I have an amazing story to tell you about a
little boy. He turned 4 years old this week. He is a sweet, smart, and precious
boy who is already displaying the Lord's glory.
When he was about a year and 6 months old, he
was admitted into the hospital because of malnutrition and abandonment. An orphanage stepped in to care for him when no one else could. Overtime,
all his friends and the housemothers knew him as a joyful boy—even though his
circumstances did not seem joyful.
Although he lived in an orphanage and was taken care of, he didn't have
the one-on-one parenting, love, and support he should have had by his birth
parents. He stayed in the orphanage
for almost 2 years. During this time, not one family member visited him.
I had the pleasure of meeting this sweet boy
when I visited an orphanage one weekend in January. He was the happiest one of
them all. He ran and played with a
huge smile on his face. His
personality and demeanor was intriguing. Even his house moms testified to his
happy nature. Although this little
boy spent almost 4 years of his life without a mom and dad who truly cared for
his well being, his Heavenly Father never left him. His Heavenly Father already had a plan for him, and boy is
it an amazing plan. His Father not only has never forsaken him,
but he has already destined an earthly mother to step in and care with ALL of
her heart for him.
And
that mother is me.
The Lord started speaking to me about becoming
a mom in November of 2011. I had 2
dreams about a little boy, I didn’t know who he was, but I knew that I was his
mom. I remember waking up both
times and feeling a weight from the Lord. After my second dream, I asked the
Lord to clarify if the dream was from him. In the next 3 days, I was without a
doubt certain that he was calling me to motherhood--to adopt a little boy. Now, you can only imagine the thoughts
running through my mind. I'm
single. I live in Africa. I work
to educate orphans, not take on full care for them. How am I going to do this
alone? When will I know that I've found my son? Is he already born? But the
Lord is faithful. Over time, he
answered different parts of my anxiety and worry in a gentle way. He even gave me a name to pray over:
Elijah. Although I was staying obedient and waiting patiently, I went through
many doubts of whether this is actually what the Lord was calling me to do.
On May 15th, I saw this picture of the sweet boy
from the orphanage I visited in January.
When I looked at the picture, the Lord said, “Megan, this is what Elijah
looks like.” I was confused,
because I wasn’t sure if the Lord was actually telling me that my Elijah will
look similar or if this boy was actually Elijah. I didn't say anything to anyone yet, but a few hours later, my
roommate brought her computer to me with that exact same picture and said the
exact same phrase, "Megs, this is what Elijah looks like." That’s
when I felt this could possibly be my son.
The next day, I went to visit him. The Lord instantly connected my heart to my son. He IS the boy I’ve been praying for. When I saw him, held him, played with him, and looked in his eye, I knew that it was my Elijah. Although that was not his birth name, the Lord placed it on my heart to change it too Elijah. I’m very excited and humbled that the Lord has chosen me step in and care for this sweet boy!
The next day, I went to visit him. The Lord instantly connected my heart to my son. He IS the boy I’ve been praying for. When I saw him, held him, played with him, and looked in his eye, I knew that it was my Elijah. Although that was not his birth name, the Lord placed it on my heart to change it too Elijah. I’m very excited and humbled that the Lord has chosen me step in and care for this sweet boy!
The process of adoption in Zambia is a long and
hard road. It’s not easy. There are many steps and tiny details
that are not laid out specifically on paper. This makes it very hard to get the right paperwork with the
right documentation to finalize everything. For example, it took me 3 months to finalize paperwork just
for fostering him. But, as I’ve
said, the Lord is faithful. He has
walked ahead of me each step of the way.
On August 7th, Elijah came home with me, and yesterday my sweet son turned 4 years old. He is such a joyful and clever boy. He is strong, content, nervous, scared, excited, but is now being loved the way God intended for him to be loved. He is going to be a powerful man of God—he IS anointed. He has already begun praying and speaking with authority, like a pastor would. J Although the road ahead of me is long, bendy, and bumpy at times, I know it’s the straight and narrow path the Lord is calling me too.
I am truly blessed that the Lord would not only
call me to provide a home and a family for Elijah, but, to also work for Family
Legacy, a ministry who provides support and families for hundreds of orphans
within their home country. As of now, I’m taking one day at a time. I don’t know what the future holds, but
I intend to stay in Zambia as long as the Lord calls us here.
Malachi 4:6 is the verse the Lord has given me
for Elijah:
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet
before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and
the hearts of children to their fathers.”
Even in the small amount of time I’ve known my
son, I’ve seen this verse displayed in his life. He will be the man of God he is called to be, in Jesus’
name.
Eli's Coming Home!! |
Wrapped up after his first bath time at home!
|
Precious Baby Boy, I see SO much of Jesus in you already.
You are home.
You are home.
Megan,
ReplyDeleteThis made me cry! I am SO happy for you and what the Lord has blessed in your life. Your vision from God sounds just like the one I have had for 2 years now. Elijah is blessed to have a wonderful mother like you and you are blessed to have found him. :)
With love from Austin,
Betty xoxo
Hey Megan,
ReplyDeleteNot sure if you remember me - from Lufkin way back in middle school. I stumbled on this through fb...my goodness Megan the Lord has truly blessed you abundantly. Your heart and passion for the Lord is so purely evident and seeing God's gracious gift of a son is so encouraging! I'm blown away - God is Good! Thanks for sharing your story :)
May the Lord continue to reveal Himself to you in such a deep way as you endeavor into motherhood!
Much love from New Orleans,
Rachel Davis
Oh. My. Goodness!!! The Lord is soooo good! You will be an amazing mom to sweet Elijah. So proud of you for stepping out in faith. Prayers for a speedy process! So much joy!
ReplyDeleteHe is precious! What a blessing for both of you!
ReplyDeleteOh my. Megan this is beautiful. Reminds me so much of Kisses from Katie (have you read it? if not, you should know your heart sounds so much like hers! sold out for Jesus!) May God bless you and your new FAMILY <3
ReplyDeleteSO encouraged by the full story, Nar! I can't wait to see the man that Elijah grows into. We picked a verse for Olivia from Zech 4:6 "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the Lord of hosts." We pray that she lives her life by the spirit, and you have just provided a tangible example of that. So grateful for you and I hope we get to meet your sweet boy soon!! Maybe in America, or maybe in Africa :)
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy for you! This story completely touched my heart, and it's so exciting to see the way the Lord is using you! Annika Johnson
ReplyDeleteMegan,
ReplyDeleteThis brought tears to my eyes! I am so incredibly happy for you, Elijah is seriously beautiful and can tell how much you already love him! I love you so much and cannot wait to meet your baby boy! You are SUCH an inspiration to me. :)
-Maddy Petty