A lot of families feel led to adopt. That was not the case for the Eaves family. They didn’t feel like they met the qualifications. They had just finished all the “toddler things” (let’s just say, they were over the diapers). They didn’t have the money. But when Torey saw the blurred face of a little boy from China and heard the Lord say “you have a son; you need to go get him,” everything changed.
After seven weeks of waiting and advocating for Sam’s file to be transferred, the Eaves were officially matched and the process to bring their son home started moving quickly. During their process, the Lord kept reminding them to “be still and know.” He provided in every way they needed, from random checks in the mail to fundraising the exact amount they needed for their next agency payment.
This month, the Eaves officially brought Sam home. Torey told us:
“After going through the process, I know Lifeline is not just an adoption agency. It’s a ministry. They’re bringing children home and taking the gospel to places that aren’t hearing it. It’s building God’s Kingdom. They’re wanting to reach the dirty, the outcast, places no one else wants to go. I don’t think it’s just to bring children home, it’s to share the love of Christ and to change people. It’s a ministry that’s for eternal good.”
Adoption is hard, messy, and unpredictable. But the Eaves saw firsthand that God is faithful to always provide throughout the journey. There’s no question in their mind that Sam was meant to be apart of their family, and they are forever changed by the kindness of the Lord to move mountains to bring him home.
Q&A with Torey Eaves:
- What led you to adopt from China?
A lot of families have said that they always felt led to adopt.. Not the case for us. We already had three biological children of our own. I watched some friends from college adopt and I knew last year, watching their stories, that I was more emotional that one should be. I prayed that the Lord would pick someone else, honestly. Early January I felt the call. He put a little boy from China’s blurred face in my heart and said.. “You have a son in China, you need to go get him.” It wasn’t a question on the country at that point. But we also felt like we didn’t even meet the qualifications. We had a two year old. We didn’t have the money. It’s been amazing watching Him provide every single penny, person, and resource that we ever needed.
- Tell us a little bit about your process.
Our process was different. I saw Sam’s face on another agency’s website. It’s almost like the Lord said “that’s him.” I sent it to my husband and he said “is that our Sam?” and I said “yes.” We drove to Birmingham and went by Lifeline and I just decided that I was going to ask about him. Emily emailed them. It went on for about 7 weeks and we finally got the file transferred. The Lord whispered the whole time “be still… be still and know.” He reminded me that He had this. Karla and Emily advocated for us the whole time. The Lord grew our faith during those weeks and brought us our boy’s file.Through the whole process, whenever I thought “okay Lord, I’m going to take this back from you, I got this,” things would stop. And He would remind me that He was in control. Satan would whisper lies to us but every time the Lord provided. People would give us money at church, we would get checks in the mail, you name it. And it was always the exact amount we needed. We did a cross fundraiser at one point and we had another agency payment due the next day. We had conformation time and time again that the Lord was in the whole process.
- Tell us about your time in-country.
I think Lifeline did an amazing job at preparing us. There’s no other agency that even compares to Lifeline. Every bit of our day was already taken care of. We didn’t have to worry about a thing. Our guides were absolutely amazing.
- What was it like meeting your son for the first time?
I just keep saying “he walked in an it was immediate.” I feel like God’s love came full circle. He was clearly in the room with us. He literally walked in the door, smiled and giggled. I was sitting on the floor and he walked straight to us and sat in my lap. God is so faithful. He ordained this. The whole 10 months, God smiled so big at that moment.
- How have you seen God work through your son’s adoption story?
I think at the beginning of the process, I was kind of questioning God a lot. What is this? We have three children. Do you really think we can handle this? A lot of it was selfish and I knew that he was about to wreck our lives. We had a routine, we had just gotten settled. Through the process I was face first of the floor in prayer daily. I was completely reliant on him through the whole thing. People would tell me that I was going to miss the waiting. He reminded me to be still and that He had everything in His hands. When I met Sam, it was so much of a realization that I was just like him. I was a sinner, I resisted Him. When we got Sam he was kinda dirty… the physical representing my internal. When he adopted me into his family I became clean again and I am his family now.
- What does “Change One Life Together” mean to you?
I think of together meaning through Christ with your church family, support system… it literally takes a village to change one life. We couldn’t have done this alone. We honestly did nothing. Someone made the comment “gosh you couldn’t have done any better!” But we didn’t do anything. The Lord did everything through us. Nothing was done without Christ. We received the scholarship fund (Hope Adoption Fund) and you have no idea the impact that it made in our process. I feel like it just takes a little bit… because your little bit of giving makes a whole lot when everyone gives. In our story, we didn’t have the money to pursue adoption. And I’ve talked to a lot of people… and that’s the first thing that they say. After going through this, finances should be the least of your worries. The Lord gave us $50,000 in 10 months. When you give to Lifeline, the Lord can do MORE. He can multiply that in ways that we can’t even imagine.After going through the process, I know Lifeline is not an adoption agency. It’s a ministry. They’re bringing children home and taking the gospel to places that aren’t hearing it. They’re building God’s Kingdom. They’re wanting to reach the dirty, outcast, places no one else wants to go. I don’t think it’s just to bring children home, it’s to share the love of Christ and to change people. It’s a ministry that’s for eternal good.
The Eaves are just one of many families who received assistance from the Hope Adoption Fund this year because of generous donors like you. This fund helps break down the financial barrier standing between waiting children and willing families. This season, give the gift of forever family.
