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.
James 1:27
This is the scripture that I awoke to nearly 2 years ago. I had just had a dream that I was adopting a child. This child had no face nor could I even recall a sex. It was very vivid in that I knew what God was telling me although the details were not very clear. I went to church that morning and before entering I promised God that I would pursue the vision he gave me along with the scripture if He could give me one more sign of confirmation that I was thinking clearly. To my surprise we had a guest speaker, Nach Bertsch, who told us all about his ministry which involved giving orphans a place to call home. He helped children find parents and siblings, comfort and hope. The call that was tugging on my heart so strongly, would now become reality. I knew immediately that God was calling me to help the orphans. It took phone calls and prayer and lots of discussion before my husband and I finally figured out exactly what that looked like in our life. Today we are foster parents, something I, just years prior to this decision, said I could never do. In fact, many of you probably say the same thing when it comes to foster parenting. I hear so many say to me, "that must be so hard, I could never do that and give the babies back", or "it takes a special person to to what you do". These are all the same phrases that would come from my mouth just years earlier so what changed my heart? Obviously it was the call that I just couldn't ignore any longer. God had laid something so vague yet so very vivid on my heart and I was finally willing to get uncomfortable.
All the discussions of adoption in our past never got past our home and for the first time our family was going to take a step of faith. We were ready to make a difference and obey God's call on our life. This was the easy part........the hard part is the journey. God never says that when we choose to go His way that things will be easy. Once we were able to hand over our will God was able to do amazing things in our life and in our family. We've had many bumps in the road but all of them have given us chances to grow and learn. There were many nights I spent in the bible with my children and many lessons on love that I learned through the whole process. Every time God stretches me just a little more and He is so faithful to give me strength to handle each moment. Yes some days I want to quit. Some days I don't want to have my hands full with children, I just want to be selfish and do my own thing. But every time I get this feeling God is right there to draw my focus back to Him. (yes, I have some pretty amazing friends to encourage me too :) Many people wonder why we do it or how we handle it. The only answer I really have is that our God is a big big God and He will never let us down. Now the things that seemed so impossible are completely covered by God. He has taken my doubts and showed me what can be done through Him. He has proven over and over that He is faithful. He will never leave us hanging!
I'm not sharing this to scare any of you away from stepping out for God. In fact, it's the opposite, I want you to take a chance and step out of your comfort zone. Where is God calling you to get uncomfortable? What do you say you could never do? What keeps knocking on your heart but you keep telling yourself you can't do it? I can't tell you what to do, but I can tell you how to do it. As I sit here questioning myself and my ability to care for 6 children I am confident that God gives me power and strength to carry out any mission He lays before me. I can tell you to step out in faith and see God work in your life. So many of us miss out on the power of God because we don't put ourselves in a position to need Him. Step out today and see something amazing! If you aren't willing to take a bite then how will you ever "Taste and see that the Lord is Good" (Psalm 34:8).
Dear God please give me the courage to step out in faith. I want to see you work miracles. I want to see all that I can be when you are in charge of my life. Today I hand over my will and my doubts and fears and I trust in what You can do through me. In Jesus name, Amen
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