Ethiopia

I titled this blog Ethiopia because this weekend at a fair trade fair we purchased a bracelet handmade in Ethiopia by a lady whom we do not know the name of. The lady who took our money told us how much the lady who made it appreciates us. It struck me and I started to wonder about this woman who took time to create this small piece of beauty. Then I said a prayer for her that she would be blessed. Then I began to think about a lady in Ethiopia giving birth to one of our children and I prayed for her also. When we were told no by the adoption agency a few months ago we were devastated. The pain was horrible. We didn't understand why God was closing the door, when we felt so clearly that he was the one opening it to begin with. But now as I look at this bracelet I think to myself that maybe, just maybe, we do have a child there, or that God's plans are to create a child there for us to be mommy and daddy to. We don't know his plan but for the first time since being told no by the agency we started praying for our children that may not be biological, but will be chosen by us simply because they were and are created to be ours. Sometimes, no most of the time, it is hard to wrap our minds around God's plan for us to be parents, or even to trust that he will allow this to happen. For now we wait, but in the midst of our waiting we add prayer.