We are off on another adventure! After we got home from the hospital with Georgia we found ourselves with two weeks of "use-it-or-lose-it" vacation on our hands....so we are adding two more weeks to that and going on a tent-camping roadtrip for a month to Baja! Life has been so jam-packed with good stuff over the last four months (can you believe it has been that long?) and we feel like the Lord is saying, "slow down, take some time time to soak all of this in." So we head out on Friday with very little agenda on the calendar but big dreams of what God will do.
Something has been brewing in our hearts as we have prayed for this time, especially since in will encompass Christmas as well. How often do we have a whole month to just head off into the sunset with our family? What has been brewing has been this: How can we use this time to crack open our lives to God and what He might want us to do? How can we make Christmas truly meaningful for our family? How can we just pour the love and truth of God into our kids while we have this precious time? and what has come of those questions is what Doug & I are calling the "whatever" experiment. Simple put, we want our time to be a reflection of God's love to the people we meet. We do not want to have our own agenda. We are going to wake up every morning and ask God to show us what to do and we will do "whatever" that is. We want to focus on showing our kids what it tangibly means to serve others in the name of the Lord. We do this as we approach the celebration of the best gift ever given, Jesus, who was the one who came not to be served but to serve and give His life as a ransom for many. So we are going to seek out God and ask Him to show us where and how to serve along the way.
Stepping out into adoption both for Ravenna and then for Georgia has been some of the most amazing faith-building of our lives. Times where we "threw our arms open wide" and let God change it's course forever. Now that we are back in the "normal" pace of life, we hunger for that, for the unknown, for the places where you get to the end of yourself and get to see God step in...we feel Him beckoning and cannot wait to see what He has in store for us!
SO follow along and we will all see what God has in store!
Shannon, Doug, Ravenna, Parker and Georgia Mei
10 comments:
It is so refreshing to read your posts and see your photos. Thanks for keeping me in the loop. I have recently been thinking that the future of the church is very bright and hopeful with the kind of earnest young adults I know who are earnest followers of Jesus, and open about their faith and their love for Christ. You two are certainly in that group. God bless you on your "whatever" trip.
In Christ,
Ginger
This is amazing! I think it sounds like a great idea, and can't wait to follow along. You guys make Jesus smile, I'm sure.
I'm strapped in and ready for the ride...God bless all of you and be with you on this adventure.
Wendy in OH
Beautiful! I can't wait to see what happens!! We just spoke about our trip to adopt Katie Mei to her kindergarten class- and we had 3 photos of Katie and Ravenna and she was asking who her friend was. And I told her about you guys and Ravenna. She told me "I want to see my old friend Ravenna." I giggled. Me too! : )
Thanks for the update! Have the best trip ever! Merry Christmas and God Bless you, your family and your journey! Love you guys.
Have a wonderful "whatever" adventure! May the Lord direct your steps as you bless those you encounter in His name. Looking forward to reading of how He uses your family.... what an amazing opportunity! :)
Have a great trip with your family. I think that this will be such an unforgettable time for all of you. You're right, who gets to spend a whole month with just their family? I would love to have that chance someday.
Blessings to you all!
Love,
Gretchen
will be checking everyday for news of your adventure...so excited for you all!!!!!!
I love your title "whatever experiment" We are also seeking God's direction for our next adoption and feel so open to so many options that we are also asking God to show us whatever it is he wants us to do. Have a great trip!
Dear Shannon and all!
I just spent the last hour at my desk immersed in your amazing journey to bring Georgia home. I have laughed with you and cried and cried too. I praise our awesome and mighty God for his provision for your beautiful family of five! Thank you for including me in your journey. I am moved beyond words. May God bless your vacation time with much love, increasing good health, rest and much joy!!!! Love, Karola
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