When you hear the words “You will have a son, and you must call him Reuben” – while the adoption papers are lying in your mailbox – you can’t help to ask “God, is that really You?”
After our first daughter, Anika, was born with a severe disability (Spina Bifida), and our second daughter, Esti, passed away due to a heart problem (Hypoplastic Left-heart Syndrome), me and my husband Tertius decided not to have another child of our own. We were slaves to fear, fear of what might possibly happen again.
We actually went on vacation to Greece – alone – and while sitting on a broken down wall, watching the sunset on Santorini, we raised our glasses and made a deal that we will rather adopt a child in future. We didn’t realise at that stage that we were just as broken as the wall beneath us.
If we only knew the plans God had for our lives. He had a bigger plan, He had a plan to make us whole again, to get us out of slavery, into victory. He wanted us to take our titles as Sons and Daughters of God seriously and make it our own.
While the adoption papers were lying in my inbox folder, Tertius and I went on a Christian weekend camp, and a lady (who became a good friend) came to us and said “Reuben is on his way, next year this time you will have a little boy!” She said that the Lord told her to tell us that we will have a son of our own, he will have the good characteristics of Reuben from the Bible. He will also look out for and take care of his sister, just like Reuben protected Joseph”.
She came to our house and we shared Holy Communion. Three months from then I fell pregnant, and nine months later our healthy little boy, Reuben, was born… a year after we got the prophecy!
During my pregnancy – even before we could do tests and scans to check if everything was fine – we got scripture through a friend of ours.
Romans 8:14-16 – For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God
We are “back on the wall“, and this time, it’s not a broken wall – it was not patched up or fixed, it was flawlessly made new by the hand of our Father!
