We listened intently and were so moved by her and the gift she has given her son. She asked each of the children several questions about adoption, how they feel about it, what they think about having a multicultural family and asked them to consider how they will respond when others may not be as accepting of us because we are not all the same.
Each of the kids was so respectful. They took turns raising their hands and answering the questions. It was like we had planned it out...but we didn't! Baker, Brennan, Cara and Eliza did such a wonderful job expressing themselves. They are all so excited about our adoption and are eager to embrace a new Donahue. We know that there will be challenges, though, and our social worker did a great job speaking candidly to them.
We will be faced with prejudice and discrimination we have not felt before, and we will be put in uncomfortable positions when people ask naive or hurtful questions. Our whole life experience will be new and different, and we won't know how any of it feels until our child comes home.
What we do know is that we are eager to love our new Donahue with all of our hearts, and we are walking in faith that He has great things in store for each of us.
The word "adoption" has taken on new meaning for us. The reality that we are all adopted by God Himself is making a powerful impact on us as we consider God's adoption of us.
God really did choose us, and He wanted us so much that He sent His only son Jesus to pay the ultimate price for us. God pursues us. He never will leave us or forsake us. We are His. We have an eternal home with Him. We have a God who knows us each by name and calls us His own. Despite the trials and tribulation of the world, regardless of the attacks and discrimination of our faith, we are still held, wanted and loved.
Don't we all want to be called by name, to be wanted, to be loved without condition? Thank God He has adopted us in spite of ourselves, and we are no longer alone. We are no longer orphans. The God of all grace and comfort, the one and only Lord, has said "Come to Me. You are mine. I want you!"
My prayer is that when our little Haitian Donahue comes home, s/he will feel an inkling of the love that the Father has lavished on us and will live secure in the knowledge that s/he too has been called by name and is safe in the Everlasting arms of Jesus!
