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| "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved." Ephesians 1:3-6 |
David and I have been prayerful about expanding our family, and we have elected to do so via adoption from India! We look forward to the upcoming future with anticipation, excitement, fear, nerves, and utter joy. This is a decision we have known about since we were dating, and I can't believe the time is now here to take the step (read: headfirst dive) into parenthood.
The discussion of children has been one that David and I started early in our relationship. We both have a heart for orphans and truly feel called to the path of adoption. Through various experiences, we have been exposed to the needs of orphaned children, and we truly feel that those children could benefit from our love just as much as we could benefit from theirs. For the past five years, we have been planning and taking steps to prepare for this journey. To put curious minds to rest, we are not currently struggling with infertility. We honestly have never attempted to have children, and as of now, that is not in our future plan. That being said, I cannot speak for God's future plan.
Through a lot of research, both by us and family members, we have chosen to work with America World Adoption Association (AWAA). They have been a great fit for our family, and everyone there has been supportive and encouraging. Initially, we started the adoption process with Africa in mind; however, God had a different plan. We submitted a pre-application with AWAA stating our interest for adopting children, and they sent back options for international adoption that best correlated with our application. From all of the possible countries, it was apparent that God chose India for our family. No question about it.
So here we are, a few piles of paperwork down, and a billion to go. We are currently in the middle of completing our home study and at the beginning of dossier building (the paperwork needed to present to the Indian government). We know very little at this point regarding the child/children we will bring home. Our desire is to bring home two children (one under 4 and one under 8) with special needs, but we are open to any scenario that God directs. Special needs encompasses a wide range including physical disabilities, cognitive delays, and sibling sets. Basically, this means that we may bring home one to two children with special needs, or we may bring home two to three children (typically developing or with special needs) who are siblings. God is in full control, and we are at peace with any of those scenarios.
If all paperwork is completed and approved in a timely manner (both in the United States and India), the adoption can take anywhere between one to one and a half years. This means that our children are likely already born, and others care for them on a daily basis. We hope that you will join us in prayer that they feel loved and that their birth family feels wrapped in God's arms.
The intimidating aspect of beginning the adoption process is the amount of funds needed before bringing your child/children home; however, we have faith that God will provide. It has been estimated that our adoption will cost around $50,000. If you are interested in aiding to bring these children home, please refer to the funding tab above. Prayers are always appreciated.
I have decided to document our adoption journey until we bring our baby/child/children home as a way to update family and friends on the process (which is more detailed than I ever imagined). We will attempt to be as transparent as possible, in the hopes that we will bring glory to God along the way.
Love and Blessings,
Jordan
