Thankful for - How He Loves Us

My hope is increasing as my sadness to the adoption setback is decreasing. I am excited for what God is doing in our lives and eager to see how he's going to work this out for his glory. We are as certain as we can be that the call on our lives to adopt has not changed, but that we need to be willing to think more creatively than we have been.

During this season, I have made it a point to in my words and actions to force thankfulness out, even if my heart hasn't felt it one bit. And through that, praying that my heart would follow my actions.

The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8

As you all can see above I did a little home project awhile ago to put up in our home with the words "in everything give thanks". It was once again another attempt at surrounding myself with reminders that though one area of life is not going as planned, it should in no way hinder our overall joy. Where thanks is possible, joy is always possible.

We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Psalm 33:20-22

Well, the irony of all of this is that with this banner I was making it's been anything but easy to make. I was missing one letter for it, finally found it, painted everything, only to realize the letters didn't show up enough against the background color. Painted it again and ran out of spray paint. I just left it as is and glued them on the board. I want to put it over a particular door in our home and we cannot seem to find a stud in the wall. We've tried all different things and aren't positive there are any. So, it's been done for weeks but it currently is leaning against the wall next to the back door as we plan our next course of action.

Well, I got this package from an amazing friend and was so shocked. I've order something from her before, but wasn't expecting anything in the mail. So, here's what I found:

Her packaging is so creative. She uses vintage pattern paper for her wrapping.

the letter inside

The necklace!!!

This is confirmation to me that if I was ever in doubt, God is in the midst of all of this. He is in the details. He is present and he is rejoicing in my efforts to seek joy through the pain. This is not confirmation that the sorrow is over and that the pain will only subside from here, but that he promises to be with us through it all. My prayer for you and myself is this verse below.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13