Blessed

Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn,

for they will be comforted.

Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they will be filled.

Blessed are the merciful,

for they will be shown mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they will see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they will be called children of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

I don't think much in this world is coincidence. So I was not really surprised when my dear Becky read Sunday's post and told me that what I had written had really gone along with the whole message at Vintage Faith yesterday morning, which I missed because I was still at home typing and crying. The message was on the above passage of Scripture, from Matthew Chapter 5, the beginning of the much-loved Sermon on the Mount. So this morning I decided to go to that passage and consider those words of Jesus in light of what all is churning in my heart.

I am sure you can see many connections. This could have been written about those parents who I care so much for, those who are lovingly sacrificing themselves for their children over and over, day in and day out. Julie. Barb. Dorothy. Lisa. Keri. Kari. Susie. All the mothers and fathers who are living love fully and suffering for it. So at least for today, I am praying these words over them.

And it is also not a coincidence that two of my favorite adoptive blogging mothers wrote pieces that continue the ideas in that last post, and in the two posts that inspired it:

Lorraine wrote this beautiful piece that reflects further on the value of their adoptive daughter's life, and shows even in her many potentially scary diagnoses, she is totally held in the hand of her Father in heaven:

Our character is shaped greatly by Him and the things He allows us to walk through. It is a gift to walk through life, and death, with specials needs children. There are things He teaches us through these experiences that cannot be learned any other way. Our hearts are forever changed, looking much more like His than we could ever imagine, because that is His plan for us.   

Dorothy linked today to this old post by Julie, which perfectly addresses the heart of a child with hidden disabilities, who is so worth loving and parenting, and which--in God's upside down way of things--ends up even being a blessing because it is hard:

 

My son has a beautiful, loving heart. He has a heart for God and wants to please him. He really does. I have to focus on the beauty of the soul that God has given him at times when all I can see is the craziness that alcohol and early neglect has done to his brain structure. I have to hold on to the hope that our faith brings and know that our family was designed by God. During the times that I think someone else would be better equipped to handle the FAS/RAD, I am reminded that each child in our family was meant to be here with these ill-equipped parents and wild bunch of siblings.

I remember the early days, when all I could think was "I used to be a good mom." I did alot of relying on my own skills and the pride I had in my ability to parent. Now, I am thankful for my little challenging child..because he never allows me to rely on myself and my abilities...he drives me to look to God to find the strength to parent. He has taught me so much. 

Most meaningful of all for me personally was what Adeye wrote, which might have been written as a direct response to my post, my own fears and failures, except she is not a reader here--so I'll take it as the response written by God through Adeye to me and to whomever else needed to hear that truth!

She writes:
So often in adoption circles we use a very well-quoted scripture.

In the 25th chapter of Matthew, Jesus said, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

I love that Scripture! I have read it hundreds of time. And every time I read it I am reminded, obviously, of how important it is for the body of Christ to be taking care of the weak, the lonely, the hurting, the needy, the widow, the orphan, the destitute, and the downtrodden.

But recently, something different has struck me.

“WHATEVER you did…”

WHATEVER.

The Scripture doesn’t say, “When you have gone and adopted four children with profound special needs…you did it for me.”

Neither does it say, “Once you have gone on two overseas mission trips and made a huge impact in the lives of hundreds of children in a heinous orphanage…then you finally did it for me.”

Nor does Scripture say, “Go out and find fifty hungry people to feed this afternoon, and only then will it be for me.”

No, Jesus made it so simple for us to follow what burned in His heart.

WHATEVER you do…

Whether you ARE called to grow your family through the blessing of adoption and have a multitude of children from all over the world in your home.

Or whether God puts it on your heart to support just one orphan monthly through a relief organization.

Whether God calls you to pack up your entire home and relocate to a Third World country.

Or whether He whispers to your heart, “Do the fostering classes and open your home to one child whom I have already chosen for you.”

Whether God tells us to sell everything we have and give it all to the poor.

Or whether He burdens us to clear out our overflowing closets to help the little girl in school who only has one pair of shoes…

WHATEVER you did...

“You did it for Me!”

How freeing! How amazing to think that just the smallest, least noticeable thing that we do for the sake of expanding the Kingdom of God on earth is HUGE in the eyes of Jesus.

“Whatever” can mean anything….
.   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .   .

My words again.  I did not mean to sound so cynical at the end of my last piece, when I said "at least I can throw money at the parents running into the building."  I know each and every dollar I give to families to help bring their children safely home is so appreciated--it all helps, every last bit, and I know when I give out of love and concern for "the least of these" the amount I give does not matter, just that I did give, and had the right heart when I did. It is a form of obedience for me, and honoring God, and worship.  It is all win-win-win, it blessed God, it blesses the families and the children, it blesses me.  But for a moment there I felt like that was not enough--not the amount I might be able to give, but just the fact that it sometimes feels like even a million dollars, if I had it, would be the least I could give.  That what God really wants is all of me.  My whole heart.  My whole attention.  My whole trust.  And that's what I am not sure I am giving fully.  So Adeye's post really encouraged me to look at my small obedience for what it is, and rest secure in that.  For now.

And in the meantime, I am going to be encouraged by Becky's words to me too.  In response to my post and what the speaker at church said about Jesus' words on the Mount, she wrote to me,"The poor in spirit are those who have nothing to offer the rest of the world – the truly “worthless,” to the rest of us. Those who mourn are those who are feeling, deep in their souls, the brokenness of the world. The agony of sin, death, sickness, sadness, broken relationships. But in God’s upside down world, it’s these folks to whom the Kingdom of God, the reign of God, the favor and blessing of God, is most readily available."

It is a blessing that I mourn.  It means I am aware of my own sin, and the brokeness of the world in general.  And in that awareness I just want more God--more God in the world, more God in me.  And I think that is the beginning of transformation, into becoming something really useful to Him.