Update on Brooklynn

Family & Friends,

It's been a while since we gave you an update on where things are with Brooklynn.

The reason being, there hasn't been much of an update.

However, this morning we received word that the adoption agency's attorney has served papers to the birth-father's attorney to terminate his rights.

The birth-father has 30 days from today to respond or his rights will be terminated.

This is what we had prayed would happen and we are thankful for that.

During the 30 day period, the birth-dad could order a paternity test to prove he is her father and we could lose her.

If he proved this, it would be a battle over her between the birth-dad and birth-mom and we wouldn't have her anymore.

He may also choose to do nothing and then birth-mom would terminate her rights (which she has told us she wants to do) and we would keep Brooklynn.

We know a lot could happen in the next 30 days, so we tread very carefully.

We are confident that God's plan will prevail and we'll trust him no matter what happens.

The verse that comes to mind today for both Brooklynn and for us is:
Jeremiah 29:11-13

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

We have had two consistent prayers throughout this process.

First, that God would protect Brooklynn and make sure she is with the family she is supposed to be with.  We pray that is with us.

Second, that God would be pleased with our response and our actions during this time.

We also  ask you join us in praying for the birth-father and the birth-mother.

Knowing how much I love Brooklynn, I have utmost respect for both of them and the decision they both are going to have to make - one way or the other.

We met with the birth-mother a couple weeks ago.  We told her people across this country and around the world were praying for her.

She was overwhelmed that you all would be bringing her before the Lord.  We ask you continue to do this.

Danielle and I are so thankful for each of you.

The impact you have had on our lives is impossible to put into words.

This season of life hasn't been easy, but it sure is sweet.

I have never felt closer to the Lord and Danielle's faith and strength is simply incredible to see and to witness.

She is an incredible Mom, incredible wife and a model for women in the way she trusts the Lord when times are tough and when they are fun.

And there are lots of fun times!

As for Brooklynn, she continues to grow.

She is 8 weeks now.

Sleeping 5-6 hours a night.

She is starting to play with toys, smiles, sitting up a bit more and loves to fly above our heads!

We'll keep you all posted on what happens next.

Thanks for your ongoing prayer and support for our little one.

Ryan and Danielle

Trust in the Lord

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lead not on your own understanding.  In all your ways, submit to him and he will make your path straight.

Proverbs 3:5-6

This is a verse I am trying to figure out, trying to understand and trying to live out.

"Trust in the Lord" is something that rolls off our tongues, but rarely shows up in our lives.

I like how dictionary.com explains the meaning of the word "Trust."

It says "trust" is the confident expectation of something or "hope."

So the first part of this verse means we are to have confident expectation or hope in the Lord...

It goes onto say, not leaning on your own understanding.

I take this to mean, not leaning on what I know - but being confident in the hope of the Lord - which we all know is greater than anything we know.

Then in Proverbs 3:6 - we are told to submit to the Lord so he can make our path right.

Without submitting to the Lord, our path won't be straight - or it won't be aligned with what the Lord has for us.

So here I am pondering this verse about my own life.

Am I being confident and hopeful in the Lord?
Am I admitting my own understanding is limited, but his understanding is great?

It sure would be nice to say it is, but I don't think it is most of the time.

I find myself putting limits to what God is capable of doing because I don't have a limitless mind.

I think all of us do this.

I try to take control of every situation instead if submitting it over to him.

We are all human so I know there are things we need to submit and hand over to the Lord.

Let's give him our concerns and let's decide not to limit what he can do through them or how he can resolve them.

-Ryan

Refusing to ask "why"

In the past couple days, I have asked God a lot of questions about our situation.  By now, you probably know we are facing the realization that our Baby Brooklynn may not be with us as long as we wanted.  But one question I refuse to ask is "why."  Throughout my life, I have witnessed people demanding to know "why" in situations they go through, but I just won't ask that question.  Here's "why"....

Despite my broken heart, so many tears, feeling  exhausted physically and emotionally - I believe without a doubt that God is walking us through this journey for a purpose.  Weeks ago, I started a blog post with the verse "For I know the plans I have for you declare the Lord, plans to give you a hope and a future.  Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you."  This comes from Jeremiah 29:11 and 12.  This is an easy verse to claim when it feels like everything is going in the right direction, but it's even more true when you have lost control and are at the mercy of the Lord.  We are praying, you are praying and our wonderful savior is listening.

Today, we accept that all control is gone, our hope for what we wanted is fading - but the promise that there is hope tomorrow is stronger than ever.

Family and Friends, if you get nothing else from what we are going through - hear this.  In the darkest days of our lives thus far, I bear witness to the fact that God's love and strength are enough.  Not for a second, has God left our side and my friends - he is at your side as well.  I know it, I believe it and I claim it.  I want you to do the same, this experience just isn't worth it if you aren't willing to claim the promises of Christ.

This morning, I surrendered everything to him and man was it hard.  I even said, "Lord - if it is your will, take my daughter and please protect her."  God knows I want her with us as long as we are here and this continues to be my prayer - but I am willing to do whatever God wants.

Finally, I encourage you to praise God for this situation.  I know I am trying!  As tough as things are, there is joy to be had.  God has given us great days with Brooklynn and we have no idea how many more we will have, God has used us to care for this little girl in her time of need, God is using this little girl to bring others close to him, he using her to bring people together and we know this is just the beginning.

So, let's not ask why.  Let's look forward with great anticipation to God  continuing to reveal himself through this situation.

Danielle, Brooklynn, myself and our families are grateful for your prayers and support.  Countless churches are praying for our situation coast to coast and around the world.  We are truly humbled that so many of you have put aside what you are going through to pray for us and reach out to us.  The truths you are speaking about the Lord are so powerful.

A blessing bigger than we could have prayed for

I have an urge to use a good cliche, write an attention grabbing headline or even tease you a bit.  But as every good writer knows, often times the facts of the story are stronger than any words preceding them. 

Brooklynn Marie is home with us.

Through a carefully orchestrated plan that only our Heavenly Father could pull together, we are the proud parents of a healthy baby girl.  Brooklynn Marie was born October 3rd.

Let me back-up a bit so you understand what took place.  As you have read on this blog, Danielle and I began the process of adoption a year ago last month.  This was something we had prayed about for years both individually and together.  I'll spare you the details of how we got to this point - only to say that a Birth-Mom selected us after reading our profile.  She liked that Danielle's parents would be called Oma and Opa, she liked the looks on our faces in the pictures and she liked that we had friends who had young kids.  She said Brooklynn kicked a bit when she was looking at our profile.

We can't post pictures until the adoption is finalized - which could be next Spring.  This adoption process is not over yet as several things still need to take place.  We ask that you pray for us in this process, pray for the birth-Mom and praise God for bringing Brooklynn into our lives to love.

We were so fortunate that she arrived in time for my Parents and my Aunt and Uncle to meet her during a pre-planned trip to Nashville.  We will share more in the future, but wanted you all to know.

We have never in our lives been blessed by such great friends and our supportive family and we thank you all.  We pray God will bless you as you have all blessed us.

Ryan, Danielle and Brooklynn

Surrender

Surrender is a hard word to accept. It means to give up, to let go, to release control and to abandon. Man, this is a hard thing for me. I really like being in control of things, especially the big things in life. I went to bed last night and began to battle with myself. I was praying to God that the right thing would fall in my lap, that the right thing would happen and everything else in life would be clear. I kept asking and asking and asking for a break, for something. Then it became clear as I was calling on God for help. It's as if I could hear his voice asking, "what are you giving me?" I hadn't heard something this clear before. I kept battling and then it dawned on me, I wasn't listening. He wanted me to SURRENDER control of something so dear to me. He wanted to be Lord over it, not me. I kept praying and finally surrendered it. Oh my word, what a relief. But I also surrendered future control of it. Scary it sure is, but I want God to be the Lord of my future. I continued to pray and seek the Lord and I felt God asking me to give something else, something that hurts - something that I will feel. I gave it, I'm giving it. So I prayed some more and I wanted to make sure that none of this was an emotional response, but a spiritual response. I slept on it, woke up and prayed. I talked to Danielle. We talked about it. Yep, this is what the Lord wants of us. He wants me to SURRENDER control of our lives. This is a beginning point for me, for us. I'm so thankful God's voice is louder than the voices in my head. -Ryan

Grounded

I've been writing this week about three types of people you need in your life. I first heard the idea while attending "Promise Keepers." You need someone that you can build into, someone that can build into you and someone to walk through life with you. I wrap up with this topic because I think it is so important. Here are a few people who have walked through life with me - and continue to make a profound impact on me. Danielle No surprise here, but my dear wife. We will celebrate four years of marriage next month. Danielle is my rock. Danielle keeps me sane, pushes me to be better and is so patient with me. Throughout our marriage, Danielle has been a rock for me, been faithful to me and been everything I need when I need it. Danielle knows when I need her to remind me to be more caring towards people or when I need her unwavering support. When I am feeling attacked, Danielle steps up and takes the blows for me while building me up at the same time. Danielle prays like crazy. Danielle believes the best about people. At her core, she is so gentle. Danielle will give everything she has to help someone else. She has made me a better giver, a better husband and taught me there is so much value in trusting the Lord. Danielle carries us through tough times and makes the good times so much better! I love her with all my heart and so blessed to have her with me on this journey. Gregg Apple Valley Elementary - home of the Cougars and home to some, well let's just say - important learning experiences! I learned a lot about myself there. I learned I couldn't keep a beat, that Math wasn't my thing, I figured out lamps don't raise the temperature on a thermometer and that writing a book report on a book you never read isn't a good idea. But at that school, I also met a friend - who would end up making a profound impact on my life. My friend Gregg and I first started hanging out in second grade. He was smarter than me, better at sports and was a lot more driven than me. None of that kept us from being friends. We had some similar interests like riding bikes, riding the Yakima Transit, we even talked about starting our own lawn-mowing business. Good thing we never did! We would spend our elementary, middle and high school years having classes together and becoming even friends over time. We traveled to Disneyland, the beach, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, New York, Canada and then Europe over the course of a few decades of friendship. We also went through tough family times together - the death of both our Grandfathers, death of pets and so much more. We talked each other through various moves in life, career choices and relationships. But through it all, Gregg has made a pretty big impact on my life - and in a very profound way. Gregg always wanted the best. We have had several conversations over the years. I would start to settle on something, but Gregg would remind me there is something better - worth working for. He didn't settle and he never expected me to settle either. This is the type of accountability you don't find in a self-help book, it's the type of accountability you're lucky to get in life. Gregg has pushed me to be a better leader, a better man and a better husband. Gregg encouraged me to work harder, to be better and to expect to win. You can't ask for a better friend than that. My Grandpa I could talk about the greatness of my Grandpa, but I'll keep it short - because he's not one for wasting words. I talk to him almost every day. Something I appreciate is that I can't outwork him (despite him being 84), I can't out-pray him and I can't out-give him. He isn't proud of my earthy accomplishments, instead he rejoices when we make eternal accomplishments. He keeps me balanced and isn't afraid to ask me the questions few others will. I've given you insight into 9 people that are part of my life. There are so many more that deserve a lot of credit, but I have told you these stories as proof that three types of people in our lives are necessary. People who we can build into, people who build into us and people who aren't afraid to tell it like it is - and walk through this journey with us. Who is playing these roles in your life?

Weekend Adventures

Hope you had a good weekend. I am a big fan of exploring and checking out new places. This weekend was another weekend of firsts for us. Danielle's brother came to visit. It's always so fun to have people visit and reminds us of the great people we have in our lives. It also gives us opportunities to see new places that we don't normally get to visit.

Saturday morning, we got up early and drove to Bowling Green, KY. That's about an hour north of here and a good drive. We went to Lost Cave. A storm was moving through so we didn't explore the property much, but I think another visit would give us a chance to see more around the property. What we did do there was take a boat ride through a cave. The price was a little steep for the experience. You take a 5 minute walk to get on the boat and then you set off in the cave. Watch your head, the first part of the cave has a low ceiling. I managed to bump my head a few times as we went through it. The 15-20 minute tour teaches you about the questionable history of the cave. There is a good story about people who restored it the past few decades. This was fun to do, but as my brother-in-law said: you do this once and you don't need to do it again. That said, we had a good time together and stayed mostly dry.

What I would recommend you check out is the Corvette Museum. This is just off the interstate. I'm not a car guy, but I found this to be a great learning experience and one of the better museums I have toured. They do a nice job explaining the storied history of the Corvette - while also making it very visually appealing. This was a very relevant museum that would appeal to people of any age whether you like cars or not. You get to look at all different models of Corvettes and they have a neat cafe that is very reasonably priced where you can grab lunch.

Sunday afternoon, we went to the always impressive Jack Daniel's distillery. I highly recommend this to anyone visiting Middle Tennessee. Have a great week!

-Ryan