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2018 Review: Humility

"How many kings came down from their thrones? How many Lords have abandoned their homes? How many greats have become the least for me?" ~ Downhere

Those are all excellent questions and the only excellent answer is "only one." His name is Jesus. He is God's Son. He is my Savior and my Lord. He is the Word made Flesh. The Alpha and Omega. The Living Water. My everything. And he is King of Kings, Lord of Lords, and Prince of Peace. And I love Him.

The word that has most impacted my life in 2018 is "humility."

I am humbled to receive the gift of God's love.

I am humbled to be the husband of my wife Erica.

I am humbled to be the father of our three girls.

I am humbled to be called to pursue adoption.

I am humbled ... put in my place. A place of peace, knowing who I am and whose I am. Knowing where I have come from and where I am going. Humbled. Made low.

This year has seen great loss. When we got the phone call that one of Erica's closest childhood friends had suddenly and unexpected passed away in a plane crash, we were both stunned and shocked and horrified and overwhelmed. Erica and Diego were very close growing up. They were like brother and sister. And then he was gone and he left a wife (Naomi), expecting child and raising three little ones already. It doesn't make sense and it isn't fair and I still don't get it. But it humbled me. Reminding me to treasure every day and every moment because we really, truly do not know when our last breath will be taken. It has been humbling to watch Naomi and the rest of Diego's family grieve his loss and honor his memory throughout the last year. God has a special plan and purpose for that whole family which is beyond my understanding and it humbles me to hope that my life and testimony show Jesus as clearly as their faithful obedience has in the past year.

This year has seen great gain. The support and outpouring of love from our friends and family when they hear that we are pursuing adoption has been ... humbling. :) Nearly 40 people have contributed to our adoption puzzle project so far and we are only $1,055 short of putting the entire puzzle together. The words of encouragement have been even more humbling than the monetary gifts. "You are already great parents. I can't think of a better home for an orphan to receive a family than with you guys." I'm humbled again.

Nesira and Gracie and Eden have probably been the most humbling of all. When we started our adoption process we took time to ask them to pray with us and to tell us what we think.

"When do we get our new brothers?" asked Eden the first day.

"I have at least more than $5 in my piggy bank, how many pieces can I buy?" Nesira offered the first day of our puzzle fundraiser.

Gracie just has this amazing smile and twinkle in her eye when she talks about sharing her things with more siblings. I'm humbled.

And then this week. A week that Erica and I were supposed to travel out of town for a small anniversary getaway. The girls have all been terribly sick, running fevers and coughing. They all feel miserable. But when they heard that Mom and Dad were cancelling the trip to stay home with them and get them 100% better, they all broke down crying because "we ruined Mom and Daddy's date!" Humble to the max!

Being a parent is humbling from day one. A tiny life for which you are responsible and accountable to God, the great creator of that tiny image. A fragile thing that trusts and hopes and believes and screams and cries and poops. Adopting is in many ways more humbling still. To receive the blessing of another child, from another background, often from trauma. May God grant us the strength to love them and show them Jesus so that they know the greatest love of all ... the Love of the King who left his throne, the Lord who left his home, the Greatest of All who became least for me. Amen.

UPDATE: The link to our money pool for puzzle funds has changed. You can donate by clicking here: https://paypal.me/pools/c/8aRw87IO2V

Thank you for reading and for praying and for supporting us. You are truly humbling.

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