ONE WEEK

We will be leaving in one week to travel to get our sweet son from China....this has been a long and hard journey...these past two weeks have been especially hard. However....we have seen God work more clearly and our faith has grown more than at any other time in our lives. We continue to be humbled by Gods provision in every step of this journey.
We ask for prayer as we travel to get Sam...and as we adjust to our new family. We rest in knowing that God has equipped us for this and has already gone before us. We praise Him daily for his protection of Sam and are truly humbled that He has chosen us to be Sams parents.
Thank you for journeying with us...for praying and for being a source of encouragement.
To God Be the Glory....
Bethany and all

For those of you that are interested...here is our itinerary while we are gone....
Thank you for praying

CHINA ITINERARY

May 2, 2012- Depart Knoxville at 11:25am (Delta 4263)…arrive in Detroit at 1:08pm….leave Detroit at 3:25pm (Delta 275)….arrive in Tokyo May 3 at 5:35pm

May 3, 2012-  Leave Tokyo at 7:10pm (Delta 617)…arrive in Beijing at 10:30 p.m. 

May 4, 2012- Orientation meeting at 10:00 a.m.  Acrobatic show in the afternoon.

May 5, 2012- Visit Great Wall, Cloisonne Factory & Bird’s Nest (from Olympics)

May 6, 2012- Visit Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City and Hutong Tour. 

May 7, 2012- Flight CA1331 (7:20-8:50am) to Zhengzhou.  Receive your child in the afternoon. 

May 8, 2012- Adoption registration and notarization.  At this point Sam will be legally ours in the eyes of the Chinese government

May 9, 2012- Free

May 10, 2012- Visit Zijin Hill Park and Zhengzhou City God Temple.

May 11, 2012- Visit Henan Provincial Museum.  Flight CZ361 (4:30-6:45pm) to Guangzhou. 

May 12, 2012- Medical exam for your child in the morning.

May 13, 2012- Visit Guangzhou Folk Art Museum and Haixin Plaza.

May 14, 2012- Go back to the clinic to check skin test results.

May 15, 2012- Visa appointment. At this point Sam is legally ours in the eyes of the US government.

May 16, 2012- Pick up visa in the afternoon.  Flight MU5310 (7:05pm-9:20pm) to Shanghai

May 17, 2012- Leave Shanghai at 10:00am (Delta 180)…arrive in Detroit at 1:21pm…Leave Detroit at 3:19pm (Delta 3010)..arrive in Knoxville at 4:50 pm.

Prayer Requests:

-pray that the flights will be smooth both there and back and that Sam would do well on the plane

-pray that we would all remain healthy while we are there

-pray that Sam would have an easy transition to Danny and I and that we would have some great bonding while over in China

-pray that Danny and I would be a testimony while we are there…and that we would glorify God in all that we do

-pray for Will, Hannah, and Holly Mae as they are back in Knoxville

-pray for my family and Dannys family as they are taking care of them

Thank you for praying for us and for journeying with us…..we can’t for Sam to meet each and every one of you….To God be the Glory!!!

Three Weeks and Counting

We have been given travel dates....HOORAY!!!!!
We will leave here on May 2nd and return May 17th.....
Please pray for us as we prepare to leave, pray for our three kids that will remain here with family while we are gone, pray for Sam that the transition would be smooth, and above all else please pray that God's name would be glorified.

We appreciate each of you who have been with us throughout this journey....what a wonderful way it has been for us to experience the constant faithfulness and provision of our Loving Saviour.

We will keep you up to date as the time to leave gets closer....

God is Good,
Bethany and all

Watching God Work.....

Throughout this whole adoption process, Danny and I have seen the work and provision of God more clearly than in any other time in our lives.
Last night was no exception...we had another pizza fundraiser and yet again we were blown away. We had people come that we haven't seen in at least a year, people that we didn't know but have been following our journey, students of Dannys, former students of mine, and friends of the kids. All came for the same reason...to help us bring home Sam and help our friends bring home their girls from the Congo.
Thinking about bringing Sam home and starting our life as a family of six is so exciting....looking back at this journey and watching how God has provided any time there has been a need is extremely humbling.
Knowing that so many people are praying for this sweet boy in China means more to Danny and I than you will ever know.
Thank you for sharing in this journey with us. May we continue to be obedient to Gods calling as we move closer to bringing Sam home. May God continue to prick peoples hearts to become advocates for the millions of orphans out there.
Praying for those longing to be adopted and praising God that I have been adopted by Him
Bethany

An overdue update

Wanted to let everyone know where we are in the process of bringing home our sweet Sam....
-We recieved our Visas in the mail on Saturday
-Our Article 5 (the last paper we need) should be issued in the next few weeks
-We are hoping to recieve our invitation to travel by the beginning of April and then it is normally 2-3 weeks from that point that we will travel

We so excited that we are nearing the end of this journey. We continue to marvel at Gods faithful provision during each and every step of this journey.
We are working to get things ready for our son to come home....and rejoicing in the fact that we will soon be a family together.

Thank you for your prayers and encouragement...we are honored that each of you have chosen to be a part of this with us.

Please pray that the paperwork and travel dates would come quickly...please pray that we would sell our car to help pay for the last part of the adoption costs.

Above all else, pray that God would be glorified in this journey and that we would continue to challenge others to become involved in the lives of orphans.

God is Good,
Bethany and all

We would like you to meet......

Our sweet son... Samuel Kent Sharp.....

The Lord does not forget the orphan and He WILL move on their behalf....we can't wait to get him home.
Thank you for all the prayer and encouragement...we ask that you continue to pray that paperwork would move quickly. Above all else, please pray that God would be glorified in all we do and say as we prepare to welcome him home.
Bethany and all

BIG NEWS!!!!!

What a mighty God we serve!!!
We just received an email from our agency letting us know that we are officially approved to bring our little boy home from China. What an exciting day for all of us!!!
We are now working on getting the last bit of paperwork filled out and then we will wait for our invitation to travel from China to arrive.
We want to thank each of you for praying....for journeying wtih us. We are beyond thrilled to bring our son home.
God is good,
Bethany and all

Happy New Year!!!

Hapy New Year!!! We are looking forward to all that this year has in store...hopefully bringing our son home from China.
It has been awhile since I posted on here...mainly because we are still in a period of waiting. We are waiting for one piece of paper....praying that it will arrive soon.
While the waiting is hard, it has given us many opportunities to pause and marvel at Gods provision throughout this entire process. We are humbled daily by all that God does and the grace He pours out.
Thank you for waiting with us...for praying and asking how things are going...you don't know how much that means to all of us.
May we continue to use our journey for the glory of His kingdom.
Bethany and all