How it all started!

My mom went on a missions trip to Uganda, Africa in the summer of 2005. Before she left, we told her that we would commit to praying for her everyday. We took every opportunity as a family, as well as individuals, to pray for "Grammy." We prayed while driving, doing the dishes, sitting at the dinner table, in the bath, at bedtime, and again in the morning. This was a precious and enjoyable time for each of us. God taught us so much during this time, and it was amazing to watch a tender and compassionate heart develop within Jaden and Kellen. We explained that Grammy would be working in a baby cottage in Africa, and that these little children did not have daddy’s and mommy’s to love them, hold them, rock them, read to them, or tuck them in bed. Kellen was especially concerned for these children and would volunteer to pray for them every night. One day he asked if the children ever got "ow-ies." When I told him they did, he asked if we could bring them to our house, clean them up, and give them band-aids.
As soon as my mom arrived home, she shared amazing story after story. All the stories shared a common thread—God is powerful and He is in control. God had orchestrated this trip, He answered our prayers, He did incredible things through my mom and others, and He changed lives. He even changed my heart. I had never had a desire to adopt internationally—until now. There was this new desire that sprung forth from my heart. I shared my desire with Todd, who has always wanted to adopt internationally, and he responded enthusiastically. Our children were excited at the idea of having another sibling. At this point we thought it would be neat to adopt a little girl.
We decided to pray about adopting to see whether this was just a great idea, or if it was truly a desire from God—something He wanted. Again we prayed together and alone for a couple weeks. One morning Jaden woke up too early, so I sent him back to bed and told him to wait until 8 am. After we were all up and having breakfast together, Jaden said something I will never forget. He said, "Mommy, when you sent me back to bed, I did not go to sleep, so I was NOT dreaming, but Jesus told me that we are supposed to get a boy and a girl, we are to pray for them, we are to protect them and keep them safe, it does not matter who they are or what they look like, and Jaden will show you which one." As you can imagine my mouth dropped open and just hung there. I asked him to repeat it again. And then again. I wrote it down. Every time, he said exactly the same thing, same order. He never changed a word. Now how common is that for a four-year-old to be so specific, precise, and accurate every time? Todd and I knew that Jaden had prayed about the adoption-we had heard him from the hallway one night after tucking him in bed-and now Jesus had spoken to Jaden and he heard! We were confident that something very special and profound had taken place that morning. God answered our prayers by very clearly showing us we were to adopt, not one, but two babies. We had a choice to make now. We decided to obey God and respond with faith.
There are a lot of unknowns, and in the world’s eyes, a lot of fears. We have chosen to reject the social stigma that five children are too many. Instead we feel blessed that God has placed five of His children in our care. Psalm 127:4-5 says "Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them." We also have chosen not to embrace what society says about our financial status. Yes, there are sacrifices. We don’t get to eat out often, we don’t have the newest furniture, but we operate within our budget. However, we know that God provides for us. In Job 41:11 it says "Everything under heaven is Mine." God owns everything. If He is calling us to adopt, He will give us the resources we need.
God is awesome. He is so good to us. He gave us this desire. It was something we wanted. He fulfilled it. We are receiving two children that God had chosen before the beginning of time to be a part of the Moore family. We are blessed. I think 1 Samuel 1:27-28 sums up how we feel, "For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition which I asked of Him. Therefore I also have lent him to the Lord; as long as he lives he shall be lent to the Lord."
What a neat reminder to us…that just as these children will be adopted into our home and called our children, we are adopted into God’s Kingdom to become His children—no matter what our past, our looks, or our uniqueness.