There's a sock that belongs to a two year old. It's in the middle of the kitchen floor and I know he put it there. Him and his sisters leave in the morning and I know I've got to pick up the sock. My heart is breaking like I knew it would. I'm super happy as that's the goal for the kids at the home I work! The goal is reunification with family or finding a loving family to adopt.
There's a sock that belongs to a two year old in the middle of my kitchen floor. Among the thousands of things I've to do before I even think about going to bed, I'm going to pick up the sock, say a prayer for this child and his sisters, and cry maybe a little. It'll go in his bag only to be washed and worn at a later date. This is my job. I love what I do and the rewards that come from it! Lots of folks don't see what I do as rewarding. I've heard things like, "I don't understand how you can handle that! All those kids who don't have families would just break my heart!" Let me be honest; it breaks my heart too. James 1:27 says:
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
My job is not about having no financial overhead. While that's nice, that's not why my husband and I took this job. We started this job to be faithful to God and serve Him. Loving others and taking care of those in need is why we started this job. The rewards we see aren't material things. We are rewarded with love, truth, and the knowledge that we'll be blessed no matter what. As awesome as it is that these children are going home and despite my heart breaking that they won't be in my home any longer, I have the knowledge that the Lord will guide them in their futures. The best thing for me to do is to pray for them. And I do. Every day. My favorite part of my job is loving these kids that come into the home.
When my husband approached me about this kind of opportunity, I was very skeptical. Very, very skeptical. We interviewed at two different homes. And we chose the current home we work with very carefully. There's an environment of love, spiritual and emotional support that I've never had at any other job! I'd work in retail for years. The only childcare experience I'd ever had was in preschools and day cares. My husband was all for us working in a children's home. I was apprehensive and scared! I'd never had any kind of life like this! If you'd asked me three years ago I'd be married and working in a children's home, I'd laugh in your face and call you a liar. Yet, here I sit, married to my wonderful, loving, Christian husband for the last 14 months and working at a children's home. I know, I know. We haven't been married that long. I'm also 37 and he's 32. We got married late in our lives.
That sock still remains something I'll always remember. His laugh, his smile, his lashes (for which women would pay good money), and his willingness to help around the house, even at 2 years old.
Matthew 19:14
Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kindom of heaven belongs to such as these."
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