If anybody knows anything
about adoption, there is a lot of waiting.
We joke…”Hurry up and wait!”
While we are yearning to know our daughter and bring her home, we rest
in God, knowing that He sees the entire picture. Because we know that she is living in an
orphanage in China right now, the wait is very difficult and we desire to bring
her into our loving home. So, while we
wait, we are using this time to learn valuable truths that can transcend to all
areas of life that involve waiting.
1. God is in control.
Amidst all the paperwork and
long processes, God is ultimately in control of all of it. We have a Lord that causes the sun to rise
and fall. “He determines the number of the stars; He gives to all of them their
names. Great is our Lord, and abundant
in power; His understanding is beyond measure” (Ps. 147: 4-5). God’s response to Job during his trials that
he experienced is classic. In Job 38:4-12,
God states His authority over all creation since He is the Creator.
2. God’s
timing is perfect. God knows the future and sees all the pieces
of the puzzle, while our sights and thoughts are significantly limited. Romans 8:28 tells us that “all things work together for good, for
those who are called according to His purpose.” Which brings us to the point that this is
God’s story/ adoption, not ours, and we need to be satisfied and trusting that
He is all loving and all knowing and completely good! Psalms 139: 13-16 “For you formed my inward
parts; you knitted me together in my mother's womb. I praise you, for I
am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame
was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in
the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in
your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for
me,
when as yet there was none of them.” God knows
the plans for our little girl and our family and we need to just trust in Him. Jer.
39:11 states that God has plans for our future that will draw us to Him and
bring Him glory.
3. God loves her more that we ever can. We desire to bring our
little girl into our loving home, but God is caring for her right now. He never leaves us or forsakes us and nothing
can separate us from the love of God. Psalms 68:5 lets us know that God is caring for her
because He is the “Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy
habitation.” His love is far greater than we can even fathom.
“For as high as the heavens are above the
earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him” Psalms
103:11. We sometimes feel like our
little girl needs our love, but must wait, knowing that she has the love of the
Father right now covering her until He gives us the privilege to take care of
her. This is so comforting to cling to
during our waiting process. We are just
instruments of God’s love that He gives these gifts of children to us!
4. It is
alright to yearn as long as you remember points #1 through #3. There are several scriptures where people
have longings but they are trusting in God for His ultimate plan. Ps. 107:8-9 “Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works
to the children of man! For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the
hungry soul he fills with good things.”
Then also David questions God multiple times in the book of Psalms but
is always reminded in the end to trust in our all knowing, loving God. Ps 13 is a perfect example of this point.
5. Only God can give us peace during the
wait. We may seek other things or
even stress and worry about things that are not in our control…but it is
fruitless. We need to trust in our
Creator knowing that He desires for us to “not
be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with
thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace
of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your
minds in Christ Jesus.” (Phil.
4:6-7) Some days (even hours) are better
than others with this point but I am being stretched and trying to be satisfied
with all these things that God is teaching us.
The main verses that I am clinging to that sum up all of
these points is to “Be still, and know that
I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!”
(Ps. 46:10) and Prov. 3:5, “Trust in the
Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Things are not in our control, but do we
really want them to be?? We have a God
that sees all the puzzle pieces and knows all things and desires to bring
Himself glory through our adoption process.
We would not want to be anywhere else besides where He has us right
now! In conclusion, all we need to be
doing is to “be still” and “to pray without ceasing”. I know that this has been long but I really
desired to let everyone know the truths that can be learned while waiting for
the Lord.
