Miracle Moments
Brought to you by: Molly Maid of Birmingham, www.mollymaid.com/birmingham
“In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:6
When we first moved to Alabama a few years ago, we were hopeful in finding a way to serve our new community. It wasn’t long before we were introduced to Big Oak Ranch. While looking through the website, we immediately felt drawn to volunteer resource parenting, but we knew we would need to seek God’s guidance.
There were a lot of thoughts going through our minds, of how much it could change our lifestyle and routine, or if it would potentially change our family dynamic. Anniston is our only child, and we wanted to consider all possibilities before making this decision. In a short time, the Lord showed us that this was something we were supposed to do. Little did we know, our family would expand in the best way.
From the moment we met Izzy, we knew that she was going to be a very special part of our family, and we were so excited. We’ve always known that Anniston wanted a sister, and it’s been really sweet to watch Izzy become something so similar to that. They laugh, share clothes, play tennis, sing, and dance. Because of Anniston and Izzy’s friendship, “resource weekends” have been transformed into a unique and special family time! It’s an incredible honor to experience this as parents, and we cherish every memory that’s made.
Over the last two years, we’ve seen countless examples of who God is just by volunteering to serve a child at Big Oak in this way. The ability to welcome a child into our home and love her instantly – that’s not something we could have done in our own capacity. It isn’t always perfect – it’s real life and real people, and we’ve learned how to love someone who needed time to build trust before loving us back. The journey has been worth it. While it didn’t change our lifestyle or routines as Izzy just plugs right into what our family is already doing, it did change us in all of the best ways.
Volunteer resource parenting is more than just opening our home one weekend a month. It’s an opportunity for God to reveal another illustration of His love – to my husband and me, to Anniston, and to Izzy.
-Kelly Coby
