The Joy of Adoption
Something happened recently in our adoption process that made me want to post about our adoption process again (nothing specific, just an email from our agency discussing some seminars coming up, etc.). Throughout this process, we have stayed so busy that there have been times that I almost don’t even think about our upcoming adoption, and I say this in a very positive way. In the different adoption forums I have joined, everyone (and I mean everyone) states that the waiting is the hardest part. That you are constantly thinking about what is going to happen next and when it is going to happen, and we have had our minds occupied by many other things recently. This does not mean that we do not constantly think about our children, because we do. It only means that the waiting has not been as difficult for us as it could have been, and that is a blessing.
Last night, I was reading in Luke 15, and I came to the 2 parables prior to the “Prodigal Son” that might be, and probably is, the most popular parable that Jesus told. Well, prior to that parable in Luke, Jesus tells 2 parables that are very similar to each other…The parable of the lost coin and the lost sheep. If you remember, in both of these parables, Jesus tells of a shepherd and a woman who have lost something very important to them and very valuable. The shepherd lost 1 of 100 sheep while the woman lost 1 of 10 silver coins but each of them still had the lion share of what they started with. So what did they do? They searched after these things like they were the most important thing in the world. They were valuable, they were precious, they were lost, and their owners desperately wanted them back…
You may be wondering why I entitled this post “The Joy of Adoption” when it seems to be about the joy of finding something lost, and that would be a good question because these parables are not really about adoption. But they are about the joy of bringing home something that is of immense worth and value. They are about knowing that something is missing, something (in the case of the sheep) is in danger, and something that you care about and want is not with you where it should be. When I read this passage last night, I was struck by the simplicity of the message of these 2 parables…in GOD’s mind, we are valuable. We are worth seeking after, searching for, and waiting for us to come home.
We are loved and valued by GOD. So much so that He would search for us, seek after us in our lostness!
You see, like I’ve mentioned before, we have been adopted by GOD. When we were lost, He found us and brought us into His family! We are sons and daughters of GOD not because of how or where we were born…We are sons and daughters of GOD because He has chosen us and welcomed us into His family. We are sons and daughters of GOD because He loves us.
I cannot wait until we have our sons/daughters! We have not met them, we do not know their names, and we have no real reason to love them, but guess what…we do! We are in the process of seeking after them, searching for them until we find them. They are in this world without a mother and father, but not for long. They are worth waiting for, they are worth giving up things for, they are worth loving…and we do, already. We cannot wait to meet them.
And I think about GOD when He was waiting on us. He knew we were coming, He was excited about the upcoming meeting. And then, the time came! He welcomed us into His arms as His children! He was already in love with us before the world even started! And then, if you have your Bible, read about the rejoicing that happened in Heaven when we were found! There was rejoicing among the angels to an extent that we could never imagine…How great is that. When we came into GOD’s family, He rejoiced like crazy and so did the Heavenly host! What a picture of entering a family.
That picture came to my mind last night as I was reading, and it was amazing! Think about that when you hear the word adoption…You, of all people, You were adopted by a King! And He rejoiced like it was the greatest thing that ever happened to Him! What a GOD we serve, and what a Savior we have who died for us so we could be a part of His family!