Adoption: before the foundations of the earth...

I am a gentile.  I am not Jewish.  I am adopted into the family of God through the work of Jesus Christ.  Did God settle when he adopted me?  Did he adopt me simply because His natural children rejected Him?  Was my adoption plan B for the Creator of the universe?  And then, is my identity less of God's child than a Jew?  Like, I'm not His "real" daughter...just an adopted one.

Or...did He know of me before He created the foundations of the earth?  Did He have a plan  to bring me into peace with Him from before the beginning?  The answer, of course, is YES!  My adoption into God's family was part of how God made His family!  I am co-heirs with Christ!  I am a TRUE, REAL, BONA FIDE daughter of the King!

When we tell people that we are adopting our 4th child, sometimes people ask if D,M and K are our real children...or "can you not have kids?" I don't mind those questions.  People are curious, and that is normal.  It is actually a really good time for me to explain our reason's for adopting BabyJ.

It is interesting, though.  And the truth of the matter is that adoption is part of God's plan for humanity.  He has been adopting almost from the beginning! His own Son was adopted! :) And He chose BabyJ to be part of our family before he was even knit together in his birth mother's womb.  We aren't God's second choice for BabyJ just as BabyJ isn't our back up plan.  He isn't anything but our "real" child.  It is cool to think of that!

And, for those of you that don't have much experience with adoption, let me give you a small piece of advice.  Don't ask people if their child is their "real" child.  That implies something that you may not mean to imply.  Instead ask if they are their biological children.  This isn't political correctness, it is about being factual and precise with your language.  And if you want to know why they chose adoption, just simply ask that: "Why did you choose adoption?"  You might want to avoid assuming things.  We all do that too often, anyway!  :)

So, if you are a Gentile Christian, relish in the fact that you were adopted into His family, and that you are His REAL child!  And maybe consider how God might be calling you to testify to that adoption!