Kandace and I are excited to share with our friends that we have matched with a little boy; a huge step in our adoption journey! One year ago today in a small town in India our son was born. A few days later he would be dropped off at a police station, and taken to the orphanage where he now lives. Today he celebrates his birthday with his care takers and friends in that orphanage. He has no idea who we are, that we are coming, where his life will be taking him, or that these strangers he will one day meet will be his family.

It was such a surreal and joyous moment when Kandace and I found out about our son. Everything we had been doing was leading up to this moment of finding out who would be our child. I received the phone call on the beach while I was visiting my parents and siblings. It was the first day of school for Kandace at her new school in Alabama so were not together. I believe I called here five times, and texted her to call me immediately. She called me right back, thankfully! I ran through Andrew’s medical needs and all the information I had, and we both said “yes” to our son.

Later that week we received a current picture of Andrew. We cannot share that with you yet, but we can confidently tell you that he is the cutest little boy. I often find myself staring at his picture. I think to myself, that is my son and I already love him so much. It does not feel quite real most of the time. I wish I could hop on a plane to India right now, but that’s not how the adoption process works. I wish I could just put him in my arms, but there is still paperwork to be one. I wish we could just bring him home and introduce him to family and friends, but we still need court approval. I hate waiting, especially now that I know who I am waiting for, but I trust God’s timing. I trust it even when it does not make sense to me or Kandace.

When Kandace and I were picking out names for either gender we could not settle on a girls name. We thought for sure that our baby would be a girl, so I was not looking forward to the back and forth of picking a name. We simply could not find one we liked or agreed on. However, I think we had really just one discussion on a name if it were a boy. It’s funny how God sometimes surprises us.

Our son’s name is Andrew Fuller Cornutt. Andrew Fuller was a Baptist missionary who lived in a place called Kettering (England). Charles Spurgeon once called him the greatest theologian of his generation. Fuller was friends with a man named William Carey and together they helped form the Baptist Missionary Society. William Carey was the first missionary to India and is celebrated (rightfully) for his work among unreached people in India. However, if it were not for Andrew Fuller then William Carey may have never been able to achieve all he did. From Fuller’s diary:

Our undertaking to India really appeared to me, on its commencement, to be somewhat like a few men, who were deliberating about the importance of penetrating into a deep mine, which had never before been explored. We had no one to guide us, and while we were thus deliberating, [William] Carey, as it were, said, ‘Well, I will go down if you will hold the rope.’ But before he went down, he, as it seemed to me, took an oath from each of us, at the mouth of the pit, to this effect, that [we] ‘while welived, should never let go of the rope.’ You understand me. There was great responsibility attached to us who began the business.

Fuller kept his promise to hold the rope. He traveled all over to raise money to support William Carey’s work in India, and other missionaries as well. He helped train missionaries in the Baptist Missionary Society and he devoted his life to the unreached people. There are Christians in India today because William Carey was faithful to go, and because Andrew Fuller was faithful to his promise to keep him there.

Our sons name may not be a traditional Indian name, but it certainly has Indian roots. It also has gospel roots and points to a man who feared God and devoted his life to him. I look forward to the day I get to share with Andrew the reason of his name.

I want to thank everyone who has prayed for us and supported us thus far. Your support has helped us on this journey and we are eternally grateful. You are a part of the story of our son, and we will make sure he knows that. However, our journey is not complete yet and we will need your help. Here are some ways you can pray for us and Andrew:

(1) While we have reserved Andrew in the India system, and are finalizing paperwork nothing is official. India could come back and say no through the judges when we have court. Please pray for our paperwork to go through smoothly and for favorable judges. We believe this is our son and cannot wait for you to meet him.

(2) Pray for Andrew. He has some medical needs we will share at a later date. Pray for wisdom for his doctors and care takers when it comes to his medical situation and his needs. Pray that he continues to grow and enjoy life until we are able to bring him home.

(3) Pray for Kandace and I. To remain at peace with the timing of God. We know God’s timing is best, but some days are harder than others. We know he is our son, we know his needs, we know what he looks like, and we know where he is. Still, we have to wait. I pray that this is the only birthday we have to miss, but we could potentially miss another depending on the process. We hope it is not but again we trust God. Prayers regarding that are much appreciated.

(4) We have paid and raised about half of all of our financial needs regarding the adoption. Pray that we will be able to continue to save and raise money to bring Andrew home. If you would like to contribute please contact me or you can make a tax deductible gift at this link: https://adopttogether.org/families/?fundraiser=cornutts-

Thank you all, and happy birthday to Andrew. We will see you soon, son.