When God Opens a Door

One of my favorite Bible verses is Matthew 7:7-8, “Ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” I’ve tried to live this verse each day of my life. Every morning before I place my feet on the floor I pray to God, “Lord I want to be a servant, a disciple of Christ. Lead me and direct me. If you open a door I will walk through and follow. Today Lord, I pray, that I will see those open doors.”


Some days I clearly see the open doors and I walk confidently through them while other days when I go to bed I wonder if there was an open door but I was to wrapped up in the world around me that I didn’t see it. I do know that there have been times when I have seen the open door and it doesn’t look like an easy way and I fight God on going through. March 22, 2011 was one of those days.

But right now I need to give you a little history before I proceed in telling you about that door I was hesitant to enter.

My brother Kirk is married to a wonderful woman named Gloria, who everyone calls Brock. This is my brother’s second marriage and Brock’s first. He has two beautiful teenage daughters, Olivia & Madison, from his first marriage who live a few hundred miles away with their Mom. They visit their Dad at Christmas and during the summer break. My sister-in-law Brock is a wonderful loving step-mom to my nieces and we are so thankful for that. After a few years of being married they decided to have a child of their own together. But after a while it became apparent that something was wrong and after many tests they found that Brock had endiometriosis and sadly it would be impossible for her to have children. With much prayer and thought they decided to have a child through adoption. They became licensed foster parents in hopes of being able to adopt a child and then they waited and waited and waited.

Fast forward to March 22, 2011. I was working in my office at church when I received a phone call from one of our members. He wanted to know if we could help a family who attended the church and who were in need of assistance. He explained that the grandmother had had to go and pick up her grandson who was 3 and his half-brother who was 3 months from a terrible situation in another state. She had nothing for the baby, not even a bed for him to sleep in. I told him that I would call her and we would definitely be able to help.

I made that phone call, made a list of what she needed and headed off to Walmart. I have to say that this was an enjoyable experience. Picking out baby clothes, blankets, bottles, lotion, shampoo, crib and many other items was so much fun!! I purchased the items along with a few gift cards and drove to her home. During the drive there I prayed for the grandparents and for the two little boys. It was during my prayer that God told me to tell her about my brother and sister-in-law wanting to adopt a child. This is what I said to God, “What? You want me to tell her about Kirk and Brock wanting to adopt? I’m not going to say that! I wouldn’t even know how to bring it up. Lord you have got to be kidding me. I’m not a direct person. I can’t do that. Please don’t make me!” But God wouldn’t give up. All the way there he told me to tell her.

When I arrived at her house I took the bags and crib in and was introduced to two of the most adorable little boys. The 3yr. old had the biggest smile and the baby who was 3 months had the biggest brown eyes. The grandmother placed the baby in my arms and I completely melted. She told me the whole story and how she was now the guardian but didn’t know if she was going to be able to keep them and that she was so afraid that they would be put into the “system” and she might not ever see them again. It was clear that their mother and fathers were unable to care for them. During our conversation the “door” opened and I told her about my brother and sister-in-law and how they wanted to adopt, but how difficult it was to adopt a child when they were in the “system”.

That was it, that’s all I said. I left that day thanking God for the opportunity to be able to help her through our church’s assistance fund and went back to work. Two days later I received a call from the grandmother. She told me that ever since my visit she had felt God telling her that the two little boys belonged with my brother and sister-in-law. She had never met them before. They didn’t live in the city that we lived in. I was speechless. I asked her if she was sure about this and she told me she was.

The door that I didn’t want to enter had led straight to the very children who would become my nephews, Jack & Jace.

I called my brother, told him the story and gave him the grandmother’s phone number. On March 26, 2011, I took Kirk and Brock to meet Jack and Jace. As we stepped through the door of her house I introduced them to Jack and I placed Jace in my sister-in-laws arms. It was at that moment I knew that this was all God’s plan. I knew from that moment that they were a family. I spent the next 2 hours watching them play with the boys and watching a bond start to grow between them. It was priceless. That night as I was saying my prayers three pictures appeared in my mind. A picture of Kirk playing catch with Jack, a picture of Kirk and Brock teaching Jace how to walk and a picture of the entire family; Kirk, Brock, Olivia, Madison, Jack & Jace. The next day I described the pictures I had seen to them and I told them that they shouldn’t worry. That this was God’s plan and one day Jack and Jace would be theirs.

Over the next few months there were struggles to overcome and when their patience was running thin, I would remind them about those three pictures and to trust in God, because he is in control and everything would work out.

On February 10, 2012 we celebrated the Adoption Day of Jack & Jace into our family. After the adoption hearing we went back to their home for a celebration and as I walked through their door, I felt a peace come over me and tears welled up in my eyes as I realized that God’s plan had come full circle. God had opened a door 10 ½ months ago that not only had I walked through but so did my brother and sister-in-law, a door that opened to a new life and a new family for two special little boys.

When God calls to you and opens a door, don’t hesitate to enter. He always has something on the other side that is so much better than we can ever imagine.

February 10, 2012 "Adoption Day"

Blessings,

Jill