One small pebble in a pond creates ripples on the surface that change the makeup of the pond - in ways both seen and unseen. One seemingly small decision, one prayer uttered, one email can all change your life and potentially the lives of others. These events all have impacts that last beyond that initial drop of the pebble. You can literally change generations of your family by responding yes to a simple email.
9 years ago today: We said "I do" at a lovely lakeside ceremony surrounded by our family and dearest friends. The Lord orchestrated so many events leading to that day and in the days that followed - including moving up our wedding date 7 months so we could focus on each other. As we adjusted to married life, we learned that having a family would take "more than typical boy meets girl activities," as my bride would say. The Lord had been stirring her heart toward adoption for years (even before we met), and He began to stir mine toward it as well.
6 years ago today: We had done our research and started fundraising. We submitted our application to adopt on our 3rd anniversary, since Alabama law requires at least 3 years of marriage before an adoption. We had a simple dinner at home, brewed some coffee, and clicked submit to God's will for our family.
5 years ago today: We were on our way to Fish Market to celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary. Our emailed pinged with this message from a case worker at our agency.
Before we opened it, we prayed for guidance and direction (as we always did) as we drove. Rebekah read the summary aloud, and I could almost audibly hear the Holy Spirit asking me, "Do you trust me?" You see, this summary was for a boy who was 8 days old and didn't "sound" 100% on paper. We continued to pray over it and discuss it at dinner. We asked our closest circle of friends to agree with us in prayer. The next morning, we said yes to being shown to this birth mother. 5 days later, we received the call that we had been matched with this precious baby boy and would meet him in 3 days. He was healthy and perfectly crafted by a holy God. He had no concerns after leaving the hospital and being placed in interim care. 5 years later, he is still the perfect fit for our family.
Today: Life looks a lot different than it did 9 years ago. We have laughed and laughed way more than we have cried. We have moved schools a few-ish times and changed jobs. We have gone on big and small adventures and loved each other well. We have faced the loss of loved ones and the devastation of a failed adoption yet survived - only because of the Lord. We have expanded our family once more through the miracle of adoption. We have been blessed beyond measure. Anniversary dinners aren't fancy at this stage of life. Tonight, we watched our boy at gymnastics class and then went to a casual dinner as a family of 4. What was going to be a Mexican outing thanks to my forgetting a necessary ingredient for our crock pot dinner ended up at our beloved Full Moon (site of our pre-meeting HWD, just got home with HWD, and celebrating matching with WRD dinners - so it all works out). We recounted our highs and lows, rejoiced over the goodness of the Lord, and of course threw down on some "parpecue." It could not have been more perfect, even if it wasn't what was planned.
Every decision you make has ripple effects. I pray that the ripples we have seen are long-lasting, far-reaching, and God-glorifying.
No comments:
Post a Comment