I'm getting ready to lead a team to Uganda to put on a late Christmas for children at our adopted IDP camp. (IDP=Internally Displaced Persons) As I prepare, I am motivated by the needs I observed there last summer. Some of them came to our Day Camp completely naked. Clothes were considered a luxury their struggling parents could not afford. I saw children who were filthy and sick. But the saddest thing I saw occurred when one child spilled the plate of beans we had just served him for lunch. He hesitated for a moment, and while he did about five other children swooped in on the beans, scraping them off the ground and stuffing them into their mouths, sand and all. That's when I realized how hungry these children really were.
It was a privilege to have something to share with them for the five days of our Day Camp. As I thought about it afterwards, I realized that both feeding the hungry and clothing the naked were acts that Jesus considered done unto Him. What a privilege He gives us to have enough to be able to share with those in real need!
Friday, November 21, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Our children are wounded healers
Today we received an email that a child came to our project with her mouth badly burned. When checking on what happened, the mother laughed and admitted she did it because the child was sucking her bottom lip!
I was glad that before that report, I got another one a few days ago. One of our missionaries, Ruth Ann Gowin, was badly burned and scared in an accident when she was young. The children at ECM's Haven of Hope home have been asking her if it was her mother who burned her, or someone else. They refuse to believe her pleas that the scar resulted from an accident. One of the boys came over and patted her arm tenderly, tears flowing down his cheeks in sympathy for her perceived hurt.
If the children can learn to utlilize that empathy that they learned from being so hurt themselves, there is great hope for them. They are deeply wounded, yes. But already they are wounded healers. Thank you, Lord, for letting me be a part of that.
I was glad that before that report, I got another one a few days ago. One of our missionaries, Ruth Ann Gowin, was badly burned and scared in an accident when she was young. The children at ECM's Haven of Hope home have been asking her if it was her mother who burned her, or someone else. They refuse to believe her pleas that the scar resulted from an accident. One of the boys came over and patted her arm tenderly, tears flowing down his cheeks in sympathy for her perceived hurt.
If the children can learn to utlilize that empathy that they learned from being so hurt themselves, there is great hope for them. They are deeply wounded, yes. But already they are wounded healers. Thank you, Lord, for letting me be a part of that.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Encouraged by one albino child
Our mission agency, Every Child Ministries, is in the midst of starting a new project to help albino children in Africa. The project is still in the preparation stages, but I was really encouraged that we have already helped one. A worker with another NGO (non-governmental organization) in Africa saw our ad asking for sunglasses to help the children because their eyes are super-sensitive to light. She had observed an albino child in one of their programs who always went around with his head down, but she didn't have a guess as to why he did this. When she read our ad about albino children, she immediately recognized his problem. Soon, he will have sunglasses to allow him to raise his head, and will come to our party for albino children. It will be his first chance to know that there are other children in the world who look like him.
Since this worker wrote, I've thought often of this child, and the whole scenario has been a special encouragement to me. I'm not sure why this one is so meaningful. ECM has helped hundreds of thousands of children, and I've listened to some of the worst horror stories possible and hugged some pretty undesirable looking kids. I've seen so much abysmal poverty and misery I can't even begin to describe it. Several times in my work I feel I have lifted the lid off of Hell itself and peered in to its awful pit. But I was encouraged by this one child. Maybe it's because he was a "bonus". We hadn't begun the program yet, but already the preparations had helped a child. I thought a lot about what it would be like to have a condition that no one understood--not even aid workers who were trying to help. That child must have felt pretty much alone. I pray that our explanation of his condition and our simple suggestions for helping him will REALLY help him to feel God's love. Thank you, Lord, for these little tokens of Your care for EVERY CHILD.
Learn more about albinism or albino children on our website at www.ecmafrica.org/albino.
Since this worker wrote, I've thought often of this child, and the whole scenario has been a special encouragement to me. I'm not sure why this one is so meaningful. ECM has helped hundreds of thousands of children, and I've listened to some of the worst horror stories possible and hugged some pretty undesirable looking kids. I've seen so much abysmal poverty and misery I can't even begin to describe it. Several times in my work I feel I have lifted the lid off of Hell itself and peered in to its awful pit. But I was encouraged by this one child. Maybe it's because he was a "bonus". We hadn't begun the program yet, but already the preparations had helped a child. I thought a lot about what it would be like to have a condition that no one understood--not even aid workers who were trying to help. That child must have felt pretty much alone. I pray that our explanation of his condition and our simple suggestions for helping him will REALLY help him to feel God's love. Thank you, Lord, for these little tokens of Your care for EVERY CHILD.
Learn more about albinism or albino children on our website at www.ecmafrica.org/albino.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Amazing Pro-Life Links
I just found these amazing pro-life links related to the black community.
www.blackgenocide.org
www.klannedparenthood.com
Along with another of my favorites, www.lifenews.com, I'll pass these along.
www.blackgenocide.org
www.klannedparenthood.com
Along with another of my favorites, www.lifenews.com, I'll pass these along.
A Black Man Will Be President--Why Can't I Smile?
The first black man in history has been elected president of the United States. With my love for Africa, I should be out dancing in the streets. I have a black daughter and two black granddaughters. I should be shouting for joy. I know the encouragement this is to all my African American friends. Just to think that it could be done, that we've come that far, that such a thing is now possible. I should be dancing all night, like the schoolkids used to do in Congo the day after exams were over, as they did in Ghana when they defeated the American team in football. I went out and celebrated with them. We drove around town and honked and cheered and wrapped our heads in the Ghana football flag. For black people, the election of a black president is a far greater victory. Why can't I celebrate now?
I can't. Yes, it's wonderful just to know that a person of color can achieve such a status. Yes, I'm thrilled about that. But to have this specific black man as president causes me great distress. I'm distressed because he has promised Planned Parenthood that the first bill he will sign will be a Freedom of Choice Act overturning all present restrictions on abortion like parental notification and all of it. Yet what kind of babies are eliminated more frequently than any other kind by abortion? Black babies.
I'm distressed because I've been reading that he plans to immediately restore funding for UNFPA which would use US taxpaper dollars to fund abortions overseas, even funding forced abortion in China. But me, I love Africa. That's the special place in the world that God has laid on my heart, in addition to my own homeland. It makes me absolutely sick to my stomach to think that my tax dollars may be used to fund abortions of precious African babies. Yet it appears that such things are very high on O'Bama's agenda--so important that they may happen right away almost as soon as he is sworn in.
Well, if it happens, I intend to raise my voice. I hope that others will not be so caught up in their own economic problems that they fail to raise their voices as well. The Bush administration might be criticized on many points, but policies that disregard the human lives of the unborn are NOT THE CHANGE WE WERE LOOKING FOR.
I have a suggestion for Mr. O'Bama. All presidents find that it's easier to make promises than it is to keep them. We know you made pro-abortion promises, and the American people were so caught up in their own miseries that they hardly noticed. Please, you don't have to carry through on every promise. Don't carry through on this one. Please. Why destroy your own people? Please.
I can't. Yes, it's wonderful just to know that a person of color can achieve such a status. Yes, I'm thrilled about that. But to have this specific black man as president causes me great distress. I'm distressed because he has promised Planned Parenthood that the first bill he will sign will be a Freedom of Choice Act overturning all present restrictions on abortion like parental notification and all of it. Yet what kind of babies are eliminated more frequently than any other kind by abortion? Black babies.
I'm distressed because I've been reading that he plans to immediately restore funding for UNFPA which would use US taxpaper dollars to fund abortions overseas, even funding forced abortion in China. But me, I love Africa. That's the special place in the world that God has laid on my heart, in addition to my own homeland. It makes me absolutely sick to my stomach to think that my tax dollars may be used to fund abortions of precious African babies. Yet it appears that such things are very high on O'Bama's agenda--so important that they may happen right away almost as soon as he is sworn in.
Well, if it happens, I intend to raise my voice. I hope that others will not be so caught up in their own economic problems that they fail to raise their voices as well. The Bush administration might be criticized on many points, but policies that disregard the human lives of the unborn are NOT THE CHANGE WE WERE LOOKING FOR.
I have a suggestion for Mr. O'Bama. All presidents find that it's easier to make promises than it is to keep them. We know you made pro-abortion promises, and the American people were so caught up in their own miseries that they hardly noticed. Please, you don't have to carry through on every promise. Don't carry through on this one. Please. Why destroy your own people? Please.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
THE VALUE OF A CHILD, EVEN A GIRL CHILD
I just found out yesterday that I am going to be a Grandma for the dozenth time. Our oldest daughter Carrie is expecting her seventh. As we drove home from Carrie's I envisioned myself cuddling and loving that new baby we are soon to welcome in our family.
I couldn't help also remembering things I'd read recently about what is done to babies in some parts of the world, especially if they happen to be girls. (I couldn't help but think about that since so far, Carrie has five girls and only one boy.) I read that some mothers feed their newborns rice with the hulls still on, so that the rice will slit the newborn's throat. For economic reasons, mind you. Families can't afford the huge dowries that are required by their custom.
I thought about parents in some parts of Africa where our mission, Every Child Ministries, works, who sell their children into prostitution to gain a few dollars, give them as slaves to idol shrines, sometimes just to obtain a good crop or success on some business venture, sell them to traders to serve as bonded labor, diving into the river to gain a few oysters to sell.
What is the value of a child? As a Christian, I see every person at every age from the moment of conception to the grave, at every shade of ability and non-ability, of every color and language and culture to be made in the image of God, carefully crafted by His hand. That's what it says in the first book of the Bible, Genesis. "So God made man in His own image. In the image of God created He him, male and female created He them" (Genesis 1:27). If people don't believe this, if they believe human babies are just animals or biochemical machines, then I can understand how it is that they treat life as cheap. For them, they can treat children as economic pawns to be bargained for their own comfort and convenience. For me as a Christian it is not so. As a Christian I value human life because God made us all special and gave to us a unique dignity in His creation.
That's the underlying base that has caused me to become a mother to millions. That's the reason I "adopted" my BIG African family. And it's the reason we will welcome Carrie's baby. And it's the reason we will vote Pro-Life in the upcoming election. The value of a child can never be overestimated.
I couldn't help also remembering things I'd read recently about what is done to babies in some parts of the world, especially if they happen to be girls. (I couldn't help but think about that since so far, Carrie has five girls and only one boy.) I read that some mothers feed their newborns rice with the hulls still on, so that the rice will slit the newborn's throat. For economic reasons, mind you. Families can't afford the huge dowries that are required by their custom.
I thought about parents in some parts of Africa where our mission, Every Child Ministries, works, who sell their children into prostitution to gain a few dollars, give them as slaves to idol shrines, sometimes just to obtain a good crop or success on some business venture, sell them to traders to serve as bonded labor, diving into the river to gain a few oysters to sell.
What is the value of a child? As a Christian, I see every person at every age from the moment of conception to the grave, at every shade of ability and non-ability, of every color and language and culture to be made in the image of God, carefully crafted by His hand. That's what it says in the first book of the Bible, Genesis. "So God made man in His own image. In the image of God created He him, male and female created He them" (Genesis 1:27). If people don't believe this, if they believe human babies are just animals or biochemical machines, then I can understand how it is that they treat life as cheap. For them, they can treat children as economic pawns to be bargained for their own comfort and convenience. For me as a Christian it is not so. As a Christian I value human life because God made us all special and gave to us a unique dignity in His creation.
That's the underlying base that has caused me to become a mother to millions. That's the reason I "adopted" my BIG African family. And it's the reason we will welcome Carrie's baby. And it's the reason we will vote Pro-Life in the upcoming election. The value of a child can never be overestimated.
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