Revenge of the Fifth

May 5th.  Cinco de Mayo.  Kodomo no hi.  Each of these days mean different things to our family...some more important than others.  No matter which way you look at it, May 5th is very significant to our family.

Kodomo ni hi is Children's Day in Japan.  It is part of Golden Week and it is a huge celebration.  Every year, on the fifth day of the fifth month there are huge festivities and parties to celebrate kids.  For weeks, and sometimes months leading up to this day you see these Carp flags flying around Japan.  It really is an amazing sight.

The blue ones are for the boys in your family, and the pink are for the girls.  Each family typically flies one for each child outside their house.  The older your kids get, the bigger Carp flag you fly.  Like I said, it is amazing to see.  Our family would fly two blue and a pink this year, but I cannot help but be overjoyed with the thought that next year will be significantly different.  How awesome would it be for our family to be flying seven flags outside our house next year.  How amazing would it be for our kids to come home in time to celebrate Kodomo no hi in Japan?

May 5th, 2012 marked the end of our time in the Air Force.  God called us to move on from the military and move into full time ministry.  I remember the weeks and months leading up to this date.  We were scared and excited all at the same time.  We were not sure what to expect, since the only thing we really knew as adults was the Air Force.  We were leaving the security of our base, the friends we had made, and the culture we had come to love.  We were doing this because God called us to it.  We didn't know what we were getting in to, but we knew that God was doing something.

Our friends, family, and coworkers thought we were nuts.  The economy was extremely bad and I had no transferable skills outside of the military.  I hadn't graduated with my degree yet.  But, it didn't matter.  We were going to be obedient to God's calling in our life.  He has blessed us beyond measure since that time.  We have an amazing support system here in Okinawa, where we are surrounded with people who love us and take care of us.  We now have people that we considder family all around the world.  People we know we can call when we need them, and people we know are praying for us constantly.

God has called us to adopt, and we are following through with that call.  Through this process He has blessed us every step of the way.  He has shown His grace and mercy in our lives as we work through the hardships of adopting while overseas.  Words cannot describe how amazed I am at His faithfulness.  When He call's you to do something, He blesses you for answering that call.

Cinco de Mayo...well, I'm not even sure why we (Americans) celebrate this day.  It would be like celebrating June 12 (Philippine Independence Day), which makes more sense for our family.  But, at least I get to eat some guacamole today...after I learn how to make it...

We still need people to come alongside us and help us with this adoption.  We are not done yet!  I have an update about what is going on with the process (coming soon), but in the mean time, if you would like to help us raise funds to bring our kids home, please click HERE.