Adoption Story: Jeff + Shari

I had the pleasure of walking Jeff and Shari through the adoption process! After 5 months of being active with agencies, they got a call they had been chosen to be the parents of a one-month-old baby boy. In less than 24 hours they were holding their little one in their arms! Shari and Jeff, it was an honor to walk with your family on the journey that led you to your sweet boy! I am in awe of what God has done, and I can’t wait for others to read about it today! I know it will be an encouragement to so many others who are in a difficult season of waiting!

We've always thought adoption was beautiful, and it was something we definitely talked about while we were dating. Shortly after we were married, we went on a mission trip to Haiti and visited a children's home. This opened our hearts even more to adoption, but like most couples, we assumed we would have biological children first. When that wasn't happening, we had peace about it but began to pray earnestly for God to place a calling on our lives to adopt. And He did! 

A good friend connected us with Christian Adoption Consultants and Kelly Todd, specifically. I'm so glad we requested her to be our consultant. She was friendly, kind, reliable, and so knowledgeable! Having someone walk us through the process and answer all our questions was SO helpful!

Throughout our journey, we clung to Phillippians 4:7. “ And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” We didn't always "feel" at peace because there were so many unknowns and what-ifs, but we trusted that God would match us with the exact baby He had for us.

After 5 months of being active with agencies through CAC’s multi-agency approach, we were finally chosen! Meeting our son for the first time was so wonderfully surreal. In our case, we found out we matched about 24 hours before we met him and brought him home. It was a whirlwind of emotions to process in a short amount of time. It's not how we envisioned it happening, but it ended up being SO perfect...we wouldn't change a thing!

Looking back, we see so many of "God's fingerprints" in our story. Like as we were pulling into the parking lot to go pick up our son, a friend texted Jeff that the Lord had put it on his heart to pray for us the day before and that he felt we would be getting our baby soon. And looking back on my many journal entries, I was praying God's favor over our baby and their birth family on the exact date our son was born.

Waiting and wondering how your story will play out is hard! Our advice is to fill your minds with encouragement and truth along the way. Read scripture, pray for your future baby and journal! Read uplifting books about adoption, listen to podcasts, and look at all the adoption stories on the CAC website. Know that God is working even when it doesn't feel like anything is happening. God's timing is perfect. Even when you think you're ready, God knows best.

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***If you are interested in learning more about adoption and the services we provide at Christian Adoption Consultants, I would love to chat! Email me to receive a
FREE adoption packet.***

Adoption Story: Tyler + Blaine

I had the pleasure of walking Blaine and Tyler through the adoption process from the very beginning of their journey until they welcomed their son home! People outside the adoption circle may not understand the complexities and the emotional toll that the adoption process can have on a family’s heart. It isn’t easy. It takes a lot of courage, faith, and strength to persevere through this journey. But Blaine and Tyler never gave up. I watched as this sweet couple placed their hope in God and not their circumstances. Tonight, they share a little bit of their journey with you.

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It’s a privilege to share our story with you! It was not long ago that we were perhaps where you are now, seeking and searching for answers in the face of infertility and uncertainty. Why wouldn’t God allow us to have our own children? What is the road ahead for growing our family? We didn’t know the answers, and we felt so discouraged because nothing seemed clear to us. Having gone through all of the channels - infertility treatment, testing, counseling - we prayed and prayed and finally felt our hearts opened to adoption.

Several close family friends recommended Christian Adoption Consultants. We debated for a long time if a consultant service was necessary. However, the adopting families that we knew strongly recommended that we get all the help we could. From the very beginning of our journey, we could not have been more pleased. Kelly Todd and all of the CAC staff were so generous with us and provided a perspective that we never could have gotten on our own. There are so many pitfalls and confusing times on this journey, and having a guide was worth it at every step!

After the initial flurry of paperwork, the hardest part was waiting. On several occasions, we became excited about a possible match, only to be disappointed. In retrospect, this period of time was character-building for us since it deepened our dependence on God and led us to greater trust and patience in our marriage. However, at the time, it seemed to be pure torture. Without any guarantee that a baby would come, we simply had to wait and pray. 

At last, we got the notification, so abruptly we could barely believe it, that a baby was being born across the country from us. We were a match for him, and he was ready for us! It didn’t even seem possible. We dropped everything and bought the first plane ticket we could find! One week later, we were holding our son in our arms. All the waiting suddenly made sense when our beautiful son arrived. 

You’ll hear the cliche many times that “every adoption story is different,” but like many cliches, it contains a lot of truth. No one can say where your journey will lead you or what obstacles you are going to face. The best advice we have is to remember that, as in every trial, it is possible to either despair and lose hope or to deepen faith and trust in God. Making this choice will never be easy, but it will always be worth it. Our son, Beckett,  is our pride and joy and a beautiful part of our family. We have no doubt that with faith, there is a child, somewhere, waiting for you.

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***If you are interested in learning more about adoption and the services we provide at Christian Adoption Consultants, I would love to chat! Email me to receive a FREE inquiry packet, and check out Christian Adoption Consultants for more information!***

Adoption Story: Mary + Dillon

I had the pleasure of walking Dillon and Mary through the adoption process from the very beginning of their journey until they held their TWIN BOYS in their arms! Their journey was filled with ups and downs, disappointments and numerous “no’s.” People outside the adoption circle may not understand the complexities and the emotional toll that the adoption process can have on a family’s heart. It isn’t easy. It takes a lot of courage, faith, and strength to persevere through this journey. But Dillon and Mary never gave up. I watched as this sweet couple placed their hope in God and not their circumstances. Today, Mary shares a little bit of their journey with you.

Dillon and I were so blessed to be able to work with Kelly at CAC. I have always believed that God sends us people when we need them most and He did just that with her. When we first signed on with CAC we were so excited and so anxious. I made the comment to my husband “I will not get my hopes up I just pray we have a baby or know something by Christmas.”

Early June we received our first situation. I thought my heart was going to jump out of my chest. We chose to present, but were not chosen. Days turned in to weeks and weeks turned in to months. All of the “no’s” turned in to heart aches. One morning in early December, I texted my husband from work and told him I did not want to present through the holidays. I wanted to make it through Christmas so no one would be asking questions. I felt numb at this point. But then God stepped in.

A few hours after I sent that text we got an email about an expectant mother due with twins. I called Dillon on my lunch break and told him all the details. We decided together to present. We both agreed to keep it to ourselves so if we didn’t get matched..again.. we didn’t have people asking at holiday gatherings. And then a miracle happened. 319 days after signing on with CAC, being told “no” more times than we could keep track of and countless prayers, we got the call. “She chose you!” We got this call a week before Christmas. We cannot explain the love we feel for these two boys. We wouldn’t change one thing about our story because every no, every tear shed, everything we experienced before we even started the adoption process…all of these circumstances led us to our boys and we can’t imagine our life without them!

To families in the wait right now I can relate to what you are going through. Even on days where you feel like you are never going to get your “yes,” keep the faith. That is something we struggled with as the months went by. While we were in the wait it was difficult to hear others offer their advice-“It just isn’t your time yet,” etc. But now looking back I see that they were right. God’s timing is best. There were days when I felt like God couldn’t hear my prayers. But when we held our boys for the first time all of the “not yet’s” and “no’s” made so much sense. On the hard days don’t forget that God is still there. You may not feel Him, but know He is there and He has a plan for you and your family.

***If you are interested in learning more about adoption and the services we provide at Christian Adoption Consultants, I would love to chat! Email me, Kelly Todd, at kelly@christianadoptionconsultants.com to request a FREE information packet!***

Video: My Journey With Christian Adoption Consultants