Watching adoption stories take place are one of my most favorite activities. The other day during church aunt Judith came forward and started talking about a baby. She talked of how some community leaders came to her and asked if she would care for an orphaned child. Aunt Judith has no income and is in her late 40’s if not 50’s. She felt that this is what she was supposed to do so she said yes. And yesterday they brought her the child, a beautiful baby girl. As she starts talking of her first sight of her she starts tearing up. The baby was brought with no clothes, no hospital notes, and finally with tears rolling down her face she tells us she is HIV positive. My heart is shattered at this point. This little baby was rejected by her community after her mother died of sickness. But Aunt Judith said yes and the lord has already provided. Judith’s daughter just had a baby girl as well so they are able to share clothes! Which may not seem like a big thing, but here in Rwanda it is. So tonight I am thinking of all the orphans I have visited and have yet to visit. How i would easily take every single one of those children home so that they could know what it is to be loved. To know they have value and are beautiful. And then, what gets at my heart even more, is the fact I am only 23 and can’t even adopt one child. As this thought was going through my head I was thinking of how when we are adopted into the family of Christ, what a celebration that is. To join a ginormous family of people who will always support you and love you because of the love that they have been shown. But then I started to think about those who have yet to join the family. The orphans so to speak. My hearts breaks for the orphans that I don’t know, the ones who don’t have a family here on earth and I don’t even know them. I started to think about the hurt and the heart ache that God must feel everyday for those who have not joined the family of Christ. He knows them. He created them. He knows the struggles, sorrows and pain and is willing to take that on if they would only come to him. I cannot fathom that kind of heart ache. This is why I want people to know Christ. I want them to know the love I know. I want people to join my ginormous family or crazy awesome people who accept and love like no other. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the story of that precious baby girl and will pray for her as she has a hard road ahead of her. I’m so thankful for people like aunt Judith who follow God no matter what the cost.
