I cannot tell you how thrilled I am that today is August 🙂 NEXT MONTH we travel! Our flights are booked and paid for…praise God! We leave from Denver on September 13. After much prompting from the Holy Spirit and advice from many people, we have decided to take Hannah-Claire with us to China. We feel that having her there will be a HUGE help for Haven. Just having another Chinese person with us may ease her anxiety and help with the initial adjustment. You may remember I posted a while ago that Haven is terrified of white people…so having Hannah-Claire with us may just be a God-send. We will do anything in our power to make the transition easier for Haven. We are going into this with open hearts and minds, because of her previous experiences the first few days are going to be so hard on our little girl. Can you imagine being almost 8 years old, being abandoned twice, and then suddenly being taken away from everything that you know and love, everything that is familiar to you? My heart breaks for her. But, we are praying even now…that God would go before us and prepare her heart for the transition.
I am so excited, my Dad is flying from South Africa to take care of our boys while we are in China. Since loosing my mom last year my kids have missed my Dad a lot, they long to see him. Unfortunaly the ridiculous costs of international travel make it so hard for us to see him. They have absolutely no idea that he is coming…it is going to be a wonderful surprise. Connor keeps asking me who is going to take care of them when we are away, he is curious! Oh my, he is going to be so excited. There is nothing sweeter than surprising my children.
Yesterday marked the 7th anniversary of us leaving South Africa. Wow, where does time go? I have been pondering the last 7 years in my heart, reflecting on all that God has done. Three years in Australia, three years in Virginia, and now a year in Colorado. It truly has been a journey. God has been amazing and faithful. The main thing that stands out in my mind are the poeple I have met along the way. So many people have touched my life in amazing ways. I have been blessed with many new friendships, the kind that I know will last a lifetime. Yes, I have many days when I long, with all my heart, to be back in my home country. But the Father always brings me back to the here and now, the place of being in the center of His will for our lives. I have absolutely no idea what the future holds for the Salem’s. I do know that I am completely surrendered to His will…and am willing to go anywhere He sends us! Isn’t life here on earth just so temporary? While I have the opportunity I LONG to be obedient…willing to say “Yes Lord, send me!” whenever I have the chance.
