Lysa's Adoption Story

A sweet blog friend that just so happens to be a fellow Wisconsin-ite (hi!) felt called to purchase for me Lysa Terkeurst's Adoption Story cd. I was so excited to receive it in the mail a few weeks ago.

Lysa is the president of Proverbs 31 ministries, an author, and a speaker. I love following her blog and am currently reading one of her books. But my blog friend couldn't have known this. Had to have been a God thing! 

Colin and I listened to the cd on our drive home from church 2 weeks ago. I've since listened to it again, and wanted to share her beautiful story with you.

Lysa and her husband have 3 young girls. She started out by saying she had recently been on a journey of saying yes to God. She explained how wonderful it is that He allows us to participate with Him in His amazing work.

Her and her girls had plans to go see a Liberian boys' choir. Lysa thought she would get out a map and let her girls find Liberia. She guided them by telling them to look at South America….her daughter finally found it, but in Africa! To say she didn't know much about Liberia at the beginning was an understatement.

The children in the choir appeared to be filled with joy. She thought they must be so blessed, but she found out they were orphans. For about 15 years, rebel forces had been killing the adults of Liberia, and leaving behind the little children--"war babies"--25,000 of them at the time. These orphans with no families, every night, they would pray for a mommy and a daddy.

These children sang from the depths of their soul about the joy of the Lord. They had nothing, but they had Jesus. Lysa thought to herself--"If everyone I loved, if everything I had was stripped away, could I still sing about the joy of the Lord?"

Lysa felt God whispering to her that two of those boys were hers. Lysa fought back in her mind, "We think pink in this house. My husband would never go for it. So, I know for sure that you’re not telling us to adopt them, right God?”

On the cd, Lysa goes on to say, "If we say we are women of faith, but we desire to live lives that require no faith, are we really women of faith?"

After the concert, two of the teenage boys in the choir walked up to her, wrapped their arms around her and called her mom. She called her husband. Who thought she was crazy!

BUT GOD.

Her husband started praying. They were terrified. Worried about their girls.

BUT God.

How were they going to do this financially? It didn’t fit into their schedule. The sound of raising 5 kids overwhelmed her.

BUT God.

She stated, "When God sets you on a path to saying yes to Him, it will take you to some incredible places."

They prayed and prayed. They received confirmation after confirmation. Through people, billboards, and songs. Everywhere.

Her husband even made a spreadsheet of pros and cons of adopting!

They decided. They would adopt these boys.

They told friends. They didn't receive support immediately. Friends brought up valid arguments, such as how the teens were at an education level of kindergarten.

Lysa's husband said to her, "They have no vision for which God has called us to do this."

They invited the boys to sing at their church. And guess what? Those same doubtful friends began to sign up to adopt Liberian boys.

BUT God.

I love when she stated in the cd that God doesn’t comfort us to make us comfortable. He comforts us to make us comfort-able…able to comfort others. She said her boys may not have been born in her womb, but they were born in her heart. She joked that it was the longest labor and delivery process ever!

She struggled with teaching them, but brought them from a kindergarten level to middle school in 2 years.

When we get to a point in our lives and say, "I can't do this!" God says, “Good, because when you get to that place, it is only in my strength that you can operate.”

She shudders to think about what she would have missed out on had she told God it was too inconvenient. She goes on to say that everyone else's story is going to be different that hers--"I’m not telling you all to run out and adopt Liberian children, but I will say that I invite you to participate in God’s amazing adventure. Maybe instead of always praying, “God, bless me,” maybe we would do well every now and then to pray, “God, inconvenience me for your glory.”"

“God, interrupt my carefully constructed plans for your glory.”

“Invite me to the deeper places with you even if it means that there is a little bit of scary stuff there, for your glory.”

She ended the cd by saying it all boils down to daily dependence on God. So true, isn't it?