Camp

So today was camp day. Avery's orph. had 15 children at the camp and many were her friends. It was an amazing day for all three of us. Avery was more animated than I have seen her. She laughed a lot and had a great time with her friends. She has asked that we go back tomorrow and I am going to do that. Most likely, she will never see these girls again and so I have to give her one more morning. Emily played with a precious little girl named Maggie and had a blast. And me? I cried more today than I have in a long time. I saw precious orphans, who have nothing in this world, enjoy a carefree day of playing in a fountain, playing games, enjoying a pottery studio, and singing songs. I saw a 7 year old in a wheelchair who has family in Amer. who longs to adopt her but she is considered unadoptable because her grandmother is still living. I watched her laugh with delight as her camp buddy ran around the room carrying her during a game. I saw a little boy with a shunt in his head, who nearly died last year, making animals out of clay. I saw a teenage boy in a wheelchair with pure joy on his face as his camp buddy ran through the water in the fountain. I saw my daughter play and laugh with her best friend who is 16 and will never be adopted. And I saw a mom (who is dying) and her daughter, who have not been out of their home in ONE YEAR, come to camp this week. I have watched that mom sit in her wheelchair and cry as she watched her daughter play and sing and dance. So many more stories that I could share. So many children who deserve a family and would make such wonderful sons and daughters and yet, when families see only a birthdate and diagnosis, they do not consider them. If people could just see the children it would make such a difference. So many of them would come home; I just know they would. As Americans we are blessed beyond measure and so often we complain about what we don't have. I have been reminded again today that we have more than the vast majority of the world's population. We have such extravagance in our everyday lives and yet there is often discontentment in our hearts. I hope that I never forget the way I felt as I watched these children play today. I pray I will be more generous with what I have been given because I have SO very, very much! And I pray that the hearts of Christians in America will be pricked for the orphan. They have no one to teach them the love of Jesus. They need us to tell them; they need us to honestly ask ourselves if He is calling us to bring one home. So often people assume that Shawn is in a job that pays a huge salary. They say we must be rich to adopt twice. I always laugh because we are active duty MC and not in a big, high-power business. Instead, I tell people that we saved for 3 years for the first adoption and God provided for the second. It is interesting to me that people assume we must make a huge income to be able to adopt. We've been called to care for the widows and orphans. If we are faithful to do that, He is faithful to provide us with the means to be obedient. It really is that simple. Whew! Can you tell it has been a big day for me? I thought I was doing something for my daughter today. Clearly, God had much bigger plans. Pray tonight for the orphans. Pray for the faces you will see on here and for the millions that you won't see. God knows each one by name and He loves them more than we can imagine. Who is going to tell them? I promise to have a more lighthearted post tomorrow but this one couldn't wait. It really was a special day.