Her New Story Begins
Our family grew by one yesterday.
We accepted our first, of two, referrals. The Hagerty crest has been imprinted in another country, on another little heart.
And as I create my mental baby book, replaying the details of this past week’s events over and over again in my mind, the small insignificants are what make her story significant. He’s left His mark. Everywhere.
We first heard word of her just days after I emailed my coordinator to say “although we’re leaning towards four and under, please let us know if any child outside of this age range comes across your desk.”
Like a woman found pregnant just months after she delivered her last child, I readily field the skeptical responses. Aren’t they more likely to have … permanent damage? Doesn’t it take a long time to restore one who has spent that many years out from under your roof? Older children, older orphans, raise eyebrows. Including my own. I have no judgment for these responses, because they once were fears I slept with, and too much analyzing and not enough leaning into Him leaves me entertaining them again.
Humanity is fear’s breeding ground. We accept fear as our daily drink and pattern our lives around it. And something the Father has highlighted to me these past few weeks and months is this fear. In me. Rather than doing what I’ve always done and avoid all circumstances that might offer opportunity to play with fear’s fire, He has said a simple: walk through it. Hot coals, an obstacle in my path, are His corridor for this time in our lives.
The anything-but-flippant email to our coordinator upping our age range was our RSVP.
And she came back with this: “I have a five year old girl for you to consider.”
She prepared us for waiting weeks to receive the official referral, but I knew it would be less. In every way, this second adoption has been accelerated — for what reason I’m not yet sure.
One week later, my brisk-Colorado morning prayers echoed in the loft of our friend’s mountain home. Like a boomerang, they came from Him and I breathed them back. Today, Lord. Will you let it be today?
His yes came just hours later.
I scurried through the self check-out line with detergent and ketchup in-hand, staples that hadn’t earlier made my list. As I reached for my receipt, my phone revealed the sacred number that every adoptive parent memorizes when waiting for a referral — but because we were so early in the process, I didn’t yet recognize it.
“Sara, I have some news for you,” she said.
I stumbled into the car full of friend and children passing the time by singing, and swallowed deep. This is it.
My water broke and the waiting I have worn like an old, comfy bathrobe over my family-building years was exchanged for contractions. It’s time to fight for her homecoming.
Our last trip to these friends’ mountain-home brought with it the news that our first adoption was at a standstill. Three years later, He came with the restoration that says “I will wash over every-single-broken place.”
We sat on the referral for days, unheard-of in most adoption circles, but my insecure heart needed the surety that this field-of-fear — adopting outside the birth-order and older than we’d anticipated, on top of some extraneous details of her story that brought some concern– was His to win. My already-reminded heart needed more reminding.
And the Remind-er patiently reminded me.
With the mountains at our back and Kansas tumble-weed blowing across the great plains, we made our final decision. This five-year old would be our five-year old. Eden would be, as she calls it, a virtual “twinnie.”
I picked up the phone to call our coordinator and as the receptionist wired me through to her line, out of the big-sky blue, barren of all but windmills, rose a hand-painted cry on a small billboard: “Adoption, Not Abortion.” One farmer’s declaration was God’s signpost for me.
Another detail, just in time, reminding us that He has written life onto our DNA and that, when we asked Him a year or so ago what we were about as a family, one of His responses was Life. At any age. Anytime.
The walk over hot coals is full of reminders. Full of daddy hand-holding and whimsical kisses that say trade your fear for Love, there’s a win on the other side of this.
I’m not sure which will be the bigger salvage here: her life or my fear-threatened heart.
So now we wait for our second referral. And when that comes, we pack our bags and go global.
In the meantime, please pray for our daughter on the other side of the world. And the name we’ve given her?
Hope.
Please pray for Hope, that’d He’d whisper to her heart that we are coming.
So happy for your growing family. We will be praying for Hope.
Amazing. So deeply delighted for you and your family.
HOORAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! praying and can’t wait to meet her
Once again, Sara, you have touched my heart & brought tears to my eyes. Hope is such a perfect name for this child. In Spanish, “to hope” is esperar, and in a very meaningful linguistic anomaly, esperar also means “to wait”. Hoping and waiting are inextricably intertwined in the heart of every expectant parent, but even more poignantly so in your case. I will be praying for Hope & her sister/brother to be in your arms as soon as possible. Love to all the Hagertys, KT
Oh I love this. Hope and wait. Wait and hope. Amen.
God is so good. I can’t wait to hear all about Hope!
Love to Hope and Love to your family! Cannot wait to hear of your next referral and your plans for travel!
So happy for you all! Thanks for sharing your lives with us. It is a gift you give many people.
What a beautiful way of introducing your daughter to the world. I can imagine her, years down the road, reading these words and being reminded yet again of how God moved so mightily, as He always does, to bring her home to your family. Many blessings to you, Nate, Eden, Caleb, Hope, and one more to come.
Oh, how absolutely thrilling. I’m gonna repost this on WAGI — gotta share these stories when they come! So much to celebrate!
Kelly
Thank you for helping us celebrate, Kelly — thanks for the post!
Oh! I am crying! We will surely pray for Hope . . . and what a sweet thing that Hope gives Eden a sweet sister. I will pray that the Lord will deeply bless their relationship. Having two little ones the same age is SUCH a joy. I cannot wait to hear all about it! xoxo
I always love your posts, Sara, but this is beautiful. And I especially think 5 is a great age!
tears are filling my eyes! i am so happy for you guys and feel God’s hand on it all. this post was so powerful and encouraging to my waiting heart. i woke up this morning discouraged about our own adoption and am put on my africa necklace to stay positively focused and after reading this, i am filled with hope that God’s timing is perfect. i can’t wait to see how it all unfolds!
I can not wait to celebrate with you from a distance Serah. Your day will come!
“that He’d whisper to her heart that we are coming.” Yes! Yes, He can and we will pray for that.
Beautiful. Congrats! (I think I’ve seen that same billboard.)
Congrats Sara and Nate! Amazing, wonderful, beautiful news! We are so happy for you!
how wonderful!!
Thanks for sharing your feelings and your journey in the written word, again! Please don’t stop! We will be praying for all of the Hagertys from Colorado! And counting on you bringing all of those precious ones back to our mountain home in the near future!! Blessings!
As I read your post, my eyes brimmed with tears, that didn’t take long to spill over. We are adoptive parents to two little ones from our foster care system. We got them at ages 18 months and 2 months, respectively (but a year and a half apart). They are now 4 and 17 months, respectively. We too, have fears about adopting older children. I’m going through a book right now with the moms’ group from my church, called “Running Scared”, by Ed Welch. It deals so well with fears, and how God is God over everything! I pray that your hearts will not be consumed with fear, and that God will bring peace. And I pray for Hope, that God will work in her heart toward salvation, and to accept all the love that you and your family have to give. God bless you!
Thank you Angie. God is bigger, you are right.
SOOO happy for you guys!!! Holding my breath along with you for your second one!!
Thrilled.
Just thrilled.
Wonderful news, indeed! What a blessing to see families growing through adoption. I will look forward to following your journey to Hope and beyond!
VICTORY!! god is so good. he is so loving. he is for life and for Hope’s full life in Him.
praying!
I am moved to tears by your eloquent words and have commenced praying for young Hope. “Loving Father I thank you that Your love knows no boundaries and that You have embraced Hope with your love and now Sara and Nate too!” The Hagerty Brand is alive and well in Africa, once again! You are an imprint on her heart already and He will make the victory! Praise God for your faithfulness and obedience to the Call He has put on your lives! AMEN!! Alleluia! <3 ~Kristin
I wonder if she likes blueberry pancakes?
) great post Sara!
What a beautiful story – of Jesus bringing Hope to your family and of your own heart’s journey. We will be praying for you all during this last waiting stretch…and for Hagerty #4!
Sara, we are praying for your growing family. What excitement fills my heart!
Thank you all for celebrating with us. Wish we could have you all over for a Hagerty dance party …cause that’s what we do over here when we celebrate!
Yaaaaayyyy!
This is exciting news for your family! We’re celebrating with you in Lynchburg!!!!