TO GOD BE THE GLORY!

Well we got up early this morning because we wanted to get Sasha a present in the open air market. We picked up a cool MP3 player with games on it for him to enjoy in our absence.  We were able to give it to him after court as we said our good byes.  We told him to not worry if it gets stolen...WHICH IT WILL, but that Santa Clause is coming soon and he could get another one. 

We waited for Nastya (Ksenia's sister) to arrive by  train.  She traveled all night, 15 hours from Kiev to accompany us to court.  She was our translator and prepared us perfectly for the hour that we spent in our hearing. Nastya and Ksenia are the most amazing young ladies who love God and want to help these children find families!

When we arrived, Sasha was already there in his little blue suit, sitting  with the lawyer from the orphanage and the deputy secretary from children services.  Bless his heart....he was very serious but seemed to be ready.  When we arrived, we got our hugs and Nastya sat next to him to prepare him for the hearing.  Not exactly sure what she said to him, but he said, "dah, dah, dah."  yes, yes, yes!

Finally, we were called into the small room with the judge, prosecutor for Lutugano, 2 jury members, and the secretary or court clerk who took all the notes by hand.  The judge called the court to order and the proceeding began.

He first asked Jeff and I to state our names, birthdate and address.  Then he allowed me to sit down while he asked Jeff several questions.  Some of the questions were about education, health of parents and siblings, work history, details about our home and income.  He also asked if we had health insurance and proceeded to tell us that Ukraine did not have any health insurance.  He also asked Jeff to tell him about our other children.  After Jeff answered the question about our children and their ages, etc, he said , "And why do you NEED another child."  Jeff's response was perfect....."He said, "We have a love for children and our family has a lot of love to give and we are so blessed and want to bring Sasha to America to give him a loving family."  He also asked Jeff if he had a problem since Sasha was Ukrainian.  He said that Ukrainians are different than Americans....wow, he was wondering off into an area we didn't want to go.  He also asked Jeff why we didn't adopt in America....did they not allow us? Jeff said, "They're all God's children, no matter where they are from.."  Yes I was so proud of Jeff! 

Then it was my turn, same questions basically, as if I didn't hear Jeff's answers.  The judge told us that he was part of the Soviet Union and that Russia was a powerful country.  All and all the judge was so nice and as the questions went on, he said that he gives us credit for coming half way across the world to adopt a child. He said that even if Ukrainans had money, I don't think they would go to America to adopt.

The judge then asked the two jury members if they had any questions.  The one elderly lady said, "Do you believe in God?"  Jeff said, "Oh yes, we love God very much and are Christians."

Then it was Sasha's turn.....omg, what a brave little boy.  He had to stand up by himself as the judge asked him questions.  He said to Sasha, do you have any family memebers?  Sasha reponded that his grandma came to visit him one time and told him that he should go to America to live with his mama and papa.  He also asked Sasha how he will learn English.  Sasha said, "Mama will teach me at home."   Then he said something about why do you want to leave the Ukraine.  Sasha said he wanted to live in America with his mama and papa.

It was an hour of sweaty palms but we felt your prayers.  God got us through it and then we had to wait for about 10 minutes for the court to deliberate.  When we were called back into the small room the judge went through some formalities and asked us what our intentions were one more time.  We had to state that we wanted to adoopt Sasha as our son and take him back to America.

Wow!  It wasa amazing and so joyous!  The moment of truth!  God brought us through it and although we were nervous we truly felt a peace.

Then it was on for the ride of our lifel.  We travelled two long hours to the airport in fog.  Jeff truly almost didn't make it.  He was in the front seat but that didn't seem to help.  We were zigzagging around cars, passing on a two lane road and it was dark and foggy.  We could barely see 20 feet in front of us and when we were passing semi trucks we both truly wondered if we would ever see our airplane.  It was wild!!!!!
There could have been a car headed our way, but oh well, let's just see what happens. ha....  Needless to say we were so happy to get to the airport safely and Jeff is still shaking his head.  wow....what a day!

Finally we got on the plane and I talked Jeff through the three hours to Munich as he was still in shock. haha Then we arrived in Munich and the fun began again.  Our driver was going about 140 kilometers on a 2 lane curvy road to get us to our hotel.  If Jeff ever drove this way I would truly kill him.  World travelers we are not!  Lord please take us back to good ole' Rock Hill.  

Gotta go talk to kids on skype...love to you all,
m and j  

Monday

Praise the Lord we had an awesome day with Sasha.  Ksenia thinks that they have stopped harrassing him and maybe that is why he is beginning to act more like himself. We had to stay inside because it was cold, dreary and wet outside.  He was hilarious today and kept saying,"Papa, down up."  He was trying to say upside down.  haha.  He loves when Papa plays with him and picks him up over his head. 

He can be such a little stinker but then can turn around and give a hug that will melt our hearts.  When we were leaving he said, "mama,"  I looked back and he did the symbol that Jeff and i always use to show him we love him....so we don't have to say it outloud in front of the other boys.  Point to your eyes, make a heart and they point to him.....yes, he did it today on the way out.  OMG, I feel like we have made such strides.

We are beginning to get excited about coming home, but we have court still in the morning.  We will have court at 11:30 a.m. our time, 4:30 in the morning in South Carolina. 

We have been told that some of the questions that the judge will ask out of curiosity are, "Why do you want to adopt such an old child?"  "Have you been affected by the bad economy in the u.s.? "How can you afford to adopt a child?"  "How are you going to teach him English and educate him?"  We were also told to bring a  photo album with pictures of Sasha's room and a couple other rooms in our house.  They are just baffled that anyone would want another child.  Most people can only afford one child here....so this is so foreign for them.

We will have a 10 day waiting period until we can return back to Ukraine.  We hope to fly out next Sunday and begin our paperwork on Tuesday, as the birth certificate place is closed on Monday.  We will be able to get Sasha after a small party at his orphanage on Tuesday.  I am sure this will be hard for Sasha to say good bye.  It's truly hard to believe that he will probably never see these people again.....except for some of the children that are going to be adopted throughout the U.S.  We will then run around and go to Kiev and have a physical for him and other things done at the U.S. Embassy.

We were told that he will be very frustrated for a short time with the language barrier, but that by 3-4 months he will be speaking english fluently.  I am planning on homeschooling him through December but we may check about sending him to WCCS with the other kids next semester.  Sasha loves being with other kids but I know that he fears being made fun. God will show us the path to take as we begin to
"let life happen" at home.

We hope to be done with court and in our taxi at noon.  We have to go through customs and be on a flight that leaves at 3:55.  The drive from Lutugano to Donetsk is about 2 hours.  We are staying at a hotel with a decent bed in Munich tomorrow night.  We will arrive back into Rock Hill the following day at about 4:00 p.m.

Jeffy broke down and bought me a pair of fake ughs today...so my feet are toasty.  Little does he know that I may sleep in them.  haha.  It's truly hard to fall asleep at night when your feet are so cold!

We are so excited and anxious about tomorrow morning's appearance in court.  After the hearing, we will quickly say good bye to Sasha and dash out the door to catch our flight.  We have felt God's presence all along and we know that God will give Sasha the courage he needs tomorrow to tell the judge that he wants to come to America to live with the crazy Nymans.

I love this:
Today, I choose love.....I will love god and all the things that God loves... I CHOOSE LOVE!

today, I choose kindness.....I will be kind to all for God has been so kind to me.  I will speak softly when harshly spoken to.  I will help the weak and the helpless.

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  To these I commit my day.  If I succeed I will give thanks....if I fail, I will seek His grace once again.  And when this day is done, i will place my head on the pillow and rest.

We can't wait to be back home!  Thank you sweet family and friends who have lifted us up in prayer.  Our first chapter of our journey is almost over.  We are so thankful and can't stop talking about how we have such amazing friends and family.

Love to you all,
m and j

sunday

Today is sunday and I woke up on the wrong side of the bed.  Mostly because I wanted to go to our wonderful church and hear THE WORD from Bill or Shelton.  Not only did I want to hear God's word but I wanted to worship and sing.  We are so weary today....stayed in our place most of the day, but went out to get some groceries and had lunch with ksenia.  We truly feel like a prisoner in our own place.  We are so ready to come home and hours seem like years here.

Although we sleep a lot, we are tired of the same 4 walls and are ready to go home to see our children.  We literally are counting the hours until our court date.  We miss our kids and chaotic life so much.  Remind me of this later when I am complaining of laundry and cleaning. :)

I am doing some knittig and may have to knit us a blanket.  We are so cold and even though the sun shines some days we can't seem to get our feet warm.  Jeff is reading a lot and we are both checking in with Jack Bauer on 24.  He makes us feel like we don't have any problems at all, since he usually is saving the world from a nuclear attack of some sort.

Not many words today...just a word from Priscilla Shirer.  She is Tony Evans daughter and wrote the most beautiful piece just for us I think....becuase I have read it three times.  You need to read this outloud with conviction.:  It's called He is the First and the Last:

He is the first and the last, the Beginning and the end.  He is the keeper of Creation and the crator of all.  He is the Architect of the universe and the Manager of all times.  He always was and He always is and He always will be....unmoved, unchanged, undefeated, and never undone.

He was bruised but brought healing.  He was pierced and eased pain.  He was persecuted and brought freedom, He wasedead and brought life.  He is risen and brings power.  He reigns and brings peace.

The world can't understand him, the armies can't defeat Him, the schools can't explain Him, and the Leaders can't ignore Him.  Herod couldn't kill Him, the Pharisees couldn't confuse Him, and the people couldn't hold Him. 

Nero couldn't crush Him, Hitler couldn't silence Him, The New age can't replace Him, and "Oprah" can't explain Him away.  He is light, love, longevity, and the Lord.  He is Goodness, Kindness, Gentleness, and God.  He is HOLY, RIGHTEOUS, MIGHTY, POWERFUL, and PURE.

His ways are right, His word is eternal, His will is unchanging, and His mind is on me.

He is my Savior, He is my guide, and He is my Peace!  He is my Joy. He is my comfort, He is my Lord and He rules my life.

Serve Him becuase His bond is love, His burden is light, and His goal for me is abundant life. 

I follow Him becuase He is the wisdom of the wise, the power of the powerful, the ancient of days, the rules of rulers, the leader of leaders, the overseer of the overcomers, and is to come.  And if that seems impressive to you, try this on for size......

His goal is a relationship with ME!  He will never leave me, never forsake me, never mislead me, never forget me, never overlook me, and never cancel my appointment in His appointment book!

When I fall, He lifts me up!  When I fail, He forgives me!  When I am weak, He is strong!  When I am lost, He is the way!

When I am afraid, He is my courage.  When I stumble, He steadies me.  When I am hurt, He heals me!  When I am broken, He mends me.  When I am blind, He leads me.  When I am hungry, He feeds me.

When I face trials, He is with me!  When I face persecution, He shileds me!  When I face problems, he comforts me!  When I face loss, He prvides for me!  When I face Death, He carries me Home!  He is everything for everybody, everywhere, every time and every way.  He is God!!!!!  He is faithful!  I am His and He is mine!  My Father in heaven can whip the father of this world.  So, if you're wondering why I feel so secure (Here in Ukraine) understand this....He said it and that settles it!  God is in control.  I am on His side, and that means all is well with my soul!  Everyday is a blessing for God is!

I wish I could memorize this...becuase this is so comforting! 
Only two and a half more days!  God will sustain us.
love to you all,
m and j