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Thursday, February 6, 2014

Pieces of the Puzzle

This is how I picture our Father . . . He's putting this massive puzzle together, it's not a hard puzzle, but each piece goes in it's place at the right time.  He has a gentle "I'm going to knock their socks off" grin on His face.  And, we are down here praying for each piece, not knowing when He will put the next piece down.  When He does put a piece in we do a cheer, and cry, and tell people, and tell Him that THIS IS SO AWESOME WE CAN'T BELIEVE WE GET TO WATCH THIS!!!  MORE, MORE, MORE!!!!

There was one little girl in particular that we've been rooting for.  She's verbal, smart as a whip, active, ornery, and very much loved by the nannies.  She told one of our team members that she didn't want her two friends to be adopted because then she wouldn't have anyone to play with (most of the other kids are nonverbal).  Due to her special need she is unable to go to school, we knew that she needed to be lifted up in a lot of different ways.  So we started lifting.  And God started moving . . .

By chance we came across and 'friended' a foster mother in Shenyang which is the capitol city of Liaoning Province.  This foster mother had been fostering a gorgeous little girl who was about to go and live with her forever family.  This little girl was wasting away with very little attention given to her at all in the orphanage.  She was born with designer genes and maybe, for whatever reason, the nannies didn't think she'd ever be chosen so they did not give her the nutrition and attention she needed.  Melinda took her home, fed her, got her medical attention, educated her, loved on her and now she is THRIVING and was about to meet her forever family in just a few days.

One day, Melinda, accidentally posted on one of our timelines and a conversation started about how we had been to the orphanage in Chaoyang, how we loved the children, and would she please just check on this one little girl in particular . . . she said she would.  Pieces of the puzzle . . .

Sweet little girl with the designer genes goes and lives with her forever family.  Melinda, grieving and rejoicing for the little girl, but knowing this is what our Father wants her to do - to foster and get them ready for their forever families.  Now, Melinda has an 'opening' for another child to come and be fostered.  Can you just check on this one little girl for us?  Another piece of the puzzle . . . Melinda goes to Chaoyang SWI and asks about our precious Jing who is very much loved in this orphanage, but has no future here (an orphanage has very little hope at a future no matter how good the care is - that is slowly changing but it is what it is, a family makes all the difference in the world).  Our precious foster mother requests to foster Jing.  She waits for approval and gets it.  A child we were working on getting just a tutor for now has a foster mommy requesting to do so much more! A GIANT piece of the puzzle!

 

Jing, for the first time in her life, has a birthday party to celebrate her 7th birthday!  She celebrates Christmas!  She has a foster sister and a foster brother, is learning English (she will most likely end up in an American home), is getting the medical attention she needs to see if her medical need 'needs' anything, she has an advocate getting her paper work moving so she can have her own forever family.  And, just last July she was an orphan telling us she didn't want her friends to be adopted.  Mountains moving.  Puzzles being put together.

We want to SEE what He has in store for this precious child!