Patience

I will be the first to admit that patience is not my top characteristic.  I too know that as a Christ-follower that patience is not an option but rather one of the fruit of the spirit that I have.  Galatians 5:22-23 tells us
"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."  Now, all that being said I also know that I am still a work in progress and I am not the most patient person in the world.  You'd know that if you were to have me behind you at the traffic light and you paused just a nano second longer than I thought you should and I commenced to lay on the horn to remind you that you were too slow for the jerk of an impatient person behind you - me.
By now you may be asking what all this about patience has to do with Joylee.  Well, we received word this week that the next phase in our adoption process, the "LOA" or "Letter of Approval" from China is delayed.  Not just ours but every family that had a match in May or June are experiencing a delay.  We were matched with Joylee and should have received our LOA this week as this was the 8th week since being matched.  We were informed this week by our adoption agency that everyone is experiencing a delay and that it could be several more weeks before we receive our LOA.  Thus, the entire point of the first part of this post.  We are having to be patient.  I know that God is in control and He has a plan, but I am so ready to go to China to get Joylee and bring her home.  On a purley practical side, we are hoping to be able to bring her home before the end of the year because that would be best for our vacation schedules and time away to make the trip.  The hardest part, though is seeing Joylee's pictures and wondering about how she is doing.  I know she is ultimately in God's care and He will give her to us when He is ready.  We pray for her every night as a family and I pray for her often throughout the day. 
As I close, I would ask for your prayers for a couple of things:  Joylee's well being and care, that we would receive the LOA soon, that we would still be able to go get her before the end of the year and finally the financial means to meet all the needs we have to bring Joylee home.  Thank You!