An Act of Faith

I almost don't have words to describe what I've been feeling for the past 2 weeks.  It's hard to explain sometimes what God has been telling you. What he has been telling the Moody family has had me taking a step back asking God...."are you sure?" 

You see when we made the decision to adopt Steven it wasn't that scary....it was pretty easy. I knew God was telling us to do it and when God provided the money right before our eyes (literally).....we had no other choice but to obey!!!!  I can honestly say that when I think about it....it seems to come pretty easy.  Doesn't really put me out of my comfort zone too much either...I mean what's adding one more child when you already have 3?  This time though, God is asking a bit more of us, and he is wanting us to be out of our comfort zone so that we rely totally on HIM.  "If you think you can do it all on your own, and live a totally safe, comfortable life, how are you glorifying ME in that?".  This is what I was hearing Him say to me. I was also hearing Him ask me...."Do you believe the Bible, and if you do, do you live like it?" Do you serve like it? Do you worship like it? I had heard David Platt preach this in a sermon series this past summer and then a couple of Wednesdays ago Pastor Kevin asked the same questions.

I was thinking about this really hard that night, and wondering to myself "am I living here on earth as though I think I will be here forever"? That thought got me thinking about something Josh and I had been discussing before:  adopting 2 children. We have said that we would probably adopt again, but for now we would just adopt Steven.  Well, I can't keep thinking we might have a next time and there might not be a next year to show another child the love of Christ that we have to give from our family.  The chance might not be there again to ultimately share the Gospel with another child just because we think there would be another time.  I can tell you the answer to the question....  "Did I believe the bible?"....all of a sudden became very real.

All this to say that He is asking, no, commanding us to adopt another child along with Steven.  Yes, I said we are going to adopt 2 children!! Ahhhhh!  We know that the first question that immediately pops into everyone's mind when they hear that we are adopting two children is "are you crazy"?  The answer to that question is.....yes, probably a little.  We are about to take our wild and crazy family of five to an even wilder and even crazier family of seven.  Can we afford it?  Not on paper.  Will we have to give up stuff?  Absolutely.  Will our lives ever be "simple" or "comfortable"?  Not a chance.  Will the eternal ramifications of showing these children and the world the love of Jesus Christ be worth it?  Without a doubt.

See, this is another one of those things that puts us so far out of our comfort zone that we cannot even SEE our comfort zone anymore.  But I think that's how God wants it.  We will never fully experience His power until we completely rely on Him in situations that are utterly impossible by human standards.  Jesus took 12 regular lower class men, and literally turned the world upside down.  I'm sure at times, they had their doubts too.  But they stepped out on faith and shook the nations.  Why can't the Moody "7" do the same thing?

So that's that.  We now have to have two beds, two car seats, two sets of clothes, and a whole lot of faith, and more Jesus than we deserve to make this thing work.  We have no intention of  "easing" into it.  We're following.....all seven of us....and He's leading.  We're good with that.  Now all we need are lots of prayers coming from people we know and love. 

P.S. I know you're all wondering who the second child is.  We don't know yet, but are praying that God reveals that soon and things line up just in time with everything else.  Only God can orchestrate this just right.