Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Rob's first blog post.

When Donna first showed me a picture of A it was just for fun.  She and Shelby had gone to the advocacy web site and were enjoying dreaming about having one of those sweet children in our home.  Over time, I noticed A’s picture up on one of the computers every so often, or I saw Donna back on the advocacy site looking around.  Then, another picture of A was added.  We rejoiced over how she had grown since the original picture.  I couldn’t stop looking into her blue eyes.  Her blond hair is so bright.  What a sweet baby!
Then came the evening when Donna and I had dinner and I brought A up.  Donna seemed apprehensive – not sure she should fully admit her feelings.  As we talked, it was apparent to me that this was a serious subject.
Donna really wanted to have a fourth child years ago.  I was absolutely sure that God had completed our family with the three girls we already had.  I never even considered bringing another child into the world.  (God was clear to me on that subject…)  We worked towards becoming a foster family a couple of years ago – went to all of the training and only needed a home visit to be ready but other priorities stepped in and we have not yet become a foster family.  (I wondered why that never happened…)  Now we were talking very seriously about adopting that fourth child we never had. (and God was not telling me no…)
So we agreed to pray earnestly about it.  God spoke through many ways.  I put A’s picture as the background on my laptop home screen.  I looked at her several times a day – those blue eyes and that bright blond hair – and prayed for God’s very clear answer.
I was feeling fairly sure that we were to move towards adopting A, and then on Feb. 12th we had a guest preacher at church.  He preached from Mark 5.  He talked about how Jesus interrupted the important work everyone expected Him to do (He was on his way to heal Jairus’ daughter) because a woman who desperately needed help touched Him.  We are certainly not Jesus.  We are just a middle-aged husband and wife who love God and want to follow Him wherever He leads. But A is a child who desperately needs help and God has interrupted our lives.
So we follow…

3 comments:

  1. Love you 6!!! So grateful to read how our Lord is leading you and of your obedience. Love this!

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  2. I think our church was deeply changed by that sermon on interruptions. I've been praying so hard the last few weeks for the Saddles, the children at Reeces Rainbows and our own family and the lack of interruptions. I love it that God is so real and speaking to our church body and that lives are bring change and children are being brought into the Kingdom!

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  3. Hi, I hope you can keep updating your blog. My husband and I are in exactly same position agewise and familywise, also have three grown children and one grandchild when my eyes were opened to the plight of orphans however my husband's were not. I am more than willing to open our home and my heart to one of the children who needs it but my husband is not ready to take on this responsiblity when he's already done with it. The other thing is all the children are still at home and that makes us a large family and he doesn't feel like we can add to this and I do. I've been talking to him a lot about it but he has not changed his mind and I desperately want him to, so you are lucky that your husband understood your feelings and is on this with you and I look forward to reading about your experiences on this journey.

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