There's a funny comment we often got whenever the subject of adoption came up over the past few years. In a typical Chinese adoption, the Chinese Adoption Authority assigns a child to your case file after what has become a 24+ month wait. The family gets some generic input, i.e. boy/girl, 12-18 mos old, etc. Nothing more.
The question is asked, "Isn't it kind of scary to be assigned a child with no input?"
You know what? Yeah, it is. But isn't that about what happens anytime a child comes into your family, no matter the source?
This whole process has taught me a lot about the sovereignty of God.
I've long been inclined to view God as benevolently showering us with the blessings of life (which he does), all the while working around our mistakes and recrafting his plan when we make a mess of our lives through sin. Or as a God who picks up the pieces when tragedy strikes, and shifts to Plan B. As if the tragedy was a surprise to Him.
I'll never forget listening to Brian Luwis, the man who founded the adoption agency we're using. It was one of those moments in my walk where someone wiped away a little of the dust from the dim mirror (1 Cor 13:12) I had been using to fashion a picture of God. So he gets the credit for the insight I'm trying to share.
Here it is: With God, there is no Plan B.
God didn't look down upon a freshly spoiled Garden of Eden, thinking to himself, "What in the world am I going to do now?" His plan since before time began was to bring himself glory in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This plan was so much more than just the best he could do on short notice after Adam and Eve punted it away.
Just as the Cross was Plan A, a consistent view of the sovereignty of God demands that we realize - it's all Plan A! Including the unlikely path that Wei Feng's life has taken: a foundling in Kunming City, China to the expectant arms of the Harding family. We will never know the desperate circumstances that led his birth mother to make such a heart wrenching decision. But we can see now what God's plan was for this child. What a privilege to catch a glimpse of the Almighty at work!
So, I praise you, God, for your promise to work all things for the good of those who love you. And for the testimony Wei Feng will have one day. The God who has our hairs numbered is on His throne.
-Chris
The question is asked, "Isn't it kind of scary to be assigned a child with no input?"
You know what? Yeah, it is. But isn't that about what happens anytime a child comes into your family, no matter the source?
This whole process has taught me a lot about the sovereignty of God.
I've long been inclined to view God as benevolently showering us with the blessings of life (which he does), all the while working around our mistakes and recrafting his plan when we make a mess of our lives through sin. Or as a God who picks up the pieces when tragedy strikes, and shifts to Plan B. As if the tragedy was a surprise to Him.
I'll never forget listening to Brian Luwis, the man who founded the adoption agency we're using. It was one of those moments in my walk where someone wiped away a little of the dust from the dim mirror (1 Cor 13:12) I had been using to fashion a picture of God. So he gets the credit for the insight I'm trying to share.
Here it is: With God, there is no Plan B.
God didn't look down upon a freshly spoiled Garden of Eden, thinking to himself, "What in the world am I going to do now?" His plan since before time began was to bring himself glory in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ. This plan was so much more than just the best he could do on short notice after Adam and Eve punted it away.
Just as the Cross was Plan A, a consistent view of the sovereignty of God demands that we realize - it's all Plan A! Including the unlikely path that Wei Feng's life has taken: a foundling in Kunming City, China to the expectant arms of the Harding family. We will never know the desperate circumstances that led his birth mother to make such a heart wrenching decision. But we can see now what God's plan was for this child. What a privilege to catch a glimpse of the Almighty at work!
So, I praise you, God, for your promise to work all things for the good of those who love you. And for the testimony Wei Feng will have one day. The God who has our hairs numbered is on His throne.
-Chris
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