Author: Rob and Sharon

After months of waiting, we now had 3 days including travel, to meet for the first time, our new children. In Sharon’s case literally the children of her dreams as she has shared previously regarding the vision the Lord had given her. So we had the balance of December 5th, all day December 6th and 7th and then we would board an overnight train from Kyiv to Odessa at 2020 on the evening of December 7th.

We spent the balance of Monday and Tuesday exploring Kyiv – strolling the streets that we had visited the previous Friday on our tour of Ancient Kyiv.

Hoping to alleviate some of the anxiety that I was experiencing anticipating our impending trip to Odessa, I attempted to try the preoccupation of being a tourist to distract me! It did provide moments of relief.  It is somewhat peculiar how uncertainty tends to produce fear in our hearts. My mind was flooded questions about the upcoming train trip. We had already been warned by our facilitator regarding the high risk for theft at the train station and on the trains. So needless to say safety was becoming a bit of a worry. Philippians 4:6 was constant reminder of how to deal with such thoughts and concerns and believe me, pray we did. Peter reminds me in 1 Peter  5:7 of the need to cast all of my anxiety on Him . . . but I was having a difficult time casting my cares, as such requires letting go, and I was wrestling with letting go!

One of the entrances to the Metrograd, Kyiv’s underground shopping mall.        Independence Square. Rob inside one of the many sculptures in Kyiv.

What would the new town and community be like? What would the orphanage be like? And what would the children think when they would meet us, as we are no longer young people, and have grandchildren ourselves – even though we would both say we are young at heart. How would everything proceed, . . . as I was committed to a new position with a start date of January 13th 2017. I had timelines mapped out in my mind as to when each of the major events would have to be completed if I was to make that established start date. Would the Christmas season in the Ukraine cause processing delays with office closures for the holidays as it would if we were still in Canada?

Each thought was granted a momentary and repeated hearing in the council of my mind until it would be brushed aside by either another concern, the bite of the cold December air, or our conversation as we strolled about. Temperatures had fallen considerably from the previous week when we had seen significant amounts of snow much of which had melted over the weekend prior to temperatures falling.

When we needed a reprieve from the cold we would step into a shop or stroll through the Metrograd, the underground shopping mall of Shevchenko and Khreschatyk. Though our days in the Ukraine were only very brief at this point, there was a sense of loneliness that I had never experienced before.  Looking back it was likely a combination of not being able to communicate with virtually anyone and being situated in a totally unfamiliar location. Few signs were legible. I couldn’t read the Cyrillic alphabet and I remember texting our Pastor and saying that I was beginning to get a sense of the culture shock that missionaries might feel. I even got a new appreciation for the loneliness Sharon must have felt when she first arrived in Canada from Ireland not knowing anyone – with people, stores and products completely unfamiliar.

But there was an upside to this day and the days to follow, and Sharon and I made the most it, walking and talking. Though I probably would not pick Kyiv as a honeymoon destination, the hours we spent (and would spend) walking and talking was good for us as a couple.  We shared our fears and worries with each other and prayed with each other, and for each other more than we had ever before and honestly have been able to since. We could be together – just together with really no distractions. We had no opposite shifts to contend with for now – and it was good, really good!

Finally 6:00 pm December 7th arrived. Our bags were ready and the door bell rang. Inna  arrived with our driver to take us to the train where we would catch up with Yana who would be accompanying us to Odessa. Excitement was mounting as what had actually become very familiar in a few short days was being abandoned for . . . we had no idea what!

At the train station we were handed our tickets and advised to keep them and our luggage secure . . . you guessed it: because of a high prevalence of theft. There was no time or need to sit as we were quite promptly boarding and directed to our cabins. We were shown how to secure our cabin while we slept from the inside because . . . you guessed it the high risk for theft! Oh my!! How many more reminders did we need?

Our Train Cabin from Kyiv to Odessa. We slept well and felt very safe

We made the most of this new experience visiting until we were too exhausted. I slept remarkably well, waking a couple of times as the trained slowed and stopped upon entry into other urban areas. It seemed like no time at all and Yana was knocking on our cabin door instructing us to get ready to depart the train as it was approaching the Odessa station. It was still dark in the early morning and we still had about an 1.5 hour car ride yet to reach our destination. We traveled south and west from Odessa following the coast of the Black Sea. The ride was quiet as we experienced Ukrainian rural roads (that made me promise to never complain about Manitoba roads ever again!) and a December sunrise, catching glimpses of our new landscape.

Having arrived at Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi, our driver and facilitator searched for accommodation, which appeared from what we could gather was proving to be a bit of a challenge. What she felt was adequate for our North American taste was either full or undergoing renovation, or not secure enough, or too far from the Orphanage. She really had no idea how easily satisfied we could be, but I did appreciate the fact that she certainly had our comfort and safety at heart.

She finally settled on the Fiesta Hotel with the understanding that we would get 3 nights in one room and then be moved to another room for the remainder of our stay. I never questioned or complained but was always puzzled why, because we spent 7 and a half weeks sleeping in small twin beds with bed covers that would always slide off in the middle of the night. We look back and chuckle now. The hotel had a small but very fine restaurant on the main floor which we were encouraged to use and strongly discouraged from walking about after dark.

The view from our bedroom window at the Fiesta Hotel. Rob coming down for a walk.

We obeyed this rule for about a week and then we began to explore and find places to eat throughout the town that were cheaper and equally as good. One in particular  soothed our taste buds when our longing for familiar foods became unbearable. Were we careless or were we exercising faith . . . I will let you be the judge as we share about life in Bilhorod-Dnistrovskyi for the next 7 and half weeks in later posts.

We had a few hours to get settled and freshen up, before our driver and Yana would take us to the Office of Children’s Services where we would be asked even more questions and if all went well there, we would then be escorted to the orphanage to meet the children.

The Director at the Office of Children’s Services who met with us, had a very warm and motherly presence.  I would guess she was probably 45-50, and dressed in a full length black fur coat and hat to accompany us in the taxi to the orphanage. She didn’t speak a word of English, but she smiled, laughed and talked continuously to us through Yana. Sharon impressed her with a few phrases in Russian (Sharon’s style – she has an amazing gift of being able to pick up language) and by showing her the Shutterfly book of pictures of our Canadian home and family. The Director of Children’s Services even told Sharon, that Sharon reminded her of one of her favorite Russian actresses as she looked so like her! We googled the actress later when we had wi-fi and there was a striking resemblance in years gone by, but that resemblance has currently diminished as her Russian look alike has a couple of decades on Sharon.

Finally it was time to go and meet our children! Sharon will tell you what happened next…

I kept a journal for each day we were in the Ukraine. December 1st was Day 1 and so on. It was fortunate that we arrived on the 1st of December as it made it really easy to know how many days we spent there using my method of recording.

Days 1-3. We had lots of paperwork to do before we had our appointment at the SDA  (State Department of Adoptions) office. On the Saturday we travelled on a bus across town with Inna, to the notary to sign our Power of Attorney over to Yana, who we hadn’t met as yet. By doing this, we gave Yana legal authority to act in all our affairs. There is a great deal of trust involved in international adoption but we trusted our agency in Canada and so it was relatively easy to trust these girls because of this. The bus ride was an interesting experience to say the least. We stood for the complete journey, probably about 20 minutes, so close together with other people that there was barely room to turn. All the seats were already full and they just kept adding more people. I thought this would be a haven for pickpockets! To pay for the fare, Inna took some notes from her bag and passed them to the person standing next to her and then the money passed hand to hand until we assume it reached the bus driver. We hope it did! We couldn’t actually see the driver.

Signing over our Power of Attorney to Yana, who was as yet a stranger

While we had enjoyed exploring Kyiv with our new friend Dimi or meeting with Wes and Kim Janzen, our newly discovered cousins, now it was time to focus on the real reason we were here: To bring our family home!

Walking around the city at night.

Day 4. We got a text early Sunday morning from Wes Janzen asking us to join himself and Kim at a church service held at 50-52 Tvorchykh Kolektyviv Tarasa Shevchenko Boulevard at 2:00 pm. We set off walking but quickly realized we were not sure how to find this address and it was very cold to be out walking around. We finally gave up and hailed a taxi and for 150 Ukrainian Hryvnia (pronounced Greevna) about 7 Dollars and 50 cents Canadian, the driver took us there. Now we were too early but we sat and waited for people to come. What beautiful singing!

Kim and Wes greeted us with hugs and told us they were expecting an important official from Canada to speak at the service this morning. This person was a mayor and would be meeting with the Mayor of Kyiv and other mayors in the region throughout the incoming week. Imagine our total surprise when in walks our friend and Mayor of our own town, Mayor Chris Goertzen. He greeted Rob with a hug and I’m sure all the people there thought we had something to do with the mayoral meetings too! Later Rob and I joined Wes and Kim for lunch. We spent the remainder of the evening with them and they walked part way home with us when it was time for us to leave. Wes took us into St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral on the way back to meet his good friend and head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Ukraine, Patriarchate Filaret. The congregants singing, all acapella, was just so beautiful and incredibly moving. It was impossible not to feel a deep sense of worship and praise for our God and Savior Jesus as we stood and listened.

Mayor Chris Goertzen, of Steinbach with Rob. Wes & Kim Janzen, our much-loved Cousins!

Day 5. Our SDA appointment was set for December 5th, 2016 at 1100 am. Rob and I made the decision to fast from food and media devices in anticipation of our appointment so we could be more in prayer, and hopefully more in tune with which file we should  choose when the time came. We also prayed that the Lord would take the choice out of our hands. We had been told that we would probably be given up to 5 or 6 files to look through and then be expected to make our selection. I know that is the way it is usually done but the thought of this just seemed strange and incredibly difficult for both Rob and myself. How could we look at pictures of children in need of a ‘forever family’ and not want to bring them home? Thus the reason for fasting and praying: That God would take the choice from us.

December 5th 2016  In my journal I wrote the following:

Praying, The words from the song, ‘Glory to the King of Kings, even now’ comes into my head. I believe this is from the Holy Spirit. I believe that today we need to be joyful as I recount the way and steps Jesus has brought us to get to this point. Jesus thank You that You will continue to be faithful!

We were met at our apartment quite early that morning by both our translators. Inna and Yana accompanied us on the walk across town to the SDA office. I wondered if they thought we were about to make a run for it:). It was quite a distance on that cold December morning but walking is how many people get around the city and we had time. So much time in fact that they both suggested to us that we join them at a coffee shop for something to eat before our appointment. Neither of them seemed to think it strange when Rob and I just had a glass of water and no food. I’m sure they thought we were just nervous. I bet they see lots of nervous prospective parents!

Finally only fifteen minutes before our appointment time, we went back and through the door of the SDA office. The reception was not set up to be visitor friendly. The foyer was draughty and cold and more corridor like than waiting-room like, with old worn brown leather sofas that were not at all comfortable to sit on. Yana explained to the receptionist why we were there, filled out our names on a ledger and we sat there and waited…. and waited….and waited.

Finally after what seemed like an eternity at around 1:00 pm it was our turn and we were shown into an office-like room. It was very small but warmer and much more comfortable than the waiting area. There was a sofa, a couple of chairs and a small table and even some plants. The female SDA official started to ask us some questions through Yana, our translator. ‘Why did we want to adopt from Ukraine?’ ‘What sort of things can we offer a child/children?’ I can’t remember much of what I answered but I told her that we lived about 2 miles from a Ukrainian town (I didn’t say it maybe had 5 houses, 2 churches and a liquor store). I also told her that over 16 % of Manitoba’s population have Ukrainian roots. Then I showed her a book I had made on Shutterfly with pictures of our other children over the years, our home where our new children would be living and pictures from around our yard. This really seemed to impress her as she took her time and looked through it.

Finally she said she had a group of three siblings for us to look at. She opened a brown file folder that was sitting on the table and passed us some papers with the pictures of the children. I looked and immediately saw the picture of the little girl. She was 12 years old, looked about 9 years old and was a thin as a rail! And more amazingly, she was the same little girl who the Lord shown me in a vision almost 10 months earlier! I kept telling Rob to look at her, ‘Look at her hair, look at her dress’. The official must have thought I was losing it as she looked at me with a puzzled frown and asked me ‘What do you mean?’. The only thing I could think to say on the spur of the moment was that she reminded me of my daughter. Which was true! (The daughter God had shown me) but she also looked very like Tracey, our next youngest daughter and I mentioned that too.

There were pictures of the 2 boys in there also. The oldest boy was 10 and the youngest one was only 5 years old! The 5-year-old was not officially released for international adoption as yet but if we adopted the others, she said, then he would be as they will not separate siblings. They were adorable! Rob and I asked questions and looked at the file and then the official said something to Yana to translate to us. She said ‘she wasn’t going to waste any more of her time showing us more files’. Then she stood up and left us alone for a few minutes with the pictures of the children and our translator Yana. Rob and I looked at each other. ‘You know something’ Rob said leaning over and taking my hand. ‘He just answered our prayer, He took the choice away from us!’

A ‘five year old’ I thought, Wow! ‘This was going to be like having one of our grandkids at home all the time’. Was I up for this? We looked at their pictures again. They were all very small and thin for their ages and their faces looked scared and pinched but I couldn’t wait to meet them!. We learned from the SDA official that they had just become available for international adoption on November 18th 2016, just over 2 weeks earlier. They had been available for domestic adoption for over a year already but no one had shown any interest in adopting them.

When we eventually came back to the reception area, Inna was still there waiting for us. She said something very strange when she heard we had accepted the referral for these 3 children. She said when she was translating our paperwork from English into Ukrainian and Russian, she noticed we had initially said we wanted 2 children and then we upped it to 3. I really don’t remember doing that, nor do I have any written record of doing that but it doesn’t matter even if I did. I just ‘felt’ it would be 3 children. ‘Lord You have an amazing plan for the lives of these children!’  We already knew the stats: Over 60% of girls are trafficked into prostitution on leaving the orphanage, over 70% of boys end up in organized crime and 10% of all orphans will commit suicide before their 18th birthday. How utterly heartbreaking!

Day 6. Tuesday 6th December 2016 -We are getting ready to travel to Odessa by train. If there are no issues, we leave tomorrow night. Today we need to pick up the referral letter from the SDA office at 4:00 pm. Without it we will not be allowed to visit the orphanage or meet the children.

We, accompanied by Yana, arrived early as usual for our coveted appointment, only to find out the male official who would issue the referral letter was out of the office and would not return until much later in the evening. We stayed in the office as long as we could and then we were put out of the office onto the street as they were closing up for the evening. We had to wait in the cold entrance way. Another couple were there also. We got into conversation with them as we waited as we heard them talking in English with their translator. They were from the USA. They were also there to pick up a referral letter and this was their third adoption. This time they were adopting a 7-year-old female with HIV. They said we will adopt again…words of prophesy perhaps?

The man and the all important referral letter finally appeared. We leave Kyiv tomorrow evening on the train for Odessa. It truly amazes me the way things work here. No urgency about appointment times unless it’s from our side. Inna referred to this as ‘Hurry up and wait!’

Just a sign I thought was interesting that we saw in a restaurant bathroom when we were exploring Kyiv. The toilets also are very different to what we have here in Canada. I couldn’t resist putting a picture of it in our blog!

We had all day to spend just waiting for the taxi to come and take us to the train station later that evening, so we walked around and tried to see as much of Kyiv as we could by ourselves to pass the time. Kyiv is such a beautiful city and under other circumstances I would have loved to have spent more time here but now I just wanted to get on that train and go meet the children. Our bags were all packed and waiting at the door of our apartment. I had cleaned the apartment while Rob made breakfast that morning.  I even recorded the ‘menu’ in my journal! Fried buttered bread (we didn’t have a toaster), fried garlic sausage, fried eggs, local cheddar cheese, cherry tomatoes, Kefir (for me as Rob doesn’t like this fermented milk drink) apple/carrot juice and green tea! If we had a cardiologist he or she would have a fit! Quite a feast but in reality just to use up all the leftover food in our small fridge so we didn’t end up throwing it away. Can you spot the plates of food on that busy tablecloth?

We explored St. Volodymyr’s Cathedral again and spent ages looking around the shops in the Metrograd, Kyiv’s underground shopping mall. When we had enough of that, we headed back to our apartment. We had supper at Boulanger, a little French themed coffee shop just around the corner from where we had been staying. We hadn’t needed lunch due to the wonderful breakfast. Back at the apartment just in time for our driver to come and get us. Rob will tell you what happened next.

My ‘Healthy’ Supper 🙂

November 16th, 2016.  We received confirmation that our appointment with the State Department of Adoptions in Kyiv had been set for December 5th at 1100 am. Though Sharon had our bags packed for months, it seemed like there still was so much to do before our departure: plan an early Christmas gathering and gift exchange with our children and grandchildren, finalize house sitting arrangements and finalize airfare.

Katie Taylor with adoptionairfare.com was a total blessing to deal with as she totally alleviated travel arrangement stress. We could never thank her enough.

Sharon and I had only shared our plans to adopt with a few individuals up until this point: our Bible Study group and our Pastor.  Knowing that the journey we were embarking on did not guarantee a joyful return home with children, we were guarded and reluctant to share our story initially. Even now with an official appointment set to meet our potential new children,  there was an uneasiness that something could still derail the process.  We had heard rumors of couples returning home empty handed and how defeated we would be if that were to happen to us.  None the less it was time to let “the cat out of the bag,” so to speak.

We planned an early Christmas gathering with our kids, knowing we would be spending the holidays in the Ukraine. Our children did wonder why Christmas was planned so early, a whole month ahead to be precise.  Suspicions were easily dismissed as both Sharon and I are nurses, and the plague of shift work really plays havoc with holiday time, often meaning our family gatherings are more loosely based around the actual holiday date.

Sunday, November 27th we gathered together to celebrate our Saviors birth and create Christmas memories for 2016. As the evening was winding down with the grandchildren engrossed in their presents and moms and dads looking on, I got every ones attention: “Your mom and I have something we want to share with you,” I said, trying to sound confident and controlled. ‘I hope you’re not going to have another baby,’ Michael remarked with a smile, ‘Yea, we have enough brothers and sisters,’ David added laughing.

Both our hearts sank as we looked at each other feeling completely deflated.  I glanced down at Sharon, she returned my glance and this was one time I could read her mind like none other.  She was experiencing the same degree of anxiety about our announcement as I was, given the initial response that we had just received.  I gently rubbed her back to try to ease her worry, I took a deep breath and with a trembling voice my words tripped over themselves, ‘There is very special song your mom and I would like you to listen too.’  With that I started the YouTube video of “Kings and Queens” by Audio Adrenaline. As the song played, Sharon and I were filled with emotion, tears streamed down our cheeks. As I glanced around the room I could tell our emotional display combined with the words of the song had everyone bewildered. The expressions each wore displayed the rhetoric; ‘What on earth is going to happen next?’

Whoa oh, whoa oh oh oh

Little hands, shoe-less feet, lonely eyes looking back at me
Will we leave behind the innocent to grieve
On their own, on the run when their lives have only begun
These could be our daughters and our sons
And just like a drum I can hear their hearts beating
I know my God won’t let them be defeated
Every child has a dream to belong and be loved

Boys become kings, girls will be queens
Wrapped in Your majesty
When we love, when we love the least of these
Then they will be brave and free
Shout your name in victory
When we love, when we love the least of these
When we love the least of these

Whoa oh, whoa oh oh oh
Whoa oh, whoa oh oh oh

Break our hearts once again
Help us to remember when
We were only children hoping for a friend
Won’t you look around these are the lives that the world has forgotten
Waiting for doors of our hearts and our homes to open

Boys become kings, girls will be queens
Wrapped in Your majesty
When we love, when we love the least of these
Then they will be brave and free
Shout your name in victory
When we love when we love the least of these
When we love the least of these

Whoa oh, whoa oh oh oh

If not us who will be like Jesus
To the least of these
If not us tell me who will be like Jesus
Like Jesus to the least of these

Boys become kings, girls will be queens
Wrapped in your majesty
When we love, when we love the least of these
Then they will be brave and free shout your name in victory
We will love, we will love the least of these
We will love the least of these
We will love the least of these
We will love the least of these
We will love the least of these
We will love the least of these

The 4 minutes or so that it took for the song to play provided me with the necessary time to build up the courage to inform all of the family together that we were en route in 3 days to the Ukraine and would be bringing back some new siblings for them, although the exact number was not yet determined. Despite the initial and innocent jesting, our children were all very responsive and supportive.  Tears began to flow, the hugs and support we felt were amazing. We were absolutely surprised: stunned more like it. Michael and David both were very quick to say,  “Oh mom we are so sorry, we were only joking. This is amazing.” ‘We love you guys’. We both finally allowed ourselves to release the breath we had been holding since the song began to play.

Wow! What a whirlwind, now on the evening of November 29th we were off to Winnipeg in preparation for our international journey. We would spend the night in a hotel near the airport and catch a shuttle for our flight the following day.  My last shift at the hospital was actually the very day we headed to Winnipeg. I arrived home about 8:30 pm and quickly changed. Then I loaded our luggage which Sharon had so thoroughly and diligently packed. Our friends Dean and Kaylene were such a blessing as they brought our vehicle home from the airport and looked after the key transfer for our house sitters and periodically checked on things for us.  It is times like these that one recognizes the importance of friends!

Our flight was not until 12:55 pm November 30th, so this gave us time to relax and somewhat energize for the long journey ahead. A much needed break after all the emotions expressed only days prior. We spent the day emotionally preparing. The relief we felt, (now of being able to share this journey with our children) and the excitement as we got ready to depart was overwhelming but served to spur us on.  We were off with the collective support and prayers of our children, care group and church leadership team.  Winnipeg to Toronto, Toronto to Frankfurt, Frankfurt to Kyiv.

December 1st at 1:15 pm we arrived at the Boryspil Airport on time . . .  what a lost feeling! The airport was different from any other airport I had experienced with next to no signage in English. After collecting our luggage, clearing security and customs, our eyes anxiously scanned for an unfamiliar face that was to be holding a sign with our family name. We saw no sign! ….but wait a minute: could that be? . . . A man holding a sign!  It would not hurt to ask. Sure enough: we found our driver. We had initially not recognized that the sign was intended for us as they had spelled our name wrong. Van was loaded with all of our luggage and we were off!

Though we made the 30 minute drive into Kyiv in good time with reasonable traffic, the city centre however was a different story. The main downtown thoroughfare, Khreschatyk Street was closed to traffic, forcing our driver into the narrow side streets. It seemed every route our driver took was blocked! He repeatedly apologized in broken English for all the delays. Inna our interpreter, waiting at our accommodation was beginning to wonder when we would arrive and continued to call our already flustered driver.

It was nearly 6:00 pm when we arrived at our apartment, five hours after we had landed.!  Two exhausted travelers with the help of an enthusiastic Ukrainian driver managed to unload our luggage in record time. Ready, finally, for some peace and quiet. NOPE! wishful thinking on my part, it was off on a tour of the market with Inna so we would know where to buy groceries and would have food for breakfast! We did not get 1 block before I was approached by riot police in full gear, holding automatic rifles who abruptly asked me to display the contents of the bag I was carrying.  I was carrying the bag that would be used to bring back any groceries we would purchase if I didn’t get thrown in the slammer! I hadn’t a clue what they were saying. Inna quickly intervened explaining why we were here. The police officers smiled, I opened and showed them my empty bag, they shook our hands and away we went. What an introduction to the homeland of our soon to be children!

Our facilitator informed us that our apartment was very safe as the Finnish Ambassador lived in the adjacent apartment. And our entrance had double steel doors, the outer door having multiple dead bolts (9 in fact: we counted!).  If nothing raised questions regarding safety, the presence of overt security in the doors certainly did.

We had 4 days to explore, recover from jet lag and pray. I was very burdened about the coming selection of our children, that would be based on photos in a file. Ukrainian Law dictates that no prospective parents may see children or photos of children until arriving for the first appointment with the SDA office in Kyiv, Ukraine. This meant that we had no information on who we could be considering to adopt at this point.  How could I choose one and not another?  The thought almost seemed immoral and the pressure was overwhelming.

Sharon and I began to pray in earnest that somehow God would take the choice out of our hands and simply choose for us. For four days that was our prayer: ‘Lord give us the children you want us to have’. So during those 4 days we explored Kyiv: the city of contrasts. Friends in our  home church had a contact in Kyiv – how reassuring it was to connect with Dimi who knew the city and culture and who spoke English. He provided us with tips on how to maintain our safety and even directed us to a local free tour of ancient Kyiv.  We visited such landmarks as St. Sophia’s, St Michaels, and St Vladimir’s Cathedrals, Shevchenko University, Globus Department Store – the single most expensive store I have ever been in – we did not buy anything!

St Michaels

Schevchenko Universiyt

Globus Department Store

St Sophias

Independence Square, The Golden Gate, The Bessarabsk Market at the intersection of Khreschatyk Street and Shevchenko Boulevard.

We attended an Ukrainian worship service by Music Ministry Ukraine, led by the conductor of the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra, Wes Janzen, who it turns out is married to a distance cousin of mine. The blessing of this contact only becomes more amazing as our journey progresses.

December 5th, we walked across the city to the SDA office with Inna and Yana. Yana one of our translators would be accompanying us in our appointment and to the orphanage later.  There was a quiet calm that rested over us. We arrived early for our 1100 am appointment and . . . we waited . . . waited and we waited with much trepidation until finally at 1300 it was our turn.  Sharon will describe what happened next.

April and I finally got my Canadian Citizenship. The exam was in January but the actual ceremony didn’t happen for a few more weeks. It will make the adoption process smoother I hope. Only one country’s passports to deal with! I also had the honor of being one of the two speakers at the ceremony. In my speech, made in both English and French, I talked about my journey here and what it meant for me to become a Canadian citizen today. What an amazing privilege to live in a country where we have freedom and democracy! Afterwards we went for fish and chips with family and friends who had been able to join us. What a wonderful day!

Sunday April 10th 2016. We were in church and the worship group played the song by Phil Wickham, ‘This is amazing grace’. When it got to the line “He makes the orphan a son and daughter’ Rob squeezed my hand and I started to cry. I am so thankful my husband shares this desire to adopt. We can’t wait to be a ‘forever family’!

April 19th 2016. Off to Brandon Manitoba for three days of union meetings. Using this as a time for refreshment and change of scenery and a ‘total get away ‘ from all things relating to adoption. I know this must sound crazy but I think it’s also heathy. The last few weeks have been filled with busy running around getting all the required paperwork assembled and blood tests and so on.

Enjoyed seeing the farmers prepare the fields for seeding as we travelled. So nice to have a good friend and co-worker along for company, a safe journey, fantastic food, a comfy bed and a clean hotel room! Lots of interesting topics regarding healthcare and animated discussion among several hundred other nurses from across Canada.

Getting our own garden ready to plant. Rob put a nice fence up to keep unwelcome visitors (aka Deer) out.

April 25th 2016. Mailed our paperwork for request for immigration for our yet unknown children to Citizenship and Immigration Canada today. As we have been approved for three children, I applied for three, fully aware it may be only one or two but I feel it will be three. I finally completed it on Saturday past, despite feeling unwell with a bad head cold and sore throat. Hope I didn’t make any mistakes! Guess I’ll find out soon enough if they need any corrections.

April 28th 2016. Got an email from our adoption agency to say they had been contacted by immigration to inform them that our papers had arrived safely. Thankful!

May 12th 2016. Received an email at work to say immigration part one had been approved for our as yet unknown children! This is wonderful! I had read that immigration approval can take up to 34 months and we got ours in just two and a half weeks! Surely the Lord’s Hand is in this!

Saturday May 15th 2016. ‘M’ came out to complete our home-study. Male or female, 1-3 children, ages 5-15 years. Finally!! Home study completed and all that remained was printing and signing! Then off for checking to ensure no errors and then it would go to be translated with the attached police checks and other paperwork. We also need to make another payment to the agency as per the schedule.

May 24th 2016. Lamentations chapter 2 verse 19. ‘Arise, cry in the night as the watches of the night begin. Pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord. Lift up your hands to Him, for the lives of your children who faint from hunger at the head of every street’.

May 29th 2016. I was in the shower this morning and I was thinking (aka probably more like stressing if I’m being honest) of all our paperwork and hoping it would get to who needed to see it and if we would get the correct child/children for us if it takes too long and so on. A chorus came into my head, ‘He knows my name, He knows my every thought, He sees each tear that falls and hears me when I call’. Why am I so slow to learn this?

God, You have been providing for us at every step. Working in ER and not being home till almost 1:00 am some mornings is somewhat tiring and can be stressful but very enjoyable as I love my job (well not the getting home late part), But might be a bit much when we adopt. A position came up at the PCH and I applied for it; a 0.7 EFT. The interview was to be conducted in French by French Language Services as it is a fully bilingual position. I felt that if the Lord provided the job, then He would give me the abilities I need to be able for it. I had 3 days or so to brush up on my French (I already make an effort to communicate in French at work) and then the interview on Monday. Wednesday I went back to work and my facility manager told me I had the job! Every step!

June 10th 2016. “Without You I fall apart, You’re the One who guides my heart’ ‘I need You oh, I need You, every hour I need You, My one defence, My righteousness, Oh God how I need You’ Am I to seek You more? Not focus so much on what’s going on around me? I need to trust You. Today Rob and I prayed against anything that would come against us and we cast it away in Jesus Name! Rob has this faith to believe and I am grateful! The words of the song above continue to speak peace to my heart. I need Him! My fear is selfish and sinful. I think on me, about how I will feel, how I will cope. ‘Lord protect me from this and forgive me. Jesus, You put the desire in both our heart to adopt, You gave us the song ‘Kings and Queens’, You made all the paperwork come together and put people in our path to encourage us. You made the immigration get approved so fast. You released Rob from his financial obligation so we could adopt siblings. You gave us a doctor who is following You and encourages us in this and You gave us clear blood tests. You provided jobs that we need to be able to do this and You provided the financing for us, savings and loans….You, You, You… Really and I’m stressed? Why? My tears fall… ‘I want my children…. but You already know that’.

July 6th 2016. Facing a Postal strike and we needed our 18-year-old sons’ fingerprints taken for a criminal record check as he still lives with us. The commissioner is only available 2 days a week to perform finger printing. Though the prints are electronically scanned to Ottawa, the results are returned by mail. Postal workers are scheduled to begin revolving walk-outs on Saturday, July 10th. We had the prints done on Monday June 27th and we have 9 business days to receive the appropriate documents back from RCMP national office.

July 9th 2016. I was exceedingly anxious about the possibility of  further and indefinite delays. As I expressed my fears to Rob – the Lord’s still and comforting voice assured Rob that we would have them before Friday July 9th. Rob assured me with the words, ‘Sharon don’t worry we will have them before Friday.’ Praise God, the returned documents were in our mailbox on Wednesday July 6th, and we had them at the Adoption Agency on Friday. God did even better than us having them by Friday; He made sure they were where they needed to be by then. What a Faithful God!

July 19th 2016. Today we got amazing news! We received an email to say the Canadian Embassy in Kyiv, Ukraine has been contacted to say we are approved to adopt!!! ‘Mustard seed faith, Father make it grow into a tree’! I am so blessed by my husband and how he is listening to God in all this.

Granddaughter Grace helping take weeds to the compost pile. Our Garden is Growing!

July 21st 2016. Jesus once again, You are faithful, despite all my doubts and unbelief. Today we got an email saying that the agency in Ukraine had picked up the approval documents from the Embassy. Waiting on the next steps..so excited! I can hardly wait to meet our new family!

August 4th 2016 Thursday. I feel like I am on a roller coaster! I learned today that we need to get updated copies of letters from our bank, employer and real estate agent. Will this paper chase never end? It’s stressful and I’m working a 16 hour shift today. Will I get to it tomorrow. I have to!

August 5th 2016, Friday. Have a hair appointment booked for this am. Then I will continue the document chase. I prayed as I sat in the stylists chair. ‘Lord give me success and enable me to connect with those I need to’. He came through again. I emailed our Corporate office when I was having a trim, and within 30 minutes, I had an updated copy of our employment verification and income waiting for me at the front desk. I stopped at the bank and as I entered the manager saw me and invited me into her office and typed out the letter I needed so I was out the door again inside 10 minutes. I had texted John G. at the real estate offices and he told me he was going to be in and out all day as he had lots of scheduled showings. As I drove into the parking lot on the off-chance of seeing him, his SUV pulled up beside me and I let him know also what I needed him to complete. Done!

August 8th, 2016 Monday– After all the frantic running around before the weekend, our agent will not be in the office today to bring the updated documents to. What a bummer! He said he possibly could meet us at 4.00pm but that would be the earliest and if not then, it would be tomorrow. How frustrating, all the appeared delays and then I remember that the Lords’ timing is perfect and He is preparing our family for us at just the right time. After much debate, we called our agent and said 4:00 pm will be fine, and he said he actually can meet us at 3.00pm if that still works for us! It sure does! I want to get these documents delivered and out of my hands! God is faithful! They will be notarized tomorrow and then off to the Embassy in Ottawa. The SDA office in Kyiv, Ukraine will re-open from summer vacation by the last week in August and hopefully our dossier will be ready by then. ‘Jesus help me to see You working, even in the delays!’

August 10th Monday– Today we received the wonderful news that our documents have been notarized and that our agency has an appointment with officials in a Ukrainian Ministry to authenticate the dossier and then it will be on its way to Ottawa! ‘Jesus go with our papers and take them to the desk of the person that needs to see them. In all this, You are teaching me to trust’.

August 16th Tuesday. Today I was feeling discouraged by reading some adoption blogs as to timeline and when things will happen. I would really like to know for sure that our dossier made it to Ottawa. God gently reminded me that He is faithful. ‘I’m holding on to Your promises’ came very clearly to mind. ‘Thank you for Your gentle reassurance Jesus, that You are in this’. We listened to our song again, Kings and Queens by Audio Adrenaline. ‘Give us love and grace to totally love the children that You have already picked out for us Father’.

August 23rd, 2016-Tuesday– Today I was thinking about our paperwork and I had considered emailing our agency to see if there was any news but I decided to wait. ‘See God, I’m learning to be patient’. This evening I got notification that our dossier had been received back in only 1 week, it normally takes 2. I went into the room where I have been taping drywall seams and prayed for the children who will bless our lives. ‘Lord make it clear when we get there and help us be open to whom You have chosen for us’.

August 26-Friday– Paid the first part of the Ukrainian fees today. As we were leaving the office, got a text to say our documents arrives safely in Ukraine! It’s getting closer!

August 27th Saturday– Today I was reminded that God uses the most unlikely people to do His bidding. He used Jonah who didn’t want to go and tell the Ninivites to repent. He used David, a shepherd boy, who later became King in Israel and who did some really bad stuff but God was pleased to call him a man after His own heart!. He used Rahab, a prostitute, to hide the Lord’s spies and then had her included in the lineage of Jesus. He used Mary, a young and insignificant peasant girl to be the mother to His Son. And for some reason, He is using Rob and I. We who have been through divorce, remarriage, blended families and each of us with lots of faults. He can take all this mess and make something beautiful. He really is a God of second chances. The key is to be willing.

September 1st, 2016-Thursday- at 2230. ‘Tonight I feel Lord that You are continuing to teach me patience and to trust You more‘. On the drive home from work I was reminded on CHVN, our local Christian radio station, from Numbers 23:19, ‘You will not forget and has He not said and will He not do it’?. Then later that night in my devotions, Habakkuk chapter 2 verse 3. ‘Though it linger, wait for it. It will certainly come and will not delay!’.

September 6th. 2016-Tuesday– Today we got the very good news that our dossier has been translated and delivered to the SDA office in Kyiv, Ukraine! Now we wait for an appointment!!! My friend Anne came to visit today and to get an update. I shared with her what God has been doing so far. She said it is like adding stones to our ‘altar’, like in the Old Testament, where they set up stones in a pile and when they looked at those stones it would be a reminder of what God had done for the people of Israel. All my recording of our journey is like that. I can look back and see what God has done.

September 23rd, 2016-Friday– Trudie F. called to tell me that the Kyiv Symphony Orchestra will be playing in Manitoba this weekend. Rob is working and I don’t want to go alone. I have the email address of Wes Janzen who is their director. I sent an email and find out by return that Kim, his wife, is a distant cousin of my husbands. Small world, coincidence or not?

October 6th, 2016 Thursday– Great excitement at our home! Received news that approval of our adoption has been granted by SDA in Ukraine. This is the news we have been waiting for. Now we need a date!!!.

October 9th, 2016 Sunday– Listening to CHVN and Lisa Harper with Focus on the Family on my way home from work. She has adopted a little girl from Haiti as a single mother of 47 years. ‘Do not be discouraged’ she says ‘Do not listen to naysayers. She had some people say some horrible things to her when they heard she was adopting. Even people in her church! Can’t believe the way some people think it’s ok to say whatever they like. Jesus calls all His people to take care of widows and orphans. It’s a command, not an option. Not a suggestion or a nice idea that we as His followers can ignore if it doesn’t suit us. I know neither Rob or I are not 25 anymore and I wouldn’t be the person I am now if I was 25!. Life has taught me some hard lessons and the pain has made me grow as a person. I hope it has made me more thoughtful and compassionate to others. Yes I’m not perfect in myself but both Rob and I are worthy in Jesus’. So encouraging!

Renovations on the upstairs bedrooms in preparation for our new children. I think they look amazing!

October 12th, 2016 Tuesday– Got the flooring finished upstairs. Reno’s are done! When we started this Rob was sure we wouldn’t have it all done in time and here we are finished with time to spare as we continue waiting on our invitation to go to Ukraine. Packing even more things into my already full bags! Waiting….

Rob working on the Roof and new Dormer windows in what would become the boy’s room.

Daughter Jody helping me strip down a beautiful old rusty antique bed frame. All our hard work paid off! It looks great! I can’t wait to meet whoever will sleep in it!

November 14th, 2016 Monday– Out with friends this evening. Later Rob asked God for a date for us to go.

November 16th, 2016 – Tuesday– We have a date!! December 5th 2016 is our appointment with the SDA in Kyiv. Rob booked our tickets. We leave Winnipeg on November 30th at 1255 pm. Excited and scared all at the same time!

November 17th, 2016 – Thursday– Got a text from my friend Kaylene to say a couple with 3 small children are returning home to Canada on furlough from working abroad and they need a place to stay. We offered them our home for when we will be gone. All they have to do is feed the cat and pay their own power bill. Otherwise our house is theirs to enjoy. Perfect timing! We get house-sitters and they get a home!

November 21st, 2016 Monday– Went to tell our respective employers we will be taking adoption leave next week. My manager is on vacation and Robs’ is covering for him so one visit was adequate. It didn’t go super well but ok. I know the timing wasn’t great with Christmas coming and the short notice but it is the best that we can do. I think it’s ok. The Lord has it all planned. The line that comes to mind is ‘Even now, the Maker of stars is holding my heart’. Can’t remember who sings that but it’s appropriate for this time.

November 29th, 2016- Tuesday– We are staying overnight at the Days Inn by the airport in Winnipeg. ‘God You have been so faithful in getting us to this point’. The position Rob applied for in the summer so he could be home in the evening with the children seems to be his! He had originally applied in August and then had not heard anything until late October when he was invited for an interview. He said it was the worst interview he had ever had and just now, as we are preparing to leave for Ukraine, he hears that he has the job! Perfect timing! This is a ‘God Thing’. An added blessing, his new position provides him with a flexible start date!. Even better as we don’t know how long we will be in Ukraine getting our children.

November 30th, 2016 – Wednesday– After a good nights sleep and an excellent complimentary breakfast, I feel quite spoiled! The hotel provided a taxi to the airport with their compliments. I’m so grateful!  Unexpectedly met friends Marlene and John who are off somewhere else. They took this picture for us. Through check in and security with no delays and we are off!!

Before we got around to adopting there were so many changes that happened in our lives and hearts. Initially I began to feel very uncomfortable with being so comfortable. I recognized this as God stirring in me, and waited for Him to reveal His plan not knowing how big exactly His ideas were. I felt Him begin to challenge me in my thinking and priorities. Where was my identity? In my beautiful home? My family, My garden?

Some of the flowers in my garden.

In my abilities? A career in Nursing that I’ve wanted since I was four years old? A husband who, to all intents and purposes, thought the sun shone out of my ears? (okay , so the last one may be a bit of an exaggeration).

Yes, I claimed to be following Jesus but what use was that if my relationship with Him didn’t make a difference in my life, let alone in the world? Where was I keeping the ‘treasure‘ that the Bible talks about ? I became restless and dissatisfied. This prepared my heart for the revelation that His plan was for us to adopt.

Rob has spoken a lot about how we came to adopt. I think he left off somewhere in November 2015 so I’m going to tell you some of what happened next.

I was driving to work in the Emergency Room one Sunday afternoon, listening to CHVN, our local radio station, playing quietly in the background. Praying, as I drove along the country roads to the hospital.

‘Jesus if this adoption is from You, I want You to bless it. If it is only our idea, I don’t want anything to do with it’. This is what I remember saying as I looked out through my windshield at the beautiful wintry sky with the sun streaming through the clouds. Right then a song started playing on the radio. I’d never heard it before but the words just burned into my heart, so relevant to our situation it felt chosen for that moment in time and my searching. I quickly grabbed my phone and pressed record as I was driving, I wanted to get a part of the words so I could look for it later on the internet. I didn’t know who the artist was or what the song was called, but the words had a profound effect on me. I started to cry as I was filled with a deep sense of worship and praise, and a total love for Jesus. How He cares for the least of these and I knew He was trusting us to do the same.

I couldn’t wait for my shift to end so I could get home to share this with Rob! I shared these lyrics with him: ‘He’s waiting on the doors of your hearts and homes to open’ and ‘Boys will be kings, Girls will be queens, wrapped in Your majesty, when we love the least of these’! God used these words to confirm His calling in our lives. I was going to be obedient whatever the cost!. This song by Audio Adrenaline ‘Kings and Queens’ became ‘our song’ throughout our whole adoption journey and beyond. On ‘bad’ days it helped refresh our spirits and center us again.

Even though this song came out after the Haiti disaster, I’d never heard it before that day. I believe God protected me from hearing it. He wanted it to be fresh and meaningful when I heard it for the first time: when He knew this daughter of His would be searching. When I asked Him: “‘Jesus if this adoption is from You, I want You to bless it’. My heart was open and prepared for His answer. I heard the lyrics for the first time at exactly the right time, when He knew that I would ask that very question on that very day and He could give me the answer in a way that would be heard.

Our initial thought on Adoption Volume. 1, was to adopt an older teen as we understood that they are the ones that are the most vulnerable and we really wanted another child. Our research had revealed that orphans ‘age out’ of the orphanage between 15 and 18 years of age, that coupled with less interest from adopting families (most families desire infants or young children) means that they are at highest risk of landing on the street. In the Ukraine that means these children without money, skills, homes or prospects are vulnerable to drug and sex trafficking. As we still had an 18-year-old still living at home, we also felt an older child might transition better and “fit” or feel attachment more easily. At that time siblings were not on our radar.

One day in late November, I said to Rob that if we could be done with a financial commitment he had for many years, we could do a sibling adoption. Later that week while sitting in church, I felt God prodding me again about adopting more than one child and I said to Rob on the way home that I think we are going about this the wrong way, that we need to step out in faith and trust God. To ‘step out of the boat’ so to speak. Rob listened and agreed. So we told our agency that siblings were now on our list. Three days later we picked up our mail in town and there was a letter confirming that the payment we had been making for almost 14 years no longer existed! The file was closed! Praise Jesus!! I repeated this over and over, while my husband sat in the driver’s seat and wept, tears falling down over the steering wheel and onto his lap as he sat there, unable to speak.

Christmas came and went and we welcomed 2016 with great excitement and anticipation and a little fear also. Our Home Study was set to start in late January and we hadn’t met our social worker yet. I made the mistake of looking up things like ‘What to expect in a home study’ on the internet. It’s a bit like what we jokingly refer to at work as ‘Google Nurse’, where someone comes to the ER thinking they have some awful disease because all their symptoms ‘match’ what they found online. This method of “home-diagnosing” unnecessarily creates much anxiety. What I found on my Google search, was enough to do the same. I’m sure there is some really good information out there but I didn’t find it on that first go around.

I was scared that our social worker would judge us for our faults and pick apart our lives. When we met her, (who I will call ‘M’), she was nothing like I imagined. She was gentle, honest, direct and fair. When we got to the talking and the difficult questions she said it was not so much about difficult and maybe even painful situations in our lives but how we came through them and out the other side. How we coped. I guess they want to know how a person handles the major stresses in life and to see how resilient one is before adding a potentially stressful adoption (which let’s face it, all adoptions are one way or another, even raising our own children was stressful at times, that’s reality). I guess God can even use our messes to His glory.

Throughout our Adoption Journey Volume. 1, I kept what I refer to as a ‘Prayer Journal’. In it I recorded my thoughts, what I felt God was speaking to me about, whether that was in the form of devotional readings, verses of scripture, visions or songs. Prayers and the answers to those prayers. Many of these journal entries are personal glimpses into my life. Please, as you read them, treat them with respect and dignity.

February 11th 2016 we met with Pastor Garry again and I was encouraged by that. He blessed us with saying that he noticed the spiritual growth in our lives. He said he sees us walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Not that we are in any way perfect, I hasten to add, and I don’t want to sound ‘preachy’ but Christianity is striving towards a goal. It’s a relationship with Jesus and a desire to follow Him in all walks of life. Another meeting with our social worker today too, and this was a difficult visit for me that brought back many painful memories and hard topics as I sought honesty and clarity about my life.

Here is an excerpt from my journal for this day, February 11th 2016…

Rob and I went for breakfast this morning in GT, a beggar stopped us in the street and asked for money, we walked on and ignored him. Seconds later God convicted me ‘If you won’t do this for the least of these’ ‘When I was hungry, did you feed Me?’ God please forgive me! I was wrong! This was my hearts cry! God did forgive me and give me another opportunity to reach out to that person. I went outside and offered to buy him breakfast.

Later that evening Rob expressed frustration with one of our older kids for taking one of his electrical cords and then leaving it outside in the snow, not returning it to the shed. Praise God for these things! He is preparing us for the difficult times with our new kids! Though a misplaced cord may be minor compared with what may come, I pray for my husband and encourage him. I told him the cord was a ‘thing’ and we need to see ‘things’ in the light of eternity. People as way more important… end of journal entry…

Another journal entry for February 22nd 2016…

I was praying tonight while in bed about something total unrelated to our adoption, when into my mind came like a video playing. I saw a young girl running up the stairs from our basement. As she ran past me she was laughing, and I stood in amazement by the island in our kitchen, as she ran to the stove. I knew it was present time as the stove was not our old junky white one but my stainless steel one that we’d just bought last October on sale. I couldn’t see her face but she had blond hair cut straight across at her shoulders. Her dress was baggy and looked too big for her. She looked about 8 or 9 years old. It was so real! She had stick thin arms and legs and was wearing sandals. There was more laughter in the basement and I thought it may have been Peter but I don’t know for sure as there sounded like more than one person down there…end of journal entry… Now here’s the crazy part!

The first time we saw our daughter Niamh was when we saw her picture above at the SDA office in Kyiv on December 5th 2016. See any similarities from what I’d written almost 10 months earlier?

Journal entry for February 23rd 2016…

‘He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name. Not one of them is missing… Isaiah 40 verse 26. In my devotions, God reminds me that His time and the way He looks at time is very different from mine. Why should we not proceed quickly with this adoption?. People got baptized immediately after believing in Jesus.

end of journal entry…

All of my devotions around this time seemed to be speaking about adoption to my heart. Its like God is pouring and bathing my heart in His word and His love for orphans.

Journal entry for March 3rd 2016…Thursday…

‘Lift up your eyes to the hills and look around you. Your sons gather and come to you. As surely as I live, declares the Lord, you will wear them all as ornaments. You will put them on as a bride’ Isaiah chapter 49 v.18.

end of journal entry…

Journal entry for March 14th 2016…Monday…

Another appointment with our social worker today. This time Rob was in the hot seat. I felt the meeting went well. It’s so hard to talk about failures. I know, I’d been in that same seat just a couple of weeks earlier. It’s difficult to continue to be honest and hope she won’t think bad of you. ‘M’ seemed really understanding. I guess she gets good at reading people in her job. I did feel frustrated though, she said we would need to re-do our criminal and police checks as it will probably take over a year yet. I know we still have lots to do in the house but I had hoped it would be sooner than that. Another year still just seems so long! I need to remember that – and this is difficult for me if I’m really trusting the Lord, then His timing will be perfect. Today we talked about ages and we said we would be ok with 5 years old to 15 years old as our age range. Hope that is wise? Last night in my devotions:

‘If you spend yourself on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, them your light will rise in the darkness and your night become like the noon day. The Lord will guide you always, He will satisfy your needs in a sun scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well watered garden, like a people whose waters never fail’… Isaiah chapter 58 verses 9-11.

WOW! Do I believe this? Really believe this?

end of journal entry…

Journal entry for March 15th 2016.

Yesterday the Dossier documents arrived and I printed them. It helps to be doing something. I find it difficult to be inactive. For the ‘Real Estate’ one I immediately thought of John G. I went in to the city this am and called ahead on my cell. He wasn’t in the office but he called me right back. He arranged a meeting at 1:00 pm. We met at his office and I explained what we needed and how it was to be worded. I was very sure that he was the person I needed to talk to. He is also an adoptive parent, a fact I didn’t know until we spoke. He told me that even though it will be hard, some days even difficult, some days even impossible, don’t give up! He also encouraged us that he would be praying for us! Isaiah 60 verse 4 says: ‘Lift up your eyes and look about you. All assemble and come to you, your sons come from afar and your daughters are carried on your arm. Then you will look and be radiant. Your heart will throb and swell with joy!

Tonight I started assembling the completed documents. Still need to get the second set of police checks done as the ones we have are only valid for six months. The just the blood work results and our tax assessments and then it will be ready to go!

end of Journal entry…

Journal entries for March 29th 2016-March 31st 2016.

Today was a bad day for me. I felt really stressed and discouraged. I thought I had all the paperwork almost completed for our dossier and now today, the 29th, I find out I need to have two of the letters re done. The wording is not quite correct for translation. It already took me a few days to get the bank and employer appointments set up. Don’t know why it should bother me, it’s only a minor delay in the whole scheme of things but it did. Maybe I’m just tired?

Today is Thursday and I feel better rested. We had the doctors visit on Tuesday past and it went well. Got the new bank letters yesterday and ordered the document we need from Land Titles. Met one of our daughters in town and she wants to come help us get the house finished. So many small things to do in regard to our renovations but we are getting there. I keep thinking of the words in the song, ‘Sin was strong but Jesus is stronger, Come let us worship Him’. Maybe I need to get myself refocused? Jesus orientated, not task orientated. This week has been busy! So much paperwork and outside influences pushing in and a very painful ear as well!  I am reminded that He knows all my anxious thoughts, all the doubts, all the longings, all the plans.

end of journal entry… And End of Sharon’s Story Part One.

Thanks for joining us!

Sharon and I began a journey to provide a forever family, for orphan children of the Ukraine, 3 years ago.  Not because we don’t have children of our own, because we do; 9 in fact, plus their 8 wonderful partners and 11 grandchildren.

Yes we are grandparents and we have recently adopted 3 lovely children from the Ukraine.

Here is how it happened.  A story that Sharon and I were inspired to live out as a result of:

• Jesus’ relentless love,
• A desire to increase our family by adoption
• a book authored by Francis Chan entitled, “Crazy Love,”
• an adoption story video, in which 3 young Ukrainian boys shared what it meant to them, to have a forever family,
• and Ukrainian orphan statistics that will break your heart:

1. There are over 100,000 orphans in Ukraine.
2. The older an orphan gets, the chances for his/her adoption drastically decrease.
3. Each year many orphans between 15 to 18-years-old leave the orphanages.
4. Most of these orphans have no one to turn to for help.
5. 10% of them will commit suicide after leaving the orphanage before their eighteenth birthday.
6. 60% of the girls will end up being trafficked into prostitution
7. 70% of the boys will enter a life of crime
8. Only 27% of these youth will find work

It was a typical cold January in Manitoba 2015, and our Care Group was deliberating on what direction to take next having just completed a series prior to Christmas. The study “Crazy Love” authored by Francis Chan was suggested – it was a unanimous YES – Who was Francis Chan and ‘Crazy Love’ sounded a little too loose for my liking. Seriously I thought my fellow Bible study folk were suffering cerebral frost bite.

My views quickly changed when Sharon and I bought our personal copy of the book. Francis challenges the reader to move beyond being merely lukewarm or living in mediocrity in the Christian faith. Francis’ premise is that believers should truly be ‘overwhelmed by the love lavished upon them by a relentless God,’ and respond to Him with the same relentless devotion. The study provoked considerable discussion and challenged our hearts. With the coming of summer our study group recessed only part way through the book.

Summer came on with its usual hectic pace. I was renovating the last 2 bedrooms on the second floor of our home in off time – a project that seemed to never end. At the end of August we ventured to Alberta to visit family. While there my sister Debbie showed us a video of a family who had adopted Ukrainian siblings. We were both touched deeply by the risk taken by the family to step out in faith to adopt. The testimony of the children sharing how much adoption meant to them brought us both to tears! We traveled home to Manitoba deeply moved – We had talked about adoption before, on and off over the years, but it seemed a rather remote and not a very likely possibility.

As our group resumed meeting in the fall of 2015 we continued through the topical study of “Crazy Love.” We arrived at chapter 8 where Francis initiates a discussion regarding the ‘The Profile of the Obsessed.’ The focus is being obsessed with Jesus – obsession Francis defines as ‘having the mind exclusively preoccupied with a single emotion or topic.‘ He teaches that the believer needs to be obsessed with Christ and to faithfully live out His words through; love for the kingdom, being risk takers for the kingdom, friends of all for the kingdom, crazy ones for the kingdom and his list goes on to encompass 12 separate facets.

The section “Crazy Ones” spoke profoundly to us as Francis shared about his burden to downsize and live simpler so he could spend less on himself and more on others – action motivated by a trip, Francis had taken to some impoverished regions in Africa. He noted that fellow believers and friends accused him of not being rational or fair to his family. Not one believer endorsed his actions or encouraged his attempt to minimize his attachment to this world and enhance his investment in the next.

It was at this point the person leading the study one evening challenged us with the question, “Has anyone here ever attempted something or thought of attempting something crazy for the Lord.” Sharon without hesitation blurted out, “Adopt an Orphan!” I was shocked at her public outburst but attempted to be supportive in the moment without displaying my  surprise. Later that evening I responded to her spontaneity, “You are really serious about adopting aren’t you?” “Yes I am,” Sharon replied.

I was left pondering and sorting through the pieces of “Crazy Love”, the adoption video we viewed at my sisters earlier in the fall, and past discussions we had regarding adoption. I resolved that the adoption of an orphan is good thing, the apostle James writes, ‘Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress . . . ‘James 1:27. The apostle Paul refers to our relationship to Christ’s kingdom of one of “adoption.” Romans 3:23, Ephesians 1:5.

Though I was quite overwhelmed with what lay ahead I knew clearly that if this was really the direction the Lord would have us go, who was I to stand in the way (over the course of the next several months the Lord confirmed his calling to adopt repeatedly to me) and if it was not of the Lord it simply would not happen. It was only a few days later when I returned from work that I asked Sharon if she had contacted the adoption agency. She replied that she had not – at that point I simply encouraged her to make the initial appointment. Needless to say, Sharon did not need any further encouragement. From that day everything began to happen in a flurry! Oct 28th, 2015 was then our first meeting with our agency and initial adoption fees being paid! Deja vu, nearly 3 years later and we are here again . . . oops that slipped out.

From there mountains of paperwork needed completion including biographies, references,  a home study with a social worker, police checks, immigration applications, medical examinations and adoption classes.

Sharon suggested that we do fund raising for our first adoption but at that time I felt strongly that if the Lord was asking us to pick up the yoke at this time then it was up to us to pick it up – so we did! At this the course was set. Sharon has some very amazing experiences to share with our readers and will do so in the days ahead.