The miracles around me...

I read this poem on my friend Jaymie's blog, it was at the end of the post she had written about the miracle that has happened in their home this week, with the adoption of their adorable son. I loved this so I borrowed it, hope that's okay Jaymie. :)

(picture from Captured Miracles Collection By Helen Thomas Robson)

With a little one to love

And I prayed with hope

I prayed in faith

That soon the day would come-

That in my heart and in my arms

I’d hold a little one.

Like Sarah in the Bible
The days and years seemed long.

I waited for a miracle-

Would it ever come?

Unlike Hannah,

Unlike Sarah

It was not meant to be.

A little child would not be born-

Not from within me.

It seems like God just took me by the hand.

I heard him say, “This is the plan.”

I asked Him why this burden was mine to bear.

He said, “Find faith, I’ve heard your humble prayer.”

There’s a story in the Bible

A story I understand

About a woman who bore a child

And placed him in other hands.

She wanted him to be kept safe-

She traded sacrifice for faith…

And in the end he grew to be

One who looked upon God’s face.

Like this woman in the story

Another bore a son.

She traded sacrifice for faith-

And placed him in my arms.

Like Hannah, and like Sarah

My miracle had come-

And in my heart and in my arms.

I held my little one.

It seems like God just took my by the hand.

I heard him say, “This is the plan.”

Again, I prayed and humbly spoke to God above

For now I held a little one to love.

So many have asked what they can do and the thing that I say almost everytime is "Spread the word." We are turning our hearts and our future family over into the Lord's hands and the only way that he can work this miracle in our life is for us to tell as many people as we can of our desires to adopt, hoping that wherever our birthmom is, she will be prompted to contact us. We pray every night for her and for the baby that is meant to be in our home. We know they are out there. Heavenly Father has a plan for each and every one of us.

Today I had alot of time to reflect on the sacrifice of our Savior, with it being Easter Sunday. It was interesting because at one point I had the thought come to my mind of how a birthmom placing their child is similar to the sacrifice of the Savior. A birthmom has to prepare themselves mentally and physically to place their child, having faith that the sacrifice that they are making will not be taken for granted and that the child will go on to lead a blessed life, being watched over and cared for by their Heavenly Father. They think ahead of how they will make the choice when the time comes and then once they have that beautiful child in their arms, the emotion comes. I can only imagine it is far more to bear than anything I have ever experienced. I heard today that the Savior had to have prepared himself mentally and physically for the atonement but in the moments in the garden, he was probably not prepared for the emotion that he was faced with. Even to the point of asking for the "cup to be removed" if it could be. I am sure that birthmoms reach that moment themselves, the moment when they ask if there is any other way, any way they can not go through the pain. But then comes the miracle, the love for the child that overwhelms them and allows them to place the child that they have carried, loved and protected for those long months, into another's arms.

I will not pretend to say that I know the exact feelings or thoughts of a birthmom, but I do believe that it is only through the love that they have for their child and the help of their Heavenly Father, that they are able to do such an incredibly selfless thing. And so, that is how I relate it to the sacrifice of our Savior. He atoned for our sins out of love for us, hoping that his sacrifice would not be taken for granted, that we would take advantage of the payment he made for us. I hope that I can always appreciate the miracle of the atonement in my life, never forsaking the price he paid. And someday when I experience the miracle of adoption, I will take our birthmom in our arms and thank her for trusting me with such an incredible gift and for showing me what Christlike love really is. Birthmoms really are earthly angels...so we continue to pray for ours, that we can be ready when we hear from her and that we can tell her how much Heavenly Father loves her and how amazing the sacrifice she is making is. Even though this has been one of the most difficult leaps of faith I have ever been faced with, I can honestly say that I feel priviliged to be able to witness the miracles of adoption and to see the Lord's hand in my life in such an obvious way. It's incredible!