I sat in a heap
covered in spit up and baby drool surrounded by bottles and laundry that all
needed to be washed, not to mention myself (how many days had it been since I
had had a shower long enough to wash my hair?)
Overwhelmed by sheer exhaustion, the tears began to come. I
was new at this mom thing and as the instant, adoptive mother of a 9-month old;
I was getting a crash course. Gazing
down at this sweet, toothless little baby girl, a strange mix of emotions
welled up inside of me…
–love that I never
knew I was capable of,
-wonder
at how this little being could go soooo long without sleeping,
-fear at the thought that I might make a mistake that would ruin her.
There had been years
of praying, hoping, and fighting to get to this moment when at last we finally
had become parents. We had embraced
God’s plan for us to adopt. We considered it a privilege to have the
opportunity to rescue a child that might otherwise have not made it. And so we had worked really hard, wading
through endless amounts of paperwork, interviews, scrimping and saving, and
waiting month after month, all with an end purpose in mind-to save a baby’s
life.
But sitting there on that day; the reality of the
responsibility of that battle victory was now setting in. I had fought to save
the life of this precious baby and now it was my responsibility to give her a
life – to nourish her, train her, to provide for her.
As I watched and read about the March for Life this year,
I’ve heard many share much about how this year there is a hope that we haven’t
had for a long time. There have been years of fighting and praying, and waiting
all with an end purpose in mind- to save the lives of millions of babies who
would not otherwise live.
I myself, share in
that hope. Not only as a Christian, but as a parent of children who very well
could have been one of those statistics, these issues run deep.
But I also pray that, we as the body of Christ, are prepared
for the responsibility that will come after.
Are we preparing to be life-givers and not just life-savers?
Are we making room in our lives to nourish, train, and
provide for unwed mother’s and unwanted babies who will make their way to our
doorstep needing somewhere to go?
Are we linking arms with our local crisis pregnancy centers
ensuring them that as they open their door, we will be there to support them?
This week that
toothless, little, baby girl turned 14 years old and I am watching a
transformation take place before my eyes as this baby grows into a young lady
who loves the Lord.
And I want to go back to that moment.
That moment when it all seemed so overwhelming and have a
conversation with that newbie mom.
If I could, I would
tell her that she was right about some things…
this is a hard
job sometimes…
it would be
tiring, messy, and frustrating, full of mistakes,
and she would soon discover that she could not
do it on her own.
But there would also be moments of
joy and
amazement
and miracles
and there would be grace over her weaknesses,
and she would
know that she was never meant to do this alone…and she never was.
I pray that as we
begin to enter this new season of hope, we will not become overwhelmed …but we
would make room in our lives to be life-givers to embrace even the messy,
frustrating moments of that calling. That as we rely on The Life-Giver’s
strength, we would experience the joy and amazement as we watch transformations
take place before our eyes.
“A thief comes only to
steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they may have life and
have it in abundance.” John 10:10
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