Our Battle Cry

One of the first activities I participated in while in the Dominican Republic was to attend church. The same church the children from the orphanage go. This is the church that is pastored by the husband of the wonderful woman who runs the orphanage. I knew this would be my very first opportunity to meet our kids. 

My palms were sweaty (and not from the extreme humidity), my heart was beating, and I was pacing the building. When the buses arrived I was one of the first to be waiting outside. Immediately I turned to scanning the faces peeking through the windows, trying to see our son. 

And there he was... big old smile on his face. He bounced off the bus with a great amount of energy and embraced the director of the orphanage with loving arms. 

I was snapping pictures, smiling, and holding back tears. 

The children filed inside, and I followed. Adult bible study was in progress and that meant I had some time to go down and meet both of our kiddos for the very first time. With the help of a young pastor who works at the orphanage, we found my boy. He came out and the first thing he did was give me a big hug. 

We spent the next 10 minutes or so talking, learning about each other, and asking each other lots of questions. He agreed to go back to the classroom only if I promised to play with him when we got to the barbecue at the home of the pastor later that day. Of course, I agreed!

Then it was on to finding our little girl. After checking three rooms, we finally found her. She came out as timid as could be, but willing to let me pick her up. My little muñeca (a nickname = doll), gave me a few sweet hugs and then was ready to go back to class. 

I stepped into the bathroom, took a few deep breaths, and wiped away the tears of joy that were running down my face. After I pulled myself together, I headed back upstairs in time for the worship service to begin. 

It was during that worship service, sung in Spanish, that God reminded me he was with me on that trip and with us on our adoption journey. The band began to play my favorite hymn, "It is well". 

In the moments I could sing, I sang. In the moments my emotions took control, I cried. And in the moments of complete peace, I was quiet. 

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Beth and I have agreed to commit to a song, our battle cry if you will, for the duration of our adoption process (and beyond). It just so happens that the song is "It is well". We believe in the words that are in this song. And we believe in the heavenly father who is the inspiration for the words. Below is the video of one of our favorite bands (Finding Favor) singing their version of the song. 

Today, as I listened to it over and over again, one line jumped out at me. I will leave with you with the lines and the video. 

"When trials may come

I'm holding to the promise

That you've already won!" 

 

P.S. A fun little note is that Beth and I have agreed to get the words "It is well, with my soul" as tattoos. As that happens, we will be sure to post pictures! 

Please continue to pray for us, and feel free to join us in our battle cry!