Has God been pricking at your heart about a certain area and asking you to take a leap of faith and fully rely on him to guide you? Is there an area that you know God is leading but the fear of the unknown is holding you back?
Well, I had another devotion planned for this week, but after some events over the weekend I feel that God is leading me to share a devotion with you that he had for me the day we made Caleb’s adoption “official”. I have a couple of friends right this very minute in China adopting two precious girls into their families! I began to think back to the call Matt and I had to adopt. We were completely stunned, to say the least, when we felt God calling us to adoption. We had two great kids already and we were done; or so we thought. For a year we prayed about adopting before making that huge step of faith. Our fears were many but one thing was clear; God called and we had to obey. It was during the paperwork process, that we really studied God’s Word about adoption and what we realized is that how could we fear when God already set the standard for adoption. He adopted us as his children through his Son, Jesus Christ. He paid the ultimate price for me and for you! From that point, we put our fears aside and knew that somewhere out there was a child that needed a family; a child that God had already predestined to be with us. How exciting that was! I have to be honest when I tell you that there were many times that I, in my human eyes, could not see how this would all work out, but God again would draw me back to him and I would look through his eyes. What a beautiful picture I could see then.
The day Caleb walked into my arms is a day, ordained by God, that I will never forget. How perfectly he fit into my arms, how natural it was to hold him, like he was finally “home”! It was a beautiful moment. As Matt and I talked that night after the kids were asleep, we discussed how we could have missed out on this moment because of our fear. If we had not put our fears aside and put our trust in God we would have missed this precious miracle that was waiting for us in a Chinese orphanage. As I woke the next morning, preparing our final paperwork, I was excited to be officially making Caleb my son in just a few hours. I stood over his bed, in awe of what God had done. I picked up my Bible and devotional book and turned to that day’s message and this is what was there:
Faith Versus Fear
“Be not afraid, only believe.” Mark 5:36
As we consider the uncertainties of the future, we are confronted with a powerful temptation to play it safe. Unwilling to move mountains, we fret over molehills. Unwilling to entertain great hopes for tomorrow, we focus on the unfairness of today. Unwilling to trust God completely, we take timid half steps when He intends for us to take giant leaps. Ask God today for the courage to step beyond the boundaries of your doubts. Ask Him to guide you to a place where you can realize your full potential – a place where you are freed from the fear of failure. Don’t ask Him to lead you to a safe place; ask Him to lead you to the right place. And remember, those two places are seldom the same.
-- from Hugs: Daily Inspirations for Women
I thank God that we took that step out of our fear and had faith that God knew what was best for us. That we didn’t give in to the practical but put our trust in God. We now have another precious member of our family because of that trust in God. A precious soul that has now heard the most wonderful name he will ever hear, JESUS! The Name above all names!
This was not intended to be a devotion about adoption, but a devotion about overcoming fears through faith in God. I wanted to share our story of adoption because God used it in a powerful way to show us how fear, overcome by God, provides such sweet results! I strongly feel that God is calling us all to a time of true faith! It is time we put all our fears aside and follow him completely. It is then we will see mountains moved!
Let’s use Mark 5:36 as our verse to focus on this week! “Be not afraid, only believe.”
Have a blessed week and know that I am praying for you!
Blessings,
Allison Jordan
SHBC Praise Team
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