for adoptive parents...a bit of encouragement as a new week starts. is your heart as weary as mine??
this is from a blog post by suzanne mayernick, one of the founder of 147 million orphans. be encouraged and know that you are not alone:
I have been so focused on getting Josie Love walking, talking, and
healthy that there hasn't been a need to think about her heart. We had
to get her "living" before we could focus on anything else. As she
has matured and is interacting with more people and living life
normally, and as i look deeper into her soul, she is a broken little
girl. The negligence in her life the first three years has left cracks
that only Christ can fill. Mike and I spent time with a counselor last
week trying to "unpack" her past and future and I was left with a heavy
heart. The first few years of her life are TOTALLY blank. To go back
and try to fill in the cracks feels totally overwhelming. BUT, we
will and HE will.
Many people go into the adoption process not understanding the depth of
heartbreak that it will leave. (hence the disruptions) MOST people have
no idea how broken these children are on the inside because the outside
looks "normal." I PROMISE you, if you do not deal with abandonment
issues once coming home, you WILL deal with them at some point. IT IS
PART of the adoption process. Your child might be 18, but at some
point, you will HAVE to unpack that part of their heart that is closed.
IT is NOT for the faint at heart, it is HARD, will be HARD, and makes
your heart feel SO heavy that it is suffocating.
SO, what to do? pray. pray each and every day for Christ to enter into
their hearts NOW. That while they are too young to grasp HIM, they
will FEEL HIM in a mighty way. That RIGHT NOW, HE will fill their
hearts with peace that you can NEVER do as a mom or dad. These children
are broken on the inside (EVERY ONE OF THEM) and HE has to intercede
on our behalves because we will NEVER be enough.
1 comment:
Absolutely true. I witnessed this first hand in my own family with my sister--adopted as a baby, but had deep, deep wounds that opened wide when she became older (16-17ish). As an adult adoptive parent, I have come to understand more fully how THE ONLY way those wounds could have been/can still be healed is through God's redemptive, healing love and forgiveness. A strong start in that process is the daily offering of this kind of love IN a family, but the love of a family is never enough (not for the children I birthed or the child we adopted). Only God can and does love them enough and we wait patiently for them to understand and accept His love.
Post a Comment