2017
Stories of Grace | An Unlikely Door
“The Stories of Grace series is intended to capture snapshots of God’s grace and glory amidst our every day lives. They are real stories of real people who have seen the fingerprints of God amidst the ordinary—God’s favorite canvas. Each story is personal, unique and, often, unfinished. Through it all we get glimpses of God’s steadfast love, sufficient grace, and ongoing presence with his people.”
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When I became a foster parent two years ago, I anticipated changing relationships: a new relationship with a child, her family, social workers, and even changes in my own family relationships. What I did not expect was a dramatic change in my relationship with the church body.
As a single, childless adult, I was (or thought I should be!) pretty self-sufficient, more in a position to give than to receive. However, when I received my first foster placement, I was thrown into an uncomfortable position of neediness. I needed baby clothes, supplies, advice, prayer… I needed a door.
In order for my foster daughter to remain with me past infancy, I was required to install a partition door in my apartment. As a deer-in-the-headlights, sleep-deprived, carpentry-clueless, first-time single parent, I wasn’t going to pull this off on my own. I humbled myself, became vulnerable, and asked my church family for help. I was overwhelmed by the love I received. Two men gave up a Saturday with their families to construct a sliding door. Other people in the church, whom I knew only by name, brought a crib mattress, baby carriers, clothes, and a diaper bag.
In receiving these gifts, I was surprised to find that the greatest blessings were not the need met, but the deep bonds of affection that the love of these people called forth in me. As I opened myself to the love of the church, I experienced, in a new way, the love of Christ himself. In fact, I had been caught up in an out of control love spiral; as the love of Christ moved me to pour myself out in love for a child, I was filled to overflowing by the love of Christ through the love of the church.
This is the mysterious trinitarian love economy that Christ prayed we would experience in John 17:20-23: “…that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.”
Isn’t it amazing that Jesus says our love for one another preaches the gospel to the world! Truly, our Father delights to bring marvels from mustard seeds, from a licensing requirement for a door, to unleash a deluge of love and proclaim his glory to the world.
– Adrienne Haass, DCC Member
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If you are a member with DCC and have a story of grace to share please email .