There are some things we can change. Some, we simply cannot.
I can’t change that the orphan doesn’t have parents or a family who loves and cares for her.
I can’t change the fact that the children’s hospital is filled with parents with hurt and confusion about their child’s illness.
I can’t change the life of the prostitutes in bars anxiously waiting for a man to walk in so that they can have money to survive.
I can’t change the dump environment of “homes” that are built on top of garbage of someone else’s trash.
There are some things we cannot change. Some, we can.
I can change the little girl’s face at the orphanage. I can play with her. I can swing her. I can make her laugh. I can hold her. I can kiss her forehead.
I can sit with a little boy at the hospital and color. I can sing and play guitar for a little girl. I can hold the mother’s hand while I pray for her child.
I can walk into a bar with a smile on my face. I can ask them questions about their family. I can rub their backs and make them feel beautiful.
I can let the children at the dump play my guitar. I can hug them. I can run around and race them. I can dance with them. I can sing songs to them.
One thing I can do …
I can love them.
So I do.
God demonstrates how to love. He has taught me to love. And he has sent me to love.
Who am I to choose whom to love? Who am I to decide who is worthy of being loved?
Even though I may not be able to change the way these people live in the short month I am here, I can show them what true love looks like.
That is why I hold the orphan and thank God for her safety.
That is why I sit with the hospital patient and thank God for His provision.
That is why I hug the prostitute and thank God for the plans He has for us.
That is why I dance with the little girl at the dump and thank God for His joy.
I am made to love. I am here to love these people so they view each day different than ever before. They view it with meaning and with purpose knowing they are not stuck in their “lifestyle,” but they are loved.
Not only by me, a stranger, but also by their Father, our Savior.
That simply cannot be changed.
