So that God’s Works Might be Displayed

Spina Bifida awareness month was in October, but since the calendar got flooded with so many good things, I’m finally sitting down to record some reflections of what it’s meant for our family. Plus, November is adoption awareness month, so I’m doubling up!

This morning a portion of my Bible reading plan landed me in John 9:1-12. It’s the account of Jesus’s healing of a man born blind.

As He was passing by, He saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” Jesus answered. “This came about so that God’s works might be displayed in him.” (John 9:1-3)

Several times in the past week, I’ve been brought back to Jonathan’s origin story. As we stepped into the adoption process, Russ and I were somewhat naive to the challenges Jonathan might face and the challenges our family might face secondarily.

As educated as we tried to be, I’m so glad we only knew what we did — because a person is a person before they are the health diagnoses that label them. A person is a multidimensional, image-bearer of God, not a black and white medical report of troubling statistics. Year after year, I’ve watched God’s works displayed in him, and I tear up thinking, “We could have missed this.”

And I had no idea what God was preparing us for.

Fast forward almost 5 years, and yet again, we had a front row seat to watch the works of God displayed in MonaJean, our second SB babe, but this time cradled by my own womb. Her diagnoses were far more threatening, and Spina Bifida was so secondary, but my faith in what God could do had been so fuelled, I couldn’t help but be overjoyed to wait and watch the works of God be displayed in her. I prayed so many times, “God, use her life for Your glory.”

I’m amazed at how God keeps answering that prayer. Over and over.

So when I read Jesus’s words about this man’s blindness that He chose to heal, I think, Yes. I get it. Even though our children didn’t get that healing answer Jesus gave to this man, I sit back and think I still get it. So that God’s works might be displayed in them.