Day 3

[kevrev16]

The question on page 37 struck me this morning - "Can we recall an occasion..." To be honest, I can recall many occasions in my life with Christ - my first prayer, wrestling with immense doubt (my own personal "dark night of the soul"), I remember my moment of responding to the Gospel as a young man. However, I'm not able to pinpoint a specific moment of pastoral calling. Rather, it's felt like it's always been there, under the surface, waiting to respond. When I became a believer, I felt that the next and most logical step was to try to help others do the same.

A specific personal mission, though, which has drastically shaped my life originated in time spent in an orphanage in Thailand. I was 18, spending a year serving in various ministries in Chiang Mai when I had the opportunity to visit and work with an orphanage for children with AIDS. My time there did instill in me this "undeniable sense of unique destiny" in that I felt a call to adopt from Thailand one day. 14 years later, my wife and I have a beautiful little girl that we've adopted from Thailand and our love for her is immeasurable.

Being a new father (Mary is our first and she's been with us for 2 years) has taught me a great deal in how I pastor and respond to people. Knowing what it is to adopt it has resonated with me more strongly than ever that we are adopted sons and daughters of the King.