So on Friday and Saturday we went to an orphanage about an hour away from Nehemiah. When we arrived on Friday all of the kids just came running out to us and embraced all of us. They were just yearning for someone to love on them. A couple of my teammates told them the story of Jonah and my team leader shared to gospel with them. Then we just hung out with them and loved on them till around 2 o'clock. There was one child who latched on to me right away and stayed with me most of the day. His name is Dema and he is 9 years old. I let him lead me around wherever he wanted to go at the orphanage. I ended up carrying him most of the day. I already miss him so much. We went back on Saturday just to hang out with them. They had another group there that day who had crafts for them to do, music, and they danced with them. We just hung out with them again till 2. It was just sad to see how hungry they are for love. All of the children would just come up to all of us and wanted to be hugged. I definately had some of the best hugs that I have ever had there.We all had such a hard time leaving the kids on Saturday. It breaks my heart to think about what will happen to the kids after they leave there. It is sad to think about where these children will end up and what their future will look like after they leave there. After the children turn 18 they are basically kicked out of the orphanage and left to live on the streets. Some of them end up going to a university but most of them just end up homeless on the streets. There were a lot of kids with disabilities there also and most of them end up in institutions after they turn 18. I wish I could just bring the children home with me to America. As I have been processing all of my thoughts and thinking about the kids over the last two days, God has reminded me that in him there are no orphans. Though we may not know what the future holds for these children God has a plan for each of them. Though they may not have any earthly parents they do have a heavenly Father who is always with them. They are never really alone and God will take care of them. As I ponder on all of these thoughts I am also reminded of a scripture. It comes from John 14:18 and it says, Jesus is speaking, "I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you." It also says in Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest." Though it is discouraging to think about how these children are abandoned and feel unwanted and unloved, Jesus has his hand on each of these children and he is with them every step of the way. It is my prayer that they will feel God's presence with them and they will be shown how much they are loved by him. All of this also reminds me of a song called Orphans of God. It says in the lyrics, come ye unwanted and find affection, come all ye weary and lay down your head. Jesus' arms are opened wide just waiting for these children to come to him and find rest, love, all that they need in him. Please pray for these children that they will all be adopted and find families that will love them. Those kids faces will forever remain with me and they will always be in my heart. Here are some pictures and the video of Orphans of God by Avalon. Hope this encourages you as you read to know that just like the orphans we are never alone, Jesus is always with us no matter what!
Me holding Dema, I felt like he was my child for those two days.
Me with some of the other kids there at the orphanage.
Me loving on one of the children
All of us with some of the children and some of the workers there
