A recent Broadcaster Article for Open Hearts Open Home Orphan Ministry

What do Jonah and adoption/fostering have in common? Has God ever asked you to do something that you were certain did not make sense? Was your first reaction to run from it? Did you wrestle with God until your faith in Him took over? Did you step out in obedience, if not complete willingness, because you recognized His voice in the calling? For many, the first fleeting thoughts towards the orphan are not often met with an overwhelming desire to respond immediately. We push the thoughts away and attempt to continue with life as we know it. But as we see in the story of Jonah, God is a pursuing God. Not just for the benefit of the Ninevites but to teach Jonah something about the condition of his heart. God uses the orphan to reveal layers of our hearts that we might wish were not there. How do we respond when our “ideal” situation is not the one that God presents to us? How do we interact with birth parents that might challenge us in ways we were not anticipating? Do we reflect God’s love when dealing with children that were not born to us? We might like to believe that pursuing adoption and fostering is all about the need of a child. In reality, it might just as importantly be about our need to be “revealed”. The story of Jonah is a bit of a cliff hanger. We don’t know if Jonah sought forgiveness for his attitude towards the Ninevites. What we do know is that God is the Ultimate Multi-Tasker. He is more than capable of using the need of some to reveal the heart of one. He pursued and provided for both. And in the end, they both were better for it!