September 26th - Praise Him in the Rain

The title definitely describes how I feel today - to remember to praise HIM in the rain (as well as the sunshine). It has been rainy, windy and cold here (cold at least for my standards) for the past couple of days. It is so easy to complain about the yucky weather, but I try to make an effort to look at the positive side. The winter is my least favorite season. I love summers - bring on the heat any day! However, I have learned that seasons like winter have upsides too and help us to appreciate the other seasons even more. That is how I (we) try to look at our adoption/infertility journey. It has been/is a difficult season right now, but it will make us appreciate our bundle of joy even more some day. I do not think we will take any day with our child for granted and will cherish every moment. (I am realistic in that I know it will not always be easy, but I hope that when we are faced with the hard times in raising a child that I always remember the "season" we went through to get him/her.).

Last night, I had dinner with some dear friends of mine - running buddies. They are such an encouragement to me (us). We all became friends through a common goal - training for the Richmond Marathon. We have met some of the most wonderful people through our training team. ("Nutty L" - what would we do without you?!) Tomorrow, I am supposed to run 16 miles and Malcolm is running 20 miles. It is supposed to be raining tomorrow which will add to the "fun" and determination needed to finish this feat. During the long runs, I have ALOT of time to think, pray, think and pray some more. I am very slow so, there is a lot of time to cover a lot of territory in this regard. Recently, I have tried to really use this time to pray for our child. Now, I have to admit I start down this road and tend to drift off to thinking about how big of a cheeseburger I am going to have when I am done or what toppings I want on my pizza. However, I have used this physical goal of mine as a way to focus on our adoption prayers. (Did I mention how much time I have during these runs?). I also feel like a have a team of fellow runners who are supporting us along the way. There is a lot of time to "share" as we embark upon these longer runs. :) Tomorrow will be a feat for me, but I am hoping that I will finish the run with a renewed sense of hope and peace about the gift that God will provide us when the time is right.

Thank you all for your continued support and encouragement.

Love,
Christy and Malcolm
lovingparents@live.com