God's Gracious Gifts

By: Jason and Allison

Our journey to parenthood was long—filled with starts and stops, hope and sorrow, struggling to yield to God’s sovereignty, and finally finding a good deal of contentment, trusting in God’s perfect plan for us. In many ways, the fact that this road did finally bring us to parenthood was a surprise—an unexpected gift, but one that brought us tremendous joy. In the last year, God doubled that joy—again surprising us. 

We had been married for 18 years when God gave us our son Joshua in December 2015 through adoption, and we thought he would likely be our only child. The cost of adoption is significant, and we were not sure that it would be possible again. In addition, we were both 41 when he came home, and we knew that agencies have age restrictions for those seeking to adopt a child. Although the thought made us a little sad, we genuinely believed that our family of three was complete, and we sought to savor every moment—every first, every milestone, and every new experience.

But God…In the summer of 2017, God moved us to North Dakota, and the desire to give our son a sibling stirred in us. That desire grew and grew, and we believed God was leading us to explore the possibility of adopting again. On the recommendation of friends who had been among Christian Adoption Services’ first families placed with a child, we contacted CAS to see if indeed it might be possible to add to our family. In February 2018, we began the home study process. By July, our home study was completed. We so appreciated how [CAS] worked quickly for us, knowing how important it was to move on this desire and direction from God. Because our son is African American and we were seeking to give him a brother or sister who looked like him, we applied to an out-of-state agency for placement of a child.

The Lord moved—and He moved quickly. While we had some money saved, it was through foundation grants and gifts from generous family and friends that our adoption was fully funded by early October. Our out-of-state agency began showing us to expectant mothers in early November. In mid-January, we were notified that an expectant mom had chosen us to parent her baby. Just a few days later, our daughter was born (a month early!), and by the end of the month, our Mercy was placed in our arms. God is so good!

We are in awe of how God worked on our behalf. We did not know if we’d ever have children at all, and God has given us two precious ones. Sometimes that thought still overwhelms us! We are grateful for CAS and for how they worked with us—first to complete our home study, then to recommend an out-of-state agency, and then in our post-placement time. Our journey to Mercy was filled with God’s clear leading and provision, and she is a gift to all three of us. There will never be adequate words to express the gratitude in us for God’s good plan for our family and His sweet and gracious gifts.

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Invest in families like Jason and Allison on Giving Hearts Day, February 13th. Your gift of $10 or more is matched by generous donors to further the mission of displaying God's love to babies, birth parents and families in North Dakota and Minnesota.