7 Miracles, 1 Adoption

While going through the process of adopting their daughter in 2020,

Corey and Holly made a point to list some of the many miracles. and ways God was faithful to them. The end result was a beautiful collection of ways God worked.

Corey and Holly made a point to list some of the many miracles. The end result was a beautiful collection of ways God worked.

In their words …

“The Lord is good and His love endures forever.

We are blown away by how evident God’s goodness is. We’ve observed it in such obvious ways. We are in awe of what Ada has absorbed and how she adapts despite the trauma of being in a new family, culture, and home.

Of course, there have been some hiccups—expected and unexpected—but it is apparent that she already trusts us. And although learning to trust will be a lifelong journey, the fact that she has already opened her heart and accepted us brings me the most joy.

“God has been so, so faithful in our story. Not because we’re special or amazing people, but simply because He loves our daughter so deeply.”

We will always grieve the fact that Ada was in a situation where she needed a home.

The magnitude of that devastation for her (and her birth mother) is difficult to dwell on. However, we will never cease to be thankful that we get the opportunity to be her family forever.

Despite any trials ahead, she is—and will always be—a gift to our family. We cannot wait to see how else God reveals His goodness through her life!

God overtly provided during our adoption process so many times!

We created a list of the main miracles and many ways we saw His hand at work.

• Corey had a reoccurring dream four nights in a row in April 2018. The dream was us flying to South Korea to take custody of our daughter. Prior to this dream, we were both adamant about now having any more children. The extra wild part is that this was the same month that Ada’s birth mom found out she was pregnant with her.
• When we inquired about adoption, our family was eligible to adopt from four countries. South Korea happened to be the best match for our family.
• We could not choose a gender when we sent our dossier to South Korea, and we were excited for whatever child God placed in our lives. He knew Ada was the one for our family … we were matched with a girl!
• After experiencing a significant wave of grief in August 2019 due to the anniversary of a baby we miscarried, an overwhelming sense of peace came over us. We felt God declaring that He was going to redeem the loss. Ada would not replace that baby, but God remembered the pain and provided me with hope. That baby was due March 2017, and we ended up taking custody of Ada in March 2020.

The list of miracles continues.

• Despite our public notice (part of the South Korean adoption process) not being complete, we were assigned a court date which was the catalyst for our process to be complete before COVID travel restrictions were fully implemented.
• At the hospital where Ada was supposed to have her visa medical appointment in early March, there was a COVID case. The hospital staff was able to notify the agency in order for her foster family to take her to a different hospital that day. This prevented her from having to quarantine for two weeks.
• As we waited in the airport to fly to Seoul for our custody trip, we contacted congressmen for support in regards to expediting her visa appointment. This was after all other avenues were exhausted. It was our last hope. When we landed in Seoul on March 7, we received an email notifying us that her visa appointment had been moved up a week! This allowed us to fly home with Ada on March 11—two days before airports closed due to COVID—in order for her to meet her two older brothers!

The process was not always smooth.

There were some really difficult days as we waited and were passed over for various parts of the process.

However, in hindsight, God’s goodness, protection, and care for Ada and our family were always evident if we took the time to notice it.

Not only in the overt ways, but also through friends’ prayers, encouraging words, and financial gifts.

Lifesong gave us a $5,000 matching grant that covered nearly all of our travel expenses to South Korea! This was significant because we had to make two trips there. It was such a blessing for us!

Transitioning back home has been beautiful and overwhelming. There have been moments of pure joy and pure exhaustion. However, we praise God for allowing us the privilege to be Ada’s parents. She is, and always will be, a gift to our family!”