They may be the dirtiest kids you’ve ever seen. They may not have anywhere besides under a bridge to sleep when it rains. They may not have parents. But none of that matters because this night is all about them. This night is dedicated to letting kids be kids and pouring enough love on them so they walk away knowing they are truly valued and worth something.
We threw a Thanksgiving celebration for some street kids in the area. The night consisted of games, face painting, animal balloons, bathing, teeth brushing, spaghetti and chicken wing dinner, magic tricks mixed with the gospel, a guest singer, birthday cake, lots of prizes and candy, and a movie shown on a big screen. A squad member of mine asked people she knew from the states to donate money to make the event possible.
Near the end of the party I met a man named Ronale, he was sitting in the back of the room during the movie. He started asking me questions about what was going on and why we were doing this. He was a Christian and told me it encouraged him to see us doing that. He said he has a passion for youth but when it comes to the street children he gets overwhelmed and doesn’t know where to begin. He was wondering what happens next, like if we get them to go to church or something. I explained to him all we do is hang out with the kids and show them love. In that moment, even if just for a night our purpose there was to love the kids and let them be kids. For one night they didn’t have to worry about making money or where their next meal would come from. The only important thing was to be Jesus to the kids. It’s not about trying to get them to go to church. It’s about being the church, being the body of Christ wherever we go. As far as what is next, I’m only here for 6 weeks so the most I can do is plant seeds and shower them with love.
There was this little girl who just wanted my physical presence and attention. I let her sit on my lap for as long as she needed, which ended up being over a good 2 hours. She hardly said anything to me but she didn’t have to I was overwhelmed with love for her and she was precious.
I’ll never know the lasting impact I’ve had on these kids. But I do know that the couple hours I spent with that little girl who needed some affection was significant, it meant something to her in that moment. Who knows, it could change her life.
Some people are lucky and get to see the change and goodness come out of what they do. For most of us though, we are just part of the ripple effect, simply giving glimpses of Christ in the love that we share.
Love brings life, if you’re not loving then what are you doing?
As for practical, long-term growth in this area there are 3 homes that I am associated with this month while working at K.I.M. The Jazz House is a home for girls who are either sexually or physically abused at home or are coming out of prostitution. There is also the Children’s garden, a home for boys who were once living on the street and sniffing toxins to numb the pain of hunger. Then there is the New Faith Family Children’s Home for orphaned or abandoned children. All the children get sponsored to live in the homes and they also get to attend school.
Pray with me that these homes grow and every girl who wants a safe place, and every boy needing a place to be loved and fed, and every child without parents will be taken care of.
