Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving is a favorite holiday for many Americans. They love the food, they love being with family for hours with nothing on the agenda other than carving fowl, enjoying each other's company, watching football, remembering past times, and sleeping. But for me, Thanksgiving has taken on a whole new emotion.

There isn't a day—Thanksgiving or not—where I don't look at my boys and marvel at how we have been brought together. We were so clearly meant to have these boys in our lives; we were so clearly meant to learn from them. And for the blessing of having them in our life, I am ever grateful and humbly thankful. That gratitude is so clear, especially on Thanksgiving.

But I can't just sit in this joy, in this gratitude, truth be told. Because while I reflect on what gifts our lives have been given, I am ever aware of the circumstances that have made these gifts possible, and so my gratitude is always a bit bittersweet.  Think of a mother who has given birth, and the challenges she must have faced in her life to give her son up.  I’ve had several people tell me, “Your sons are lucky to have you.”  I pause and tell them, “It wasn't luck that brought us together.” I know that without a doubt. I know that our sons coming into our lives, our coming into their lives is part of God’s plan. He saved these boys just for us and we give thanks!

On November 24th, my family will bow its head around the table and give thanks. And, yet, my heart and mind will not be in America. My heart and mind will be in China; thinking of the women who gave us our sons.

China Impressions

Before we traveled to China we had preconceived ideas of  what we may encounter. I want to start by emphasizing that  we came home with a sincere respect for China and the  people there. For those who have not done much traveling in Asian countries, there are certainly surprises to be found  in China. At times China seemed like another planet, with such completely different language and customs. You may, for the first time in your life, know what it feels like to be a minority. You will be frustrated by your inability to communicate. You will see polluted water, smell things you'd rather not and eat things that you can't be sure what they are! Be flexible, smile a  lot, talk softly, and be nice. You will be rewarded. Busy sidewalks of Beijing The Great Wall of China Stir-fried nuts of some kind Water boy  We had taken with us some negative impressions of China  that we had gotten from growing up in the communist phobic  1950's, and even from the adoption community and adoption agency. Our experience was very positive. Everywhere we  went the people were wonderful or mostly wonderful, the food  was interesting and we never felt uncomfortable or unsafe.  If the opportunity to go back ever presents itself, I would not be opposed to going.

The Trip to China

 September 15, 2011, was travel day and a long day it was. Terry, myself, and Grandma Sarah were driven to the Minneapolis Airport, by our son, Tyler. We were to fly from Minneapolis to Chicago and Chicago to Beijing.

  

We landed at the Beijing Airport on September 16th and needed to locate our guide in rows and rows of people waiting to connect with someone at the airport. What an experience! After a bit of looking and pushing my way back through the airport receiving line, I spotted our guide's sign and guide. We quickly exchanged pleasantries and headed to meet our driver. We located our driver, Mr. Lee, loaded the van, and proceeded to the Holiday Inn in Beijing, China. This was to be our home for the adoption process in Beijing. At the hotel, we met George, who would guide us through the adoption process and was our translator. George gave us some instructions and told us we would meet September 18 @8:30 AM in hotel lobby and depart for Orphanage 2. Then after Orphanage 2 we would go to Orphanage 1.  We allowed ourselves a day of relaxing and sightseeing in and around Beijing before we started on our way to meet our sons. We spent the first day walking around town, taking in the new sights and sounds.  For a city of the size and population of Beijing, we found it very friendly and easy to get around. Thanks to the abundance of bicycles and the resulting smaller numbers of cars, we found the traffic and street noise to be quite bearable.

Sunday, September 18, 2011 we were off to get our boys. We went to Orphanage 2 first.  Upon arrival to Orphanage 2, we noticed it was surrounded by razor wire and a guard. Our guide talked to the guard and we were cleared to go in. Upon arrival, we were met by the Orphanage Director, a very friendly man. And very quickly, our son Trentyn was in front of us smiling. 

We were hurried to a room for much paperwork and exchange of gifts. We met Trentyn’s nanny, who showed much care. We took photos and we were on our way to Orphanage 1. When traveling to Orphanage 1, our guide, George, received a call, letting us know we could not pick up Trey until the Director was there. That meant we needed to slow up and take a breather. We decided to stop for lunch. George ordered lunch for us and we managed to eat a bit with the only two forks they had in the whole big restaurant. Trentyn did not eat much. I’m sure he was nervous. After lunch we headed to Orphanage 1. 

We were met by the Director and hurried into a room. We filled out paperwork and answered many questions before Trey came into the room. Trey was very sad and his eyes were filled with tears. We tried to console Trey and let him know everything is going to be OK. We are family.  We finished with pictures and headed back to the hotel. Just like that we were parents to teenagers,  again.

For the five days in Beijing, we worked with the local government officials to legally adopt Trey and Trentyn in China and obtain Chinese passports for them.  Although seemingly slow at times, the officials were friendly, charming and helpful throughout the process. After 13 months of paperwork and close scrutiny at home, the Chinese "interviews" seemed cursory and simple. We took simple gifts for the officials and guides which they did not open in our presence.

 We flew to Guangzhou for the last four days to run our last gauntlet, the exit interview and visa from the American embassy. We stayed at the five star Garden Hotel. The accommodations were beyond adequate! Guangzhou is bigger, hotter and more westernized than we had seen so far. The area around the Garden Hotel is very clean and upscale.

The services at the hotels were outstanding. Before you could think of what you needed someone was usually there with it and you didn’t have to open the door yourself or push your own elevator button. It was great to have that since we were focusing on the boys. During our free time we would go sightseeing, venture to stores and shop, swim, eat, or nap.  Through all of this, the boys did great!

We boarded our flight for home a couple of days later than anticipated. Our flight home was delayed by typhoon Nesat. We were driven from Guanghzou to Hong Kong by a hired driver. Our drive to the airport was slowed by the border check in Shenzhen and Hong Kong. This took and hour due to October 1, National Day for China. The National Day is celebrated throughout mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau  and it is at this time many Chinese travel. Once through the check point we were on our way and quickly arrived at the Hong Kong Airport.  The driver dropped us off curbside and showed us were to go. Here we had to weave through the maze of yet another busy airport and check in system.  We found our way to our gate and couldn’t wait to board the 747 for America! We arrived in Chicago, made it through customs, then on to immigration, checked the luggage again, and off to our gate. By now, we were tiring.  We were met at the airport by Kurt, my brother-in-law, and a truck to haul us home.  We stopped in Ellsworth for dinner at Dairy Queen. American food tasted good.

We have been home for several weeks and settling in as a family. Trey and Trentyn go to public school and are working hard to learn English. The boys have come a long way in a few shorts weeks and are no longer needing rice on a daily basis. Trey has a strong mechanical aptitude and Trey enjoys drawing and painting. They are good boys, with a desire to learn. We have a desire for Trey and Trentyn, and that is that they come to a saving faith in Christ Jesus.  

Spinning Plates and a Critical Spirit

Plates are spinning around here, how about at your house? At least that's how it feels...managing relationships, work, and finishing the basement resembles a plate-spinning routine gone horribly amuck with plates crashing to the ground all around me. Work has been a bit more than I desire at the moment. A new student identification system is being implemented, and since I deal with students, I’ve been involved! I have a few relationships that have been stretching and challenging. We are still working on the basement, BUT the boys’ room is complete!

One thing that has taken me back is an individual being critical of us adopting special needs children. Newsflash: most all adopted children should be considered "special needs". Any child who hasn't had a mother or father for a period of time suffers negative effects from the lack of a parent. Do most adoptive parents know every issue their child will have when they adopt them? Of course not. Do biological parents know every issue their birth child will have in life? Duh...of course not. So why do we put different standards on adoptive parents? When we adopt children with special needs, we do so with a certain amount of naivety about what life will be like with that child. Just like when you have biological children, you do so with a certain amount of naivety about what life will be like with your biological children.

When we chose to adopt, we did do our research. It's irresponsible not to research the issues that we may know of that our children may or may not have. But I can guarantee one thing...medical records for adopted children will never have ALL of the issues outlined that we and our adopted children will face. There will be medical, emotional, social, behavioral and other issues that will come up.

Before being critical of us for adopting special needs it would be better to come alongside us and really empathize with us. It is much more beneficial than telling us we shouldn’t be doing this. It also poses the question: "Would the child be better off in their previous conditions?" The answer is almost always no.

Can't we start praying for one another, offering HELPFUL information, and encouraging each other rather than criticizing?

Less than two weeks

Summer is coming to a close. Terry and I have been busy preparing our home for our sons’ from China. That includes cleaning.  I’ve cleaned “Tyler’s” room and we are preparing to paint it this weekend, if I get the paint and set up the bunkbeds.

This weekend I need to focus on getting the items together for Ya Hui and Li Guo. Their backpacks need to be filled with toys; their suitcases need to be packed with their clothes and toiletry items. For clothes, we guessed at what size they might wear. I'm pretty clueless about shoes for them.  I could take a few sizes, but have no idea whether or not they'll stay on their feet. I’m positive we will get shoes in China, if they need them.

In a little under two weeks we will leave the comfort of our home and fly to China to pick up our sons’. We've been a little distracted.  As exciting as this is, we are becoming extremely anxious. Please pray for us to remain calm in the days ahead and to focus on what is important. Please pray for our sons’ in China that they are aware that they are being adopted and that God will give our family unity.  This trip to China is huge. May we take time to enjoy the ride!

We Have Notice!

Friday, July 29th, 2011 we received our travel confirmation for China! Next, we needed to work out the dates that we could travel. WACAP (our adoption agency) contacted the U.S. Consulate in Guangzhou to request a visa appointment for our family. We had to submit five dates in the order or preference. This is the email we received on August 16, 2011 from Elizabeth Rose, our social worker.  “We received your consulate appointment today for the 27^th of September! This means that you will be adopting the boys on the 18^th of September and you can fly home on the 29^th.  Please go ahead and arrange your flights to and from China.” This was exciting news! Now I needed to spring into action and contact travel agencies for flights and prices. By early evening I had secured flights.

Right now, we are working on our basement project, and shopping for, and gathering the necessary bits and pieces we need for the trip and for our boys, Ya Hui and Li Guo.We are keeping ourselves busy. As we prepare for the trip, our friend Sarah, who resides in MI, is also preparing for China. Sarah will be helping us with the boys and she is going to be a “Grandma” to them.

  

As we look ahead, we have many hopes and dreams, fears and uncertainties. We hope the boys will be happy in America. We hope they like having a family. We hope many, many things. But, the one and only thing we could really hope for and that would be the most important, above all else, is that they would come to know their Maker as Lord and Savior.

Please pray for us, as we embark on the journey of bringing our sons’ home from China.

Adoption update

The waiting game... it's so fun, isn't it?! The end of May we received a letter from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) requesting evidence. The evidence that USCIS felt was missing was our home study approval to adopt special needs children. In order to satisfy the Immigration Services, we needed to complete the I-800A, Supplemental 3 Request Action, have an amended home study, and remit the documents with a check for $360. We went ahead and completed everything that the USCIS requested, mailed it to the USCIS lock-box in TX, and received conformation on June 27, 2011, that the USCIS had received our information and check.  So, now we wait to see if we have satisfied the USCIS requirements.

But, why should adoption take so long? I understand that foreign governments can become overwhelmed with adoption requests. I also recognize that several foreign countries shut down for weeks at a time to celebrate holidays, wars can break out, and political unrest may slow the adoption process.  As I wait for our sons’, I KNOW that God loves adoption but the Enemy opposes adoption. I have come to comprehend that the adoption process will have roadblocks and that the Enemy will attempt to upset any attempt to bring our sons’ into our home.  I’m aware that we need to be on guard, and we must be committed to praying for our sons’ and their country.

Though the wait is lengthy, I am convinced it will be worth it. From a Christian standpoint, God went to great lengths to call me His own. Regardless of the why, God certainly uses this time. Nothing is wasted.

As we wait, we pray. We pray for our sons’ in China that are waiting for us. May our future sons' be protected from all harm and that they are able to comprehend what adoption means.

Gal. 6:9 says, "Let us not become weary in doing good, for a the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Sharing

As I was preparing this post, I received an email from our social worker informing us that we can send photos and small gifts to Ya Hui and Li Gua. This is great news!!

As we await the arrival of Ya Hui and Li Gua, it is reassuring for us to know that Tyler and Troy are also excited to have the boys arrive. Troy, who lives in Louisville, KY, and is studying at Boyce College, inquires about the adoption process often and is always eager to hear of any news. Troy is also thinking through when he will meet the boys and have a chance to spend time with them.  Our oldest son, Tyler, lives in Minneapolis, MN, and is a substitute teacher in Ellsworth, WI and frequents our home weekly. Tyler has had the pleasure of watching us fill out the paperwork for the adoptions and to hear our moans and groans over the stacks of paperwork. Tyler was kind enough to think of the boys when shopping the clearance aisles this spring.  He purchased a jacket, which he hopes will fit either Ya Hui or Li Gua.

It is important for our present sons’ to know they are not being replaced by Ya Hai or Li Gua, we are only adding to our family.  As they adjust to life with brothers, we will all be adjusting to more additions to our family.

As we adopt our sons’ from China and bring them into our lives, we will also be sharing our lives with another family. Last October, I had the privilege of going on a mission trip to Croatia and Bosnia/Herzegovinian through our church. During this trip, I became acquainted with a “peculiar” lady from MI, whose name is Sarah. Everyone thought of her as such a true lady, but I saw her as odd or “peculiar.” But over time, that changed.  I noticed her qualities of generosity and caring were her distinguishing characteristics. Sarah is a woman of faith and great strength.  Over the next several days on the trip, Sarah and I became friends and I now see her as a great treasure in my life. God separated His people to be a peculiar bunch, to make known His Name, and to be a glory to Him among all people. And this is Sarah! We look forward to getting to know Sarah and her family better in the months ahead.  Sarah has kindly offered to travel to China with us, and we are excited to have her journey with us in bringing our sons’ home.  Sarah lives out her life whose heart is filled with the love of God and willingly shares that love with others.

We pray for a miraculous bonding between us and our Chinese sons’. We pray that Ya Hui and Li Gua will bond close to each other, to our families, and to our friends.

We got seeking confirmation letters!

We are so excited! I got a call on Friday, April 29, 2011 from our adoption agency that they received our seeking confirmation letters today. This is wonderful news and means that we have been approved by China to adopt Zou, Ya Hui and Yun, Li Guo They send these letters seeking confirmation to us to make sure we still want to adopt this child, we will both sign the forms and it will be sent back to China. Then we are officially waiting for travel approval, which typically now comes 2 months later. We are coming boys!

While waiting for our Letter Seeking Confirmation on our sons’ we completed more forms in duplicate because we are adopting two! I-800 and I-864W with USCIS was done- this is our application for approval to adopt our specific children.  We couldn’t file these forms until we had our Letter Seeking Confirmation on the boys. We received our Letters Seeking Confirmation, checked the box, “We accept the adoptee mentioned above,” signed, and dated each form. We returned these forms, along with our I-800 and I-864W forms to our adoption agency.  Now we sit and wait to hear back from "China Center for Children’s Welfare and Adoption, or the CCCWA. No, it is not a typo. The CCAA has made a name change.

Please continue to pray for our sons' in China. May they be healthy, safe, and happy.

 

Like cold water to a weary soul, is good news from a distant land.
--- Proverbs 25:25

St. Patrick's Day

Today is a big day for the Irish. When you think of St. Patrick’s Day you might think parades, parties, corned beef & cabbage and people in celebration while wearing clothing that makes the public filled streets appear to resemble a sea of green.  And I better not forget the most important part of the day for many: the beer! But for myself, my mind is far away from celebrating. My mind goes to our sons’ in China and to an uncle that they will never meet in person.  Bill was a uncle, a son, a brother, a husband, and father. Bill was my brother, and an uncle to our current two sons.  Bill’s life came to an end on St. Patrick’s Day in 2009, due to a choice he made. I could get into the details of his life, but I’m choosing not to. I could tell you about the day Bill died, but it wouldn’t change the outcome. The death of Bill has been hard on my family. Some family members saw Bill’s act as selfish, as well as cowardly, for he did not consider the pain of those loved ones who would be left to live with this loss. We have gone through so many emotions and still are left with the question “why?” As I struggle with Bill’s death, I am reminded that life is not perfect for anyone. Each and every person on earth has struggles. But I know that I don't have to go through these struggles alone.  I have a Father in heaven that I can go to when the pressure mounts, along with friends and family to help me through the troublesome times.

As I struggled with Bill’s death, I drew strength from the words of Psalm 121.

 ¹ I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
   where does my help come from?
² My help comes from the LORD,
   the Maker of heaven and earth.

 ³ He will not let your foot slip—
   he who watches over you will not slumber;
⁴ indeed, he who watches over Israel
   will neither slumber nor sleep.

Dossier To China

The documents in our dossier have been notarized (certified by the appropriate state court or agency), and have had the "state seal" affixed to them by the appropriate state government offices.  Our paperwork is all “sealed” up! This is wonderful news! With all the state seals in place our adoption agency mailed our dossier to China on March 11, 2011.  Our dossier was sent to China via international express mail.  Our agencies Beijing representatives will hand-deliver it to the CCAA (China Center for Adoption Affairs).  Now, our next wait is for our log in date from the CCAA.

Here are some words from our adoption agency social worker. “Once your dossier is submitted to China, most families travel about 4 - 6 months later.  This timeline may be a little bit shorter if the CCAA decides to expedite the process for the boys - which I feel that they might because they are very keen on getting them adopted as soon as possible.”

As we prepare to adopt our sons’ from China, I have been doing some reading about their culture and customs. China just celebrated Chinese New Year and one of the customs for a child is to receive a new set of clothes and shoes to celebrate the new year... and I began to think about the children living in orphanages. Their lack of a family who would provide such an outfit does not exist.  

Our sons’ will soon have the gift of a family…our family. Once home, they will begin to learn that their needs will be provided for by us. It will take time as they learn they don’t have to be in control and watch out for themselves…something a child who lives in an orphanage has had to learn to do.

As I read and learn, I am reminded that I am NOT an orphan. I have a Heavenly Father who is taking care of me. He is taking care of the details of my life. It is a lifelong process of learning to trust and learning that I’m loved with such an intense, unconditional  love. My prayer for our sons’ is that they come to be a part of His family. May they come to fully understand the love of a Heavenly Father who can meet there needs…fully and completely.

Documents Located

We are so happy! The documents that the state of Wisconsin could not locate mysteriously showed up at our adoption agency. Everything was verified by the state of Wisconsin and was in order.  Our adoption agency hopes to be able to mail our dossier (barring any further hiccups) in about one and a half weeks! This was wonderful news. We can stop assembling documents and go back to waiting.

Thank you for the prayers. We look forward to picking our sons’ up from China, but until that happens, we will continue to pray for them and us! Yes, we do need prayer. 

Wisconsin Politics and Adoptions

The last couple of week’s Wisconsin politics have been front and foremost on many people’s minds. It is on my mind too, but for a different reason. Our Governor, Scott Walker, has set out to get a balanced budget, and in doing so, has offended many a Wisconsinite, including those that work in Madison. You may ask, what does this have to do with our adoption? As I found out, it has plenty to do with our adoption. Paperwork for our adoptions was sent to Madison, WI for verification (background checks, employment history, birth certificates, and marriage certificate).  This paperwork ended up getting caught in the hot political climate and has come up missing.  Our social worker called the Secretary of State on February 24, 2011 and they said that they haven’t received the paperwork that was mailed on February 15, 2011. They mentioned that it’s been pretty crazy there and they were closed for a little over two days. “A little crazy” may be a tad bit understated! We will need to gather the documents once again and send them on the Madison, WI.  

Please pray that we gather the documents quickly! Also, pray for our sons’ in China who are waiting to come to America. Pray that they have safety, good health, and that this process moves quickly.

Paperwork

The China adoption paperwork is always changing. Yesterday, our adoption agency social worker contacted me to let me know we had a “hiccup” in our dossier paperwork.  The secretary of state in Wisconsin said that she couldn’t verify the notary because the notary used improper language to notarize Terry's employment form.  The words were all there. They were not in the order the Wisconsin secretary of state wanted! The other thing is that the Consulate has started requiring a signed G1 form for each document that is authenticated. This was another form that I needed to complete and sign. But, the one thing we could control, we failed. Terry forgot to sign his passport. Terry signed his passport; a photocopy was made, and a copy was placed in the mail to our adoption agency today. After a quick scramble to get more paperwork together, I pray that we encounter no more errors or that China does not add any additional documents.

Please keep praying for our sons’ in China. We are praying for their health, their nutrition, their care-takers, and for God's protection to shelter them.

I-800A Approval

WE HAVE I-800A APPROVAL !!

Ok, so things are moving along, a little more slowly than we had hoped.This whole journey is long and slow, but will be soooo worth it!

We have had our home study complete and one final paper to go in the mail today for our dossier. We had our fingerprints done on January 10th and from there have been waiting for this approval. Now that we have it, we need to authenticate it, and then our dossier will be off to China.

Chinese New Year begins February 2^nd, so that will slow things down for a few weeks. I imagine we will have "Log In" about 2 weeks after dossier arrives in China and then we begin our wait for LOA (Letter Of Approval) which takes up to 60 days. Then following will be a couple other important immigration docs....

Please continue to pray for us and this journey. Pray for our sons, who are not here, yet. They are in China and we are here.  

God keep our sons' in your arms.  Keep them from harm. Keep them healthy and attend to their needs. God prepare them to meet and accept us and prepare their hearts in a way only you can for us.  Amen.

A Piece of Mail

Yesterday, I posted about “Why” we are adopting.  I felt compelled to do so because of all the questions, but what I failed to share with you was the precious piece of mail delivered to our home yesterday.  In the mail was a disk mailer and enclosed in the disk mailer were two DVDs.  One was labeled Zou Ya Hui and the other Yun Lin Guo. Terry and I sat down and watched those priceless DVDs of our future sons.  If the DVDs show our sons’ true personalities, Zou Ya Hui appears serious and Yun Lin Guo appears quite happy.  Yun Lin Guo sung and has a very sweet voice.   It was enjoyable to see another glimpse of our future sons' and to see them interact with the interpreters and to hear them respond to questions. Watching the DVDs once was not enough for me, and I’ve had to view them several more times.

We know that these DVDs only show us a small part of our future sons’ thinking.  What it doesn’t show us is the effects that being in an orphanage may have had on them.  As with anything in life, there are uncertainties and we willing accept those uncertainties to raise these two boys. We selected these two boys with the information presented to us and trust that they are the right ones for us.

Why?

Many people have been asking, “Why are we adopting?”  Others ask, “Why are you doing this at your age?” One thing that set this process in motion for us to adopt was a book sent by our son, Troy, to his Dad.  The book, Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families and Churches, by Russell Moore.  This book stresses as Christians we should reach out beyond our biological children.  We need to remember to reach out to orphans and widows (James 1:27). Terry and I are embracing this challenge, at our age, and are reaching out to show love through physical and emotional support for orphans as encouraged by the Bible. Without families willing to take care of orphans or take them in, these children might die, or grow up with no one to love them.

According to study competed by UNICEF in 2008, and other humanitarian organizations, around the world there are as many as 132 million orphaned children (meaning that a child has one parent who has died) and at least 16.2 million of those are “double-orphaned,” meaning that both parents have died. 95% of all orphans are over the age of 5. We know that adoption is not for everyone, but opportunities abound as to where you can help orphans.  Consider sponsoring a child through World Vision, Companion, Save the Children, Feed the Children, and numerous other organizations.  Sponsoring a child can change your life and the life of the child you sponsor.

The adoption process has been a long and difficult one for us, but we are looking forward to the day when we can bring our sons’ home. We continue to ask for your continued support in the adoption process, and that you will pray for Terry and I, our sons, and our future sons.

Paperwork and Diversity

Yesterday and early this morning, I took time to compile and complete what I pray is the last of the paperwork for adopting our two sons’ from China.  But if I've missed anything, our social worker will follow up with an email on additional items needed to complete our dossier.

As I was getting ready for church today, I was pleased that I will not be going to work tomorrow.  For many of us, we are afforded the luxury of having the day off because it is Martin Luther King Day.  I was an unborn baby, when Martin Luther King, on August 28, 1963 delivered his beautiful dream. "I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood. . . . I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will be judged not by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." Martin Luther King’s dream is yet to be realized. And I’m well aware that his dream is not realized as Terry and I are adopting two boys from China. As I’m concerned about this matter, a pastor today helped me put Martin Luther King’s dream into a Biblical vision of God’s purpose for the world. The Biblical vision is bigger than how blacks and whites relate. It's about people from every race and every language and every tribe uniting with God. And they sang a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation (Revelation 5:9). So as I consider Martin Luther King and his beautiful dream, I’m mindful that God has the ultimate dream.  God does not just want blacks and whites. God wants black and white and brown and red and yellow and every shade in between. As Christians, may we accept a diversity of people.