When Kyle and I decided to answer God's call to adopt, we first said to each other and to the Lord, "Okay. We'll do this...just as soon as we get a few things in order." In other words, "We'll obey your command, but we're going to do it on our terms...when we're comfortable. Give us about six months, Lord." Due to the overwhelming cost of adoption, we wanted to pay off some debt, build up our savings and prepare ourselves financially. Those things seemed logical, but others (like having just one more weekend getaway without the kiddos) were just plain selfish.
God's denial of our terms was swift and clear. During my quiet time one morning, I sat at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee and my Faithful, Abundant, True bible study workbook. The day's lesson? That delayed or partial obedience is disobedience! I felt such conviction as I studied God's word. God expects us to obey Him the first time He asks. If we decide the "what", "when" or "how" of our obedience, we haven't really obeyed Him at all. In John 14:23, Jesus says "If anyone loves me, He will keep my word..." and 1 John 5:3 tells us "This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments." So I had to ask myself...Do I love God enough to obey Him, no matter what He asks of me?...whether or not I have all the answers?...whether or not I am comfortable?
Kyle and I knew that we could not delay...the time to obey was NOW. We said "yes" on God's terms and trusted Him to provide. The boys and I rolled quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies from a coin jar that sits on the counter in our laundry room. We bagged up magazines and books from shelves throughout the house and sold them at Half Price Books. I returned an outfit that I thought I had to have, but didn't need. The money added up and we scraped together enough money for the adoption agency's application fee.
Once the application was submitted...we waited and we prayed. Heavenly Father, please let our application be approved. And once that happens, Lord, please provide $1500 so that we can move forward with the next step of the adoption process. I prayed and prayed for $1500, the first portion of our agency fee.
Once the application was submitted...we waited and we prayed. Heavenly Father, please let our application be approved. And once that happens, Lord, please provide $1500 so that we can move forward with the next step of the adoption process. I prayed and prayed for $1500, the first portion of our agency fee.
Then on August 2nd, God answered our prayers and took my breath away. He provided as only He can! At 4:00 we received official notification from America World that our application had been approved! The good news came via email and the time stamp was exactly 4:00PM. At the very same time, Kyle and I were sitting in a conference room at a title company, closing on a refinance of our home mortgage. While the title officer was reviewing the terms of our loan, he informed us that our first payment would not be due until October which meant that we would be skipping two months of mortgage payments. Plus, there would be a small refund of our closing costs. We expected to skip one month, but the second month and the refund were a total surprise!! And there it was...God's perfect provision-the green light from the adoption agency and the funds to get the process started.
I am so in awe of Him and humbled by Him! God doesn't need our timeline or our money or our plans. He is able to do immeasurably more than we can even imagine (Ephesians 3:20)! I believe that He wants our hearts. He wants us to love Him enough to submit to Him and let Him do it all. Something amazing happens when He does all the work...HE GETS ALL THE GLORY! After experiencing what He is able to do, we wouldn't have it any other way!
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