An Adoption Story: “He Knows His Time is Short to Find a Family”
As staff at America World, we love celebrating milestones with each family on their adoption journey. Completing a home study, submitting a dossier, receiving a referral, finalizing approvals; all leading to the ultimate goal of finalizing a child’s adoption and making him or her a part of a family forever. Each story has its own unique twists and turns and ways that God has moved mightily to bring a family and child together.
Certain moments stand out when we can sit back and say without a doubt that God was in the details of a particular situation. Recently one of these very moments happened that took us back nearly 2 years to when we first advocated for a child we called “Drake” on the America World advocacy site. You can read the original advocacy post here.
We reflected back on the words shared by a mission team member who had met Drake in China in 2016. She said,
“He knows his time is short to find a family. But he wants one desperately.”
This is Josiah (then “Drake”) in China
prior to becoming part of the Dunn family.
Knowing that a child longs for a family and is aware that the likelihood of being adopted decreases with each passing year is a heavy reality and one that hundreds of children are facing today. Drake’s story reminds us that every child deserves to know the love of a family and that the work we do today may not seem like a lot, but years later, we can look back and see that a blog post, sharing a child’s story, a family stepping out in faith, were all part of a much bigger plan. In this case, the result is nothing short of a miracle. Drake, now named Josiah, is a cherished son. That family he desperately longed for has become a reality that he has known for almost a month now.
God answers prayers and desires to set the lonely in families. Josiah’s mother, Aimee, shared that as she looked back at their process and the timing,
“it was so humbling to read the blog post again and realize that at the time we were beginning to pray for God to provide a family for Josiah, He already knew we would be that family!”
Today we celebrate Josiah’s adoption story! We are humbled that God would allow us to walk alongside families as they step out to join us in our mission of building families according to God’s design of adoption, while caring for vulnerable children around the world.
Caleb and Aimee took the step of faith that became the answered prayer for Josiah to have a family. Aimee, now having walked this road and beginning the next chapter of their lives with Josiah said,
“If only every Christian family would say “yes” in whichever way God calls them to help an orphan, what a difference we could make in the world. Our story with Josiah may just be beginning, but we are thankful for God’s clear hand in this!”
What might your “yes” be today?
It could be as simple as reaching out to our China program team to learn more about the needs in the China WC Program.
It could be encouraging an adoptive family by providing a meal as they live out the day-to-day ups and downs of their adoption journey.
Maybe “yes” means praying that God would multiply the “yeses” so that more children receive the care they deserve.
Your “yes” matters and will make a difference. Over 2 years ago, a team visited Josiah’s former orphanage. Little did they know that their “yes” was part of Josiah’s story and another step that God was orchestrating as He moved in Caleb & Aimee’s hearts and home to make him a part of their family.
If your family is interested in learning more about adoption or considering adoption from China, please contact our China staff at China@awaa.org for more information. Families can view our China Adoption page for more information on children who are currently available and waiting for families.
PRE-APPLY FOR FREE to determine your eligibility or fill out our full APPLICATION now to begin your adoption process.
Written by Aimee Wilson,
China Program Director
