Our Family’s Adoption Story: Learning to Trust God’s Plan

Their relationships may look different from other families, but they are rooted in love and care.

2025

I’d like to share our family’s adoption story. It’s a story about how God’s plans are often different

from our own, and how His ways don’t always look like the path we might have chosen. It’s a

story of listening, of trusting, and of saying “yes” even when we weren’t sure what would come

next.

The verse that has carried me through is Proverbs 3:5-6:

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways

acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.”

That has been the heart of our journey—trusting God to direct our steps, even when we didn’t

see the whole picture.

The Call to Adopt

When Jason and I got married, we thought we knew exactly how our family would look. We

dreamed of two children—a girl and a boy. God was so faithful to bless us with that dream: our

daughter was born in 2002 and our son followed in 2004.

A few years later, while attending Centrikid with our daughter, I felt something stir deeply in my

spirit. During one of the breakout sessions for leaders, I sensed God placing adoption on my

heart. Looking back, I think He had been gently whispering this for some time, but that day His

voice became clear and undeniable.

Excited but a little unsure, I shared what I felt with Jason. He wasn’t sensing the same call just

yet, which left me puzzled. For weeks I prayed, asking God to guide us. If this truly was His

plan, I knew He would bring both of our hearts into agreement.

On August 5, 2012—our daughter’s birthday—we were in church listening to a guest evangelist.

I can’t remember the sermon, but I’ll never forget what happened afterward. As we got into the

car, Jason turned to me and simply said, “Okay. I hear it too. Let’s start the process.” In that

moment, God confirmed His calling for both of us.

Meeting Toby

I had already been quietly looking at adoption agency websites and waiting children. Deep

down, I knew God was leading us to a child from a waiting list.

That evening, as Jason and I sat together scrolling through profiles, we saw a little boy whose

photo stopped us in our tracks. His name on the website was Jacob, but as soon as we looked

into his eyes, we both knew: this was our son.

The next day, I reached out to the agency. At first, though, it felt impossible. The financial

requirements for adopting from China seemed out of reach. We prayed and wrestled with the

numbers until one day Jason asked if we had included his retirement account. We hadn’t—and

once we did, everything changed. We qualified. God had already provided the way forward.

Then came the paperwork. Adoption agencies call it a dossier, but really, it’s stacks upon stacks

of forms, documents, and background checks that take nearly a year to complete. Thirteen

months later, we were boarding a plane to China to meet the little boy God had chosen for our

family.

Bringing Him Home

Traveling across the world without our older two children was hard. We leaned heavily on our

church family for prayer and support. They were incredible—donating, encouraging, and walking

alongside us every step of the way. Our extended family, some of whom had been uncertain at

first, also supported us as they saw our hearts set on following God’s call.

When we finally met Toby, it was love at first sight. Though the government gave us 24 hours to

“decide,” our hearts had already decided months earlier when we first saw his picture.

We brought with us a Thomas the Tank Engine train—Toby—chosen just for him after we said

yes to adoption. His face lit up when we placed it in his hands, and in that moment, we felt such

peace.

Later that night in our hotel room, however, the weight of change sank in for him. He realized he

was in a new world with new faces, and he cried himself to sleep as I rocked him, whispering

reassurances. That first night was tender and hard, but it was the beginning of trust.

Life as a Family of Five

Back home, our older two—Caroline and Nolan—couldn’t wait to welcome Toby. They had been

cheering us on from afar, and now they finally got to hug their little brother. The transition wasn’t

without bumps. There were moments of frustration (including one memorable brotherly bite!),

and the language barrier made things tricky at times. But just like any siblings, they learned to

love and adjust. Their relationships may look different from other families, but they are rooted in

love and care.

We knew from the beginning that Toby had cerebral palsy, and we were ready for that. Over

time, however, more diagnoses came—intellectual disability, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder,

visual processing disorder, and oppositional defiance disorder. While those labels explained

some of his struggles, they never defined him for us. If given the chance to choose again, we

would say “yes” without hesitation. He is fully ours—not born from my body, but born from our

hearts.

God’s Preparation Along the Way

When I look back now, I see how God was preparing us long before adoption was ever on our

radar. Years earlier, financial struggles led us to sell our dream home and move to St. Mary's, GA. At

the time, it felt like a setback. But in that move, God gave us a new church family at Kingsland

Baptist and opened the door for me to work in special education—an unexpected path that

would later prepare me for parenting a child with special needs.

God was weaving the story even when we couldn’t see the threads.

Saying Yes

If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s this: when God calls, He equips. Saying “yes” doesn’t mean

the road will be smooth or easy. Our family is far from perfect—most days feel a little messy.

But His blessings and faithfulness have carried us through.

James 1:22 reminds us, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only.” And Luke 11:28 says,

“Blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it.”

My encouragement to you is simple: if you feel Him calling, trust Him enough to say yes. The

journey may not look perfect, but the rewards aren’t meant for this world anyway. They are

eternal.

And at the end of it all, my deepest prayer is to one day stand before Him and hear the words:

“Well done, good and faithful servant.”