Many times we pray, “Lord, please use me!” With those words, we sincerely mean that we want the Lord to use us to further His kingdom or bless someone in such a way that they see Christ living in and through us. The problem I have is that I don’t always like the way He chooses to use me. I have conceived in my mind how I think the Lord can best use me. MY plans are laid out with perfect clarity . . . or at least I think they are.
I found myself recently grieving over the loss of a dream. The thing that I wanted the most was not what the Lord had planned for me. In my grief, I wrestled with why the Lord did not give me this desire of my heart. His answer was simply that this was not the way he wanted to use me. As painful as this has been to process, I know that His ways are not my ways and His thoughts are not my thoughts. If I truly want the Lord to use me, I must conform to His will, whether I like the consequences “right now” or not.
A seven year old boy, in my cottage, wants a family but worries they will not adopt his sister as well. Every night we pray that he will get a good adoptive family. We then specify to the Lord that a “good adoptive family” is one that will love him, protect him, spoil him with lots of hugs and kisses, scratch his back every night before bedtime, and of course will let him be adopted with his sister. He is a complete cutie pie and when people meet him, they instantly fall in love with him and his “yes..I know I’m so cute” smile. Several people have asked, “How old is his sister and how can I adopt him?” You may be thinking the same thing. My answer is “She’s 14 years old and they cannot be adopted separately!” Your response might be as so many others has been, “Well..um… I didn’t really want a teenager. Are you sure they won’t separate them?” Now, remember your childhood with your brother and/or sister and ask yourself if you would have been okay with being separated from them when you were seven years old.”
The real question is not, “How old is the sister?” The real question is, “Lord, How do you want to use me?” If we sincerely want to be used by the Lord, in whatever way he wants, it may require us to lay down our goals and personal desires. Accepting His plan may mean that instead of fostering one child, he may ask you to adopt a sibling group of two or three. Instead of getting a perfectly healthy child, he may trust you with a special needs child that requires a little extra care than what you originally planned.
This child’s story is very dear to my heart because he is one my boys and I desperately want him to have “a good adoptive family”. He should not have to choose between living with his sister or getting a forever family. The reality is that there are many sibling groups and special needs children in foster care that are waiting for a forever family. Will you be the person who asks “How old are they?” or will you be the person who says, “Lord, how many do you want me to adopt?”
