Practical Help

In starting an orphan ministry, I have heard countless people say, "Oh, I could never adopt." And I share (as you will hear often on this blog) that this is okay. God doesn't call everyone to adopt a child. But he does command us to care for orphans. It is our hope with this ministry that we can mobilize our church and community to find ways to care for orphans. If adoptions follow, then God's hand is that much more evident.

Today, our family had a chance to do a very practical thing the help orphans. Some attenders of First Free might remember our daughter Dayna sharing last November about giving up her scone dollar and sharing it with children in Africa. We had the opportunity to actually package the food that was shipped to the children in Sierra Leone. That food left the US on Christmas Eve and arrived in Sierra Leone on Valentine's Day.

Today, Tina Schmidt and Erica Stone, the ladies who started this orphanage, paid a visit to Omaha. We had the privilege of meeting these remarkable ladies and packaging food again. In two hours, 30 boxes of food were packed. 36 packages of food per box. 6 servings per package. That's 6,480 meals!

1 box costs $54 and serves 216 meals. Put another way, 1 person + $100 + 2 hours of time=feeding one child for a year. Wow! Most Americans can't feed their family for a week with only $100. What a great, practical way to help orphans!

For more information on the ministry of The Raining Season and their orphanage, "The Covering", please visit http://www.therainingseason.org/ or visit their blog at http://www.savetheorphan.blogspot.com/.

For more information on Kids Against Hunger (the Omaha chapter has "adopted" this orphanage and a large percentage of their packaging events goes directly to The Covering), visit http://www.omahakah.com/.

Lincoln has a chapter as well. They work with the Orphan Grain Train, and many of their meals are sent to Haiti. http://www.kahlincoln.org/

A Heartbreaking Choice

I have a friend who is a missionary in East Asia. This morning he visited the hospital after a cold that wouldn't go away. While there, he witnessed an infant girl (one month) with apparent health issues being left. Abandoned. My friend is also an adoptive father, and while he has heard of these situations, this was the first time he witnessed such an event.

I can only imagine the heartache those parents much have felt as they made this decision. A decision that many in the Western world view with incredulity and often judgment. What helplessness to know that you can't care for your child, and her best chance in life is to be left alone in hopes that another will find her.

Please pray for these parents. Their hearts must be broken beyond words today. And pray for this little girl. Pray that she finds the medical help she needs and that God would orchestrate the next steps in His plan for her life. As for me, I'm going to hug my own daughter a little closer tonight, and pray for the man and woman I may never meet who made a very similar heartbreaking decision almost five years ago.

Heart Gallery

Walking through the foyer yesterday, I was touched by the stories of so many children right here in Nebraska. We have the privilege at church this month of hosting the Heart Gallery, an exhibit through the Child Saving Institute.

I looked into the eyes of these children, mostly older or in sibling groups, and saw precious lives created in the image of God. Children who need to know the love of a family. Did you look into their eyes? Did you see their hearts?

I saw children who really want to learn how to play an instrument, or who enjoy talking on the phone with biological siblings who have been adopted into other homes. Children who excel at school; some who are outgoing, and others who are more quiet and reflective. Children who are unique individuals, looking for someone to celebrate their individuality and help them bloom into amazing adults.

I also saw kids who have never really been able to be kids. Some who have carried the weight of the world on their shoulders. I looked into eyes that have seen more than children should ever see.

The Heart Gallery isn't intended to tug on your heartstrings. It's not meant to make you feel guilty. At Hope for Children, it is our desire that your heart would be stirred to do something on behalf of children who need families. Maybe you could choose one child and pray specifically for them. Maybe you could contact one of many organizations that helps orphans and foster children and find out what you can do to help. Maybe you could even bring one of these children into your family.

Not all of us are called to adopt, but we are all commanded to care for these children. If you haven't had a chance yet, make sure you visit the Heart Gallery in the foyer this month, or visit it online at http://www.nebraskaheartgallery.org/heartgallery.htm.

Thank You for Visiting

In the last few months as Hope For Children has been getting off the ground, we have been told many times, "Oh, I could never adopt." You know...the fact is, we're not all called to adopt.

So why start an adoption/orphan/foster care ministry? After all, it really only relates to a small portion of the church body.

Or does it? You see, we've all been adopted. Ephesians 1:5 tells us "he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will."

No, we're not all called to adopt, but we are all commanded to care for orphans. In James 1:27, we're told "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."

So here we are, launching this blog. We hope that through this venue, you will likewise come to see not just our passion for "forgotten" children, but God's as well.