31 Jan 2011
Where Do You Stop?
I had a reader of the blog who has been actively pursuing options for Sonia ask me a question that was posed to her. The question was, I believe, well meaning and I’ll attempt to answer it here…..
Where do you stop?
The question was asked in reference to this particular reader being focused on caring for Sonia and at the same time we have Tania, Waddly and Jamesly (and we lost Francesca this morning). How does one deal with the emotional toll of so many kids who are in such dire straights?
Let me tell you where we’ll stop. We’ll stop when every single kid has a family, has food, has the right and ability to get an education. In other words, we probably won’t stop until Jesus comes again.
I remember meeting with people from Focus on the Family back in 2007 and having discussions about getting their orphan ministry involved in Haiti. At that point, they told us that their goal was to:
- first eliminate the need for the foster care system in Colorado.
- then move on and branch out to the states nearby Colorado.
From what I’ve heard, they might not have totally succeed yet, but they have made a substantial difference in the need for the foster care in Colorado (if anyone from Colorado can update my info, please feel free to in the comments).
Are we setting an insurmountable goal? No
Is it a God sized goal? ABSOLUTELY
So, we aren’t going to stop with Sonia, we aren’t going to stop with Tania, we aren’t going to stop with Waddsley and Jamesly, we aren’t going to stop with the kids that God is planning to bring to our door next week, next month and next year.
But you know what?
There are times when our staff in Haiti will feel like they can’t keep going on. I’d say it’s safe to say that some of them do today. That’s where you come in.
We can’t do it without the support of people back home. People like you. I am amazed at what it takes to keep an orphanage of this size going and i’m amazed at the vision that God has given us, but the only way we’ll be able to reach that goal is with your help.
Thank you for praying.
Thank you for continuing to support the kids in Haiti.
Thank you.
And stay tuned – it’s always a wild ride when you attempt to follow God’s call……
Tom
Want to make a difference for the kids in Haiti? Consider donating.
AMEN!! Thanks for this post!
Adrienne
January 31st, 2011 at 11:15 pmpermalink
NEVER STOPPING!!!
Loving God, Loving Haiti, Loving GLA!
KD <
Kelly D < :)
February 1st, 2011 at 12:50 ampermalink
Where do you stop? As long as you have breath, as long as you have hope, as long as you have faith, do NOT ever give up hope!
I have a daughter who has been diagnosed brain dead, on full life support many times. She has clinically died many times. I have accepted this and with much deliberation, chosen to turn off life support and let her go.
At the age of 5 days, I held her lifeless body as the teams were preparing to harvest her organs. I held my baby skin to skin and prayed over her. I told her that she can go now and blesss 7 other families in the way she has blessed us!
When I handed her over to be harvested, the nurse discovered she was breathing. Plans changed a bit rapidly and drastically for a while in that department!! Because my baby lived, the pecious week old baby who was to be the recipient of my daughter’s heart did not live through the night. I held that baby as her parents had not yet arrived from afar, on a commercial flight (the baby had been airlifted in).
At times, i have wondered if all the therapy after a death experience was worth it. She would have to learn to walk again, speak again, and her emotions would get all out of sorts for weeks. I do not know when the final episode will be. It is a challenge that as I enter each episode. I wonder if I could possibly have the strength and faith to endure, as each episode begins, but I do not give up. I give in and let God take over and I am willing to accept His perfect plan…
Her prognosis in life was death at birth, and as she grew, the life expectancy was outlived many times. The lastest estimate, based on her heart condition was 12 years old. She’s turning 18 just before I head back to Haiti!! She is a quailifed life guard and swimming instructor. She volunteers at Bible Camps for 12 weeks every summer sharing her Jesus with the campers, leading many to Christ. But we all know. Her teachers know, her boss knows, her camp director knows that at any given moment her heart will quit. Until then, she is on a mission–to reach children for Jesus and to live a life worthy of her calling!
We do what we can; we watch God as He works; and we pray and hope and never lose sight of our calling just because God has chosen after a long fight, to take a little one home.
I have lost many little ones. I am single parenting 6 children. One of the 6 has aspergers; another has cerebral palsy. One has a heart defect and seizure disorder. One was born with diseased kidneys and is diabetic. These are all healthy children! Imagine the pain as I began to lose one healthy baby after another!
God didin’t take my daughter away who suffers excruciating pain every day of her life! God has not chosen to take my asperger’s son away, even though he has been hit or nearly hit 4 times by speeding cars. God has not accepted my precious frail daughter into his kingdom yet.
But Thomas was healthy. Paul had no cause of death. Katharine should have lived! There is NO reason Timothy isn’t with us today.
All God’s Ways and His Grace–we can’t undrstand or measure…
So, my friends at GLA and all over the world praying for those on the fron lines–never, never give up! Never, never get tired of doing good!
Fill their spirits with God’s Word, and they will be reminded of these things as they go through life!
Liane Morran
February 1st, 2011 at 12:58 ampermalink