When 147 Isn't 147
So, I wish I could tell you that I came up with that title because, hey, there are no longer 147 million orphans in need of care. And well, there aren't......
Remember when I recommended that you find the time to read orphan justice? Well, one of the first statistics that he threw out that hit me was, "According to UNICEF, 153 million kids worldwide have lost one or both parents due to all causes."
153
So, yes, 147 is no longer 147.
You know, it hasn't been too long that I've even entertained a thought about orphans and how I might reach out. I've glossed right over scripture that said anything specific, and just grouped them in with the poor and needy and called it a day. I give canned goods during a food drive, I'm helping the poor. I donate clothing, money, Christmas gifts to those in need. Helping the poor - check, check and double check. I even sponsored one of those kids you see on TV. Hello people, I have got this thing covered.
But then, I had a sweet friend who stepped out in faith and did all she could to bring one of those fatherless into her family. And finally, we have a face and a name to attach to the word "orphan." And, even though I could read a book full of stories that tear at my heartstrings, I will finish the pages and put it on a shelf where it will gather dust and my thoughts will wander in a different direction. But that sweet child, she isn't something that goes away. She finds her way into my Thursday mornings, and she has climbed into my lap and demanded that I take pictures of her and color, and she jabbers on and on about what she learned at bible study that morning, and I can't begin to forget her. She is real.
153 is real.
And, when I stare at that number, my shoulders slump, and I take a deep breath, and my heart mourns, because it seems we aren't moving fast enough. That even with the best of intentions, I am overwhelmed that in the time it has taken me to begin to contemplate the plight of the orphan, they've multiplied. And not just a little, by the millions! How do we make it stop?
Worse yet, is that under the weight and the discouragement that we might feel at seeing such change in the statistics, that we would begin to think to ourselves, "What is the point?" Sure, we might touch 1 or 2, and on a good day, we might even reach double digits, but really, we're just spinning our wheels and fighting a losing battle.
Make no mistake, that is exactly what Satan wants us to believe. He will celebrate our backing down. He fully supports us turning our eyes away from those children and searching out a new cause that will make us feel a little more hope and not so much desperation. In 1 Peter 5:8, we are told to "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." John 10:10 states, "The thief comes only to kill and destroy..." There is nothing he would like better than for us to sit down and admit defeat. But, that is all the more reason for us to fight like never before. To fervently pray as to how we can reach out, to lift up those doing the work, to beg God to place a hedge of protection around those innocent lives until we can get to them. All of them. Because they are real, and we cannot forget. We have been commanded to take care of them, and it's about time we get to it.
Remember when I recommended that you find the time to read orphan justice? Well, one of the first statistics that he threw out that hit me was, "According to UNICEF, 153 million kids worldwide have lost one or both parents due to all causes."
153
So, yes, 147 is no longer 147.
You know, it hasn't been too long that I've even entertained a thought about orphans and how I might reach out. I've glossed right over scripture that said anything specific, and just grouped them in with the poor and needy and called it a day. I give canned goods during a food drive, I'm helping the poor. I donate clothing, money, Christmas gifts to those in need. Helping the poor - check, check and double check. I even sponsored one of those kids you see on TV. Hello people, I have got this thing covered.
But then, I had a sweet friend who stepped out in faith and did all she could to bring one of those fatherless into her family. And finally, we have a face and a name to attach to the word "orphan." And, even though I could read a book full of stories that tear at my heartstrings, I will finish the pages and put it on a shelf where it will gather dust and my thoughts will wander in a different direction. But that sweet child, she isn't something that goes away. She finds her way into my Thursday mornings, and she has climbed into my lap and demanded that I take pictures of her and color, and she jabbers on and on about what she learned at bible study that morning, and I can't begin to forget her. She is real.
153 is real.
And, when I stare at that number, my shoulders slump, and I take a deep breath, and my heart mourns, because it seems we aren't moving fast enough. That even with the best of intentions, I am overwhelmed that in the time it has taken me to begin to contemplate the plight of the orphan, they've multiplied. And not just a little, by the millions! How do we make it stop?
Worse yet, is that under the weight and the discouragement that we might feel at seeing such change in the statistics, that we would begin to think to ourselves, "What is the point?" Sure, we might touch 1 or 2, and on a good day, we might even reach double digits, but really, we're just spinning our wheels and fighting a losing battle.
Make no mistake, that is exactly what Satan wants us to believe. He will celebrate our backing down. He fully supports us turning our eyes away from those children and searching out a new cause that will make us feel a little more hope and not so much desperation. In 1 Peter 5:8, we are told to "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." John 10:10 states, "The thief comes only to kill and destroy..." There is nothing he would like better than for us to sit down and admit defeat. But, that is all the more reason for us to fight like never before. To fervently pray as to how we can reach out, to lift up those doing the work, to beg God to place a hedge of protection around those innocent lives until we can get to them. All of them. Because they are real, and we cannot forget. We have been commanded to take care of them, and it's about time we get to it.
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