1 in 147M is a miracle

Today is the third time that my wife and I have gone to the airport to welcome home friends arriving home with a newly adopted child. My first experience was some years ago when my friend Marc brought home his daughter from China. Today was my third experience as we welcomed friends bringing home a little girl from Ethiopia.

You might not know it, but there are around 147 million orphans in this world at this moment. That’s right, 147 MILLION orphans right now. Today one of those orphans arrived home. But she isn’t an orphan any longer. She arrived in the care of a mother and father that love her!

Imagine, not long ago, this child was all alone in Ethiopia, and today she arrived home as one of four siblings, with a mom and a dad, two sets of grandparents, an aunt, and a lot of new friends all waiting to meet her when she arrived. Not long ago she was one of 147 million, lost in piles of paperwork and overlooked. Today she is one of six, a part of a core family that is a part of a larger family that is a part of a community of friends and family that all love her! Not long ago she had only a few that would care for her, as of this moment I can promise you that if this child had a need there would be a line of people waiting to help fill it, and my wife and I would be in that line!

Adoption is a miracle.

As I think on this it changes me. As much I want to be think on myself, or as much as I’m prone to be self-centered, its moments like today that ground me. Days like today remind me that my problems are small in comparison with the problems of so many. Days like today remind me that one person really can make a huge difference in the life of another. And, days like today remind me that making that difference in the life of another person is what really matters.

I look forward to the day soon when Jess and I will bring our little boy home from China so that he can meet this new family as well.

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