Adding to the Story

Crossfire was progressing nicely.  It is the youth group of our church, Christ Community Church, in which our daughter, Megan, participates.  The phone rang:

"Hello Jill? My husband and I have been praying for Peter's adoption and want to know what do you need?"

We really don't know how to answer that question.  As it stands, if the call came to go and get Peter, we could pull it together. We don't want to be greedy and say that we could use the help if we really don't.  But is that what God is doing?  I stammered and then said we'd see them in church after we look at the numbers and give them an answer.  The question that stumped me was, what do we need?  Seems pretty simple, look up the numbers and the totals and tell them the lack.  Again, I got the distinct impression that God was going to teach me something.  Funny enough, Thom and I never really made it to church that Sunday and we weren't able to talk with our friends about what we needed.  God's delay.

All through this adoption journey God has been weaving lots of different folks into Peter's story including us.  And what a wonderful beginning this tapestry has.  We don't know what to say to our friends.  We hope that God would lead them into their section of Peter's story and do what God impresses on them to do.  What we have learned is that we really don't know what we need - only God knows that.  We can trust His plans.  And we have seen this play out over and over again.

This process is so much more than the wheres, the whens and the hows.  It really is about the Who, the central character in all of our stories including Peter's.  GOD!  There is never a twist or turn that isn't carefully scripted in.  No governmental agency, no red tape, no missing finger prints, no lost luggage, nothing can thwart the plans of our God.  What does it matter what it looks like to us?  We can only see one dimensionally!  God sees it all from before the beginning of time, all of it, before it began.  Who can stand against God?  Who can fathom His plans?  Our son is coming home exactly when God planned for him to come home.  When that day comes, God will receive that ultimate glory and praise for it as we drink in the sweetness of our little boy.

Peter's story is just beginning.  There will be chapters and characters added everyday. Many other characters, whom Peter has not even met, have already been an integral part in his story.   I can't see where this road will lead us, I am not the central character of Peter's story.  I am not the Author, I am just a grateful, excited participant. 

And so what do we say to our friends?  We are going to tell them that we would be very grateful for their help. They are great prayer warriors and we know that God has moved their hearts on behalf of Peter.  Why?  We have no idea what need their contribution will meet.  But God does.  And like so many others that have given to Peter's adoption fund, exactly when we needed it before we knew we needed it, we will add our friends.  And when Peter meets them, we will tell him about their amazing part of his story.

Trisomy 21!

My husband and I had the privilege to spend all day Saturday, learning about Down's Syndrome.  We felt so connected to Peter and so grateful for all these giants in the field of DS.  We were exhilarated and exhausted at the same time.  We attended the 8th annual Trisomy 21 conference at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.  They have a whole group of medical professionals devoted to DS and all that entails from therapies to specialists dealing with the physical challenges that come from the extra chromosome.

(Back Story 1)  When we knew that adopting Peter was what God was calling us to we immediately did two things.  Prayed and prayed some more.  What came out of those times of prayer was locating the local DS Support group for our county of Berks, PA.  We discovered that the group met right around the corner from our home.  We have been going now for a whole year and have learned so much from all the families that attend.  The advocate for the group, Donna Wolf, is very knowledgeable on the topic of DS and right away, she sent us home with a whole big bag of books to read.  And boy have we read.

We have been to a lot of training courses that are given by Bethany Christian Services (BCS).  They have been informative, helpful and on target about the challenges one might face before, during and after placement of the adoptive child.  We feel very well equipped and refreshed as well on some areas pertaining to our first adoption through them with Eliot.  But not a lot of the training was hands-on instruction concerning DS.  The books we read, the people we have met with and gained support and wisdom from their experiences with DS, were great.  At that time we really believed that we were prepared for Peter.  However, after going to this wonderful DS event, we knew that there was so much more to learn and that whatever needs Peter may have, whether therapeutic or medicinal, there will be a place that can help us and give us answers.

(Back Story 2)  Thom and I have both read a lot of great books on DS this past year.  When we received Peter's medical evaluations and therapeutic evaluations we were able to track along with the information and were very encouraged and grateful for the care he has been receiving.  Then the video!  Oh my, seeing my son walking, laughing, singing, signing, playing, writing, eating, climbing, and the list goes on, made me laugh out loud with joy.  I had read up on all that I was seeing and I was so happy to see such wonderful progress he was making and how well cared for he was.  I wouldn't have known what I was seeing if it weren't for the books we had read.

Then the conference!  It started out with Dr. Brian Skotko, a Pediatric Doctor specializing in special needs children, specifically DS from Children's Hospital of Boston.  He had written a book called Common Threads containing various interviews with adult DS folks highlighting their accomplishments.  After each interview he would ask a question to help us to dream about Peter's possibilities and each question infused courage, hope with an outpouring of tears.  And there are so many more books for us to read pertaining to so many other ways to come alongside our little ones and help them to grow.  Susan Levine co-authored a book with Brian Skotko called Fasten Your Seat Belts which centered around siblings and there questions and lives with their DS brothers or sisters.  Susan Levine has been working in the counseling field doing sibling workshops for families with special needs for over 32 years. 

The professionals were so well educated and approachable and I also found the parents were a great resource as well.  The questions they asked during the panel discussion which included, an allergist, a pediatric Dr., an orthopedic pediatric Dr. and a physical therapist, made me realize one thing.  I had a whole lot more to learn!  And God was showing Thom and I, yet again, that He will provide everything Peter needs to become all that God has planned for him to be.

So, we have more things to read, more webinars to watch, more questions to ask and a place to ask them.  Information is freedom and we are grateful for it.  Peter isn't even home yet.  God in His wisdom has made sure that we will be well equipped for the day when he does come home and all the days following.  We are grateful recipients again and again of God's wonderful provision and all the praise goes to Him!

100% Redeemable!

Sitting in church on Sunday was, to say the least, uplifting.  My gaze was fixed on Jesus as our Pastor preached on the book of Jonah.  (His passion for God's word saturates his whole countenance and it is infectious.  I told CB later that I was going "interactive" during the sermon.) Here's the what I got out of the message.

Even when Jonah disobeyed God and went in the opposite direction from where God was sending him, God in His great compassion came after Jonah!  He was thrown into a raging storm at sea and God summoned a giant fish in a moment's notice to swallow him whole.  Then when, after three days in the belly of the whale,  Jonah repented and God had the fish spit him up on the shore right outside of Nineveh.  Jonah obeyed God, spoke a few words to the people and they repented.

My spirit was resounding with the amazing truths and gospel connections being made.  And this thought came to me, and again, I knew God was about to show me something.  The Christian life is 100% redeemable.  How amazingly encouraging is that?  (Please go to Christ Community Church's website at http://www.christccberks.org/ to access this series on Jonah.)  And God didn't stop there for me, He illumined some more scriptures.

Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good."  There it is, 100% redeemable!  Even sinful choices, tragic events, frustrating adoption processes or difficulties with our spouses or children, get worked together for our good and His glory.  God is the ultimate recycler!  He wastes nothing and has carefully planned everything in our lives.  God's word even tells us that not even a sparrow can fall to the earth without Him knowing of it!  The power is in that little three letter word ALL!  And not a single one of God's children is exempt from that promise.  What other way of living can make that claim and come through on the promise?  Even now, hope is being fanned into flame for our future with Peter!  We are dizzy with excitement.

Our precious boy has Down's Syndrome and because of that his parents put him up for adoption.  There are so many redeemable things to look at connected with our boy. Hopefully others who are adopting a child from other parts of the world with DS will have their gazes lifted.

1.  Psalm 139:13 says: "For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb."   Down's Syndrome should be called "Designed Syndrome" because in the forming of the inward parts of these little children God added an extra chromosome.  He has a purpose for people with DS!  Again 100% redeemable right!

2.  Psalm 139:16 continues and says, "You saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, everyone of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them."  Even before our special ones existed God had a purpose for them.  And where the world would discourage the birthing of these precious ones, God's mighty hand wraps around each one with dignity and value bringing them into the world and then stirring the hearts of His children to come and rescue them.  Redeeming them from the antiquated perception of individuals with DS by replacing it with the godly potential that can exist for them.

3.  Psalm 139:14 blasts out, "I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made!  Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."  God calls us, doesn't He, to go and bring these little ones home.  He does that not only for us and not only for them, but so that each child would become an ambassador of the Gospel to their people group and a reminder to all the rest of us that God made them fearfully and wonderfully.  100% of these children are redeemable and this brings such glory to God  and spills over as joy to us.

How thrilling to know that our lives were designed by God, every detail, to bring glory to His name!  We all have Designed Syndrome.  We all have flaws, they are called sin, and He came and rescued us because of that.  Even more so, that He will work all things together for good in our lives!  That there are no accidents, God doesn't slumber or sleep, He is diligently watching over His children.  And our little ones with DS are His as well!  Jesus didn't come to save the strong, the smart, those that have it all together, He came to save you and me! 

So back to Jonah!  Maybe some of you have been going through rough periods during the adoption process that have left you frustrated, anxious or maybe in unbelief.  You have boarded the ship and are headed for Tarshish, and God has surrounded your boat with a great storm and you are fearing for you lives or the life of the little one you wish to adopt.  Turn to Christ, look to God and see that you are securely in the hand of the Almighty God, hemmed in behind and before!  Repent and find grace to help in your time of need.  Remember, that every aspect of our lives, in the hands of our Wonderful Savior, is redeemable and He will work all things together for good.  He will complete this process in our lives and keep us every day after until Jesus comes back for us!  Be of good courage.

Our lives are 100% redeemable!  Hallelujah! What a Savior!  What a life!

In The Meantime. . .

Emily needs to get to her college, Megan needs to be evaluated in order to graduate, Eliot is 4 and is challenging boundary lines.  Hey honey, there you are!  What's your name again?  Preparing to adopt a child into the already existing family presents more challenges than just the new child; what about the life that continues to go on during the process?

A Praying Life written by Paul Miller addresses this very thing.  He says that we can develop a quiet heart before our Father in the midst of a busy schedule.  This couldn't have come at a more timely point in our journey.  Thom and I have been married for 21 years and love being so.  We are best friends and lovers.  However, our marriage relationship often shows our spiritual condition.  The "hit and run" moments of closeness with God only to ask about one thing or another for Peter and then rushing out to do a fund raiser as well as getting everyone where they need to be.  Dave Harvey, the author of When Sinners Say I do, spoke at a marriage conference a few years back, we had the privilege to be there.  He was talking about the danger of becoming walking daytimers!  Discussing the kids schedules, the "what has to be done", without connecting on a more intimate level spiritually.  Located!

Thom and I can find ourselves here even without an adoption process going on.  Last Sunday night at our leader's Care group we were asked to give an update on where we were at in bringing Peter home.  We shared an update but asked for prayer.  Life is so busy and yet Peter isn't even here, what will it be like when he does arrive?  Our dear brother and Pastor, along with all our other dear friends stopped and prayed for us right then and there, and I know that they are praying even now for my husband and I to re-prioritize our schedules.  God in His kindness keeps bringing us back to what is most important and we are grateful for brothers and sisters that will pray for that to happen.

We have gone through so many of these seasons, and as we get older we have been looking for more creative times and ways to connect deeply.  God has been faithful, through Thom's thoughtful leadership, to show us how we have slipped off the path by lighting the true way with His word, faithful friends and the Holy Spirit's guidance.  He is teaching us how to continue to cultivate intimacy with Him and each other in the midst of busy seasons.  I am so grateful.

We finished a Yard sale fund raiser today.  We went to bed at midnight last night, woke up at five this morning and God was there to meet with us.  We did our devotions and held hands and prayed for God's strength, help and blessing.  We caught up with each other and connected all throughout the day.  Thank you God. 

Thank you God for showing us that in our weakness we can do all things through your strength.  Thank you for the countless prayers lifted up on our behalf!  These prayers and your presence were so tangible.

So, the busyness is still here.  Right after the yard sale, Emily's classmate arrived to do work on a joint project for class, Megan had to practice for the worship team for Sunday, Eliot was so tired and needed his Mama, Thom had to go out and get some supplies for home, I had to prepare the dinner meal.  But we have had delicious fellowship with one another, with our kids, with our church community and our neighbors and with our Heavenly Father.

Peter will bring even more joyful busyness into our lives.  We look forward to it.  God's grace will be sufficient then as it is now.  And we know that God will continue to teach us how to love Him best in all seasons. . .And we know that He will deepen our love for each other as well.  We are His sheep, we know His voice, we are at peace.