You know your kids had a good time at the cookout on Saturday if they play “at the Hendricks” in your own backyard on Sunday. Our pitiful little go-cart with no motor is a far cry from functional…we call it kid powered…and our disgraceful dirt bowl is a crying shame…someone with a green thumb, please HELP US…but it was a perfect Sunday anyway.
Actually our whole weekend was perfect. We kicked it off with dinner at the Higgins, some of our favorite people in the world. 2 dear friends, 14 children, a couple of pots of cheesy potato soup and a few pans of brownies with ice cream made for an exciting Friday evening indeed. I’m always blessed and inspired by our time together. It’s also fun to get together every now and then and take a mental snapshot…one of these days we need to remember to take a real one...because the next time we get together our families just might not look the same.
We tried to take our weekend chores seriously on Saturday – FOR ABOUT AN HOUR. Who out there would blame us for totally abandoning our responsibilities in light of it being the most beautiful last day of winter ever? I have no idea when we’re going to get all the work done we skipped, but I COULD CARE LESS. The Hendricks whispered the word COOKOUT, and we didn’t even bat an eye before we loaded up the paddy wagon and headed out the door. The weather was perfect, the fellowship was uplifting and the setting was picturesque. God even finished out the evening with the most beautiful moon! It was a perfect little preview of summer: great friends, tons of kids running every which way, a backyard baseball game, ATVs and go-carts, steaks, hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill. I found myself saying “this is the life” more than once Saturday night.
Those words…“this is the life”….well, they got me thinking. Wouldn’t it just be HEAVEN if every single orphaned child had these kinds of memories tucked away in their little hearts…if every single orphaned child could experience the love of a family and the comforting arms of the Savior? I know it just doesn’t seem possible to change the world for every child. The enormity of the situation can be so overwhelming. 147 MILLION ORPHANS is a lot of children, but did you know there are OVER 2 BILLION CHRISTIANS in the world? I just finished teaching equivalent fractions and my brain is mush , so I’m not even going to begin to try and figure out all the zeros in that ratio. The picture is clear anyway, isn’t it? There are WAY more Christians than there are orphans. Too simplistic and idealistic, huh? I know it is. More than one person has told me so. I don’t know about you, though, but I’m not looking for an answer that makes sense…Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight – Proverbs 3:5-6. THIS IS THE LIFE…trusting the Lord with all of our hearts even when it just plain doesn’t make sense.
God is moving powerfully enabling families to answer the call to care for orphans through adoption…children from Africa, Russia, Ukraine and Lativa….children from Brazil, China and right here in the United States… God is equipping families that often start the adoption process unable to see more than their very next step...Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path – Psalm 199:105 (Thank you, Stephanie, for exercising faithfulness this morning by reminding me of this verse.)…More and more families...families like the Dells, the Davis', the Higgins, the Longs, the Oatsvalls, and the Youngs...have stepped out in faith and ventured into the unknown to change forever change the lives of these children by making them their own – a BEAUTIFUL REFLECTION OF THE GOSPEL. God is working miracles for even some of the most special children waiting – like children with HIV/AIDS and Down's Syndrome. These precious ones are being adopted as a result of ministries like Project Hopeful, founded by the Tweitmeyers, a family with 7 biological children and 6 children adopted from Ethiopia, and Reece's Rainbow, championing for children like Jonah. THIS IS THE LIFE…living by faith and sharing the gospel in the most meaningful of ways.
Not every orphaned child is able to be adopted, but God has that covered, folks. He is moving powerfully, equipping families like Joy Portis’ to care for children in foster care right here in America, and sending families like the Blocks from their home in Texas all the way to Guatemala to care for orphans where they are…I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you – John 14:18…Believers are joining together to form organizations like Wiphan and SixtyFeet, sharing the love of Jesus Christ to orphaned children in Zambia and Uganda. God is doing amazing things through young people like Katie, who every day lives the gospel serving the people of Uganda. If you are ever tempted to wonder “where is God?”…well...He’s right there with Katie and Amazima Ministries. Check out her blog and see for yourself. The reality is this: God never abandons any of us, and if He calls us to it, He will be right beside us through it. (I’m sure that’s a quote that belongs to someone. I wish I knew who.) Katie in Uganda doesn’t have the corner on our Lord and Savior. He is moving powerfully to the ends of the earth! THIS IS THE LIFE…living powerfully in His presence, moved by the things that move him, compelled to be his hands and feet by our love for him.
The number of orphans might be BIG…147 million big, but our God is BIGGER! I know I started off this whole post today with a snapshot of a perfect weekend and somehow managed to meander to the enormity of the orphan crisis, but to me a phrase like “this is the life” just points to the life we as Christians have been called to – caring for these children... Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world – James 1:27. Pray and ask God to show you the next step and He will light your path. THIS IS THE LIFE!
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