"A man's heart plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps." -Proverbs 16:9

Ten years ago, we received a file of a five-week-old boy from Ethiopia. I always think of that day as the true beginning of our adoption journey. I remember the excitement and bit of anxiety, the potential this file held as we thought about this little boy as our son. There was never a doubt that we would say “yes” to this little guy.

Each family’s adoption journey is unique and ours certainly would be no exception. Because of some issues that had arisen just hours before we were scheduled to fly out, when we arrived in Ethiopia tired, excited, and anxious, no one was there to meet us. Scrambling a little, we were finally able to get a hold of a contact in Ethiopia who eventually came to pick us up and take us to our guest home. God’s total provision. Early the next day, we met our son. We were ushered into the orphanage where he was quietly sleeping in a crib. His world, and ours, would never be the same.

What we did not know at the time was that our son had cerebral palsy. The very things that were unique about our situation, we now see as God’s provision – provision of an early match, provision of travel and safety in the midst of uncertainty, provision of the gift of time to bond. These gifts allowed us to meet our son the earliest as possible, to welcome him in our family, and begin getting him the medical care necessary for his diagnosis we would soon discover.

As we reflect back, which we often do this time of year, we are able to see God’s generosity and faithfulness in our story.

"It has not always been the journey that we expected but it is the journey that God has given us and one for which He has generously provided in the big and small moments of our family’s life."

If you are interested in adoption please visit AdoptionGateway.org