Monday, April 9, 2012

The Blind Side


The Blind Side movie captured my heart when it first came out in the theater.  I remember that day.  My sweetie and I were away for the weekend and had grabbed the chance to see a movie sans kids.  We both emerged from the theater with a greater passion for what needed to be done to take care of these hurting children whose families were absent or worse, dangerous.  Little did we know how God would use that seed of passion in our hearts for His glory.
You know how it is, though, the second or third time you see a movie, when you have that “Aha!” moment.  You see something as if for the first time, and it strikes you, sometimes strongly.  I had one of those last night as we watched The Blind Side again.  Our little ones were all peacefully asleep, and our big girls sat with us each armed with their own bowl of popcorn.  I knew the story, but when Michael, the main character, stopped suddenly and turned back into the restaurant because he recognized his brother whom he had not seen in years, my eyes stung with pain for my own little ones.  Tears turned into an all out cry.  I know my family must have thought I was nuts. 
This movie depicted a true story.  My babies represent a true story.  They have each other in our home, but sadly, there are other siblings living elsewhere, children born from their fathers, brothers and sisters whom they will never know.  How do you even deal with that?  Real life is really complicated and often sad.  For most of us in our comfortable homes and stable families, this reality is conflicting. 
Today we had the state check our home for approval to add one more child to our family.  (Yes, that would make eight.)  He is an older sibling, a sibling they have had contact with weekly since their placement over a year ago.  He is close to the age of our youngest.   We are both excited and anxious about where God is leading.  The Blind Side exhibited similar thoughts of the parents as they brought Michael into their home.  God has allowed us to feel a great deal of support from family and friends, and His peace has been obvious in our hearts.  We will be heading full speed into this transition soon:  room changes, school enrollment, DYFS meetings, and so forth. 
“You are really changing his life,” a few of LeeAnn Touhy’s close friends stated over a country club lunch one day.  LeeAnn, the mother in the story, responded insightfully, “No, he is changing mine.” 
How true.  When we allow God to work through us, He works in us.  No matter what God will choose to do in the next few months with our babies, I am confident that I will never be the same.  God may use us to impact this family for Him, but He is also molding my heart to be more like His. 

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