We are so excited to announce that we have accepted a referral of a little boy from South Korea! He is less than a year old (or zero, as Olivia likes to say) and he has already stolen our hearts. We have chosen to keep his Korean name as his middle name and give him the first name Elijah: “My God is Yahweh.” Olivia cannot wait to have her little brother home. She is so proud to show him off and tell about him to everyone we talk to – she is all smiles.

Like Nigeria, South Korea has strong privacy regulations on sharing information regarding pending adoptions, so we will not be sharing any pictures or specifics about him publicly until the adoption is complete. We look forward to sharing a little more about him as we talk to you personally! We also have a private Facebook group for friends and family to follow along through the process from now until we get home from South Korea. It is the same group that we had for Olivia, so many of you are already a part of it, but please let us know if you want an invite for this group.

We aren’t exactly sure when we will travel or if it will be one or two trips. Based on other families who have recently traveled, we are tentatively planning on traveling late summer/early fall of this year. Much of it depends on court dates and COVID-19 regulations. We know that it will both feel like forever and come very quickly!

Prayer Requests

• Please pray for little Elijah! We especially are praying that the Lord is preparing his heart for us and ours for him, and that in the meantime he remains happy, healthy, and safe.
• Pray for us as we prepare to welcome our little boy home. Pray that the Lord would bless us and Olivia physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually as we begin preparations to travel and meet our little boy.
• Please pray for the Lord’s provision financially as we pay all the fees and prepare for travel. We know both from Scripture and experience that the Lord indeed provides.

As always, we can’t thank you all enough for your support and prayers – we are so thankful for you all!

Markus, Sarah, & Olivia