Friends, I have some exciting (and surprising) news, but it
requires a bit of a back story. This one is not about cancer, a job loss, a
house fire, or anything of that nature. So, please, just hang in there with me
as you read.
While in Colorado this summer, a few of you may remember my
Facebook post saying that I lost my phone on top of a mountain in Colorado. It was the most
bizarre mishap because I knew I had it one minute and the next it was just
gone. We backtracked and it was nowhere to be found. Yet, there was single man
driving the same area we were 4-wheeling and we learned that he saw it laying
openly in the road. He picked it up and
drove past our group twice, but Instead of asking us if the phone was ours he
took it home with him. We were the only people together on the mountain that
day.
Billy, the kids and I drove a few hours toward Steamboat Springs and even before we arrived at our hotel the man had contacted friends in Arkansas and family in Colorado working hard to return the phone to its owner. Although he lived on the opposite side of the mountain he found a friend driving to Steamboat Springs the next day and he would hand deliver it to us in perfect condition. I was without my phone for less than 24 hours after losing it randomly in the vast open wilderness with zero cell service. You’ll understand the significance of this as the story evolves.
Billy, the kids and I drove a few hours toward Steamboat Springs and even before we arrived at our hotel the man had contacted friends in Arkansas and family in Colorado working hard to return the phone to its owner. Although he lived on the opposite side of the mountain he found a friend driving to Steamboat Springs the next day and he would hand deliver it to us in perfect condition. I was without my phone for less than 24 hours after losing it randomly in the vast open wilderness with zero cell service. You’ll understand the significance of this as the story evolves.
My husband, son, daughter and I had been camping with my
parents and sister’s family for a few days so everyone needed a shower at the
hotel. I went last and by the time I got
to bed everyone was already asleep. My
shower had woke me up so I picked up Billy’s phone and began to download the
Facebook app so that I could entertain myself for a bit. See, Billy has a Facebook account, but I am
the only one that ever checks it. I’d been giving him a hard time about this,
so after downloading I began to clean up his notifications, as I’ve done
several times over the years. There were several Facebook messages unread so it
prompted me to download Facebook messenger as well. When I did this, a message stood out to
me. It was from a familiar name. A woman
I knew Billy had dated before we ever met. The first few words showing were
what pushed me to read the message. It
said…Oh my gosh, your son….
During this 24 hour period without my phone, we learned that
there was a child that had been adopted. His biological mother began looking
for him after his 18th birthday.
When she met him she realized that she had been wrong about his father
because he looked and acted so much like Billy. Billy and I looked at the pictures she sent and
we could not deny the resemblance either.
Together we decided to pay for a DNA test to be certain and contacted
the young man, now 20, and living in South Texas. Because Billy is never on Facebook, the
message I found was a year old already and we certainly caught this young man
off guard.
Chris’ past brings him to us knowing and loving Jesus. Knowing suffering, but also joy. Understanding how to work hard with confidence in his skills. He loves to laugh and be around family. He is handsome and funny. He’s helpful and easy to love. His past has made him who he is today and we are thankful to all of those who positively invested in him. Chris is living with us right now so that we can spend time together and get to know each other better as a family. Isaiah and Alyssa love having a big brother, especially one that can drive! J
In everything Billy & I have been through together we
have learned that our life is not our own. We are called to live the life that
God ordains us and we believe that He is with us all in this new adventure as
He always has been. He kept Billy (and
I) away from Facebook Messenger for over a year, but then took my phone away
for just long enough for us to find the truth.
God doesn’t make mistakes. Billy
grieves the time that he lost with His son and realizes his pain is the result
of past sins. Yet, God is the ultimate giver of grace and forgiveness and we
have received nothing short of grace thus far.
Please pray for Chris, his adopted family and our family as we all make
this transition to understand and appreciate each other and our various roles
in loving each other well. May God’s
name be bigger than any of ours. May we
be faithful to live selfless and surrendered to His will for our lives. May
God’s character shine brightly as we wrestle to be good stewards of the story He
has entrusted us all with. Amen.
With love,
The Wrights - Family of FIVE (5) !!!
With love,
The Wrights - Family of FIVE (5) !!!
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| Chris came from South Texas to support Isaiah at many football games this Fall. |
