"Forever Fresh and Refreshing Source, Living Water, Bright Garment of Dew, descend now and always in one endless, life-bestowing flow. Bring to us those waters that forever quench our thirst. Bring those waters, we pray to the deserts of our hearts, that from their parched soil, life may sprig a new. And more than this, enable that life-giving flow to pour from ourselves to enliven all around us. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. "

Scott Cairins, God With Us

I love this prayer as I feel I can taste and feel the water as I read it. The imagery is so sweet here, so clear. Bright Garment of Dew, the deserts of our hearts. A needed prayer for me on this Monday morning. I am refreshed from moments of the weekend of rest and play; yet overall I remain in years longs longings. And the exhaustion of longing makes the appeal of the living water so attractive.

This week we have our third and hopefully final homestudy visit. Hannah's dreams of sisterhood continue to strengthen and while she doesn't frequently ask questions about the adoption which surprises me, when we talk about it, you can tell she has been thinking it through. She rearranges rooms and closets to make way for them. She lets us know all the things she can do to help if we get a baby (diapers, back patting) or the other things she'll help if we get a toddler (play with them, help them walk). Its so precious and my hope for her is big.

Im not sure I have thought through before that the word long is inside of longing... duh, and urgh. the long hope for more members in our family has worn me down for sure. I have so many guards up against really hoping for goodness in this realm that I sense myself going through motions. My heart is a bit cut off because I am so very afraid. Afraid of things working out as much as I am afraid of them not working out. My imagination for us as a family of four has become less clear and that hurts me so much. But it is very much the truth of where I am, where I think we both are. So, if you happen to read this and think of us, pray for God to pour water into this desert area of our soul in a way that increases our imagination of what He could have planned for us. And pray for us to persevere as we finish homestudy, birth parent letters and our book over the next few weeks. Thank you.