Photos are now posted and her parents have ever reason to be proud of her. She is a little beauty!
Posted on 12/20/2004 8:34:28 PM PST by CWW
HOW MY CHILD WAS SAVED
Until August of this year, my wife and I had 1 child -- a wonderful 12-year old son. He was truly God's gift to us because, you see, we were not supposed to be able to have children due to secondary infertility. When we found out we could not have anymore children about 6 years ago, we grieved, having both come from large families and fully intending to have 3 or 4 children. About three years later, we decided to pursue an adoption. First we looked into groups such as Sav-A-Life and Catholic Social Services. Both were wonderful groups. Sadly, the waiting lists, particularly for an infant girl, were 5 to 6 years. We were already 40, so time was running out.
We went through Catholic Social Services, completed our home study and all of the legal necessities required to adopt (fortunately both of us are lawyers). Then we waited... and waited... and waited....
Like most couples that choose to adopt, the waiting is the hardest part. We had several close calls, but knew instinctively each time that the child was not the one God had chosen for us. We both knew in our heart that if God wanted us to have another child, he would pick that child such that we would know that it was His will and not our selfish desires.
Looking back on it, a three-year wait was God's way of making sure that we were truly adopting for the right reasons. You see, we didn't just want to fill a void created by the infertility problem. Over the three-year period, we came to accept that if we had just one child, then that would be God's will. And my son has truly been a gift to all of us. We were happy to be three.
About a year ago, my local church started a spiritual adoption program, where at the end of the service we would pray for a pregnant mother who was making the choice between abortion and bringing her child to term. No one in particular -- just women in general. Well, on one particular Sunday last Fall, as we said the prayer both my wife and I were struck by an uncanny feeling that we were praying for our own child -- that the birth-mother of our adopted child was making that decision.
Time passed, until my wife decided to quit work this past April. Something (or someone) strongly told us that it was time for my wife to come home. Boy was that a scary proposition because my wife was bringing home a six-figure salary. But the feeling was mutual and strong that it was time for my wife to come home to be a full-time mother.
As an aside, one April day while my wife was in her last week of work, she looked at her calendar and strongly felt that she had just missed someone's birthday. She usually sends and email or card to all her family and friends on their Birthdays, but she couldn't remember whose birthday it was, only that it was the birthday of someone very important to her. The significance of these and other events will be apparent in a minute.
Another year was passing, and we started to believe that God just didn't have another child in the cards for us. So we agreed that if we did not hear anything by the end of the summer, we would take ourselves off the respective adoption lists and move on with our lives. I was now 42 and felt strongly that adopting children late in life was selfish. I did not want to be on a walker taking my daughter down the isle 25 years later.
June passed, then July, and August came as we watched the sun set on our adoption dreams. But we continued to pray a lot of silent prayers, looking for a tiny sign, any sign to give us hope. That sign came on August 12, 2004.
My wife gave a friend a ride to the Doctor, and during that ride learned that the woman had a young friend that had had a baby in April (remember, that's when my wife quit work) and that the mother could not take care of the child for various reasons. It was a short conversation and nothing else was said. My wife kept these things to herself because we had been disappointed before by similar opportunities that evaporated like the morning dew.
Then, on a August Friday, out of the blue, a family friend, who knew that we had been hoping to adopt, called my wife out of the blue and said, "I have been praying so hard to help find a home for this child. I have two of my own and can't care for her. She's in foster care now. I was praying and asking Jesus and our Holy Mother Mary to please help find a good family for this baby, and suddenly, inexplicably, your name came to mind like a bolt of lightning. I did not call you for several days because I did not want to pressure you or make you feel obligated."
Needless to say, my wife was stunned. Minutes later, she called me at the office and asked me if I were interested. The baby, although beautiful, has some minor health problems because of the mother's failure to take care of herself during her pregnancy. Like a lightning bolt, I knew at that moment that this was the child God had intended. I had repeatedly prayed that he use us in circumstances just like this, and God just kept telling me that he had a plan just like this one – where the mother was in trouble, and the child was at risk.
Here are the signs that pointed to us all along.
Remember that spiritual adoption prayer when we felt like we were praying for a particular mother and our own child, well, we came to learn that the mother was in fact, considering an abortion and that, in fact, she had asked family members for money to pay for it. Thank God there were no State or Federal funds for an abortion. Ultimately, she decided to bring the child to term. There is no doubt in my mind that God had His plan!
Next, remember my wife thought she missed someone's birthday in April? Well, that was the day of our daughter's birth. Uncanny you say? Well, it gets better. Remember I told you that my wife felt compelled to quit her job in April? Remarkably, and unbeknownst to her, she quit work on the same day the baby left the hospital.
The rest, as they say, is history. Because we already had completed all of the necessary legal work, we were given legal custody of the child two days after we expressed interest in adopting her. The father has consented to the adoption, and hopefully the rest will work out. We have just learned this Christmas week that the mother is going to also give her consent to the adoption. Given the aforementioned events, I am confident that God's hand is working hard to bring that solution about.
I firmly believe that had the birth-mother had access to government funds, you would not be reading this story now. She would have aborted this beautiful child. You know, I always thought that I could love a child that came from another family, but I did not realize that I could love that child as much as my own flesh and blood. God has truly given our family a wonderful gift, and for that gift, I will be eternally thankful.
For those couples out there considering adoption, don't lose hope. Pray unceasingly. Be happy with your lot in life, and ask that your will be united as one with God's will. And to the Blessed Mother of God, Mary Most Holy, I thank you for intervening and asking your Son to help create this beautiful ending for a story that had a difficult start.
May this witness richly bless you. In Christ's name. Amen.
If someone tells me how to do it, I'll post some JPEG photos of the baby.
What a Merry Christmas you will be having this year!
God certainly does work miracles if we only open our eyes enough to see them
Thank you for sharing. I, for one, would love to see your pictures!
God [has] Bless[ed] You!
This is a wonderful story. Look forward to your pictures!
As a fellow adoptive parent of a beautiful two year old little girl... I can relate to your sentiments and passion for the sanctity of life. We, likewise, could not imagine life without our little girl. Praise God that her birth mother lived in a culture that did not allow, legally or morally, the murder of unborn children. Congratulations on your new baby.
Merry Christmas to your wonderful family.
Ping to a wonderful gift from God.
Merry Christmas to all my Freeper friends!
Photos are now posted and her parents have ever reason to be proud of her. She is a little beauty!
Thank you for sharing the photos.
The baby is perfect, aren't miracles wonderful!!!!
Don't miss the photos of God's gift.
She is lovely.
She definitely is adorable.
I get the feeling she is going to be a Daddy's girl.
CWW, thanks for sharing her with us like this. Our freeper family gets bigger everyday!
Thank you CWW for posting this wonderful, inspiring, moving story. You and your family are so very blessed to have such a beautiful new daughter! Have a fantastic Christmas with your new baby!
Our God is and awsome God!
A beautiful story and very appropriate for this time of year, since we are all adopted into God's family when we believe in the One whom He sent. She is just beautiful. I'm at lunch right now and have tears in my eyes from the happy ending. May God bless you all with good health and lots of energy for the new little one.
Thanks. She's a true miracle baby!!
Has she adjusted well? What a time of year for such a blessing!!
Enjoy every minute with her.....
She has adjusted wonderfully to our family, and now she is part of our family!
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