Adopted For Life

The ABBA fund does a great job comparing the adoption of children to our adoption as children of God.

On Monday we received our son’s Decree of Adoption in the mail. This is the document that tells us his adoption is final. Declared. Legal.
...

“It is hereby ordered, adjudged, and decreed by the Court:

(1) That from the date of the entry of this Decree herein, the said minor is declared adopted for life…

...

In light of this, here are some thoughts on our adoption in Christ:

1. You have been “adopted for life”! Eternal life to be exact! Our earthly adoption of our son is only temporary. God’s adoption of us is even greater because it is eternal.
2. You have experienced a complete substitution of family. You have a new family, a new Father, new perfect elder brother (Jesus), and new brothers and sisters (the church!). We may still have responsibilities to our earthly family but our ultimate responsibility is to our heavenly Father and his will and purposes.
3. You are a heir of everything that Christ will inherit!
4. You have the same legal status, rights, obligations as a natural child of God.

Read the whole thing here.

Not much news, but some news.

I spoke with the case worker today. She has given the birthmom our profile, and the birthmom will look it over. The case worker said she didn't seem scared off by the fact that we are from Wisconsin. The case worker did say that the birthmom had chosen one family from the set of three that she would like to meet. She suggested to the birthmom that she wait to make a final decision until she's had a chance to look at our stuff.

Also, the family she chose is in the midst of another adoptive possibility - so who knows. The case worker is going to recommend that they pass on our opportunity, and pursue this other one. It sounds like that family needs prayer for wisdom as well. They are going through the Foster Care adoption route, and are scheduled to be placed with a child (22 month old) the very same week that our birthmom is due. The mother of the 22 month old is also due with another child the same week, so there may be two children involved. The case worker doesn't think it's wise to go from nothing to three kids under the age of two in a matter of hours. So...

We don't know much more at this point. Trish is much more encouraged at this point than I am. I guess that I'm fighting the battle of unbelief.

Some other good updates.

• Birthmom scheduled a doctor's appointment for the next few days.
• She's also supposed to meet with the family who is offering to take her in rent-free until she gets back on her feet - that meeting is supposed to take place on Saturday.
• Birthmom approached her boss and asked if she could be transfered to another location to get her out of that particular neighborhood. He said "Yes."
• Birthmom and Case Worker had a good conversation today about the technical details on adoption.
  
• According to the calendar, baby is due May 10th. According to a sonogram (at some point), baby is due the last week of April.
  

I'm trying to not get too attached, but it's hard.

Thanks for reading!

Quote of the Day

"Our hopes that we shall persevere must be founded, not upon our own strength, for that will fail us, but upon the mercy of God, for that will not fail."
-Matthew Henry

Preparing for the unknown

About a week ago, Trish and I were living life. I suppose you could say we were content. We were talking about vacations, budgets, and how to not waste Tricia's unemployment. Then, we got the call about the baby. Life became even more unknown.

It's interesting that even though all of life is full of the unknown, it becomes all the more apparent when you begin to think about how to prepare for the unknown. This adoption could go one of many ways. Any number of these scenarios in theory ends up with us being parents. Any number of these scenarios in theory ends up with us not being parents. How do you prepare for that?

Honestly, I have no clue. But, I do know a few things that will help us prepare for whatever lies ahead.

#1. God is Sovereign and interested in His glory. The gospel is a story of adoption. It is the story of how we all rebelled against God, and in His kindness, he adopts back. For the believer, you are adopted into God's household, and given all the benefits of being a born heir. This brings God glory. God cares passionately about adoption... passionately enough to send His one and only son to die a horrific death on the Cross to make the adoption of sinners possible. This is amazing news. Our pursuit of this adoption is not as much about us being parents (though that is something we're excited about), as it is having the opportunity to show a little girl the extent to which God went to adopt sinners like her mom and dad.

#2. "He who did not spare His own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things." That's a lot of Him's and He's, but it speaks of a God who provides everything needed for a task to which he has called someone. As Christians, we have been called out of the darkness of our sin, and into the light of the Glory of God. We are essentially in conflict with the world around us, and even to some degree ourselves. But, God promises to give us everything we need for life and for Godliness. I am convinced that if He has called me to be an adoptive parent, that he will "graciously give me all things" I need to accomplish the task of parenting to His glory.

#3. The details. As I have said, any number of things could happen, and this adoption could fall through. I'm OK with that. Of course, my preference is that it wouldn't - that it would be a smooth process. But this is messy. That shouldn't scare us off. God brought this opportunity to us. Our job is to be faithful and see where it goes. It may go nowhere. But, it would be wrong of us to ignore it. We may get our hearts broken. That's OK. It'll be an opportunity to grow.

All this to say... we don't know what will happen. But, we know the one who does. And we trust that He will make this crooked path straight.

Thanks for reading.

Still Waiting

Well, the waiting continues. The past couple of days have been difficult for me. I am impatient and want to know what's going on. But as think about all the questions I have and my desire to know what's going on, I am reminded that the world doesn't revolve around me. This situation was dropped into our life. We had no control over this getting to us, why am I trying to control it now? I need to be reminded that God is in control and he will take care of both the birthmom and her baby.

We did hear from Ben tonight. Ben and his wife are inserting themselves into the life of the birthmom. We are extremely grateful for the way they are selflessly investing in this situation.

Please pray that the birthmom would have the courage to get out of her current living situation.

Adoption Tax Credit

Adoptive Parent Cindy writes:

The federal adoption tax credit has made our adoption much more affordable. And we are hoping it will still be around when we complete our adoption so we can take advantage of it. The tax credit is set to expire in December 2010 unless Congress votes to continue it.

Click the button, or the link to read more.

Save us from a selfish adoption.

No updates yet. So, I'll recommend some articles.

I just ran across this excerpt. The whole article is here.

It would seem nearly impossible for one to make the act of rescuing an orphan sinful. However, as someone recently thrust into the process, I have become well aware that adopting offers a myriad of opportunities for sinful behavior. I have even seen adopting Christians forget about the person they are rescuing because they are only concerned with how the process is affecting them at a given moment of delay or difficulty. Blinded by the deceitfulness of sin, what should inherently mean good for another is devoted to the altar of self. Feeling the natural tendency of my own heart, I have had to pray constantly, “Lord save me from turning the adoption of two Ethiopian orphans into an act of self-serving wicked idolatry.”

...

It is true corruption abounds and many requirements may seem arbitrary to us. The process can be grueling when you are relying on folks who may take the rainy season off or may simply decide not to work on a given day, due to a solar eclipse. But, instead of taking on the persona of a pro-wrestler, thumping our chest and saying, “We deserve them because we are better than you!” should we not first remember what’s at stake. Is it just about us getting our kids? Or is it about rescuing children who desperately need a family. The American in general may not be on board with this, but the Christian should be.

HT: Take Your Vitamin Z

Dr. Moore Hates "Sanctity of Life Sunday"

Apparently, I'm enjoying reading Dr. Russel Moore this morning.

I hate Sanctity of Human Life Sunday because I’m reminded that we have to say things to one another that human beings shouldn’t have to say. Mothers shouldn’t kill their children. Fathers shouldn’t abandon their babies. No human life is worthless, regardless of skin color, age, disability, economic status. The very fact that these things must be proclaimed is a reminder of the horrors of this present darkness.

...

We’ll always need Christmas. We’ll always need Easter. But I hope, please Lord, someday soon, that Sanctity of Human Life Day is unnecessary.

Read the whole article.

Adoption as Cosmic and Missional

Dr. Russel Moore:

Adoption is, on the one hand, gospel. In this, adoption tells us who we are as children of the Father. Adoption as gospel tells us about our identity, our inheritance, and our mission as sons of God. Adoption is also defined as mission. In this, adoption tells us our purpose in this age as the people of Christ. Missional adoption spurs us to join Christ in advocating for the helpless and the abandoned.

As soon as you peer into the truth of the one aspect, you fall headlong into the truth of the other, and vice-versa. That’s because it’s the way the gospel is. Jesus reconciles us to God–and to each other. As we love God, we love our neighbor; as we love our neighbor, we love our God. We believe Jesus in “heavenly things”–our adoption in Christ–so we follow him in “earthly things”–the adoption of children. Without the theological aspect, the emphasis on adoption too easily is seen as mere charity. Without the missional aspect, the doctrine of adoption too easily is seen as mere metaphor.

Dr. Moore is writing a new book for CrossWay, titled Adopted for Life. I'm looking forward to reading it when it comes out. You can pre-order it with that link.

HT: Moore to the Point

Adopted is not an Adjective

I heard about a blog today called "Life Together" and decided to check it out. The very first article I saw was called "Adopted is not an Adjective." It quotes Russel Moore.

Dr. Russel Moore:

In Scripture there is no such thing as an adopted child. Adopted is a past tense verb, it is not an adjective. Those who have been brought into the household and family of God are really and truly part of the household of God sharing with their brothers and sisters everything that it means to be in Christ.

HT: Life Together