"Lottery Ticket"

There is another adopting family that God has completely burdened my heart to pray for.  On Sunday night, I received an email from the mom of this family and the tears of sadness for their struggle and tears of frustration in unanswered prayer just flowed.  Their situation weighed so heavy on my heart, I did something I don't usually do - I showed my husband the email.  And I asked him if he would join me in prayer for them.  Maybe he could offer a different angle, a different approach to binding the spirits and renouncing the lies that have surrounded this girl.
Brian began to pray.
He did offer a new perspective on what to pray for this family.  A perspective that only could be offered by a husband and a father.  It was beautiful to see his heart truly burdened with this family's situation.  What made it so much more real, and something he picked up on, is that this could very easily be us in a few short months or weeks.  So Brian's prayer moved from this family to Isaiah and Ruth.  And he prayed something that I feel is important to share.  So many times we pray against the spirit of fear and anger and insecurities, against the inability to bond and attach, which are all very real and very important to pray against.  But Brian prayed something I've never thought about before.  He prayed, "LORD, I pray against all spirits of expectations on the hearts of our children."  This may seem insignificant and simple to most.  But many of these children, particularly the older ones, can see adoption, especially adoption that gets them out of poverty and into a country they wanted to come to, as a lottery ticket.  That all their problems will go away with one swipe of the pen as they are given our last name.  That our money and our house and our schools will automatically make everything perfect. 
But it won't.
Though we bestow upon them a new identity in their last names, it doesn't erase the years of neglect, abandonment and feelings of unworthiness.  It doesn't automatically soften their hearts to love and to accept love.  And because it doesn't happen the way the child has built it up in their minds, their little hearts don't know how to respond. 
Maybe we are failing miserably, only time will tell, but we are trying to show Isaiah and Ruth now, before we ever bring them home, that their "lottery ticket" isn't the stuff they are getting and the country they are coming to.  It's us.  A family.  A father and a mother and a brother and a sister.  Their "lottery ticket" is unconditional love and a safe place to work through their fears and their insecurities.   


So to this girl and to every child struggling with self worth, the inability to love and let yourself be loved, insecurities and anger, I am pleading with my Savior to break you.  In no way is this a harsh prayer.  I pray this, so that in true and unguarded brokenness, He, and only He, will be able to fill you and put you back together again, with more gentleness and love than you will ever know. 
That as Christ rebuilds and restores the places that have long been devastated in you, He will place upon your head, a crown of beauty instead of the ashes that have defined your life for so long.  That Christ will clothe you with garments of praise instead of the despair that you have become so accustomed to feeling. That you will be given a new name, known only to you, in promise of the man or woman you will be become. 
This is not just my prayer for you, it's God's promise and it's the reason Jesus came to this earth.  He came to "bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners."  Oh sweetheart, the prisoners are not those trapped in a jail cell!  Though by the world's standards that is what it seems to mean, it is not!  It is those that are held captive by the enemy and his lies, those held captive by the shame of their past, those held captive by fear and the inability to let their heart trust and love and heal.  This type of captivity can be even worse than physically being incarcerated, for the sole reason that no one can see it.  And it makes it that much harder to seek freedom for those whose hearts and minds are held captive by "the accuser of the brethren."  
Jesus says that, "In this world you will have trouble."  But he continues by saying,  "Take heart! I have overcome the world."
Though you might not believe it now, you will one day be called an "oak of righteousness."  And you, dear child, WILL display the splendor of the LORD.

I also lift up a prayer for ALL adopting families.  That as Christ heals and restores your children to all the glory they were meant to posses, that He will also equip you with the patience, and the strength, and the discernment and most importantly, the prayers needed to withstand the attacks and to endure the time it takes for healing to occur. 
This is a spiritual battle were fighting.  "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms."  
BUT...
"You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you... Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you."
So put on the full armor of God so that we can take our stand against the devil's schemes and fight from our knees!