Here we go...

It's been quite some time since our last post, partly due to a wonderful and busy summer and partly due to there being very little development in our case for some time. Just as it was with the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court process is not a quick one. After each side has submitted all of their briefs it's anyone's guess when the court will put the case on the docket....so more waiting.

This summer its finally started to hit me in the face just how long all of this has been going on. Wavy's running around the house, talking in complete sentences and insists on doing everything herself. "No, Wavy do it" is her favorite phrase and she seems more like a child and less like a toddler every day. More and more I look at her and am almost in disbelief that we are still fighting this legal battle and that after 2 years there still is the possibility that she could be taken from us. 

Well, recently the waiting for the Supreme Court to hear our case is finally over. We've received word that they will hear our case in a little over a month. So, on Sept 16th we'll step back into a court room and take the next step in what often feels like a never ending journey. Finally having a date where our case will be heard has carried a lot of familiar, but forgotten emotions with it - some good and some not so good. There really is some sense of relief knowing that this is going to move forward and not drag out indefinitely. We've so longed for this process to be complete and this is a big step towards that. 

On the flip side, this also brings with it the anxiety and anxiousness that we seemed to escape from more and more this summer. To the forefront come all of the thoughts, the "what ifs" and the dread of sitting in another courtroom listening to our sweet daughter referred to by a number and not a name. Listening to the other side present a case that at best inaccurate. Watching the faces of judges for any clue as to which way they're being persuaded, and knowing that our daughter's future is in their hands. Pleading with God that he will give them Solomon's wisdom and that he will move in them to rule in our favor once again...and on and on it goes. It's just, quite honestly, one of the most difficult things we've had to endure.

One thing that is an incredible encouragement to us is knowing that so many people are praying for us. So many have followed this story and have supported us in so many ways. So many prayers have been brought before God on our family's behalf and so many people have pleaded with God for our family to stay together. It's encouraging to know, but we also feel strength and comfort in a very real way from your prayers, not only from day to day, but in those difficult places like the courtroom. So we continue to ask for your prayers knowing that the Father does here them and answer them.

Here's some specific things you can be praying for us:

For the justices...please pray that God would give them great wisdom along with a heart to do what is best for Waverley. Pray that God would, even now, be guiding their hearts and their minds for this appointed time in September. Pray that He would help them see clearly what is before them and that they will find a way to uphold the previous rulings.  

For our attorney...pray that Kevin, our attorney will also be given great wisdom and that he will clearly see all of the details of our case. Pray that he will be effective and eloquent in front of the court and that what he says will find favor with the justices. Pray that our case will be ever present in his mind. That he will think of it often and that God will open his eyes to anything that might further strengthen our case. Pray that he will prepared for the 16th in every way.

For our girls...please pray that as Molly and I walk through this together that they will not sense or feel our stress and anxiety. That they will continue to feel loved and safe and that God will keep them from all of this. 

For Molly and I...please pray that we will love and support one another well. That God will enable one of us to be strong when the other is weak. Pray that we will feel comfort and peace instead of worry and anxiety, and most of all that we will be reminded that God really has been in control over this from the beginning and that he is sovereign, even over the highest court in our state.

Several days ago, I was sharing the news of our new court date with some guys I've been friends with now for about 15 years. They all let me know that they would continue to be praying and encouraged me in this next leg of the journey and then one of them said something that seemed to encapsulate all that I've been praying for and wanting to pray for in just a few words. So, this will be my prayer the next several months as the courts hear and decide our case..."that this is the is the stage that God has chosen to bring the Wavy miracle to completion!"

Thank you all for every prayer you've prayed, every encouragement you've sent our way and the many, many way's you've supported us the last 2 years.