Give Them Up!

          Grateful feels like such a small word to me lately....I'm searching for more to describe the gratitude in my heart to the Lord; for His Word, His promises, for access to Him through Jesus, for dear friends, for compassionate strangers, and for his faithfulness to provide!  Whether it is finances, a friend to talk to at just the right time, or fresh strategy in prayer, HE HAS BEEN FAITHFUL to bring it! Absolutely every penny, every detail, and every moment of this adoption process has been a divine move of God. 
           Lately the Lord has been moving me to rise up early. (I have completely given up on fighting these moments!) If I'm up early while everyone else is asleep, I usually walk quietly around the house and pray, but recently I've been heading out back.  I felt like the Lord was giving me new strategy in prayer for the twins.  I stood at my patio and faced the South/East and stretched my hands toward Haiti and began to pray for our children to be released....That every hold over their lives, and over their paper work would be released....That every scheme of the enemy to keep them orphans would be thwarted, and that they would come home and come into their identity as sons and daughters.... 
          Two things happened as I did this.  One, a Don Potter song came to mind, called, Give Them Up.  I pulled up the song, pulled out my bible, found Isaiah 43, and began to sing it and pray it over the twins. It felt like such a gift to have these voices and instruments declaring along with me.  Two, I looked again toward the South/East from where I stood and noticed the two "twin" palm trees directly in front of my hands! I began to declare Isaiah 61 over them:

 
Jesus you came

"....to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion—

to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor."

Isaiah 61

".....Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east

and gather you from the west. I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’

and to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’

Bring my sons from afar

and my daughters from the ends of the earth—

everyone who is called by my name,

whom I created for my glory,

whom I formed and made."

 Isaiah 43:5-7

 

I share this update with you to give glory to God for His Spirit that He freely gives, and for His great and precious promises to us! And also to ask that you would pray along with me in this season that our son and daughter from afar, who are called by His name and created for His glory, would be brought in!   

Update:

We have recently been given news that our case, along with some others specifically from our orphanage are expected to receive referrals soon.  This is a very very big deal. As soon as we receive our referral we will be making our two week bonding trip to meet them and spend time with them!!! We are reeling over this.  Although I can not share all the details, this is a crucial time for prayer.  Please join me in praying for God's mighty hand to move over their lives and over all the logistics surrounding them right now. 

I can't say thank you enough to those of you who have lovingly stood by us in this journey! God's richest blessings to you!!!!