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An Adoption Story
Posted by Shaylee Honey on August 09, 2010 at 6:32 am
Prayer is powerful. So is a heart seeking the kingdom of God. When those two collide, God only knows what might happen. This is the story of such a collision. It is also a beautiful story of adoption.
A minister friend of mine realized one day in his quest to follow Jesus that something was lacking. Jesus was a friend of sinners; so much that he was accused of partying with the wrong crowd. My friend tried to recall the last time HE was accused of that. He immediately repented and prayed for a fuller Christ like reputation. His eyes were focused a little sharper. His ears were tuned a little finer. The gates of his heart were flung open a little wider. And it happened. New friends entered his life.
One such friend was a young woman struggling with addiction. This minister and his wife welcomed her into their lives and for a time ministered to her. Several years later, they received a call from her, now living in Arkansas. "Can you come get my baby? The sheriff is on my porch and I am going to jail." Without hesitation, the couple left for Arkansas, knowing this would be a life-changing drive.
The baby was a one-year-old, dark-haired girl with big, brown eyes. "She came willingly to me without hesitation and immediately fell asleep. I will never forget that," the minister's wife said. They nourished and nurtured this little one for a year, and when her biological mother was released and seemed eager to start her life again, they returned her to her arms.
Within six months, things got rocky again for the young mother. And she knew she couldn't care for the little one alone. The baby was again placed in the arms of the minister and his wife, this time with the promise that the mother would join them in a week. That week never came. Over the next few months the birth parents situation worsened and my friends sought legal custody and began thinking about adoption.
Having raised four sons, this couple was no stranger to the perils of parenting. The six months away from them had undone much of the teaching, structure and stability of their first year together. But raising four sons had instilled in them a dogged determination and an abundance of wisdom. That, coupled with the confidence it was God who had placed this young one in their lives, has sustained them. Those four sons, other family members and a host of friends have provided additional sustenance, eagerly welcoming this little one.
Next week, many of those family and friends will stand with Mom, Dad and little girl before the judge and hear him declare legally what many have known all along. She is theirs and she is home -- forever.
This little princess is learning about kingdom life in a home where powerful prayers and hearts that seek God still regularly collide. And where God only knows what might happen.
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