Easter

Today has been one of those days when I realize how blessed I am and if not for the grace of God I would be lost and condemned. This is a day of reflection for Christians around the world. I am not worthy of the sacrifice made for my sins - it is only by His grace that I am saved. He is risen!

Sunday we leave for our trip to northern Virginia for an interview with a mission agency. We are excited and maybe a tad bit nervous. I met with our pastor this morning to discuss our trip and our ministry plans. It is very refreshing to speak to folks about our plans because we really have not told many people. I even made a call to my boss and gave him notice that he might get a phone call. That was a bit strange, because I was not sure how it would be received. I explained what we were going to do and that it would not interfere with my job as I would be using vacation time to travel. I am blessed to have A LOT of vacation. I have been with the same employer for 23 years. Although they really encourage me to take my vacation, my production goals are the same as someone starting the job today. As a result, I often lose 2-3 weeks per year. My last phone call was to my customer. My customer contacts were incredibly supportive. I am very lucky to have such great contacts with this group. They are my employer's largest customer and have been for about 80 years. If they did not support what I was doing, believe me when I say I would have to find another job.

The social worker came a week ago for our final report to Russia on our first adoption. Boy they seem to be getting so young. Young, no children of her own and she is asking us about how we are raising the children. There was an occaission or two when I just wanted to laugh. She seemed quite shocked that it had been 5 whole months since their last check up.

On a final note, we had some severe weather last weekend here at home. On Wednesday, I got an e-mail from our family in Siberia (the kid's aunt in Pokrovka). She had seen a news report about the tornadoes and fatalities and was worried about us. I never would have imagined she would have heard about it. The tornado hit about 15 miles north of us and killed three people. She was relieved to hear we were all okay.

Please keep us in your prayers -

Tony & Dawn

God's Plan for Us -2011

To many, this will not be new news, but to others it will be. If you know Dawn and I even remotely, you know that the plight of the orphan is very near and dear to our hearts. While on our first trip to Vladivostok, Russia, we fell in love with the people and experienced one of those "God Things". Ever since that visit, we have felt a connection to that region and the people. Add to that the family connection we have there with three of our children. It has been nearly three years since we left and to this day I check the weather for that area.

For every year that has passed us, the tug on our heart has grown stronger. So much so, I even looked into immigration laws for Russia. If possible, I would sell our belongings and move tomorrow. Sadly, the Russian immigration law is not as open as ours here in the United States. We have now decided to spend our annual vacation time and resources on working for orphans in the Primorsky Krai region. The last week of this month, we interview with a mission agency. If approved, we will be allowed to do just that under their umbrella.

While on our first trip to Vladivostok, we met a missionary in the lobby of the hotel. Guess what he does? Works with orphans in that region. Coincidence - I think not!! For the past three years, we have kept in close contact with him and his family and even invited them to speak at our church.

The past 12 months have been interesting to say the least. Those of you close to us know what we have been through. For those of you we don't know, let me just say that the devil, yes - Satan himself will use every tool at his disposal to stop orphans from being adopted by loving parents. Try to do more than that and the fight gets a little rougher. We have been through things I would never, ever would have imagined in my wildest nightmare. However, at my side is The King of Kings. We walked through the fire with His help and we walk forward knowing His angels are with us. To God be the glory of all we are able to accomplish in His name.

So, please pray for us as we start this new journey. We will share more info in a few weeks.

God Bless -

Tony & Dawn

P.S.
Our final interview for our last post placement for Polina, Dima and Nastya is tomorrow. It is amazing to see how they have grown!

Casting Crowns & Toby Mac Concert

Last night we went to a Christian event in Birmingham - Stadium Fest. There we got to hear some great speakers and see a couple of great artist like Kevin Derryberry, Casting Crowns and Toby Mac. We had a ball!