One Reason

Here's just one tiny reason why I'm so glad that we adopted...

It's the little things that make life sweet, isn't it?  The other day when I was baking biscuits, I turned around to find our daughter intent on watching the biscuits grow in the oven.  Every now and then, she'd turn back to meet my eye and smile...followed shortly by "Mmmmmmmmm!"

It's at moments like this when time just stands still for a few seconds, and I stop long enough to let it hit me again: I ALMOST COULD HAVE MISSED THIS.  There are at least a hundred good reasons why we didn't "need" to adopt.  There are at least a hundred good reasons why we could have seen the photo of this little girl, said a quick prayer and moved on without ever stopping long enough to ask, "Lord, is it ME that You want to be Your Hands and Feet here?"

And sometimes it hits me.  We almost could have missed this.  That thought always makes me close my eyes and clench my jaw.  Oh how I would have hated to have missed this!!

And the amazing part is that we may have been the ones who stepped forward to bring our daughter into our home, and we've heard many times how "lucky" she is...but WE are the ones who have been blessed. There are no words to describe the immense blessing this little one has been in our lives.  No human words.

On the day I snapped this photo, I was thinking about how thankful I was that she was relishing in the pure joy of watching biscuits rise.  A child should have little joys like that...
The smell of clean sheets on her bed
The sound of Mama's voice when she wakes up scared in the middle of the night
The feel of Daddy's whiskers on her cheek when she gets goodnight kisses
The taste of her favorite foods
The feel of her favorite blanket
The smell of dinner cooking on the stove
The smell of clean clothes (with matching bows, of course!)
The familiarity of this little place called home

The little things that we take for granted are the very things that children lie awake in their orphanage beds and wish for, pray for, cry for.

Will we have the courage to ask (again and again),  "Lord, is it ME You want to use as Your Hands and Feet to meet the needs of these children?"