[Jody M]

As an adoptee growing up I was raised in a loving family that honored God and were faithful church attenders. I was thankful to be in a caring adoptive family and loved my adoptive parents. But not until I was an adult and pondered my adoption, did I see the evidences of God's hand on my adoption journey. I now see that God protected my life in the womb of my birth mom who was in fragile health with cancer and an addiction to alcohol. I was born healthy and whole 2 mos early which seems like a miracle- especially in the 1950's. I feel God's hand of safety on my life, that I was not aborted due to the risk put on my birth mother's life to deliver me.
God brought friends into my life that became very close and intimate friends who were also adoptees. When I was in high school I found out that my best friend Jodie was an adoptee when we shared our "secret" with each other at a sleepover party and realized we both were adopted.Though apart in distance we still send each other cards and e-mail each other.
After I got married and began a family my husband and I began attending a new church. I was asked to teach Sunday school to preschoolers and became very good friends with the team teacher Lee Ann I was placed with who was an adoptee. Our friendship grew and we enjoyed many years together before her death from cancer 5 years ago. When my husband's job location moved us from Illinois to Ohio it was a scarey and lonely move for me. I met some dear friends at the church we began attending. One of my closest friends I also found out was an adoptee. That was special to me. In another move for my husbands job to Indianapolis IN, I met another adoptee and we became close friends. We began an adoptee newsletter together and now she is an adoption author- Sherrie Eldridge. At the time I met Sherrie I discovered that there was a local adoption triad support group meeting at a local hospital near us. I began attending and found such close fellowship with other birth mothers, adult adoptees and adoptive parents. During this time I searched and found my birth family- 3 older birth sisters who never knew about me. I feel God lead me to attend the group to find emotional support and encouragement for my reunion journey. After attending and helping out with the group I was encouraged to become a co-leader of the group. My husband's job moved us again but this time back to Illinois "our home". Finding no adoption groups in the area, I prayed and felt God leading me to begin a local adoption support group. In September this group will have been meeting for 10 years and over 300 persons have come through our group at different times for short and extended times. Most meetings serve 8-10 attendees. I also published Adoption Blessings Journal, a free outreach faith-based publication for 9 issues that shared stories of faith, healing and encouragement by adoptees, birth parents and adoptive parents.
God has blessed my life through my adoption and friendships with others touched by adoption. My life has been enriched by serving those touched by adoption and encouraging them in their journeys. I believe God had a special plan to allow my adoption to be a stepping stone for ministry. I am now praying as my nest empties and all my sons become independent that I may find more ways to serve the adoption triad through possible employment,
service and education to those within and outside of the adoption world.
How have you seen God's fingerprints in your adoption journey?

[kathy79]

My bson and I both believe that our adoption journey has been in God's hands. There has been no other way to explain how our lives have unfolded and come back together.
And i keep praying that he will continue to show us the way through our reunion.

I too like to hear others stories about this.

Kathy

[Jody M]

Thanks so much Kathy for sharing your beautiful story and how God has moved and worked in your adoption journey and precious reunion! I truly believe that our God is a God of reconciliation and redemption and I have seen him work mightily in the lives of adoptees, birth parents and adoptive parents in the reunion journey. Yes there are painful and very challenging places emotionally for the whole adoption triad from the closed adoption era. But there are beautiful testimonies of God's grace, hope and healing in the lives to those who have trusted the Lord throughout their journey. In God's Word in the book of Joel, God says " I will redeem the years the locust ate away". That is beautiful- that though separation creates grief and loss issues- for many prospective adoptive parents that face infertility, for the birth parent who finds themselves in circumstances where they decide or are pushed to consider adoption instead of parenting and for the adoptee who has felt the loss of their early history, their biological and cultural heritage and connection to their birth family, God is a Redeemer. He has proved that He is a God who can redeem and restore relationships, heal the broken hearted and the Good Shepherd and Prince of Peace who blankets us with comfort, peace and hope for the future. Even for those who may not find themselves in happy reunion stories, God helps us gather the missing pieces of the past, grieve past losses and fills us with hope and purpose for the future. I hope more will share their stories, brief or longer!
Blessings, Jody

[jrainbow]

As an adoptee reunited this past summer with both bparents, I feel twice blessed. Blessed with an afamily who loved me and guided me and always believed I was their child, their sister, their niece, their grandchild. I was never treated differently. And, now that both my parents are gone, I have gotten to know the incredible people who gave me up with love - the baton being passed, kind of, full circle. My bparents were too young to raise me so they gave me to my parents for 50 years. And now, it is my bparents turn again.

I told my bdad at our first f2f that I had never understood grace, in my heart. But now I live it - the fact that I was found at all is a miracle. God chose my afamily and chose the time for reunion. I didn't really work for it, I didn't earn it, and I certainly don't deserve the unconditional love I have received. God's grace - given unconditionally. It may not be as exciting as parting the Red Sea, but in my life it is a miracle.

[Jody M]

j rainbow- What a beautiful testimony to God's grace and provision in your life. I rejoice with you your adoption story and recent reunion! The love for all of your parents- adoptive and birth parents is so evident in your lovely post.
I am thankful that on this forum we can share our gratitude to God and to the adoption triad and each member. On some forums, sadly the adoption topic can be quite controversial - especially in regards to adoptees embracing their adoption and sharing gratitude for life and adoption and all their parents decisions. On some forums I received criticism for sharing my praises for adoption- for it triggered in some readers their pain, loss and challenges in adoption. It seemed to offend them to hear positive stories of hope and healing and one embracing their adoption. I hope that on this Christian forum here we can mirror GRACE and allow persons to share their love, gratitude and honest feelings without judgement.
Thanks j rainbow for sharing! In God's Word in the story of Noah, after the flood, God placed a rainbow in the sky as a sign of His promises and covenant to His people A rainbow reminds me of God's precious promise to His people- so fitting in your screen name and adoption journey! Jody

[Jo Ellen]

I am an adoptee and grew up with the Bible being in the center of our family and have always been very active in the church with my family. I believe that had things not turned out the way they did and I had not been adopted it is very likely I would not have the relationship in the Lord as I do now. I read the book The Purpose Driven Life and in that book is a chapter devoted to the topic of our life not being a mistake. That we do have a special purpose for being here. I also believe God has his hand right in the middle of my life now and has a special purpose for me finding my 1st parents together two years ago. I have been so blessed to have them both in my life now along with a host of other family that wants me in their lives as well. We never know what lies ahead in our lives but I truly believe God has brought us full circle for something very special that is still to come.

[kdecrow]

For the last few years, I kept having this strange thing happen to me. I kept waking up in the night, and the clock always said 3:33. Then, during my day I would have the urge to look at the clock and it would say 3:33. It kind of became a joke in our family, what could this mean?
Last year, I decided to search for the son I placed for adoption when I was a teenager 30 years ago. I got the papers in the mail from the post-adoption unit 6 months after filing a request for information on my son.
He is deceased. I pray no one else ever goes through this pain.
Later, I was reading my bible trying to make sense of things and trying to find some solace.

I happened upon Mark 3:33. It says...
"3:33 And he answereth them, and saith, Who is my mother and my kindred?"

I had just discovered my son's name was Mark. I believe he was letting me know he finally knew who his birthmother and family were.

God's Fingerprints.

Kim

[Jody M]

Thanks Joellen and Kdecrow for sharing God's hand in your adoption journeys. Kdecrow, I am so sorry for your finding death at the end of your adoption search- I too found my birth parents both deceased when I "found" but did meet 3 lovely birth sisters. Though I went through the sadness of never meeting my birth parents- my birth sisters shared alot about them to me through stories and photos that I cherish. I hope you too will have a chance to meet your sons relatives in his adoptive family and learn more about his life. Interesting about the Mark 3:33 connection- God is a creative God and reveals his ways and plans to us in ways we would never figure out. Our Creator God is amazing. Joellen, your adoption story sounds much like mine - I was raised in a wonderful Christian adoptive family and I still have a very close and loving special bond with my adoptive mom who is 85 and is a loving woman of God. I feel very blessed! My adoptive father passed away over 10 years ago and my sister through adoption died last year.
Thanks all for sharing and I hope we hear more stories of God's fingerprints in others adoption journeys!
Jody