Unexpected news

I've stared at the blank blog page now for over 20 minutes and I still can't think of a great way to start this post, so I'm just going to state the facts. On Wednesday evening, we found out that our pursuit of adopting Jeanne and Gatundo has come to an end. Due to circumstances in their village, the adoption is not able to proceed and they will be returning to their mother. It is hard to find words to explain how we are feeling right now. While not exactly the same, many of the same feelings we experienced when our son, Jack, passed are present in this situation. While we didn't conceive these children, the minute we were matched with them, they became part of our world. We've spent the past 6 months praying and planning for them to join our family. Now, they are still on our minds and hearts, but we know that the plans we made for them and our family will not happen. 

 At this point, we are unsure what is in store for us. Our agency has let us know that when we are ready we can pursue adopting other children. We know God's plan for us is so much bigger and greater than anything we can create on our own. We will be praying for wisdom and guidance on what to do next. We are so incredibly thankful for the support we've received from family and friends over the past year. We've been overwhelmed by the many words of encouragement and love. We know that we were not the only ones invested in these two children. Thank you, everyone. 

As for prayer requests, please be praying: 
1. that God keeps our hearts soft and feelings of anger or bitterness away from us 
2. that Jim and I can continue to deal with our heartache while still preparing for the exciting arrival of our daughter, Callahan, in the next few weeks 
3. that we would continue to listen for God's guidance in choices that may lay ahead of us 
4. that Jeanne, Gatundo, and their mother will quickly heal from their separation and that they will remain safe 

Love, 
 Amber and Jim