GREAT things.

Our mouths were filled with laughter,

our tongues with songs of joy.

Then it was said among the nations,   

 “The Lord has done great things for them.”

The Lord has done great things for us,   

and we are filled with joy. 

Psalm 126-2-3 

HE HAS DONE GREAT THINGS. 

Sometimes I forget this. Sometimes I allow my lack of faith (aka my worrying and doubting) to control my mood. Sometimes my attitude reflects the fact that I don't trust. Sometimes I forget that JOY is a CHOICE. Sometimes I forget to praise and thank our God who is so good and loves us so much. 

He has surely done great things. And I am filled with JOY. Let me just have a little show-n-tell with you so that you can see all the great things He has done. I'll end it with some great things about our Eric. 

We got to hang out with these AWESOME students this week for multiple Christmas parties! I absolutely LOVE them. So honored with the privilege we've had to love on them, invest in them, and disciple them!  Would not change time with them for ANYTHING in the world! 

First thing... me and my hubby have successfully completed 4 years of marriage! WOO HOO! He took me on an ALL DAY date!!! That says something right there peeps - I know 4 years isn't too long, but my hubs still wants to spend ALL day with me! That just makes me giggle. We went to Waffle House. Shopping. He bought me scarfs because I love them... I would literally wear one everyday if I could. Movies. Smooches. And laughter. It was a great day. He has done GREAT things in our marriage. It's fun. 

One of my favorite people, Kelli (and her fam) gave me this AWESOME gift for Christmas!! Birthdays. Anniversaries. Awesomeness!!! I absolutely LOVE it. I cannot wait until I can get it hung up! He has done GREAT things with this friendship. So thankful for the Knicks. 

Today Jacob had an itch to do a puzzle... so we put Eric's puzzle together. It's complete with the names of YOU... the people who have loved and supported our boy since you heard about it! We can't wait until we can show him and tell him about each name on the back of the pieces!!! We still have a few blank ones if you are interested! $10 each. Just got to the DONATE button on the right side of the screen and fill out the info. 

The completed puzzle. 

Can't wait to hang it up in Eric's room... or wherever we decide to hang it!  

God has done great things - 

Our medical form was accepted, all of our pre - adoption paperwork has been approved, the final letter from the US/Alabama has been sent to immigration, and Eric has applied for his passport!!!!!!! PRAISE THE LORD!!!! 
Our social worker said it is a Christmas miracle that everything was processed so quickly!  Love that! Our God is a God of miracles. Whether or not it was in MY timing, this story that God is writing continues to show His awesome power and His perfect-ness.
So now we just sit back and wait on the Article 5 Letter from the US Embassy... and then travel dates!!! Please pray for that letter (I really don't know what it is exactly... just know we need it).  Pray that the travel dates are set up QUICKLY so we can go get Eric!!! 

We certainly know the power of prayer - it moves paper work. It brings our case to people's minds. It speeds up approvals. It comforts our son. It keeps us sane. It is essential. 

Some GREAT Eric things: 

We sent Eric a package with a blanket, a shirt, and 3 lb bag of Jolly Ranchers about 2 and 1/2 weeks ago.  I thought it was lost. But... finally on Tuesday, he got it!! He was so excited about the Jolly Ranchers.  The next day, we asked him if he'd eaten all the candy. He said he and a few friends ate ALL of it!!! Holy moly. 3 POUNDS!!! Wowzers. He really likes Jolly Ranchers. 

Last night we were talking to Eric. We were explaining what we know of the process when we come get him and what we have to do once he gets here.  We told him he would be able to change his name.  I asked him what he wanted his name to be (thinking he would answer "Eric Emmanuel Morgan") and he said... "Umm... Mikey Morgan."  Haha! He said he didn't really want to be called Eric... but liked Mikey.  He said it sounds like his favorite skateboarder dude. Nice.  What do ya say??? We just told him we could talk about it 

later... maybe Mikey could be a nickname??? I just giggled. Love it! 

We've been excited to hear about what all the orphanage does/allows for the kiddos around Christmas.  Several groups of people have gone and given gifts out there. They've had several Christmas parties and were even taken out to eat at a restaurant one night. Eric has REALLY been wanting some Nike Jordan sandals (the old school kind with Micheal Jordan on the one-strap flip-flops). We didn't want to send them down there in case something happened to them, so we said we would get them for him for when he got here. He was okay with that but still really wanted them. So... one night we talked to him and he was SO excited because one of the groups that came brought him the very sandals he had been wanting!!!! Yay!! I was so excited that someone blessed my boy in that way! He was thrilled. He said Ms. Natalie from Florida brought them. So... I don't know who you are - Ms. Natalie from Florida... but I THANK YOU! You made my boy's day! 

We love finding out more bits about our Eric each night. We look forward to talking with him all day. Although we don't always know what to say, we run out of questions some nights, have super long and excellent conversations some nights, don't know how to explain how much we love him, and we are new to this whole parents of a teenager thing... I love our family. I'm beyond excited to live life with my fellas. To pray over them and with them. To play video games, basketball, arts & crafts, board games, and everything else. To cook dinner together. Whatever happens... I'm just excited that we get to be Eric's parents.  I just love him. 

Growin' up in the SoUtH...

There are SO many things I LOVE about growing up in the South - 

• Sweet Tea
• Country accents
• Summer nights
• Short drive to the beach.. the REAL beach
• Lightning bugs
• Potluck dinners
• Friday night football
• Fried chicken
• The word "Y'all"
• Country music
• Flip flops
• Sunday morning church
• Southern hospitality 
• Picnics
• Family
• The fact that if a weatherman MENTIONS snow or possibly flurries, all of us rush out to buy milk and bread.

And many more things... 

I love the fact that us Southerners make up our mind about things and never change... such as going to church, Mexican food after church (whatev), our loyalty to our football teams, and our confusion of why people want to move North (I'll never get that). BUT... there are some things that we have set our minds on and walls that have been built that should be shattered with a wrecking ball (not with Miley Cyrus on it though). 

One of those walls... and it's pretty much the Great Wall of China in some places... is the tension between races. It makes me sick. Racism. I know it still exists everywhere, but in the South, at times it is so strong you can feel it. I know that generations back hurts, offenses, and decisions occurred that affected a nation of people. I am not downplaying that AT ALL! But... why are we still tolerating hatred towards one another? We should have learned from it all. There is no race better than the other. There is no language that is supreme. There is no group of people that should lord privilege over another. There is no one lesser. 

Some people say that segregation is supported in the Bible. Wrong. In the Old Testament the separation that was required was because of wickedness and the beliefs of other nations. The other nations and races positioned around Israel, God's chosen people, worshipped false gods and believed in crazy things... opposite of His Truth and Teachings. They were told to separate themselves... so they would be holy and that their nation would remain faithful to God. Although they were disobedient, the command wasn't based on the color of skin... it was based on faithfulness to God. 

To base our feelings, perceptions, values, decisions, and support of something on the color of skin is ridiculous... it just is. 

Christ died for ALL... every color, race, nation, culture, language, tribe... A.L.L. means ALL! EveryONE. Why would be so selfish and proud to decide who we should or shouldn't love or welcome? 

For the past few weeks, our 5th Quarter events, Wednesday night suppers, and Wednesday night youth services have been more colorful - white and black students - and I have absolutely LOVED it!!! I know some of you are probably like... yea... what's the big deal? Let me tell you... it's a huge deal! Jacob and I have prayed for UNITY within The Church since we began in ministry - UNITY within the church walls, UNITY amongst churches, and UNITY with our community... all people. Literally, we both teared up standing in the back of the room looking at our youth... worshipping together... being together... regardless of differences. Beauty. Truly... it's an answered prayer!!! To see other youth, other people welcoming, feeding, and getting to know them is the BEST thing EVER! 

In Jesus' prayer in the Garden... like THE night he was to be betrayed, he said this: 

²⁰ “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, ²¹ that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. ²² I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— ²³ I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

John 17: 20:23

He was praying for us... that we would be UNIFIED. UNITY shows His complete love for us... and His undivided faithfulness to us. When we stand as just the white church, the black church, the Americans, the Spanish, the Chinese, the _________... we are not showing Christ's love... AT ALL! We must stand TOGETHER as THE CHURCH - colorful, multi-lingual, hobos and royalty, princes and paupers, the young the old, the pretty and ugly. Yes, there are differences in looks, cultures, backgrounds, upbringings, and lifestyles... SO WHAT!?!?! 

When you are against people... kids ESPECIALLY... because of their skin color, ethnicity, or background... there's a problem with YOUR heart... not their appearance. 

So, let's all check ourselves, me included. Where do our judgments and prejudices lie? Are our beliefs about people based on how Jesus sees them or from our own bias?? Are we truly LOVING others? 

Let's be willing to have our walls DEMOLISHED in order for Jesus to shine brighter than our traditions, family beliefs, or our own perceptions.  It's not always easy, and we can look for and find things to support our biases... but Jesus is bigger. Let's learn to see people through the lenses of the Gospel.  

WoRtHy Of ThE gOsPeL...

It has been a super rainy week... super rainy.
But that meant lots of resting, board games, and food! :) 

For the 4th, we heading to Lake Martin with the in-laws for the day. We had lots of fun... good conversation, yummy food, lots of rain, and games in the camper.  Jacob and I rode bikes for a little while - we now understand how we were so fit as kids. Riding bikes is a killer! Thighs were throbbing after scooting around the whole campsite...

Friday we headed down to Fort Walton Beach to hang out with Patrick and Amber. It was super fun and relaxing.  And again... lots of rain. We knew it was going to rain and we probably weren't going to get a tan but we decided that a rainy weekend with a pretty view was better than a rainy weekend cooped up in Troy. 

Friday night we ate at Floyd's in Fort Walton. It was scrumptious! They had all you can eat shrimp for $14.99! can't beat that! We got to sit, chat, and watch surfers bust = entertainment! 

Patrick's family lives on the bay so the view was spectacular! And... Friday night when we got back, we hung out on the pier and then sat in swing on the porch and listened to live music!! Their house is close enough to a bar that you can hear the live music!! FREE ENTERTAINMENT!! It was great! We did get to kayak in the bay for a little while on Saturday before another monsoon came... I definitely thought I was going to get flooded and sink in the middle of the bay... and then get eaten by a shark. But... we survived. 

Isn't that view great!?!?! How do people just live here??? So great! 

Last night, we had our first July Family night for the church. We ate, played games, and... JACOB WON A PIE EATING CONTEST!!! I'm definitely a proud wife! 

He was miserable after... and all night. BUT... there's no glory without pain! Haha! 

So... this next thing I haven't really told anyone because it's kinda odd to bring up. And... it's just kind of a strange concept for me right now. I don't really know how to talk about it yet because I don't have the answers, but I have to tell it because it's part of HIS story. So... what better way to tell it than on this here blog... 

Last weekend at camp -
The last night of camp wasn't your typically mushy, let's all cry and sing "Kumbaya"... it was a call to ACTION... a call to full-time ministry. Ergun Caner delivered a message on our callings and purpose in life. It was one of those messages for me that made me just squirm in my chair and want to hide in the bathroom the whole time.  It was a call from the mediocre to ministry. A call from settling to soaring. I knew it was for me. At the end of his message, he challenged those who believed they were called to full-time ministry to stand up.  He gave a list of requirements including: if you stand up, you MUST go before your church and do the same the next sunday. if you stand up, you are committing to go anywhere, do anything, at anytime for the spread of the Gospel. if you stand up, you are promising to not listen to idiots who will want to speak logic and opposition to you.  
So... what did God make me do? STAND UP. Ugh... I was terrified. I told Him I just wanted to sit down. This was a youth camp and I didn't need to be standing. I knew that He was going to use me and I was fine with just knowing that, and not making a scene about it.  Nope... He kept me standing. I HATE those awkward moments with God when He forces me to just obey and shut up. I was standing and Jacob was sitting beside me. He just smiled at me. I was thinking, "What in the world does this mean, God? I have no idea what I'm doing standing up? I'M FREAKIN' OUT!"...
Then, Ergun made all of us standing - there was about 15 of us (AMAZING!) - go outside to meet with him. I frantically grabbed Jacob's hand and headed outside. Also heading outside was one of our youth, Caleb, and Barrett from our church. God is crazy and beautiful. 
We met with Ergun and talked with each other. We were all terrified and excited. We were deemed ministers of the Gospel, prayed for, and then celebrated with. Ergun was PUMPED when Jacob told him that me, his wife, just stood up to respond to the call.  Ergun said his wife did the same... and it changed everything! He even texted his wife to tell her! :) God is good at confirming decisions... 

So... what does this mean? 
I HAVE NO CLUE! God knows because He is the one who made me stand up! All I know, like I told Jacob, is that I am tired of living a mediocre life. Some may say I'm not, but I know I am NOT made to sit in an office and just answer emails and interpret at times.  I am not made to settle.  I am made to speak truth to women, to invest, to equip others for mission, and to go on mission myself- local and international.  I feel most alive with I am free to minister and serve... so why not live like that all the time? I believe standing up was about SURRENDER... SURRENDER to the call that God has placed on the Morgans' lives. To SURRENDER to fully supporting my hubby's dreams and his vision for our future... to SURRENDER to WHATEVER God has dreamed for us... to SURRENDER to feeling totally freaked out standing in a room full of youth and adults committing my life to full-time ministry... yea... surrender. 
He'll show us the way... He is faithful. We know that PEACE comes from full obedience. We know that Joy is found in His presence and in His path. We know His path takes PATIENCE and WISDOM and PRAYING and WAITING. So... here we are... two people surrendered the call of full-time ministry... waiting for God to move so we can follow. 

So... because we stood up... we had to go to the front of the church yesterday... like we promised... (Not pictured: Barrett... he had to leave early)

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ... without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.

Philippians 1:27-28

Sweet Summertime

Just some pictures...

Meet Miss Raleigh Drew Knick! 

She's the newest member of Southside Baptist... and another baby we get to hang out with... and then give back! :)  

If you are into RANDOMNESS and like games... YOU MUST PURCHASE THIS GAME AND PLAY IT WITH ALL THE WEIRDOS YOU KNOW!!! It's the best

We just got back from youth summer camp... We went to Hydrate Camp in Panama City Beach... it was fantastic!

We were a little worried before we went because all the kiddos kept backing out, we didn't know much about the camp, and it just seemed like things were falling apart.  BUT... of course... it was a GREAT weekend filled with lots of Jesus, lots of laughs, and very little sleep.

Here's a picture overload from camp:

We definitely have the prettiest youth group I've ever seen...

Some of the youths played in a 3 on 3 basketball tourney. Here's Team 1  

The Red Velvets

And Team 2.  Kiddo on the right didn't come with us... he just hung out with us because he liked our girls... but... none were interested. And he was 6'6 and 16 years old... so they recruited him for the bball game. 

The Pooper Scoopers

Pretty cheerleaders for the teams.

Look at those skills!!! 

...both teams lost.

We got hit in the face with water balloons. This was fun!  

We worshipped Jesus... A LOT 

One of our guys, Cole, WON THE BELLY FLOP COMPETITION!!!!!  

WE WERE PUMPED!!!! 

Cole is a stud... and had lots of little girlie groupies.  He wasn't interested either...

CELEBRATION OF THE VICTORY! 

We also participated in the Volleyball tourney!!! We all wore tank tops... even the boys... even Jacob. BAHAHA! 

WE WON THE VOLLEYBALL TOURNEY TOO!!!! CHAMPS! 

Yea... we dominated! 

There was a Building 429 concert on the last night! LOVED IT! 

This song basically sums up the weekend:

And here's the entire group... the best group of kiddos ever. We love them dearly and LOVED what God did in their lives this weekend... and our lives. 

Learning and Living...

Hi there! 

Happy Wednesday!  So... I've been learning a LOT lately! I haven't been able to figure out how to say it all yet... but I am surely learning.  I guess when you stop throwing pity parties for yourself and start asking God to make your teachable... He does it. Not to say that I don't get sad or just miss my kiddos that live miles away... I'm just trying to learn through the tears and the thrills instead of dwelling in discouragement. 

Anywho... check out what we've been doing...

I love taking pictures that the Bible study girls can look back on and see where God has brought them. So... for the last Bible study of the year... I took pictures of the girls with a verse that they could cling to no matter what the future, or the past, held! Aren't they cool? 

Then... we graduated off some really great people...

And had a really great service to celebrate them...

I'm excited about our next group of seniors movin' on up! They are awesome too! Can't wait to eat lunch with EACH one of the girls this summer... that's my goal! 

Just a reminder... our dogs are ridiculous... Jubi is lounging... on a table... she's weird. She's gotten on the patio table and just laid there everyday this week... strange! 

This is how they greet us.  Yes... the black blob at the bottom is Jubi.

For Memorial Day weekend we got to spend time at the beach with Ashley and Jared.... it was fabulous!!! Love spending time with them... and JOHANNA!!!! 

Life is good. It's good to be taught. It's good to live and learn... to enjoy the moments in the waiting.  To be thankful for the here and now and excited about the future.  

There are times...

Hi y'all. A few thoughts.

There are times...

your momma sends you a gem of a picture... 4 generations... of great mommas (hoping I'm a great momma... I have some pretty great women to copy).

you have a really great clogging class that you are gonna miss so you give each of them an award... because they all rock! Aren't they presh? :) 

you realize how great your man is. he loves spending time with me. he would rather have fun with me than the house be clean. he likes my cooking (shocker). he knows me. he encourages me. he likes that I'm crazy. he says he even likes my corniness. he sits with me at baseball games... even when I scream like a teenager. he teaches me. he is super cute. he is a keeper... 

you need to take off work at go to a Braves baseball game and be silly with your man! 

you are super thankful for 2 college students who have truly made life better! Love these crazy love birds! 

when there's a group of seniors who are graduating and you know you will really miss them.

your dogs make you smile... even when you don't feel like smiling. So photogenic...

when it's okay to cry. Throughout this adoption process... I wanted to be 'okay' and I didn't wanna be emotional. i see all these adoption families and how super happy they are all the time... and I thought I needed to be like them. But... sometimes... the adoption process IS NOT FUN! Sometimes it's good to cry and to weep while I'm waiting. I KNOW it will be worth it. I KNOW He is FAITHFUL. I KNOW He is GOOD. I KNOW His timing is perfect. I KNOW His promises.  BUT... that doesn't mean I can't cry or hurt... because I can. I can cry for my kiddos and wish they were here. I can be super joyful thinking about when they do get here. I can always praise God for the amazing ways He is providing... IT IS TRULY amazing! But... I can cry and I can be 'not okay' sometimes.  I believe God weeps with me... and that is a good thought.

I AM okay. I trust my God... He is trustworthy. Sometimes a momma just has to cry! :)

So if you are waiting or hurting... IT'S OKAY TO CRY! We don't have to be happy plastic people all the time. It my emotional week, I have been so encouraged by my mom, my hubby, my friends, church family, and co-workers. There are times when us encouraging people NEED to be encouraged... JUST TAKE IT! Stop being stubborn... just cry... you'll feel better. And then remember...