How Did We Get Here?

"How did we get here?" This was the question my wife asked as she held our son today and softly kissed his cheeks - cheeks that are nowhere near the same shade as ours. We've been married for fifteen years and I can say with utmost confidence that we would never have guessed we'd be the parents of five children in a multiracial family. In fact, for the first six years of our marriage, we planned on never having kids. Ha!

Yet here we are. These first two weeks of having Hugo home have gone far better than we ever dreamed possible. He understands most of what we are saying even though he speaks only a few English words. We can see that he is beginning to understand that there will be a constant food supply. He doesn't always love to share, but he is playing with his siblings and seems to really like them. Some of them, anyway. And he gave Oma a kiss today!

In the past two weeks, I have talked to many, many people about what is happening in our family. Everyone one of them has had questions and encouraging words but the one comment that I have heard the most is this, "Wow, it's really great what you guys are doing."

I've heard it so many times, I need to take a break from detailing the trip to address it.

So....

Is adoption great? You betcha. Is it a great thing to do? Sure is. Do we get the credit for doing something great? Nope.

Jesus gets the credit. 

In the last post, day four, I mentioned that the kids of the Home were conducting their own worship service. Let me share a spoiler for what is coming as I detail the rest of the story - They had a worship gathering every night. Every night. A group of children without parents, with no "home" as we would define the word, and very little hope for a comfortable future. These children gathered every night to thank the Lord for the blessings they see in their lives and to praise His name. They prayed for others to be richly blessed and sang to God of His goodness.

Jesus did this. He taught their hearts to sing.

There is no other explanation that I can see. Having lived my entire life in America, I look at the situation of those kids at the Home and think they have every reason to be bitter about their circumstances. But they're not. They are happy. Despite having very little, they recognize that they have the one thing that really matters - Jesus.

Jesus met them in Ghana. And it didn't require comfort for them to see that He was present with them.

If you've been reading this blog from the beginning, you will recognize what I am about to say. We didn't rescue our son. I knew that before this last trip but being present at those worship gatherings really drove it home. If we had never adopted him, there would still have been a pretty good chance that he would have learned about Jesus at the Home. He might not have had a dresser full of clothes and the likelihood of a college education, but he still would have met his Redeemer. Of course, I don't know for sure that would have been the case, but coming to live with us is not the only way he would have ever heard about the Lord.

If anyone was rescued in this process, it was us.

We were rescued from the idea that the Lord's manifest goodness in our lives was determined by comfort, or safety, or the amount of money in my wallet (which is always $0 anyway). We were rescued from planning our own way and not submitting those plans to the Lord. We were rescued from the expectation that the Lord existed to serve us rather than the other way around.

Just this past Sunday, a friend spoke to the congregation and said that the greatest miracle she has ever witnessed was the Lord causing someone's heart to say YES to Him. When the idea of adoption exploded into our hearts, it was the farthest thing from our plans. But it was the Lord that caused us to say yes.

He taught OUR hearts to sing and the song had only one lyric....YES!

So how did we get here?

God brought us here. 

In the same way that He rescued the hearts of those children who have very few comforts, he rescued our lives when we were caught up in way too many comforts. Don't get me wrong, I like comfort and I don't mean to sound like being comfortable is bad. Please don't feel like I am being condemning. That is not my heart in this post at all. If you hear anything as you read this, I hope you hear this encouragement:

Say YES!

Say yes if you fall into any of these categories:

1. If you are reading this blog from anywhere in the world and you sense something is telling you that there is more to Jesus than you've ever realized. If the idea of asking Him for the salvation of your soul is gnawing at your insides and you've never acted on it because you think it's crazy....say YES. You don't have to understand it all first. Just say, "Yes, Lord" and the see what happens. In fact, if you want to know more and have questions, I'd be glad to help. Email me: tlknfan@gmail.com

2. If you are cynical about religion and perhaps Christianity in particular. If you think all this talk about Jesus is stupid. If you think I'm crazy and the idea of needing salvation for your soul is insane...say, "Yes, Lord." Now, the difference here is that the miracle of the heart that says YES is a heart that is humble and recognizes that it needs help. That might not be your heart right now. Perhaps start by asking the Lord to help your heart to see. Pray that the "eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling."

3. If you know the Lord and feel that He is calling you to do something that is FAR outside your comfort zone. Say YES. Do it now. Lives may be hanging in the balance. What He is calling to you may not be easy and it will almost certainly not be comfortable. But I can assure you that He has your best interest in mind. You will be equipped for the road. You will receive grace and mercy. You will meet Jesus. It will be worth it.

Say YES! 

Sing it. Shout it. Scream it as loud as you can.

Then get moving. And prepare for life to change.