Fog. It can be breathtaking in the right setting creating mystery, illusion, and wonder. Other times it can be so heavy that it quickly appears, blinds you, and in an instant becomes an imminent danger.
Fog. One minute it is there, then just as quickly, it can disappear.
This was our experience in China a little over a year ago when traveling for our second adoption and visiting the Great Wall. It was a misty day where a beautiful fog lay heavily on the mountains.
We stood on the the Great Wall, watching the fog roll in quickly; yet, equally as fast it would disappear. Our translator said in all her years growing up in China & taking groups to the Great Wall, she’d never seen it quite like this day. Though we’d been to various parts of the Great Wall several times before, there was something unusually breathtaking about this particular day in the fog and mist.
At times, our path ahead was clear – we could see each step and view several mountain peaks ahead. Yet within seconds, everything before us would suddenly vanish into the vapor, making it difficult to see.
Last week our family had another fog moment. While driving home in the dark over a mountain that consistently has fog, we started ascending to the top of the mountain and within minutes were enveloped in a thick, dark fog. My thoughts flooded back to that foggy day in China & to another day many years ago where on this same part of the interstate that runs over the mountain, several lives were lost. I explained to our daughter how thankful I was that while driving, there were guiding lights that now line the sides of the road as cars travel the mountain. These lights, though they may seem insignificant and small when compared to the size of the fog, help guide vehicles safely over the mountain & along their journey. I shared how a long time ago, this same mountain did not have any fog lights on it & was consistently the source of many auto accidents, one which involved an over 60 vehicle pile-up that resulted in several deaths.
Suddenly, she chimed in from the back seat, “Mom, I was thinking. You know, the fog lights are kind of like Jesus. He’s there to help us when we can’t see which way to go and He directs us on the right path and protects us. The fog is kind of like Satan, I think. He blinds us and tries to get us off the path, to hurt us, but thankfully like these fog lights, Jesus is our guide.” Micdrop. This momma might have gotten teary-eyed in that moment at the depth of insight and child-like faith and wisdom coming from our 7-year-old daughter’s mouth.
If we all will be a little honest with ourselves, at some point in our lives we have all been in a fog and facing great walls in our lives- both literally & spiritually. Satan has blinded us, distracted us, caused us to take our eyes off of The Light of the World, who is always there guiding us through the fog and into the light. Walking the Great Wall of China is no easy feat if you’ve been there, especially with children. The path can be rough sometimes, it can rise as you climb the mountains and then steeply drop in other points.
That day we had to encourage our daughter, “Just keep putting one foot in front of the other, keep going, you can do it!” She was a trooper, but as we so often have happen in our own lives, sometimes we need to reach up and grab the hand of our loving heavenly Father.
Sometimes He just holds our hands and helps guide us while other times, He reaches down, picks us up and says, “Ok, you’re doing great, but let me carry you for a while. I think you look a little weary.” As we climbed the Great Wall that day, our daughter had a few moments where she just needed daddy’s hand to guide her, but other times she needed the strong arms of her father to hold her and carry her when she could not go any further.
What fog in your life is surrounding you today? Do you feel like you have great walls and obstacles standing before and you are just not sure what to do with them? What lies has the enemy been trying to whisper in your ear? Is he telling you that adoption is hard and you aren’t cut out for this? Maybe you are struggling with paperwork or having to redo documents for your adoption dossier and thinking, “Why would you allow this to happen to our family, God?” Maybe you are having to wait for your child match or to go and pick up your child and it’s taken far longer than you ever imagined and you are starting to doubt the goodness of God. Do you need the loving Father to hold your hand and guide you, or are you so exhausted that you need Him to pick you up and carry you?
No matter what you are facing today, reach out for the hand of your heavenly Father. Let him pick you up and carry you.
He is there to catch you, even when you feel like you are falling.
He is waiting. He is listening. He is faithful and He is still good.
Written by Leah Rockey, Assistant Director, China program
