Community of Hope

***This is an article I wrote for the newsletter of Jeeah's Hope, a local adoption and foster care ministry which has been a tremendous help for us along the way. The article is sort of a summary of our adoption journey so far. We're almost there!***

International adoption has been a dream of ours for many years. For me, the call began when I was in college, babysitting a little girl adopted from China. I used to stare at her, silently praising God for rescuing her from the streets and bringing her into the safety of her loving home. Since that time, when I dreamed about my future family, I prayed that God would give me adopted children, even if that meant not having biological children.

After only two years of marriage, we felt ready to adopt, but we weren’t sure where to start. Thankfully, God led us to a church community where adoption is celebrated. Some friends at church had already adopted two precious children from India, and God had provided most of their adoption expenses, so we started asking questions. We knew we couldn’t fund an adoption ourselves, but surely God would provide for us as He had for them. We just had to take a leap of faith.

Our first home study visit with Lifeline was in October 2011. As we explored our options, it became clear that an adoption from India would be the best fit for our family. We signed on with Island Coast International Adoptions, and received a referral in December.

We didn’t know what to do with the referral! Here was this file and photograph of a beautiful, four-year-old girl. We had a choice. Did we want her? Of course we did! Did we have faith that God would provide the means to bring her home? Sort of. We needed some encouragement.

We found the encouragement we needed through fellowship with other adoptive and foster care families within the Jeeah’s Hope community. Many of these families have already adopted one or more children. They all have unique stories. They have completed the piles of paperwork. They have waited, with their hearts in their throats, to hear news of their adoptive children. They have been through the disappointments. They weren’t surprised or discouraged by delays in the process. They understood the significance of each step of the process, and wanted to celebrate with us. Jeeah’s Hope has been a safe place for us throughout this adoption process.

When we heard that Jeeah’s Hope could offer financial assistance through matching grants or no-interest loans, we had little faith that we could match $4,000, so we considered applying for the loan. Thankfully, we were urged to apply for the matching grant instead, so we did. We strove to raise the funds we needed. We shamelessly asked friends and family for donations, and we participated in fundraisers galore. But you know what? It turns out we were right about not being able to match that $4,000 grant on our own strength. Only God could do it, and He did. The funds came in through unbelievable, amazing, and humbling channels. Our faith has grown so much through this process, and our passion for adoption is stronger than ever.

God has shown us, through providing the support we needed to adopt our daughter, that adoption really is His perfect plan for our lives. "Anna" really is our daughter, and He will do everything to bring her home into His family.

Adoption is a picture of God’s love for us. We fully believe that God has allowed us to go through this process in order to give us a glimpse of His never failing love for us. He really did seek us when we were strangers. He really will love us no matter what. As believers in Him, we really are forgiven our sins and made perfect in His sight. When God looks at us, He sees our brokenness and loves us anyway. Without Him, we would all be orphans.

Praise be to God, who promises:

“Do not fear, for I am with you;
    I will bring your offspring from the east,
    and from the west I will gather you.
⁶ I will say to the north, Give up,
    and to the south, Do not withhold;
bring my sons from afar
    and my daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by my name,
    whom I created for my glory,
    whom I formed and made.”

Isaiah 43:5-7