Adoption Journey Lesson # 1

Adoption journey lesson # 1, If God has a plan that has been established since before time began, then He will make it happen even when the world and His people He created sees it as impossible!

This lesson learned keeps repeating itself over and over on our path through adoption.... Why does it keep repeating?? The answer is simple:

I have such small faith. I let my eyes look upon the amount need to adopt our boys and allow it to overwhelm me and think, "There is NO WAY we can afford this!"  And there in the mist of that sentence is found the problem, "we". 

"We" can't afford it, but you know who can? The creator of the earth, the creator of the universe, the everlasting Father to the fatherless, the Almighty, the I AM, the Provider, the healer, the one who wrapped Himself in flesh to take our brokenness upon Himself to make us complete and right with Him! How can I ever doubt that His plan cannot succeed without "my" help? Who am I?

Adoption Journey lesson #1, If God has a plan that has been established since before time began, then He will make it happen even when the world and His people He created sees it as impossible!

Gary's adoption- $35,000-paid in full

Willy's adoption- 12,720.00- amount funded- $12,025.00 Amount left- $695.00

Am I afraid we are not going to meet the full amount... Nope!! God's got this, He always has!

To God be the glory, great things He has done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His Son,
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin,
And opened the life gate that all may go in.

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the earth hear His voice!
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord,
Let the people rejoice!
O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son,
And give Him the glory, great things He has done.

O perfect redemption, the purchase of blood,
To every believer the promise of God;
The vilest offender who truly believes,
That moment from Jesus a pardon receives.

Great things He has taught us, great things He has done,
And great our rejoicing through Jesus the Son;
But purer, and higher, and greater will be
Our wonder, our transport, when Jesus we see.

The Dancing, Half Naked Man

There is a man I pass everyday on my way to work.  He is peculiar.  He is a spectacle.  This guy is in his late forties and constantly walks around his trailer park neighborhood along side the highway.  He wears huge headphones and bike shorts.  That is usually it.

It is not uncommon to drive by and see him dancing, raising his arms to the sky, or shadow boxing.  I have found him along side the road at 4:00am and as late as 12:30am.  

At first, his antics were amusing, causing me to always look for him.  Eventually, he became more of a spectacle to me.  He didn't realize it, but he was made subject to all kinds of internal ridicule on my part.  A simple shaking of the head, pretty much sums up this man's relationship with onlookers, including myself.

When I look at Aaron, I see my oldest now at 12 years old, but I cannot help but still see little two year old Aaron, snotty nosed, innocent, and so loving.  He is still very loving, but all you parents know what I am talking about.  You still see the innocent little kid inside the much larger, older child now.  And it causes you to love them so much more.  It allows you a glimpse of who this child can truly be and who this child truly is at heart.  

And so it occurred to me that maybe Christ in his compassion pursues in this very same manner.  Yes he sees the person that stands in defiance now, but he knows who that person was as a child.  He sees the hurt, the missing parents, missing leadership, absent dad, abusive mom, non existent medical care, the rejection, the hurt, the loneliness, the depravity...and he has compassion.  He has compassion.  He has compassion.  He pursues.  

Not that there was ever any good in us to begin with, because there wasn't, but that he has always seen what we would become if only we would surrender our lives to him.  

If we claim to have the heart of Christ, if we claim to "have Christ in us", if we claim to live Galatians 2:20, if we claim to be Christians, then why do we look at the here and now and how it affects, us.

Selfless means absent of my own regard.  Why don't we step out and help. 

The world rejects.  The world condemns, the world gossips, the world worries about what is fair.  The world worries about self.  So who do you most look like? Now take out the self righteousness and look again.  Who do you really look like?

So today, before your instinctual reaction to look away...look to.  Before you reject, look to help.  Get uncomfortable with it.  I dare you.  Try it and see what happens.  Start conversation, give out of your day, give out of your bank account, give out of compassion.  Have compassion on people.  They only have a few days left anyway and then an eternity somewhere awaits them.   Become a part of their day.  Let Christ be that glimmer of hope to them today.  They may be hopeless and worthless.  That's perfect!  He wants to help them too!  But have compassion.  Active compassion.  Let Christ work through your compassion and watch the Holy Spirit draw others through your compassion.

“Father, make of me a crisis man. Bring those I contact to decision. Let me not be a milepost on a single road; make me a fork, that men must turn one way or another on facing Christ in me.”

Jim Elliot

Learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows. 

Isaiah 1:17