Hope has a Name

It wasn’t the name her mother gave her. Her mother named her Power.

I’ve only known her a week. But I’ve been dreaming of her for years. The little one who would join our family.

The little one turned out to be almost six years old. And seeing as how I missed the first six years of her life, I’m taking every moment here in Uganda to snuggle her and pull her into my lap and rock her and allow her to be a little one for a bit longer.

Because no child should be left without a mother and father. No child should endure such great loss. No child should be forced to find her own way in a world as dark as ours.

When I look into this little one’s eyes, I see nothing but bright potential. I see her beautiful qualities, her soft spirit, her fiery passion…and to me the very essence of her being is perfection.

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Every inch of her outside is precious. Every part of her inside is priceless.

She is mine.

And because I have claimed her, I pray she never questions her worth.

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The story is often different when I look at myself in the mirror.

What I see in my own eyes is disappointment. I see my failures. I see my weaknesses and mistakes and shortcomings.

I wonder how in the world I could be loved, because I am so unworthy of love.

I question my value. I doubt my worth.

In essence, I live as an orphan.

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How can I love my new little girl so deeply, and care so immensely for her understanding of my love, when I have not yet cast off my own identity as an orphan?

How can I expect her to reach her fullest potential and receive the utmost grace when I am still shackled by my own disbelief of my adoption as a daughter of God?

Seeking her, knowing her, and loving her has opened my eyes to the marvelous ways that my Heavenly Father seeks me, knows me, and loves me.

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

Romans 8:15

Sisters:

WE WERE NOT CREATED TO BE SLAVES TO FEAR. We were fearfully made.

WE WERE NOT CREATED TO COMPARE. We each have His Spirit.

WE WERE NOT CREATED TO DOUBT OUR WORTH. We have been ADOPTED.

WE HAVE BEEN ADOPTED.

WE HAVE BEEN ADOPTED.

WE HAVE BEEN ADOPTED.

We are His.

And because He has claimed us, may we never question our worth.

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Any guesses on my daughter’s name, given to her by the mamas of her transitional home?

HOPE.

Hope Power Mirembe {Pinkston}.

And Hope has another name. Just as our Father Above gave us all a name.

DAUGHTER.

For in this Hope we were saved.

Romans 8: 24

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Have you struggled to truly find hope in your identity as a daughter of God?

How do you practice dropping comparison and seeking His Truth over your life?

P.S. If you want to follow along with our story, I share bits and pieces quite frequently on Instagram. Would love to engage with you there!

3 Comments

  1. Joanna May April 18, 2016

    Thank you for sharing this. It is precious. The adoption of your daughter. And the adoption of us as daughters. Wow! Moved me to tears.

  2. Elizabeth April 18, 2016

    I love that we get to find our identity as sons and daughters of the King! It’s the truest thing about us: we are adopted, and by the ultimate Father. And you are right — not remembering the truth about who we are and Whose we are and Who lives in us is where comparison and dissatisfaction can slip in.

    These are exactly the kinds of things I’m hoping to bring out in an upcoming youth girls day. We’re focusing on relationships, both friendships and romantic relationships, and I know the bad parts of female friendship often come in the form of comparison and competition. I’m hoping to lead the girls into a discussion of that and untangle all the messy, nasty roots, eventually getting to the solid, unchanging bedrock: We are God’s. He purchased us. He lives in us. He loves each of us with a passion. I believe that will transform our relationships.

    I hope you know you’re not alone in this, Lauren. We all struggle with this at different times in our lives. And if we want to find our true identity in Christ, as His beloved, there is no avoiding the painful rubbing raw of our old, fabricated identities. We only find our true identity when all that gets burned away, and that often entails feelings of failure and abandonment. 🙁 I say YUCK to those feelings, but I say YAY to the gold at the end of the refining fire. 🙂

    I loved what Karolyn said in the retreat about finding our identity not even as “sheep” but in the Shepherd. Just another way of saying what you’re saying here. 🙂

    Another thing that’s helped me is the Bethel song “No Longer Slaves/Child of God.” It put to music and words what I’d been learning the last couple years, and I love it 🙂

  3. Monica F April 19, 2016

    Thank you for this thrilling and encouraging post!  So excited for your family, and that Hope has your hearts!  Coming off the retreat… this post is so timely.  After addressing fears and desires… running into Hope and the truth that my identity is in a loving Father who has adopted me as His daughter, gives me the greatest reassurance and joy. It’s in this Hope that the shackles of comparison and doubt are broken!

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