Parting thoughts from Neil.

When we sent the email out to the people who were on our email list that we (actually Lora) had created a blog to share with people what was going on with our adoption of Daniel I wasn't to sure what this was all about. My sister, Patty, sent me a reply about this blog and then asked me what a blog was anyway. In my great wisdom I told her that it was a great way to share information and post pictures of our journey with Daniel in China. When I shared this with Lora she gave me a totally different perspective on it. To her it is a way to journal what her daily thoughts and feelings are as we travel this path that God has laid out for us and to share that with anyone who wants to live this story with us. Is she great or what?

So, here I sit with only one day left until we leave for China. The packing is almost done and most of the preparations are finished. As I reflect over the past few months I am in awe of what God is doing and I wanted to share with you a few thoughts about how God has brought me to this point in my life.

About 2-1/2 years ago our marriage was in a mess. I will leave out the details here but suffice it to say that we had some problems so we went to Larkspur, CO to a ministry called Stone Gate to go through some very intense marriage counseling with Dr Harry Schaumburg. We got a lot more than just counseling in those 10 days that we were there. I will only speak for myself from here on out but God really opened my eyes to see how selfishly I had been living my life. Everything about my life was based on what I felt I needed or deserved. One of the areas that God had to work on was in my perception that since I had raised 3 girls, and the youngest one was almost ready to go to college, that I could make plans to move, or to do whatever I wanted because now I was "free". This really hit home for me when Lora called me about the email we got from Shannon about Daniel. By this time God had knocked enough crust off of my heart that I could feel His Spirit move and say "Now is the time because this is your son". A lot of people will say how lucky that Daniel is to be a part of our family but the truth is that I am the one who has been blessed by him.

There is so much more that I could share but I won't go on and on like the Energizer bunny. I would like to leave you with this last thought. This adoption is not a sacrifice on my part. Because Jesus Christ made the ultimate sacrifice for my sin I want my life to be one of obedience to him and part of that is the call to care for the widows and orphans. God wants us to put the needs of others before our own comforts and conveniences. Micah 6:8 says "He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." I hope you will do the same and thank you for allowing me to share this with you.

Humbled by His grace,
Neil