Bringing Home the Missing Linck: A Journey of Faith to Family

By Jennifer Jackson Linck

From the time Jennifer Linck was old enough to rock her Cabbage Patch Doll, she dreamed of being a mother. As her friends began welcoming tiny bundles of joy, Jennifer struggled to conceive a child. As a gut-wrenching desire to be a mom built within her, God began to place adoption on Jennifers heart. In 2010, Jennifer and her husband, John, felt God leading them to build their family through international adoption. Eighteen months after they began their journey to Ethiopia, God took them on a detour that only He could have orchestrated. After accepting a job at the local homeless shelter, Jennifer began to see how God truly wanted her to live her lifeserving the least of these. As God transformed her heart and showed her how to truly love the poor, the widow, and the orphan, He began to weave together a story that would eventually lead to her son. In Bringing Home the Missing Linck, Jennifer shares how the pain and heartache of infertility became the building blocks God used to strengthen her faith and make her heart more like His, as He answered her prayers for a child.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Oct 25, 2013
• ISBN: 9781490812359

Jennifer Jackson Linck

Jennifer is passionate about adoption, orphan care, and encouraging those struggling with infertility. A graduate of the University of Oklahoma, Jennifer received a bachelor’s degree in journalism. She lives in Oklahoma with her husband, John, and their son, Jackson. She blogs at www.jenniferjacksonlinck.com.

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Copyright © 2013 Jennifer Jackson Linck.

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All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.

ISBN: 978-1-4908-1235-9 (e)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-1236-6 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4908-1237-3 (hc)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2013918557

WestBow Press rev. date: 10/24/2013

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1   A Missing Linck

Chapter 2   147 Million Orphans

Chapter 3   The Desert

Chapter 4   One Dollar At A Time

Chapter 5   Chasing Paper Just To Wait

Chapter 6   Temptation Strikes

Chapter 7   Giving Me Eyes To See

Chapter 8   A Prayer Changes Everything

Chapter 9   A Divine Detour

Chapter 10   Pink Or Blue?

Chapter 11   Then There Were Three

Chapter 12   Bringing Home The Missing Linck

Chapter 13   Letting Go Of A Dream

Epilogue

Notes

About The Author

Bringing Home the Missing Linck is a compelling testimony to the grace and provision of our Lord, no matter what our circumstances. Jennifer writes with passion, emotion, and honesty as she recounts their adoption journey, clearly revealing God’s undeniable hand at work along the way. Their story is an encouragement for every believer, especially those walking through a season of waiting and heartache. This is a moving testimony, a call to rise up for the cause of the orphan, and a challenge to embrace whatever road God has laid before us. Bringing Home the Missing Linck is a must-read for moms everywhere.

KAYSE PRATT,

writer at www.kaysepratt.com

In Bringing Home the Missing Linck: A Journey of Faith to Family, you’ll hear the heart of a woman who is closely connected to her heavenly Father and who trusted Him to make her a mom. Jennifer candidly shares her struggles through infertility, serving in a homeless mission, and finally sitting alongside a birth mom in a hospital delivery room. Her story of becoming a mom has both pain and joy. As you read it, you’ll find yourself trusting God for your own circumstances and resting in His faithfulness.

SHELLY ROBERTS,

author of 31 Nuggets of Hope:

For Moms Who Said Yes to the Fatherless

Jennifer Linck has captured her family’s adoption journey in a transparent and God-honoring way. An interesting read, it allows the reader to grow in knowledge of the world of adoption, the joy and the pain. Thank you for your honest portrayal of God’s work in your life for orphaned and vulnerable children.

KIM DE BLECOURT,

author of Until We All Come Home

Bringing Home the Missing Linck is a beautiful illustration of how adoption is as much a spiritual journey as it is a physical one. Jennifer writes with beautiful honesty about infertility and the unexpected and twisting path God took them on to find their Missing Linck.

JULIE GUMM,

author of Adopt without Debt:

Creative Ways to Cover the Cost of Adoption

For Jackson Henry

I loved you the moment God placed adoption on my heart.

I am so glad He chose me to be your mommy.

A plan of profound importance exists that

sometimes overrides the miracle we desperately desire.

—Beth Moore, Jesus, the One and Only

FOREWORD

Chosen. I grew up hearing that word. I grew up believing that word. I grew up holding to that word. Most of us know what it is to be chosen, or even not to be chosen. On the playground, two team captains choose their teams. Everyone holds his or her breath. I pick you, and you hope you hear your name. You feel a loyalty to that team and that captain because he or she chose you. You run fast. You catch the ball. You try your best because he or she picked you.

My parents picked me. I grew up hearing our story. I grew up knowing they had made a choice. Their choice involved faith. They trusted God for the path He was leading them down. This path had not been traveled by others in the family, nor by any of their friends. They were the first. It was new, unexplored, not the norm. It was part of their faith journey.

Beloved. I grew up hearing that word. My parents choose to speak this word to me. Neither of them grew up in a home where that word was spoken often. They said they knew, but they were just not told. It is important to hear. Jesus Himself heard this at His baptism. No sooner had Jesus come up out of the water than He saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit, like a dove, descending on Him. And a voice came from heaven: ‘You are my Son, the Beloved, my favor rests on you. (Matthew 3:16–17). This was placed in my head and in my heart. And I believed it.

Adopted. I grew up hearing that word. I really did not know many others who were adopted. I knew that my situation was different from most others. Different is not a bad thing, just different. When I responded to the good news of the gospel, I heard those words again: chosen, beloved, adopted. For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless. In love He predestined us to be adopted as His sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will to the praise of His glorious grace, which He has freely given us in the One He loves (Ephesians 1:4–6).

Jennifer and John chose to follow God down this path. When I heard their story, I knew it needed to be told. Their journey was the path of choosing. Their journey was the path of the beloved. Their journey was the path of adoption. They encountered many people on their path—some supportive, some not, some not sure. They had ups and downs, mountaintops and valleys. But every step of the way was God. And there was Jackson. He is chosen. He is beloved. He is adopted. They are family.

Their path had turns and obstacles, doubts and fears. Their path had joy, victory, and faith. I pray as you join them on this path through the pages of this book that God will encourage and bless you. God is still God. He is still on His throne. He still works and blesses and creates. He still makes families.

Jesus said, As you have done it unto the least of these, you have done it unto me (Matthew 25:40).

—Werth Mayes, pastor of Cowboy Church of Erath County

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I said I’d never write a book, yet here I am, trying to find the words to express my gratitude to each person who made this dream possible.

This story is not mine; it’s His. To my Savior Jesus, who gave me a passion for writing and has entrusted me with a story that oftentimes I don’t feel I deserve. My prayers were answered far more than [I] could have imagined, guessed, or requested in my wildest dreams (Ephesians 3:20).

John, I love you. I can’t imagine being on this incredible journey with anyone else. It hasn’t always been easy, but I wouldn’t change a thing. Thank you for being a single dad on the weekends so I could write. Thank you for believing in me even though it’s not likely I’ll become a best-selling author and make enough money for you to quit your job. Sorry to disappoint you.

To Jackson’s Pop, Lolli, Auntie M, Uncle Paulie, Dude, Missy, Aunt Adrienne, and Uncle Scott—thank you for your love and support as we waited to bring our Missing Linck home.

Dad and Mom, seeing how much you love Jackson fills my heart with joy. I’ve watched God do so much through this little boy, not just in my life but also in and through both of you. Thank you for all the nights you stayed up with him and told John and I to go to bed. I love you both.

Mom, you are one of the strongest people I know. You faced a tough battle, but you conquered cancer with courage. Not many people would travel four hours to their daughter’s baby shower two weeks after surgery or stay up with a colicky baby after chemo, but you did. I’m amazed at the timing of Jackson’s arrival. I don’t think it’s a coincidence. God knew you would need Jackson when the cancer seemed all-consuming, and He knew Jackson needed you to be his Lolli.

To A—Thank you will never seem adequate for the gift you have given me. You will always hold a special place in my heart. I thank my God every time I remember you … being confident that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:3, 6).

To Justin and Jessica—We cherish your friendship. Thank you for walking this journey with us. Thank you for keeping us sane when we thought the screaming would never end. Thank you for loving Jackson so much.

To Amber—Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same (Flavia Weedn). Your friendship is irreplaceable. I couldn’t have finished this book without your prayers, love, and support. I lost count of the times I called you discouraged. Thank you for pushing me to finish and believing in me when I didn’t believe in myself.

To Jack—I’m a better writer because of you. Thank you for reading every word of this book, editing it, and offering feedback. I know you must have been tired of adding and deleting commas.

To Werth—God kept nudging me to call you, and I’m so glad I finally listened to Him. Thank you for allowing me to share our story with your congregation and for contributing to this book. I pray that Jackson, like you, grows up always knowing he is loved and chosen not just by his parents but by his heavenly Father too.

To each person who prayed, donated, and supported us on our journey—You each played an intricate part in uniting our Forever Family.

INTRODUCTION

This book is about more than a baby. God wanted to do more in me than merely grant my deepest desire to be a mother. The purpose of our adoption goes beyond motherhood. God weaved the lives of two ordinary people together so a baby boy could have a family and a chance at life—all to fulfill His amazing plan.

Our adoption journey was about obedience to God. When God called us to adopt a child from Ethiopia, we stepped out in faith, followed His call, and opened our hearts to a child in need of a family, love, security, and hope. I am humbled that God chose John and me for such a journey. At first, I didn’t realize the extent of the journey. There were many twists and turns along the way, but it became clear that our adoption had more than an earthly purpose. God’s eternal purposes were at work too. As Christians, we are called to love the least of these (Matthew 25:40). God’s Word says, Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after the orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27).

Yes, I desperately desired to be a mother, but more than that, my heart’s desire was to be obedient to God and fulfill His plan for my life. I had so many ideas of what my life was supposed to look like. I thought I would get married, have babies, and live happily ever after, but God had other plans. I never doubted God’s ability to give me the desires of my heart, but that didn’t make the journey to motherhood any less difficult. My desire to be a mom was God-given, and I believed He would bless me with a child. It just had to be in His perfect time and in His perfect way. I never pictured myself becoming a mother through adoption, but sometimes God takes us on a path that we would have never chosen for ourselves.

When God was leading the Israelites out of Egypt into the Promised Land, the Bible says, God did not lead them on the road through Philistine country, though that was shorter. God said, ‘If they face war, they might change their minds and return to Egypt’ (Exodus 13:17–18).