We received our first update this week. My heart burst with joy as I opened the email and saw his handsome face! To have a piece of your heart on the other side of the world is hard. My trust in God has grown immensely. I find peace knowing that as much as we love Paxton, God loves him infinitely more. He has held him up until now and will continue to do so.
That smile.
That smile was an answer to prayer. To know that he feels joy. To see that he has a fun, safe place to play outside. To see that he has gained four pounds since his last file update, to know he isn't going hungry. To hear that he has been with his foster family for over a year- he knows what a family is and
is having his emotional needs met also. Thank you, Lord. You are so incredibly good.
Paxton has a blood disorder, Beta Thalaseemia Major. It is a genetic condition that prevents his body from producing enough hemoglobin and requires blood transfusions once every 3-4 weeks. The Major refers to the highest severity of the disorder. His numbers reported in the update were low, even lower than those shown when we first saw his file. This is life threatening. Ch*na doesn't have sufficient blood supply and he is not getting transfusions as often as he needs them. We need to get him home as soon as possible to get him the medical care he so desperately needs.
This brings to me a huge prayer request. We will be appealing to US Immigration in the next few weeks to expedite his adoption.
How you can begin to pray for the expedite process:
1. We have obtained two expedite letters from doctors and would love to get one more- pray we are able to obtain that this week.
2. For the workers and Dr.'s at the orphanage (he spends his days here away from his foster family) to agree that he needs to come home ASAP in order to improve his health. That they will not be insulted by our request.
3. Our home study is almost complete and the next step is the I-800a process (approval from the US for us to go to Ch*na to adopt). Pray that we will be granted a same day appointment after we drive to Birmingham and beg, cry, and plead for one. ;)
4. Once we receive our fingerprints, we can apply for expedite. This will be requested via email and then followed up with a phone call. PRAY that the person on the receiving end will be understanding and gracious of our request. PRAY that we will be granted the expedite. This can save us 1-3 months in the adoption process!
Additional prayer requests:
1. Please pray that Paxton will receive a transfusion soon and for his hemoglobin levels to rise!
2. That our home study will be finalized by the end of the week.
3. For our fundraising goals to be met. We will prayerfully be bringing him home even sooner and that means less time to save, receive grants, etc. We know that God has called us to this moment and that He will provide!
Pray is powerful.
Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
Hebrews 10:23
Love y'all!
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