they will be traveling to Africa, a land that holds a very special place in my heart. They will get to step into this beautiful country that not everyone has the opportunity to see. To spend time with their son's heritage and culture. That their son will soon be in their arms. :)

But what if Tate had never made it to the adoption center?

I spent some time on Gladney's site tonight and they had a video up specifically towards Ethopian adoption. The video opens with this statistic: 6,000,000 orphans in Ethopia alone. Can you envision that kind of number?
The statistics continued.
12% will die before the age of 5.
53% over 5 will have to work to support their family.
Less than 5% are adopted.

My heart sunk. This is not worldwide numbers- can you imagine how much larger they go? Millions of children with no home. If any, a few loved ones. No parents. Little stability. And this beautiful baby boy?

The video continued. It doesn't have to be this way it read.

It doesn't have to be this way. Indeed. This is not fair. This is not right. This is where "looking after the widows & the orphans" comes in. This is where we should be stepping in. This is where I should be stepping in.

Ah. Lots of Rich Mullins lately. Let mercy lead, God. Let love be the strength in our legs. And in every footprint that we leave, there'll be a drop of grace whether its here, Africa or beyond.

Blog Feature: Why I Read the Blogs I Read

I've considered this for awhile, but today seems the perfect time to try it. I'm so excited I'm a bit scatterbrained, so this post may weave around a bit.

Why do I read A Plumb Crazy Life? For starters, they're my cousins, (and they're awesome) but let's look at the backstory for their blog.

My cousin Brian & his wife Shannon, are in the process of adopting a baby boy from Ethiopia and the simple version is that this is their story of that process. But I have learned more about international adoption and adoption in general through their blogs and through ones that they read themselves. I have learned more about the good, the bad and the ugly of the whole process than I thought I would have ever be interested in. And I love it.

Today's the perfect day to bring this up because today they RECEIVED THEIR REFERRAL. Yes, that has to be in all caps. The referral (as I've learned through their's and others attached) is when you receive for the first time information on your soon-to-be child. They requested a boy, they requested a baby, but that's all they knew. The referral is when you first receive a name, an age, a history, pictures, video, everything. It's incredibly important and emotional. This is your child. And then the hard part follows: now you have to wait until you pass through court to actually receive him. Ah! Here's your child- in a few months, whenever the court decides, then you'll get to finally hold him. o_O

I can't help but add my response to this because it caught me so off-guard. Let's face it - there's pieces of my heart that never really engage. Don't misinterpret that- it's not that I don't care or I don't love someone or I wouldn't fight to defend or protect them. But there's just pieces that never respond despite that. But this afternoon I got a sneak peek at a picture and I was shocked to feel myself leap with joy all over the place inside. He's so cute. I mean, all smiles. Curly, curly hair.

And while I've read over and over that adoption has to be selfish in a way, the parent has to want the child, etc. It can't just be "oh, I'm helping a kid out" because there's often struggles with bonding in cases like that, but I think I can't help but respond to they're helping an orphan. This kid will have a whole new life. He'll have a whole family.

Yes, there will be struggles. I have no doubt there'll be painful situations later. But for now, for now, joy, rapture, glee... He'll be their baby! He'll be one of my kids.

And now for those that pray, the request: a court date before the rainy season. During the rainy season, court completely shuts down for a month or more, and they may have to wait until October or November if that happens. O_O So...court date, court date, court date!

Tomorrow I get to see pictures! Sadly, we can't share online (I don't think) until he's officially theirs. But I get to see them! Bwahahaha!