The most accurate description of the adoption process that I have heard so far is the term “adoption adventure” and that has certainly been the case in our family. Our adventure began in June 2006 while I was surfing the web looking for something fun to do. I was looking for a Christian concert or something similar, however, God certainly had something else in mind.

While looking at a calendar on a radio station’s website, I saw a link that said “host an orphan.” I clicked…and now we have two kids.

OK…so it wasn’t quite that instant and there was a lot of thought and prayer involved. The Sunday after we applied to host a child, the Sunday school class that we visited studied James 1:27.

“Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us.”

It certainly gave me something to think about.

In August 2006, a darling little girl from Ukraine came to Fort Wayne as part of a program that brings orphans to America for a vacation with the hopes of connecting them to a “forever family.”

Khrystyna spent 3 weeks in our home and by the time she left, we knew that God was calling us to pursue adopting her.

Our next 6 months were spent fulfilling the necessary requirements to adopt in Ukraine and trying to come up with the money necessary to adopt. We were so blessed to have family and friends who participated in our adoption process both prayerfully and financially. During the process, we prayed that God would make His will clear to us.

We prayed about the possibility of adopting a second child and through some amazing circumstances, we felt God leading us in that direction. Unfortunately, we were looking to adopt a 5 to 7 year old girl and the orphanage did not have any who were free for adoption.

I felt like God was closing the door on a sibling for Khrystyna, but again God had other plans.

When we arrived at the orphanage in May 2007, the orphanage director informed us she had the perfect sister for Khrystyna, an 11 year old named Amina.

We were a little hesitant to adopt a child who would soon turn 12 and who we hadn’t spent extensive time with, but during the time we spent with her over the next few days, we really felt like she was supposed to be part of our family.

Even now we are amazed at how God in His sovereignty matched us with the perfect children for our family. Don’t get me wrong…they are certainly not perfect…no child is. We have our struggles just like every other family, but the evidence of God’s grace is so apparent in the midst of our struggles. Although our children have experienced the grace of adoption, we too have experienced it on a much grander scale.  We were held captive by our sin and fear, but are now God’s adopted children. (Romans 8:15) We were dead and now we’re alive.  We faced a horrible future in hell and now we anticipate God’s abundant grace being poured out on us.  (Ephesians 2)

God is the Father of the fatherless and He has made Himself that for us.

Both of our children were old enough to understand the benefits of adoption, however we did not bring them into our home just so they could live out the American Dream. Don’t get me wrong…nutritious food, good medical care, and quality education are all very good things…and they have made a huge difference in the girls lives.  But hearing the Gospel, being reconciled to God, and bringing glory to Him are infinitely better.

Although God does not call everyone to be adoptive parents, He does call all believers to care for orphans in their distress.

If you are a prayer warrior, by all means, please get on your knees and pray for children who may be without family and without hope. If God has blessed you financially, consider helping a family who wants to adopt but lacks the resources. We would not have been able to adopt our girls if it were not for people who partnered with us in this way. If you have construction skills, consider a mission trip to an orphanage to raise the quality of living conditions.

Although people often comment on how blessed our kids are to have been adopted, we have been more blessed to have them entrusted to us. What a privilege it is to parent our dear girls.

Since this is National Adoption Month, DaySpring will be giving away 25 packs of “Gotcha Day” cards to folks who leave comments today. Just leave a link to an adoption-related blog you read or share the link to a story of a family trying to raise funds for an adoption. We’d love to help spread the word.

By Lisa Thompson, Simplified Saving

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