I'm finally beginning to see the bigger picture. The greater hand of God. I've been terribly discouraged. When we committed to Shannon, the adoption of our son, Ethan was supposed to be finalized. We were within days of it. Ethan was supposed to be home, enjoying life with his family. We knew that Shannon's adoption process would take at least a year. We would take that year and keep active with life and before we knew it, Shannon would be home.
It didn't work out that way. Ethan didn't end up coming home from the hospital. He had one complication after another. Thus, the adoption could not be finalized. We spent months working to advocate for our son and find a solution that would be in his best interest. We spent months trying to keep life moving smoothly, maintaining normalcy for our children at home, and doing our best.
When we committed to Shannon we were blessed to be able to pay for the upfront fees as they came in. We didn't need to fundraise. We didn't need to fall on our knees and rely on GOD. We could do it on our own.
He doesn't want us to do it on our own. He has made that abundantly clear.
As time went on and the struggles with our son continued, there were days I lost faith in most of humanity. How could people not care about this precious boy? Why couldn't they put their opinions aside and do what was best for this baby who has spent nearly 16 months of his life in a hospital.
And as we were tending to our son, God was working. He was busy restoring my faith in humanity.
Amazing, beautiful friends(though many were even strangers) who care about our family and our beautiful Shannon. People were praying. People were donating. At our weakest...and we were carried.
And my heart has been renewed.
Every single prayer and donation has been more appreciated than any one of you could ever imagine. We fall on our knees before God, choke back the tears and rejoice with every single one. I wish there were words that could do justice to our thanks.
I hope you all know this…if you have prayed, if you have donated…YOU have directly contributed to rescuing this child. A little girl, already transferred, already living in a mental institution…you will help bring her home. Maybe we all aren’t in a position to adopt, but we all can do something.
“The King will reply ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me’ ”
4 comments:
LOVE YOU! Can't wait to see BOTH of your children come home!!!
Paraphrasing slightly, whatever we do for each other, we do for the least of these, and it is all for Christ. We are ALL the least of these, trying to be Christlike and failing all over the place. But we all keep trying because the rewards are so great, and God keeps blessing us, in big ways and small ways, because we keep trying. <3
Shannon, I donated via the chip in on renees blog. I wish I was able to help more, but please know my prayers are daily, hourly even. I am so ready and excited to see the rainbow(s) at the end of this storm!
Hugs,
Christina Schye
Shannon, this has been a really long and difficult journey and many times my heart has ached (for you, Shannon, Ethan, etc). God is moving mountains. I KNOW He is. Hugs, love, and prayers.
Post a Comment