Saying Goodbye

Part of being in the 21st Century means most of us desire to see the future and lack patience when we don’t know it. We want to “know it all” and be in complete control. Lack of control makes us antsy. Lack of control makes us forget to pray. Lack of control makes us less trusting. Lack of control leads to lack of faith. 

Back in March, I was sitting at Anne’s dining room table eating an oatmeal muffin when she got a phone call. Anne and Ben had recently decided to add to their family of three and they had gone through the long process to become foster parents. Anne answered her phone and everything changed. The woman on the other end said there was a baby waiting to be taken home, would they be up for it? Anne let her know she would talk to her husband and call her back. When she hung up, we all freaked out. Could this be it? Will they finally be adding to their family? We laughed, we cried, we prayed, we made her call Ben, and they made their decision on the phone. They decided that although it would be a risk to take the baby, they would accept whatever would happen and love him unconditionally as their own. 

In comes G. 

G beat the odds. I’m sure there are many incredible foster families out there, but there are none like the Simmons family. I was fortunate enough to be able to watch Mister on a few occasions and get to see him grow and become the almost toddler that he is. His story is hard, but his thrill for life makes up for that. His smile warms a room and it has been incredible watching him grow these last 8 months. 

It has also been amazing watching the Simmons family grow. Katherine has embraced becoming a big sister and watching her oodle over her brother has been heart warming. Anne got into an awesome routine and was a rockstar mom to a newborn (still wondering how she did it) and I’ll forever have the image of G’s face in my head when Ben walked in the door during one of the last times I watched him. Their dynamic family of three turned into a super squad of four and we all thought Mister would be here to stay. 

In comes heartache. 

I wont forget the day I read that Mister wouldn’t be staying in Washington with us. It was August 8th and it took me by complete surprise. It took EVERYONE by surprise. The last I heard, G’s mother wasn’t following through with her court ordered agreement and that they would be able to pursue making G a permanent part of the family. Instead, G would be moving to Florida to be with extended family and that would mean saying goodbye. 

That would mean letting go of control, trusting God, and having faith that His plan is better than ours. 

Proverbs 3:5-6 reminds us to “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.” That is harder to do than it is to write and read. We don’t always know His plans for us. We don’t know why He gives us a blessing and then allows it to be taken away. We don't know why He allows heartache but all we can do is trust that He is sovereign and He knows what He is doing. Isaiah 55:9 explains it well, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts neither are your ways my ways declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

I can’t offer an explanation as to why “bad things happen to good people”. I hate that cliche, but it holds true to this situation. What I can do, what WE can do, is pray that God has His hand in G’s story. We can continue to have faith and trust that His plan is far greater than ours, and that this pain will be made into something wonderful and beautiful. 

I pray for G and his Florida family. I pray he will grow to know You, and that the supply of love given to him will be endless. I pray for the Simmons family and Your plan for them. I pray for their aching hearts, that You will ease them. I pray for all those who grew to know G, personally or over social media, that they will continue to pray for him, even when he is no longer physically  here in Washington. I pray for the goodbyes and the tears, that You will have your hand on all those who need it. 

We do not understand your plan, but we choose to follow it blindly and without question. 

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” Isaiah 40:28