Sarah’s Covenant Homes is a ministry in Ongole, India that rescues and cares for abandoned children with special needs. God loves these children. They are precious to Him and He delights in them. They may seem quite different from you and me, in respect to cognitive capacity, physical ability and/or age. But really, there is not much fundamental difference between us. We are made of the same soul material and have the same value in God’s eyes. We are equally capable of knowing Him and praising Him, whether that is now or will be in the future. The limitations of these children are merely a gateway for greater restoration and more abundant joy & praise when they experience the fullness of God. Their restoration in heaven will be so beautiful!
In the meantime though, in this broken world, how does an abandoned child know God? How do they know that God loves them? How do they know that God is the Father of the fatherless? How do they know God as Comforter, Provider and Protector?
God created the church for a special purpose. He gives each individual in the community of believers a unique gift, “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:12-13). The community of believers is intended to embody Christ. We are supposed to be a living, active incarnation of who He is…as Teacher, Servant, Messiah, Lord, Nurturer, Lover, Father, Comforter, Provider, Protector. Additionally, God commands us to learn to do good, to seek justice, to reprove the ruthless, to defend the orphan, to plead for the widow, and to be generous & ready to share (Isaiah 1:17; 1 Timothy 6:18). When each person “exercises accordingly” (Rom 12:6) their gift, and when we are obeying God’s commands, then we will incarnate Christ in a way that glorifies Him and makes us a vessel of His goodness & truth to the souls around us.
So, how does an abandoned child know God?
US.
WE are the hands and feet of Jesus. The community of believers! Church small group. Friends. Co-workers. Housemates. Families. Couples. Sunday-school class. Youth group. Neighbors. As part of the larger body of Christ, and as part of small communities, we can take part in incarnating Christ to a child. As a child is consistently supplied with housing, meals, supplements, diapers, clean clothing, and physiotherapy…he or she can know God as the One who provides our every need. As salaries are paid, a child can know the comfort and protection of Jesus through the embrace of a caregiver. As medical care is funded, a child can know God as Healer through the care of doctors and nurses.
The vision of SCH is that communities of people would be able to unify under the common banner of providing for the needs of a child. The vision includes communities joining together to pray for their child and to be connected with his or her continuing story.
Sarah’s Covenant Homes is currently caring for 105 children. We want each one of them to continue to know the love and care of Jesus in a tangible, consistent way. We want each one of them sponsored. Which communities are you are a member of that could take part in embodying the presence of Jesus to a once-abandoned child?
One day, Jesus is going to embrace each one of these children in His own arms, and they will know full comfort and an everlasting love. They will be free from broken bodies hampered by disease, and will be given glorious new ones. As children with disabilities, most cannot expect or imagine that. And so in this moment on earth, we are the ones treasuring this hope for them in our hearts. We are the ones embodying the Person behind this hope with our resources. We are the ones lifting them up into His arms through prayer. We. The body of Christ, the community of believers.
105 precious once-abandoned children need to know God in His fullness…as Nurturer, as Comforter, as Provider. Will you join with your community to be a part of incarnating Him as such?
