“What if God’s will for our life is found wherever someone’s need and our ability intersect?” ~unknown
I was reading God's Littlest Angels Orphanage website today. GLA is an orphanage in Haiti that is run by Americans. I read Tom's (one of the orphanage founders) blog for a little bit. Almost everything he wrote challenged me. Actually, GLA's website in its entirety challenges me.
James 1: 27 says this: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress..." For years, I blew through that verse, not giving it a second thought. Then, my eyes were slowly opened as I became aware of the orphan crisis around the world. I prayed and prayed, "God, WHAT? God, HOW?" How can I care for orphans from way over here in the FIRST WORLD?! And, then I began to question, "God, are you calling US to ADOPT? What will our parents think? Our house has lost value, and you want us to spend our money on an adoption? We could pay off our car! We only have a four bedroom home (not counting the guest bedroom in the basement)! Our kids would have to (GASP! Sit down, now!) SHARE...A...ROOM! What would our over-the-top family vacations look like if we had FIVE kids? I mean, our trip to Disney World in '09, our trip to Hawaii in '10? Could we still afford things like that if we had FIVE kids?" I questioned almost everything...how many times a week we could eat out with five kids, how much clothes would cost with five kids, sports fees, backpacks each fall and winter coats, could we handle all the homework? I seriously questioned it all, and I almost came back thinking, "Nope! We have enough kids! I'll cut someone a check! THAT, after all, is the EASIEST way to 'care for orphans'. (you know, cutting a check and not ACTUALLY having to CARE)" That's when God pulled the rug out from under me using the REST of James 1:27, which says: "...and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
Oh...
...dear
...me.
Repent.
I HAD ALLOWED MYSELF TO BE POLLUTED BY THE WORLD!!!
My guess is that you have, too...on some level.
This fast has opened my eyes to my wants, my desires, my needs, and to others who live CONSTANTLY with these SAME wants, desires, and needs. These others, however, have NO ACCESS to these things, whereas mine are sitting right there in my pantry and in my refrigerator, and in my deep freezer in the basement. MY kids will NEVER know what an empty stomach REALLY feels like, and neither will I, while most of the rest of the world will NEVER know what a FULL stomach feels like.
You may have heard that there are 146,000,000 (or, ONE HUNDRED FORTY-SIX MILLION) orphans in the world. I just read today that if we eradicated poverty, there would be TWENTY-NINE thousand orphans. You heard that right, 29,000 orphans. That means that 117,000,000 orphans are orphans ONLY because their mommies and daddies couldn't AFFORD TO FEED THEM.
So, I apologize for complaining about "only" eating fruits and vegetables for the last thirty-six days. How very prideful of me.
"I repent, and I praise You, Father, for providing SO abundantly the foods I am able to serve my family, and for LAVISHING upon us this house and all the things inside it, and for our health! May ALL honor and glory be Yours, Father! YOU are the Giver of life! Amen, Amen."
