Saturday, February 16, 2013

Right where you are...

I have to be honestly with you all, there are some days here where we feel completely overwhelmed.

Days where we question if we are making a difference.

 Days where the needs before us seem so unreachable.

 Days where, I am physically and emotionally drained.

 Days where I question if God chose the wrong family.

We have so much to learn, so much growing to do and yet, we are here- here we are.

As I look at the funds we still have to raise, as I look at the needs we have to meet- many times, I just feel like crawling into a ball and weeping.

 And then... we come across these families- and God seems to put everything into perspective in a single minute.

 Yesterday some of us headed out to visit a new family we have just found out about. This family has 6 children- and the mother is blind.


They live on someone elses property and the father walks miles to work every day because he cannot afford a bus. He spends close to 18 hours away from home on an average day. I have been told his feet are so swollen he can no longer wear shoes. His job is to carry supplies from bus to bus- his pay is 25Q a day. (which equals between $3-$3.50 dollars a day.) They live on the side of the mountain in conditions my mind cannot even begin to understand.


Their youngest child is 8 years and cannot walk. She has never been to the doctor so they are not sure why. She speaks and smiles- she is beyond precious. Most of her day is spent sitting in the corner, on a mattress in the dark.


  As we talked with her mother we began to understand their needs and once again felt completely broken. One thing that stood out to me was the absorption well on their property... 40 feet deep.




As a mom, all I could think of was how scary that would be to have my children living there by this... Let alone to be blind... and the fear of falling in. This mother has no choice but to be lead around the property by her teenage daughter.


As we looked around their home in hopes of finding a way we could make it more safe and healthy, I once again felt overwhelmed...

 
bathroom...
 
 
kitchen...
 
 
part of their home without shelter...
 
 
 
As I began to pray, began to try to wrap my head around this... again a feeling over overwhelmness came over me.
 
Where do you begin?
 
They are here all day, unprotected. A mother who is blind. A child who cannot walk. A father who is working as hard as he can and in doing so must be gone all day long. The children are not in school- they must help out to survive.
 
 I beg God for an answer.
 
And then I heard it...
 
I heard the quiet sounds of giggling coming from inside the home. I slowly walk around the corner and at that moment my heart stopped.
 
In front of me I saw what I think the Lord wanted me to understand all along.
 
Our daughter Mya, who was adopted at age 4 from Guatemala, sat in front of me on the mattress with her new friend.  While I had become overwhelmed- she had simply done what she could at the moment- crawled down on the floor and became a friend.
 
I watched in awe as these girls giggled and played hand games.
 
 I watched in awe as they smiled and whispered secrets.
 
 
 
I watched in awe as these two little girls 'got it' before I ever did.
 
Lord I thank you for who you are and for the ways you work. I thank you for the way you meet us right where we are. I praise you Jesus for your unconditional love and acceptance no matter if we deserve it or not. I thank you God for this opportunity to minister to those you care about deeply. I thank you God for my husband and my children who too said yes. I thank you God for our partners, for Christi and Dan who serve here with us. I thank you God for Lifesong For Orphans and for Project Hopeful who always, ALWAYS put YOU first. I thank you Lord for sending us.
 

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10 comments:

CaseyCMom said...

Thank you for this post, Amy. A timely one for our family as we are praying and hearing God speak to us about going and serving. Thank you for sharing your experiences and God's work in and through your family on the mission field.

Cynde said...

Amy, today as I read your post, I was truly ashamed of myself. Ashamed for the times I say I am exhausted having to deal with another child in crisis, having to go to the doctor with my children for the 5th time in one week, for having to do 12 loads of clothes, for running all over the place to do errands and appointments, for coping with several sick relatives,for dealing with my husband being fired and out of a job, etc. I have been so blind!! How blessed we are as a family!! I have vehicles to drive, doctors my children CAN go to, a washer and dryer to do clothes, schools my children can go to, a roof over our heads, running water and bathrooms in my home, and food everyday on my table. Thank you for opening my eyes and thank you for the innocent faith of your children!! It is an honor to have met you that day on the train!! Blessings my friend!!

Sammie said...

Thank your for this post. Your daughter and her ability to connect with others is beyond beautiful. The story of this family will stay with me and touches me so deeply. I am so glad you are there, even when its over whelming you are making a difference. Sending you love and a big hug and prayers for the family to have their needs met, and for you be be able to help them.

marsha said...

Amy, My heart aches for this family and for you. It must seem overwhelming! I love how God reached down to you through sweet Mya with His message of hope and encouragement. What a powerful story. We are so anxious to bring our team down to walk beside you briefly and experience what God has in store!

Eleven and Heaven said...

Your post has truly touched me. I am going to share this with my family this evening to discuss how we can make a difference like your daughter. May I repost this?

Unknown said...

Amy this blog post really, really but things in perspective for me. I have spent the entire morning complaining. God whispered to my soul that there are so many other things I should be grateful for.

thesleepyknitter said...

Thank you for this post, Amy. You are helping us to see and to be aware and to pray for direction from God for how we should be serving.

Anonymous said...

Amy, thanks for letting us get a picture of the pain and brokenness around you...and for how your family is being used by God to bring hope and help! It's an honor for PBC to partner with you.

Pastor Brian

Laurel said...

Powerful! Thanks so much for sharing . . .

. . . your heart with us.

. . . your life with families such as this.


Love to you all . . . and Hugs . . . and oh so wishing I could come minister alongside of you!!!


Laurel :)

Daniel Cowan said...

Amy,

I'm Daniel Cowan, and I'm on staff at FBC Snellville. We're so excited about doing the Resurrection 5K to raise support for Village of Hope. We are especially looking to spend these last few weeks before the run to boost the number of "spirit runners" (people who will donate, but can't actually come run). We want to develop a promotional video that encourages our congregation to get more involved. I'd like to use some of your blog's content, such as the images and your writing. Could we discuss whether or not that would be a possibility?

Thanks!
-Daniel Cowan
dcowan@fbcsnell.org
fbcsnell.org