“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen” (Ephesians 3:20,21). The goal is life. The point is hope. The hope is in God. The birth mothers we work with are from all different backgrounds and walks in life. Yet they all have one need in common – the same need of every human on earth – life in Christ. Eternal life, yes, but abundant life here too.
I spent a lot of time with Kate* after the birth of her baby, and we had many conversations about life and God. Kate’s life hasn’t been easy, and she has suffered much injustice at the hands of others. She asked, “Why me? Why does everything happen to me? I feel like God is angry with me, and I can’t figure out what I’ve done.” And she wasn’t having a pity party. She genuinely wanted to know the answer. She was sincere in her questions. She wanted truth. As she talked, it became clear that she was buried underneath the burdens on her shoulders. She had no spark of life within her, only existence. She had no hope. She was just going through the motions, quite miserable.
By the time Kate left us, God had begun to do a great work in her. His hand was obvious in her life. She was beginning to seek Him in His Word. She was beginning to understand that His love for her was strong and unshakeable. She was beginning to hope in Him. God alone can be given credit for her newfound hope. He alone can pick her up and carry her through the difficult things she faces. What a beautiful thing to be able to witness His work in her. What a joy to see the lights begin to go on for her. This is our hope for all of our birth mothers. May our time with them not be in vain. May our goal not simply be to help them with their adoption decision. Is that important? Yes. But are their own lives and future and faith also important? Absolutely. As we work diligently to help birth mothers choose life for their babies, may we also work diligently to point them to abundant life for themselves.