Sing to God, sing in praise of his name, extol him who rides on the clouds; rejoice before him – his name is the LORD. A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. Psalm 68:4-5
We had no idea what this month would look like when we arrived. It has ended up being a month full of manual labor, visiting widows, working with and getting to know youth from the church, and a pastor who has an awesome Spirit-filled heart and always a machete in his hand.
The biggest thing that has stuck out to me has been visiting widows. I’ve always read about how God has a heart for the orphans and widows but I love kids and have never really had a huge passion for visiting the elderly so I guess I have always skipped over the visiting widows part. However, this month, God has changed that in me and has allowed me to experience a little more of His heart.
We visited two people from the church that have recently been widowed. One guy who lost his wife 2 months ago and one who lost her husband 5 months. We went to their houses and cleaned for the widow and then had a small “cultito” (church service/devotional/hang out) with the widower.
Think about it. Living with your spouse for years, your best friend, knowing every good thing and every bad thing about them, sharing good times and pressing on and growing together through the bad. Then one day they’re with you and the next day you’re alone. Learning to live by yourself again, missing the memories, their company, and their love. Although I can’t relate on a personal level I was able to share with them about my cousin who died when I was 15 years old. I kind of know the pain they are feeling…not exactly to their extent, but it made me think about all the widows in my life that I’ve failed to neglect. One being my grandma. (Love you grandma!) My grandfather died when I was 13 years old. I didn’t really know him a lot because he lived in the nursing home and in a different city for a majority of my childhood. I’ve never thought of her as a widow but I guess that’s what she is by technical term.
Are there widows in your life that you a failing to neglect? Maybe you’re just blind to it like I was. If so, what are you going to do about it? Are you more drawn to kids like me? It’s time to get out of our comfort zone and not just love the ones that we are drawn to, but to love and care for all those who Jesus tells us to. The sick, the imprisoned, the fatherless, AND the widows.
