Posting Again

After such great responses to my initial post, I felt the need to post again, so here goes:

After struggling emotionally to get through my lesson on during the Thanksgiving service I thought that I would post my lesson notes for those wishing to know exactly what I intended to say:

This past Wednesday night Steve approached me and asked if I would be willing to speak at the Thanksgiving service this Sunday. My first inclination was to say no and run the opposite direction, I agreed to do it though. I spent the last few days thinking more about what I was thankful for than I have any other Thanksgiving in my life. I realized that God has blessed me beyond measure throughout my life. So rather than bore you with my life story, I have managed to narrow it down to the top three things I have been thankful for this year and a brief list of things I have been thankful for over my lifetime.
The first and probably one of the most life changing events in my life is the adoption of Zoe.
China is a country whose culture dates back to the earliest records known to man. China's beliefs seem quite different than those we hold in the western world. One example of this is the cultural preference for a male child. There are several reasons why Chinese families might prefer a boy over a girl. In rural provinces, a family's livelihood depends directly on the output of its family members. Because of this, a family with sons would be at a considerable advantage than one with daughters. Historically, it is also the son's honored responsibility to take care of his parents in their old age. A daughter, however, would be expected to care for her husband's parents rather than her own. In this regard, the Chinese believe that having a son is crucial to their livelihood, as well as a form of social security for the parents when they grow older. Although in recent years, China has done much to change these belief systems, many families, especially in rural areas, still strongly favor the birth of a male child. This situation is further complicated by China's One- Child Policy, which prohibits families from having more than one child. As a result of this policy, there are thousands of abandoned children throughout China, with the vast majority of them being healthy girls. Every year, some 21 million children are born. Half or more of these children are girls, and the birth of a girl has never been a cause for celebration in China.
Last year, Jennifer and I made the decision to adopt a little girl from China. This was not an easy decision, by doing this we were to forced to accept that we probably would never have any children through natural methods, we had to grieve for our child that we would never have. We also were forced into the realization that adoption is very expensive and we didn't have the money we needed to adopt a child from China. We were sure that this is the direction God was leading us so we prayed, and God continued to lead us toward adoption. Over the last year God has blessed us, we have been given patients, for every one step forward there seems to have been two steps back, yet God has continued to move us forward through the process. We keep telling ourselves that this is all in Gods time not our own. We will get her when God wants us to have her, when He feels we are ready for her. God has provided the money that we have needed for the adoption, through contributions by friends and family that included many people in the church. I have seen people give generously in ways I know that they could not afford. I know that God will bless those of you that have helped and I want all of you to know that I thank you and appreciate all that you have done and given. I am confident that God will provide the remaining amount of money that we need for the adoption in whatever manner he sees fit. I believe that he has already started helping us obtain those funds by providing me with a second job as well as giving Jennifer other job opportunities. I am thankful for all that God has done through this adoption process, my faith continues to grow by leaps and bounds as I continue to rely on God for things that I know I could never do on my own.

The second thing that I am thankful for, this year, involved the death of my Grandfather. Grandpa was with out a doubt the most spiritually influential person in my life. Without preaching and without saying a word, he taught me how to live; by the way he lived his life. On the day he died the family got to witness Grandpa meeting his savior. Grandpa had spent the last hours of his life unresponsive, he was comfortable and surrounded by his family but he was dying. Early in the morning on August 26, 2005 Grandpa opened his eyes, looked at grandma as if to say goodbye, he then looked at the foot of the bed and smiled the biggest and brightest smile ever, and as the things of earth grew strangely dim, Grandpa went to the arms of Jesus. I am thankful that my Grandfather, who loved and followed Jesus his whole life, finally got to meet him!

The third thing I am thankful for this year, was something most of you were a witness to. It was when my brother-in-law was baptized. It was an amazing site to see! I saw this church celebrate a baptism with joy, enthusiasm and excitement. I was able to really witness what it must be like in heaven when a soul is saved. I am thankful for Daves soul being saved and at the same time I am thankful for the way it made me feel. All too often a baptism is not celebrated, as it should be; at Daves baptism I felt joy that I hope to feel every time a soul is saved.

Now for a brief list of other things I am thankful for:

I am thankful for my wife and family, all of my friends, my job, and my home. I am thankful for the smell in the air right before it snows; I love the sound of frogs on the first warm evening in the spring. I am thankful for the look in the eyes of a child on Christmas morning, I am thankful for the look in the eyes of an adult on Christmas morning. I enjoy the sound of rain on a tin roof; I love the way the fall leaves scatter on the road when I drive over them. I am thankful for the church, but most of all I am thankful that Jesus died to take away my sins!