Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to pause and give thanks for the many blessings in our life, including the wait to adopt. Yes, there is even joy in the journey if we are able to trust in the Lord and in the adoption process.
We often hear Psalm 37:4 given as a verse to reassure people waiting for something, “Take delight in the Lord and He will give you your heart’s desires.” We cling to that, claiming the promise, and reassuring ourselves that the Bible says it, so it must be true.
Until we don’t believe it anymore or we don’t trust or we are tired of waiting on God’s timing. Then we get frustrated, worry, grow impatient, and sometimes even lash out at those trying to help us.
Let’s look at the whole passage from Psalm 37: 3-7a:
Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and He will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the Lord and wait patiently for Him to act.
There’s simply more to it than God giving us what we want. We are instructed to:
TRUST
That doesn’t mean we do nothing and just wait. It means we trust Him and the path He has led us on. We don’t question, worry, and revisit every choice. We just trust and do our part.
TAKE DELIGHT
Spend time with Him, basking in His presence. Be joyful, strengthen your relationship with Him, be thankful, and enjoy the relationship we granted with our Savior.
COMMIT
In everything you do, do it in His name. Commit not just your life to Him, but your words, your actions, and your relationships. Let Him lead in every way.
BE STILL
Rest in Him. Find peace. Let go of the worry and turn it all over to Him, acknowledging that you complete trust is hard, but you are praying for His peace, giving the worry over to Him.
WAIT PATIENTLY
In adoption, this is the challenge. Many of us are willing to wait a normal nine months, but even waiting that long with patience can be a challenge. If part of this journey is to learn to be a patient parent, it’s best to start soon!
We understand the wait is hard, along with trusting the inherent unknowns that are part of adoption. Yet through the years, we’ve seen time and again that some people handle it well, others struggle. In my own adoption, it was too stressful, and I made the conscious effort to give it all to God. I needed to take care of what I needed to take care of with kindness and grace. I couldn’t do it while I was worried and impatient.
How are you waiting? Is it with Him in patience, doing everything you can to be successful? If it is, then I trust you have the confidence to know that He has not led you this far to let you down.
If your wait seems littered with impatience and frustration, take some time to be still in His presence and do some soul searching. Every meaningful journey, including parenting, will require patience and attention to detail. Without these things, you can’t expect to be successful.
Most families find their adoption wait as something that strengthens their faith, teaching them patience and grace, as they grow together in preparation for parenthood. I pray this is your experience, and if it isn’t, I pray you find the guidance to make it so.
