Today is the 10th Birthday for my youngest son,
Timothy David Sanyu Jenkins. Please
share with me in blessing my son.
Bible verses that
seem appropriate to summarize the Spirit of God living in Timothy are
"You remember what the Lord said at Kadesh Barnea when he was
speaking to the prophet Moses about you and me. Moses, the Lord's servant, sent me to look at the
land where we were going. I was forty years old then. When I came back, I told
Moses what I thought about the land. The other men who went with me frightened
the people, but I fully believed the Lord
would allow us to take the land. So that day Moses promised me, 'The land where
you went will become your land, and your children will own it forever. I will
give you that land because you fully believed in the Lord, my God.'
"Now then, the Lord has kept his promise. He has kept
me alive for forty-five years from the time he said this to Moses during the
time we all wandered in the desert. Now here I am, eighty-five years old. I am
still as strong today as I was the day Moses sent me out, and I am just as
ready to fight now as I was then. So give me the mountain country
the Lord promised me that day long
ago. Back then you heard that the Anakite people lived there and the cities
were large and well protected. But now with the Lord
helping me, I will force them out, just as the Lord
said.
Joshua blessed Caleb son of
Jephunneh and gave him the city of Hebron as his own (Joshua 14:6-13.)"
For
Timothy a phrase he has used to summarize his approach to life is “Give me
these stairs.”
Timothy
is a surprise adoption. We did not seek
him. There was no human effort. The Divine Will of God brought Timothy to our
home.
Ten
years ago, Jana was helping friends of ours; Brent and Inell Slater consider
adoption. Jana went with Inell to Sanyu
Babies Home in Kampala, Uganda. While
there, the matron, Mama Joyce told Jana, “I have someone I want to introduce to
you.” Then she placed Timothy in Jana’s
arms. Their eyes met, and Jana said, “I’m
a goner.”
Jana
came home to tell me about Timothy.
Everyone else in our relationship network went to see Timothy. I did not.
I tried to remain objective. I
counted the cost. What would our lives
be like if we did not adopt Timothy?
What would we lose? The only
thing I could conceptualize was money. I
came to only one conclusion. I had
never made a life changing decision simply by counting money. I would not start with Timothy. If
Mama Joyce was led by God to place Timothy in Jana’s arms who was I to say, “No.” Timothy would be part of our family. This was the Will of God.
As
we left Sanyu Babies Home with Timothy in our arms surrounded by ecstatic Sophia,
Caleb, Ethan, and Ruth I remarked, “We came as a family. We’ve left as a tribe. God will bless us.”
We
laughed frequently. Timothy’s first
sounds were not the “coos” of a baby.
Instead, Timothy growled and roared.
When I would enter a room he would look at me, and we would
affectionately growl and giggle at one another. Timothy’s strong will and joy were clear
even before he could speak.
At
10 months old, we began to notice that Timothy army crawled only using his left
arm and leg. He drug his right arm and
leg. We saw a pediatrician. Timothy was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy
(CP).
In
a certain way the diagnosis was sobering.
Yet, in a strange way it was a blessing. We had known other families whose son had
CP. With each one we had observed God
giving a special guiding touch. We
anticipated He would also do the same for us.
Who were we to argue with God’s intent to bless us through a struggle of
this created earth?
We
prayed for strength that Sunday at the Kampala Church of Christ. That evening we went to the Nile Hotel to
see Ndere Troupe. We danced. We laughed.
The dance was prophetic. The
last dance of the evening was traditional Rwandese. The Ugandan crowd found greater joy in
Rwandan dance than any of the traditional Ugandan dances. Two years later we would arrive in Kigali
pondering Rwandan dance.
 |
| The Ugandan Drum That Taught The Jenkins' Kids to Walk |
Timothy
army crawled. Then he did what all our
children had done. He pulled himself to
standing on the drum. Then he began to
beat the drum. His body moved in rhythm. Then he took his first step. His first step became a run. Timothy David Sanyu Jenkins has never
stopped running since.
A
few notice that Timothy has a bit of an odd step. His right arm barely functions. His right leg is shorter than the left. Yet, when Timothy runs all the disadvantages
of this created earth disappear. He is
usually the fastest of his peers at school.
He usually leads in goals scored in soccer matches. In running God’s pleasure in Timothy is
found.
 |
| Timothy at Victory Soccer Camp This Summer |
A
man of old, named Caleb had a similar spirit.
As a young man his faith and courage far exceeded his peers. As an old man he went to war with fellow
soldiers 40 years his junior. His strength
of both spirit and body was unstoppable.
The Lord was the source of this enduring strength. His requests to the Lord were not for a life
of ease, but for all the Lord intended.
His request was, “Give me this mountain country.”
Two
months ago, I went to register Timothy at Lowell Elementary School in
Wheaton. We toured the school. Lowell had four classrooms dedicated to
fourth grade. Three classrooms were on
the ground floor. One classroom was on
the second floor. Timothy’s mind like Caleb's of old went to work. If he carried his
books up the stairs each day his strength and speed would increase faster than
his peers on ground level. Timothy
asked to be in the class on the second floor.
Few nine year old boys’ minds function this way. Yet, Timothy has always run up stairs and
hills. He has always created his own
special training regimes.
I
considered calling Lowell’s principal with this strange request. “Give my son these stairs. Push him hard. Make him carry many books home. Ask him to carry other student’s book bags up
and down those stairs.” Yet, my wise
wife cautioned me that I’d look like a psycho soccer dad with such a
request. Timothy and I chose to ask God
for the stairs.
God
gave Timothy the stairs. He is in Ms.
Kraft’s fourth grade class on Lowell Elementary School’s second floor. Thank you God.
 |
| Timothy in an Uganda Cranes and Dave in a Rwanda Amavubi Soccer Uniform |
Now,
may Timothy be blessed with a life of risk.
May his life be one that requires him to seek out hills and stairs. May his courage, faith, and strength
grow. May Timothy see God’s favor when his peers are
full of fear. May Timothy as a mzee
(wise old man) have the strength of youth.
May Timothy be an enduring model of faith that generations of others
will emulate.
Thank
you God for giving Timothy those stairs.
