The following is a guest post by hopeful adoptive mom, Josie Sowers. She and her husband Scott are currently waiting to adopt. She shares her heart and her faith as they get closer to the day when their dream of becoming parents comes true.
This is part 1 of 2 posts by Josie. Here you go…
I’m horrible at waiting. Like really, really horrible at it. Ask my husband.
If we’re watching a TV show that has a cliffhanger to it and there just so happens to be an article online containing spoilers, I tend to find myself reading the article, finding out which major character died or who won a particular competition.
If we have a goal we want to achieve as a couple, I want it accomplished YESTERDAY so we can move on to the next goal.
So you can imagine how much fun the adoption process has been, where you are at the mercy of the adoption agency and government entities. You can’t control how long it takes them to process paperwork.
You have filling out applications down to a science, can get it done and submitted in no time, but once it’s out of your hands, you can’t say when it’ll get the stamp of a approval.
Did you know that God’s word has examples of people who also struggled with patience and releasing control? Did you know that God used their weaknesses to grow them and draw them closer to Him?
One such example is when the Israelites were in exile in Babylon. That’s right. I’m going Old Testament on you. Hang on, cause it’s gonna be a fun ride back in time.
Think of me as Doc Brown, which makes you Marty McFly… except we don’t have a tricked out DeLorean to ride around in. Sad, right?
Now obviously the Israelites weren’t thrilled with being exiled in a strange land with a strange language and strange gods and wanted to go back to their homeland immediately. They didn’t understand God’s sovereign plan, though.
Hindsight is 20/20, right? Jeremiah 29:10 says “For thus says the Lord: ‘When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.’” Can you imagine how ticked they were? They would have to wait 70 years before they saw their home again?!
I don’t know about you, but if I had to wait 70 years for ANYTHING, I’d go nuts. The verse that follows, Jeremiah 29:11, is one of the most popular memory verses in the Bible and provides the reason why He made them wait that long. It says, “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.’”
One of my Pastors, Rob Green, covered this verse not too long ago and made a great point: that verse is used out of context a lot. People jump to the verses that are warm and fuzzy and don’t read into the backstory. Without verse 10, you miss a lot of the purpose of verse 11. Yes, God does have a plan for our lives, our future children’s lives, but sometimes that comes after years of struggle and tears and growing pains.
Not always, but sometimes.
Can you identify with the Israelites at all? I know I can.
Our profile has been active less than a year and it feels like it’s been 70 years already. It’s easy for me to question God, asking, “Why is this taking so long, Lord? Why have we gone through so many ups and downs?” and, although He’s never answered me audibly, His word does provide clear answers: God is sovereign. I am not.
He “knows the plans He has for me.” Whether that means waiting 1 more year or 5 more, I don’t know.
I do know that, until He moves us forward, I need to rest in His promise that He has only my best interest in mind.
God bless,
Josie
Check part 2 of her post here.
Josie Sowers is an adoption advocate, mommy in waiting, blogger and Food Network, History Channel and HGTV junkie. She has been married to the love of her life, Scott, since January 2011 and their fur baby, Ziva, joined their family in May 2014.
