All I have to do is think about what I was doing when I was twenty-one. Or how my heart-state is only a fraction of what hers is and I'm...thirty-eight.
Look, I know God calls us all to different paths in life, but I've felt the need to neutralize the (very well-meaning) comments JD and I get about how amazing we are for adopting James (and most recently, starting to homeschool).
Here's the reality. There are people doing God's work in a way that is wholly sacrificial.
Meet Katie Davis.
Yes, we heard very clearly (not audibly) from the Lord that we were to adopt, but did you catch it? I said we. I am not a single, young woman in a foreign land adopting fourteen children on my own. I have an enormously supportive husband who made this decision with me. We live in suburban America. We have every conceivable need met -- and then some. We are not surrounded by famine and drought. We really have it pretty darn good.
This is not as complicated as it seems. You may look at others around you (like I do!) and think I could never do that or be her or go there or...but you can. We can. It starts with baby steps. JD and I didn't come to this place overnight. There were many, many little nudges, soft whispers over the years.
Responding to God's gentle nudge, starts small. Do that community service you've always thought about doing. Find a church if you've been thinking about finding one for years. Reach out to that single mom or widow or neighbor who you know needs a hand or a friend. Go back to church if you've left. It's so hard to make the time sometimes. I know. I'm just like you.
But if we're going to live a life that is truly full and truly rich with purpose, we have to at least start by responding to those little whispers.
I can't wait to read Katie's book. It just leapt to the top of my reading list.
Wanna read it too? I'll give one away. Post a comment and I'll draw a name on Friday.
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