Hello, my name is Anthony Britt, and I would like to share our adoption story. I am married to Suzannah, and we have two children, Hannah Rae (18) and Russ Taylor (16). Suzannah and I had talked about the possibility of adopting even before we were married. Shortly after we were married, we became busy with two small children and my work as a college minister and never felt it was the “right time.” As the years went on, we honestly began questioning if we had missed the opportunity to adopt – were we too old or were our children too old to pursue adoption? In fall 2019, God used a vision trip to Ecuador to open our families’ hearts to adoption. My daughter Hannah Rae and I went on a trip to serve at a special needs orphanage. It was during that trip that we both felt God calling our family to adopt. Feeling compelled to adopt was the easy part; explaining to Suzannah we felt that now was the time to do so would be a much greater task.
Weeks after we returned home from Ecuador, Dr. Paul Chitwood, president of the International Mission Board, spoke at our church. He shared his personal story of how he and his wife had adopted two children. Suzannah describes that sermon as the moment God convicted her that adoption was still the calling for our family. In March of this year, our family traveled back to where it all began to serve on a spring break mission trip in Ecuador. On the very first day, Suzannah was leaving the orphanage and saw a child sitting on the sidewalk, reaching for her. That sight broke Suzannah’s heart and we still had an entire week of the trip left. Suzannah describes as the week went on, the idea of adoption consumed her thoughts and prayers. I was cautiously excited that this finally felt like the right time in our lives to move forward with adoption. However, I wanted the Holy Spirit to do all the work and lead us in the right direction. I did not want to try to convince Suzannah this was something we needed to do.
As the week came to a close, it was time to say goodbye to the children and leave the orphanage, but Suzannah was just simply broken. She cried all the way back to the hotel. That night she shared with me that she prayed she would never forget that kind of hurt she felt leaving the orphanage. She did not want to forget that burdened feeling once when we returned to the United States. It turned out that in the one week we were out of the country, everything in the United States was turned upside down. We returned to find a full-fledge pandemic spreading across our country, causing us to be quarantined for the next 14 days. Then, we all self-isolated at home except for Suzannah who had to return to work. God used that forced time together at home to allow us to take some time to slow down and begin the adoption process as a family.
We are currently pursuing an international adoption from Ecuador. We are applying to adopt an older child and are open to adopting a child with special needs. I have questioned why we have never moved forward with the desire to adopt through the years, often wondering what we might have missed out on for our family. Having begun the process, I now believe it was all because God had something bigger for us. Ten to 15 years ago, I do not know if we would have opened our hearts to pursuing an older child or been confident in adopting a child with special needs. Today, it’s easy for us to realize that God’s plans and timing are always better than ours. We believe we are about to experience Our Greatest Adventure.
We graciously ask that you consider partnering with us to bring our child home from Ecuador. Please support us however you feel lead to. Please pray for our family and the special child God has planned to complete our family. We would also greatly appreciate any financial support to help us raise the necessary funds to complete our adoption as we continue our journey.
With grateful hearts,
The Britts
STRIPE charges an online processing fee (2.2% +.30 USD per transaction). Your donations will be decreased by this amount. You may also send a check payable to “Lifesong for Orphans”. In the memo line please write “Britt 09306”, to ensure it is credited to our account. Please mail to Lifesong for Orphans, PO Box 9, Gridley, IL 61744.
Lifesong has been blessed with partners who underwrite all U.S. administrative and fundraising costs (TMG Foundation and other partners). That means 100% of your donation will go directly to the adoption.
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