One Year Ago Today

This is a picture from one year ago, September 8th/9th, in Congo (depending on which time zone, Congo is a day ahead of California time), as I prepared to get on an airplane. Today last year I was flying from Africa to the East Coast of the U.S. by myself physically, but spiritually I was accompanied by the special presence and blessing of God and the joy he had filled my heart with in regards to this special boy He had planned for us to adopt.

The little 19-month-old didn't know what was going on, but he had a toy moto-car now and that was good enough for him. It was just 3 days earlier that he was placed into my arms and I spent as much time as I could bonding with him before I left. I had a much bigger smile on my face than I imagined coming home from my trip after burying our first adopted son Mark Joseph. Those 3 days I couldn't get Bonheur (later re-named Matteus Samuel) to smile, but I knew it was in there. That day with Didier's help, I said to this little guy in Swahili the words of John 14:18 "I will not leave you fatherless (or "orphan" in some translations) I will come again to you." By the grace of the Heavenly Father who adopted me and with the help of His beloved Son who said those words many years ago, that was fulfilled in our family with my beloved son Matteus.

As I watched him joyfully playing in our house this morning, I couldn't imagine a more joyful child or a more different and transformed child than the one I met that day, and I marvel at the grace of God who brought him into our household and who brings us in Christ into His (Eph. 2:19) and who transforms us as well in even greater ways (2 Cor. 5:17).

To God be the glory great things He has done, so loved He the world that He gave us His Son!