Faith and Adoption

The other day I was meditating on my journey in this life. My triplet sisters and I were born in a two room mining camp cabin half way up Lake Chelan–an isolated little town called Lucerne, Washington. It is only accessible by sea plane or boat! My dad was an assayer for Holden Mines up the mountain from the cabins which were provided by the camp. There was a small store and a elementary school for the younger children. Years later we were able to visit and actually return to see our birthplace. We were born in late August–typically a very warm season–which I am sure in God’s wisdom helped keep these around three pound babies alive. The doctor was called. The seaplane pilot readied his plane and the doctor arrived to deliver the last one of us. Living at the home at this time were our mother, father and three older sisters. Our oldest sister was in Texas and our brother was going to high school while living and working with our father’s friend (five children total).

The doctor looked at our situation and knew that our parents could not raise three babies in those living situations (my mother had documented mental health issues). We were flown down the lake to Chelan hospital and eventually were put up for adoption. Many years later someone sent us the doctors account of our birth from a newspaper article! My sister actually met the pilot who flew us to the hospital as well. It really is an amazing story of survival. No pre-natal care for my forty year old mother who now days would be considered a high risk multiple pregnancy. She labored with only a 17 year old neighbor girl to help her. The doctor left her at that cabin and flew us away. I don’t know if she ever visited us at the hospital at the end of the lake or not. Her story was not an easy story to hear or to live, but she birthed amazing children. She loved Jesus with her whole heart and I am sure prayed for us as she understood. She always thought of us as her “three gems”. I think we were in our late twenties when we were reunited with her.

Our birth eventually led to two of our older sisters being placed into foster care. (In another amazing God interventions we met up with some of our siblings years later at my sisters wedding!) After we were reunited and older they began to share their adoption stories. Both of them were old enough to go to court and make a declaration that they wanted to be adopted into their new families. It was a deliberate choice they made that severed the ties from the old family and were received into these new families. As the reality of how our birth affected their lives I apologized to my sister one day. She said, “Martha, your birth really saved us. We needed the change, as difficult and hard as it was to be in the foster care system with its abuses it really was better than living like we were in Lucerne”.

I began to meditate on adoption. As eleven month old babies my sisters and I had no choice in the matter of where and who would adopt us. We were in the care of the state and they made the decision on our behalf. My older sisters were given the choice. I began to think about how God our Father chose to adopt us into His family. He paid the price and took care of His side. But we must choose to accept and choose to allow Him to be our Father. Not just in the name “Christian”, but in our actions and trust. As we choose to allow Him to truly “Father” us, our relationship can grow and develop into the precious vision He had when He began the process. If I turn away from His parenting, acting like an orphan I do not receive the benefits of the adoption. It is only when I choose to accept the position as His child and walk in that knowledge is my life changed by the process. 2 Corinthians 6:18 And I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Almighty God.

John 1:12-13 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave them the right to become the children of God–children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or but a husband’s will, but born of God.

Galatians 4:4-5 But when the set time had fully come God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law to redeem those under the law that we might receive adoption to sonship.

These scriptures remind us of God’s purpose and heart–to adopt us into the full relationship of a child of God. When this concept is full grasped it can be transforming. God chose you to be His Child, have you chosen Him to be your Father? This can take time but He wants to show us how to receive Him and to show us where we might still be living as an orphan in our hearts. Rejoice this Easter week to know by His blood and sacrifice we are truly His children.

The photo is of six of our siblings who gathered together to celebrate our 60th birthday. Our sisters Betty and Alice could not attend.