Soon

One day soon I will get to walk the red, rocky paths again. Holding a sweaty little hand in mine. Marveling at my barefooted companions. Admiring the tropical foliage and sunshine. Worshipping the God who made it all. I can’t wait.

Orphan Care

“The goal of orphan care is caring for orphans, not the good feelings we get from our generosity in building or supporting an orphanage. Orphan care is not about us; it’s about them.” –Johnny Carr in “Orphan Justice”

Faces of Haiti: Update on Fedline

Last week, precious Fedline was wrapped up in the arms of Jesus in her eternal home. While I am so grateful that she no longer suffers from hydrocephalus, it still breaks my heart that this precious 10-month-old girl is gone. She touched so many lives in those 10 short months, and God will use her death to continue to touch more.

Fedline’s death brings joy and pain at the same time. Joy that she gets to see Jesus face-to-face, but anger at the injustice of it all. While I know God is sovereign and in control of all things, it still angers me how children like her are ignored by the rest of the world.

Awhile back I read a book called “The Hole in Our Gospel” by Richard Stearns. In it, he put child deaths in amazing perspective. Imagine a commercial airliner where all the passengers are children. Now imagine that the plane crashes, burns, and kills every child onboard. It would be considered a horrific tragedy and attract national media attention, donations to the families of the children, and research to find out the cause behind the crash.

Now imagine that every day, 25, 50, or 75 planes filled with children crash and burn every day. THAT is how many children die around the world each day, and most of them die of preventable or treatable diseases.

While I believe it is incredibly important to address the issue of child mortality, I believe it is equally important to address the spiritual death occurring across the globe. Hundreds of children enter into heaven each day. But what about their families here on earth? What about teenage children who die every day? Are we meeting their physical AND spiritual needs? Friends, the need is URGENT. We cannot waste our time, because time has a limit. What are you doing TODAY to meet the physical and spiritual needs of children around the world?

Faces of Haiti: Update on Fabie

 

A couple of months ago, I wrote an update on Fabie, the little girl we met in Haiti with the severe burns on her neck and chest. A friend emailed this picture to us yesterday. Fabie had her first surgery to reconstruct her neck in late February. The surgery was pretty traumatic for such a young girl, but she pulled through and is recovering well as far as I know. Unfortunately she developed an infection in her leg (one of the graft sites), and was hospitalized to treat it.

 

She is a rambunctious little girl and had a little trouble honoring the doctor’s orders to take it easy following her surgery. J She has to wear a neck brace while her neck heals, and she will have more surgeries in the future.

 

But Fabie is one step closer to having mobility in her neck and living a normal life! Our God is so good!

 

Faces of Haiti: Fedline

Please be in prayer for precious little “Fedline.” When we were in Haiti this summer, we met Fedline and her grandmother. Fedline was born with hydrocephalus. In a Third

World country, that spells death for a child. But a member of our team who had lost a child to hydrocephalus was incredibly burdened to help her.

Through our team member’s efforts, Fedline had a shunt put in several months ago to drain the fluid off her brain. Unfortunately her skull was deformed and she needed a helmet. Last week she developed an infection and the doctor removed her shunt and only gave her a few more days to live.

Today, we received an update that they took her back to the hospital and the doctor was able to drain a lot of the fluid from her body and drastically reduce the swelling. She is still in critical shape.

Please pray that--if it be God’s will--that He would spare this precious baby’s life. In her short 10 months of life, she has already touched so many lives. Please pray that God will heal her however He sees fit. If that means providing adequate medical care for her here on earth, then we will praise Him. If that means taking precious Fedline to be with Him in heaven, then we will praise Him.

Also pray that God would continue to work and move in the country of Haiti. It breaks my heart that a disease that can be so easily treated here in the States kills children in countries like Haiti. Pray that God would raise up more laborers in the medical field who will go to Haiti!

Kings and Queens

I recently heard this song on the radio and made myself a note to look up the lyrics. I loved it even more when I finally read the lyrics! The authors of this song—Audio Adrenaline—have started an orphanage in Jacmel, Haiti and actually filmed the music video for this song there. That definitely put this song closer to my heart. J

Little hands, shoeless feet, lonely eyes looking back at me

Will we leave behind the innocent to grieve?

On their own, on the run when their lives have only begun

These could be our daughters and our sons

And just like a drum I can hear their hearts beating

I know my God won’t let them be defeated

Every child has a dream to belong and be loved

Boys become kings, girls will be queens

Wrapped in Your majesty

When we love, when we love the least of these

Then they will be brave and free

Shout Your Name in victory

When we love when we love the least of these

When we love the least of these

Break our hearts once again

Help us to remember when

We were only children hoping for a friend

Won’t you look around these are the lives that the world has forgotten

Waiting for doors of our hearts and our homes to open

If not us who will be like Jesus

To the least of these

If not us tell me who will be like Jesus

Like Jesus to the least of these

Boys become kings, girls will be queens

Wrapped in your majesty

When we love, when we love the least of these

Then they will be brave and free shout your name in victory

We will love we will love the least of these

We will love the least of these

We will love the least of these

We will love the least of these

We will love the least of these

We will love the least of these

--"Kings and Queens" by Audio Adrenaline

Faces of Haiti: Fabie

We serve a God of miracles. When our team was in Haiti, we met a little girl named “Fabie.” This little girl was severely burned when she tripped while carrying an oil lamp in early 2012. Due to the severity of her burns, her skin did not heal properly. As a result, her chest and her chin healed together. This immobilized her neck, made swallowing difficult, and stole this little girl’s joy.

Her caregiver—her grandmother—brought her to us while we were on La Montagne. She left Fabie with us for 5 hours while she went down into the city to get her birth certificate so that we could pursue medical help for her. While her injury was non-life threatening, there could be complications in the future as she continues to grow.

Five months later, on January 11^th, Fabie finally made it to the U.S.A. One member of our team was incredibly impacted by her story, and worked tirelessly to get her the medical help she needs. After ensuring that there was no doctor in Haiti that could help her, she turned to doctors in the States until she got approval from a hospital that would donate their services to help this precious child.

A family from our church in Michigan was very touched by Fabie’s story, and wanted to adopt her into their family. You cannot imagine the joy and excitement present at the airport when Fabie and her new family finally got to meet! Fabie has a new family that loves her, has prayed for her, and will be with her as her plastic surgeries start in late February.

Fabie will have multiple surgeries over the next 2 years to correct her burns. During that time her new family will work on the adoption process necessary to make Fabie a permanent part of their family.

What an amazing God we serve! He not only crossed our paths with Fabie in Haiti, but He also gave a burden to her new family to adopt her. He provided a doctor, hospital, and medical team that is willing to cover the expenses for her surgery. He is changing Fabie from the scared, shy, and sad little girl we met in July to a little girl that is joyful, well-adjusted, who smiles, and experienced her very first bath this weekend. J Our God is the God of the impossible! Beni swa Letenel!

10 Ways to Care for Orphans

In the midst of unpacking all our things in our new house, my Dad handed me a flyer that he had picked up at church. The flyer had two sides. One said “10 Ways Every Christian Can Care for the Orphan and Waiting Child.” The other side said “10 Ways Christians Like YOU Have Cared for the Orphan and Waiting Child.” It was a very inspiring list, full of practical ways to serve. I thought I’d re-post the list here, but I also encourage you to read the whole flyer by clicking here.

 

1. PRAY for them. (Matthew 7:7-8)

·         Tape a waiting child’s picture to your dashboard and pray for the child every time you’re in the car. Visit www.AdoptUsKids.com or www.RainbowKids.com.

·         Organize an evening prayer vigil at your church and pray for children in foster care or an orphanage overseas.

2. SPEAK UP for them (Proverbs 31:8-9)

·         Carry a waiting child’s picture and show it to other believers. Ask if they, or someone they know, would give this child a home.

·         Become a court appointed special advocate for a child in foster care. Visit www.NationalCASA.org for details.

3. PROVIDE for their needs (James 2:15-16)

·         Give sacrificially to a reputable orphanage. Financial gifts can be designated for specific items and aid needed by orphans. Visit www.HelpOrphans.org for more information.

4. SUPPORT those who support them Hebrews 10:24)

·         Mow, babysit, or organize meals for a week for foster parents. Pray with them and tell them you appreciate what they do.

·         Encourage a family adopting an older child by hosting a shower for them.

5. PROTECT them from harm (Psalm 146:9)

·         Become a foster parent or emergency foster parent.

·         Raise money to build a children’s home to help remove children from the streets. Visit www.WorldOrphans.org for details.

6. VISIT them where they are (James 1:27)

·         Go on a mission trip to an orphanage as an individual or family. Visit www.GainUSA.org or www.HelpOrphans.org for information

·         Take dinner to a foster group-home on a regular basis.

7. GIVE sacrificially to them (2 Corinthians 9:7)

·         Support reputable orphan care organizations on a regular basis.

·         Contribute generously to an adoptive family to help offset their costs. Visit www.ShaohannahsHope.org or www.LifeSongForOrphans.org.

8. ENCOURAGE them to press on (1 Thessalonians 5:14)

·         Sponsor a child, support them financially, and encourage them through your letters. Visit www.VisionTrust.org to learn more.

·         Become a mentor or tutor to a teenager in a foster group-home.

9. ADOPT them into your family (Psalm 68:5-6a)

·         Give a child a home through international, domestic, or foster care adoption.

·         Adopt a young adult who has aged out of the system.

10. MOBILIZE your church for them (Matthew 28:18-20)

·         Be a catalyst in your church for starting a sustained orphans ministry. Visit www.HopeForOrphans.org for resources and to learn about attending a Your Church and the Orphan™ workshop.

 

 

*List published by Hope for Orphans.