“Blessed are the poor in spirit.” (Matt 5:3)
The words ring out from the page, on my daughter’s tenth birthday.
A birthday shared without the one she loves close, beside her.
And I think about this word, “Obedient”.
Abou
t the mom who for a year offered us her own two kids, and how we walked faithful to His footsteps to do what He said…
And yet, they are still out there somewhere. Never protected.
And how I pray for them every day…
Stuck in a world of violence, after a bruised little boy with tears, kissed me on my forehead…
And said goodbye.
And we can question the Sovereignty of God. We can place at the center, either us or Him. We can lean on our own strength, or on His Lordship…even when we don’t understand.
And she sits, still sleeping, anticipating her birthday party. World’s away from the mother who birthed her.
And we talk about writing letters, to thank her. Ones she will give her one day when they meet face-to-face…
For the mother who gives birth is always sacred.
And yet, God says in scripture He has ordains our every single day…
And I remember story after story of how God gave names and visions of babies, before adoptive parents ever even saw their future children’s faces.
And I remember my own dream, “Divinity Jewel”. Words from heaven. And seeing a picture of me holding a little package…
Not realizing it was my now daughter, until years after it had happened…
Learning her name meaning was, “precious stone”…then, how it all came back to me.
Like a puzzle piece lost, now finally made whole.
Because nothing, no nothing is a mistake….or a shock to God.
Not the heartache, not the questions, not the loss that echos resounding comfort from heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” (Matt 5:4)
And I am learning, it’s all about humility, surrender, and obedience.
In a world of inflated egos, or wimpy Christians, I simmer over scripture and am reminded how we must not be afraid to look like idiots to the world when we follow Him…
And how our spiritual muscle reflects physical exercises and how when we work out it rarely appears attractive, to onlookers.
It’s only after we have been conditioned, trained, equipped, perfected, our bodies can appear fit and healthy, on the outside.
So is the same with our spirit.
When we walk spiritually, we must exercise. We must follow His plan, not be afraid to lose our old identities, look weak, walk in humility, to strengthen ourselves in Him.
“Blessed are the meek.” (Matt 5:5)
And friends, ‘meek’ isn’t cowardly or timid, but “controlled strength”, a word connotating humility and self-discipline.
And yet, our culture boasts on pride, doing things their own way, not following but leading,…
Because for some reason, it terrifies people to trust what they cannot see.
My mind shifts to the mom I ran into years ago, at DSHS, who offered me her little girl.
She was frustrated with the system, and her daughter was in my district, even though I had never even met her.
And when a stranger offers you her daughter, you don’t take it lightly. You don’t brush it off thinking your life is only about doing what might fit nicely into some little box…
You pick up the phone and call her social worker, pray for wisdom, wait, and trust His leading, even when you don’t understand…
Even when His plan for your life may not look like what you would have chosen.
And it turns out, the little girl was rightfully adopted by her Grandparents.
We rejoiced in this birth family uniting, because biological family can be best when when you know without a doubt they are safe.
Yet, sometimes grace doesn’t find you until you are deep thick in His “yes” of obedience.
His ways are not our ways, His thoughts are not our thoughts.
Yes, to strengthen our spiritual muscle, we must walk where He leads and calls…even when we don’t understand.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness”,”Blessed are the merciful”,”Blessed are the pure in heart”,”Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” (Matt 5:6-9)
We follow the one who satisfies our thirst, who brings mercy, who blesses the pure in heart.
We call Him the supreme Peacemaker, because His ways always bring comfort and grace.
And then, we sleep well even when beds are empty, children are suffering, tomorrow has no vision…
Still, you live with open hands…
And we can cling to His goodness, despite how you feel in this moment.
This call of orphans being far from some whim, something we do not because we feel bored, or live to be some kind of personal Savior.
Even when we can beg God to take away this calling…
Revoke His gifts, remove this passion to serve broken children, both locally 
and internationally…
Scripture teaches, “God’s gifts are irrevocable”, meaning, He doesn’t change or remove our calling, even when in our deepest heartache, even when amidst injustice, and we curse this calling…
Like after a man from Guatemala hands you his boy and begs you to take his son to America….
Though he is a stranger, and there are rules prohibiting it…So, you don’t.
When children sit in orphanages around the land, and you can’t heal them all, can’t save them though they beg you to help them escape…
When babies die, children are stuck in abuse like those two little children the mom pleased with us to parent them…
And you hear the cries of infants in orphanages, children left in wheelchairs, having broken skulls because someone decided to throw them against a wall, and no one protected them….
Yes, you want to curse this call from God…
But still, our prayer is “obedience”, that we follow instead of lead, gain His heart despite how excruciating it can feel sometimes…
Because even when we don’t understand…
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matt 5:10)
So you wipe off your knees, breathe deep in the spirit of God, and stand up again and continue to walk where He leads…
Because spiritual muscle grows, when we go where He calls, trusting who He is…
Justice. Vengeance being His. A peacemaker. The One who will come on the white horse and make all things right again…
So, little girls won’t have to wake up on their birthdays with an empty crib beside them…
Children aren’t left without parents, both here in American or anywhere else for that matter.
“Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven when they say all kinds of evil against you falsely for my sake.” (Matt 5:11)
“Blessed are the poor in spirit.”
For in the end humility and obedience are like a magnet to His heart…
And God is in the business of bringing beauty out of ashes…
So, we can trust…
This story isn’t over yet. We see in part, but one day, when full Justice Comes, we all will see fully….
And the world will know, He is God alone. The one who is faithful….
Even until the end.
8 Comments
Thank you for hosting!
Love you linking, Debbie!
And the World will finally know. Thanks for sharing and the link-up.
Debbie – Amen to that, sister!
Thank you so much for sharing and for the linkup. What an inspirational post! “So you wipe off your knees, breathe deep in the spirit of God, and stand up again and continue to walk where He leads…Because spiritual muscle grows, when we go where He calls, trusting who He is…” Trust is such a huge part of our walk. Thanks again!
Amanda- Yes, oh yes…”Without faith it is impossible to please God.” I so agree, my friend!
Oh, Jen, my heart is with yours. He is God alone. I remember feeling completely undone by the wait to bring our daughter home from Bulgaria. I cried out to God asking how could He leave her there for so long and not just move aside the endless complications we dealt with. And every so often as the years have passed, I whisper my question to Him again. But she was sick. She was getting sicker with every day. Her little heart and her broken attachments were severing more with every day. Why did it take so long? If we could have gotten to her sooner, she could have been saved so much pain. But He is God alone.
This is a beautiful post and I will be sharing it everywhere. I pray others will be reminded of His love and power through your words here today.
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Lori – With eyes fill with tears I read your comment! I cannot even begin to tell you how your words ring in the chambers of my heart and how your questions linger, and I taste them, every small, tiny longing you must have been feeling! But yes, as we wait and question, as we let him minister to us in the quiet, we find time and time again, He is God. And yes, He knows what He is doing…even when we don’t understand! Thank you for blessing me by sharing! I wish you only knew how much so!