So thankful for others before us...

About a week after we got our referral, a fellow adoption friend sent me a message saying her husband just got back from our orphanage in Uganda and he might have some pictures of Charles Tucker. WOW! How cool would that be! Our orphanage is very new, it was only approved by the government six months ago and under the circumstances with the visa situation, not many families have been united yet. So it's not like many people I know can go and take pictures for me and "love on" him, like many places in Ethiopia.

She got me thinking, so I Googled the name of our orphanage. The search engine came up with two blogs of missionary trips that had been there in the last two months. So, I emailed both of them with pictures of Charles Tucker. One sweet girl name Sharon emailed me back. She was so excited to meet me and she knew exactly who Charles Tucker was. She said all of her team members picked a child "to love on" for a day or two and her friend Rachel had been the one that took care of Charles Tucker. Sharon said she remembers him being a really cute little boy. She talked about what an amazing orphanage it was and how well cared for the children were by the Aunties; they were so attentive to the children's needs. She also sent me several pictures of Charles Tucker from June 3rd, which is a month before I knew who he was. Sooooo cool!! A day later, Rachel emailed me the sweetest detailed letter about Charles Tucker. I was truly touched by her understanding my need for lots of details and information to help calm my anxious thoughts. Rachel is apart of a family who has adopted children and she knows what her parents have been through, so she is sensitive to others in the same boat. She truly has a heart for orphans. Sharon and Rachel both inspire me. Even though they are single...they care about God's children. I was too self centered to care about children in this way before I had my own. I greatly appreciate their love of orphans and their love for Charles Tucker.

Again, only God could orchestrate me finding these girls. Cr-a-zy! God is so good. Not only has he shown us the child who will soon be in our family, but he has also sent others before us "to love on him" to get him ready to be in our family. Why do I continue to worry and stress and act like an orphan myself...when my heavenly father is waiting for me to rest in his arms...it's much safer there anyway.