waiting and belonging

November is both Orphan Awareness and National Adoption month - the reasons they share the same month are obvious, of course. It is a time when the orphan crisis is discussed and presented more often than others to the public; when you hear stories and see heart breaking pictures of orphaned children just waiting and waiting to be claimed; when churches and organizations encourage individuals to make a difference in a child's life and give them a forever family that they so deserve and need. Because I have never had to go without a family to call my own, I cannot imagine the plight of these children as they wait and desire to belong to someone... forever.



And yet, adoption is something to celebrate!! Orphaned no more, children are given the permanency, protection, safety, security and the love of a family committed to them for life, no matter what. Children have a place to belong. All the uncertainties about their future are put to rest... no more wondering, worrying, waiting. No more transitions, they are home... forever. There is now hope and a future to which they can look forward to.




I have found myself quite emotional this month hearing stories of both types... children waiting, children belonging... because I, myself, am right in the middle of both. God has given our family the incredible opportunity to love and care for little ones, so very precious in His sight, that have been orphaned by circumstance. The numbers of children in foster care in the US are not just numbers to us - they are faces, they are names, each with a story all of their own. Our sweet little Elle still waits for her future to be determined by the court system. How desperately we desire to have the opportunity to claim her as our own and give her the stability and security that only a forever family can. But for now, through the tears and heart ache, we must wait with her, advocate for her and love her as though she will never leave us, trusting in her Defender to make right all the wrong she has had to endure.

And, yet, we have much reason to celebrate, because God has allowed us to be the forever family - against all odds - to our beloved Carys Nicole. Adoption has never been so beautiful and wonderful as it is to me now. Adoptions are stories of desire and love and sacrifice and redemption - real evidence of God creating beauty from ashes. When I look into the face of my daughter Carys, I am often quite overwhelmed with gratitude and awe... and, of course, tears. She is ours forever. It is an amazing and glorious thing and we will never cease in thanking God for giving us this incredible gift. It is our heart's desire that God will allow us such a precious opportunity once again, in His perfect timing, not because we need more children, but because more children are in need of forever families.

This month, in particular, I hope to find the time to write a bit more about these beloved children - little ones waiting and the joy of those who now belong. It is my hope that I might be able to encourage others to consider giving a child a place to belong, a love that won't let them go, and a forever to hold onto.