How do I even begin this post? You must first understand where we are coming from…I, Caleb, have now been in Ethiopia almost 11 weeks. 74 days to be exact. Sure, One Child Campaign works here in Africa and it's been nothing short of a blessing and learning experience and we've been honored to host 2 teams serving in amazing, eternal ways. Becca and Sakari were here for 6 weeks while we fought and waited to pass court. Many times, we wondered – "why us??!" But never once did our faith in our Saviour falter, yet we strived to be real, honest and transparent as much as we could.
After almost 7 weeks and the girls returned home, we finally passed. We never doubted the hand of God or the faithfulness of God. But we started to more deeply understand redemption. Becca and Sakari returned here last Saturday on faith that we would be soon heading home. "Beza" in Amharic means redemption. We have seen many faces of redemption amidst the seemingly hopeless faces while we've been here. But what stands out more than anything tonight to me, is the "beza" of our son, Huxley Amade Sintayehu David. His name means "From the fields of the wise", "lover of God" and "how much have I seen".
We have now had him for 3 nights, tonight being the third. It seemed normal for us to pray for miracles, redemption and favor in the courts and in the ministry of women's affairs – something happened tonight that put it all in cosmic, Godly perspective.
Tired, worn out, yet thankful that our son is with us, we are still waiting for our final step in the process. This week, we found out that the US embassy is requesting additional documents to enable us to finally bring him home – one more hurdle. Something happened in me today that just told me that as much as I love Ethiopia, our friends here and the people that He has called us to – I was done. The switch flipped. Finished. We need to be home – for our family.
We got Hux to sleep tonight and began winding down ourselves for some much needed rest. A blood curdling scream and cry rang from our 11-month old son's crib. This was unlike anything that we have heard yet. It was the kind of sound that sends chills up and down your spine and you KNOW this is different. It was an alarm of sorts. A sound of battle and all I can say is that what the enemy intended to instill fear in us instead filled us with an intense fervor to fight for the final redemption of our son. OUR SON.
We have many friends who have adopted older kids, we have been to the conferences and seminars but when it strikes close to home – all I can say to you is, "Get Dressed!" Put on the armor of God and know the Word. The screaming wasn't truly grief and it wasn't pain. All we knew is that it was intense. This was for real.
I picked up our son and he seemed stronger than normal and stiff as a board. I mean, he was flat and I can't even explain the pitch of his voice. We have seen a few of his fits over the past few days (though he really is a happy and easy going kid) but this was something way beyond that. We know that so many kids have been through so much worse in the natural and many, many cases are more extreme than ours. But, if I can be frank – and well, this is our blog – so I will. Any family adopting needs to know that redemption is not just a cross on a gold chain. It is agony, it is fight, it is worthy of your life. Redemption of our souls did not come easily, so with that in mind, I deeply implore you to view adoption as more than just something we do, but view it as a literal fight not just for the destiny of your child, but for the multiplied hundreds or thousands or millions of people your child will touch.
Huxley has been very attached to me (Caleb) today, so I picked him up and after I knew he wasn't about to stop screeching, I took him outside onto our balcony overlooking the city and mountains. Something was off, something was fighting against us for his final release into our family. Legally, yes, he is ours…but there are a couple more steps yet to be complete. If this were a C.S. Lewis allegory, it would be "The Last Battle" or what I believe was our final test.
After several minutes of trying to get his attention and shake him from what seemed like a very real nightmare to him, I started confessing the Word and peace over Him. It was going to take more than that. Becca came out and starting singing over him and holding him. This went on for what seemed like an eternity and Sakari and I prayed for him while he screamed. I went back out there and together, Becca and I came into agreement for his redemption and pleaded the precious blood of Jesus over his life. Slowly, the peace came. He fell asleep in her arms. He then remained asleep in my arms. As we held him, we listened and allowed ourselves to be bathed in worship of our King. His mercy awakens our souls through His irresistible love. In these moments that the enemy intended us to walk in fear were soaked in what physically felt like hot oil that poured over us, yet we were never burned. Huxley is home. His redemption was sealed thousands of years ago on Calvary, but it became manifest...tonight.
Redemption took 39 stripes. It was nailed to a tree. It was not pretty, but the result of it is something of unspeakable glory and beauty. It took our intentions and aspirations and turned them into His. Tonight, I rejoice in my son's redemption but in that I can't help but turn my thoughts to the over 99% of orphans and vulnerable children who have no voice in Ethiopia. They are not adoptable in the literal sense. What if our families and our communities became redemption manifest in their lives? I ask you this…what does that look like to you through eyes of a King who longs for compassion and justice? How will you manifest His glory and humility in the earth?
Praying for all four of you. I completely believe that you fought The Enemy for your son. God always wins. We experienced something very real and very similar with Etienne and I know that the battle is real.
ReplyDeletePeople who haven't adopted or who aren't believers will tell you that it is the emotions of being with your child, away from home, exhaustion. WE know that to know the goodness and perfection of Christ, we must also know that his counterpart is as real as the blood of the cross. Praying.
awesome post caleb. thank you for sharing. you guys continue to be in our prayers as you wait for the final clearance to head home and as you demonstrate, declare and experience redemption in Hux's life as well as your own. Love to you guys.
ReplyDeleteI think you met my husband, Jason, at the guesthouse the other day. He is with a Visiting Orphans/Man Up group and have been working over at Korah the last few days. Very cool that he got to meet another family with AWAA! Congratulations!!
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