“...the secret to joy is to keep seeking God where we doubt He is.”
-Ann Voskamp
+ After 2+ years of praying for two of my dearest friends, God answered both sets of prayers in one week. He brought two separate miracles-without missing the details- and landed them so masterfully at such a perfect time into their lives. The best part has been that after all those days of praying, all those days of feeling the ache and the 'why not nows?' I get to share in their joys and get to see God work. Even being an ocean away, I'm getting to do fist pumps and shed the giddy tears-this is an answered prayer in itself. +
+ Elias is ever so slowly figuring things out with sleeping and eating and existing with a crazy sister well. This all gives me hope that the constant feeling like this hard season will last forever will in fact end sooner than later. Also, while we wondered if he would be lacking in personality (or be kind of a grump- based on his tendency to blow out eardrums with his screams-) he is in fact showing us that neither will be the case. The social smiles started this past week (and they're nearly exclusively reserved for his daddy.) Yet, he just keeps getting happier and sillier. It appears we managed to produce not one, but TWO goofy kids. Also, he's a tub tub which makes things even more fun +
+ I keep thinking about the phrase "the grass is greener where you water it." So much of this season has me missing home. And yet, this season-we get to be here. God is faithful in the way he keeps leading me gently to find joy. The lonely is thick this season. Yet, God is a friend to the lonely. And it seems that, sometimes hard seasons aren't just there to try and hustle through. I'm learning that God uses hard and easy all to his glory. +
+ Eowyn is teaching me a lot these days. Having two kids has me daily praying for peace and wisdom on how to train up a little while tending to the needs of a newborn. Also, I get to experience a whole new task of reigning in my own emotions when I've got two that feel all the feels! Yet, as the days pull forward I find myself praying more boldly and less frantically (although there's still a good bit of that.) Rather than just praying to survive this season, I'm learning to see all the growth He's got for this time. If there was anything that would produce fruits of the Spirit in me (peace, patience, kindness, self control...) it's doing life with this toddler and baby. I read a quote once that went along the lines of "God hasn't called me to mother masterfully, he's called me to the master of motherhood " I'm learning to run to him in ways I didn't need to with just one little baby. For that, I'm grateful. +
+ These past few months have had an onslaught of paperwork. From getting Elias' passport/birth certificate to having to renew our resident permits and get drivers licence, Ben has managed to keep all the documents in order and get us to where we need to be on time. It's insane the amount of work he's had to do to keep all the I's dotted and T's crossed. Crazy props to that guy.
Yet, even with it-there's been stumbling. It's particularly difficult because of language barriers and the tendency for the workers to ask us for things that weren't listed as required documents. We've gone to the wrong place for appointments (because apparently when two doors are RIGHT next to each other with nothing to show a difference, it's pretty easy to go into the wrong one. Bleh,) failed to have updated enough passport photos and failed to hear our name being called (Because our names in Finnish are not nearly the same as in English)... There's just too many hoops to jump through and not enough documentation to let us in on which ones we need to go through. We know we're bound to miss a few. AND YET God has been so gracious to us. Recently, we missed our residence appointment because we were in the wrong room of the building we were supposed to be in. Yet, we still got to do both residence permits when we missed our first appointment with the immigration office. They originally told us that we would have to come back later, some 6 months later. We prayed, and 10 minutes later they suddenly became kinder and totally willing to process both my and E's permits in the 20 minute time slot. It was a crazy God thing how much the mood even changed.
Not only that, we were able to print out our own passport photos and save ourselves around 45 euro. We've gotten Elias' passport in record time, we'll be getting our license in a few weeks...just all of it. +
Yet, even with it-there's been stumbling. It's particularly difficult because of language barriers and the tendency for the workers to ask us for things that weren't listed as required documents. We've gone to the wrong place for appointments (because apparently when two doors are RIGHT next to each other with nothing to show a difference, it's pretty easy to go into the wrong one. Bleh,) failed to have updated enough passport photos and failed to hear our name being called (Because our names in Finnish are not nearly the same as in English)... There's just too many hoops to jump through and not enough documentation to let us in on which ones we need to go through. We know we're bound to miss a few. AND YET God has been so gracious to us. Recently, we missed our residence appointment because we were in the wrong room of the building we were supposed to be in. Yet, we still got to do both residence permits when we missed our first appointment with the immigration office. They originally told us that we would have to come back later, some 6 months later. We prayed, and 10 minutes later they suddenly became kinder and totally willing to process both my and E's permits in the 20 minute time slot. It was a crazy God thing how much the mood even changed.
Not only that, we were able to print out our own passport photos and save ourselves around 45 euro. We've gotten Elias' passport in record time, we'll be getting our license in a few weeks...just all of it. +
God sure is doing something.
One thing's for sure.
He's so faithful.
I'm learning that one of the quickest ways to find joy is by looking out for the ways God is actually active in our life. These posts are a deliberate effort to see that. My hope is that by taking time to write volume after volume of his small graces, I'll will create quite the little record. So, when in doubt-as I too often am- I can go back and remember how intricately involved the God we serve is.
I'm sure you are beginning to see that you are actually walking in His steps that he has left for you to see. Remember when you were little and we would follow a path or trail that was already walked through so it helped us know where to put our own steps. God is leading and guiding your sweet family and will continue to do so.....for His higher purpose in your life. Love you!
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