A Dream Comes True

There was a miracle in my family recently. Thirty-four years ago, my then fifteen year old sister had a baby boy. She chose to place him for adoption. Since then, she has wondered about him, and that wondering evolved into a desperate desire to find him. Her situation was made more poignant by the fact that she was never able to have another child.

Over the years she has tried every avenue to find out where he was. Some weeks ago, she finally discovered his adoptive name. Greatly encouraged, she searched countless online resources, and placed ads everywhere that she could think of. But frustratingly, there were no results. Finally, at the end of her rope with desperation, she called out to God, tearfully pleading with Him to find this son that, though she had not seen him since birth, she loved. Two days later she received an email.

It turns out that this son, Jason, had been searching for her all along. His wife, on a sudden impulse, had simply “googled” his name, and there before her was an ad my sister had placed on Kijiji. She immediately emailed my sister, and you can imagine the rest of the story. Needless to say, our entire family is elated, and rejoicing with my sister.

God has blessed me with three children. Though she is a mom also, my sister cannot relate to me in so far as what it is like to raise a child. On the other hand, I cannot begin to enter into her experience of having finally found a child that she never knew, yet longed to have in her life. He was, in practical terms, “lost” to her. At times, she wondered if he were even still alive. The joy she has now is something that I can only look at from a distance, and I thank God for His mercy in her situation.

Jesus told a parable about a lost sheep. A man who had a hundred sheep lost one of them. He left the ninety-nine others and searched for the lost one until he found it. When he came home, he called his friends and neighbours to rejoice with him. Jesus compares that one lost sheep to someone who turns to Him for forgiveness:

“I tell you that in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.” (Luke 15:7)

Having witnessed my sister’s joy, I can begin to imagine the joy in God’s heart whenever someone trusts in Jesus Christ, and a soul is saved for all eternity.