The Adoption Journey

In May 2005 I asked a question that would change our lives forever. “Lord, do You want us to adopt?” The question came while I was in Ukraine serving orphans…and God’s answer was undeniable. Could I return home and stand in my church service with hands raised, singing to the God who created these children for His glory and yet do nothing?

Nightfall and a cool evening breeze provided welcome relief from the sweltering heat and smothering humidity of the city’s hottest summer in recent memory. We were 8,000 miles from home and exhausted from the journey that had begun months—maybe even years—before.

Kristen and I got married in 2003. In the months leading up to our wedding we attended a series of premarital counseling sessions. In those sessions we covered topics like finances, in-laws, holiday celebrations and, of course children. At that time in our lives we had planned on having kids “someday down the road.” After all, that’s what everyone does once they’ve been married for a while.