The clock is ticking...

What a day! Training, again, was wonderful. We have so enjoyed meeting the other families. The time we had today to fellowship with foster families, foster kids, and siblings was such a sweet time.

Much of today was spent going over our agency's policies and procedures. There were several papers to sign. We discussed discipline a good bit, which was good conversation, but we'll just have to live it for a little while and see where we fall in our opinions on the matter. We know the non-negotiables, so we at least have a starting point. We also talked a good bit about birth parents and the challenges that exist there. We had some good discussion about what life will look like. We now know that we will be entertaining MANY visitors from agency case workers, DFACS workers, auditors, CASAs, etc., etc., etc. Life will certainly be busy with appointments, visitations, court appearances, journaling, among other things.

It's all been a reality check, but we have continued to get more and more excited with every passing day. After many of the horror stories we've heard these past few days, this joy and excitement undoubtedly comes from the Lord.

The reality that we are faced with now is that if we really wanted to forge ahead and get medical exams this week, we could have a baby in our home by Friday. I think the Lord has orchestrated things so that that simply cannot happen, otherwise, we might be tempted to do just that. As it is, my husband cannot get his medical exam until the middle of February, so we will not be accepting a child until the beginning of March. I have no doubt that we will very rapidly receive a placement at that time, so we have our work cut out for us until then!

If you're wondering how to pray:

• Pray that our excitement will not be overshadowed by worry or fear.
• Pray that the Lord would give us patience to wait on His timing.
• Pray for the precious child who will be our first placement. Pray that the Lord would begin preparing him or her right now for the trauma that lies ahead, and the transition into our humble home.
• Also, please pray for my job. I will not be able to enjoy this transition if I don't feel as though my ministry is in good hands. Please pray that the Lord would provide me with the peace of mind that He is in control and will see things through for His glory.