House Without Walls

Well, we've had some movement this week.  I'd say, overall, it's lateral...but at least it's still movement.  Quite a few groups have been taken off our list and only one more has been added.  We do know that a caseworker of a specific set has actually read our profile and has contacted Jess, our caseworker, with some questions he had about us.  At least he is interested...right?
Jordan and I don't seem to understand the hold-up: 
                   *We are an approved adoptive resource for children
                   *We are open to nearly all groups of children
                   *Our records are impeccably clean (as is our home)
                   *We have an incredibly strong support system
                   *There are thousands of kids who need a home

(Caution:  I'm stepping on my soap box)

Now, don't get me wrong here.  We are fully aware that all of the red-tape, policies, and procedures are to protect the children from any further harm.  We also wholeheartedly believe and trust in God's sovereignty to provide us with the right match at the right time.  However , that is not going to keep us from being as proactive as we can during this process.  We need to continue to be advocates both for all the children out there who need parents and for ourselves who continue to desire children.
It has been suggested to us that one of the set-backs could possibly be the fact that we are a military family.  Obviously, this means we are going to be rather mobile throughout the next decade or two.  But folks, this is not a bad thing.  Before I married Jordan I was actually a little nervous about being a "military family." My roots have always been in the Harrisburg area.  In fact, both my mom's family and my dad's family are all in the Harrisburg area.  I was nervous to leave.  However, now that I have been part of the military community for quite sometime I couldn't imagine it any other way.  The different Marine (and Navy) families we have been stationed with all share such a strong sense of community and family.  It has been such a blast to experience life with these folks.  We share dinners together, share birthdays and births together, help each other move-in and move-out, we watch each other's kids, etc.  One of the neatest parts is that this can happen in so many wonderful places. 
Take that and add on this:
We have been so fortunate to have loving, welcoming church families wherever we have been.  We still keep regular contact with New River Community Church of God (Camp Lejeune) and anxiously await the day we can be stationed there again so we can "do life" with these wonderful people.  Jordan was part of another great church in Maryland when he was stationed at Camp David.  In fact, one of the guys he met there was in our wedding.  Calvary Baptist in State College has been equally as wonderful.  We've established another great support system of friends in our Life Group whom we are already sad to have to leave in May.
Now, take all of that and add on this:
Both my family and Jordan's family are established in Harrisburg, as are both of our home churches.  This makes it so wonderful to come home and visit on holidays and vacations.  When we come to Harrisburg we have both of our families, nearly all of Sarah's extended family, all of our home and childhood friends, and both of our home churches.
My (obviously biased) point to this is that being part of a military family is great.  It is so great because no matter where we are in the world we have a strong, loving, encouraging, support system that quickly grow to become like family.  And then when we return home for a visit, we still have it but in tenfold.
Our kids are going to be loved by us unconditionally and by the community and family we build at whichever duty station we are.  Their eyes are going to be opened to all sorts of new experiences and wonderful people.  They may not establish roots in one town and one house but they most assuredly will establish roots as part of our family.
I'm encouraging anyone out there who may read this (hopefully someone who knows kids who need a home) to look at military life as a wonderful opportunity to experience the goodness of people everywhere.  Sure, your house may never look the same and you may lose track of all the places you've been but you'll never lose track of all the fun you've had and the love you've been given.  So you see, a house isn't a home because it has the same four walls for its entire existance...a house is a home because of the love that is in it.

(Okay, I'm stepping down now)

An unrelated side thought:  My devotional yesterday morning said this:  "If you wonder why God isn't anxious when you are, it's because He has everything under control."  *Perhaps that was directed towards me...