With yesterday being Father's Day, like yours, my Facebook news feed was filled with Father's day wishes and pics of dads. After getting back home from Guatemala late Saturday night, all I could think of were the orphans that we had met while we were there. The ones who clung to me, saying "Papi! Papi!", "Daddy! Daddy!" and it broke my heart. They are longing for someone to be "daddy" to them, someone to be there to protect them, to cheer them on, to wipe away their tears, to pick them up and encourage them to try again… Just someone who will love them unconditionally. Isn't that we all want?
You don't have to go to Guatemala to find people who want and need the love of a father, you meet them every day. You may have woken up and looked at someone in the mirror who craves that. The good news is that we have that kind of love, God is the Father of Fathers, and as hard as it may be for me to believe as a dad, He loves me far more than I love my own children, and He loves you that much too. God held back nothing in showing you how much He loved you. He allowed his only son to bear the weight of our sin, so that you would KNOW just how much you're loved, just how much you matter and just how much He cares. So often we forget that, we engage in our pity parties and self loathing and forget just how much we matter to God.
I learned an extremely valuable lesson from the kids at the orphanage, when I asked them if they ever felt like God had abandoned them, they shouted back with a resounding "NOOOOOO!". I admit, I felt a bit of that for them, but they didn't! I believe that we saw a measure of God's grace at work in that moment, many of us complain far more over far less. I believe the reason that these kids responded with the passion they did was because their eyes are fixed on Jesus, it is when they are not, that we find ourselves sinking into despair. These children are the teachers, not us. I am being sent back to you by these children, as a missionary, to remind you that God sees you, He has not forgotten or abandon you, nor will He, ever!
We can honor these children, and more importantly God, by sharing their story. Take some time today to just think about how much God loves you, and then give it away! That's what the Gospel is all about, never losing site of how much we are loved, and than sharing that love with those needing that reminder. I promise that you will meet someone, or know someone already, that needs the reminder the children of Guatemala are sending home with me… "You are NOT forgotten!"
Thank you Shoes for Orphan Souls for making this trip possible!!!
