Kim Sonnen sat in the office of her Fertility doctor waiting to hear the news. It was a familiar scene for her. After many attempts to get pregnant again, the emotional and financial costs were becoming more than she could bear. Her heart’s desire was to add another child to their home and she prayed fervently that the Lord would provide. It was the last week of May 2002 and the reproductive specialist gave Kim the news she had not wanted to hear; there was no possibility of another pregnancy. “You’re just throwing your money out the window” he said to her and Kim knew it was over. After 3 years of appointments with fertility specialists, therapies and disappointment, she had to come to terms with this news. She sat alone in her car in the parking garage of the Medical Center and cried out to God. She prayed in the car out loud as if He was sitting there next to her and said “I don’t know what to do. Tell me what to do. If this is not meant to be, just give me peace.” For Kim, that’s when everything changed.
On the very same day, in another part of town, a 19 year old girl was in crisis. Pregnant, single and scared, she walked into a clinic and prepared herself for an abortion. She didn’t see how she could raise a child and could not comprehend any alternatives. However, when she laid eyes on the procedure room and felt the gravity of what was about to take place, she changed her mind. Adoption was the only option she could consider. Unknown to her at the time, God was about to orchestrate something wonderful.
A few months later, at a July 4th party, Kim’s friend Sheila happened to overhear a conversation about a young girl giving her baby up for adoption. After making some inquiries, she managed to get the contact information of the girl and arranged for Kim to meet her. A few weeks and several meetings later, the birth mother told Kim and her husband Denis that she wanted her to adopt the baby. Kim began to hope that after praying for more than 3 years, the answer to her prayers was coming in a much different way than she expected. Kim called her friend Sheila to tell her the good news. Sheila simply replied, “I don’t know if you’ve ever experienced a miracle before, but you are in the middle of one right now.”
In the following months, Kim became the birth mother’s companion during the pregnancy; attending all the doctors appointments and watching the ultrasound that revealed they would soon be welcoming a son into their family. When Connor was born, Kim cut the cord as he was welcomed into the world. It was a time of great joy mixed with sadness. The birth mother was devastated because she loved the baby even though she knew she couldn’t keep him. “I literally had to take him out of her arms when it was time to go,” Kim said. “It was very sad.”
Looking back on the experience, Kim has new perspective on faith and prayer. “Some of God’s greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. He didn’t answer my prayer the way I wanted or the way I thought I wanted. He had something else in store for us. I realize that throughout the 3 years of infertility, I always had hope but forgot to have faith.”
Now six years old, Connor is a constant reminder of God’s faithfulness. “He asked me the other day... Mommy was I born in your tummy? No, I said, you were born in mommy’s heart.” Seeing that he looked confused by that, she thought, “Oh, great. I messed that up.” Not wanting to lie to him, she added, “No, you weren’t born in mommy’s tummy.” “I was born in someone else’s tummy?” he asked. “Yes.” “Oh, o.k.” he said ending the conversation. And that was enough for him. For now.
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