Tough stuff

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. Psalm 68:5

So, the crazy neighbors took us on another field trip today. This time, they took us to a local state run orphanage. Abby had been wanting to go there since the day that she found out it was a possibility several months ago. When they mentioned it, I knew we needed to go and I'm so glad we did.

Ryan, Abby, and I had visited orphanages in Ethiopia, so we had an idea of what to expect. But, the bottom line is, they are difficult places to go, especially for a bunch of child lovers like us. This facility was small compared to the ones we went to in ET, but it was still heartbreaking. The physical environment was rough and the standard of care was not something that we would consider acceptable in the States. However, I was reminded by my friend that a roof over their head and a meal now and then is a good thing for these children.

The one positive was that there weren't a lot of children there. They had 7 adopted out last week. That is exciting. From what one of the workers explained to me, the children that they get there come from either abandoned babies that the police bring them or a few from social services. Most all of the children will be adopted, they are just there for a season. That made it a little more palatable.

However, my heart really broke for the 2 children there with disabilities. It is obvious that their future is pretty bleak. One of them has Down's Syndrome and he was just precious. He loved to be held and happily went to all of our children. He did not want to be put down. To the point that when we needed to leave, he wouldn't put his feet down, he kept pulling them up so that I couldn't let go of him. That. was. brutal. From what I understand, his adoption options might be pretty slim.

Here's Isaac with the little guy who loved to be held so much. He was so precious. At one point, I was singing to him and my friend was helping him clap his hands to my song and he was just grinning from ear to ear. He is so special.

By the way, do you see Isaac's hat? It's a gift from the crazy neighbors, they didn't have a mutual affection for the hat so the wife was glad to pass it on. It's red and lime green, who can blame her? Now it's found a new home with Isaac and he wears it all of the time! We call it his Dr. Seuss hat.

The other kiddo, who Ryan fell in love with, was much older. I'd say he was at least 13. He was deaf/mute and I would guess he has cerebral palsy. When Ryan realized he was deaf, he immediately began signing to him. The boy was so excited and they communicated back and forth pretty effectively. The workers there couldn't believe how well the boy could communicate, I guess none of them sign. When we asked what his name was, they told us he was called Lazarus. I couldn't help but pray that he would get a second chance at life, just like his namesake.

Lazarus, happily posing for a photo when Ryan asked if he could take his picture.

Our kids did great, I was so proud of them. The scene was tough and yet they kept smiling, talking to the children, singing, and keeping up a very brave front. Here's Abby, my orphan-burdened girl!

Lily, with baby M. When I asked the workers about each child's name, they would stress the fact that the names were temporary and that they are used for identification purposes only. For some reason, that made me really upset and then I was reminded of Psalm 139 and the fact that even though they may not have a "name" they are not forgotten. God knit them together in their mother's womb and all the days ordained for them were written in the book of life before one of them came to be.

Here's Abe, who really, really wanted to hold the baby. Tonight, when Ryan woke him up to use the potty (we're getting him up in the middle of the night because pull-ups are like $40 for a small pack here- insane!) he told Ryan that he wanted to bring that baby home and take care of her. Nigeria is not a country that welcomes adoption by US citizens, so we think we're safe!

Before we left, the workers allowed us to gather round them and pray for them and for the children. It is our hope that we can go back there on a regular basis and love on those children while building a relationship with the workers as well. We know that orphan ministry cannot be our primary task here, it's not what we've committed to. However, we also know what God's word instructs us about caring for orphans and we know the heart that he's given our family in this area. We feel like this may be something that our family is able to be a part of, not as our job, but as a personal ministry. Please continue to pray for us as we navigate all of the ways that our time and energy could be used in this city. We earnestly want to invest our time, talents, and resources in the way that God would have us to as we serve here.