Whate’er my God ordains is right:
His holy will abideth;
I will be still whate’er He doth;
And follow where He guideth;
He is my God; though dark my road,
He holds me that I shall not fall:
Wherefore to Him I leave it all.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
He never will deceive me;
He leads me by the proper path:
I know He will not leave me.
I take, content, what He hath sent;
His hand can turn my griefs away,
And patiently I wait His day.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
His loving thought attends me;
No poison can be in the cup
That my Physician sends me.
My God is true; each morn anew
I’ll trust His grace unending,
My life to Him commending.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
He is my Friend and Father;
He suffers naught to do me harm,
Though many storms may gather,
Now I may know both joy and woe,
Some day I shall see clearly
That He hath loved me dearly.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
Though now this cup, in drinking,
May bitter seem to my faint heart,
I take it, all unshrinking.
My God is true; each morn anew
Sweet comfort yet shall fill my heart,
And pain and sorrow shall depart.

Whate’er my God ordains is right:
Here shall my stand be taken;
Though sorrow, need, or death be mine,
Yet I am not forsaken.
My Father’s care is round me there;
He holds me that I shall not fall:
And so to Him I leave it all.

Samuel Rodigast, 1676

Though the words were from long ago, they were such a solace to my downcast heart.  Whether Sami was to join our family or not, God's plan was right and to Him we would leave it all.  And who was the author whose pen spoke through the centuries to comfort me?  None other than a man named Samuel.  Surely, if this little boy was to be ours, he too would bear that name.

A few days later, we found out that the social report had been filled out incorrectly, and there was in fact nothing wrong with our little one's hearing.  We joyfully accepted his referral and have been exceedingly grateful ever since to call this one our own.

The middle name Jedidiah was a name Kevin selected from the Old Testament.  It means "loved by God."  We wanted our son's name to affirm to him that though his life had a somewhat hapless beginning, God's loving hand was not far from him, nor will it ever be.  We also have some dear friends who lost a son named Jedidiah, and we wanted to honor his memory with our son's name.

So I'm thrilled to share with you my favorite pictures of Lao Er, our Samuel Jedidiah: