We are re-activating our blog in honor of our son's homecoming. We got the call yesterday saying we are now officially invited to come to China and adopt An, Xiao Qing, aka Sam Sam.
We leave NEXT FRIDAY (!), the 11th of December, and Sam Sam will be in our arms on the 16th of December. He will officially become a US citizen on Christmas Day when we re-enter the USA with him at noon.
Up until yesterday, we have been fairly certain our travel to China would occur in mid-January or even early February. As you can imagine, we are extremely excited, and not quite ready for this little guy to join us. We have a little over one week to get our visas, a toddler bed, and a bunch of other stuff. But what the timing could not be better. THANK YOU, JESUS! Christmas vacation means Carina is not working, and Lidia will enjoy spending the days at her cousin's house in Sacramento a whole lot more. We'll be back home together for a week before Carina has to return to her ESL classes.
In His amazing way, the Lord has made it clear to us that we are walking in His timing and will. Prior to Thanksgiving we had been asked to read a scripture for this Sunday's advent service. We didn't know which scripture until yesterday. Here is the prophetic passage assigned to us:
Luke 1:11-17: Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."
May it be so for our son, Samuel Xiao Qing Kozaczuk.
