Bit by the Adoption Bug

I was looking through some old pictures yesterday and stumbled on these pictures of myself while on a mission trip to an orphanage in Honduras when I was in 8th grade. If you look past the wild hair, I see the eyes of a young girl in love with that little boy I was holding. His name was Merlin and he had my heart wrapped around his little fingers. He had been found abandoned in a tomato patch. During our whole trip, I spent every minute I could with him. Upon returning home, all I talked about was wanting that little boy as my baby brother. My parents actually agreed and talked to the orphanage and officials about trying to adopt him, but because he had been abandoned and had no birth certificate, he was un-adoptable and would be a permanent resident of the orphanage. It broke my family's heart that we couldn't bring him home. My parents decided to at least sponsor him and have sent money and gifts to him to this day. Merlin is now 21 and my Mom has a picture of him all grown-up on her refrigerator. To think he could have been my brother.



I think that the adoption bug bit me way back when I was only 14 years old. It is moments like this that you see the pieces of your life's puzzle fall mysteriously into place. Moments where everything makes sense. Since that trip, I've always had a special place in my heart for adoption. For God to place that same passion in Jeff's heart is amazing to me. I know that if you follow God's will, blessings will follow. This journey may be a little scary and full of the unknown, but we know that if we trust in Him, He will bless us. If we listen to His voice, He will bless us. If we follow where He leads us, He will bless us. For two years we tried to do it "our" way... month after month of frustrations trying to get pregnant. When we finally submitted to that still small voice of God, we were covered in such a sense of peace and joy. God has been opening up doors ever since. Not only are we blessed with our wonderful two boys and an incredible family, but now God is giving us a tiny blessing that will be born a world away. Just like my "almost" brother Merlin stole my heart, I know our daughter will steal our hearts too!