We are Ryan, Stephanie, Brayden and Mikenna. My husband, Ryan, and I were married in 1995 and like most married couples, thought we had our life together planned out. We knew we would wait to have a baby for a few years, save money, buy a house, and eventually have two children, a dog, and a cat! The funny thing is, no matter how perfect our “family plan” seemed to us, God’s family plan was different and better than we ever imagined. It took us seven years to have our first child. During that pregnancy, I had some serious complications that were life threatening to our unborn child. Brayden was born five weeks early and with our Doctor’s recommendation, we decided that another pregnancy would be too great of a risk for our family. Deep down I always wanted to have another child. If I were honest, adoption was not the first thought that came to my mind. I felt guilty and thought that I should be happy with one child. — many couples are not even able to have that. Why would God bless me? My family was very supportive of adoption and encouraged us to open up that door. We chose an agency that some families in our church had gone with.

Unfortunately, we experienced a failed adoption two years after Brayden was born. The birthmother changed her mind after placing the baby in our care. I immediately thought God was closing the adoption door or punishing me for something, although I did not know why. Throughout our marriage, that was one of the darkest times we have faced as a couple. I remember shutting the door to the nursery we had already prepared and not opening it up for at least four months. I was gripped with fear that we were going to lose our son through some tragedy and was determined that I would never open my heart up to adopting again.

A lady in our church approached my mom with a newspaper advertisement for Spirit of Faith Adoptions. My mom graciously thanked the woman and filed the clipping away knowing how I would respond to any suggestion of adoption. Later that week, my mom received a call at work from someone wanting my phone number who said that I was on her mind and she felt the Lord wanted her to contact me regarding adoption. My mom prayed about the situation and discussed the events with my husband but they both agreed to keep quiet about the matter.

It was at this time that the Lord began to work in me. The Scriptures came alive and each day I felt as if the Lord was speaking directly to me giving me comfort and hope. My family saw this change and my husband began to approach me about the subject of adoption. I was very open and excited about trying again. We phoned the woman who had contacted my mother. It was Christa Thomas, the Adoption Coordinator for Spirit of Faith Adoptions.

When I met and talked with Christa, she was so loving and understanding about our situation. Her knowledge of the adoption process and confidence that we would get a baby was all I needed to continue. I remember praying about our profile and asking God to help me write exactly the right words and choose the right pictures.

The next few months were hard. The silence stirred up insecurities and doubt of whether or not we were doing the right thing. It always seemed when I was at my lowest Christa would call with some words of encouragement. For some reason, deep down I believed we would adopt a baby girl. When I received the call from Christa and heard the words “a birthmother has chosen you”, I felt my stomach in my throat. She explained to me the situation and said, “Would you like to know if the baby is a boy or a girl?” When she told me the baby was a little girl, I knew this was our baby.

We set up an appointment at SOFA to meet the birthmother. Phill and Christa were excellent in coaching us through the process. I was amazed at how smoothly the meeting went and after the birthmother left, I sobbed uncontrollably amazed at what had taken place. I had just met a beautiful woman who was going to allow me to be the mother of her precious baby. One meeting is all it took and a few weeks later, Mikenna Grace was born. Her birthmother made sure that I was the first to hold Mikenna after her birth. The bond I made with her birthmother during the next 24 hours will always be very special to me.

I was so thankful that Christa was with us during the whole delivery. She stayed with the birthmother and made sure that the hospital was aware of the situation and took very good care of us. Watching Mikenna’s birthmother tell her good-bye was the hardest thing I have ever witnessed.

The love and sacrifice of Mikenna’s birthmother will always be burned in my mind and I know she chose adoption because she was truly putting her daughter’s best before her own. I am so thankful for the love and support Christa provided our birthmother. I truly believe it is because of the care and concern shown to her she had the strength to follow through with her decision.

Being an interstate adoption, we could not cross the state line until the Interstate Compact Agreement was signed. We stayed at a nearby hotel. It meant so much to us when Phill came to visit and congratulate us. Christa called me at least once a day to check on us and update us on the status of the paper work and the birthmother. We truly felt as if we had people fighting on our side instead of being left to fend for ourselves.

Spirit of Faith Adoptions has been such a blessing to us. How do you adequately thank people who have allowed the Lord to work through them to help you complete your family? It has been eight months since Mikenna’s birth. We have a few more months before the adoption is final. If it weren’t for SOFA, we would not have Mikenna today. Christa was and is available to us 24/7 and Phill never settles when it comes to making sure the courts and lawyers are working on our behalf. I praise God for SOFA and know that our lives have been touched and that one little girl’s life has been changed for all eternity because of their ministry.

A Perfect Fit

Once there were two mommies
Whose paths would someday meet.
One carried you and felt you move
And heard your little heart beat.
One mommy prayed and waited
To hear that she could be
The one to watch you grow each day
And complete her family.
God brought these two mommies together -
When all hope seemed lost.
The answer to each other’s need -
But not without a cost.
At just the right time - a perfect fit,
Giving to each other,
What they could not do on their own,
The role of becoming your Mother.
One mommy’s love and sacrifice
Would provide the other a treasure,
That she would cherish in her heart
Always and forever.

by Stephanie February, 2007