{{ Reality is Beautiful }}
Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
Ephesians 4:2
Happy Sunday everyone! Today was the most amazing, beautiful, Christ filled day. That's everyday! Obviously we have are ups and downs, but he is there always. This morning I woke up rather early and felt called to check out the Netflix documentaries. I came across one called "Living On One Dollar." Absolutely AMAZING! A group of four students head to Guatemala. They experiment with living on just 1$ a day for eight weeks. This documentary took me back to Haiti. It was inspirational. It shows you the hard truths about poverty. After the students left Guatemala they had an urge to make a difference. If your interested you can help make a difference and check out how they are making a change in lives around the world.
So these leads me to tell you about my experience in the orphanages. I didn't know what to expect. We got there and there were at first no children in sight. In a matter of minutes their adorable, excited, and beautiful faces came pouring out of a back room. They were full of excitement. Energetic beyond belief. Filled with love and warmth. We got out our crayons, coloring books, balloons, bubbles, and bible stories and had the BEST time. I forgot to mention candy galore!
I didn't feel fully engaged with the children the first day. Which was odd because that's not like me. I LOVE children. I didn't feel myself. I was taken back by all the children that were there and how happy they seemed. I questioned myself 1,000 times. "Were they only happy because we were there?" "Will they be sad when we leave?" A series of questions continued to invade my mind. I felt as if I wanted to save them. Right then and there. I wanted to take them all home with me. I was crying inside because I felt helpless. That evening I was led to this:
God is the great protector and loving Father of all orphans.
Psalm 68:5 says
“Father of the fatherless and protector of widows, is God in his holy habitation.”
These children our in God's hands. They are not fatherless. He calls US to care for them. Provide for them and LOVE them. I was not there to SAVE these children. They have already been saved. God placed us there to simply love them. Be the light and care for them.
"When you have finished paying all the tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and to the widow, that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. "You shall say before the LORD your God, 'I have removed the sacred portion from my house, and also have given it to the Levite and the alien, the orphan and the widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed or forgotten any of Your commandments.
Thank you God for ALWAYS having the answers. Amen! God cleared things up real quick for me. The 2nd time we went back to the orphanage I was able to relax and LOVE them. I was sad to leave them but I knew that God would provide for them. I didn't need to worry. My husband and I love all of these children. We pray for them everyday. We ask God to lead us in going back to Haiti someday. We pray God will provide us with the wisdom to glorify his name in ALL that we do.
Meet KiKi. He is the most amazing young man. He can color like nothing I have ever seen before. He has a heart of gold and was full of so much LOVE!
My husband made me so proud here. Do you ever wonder if you can fall in love more than once in your life? Well... let me tell you.. you CAN! I fall in love with him everyday. Our last day at the orphanage Jesus shined through my husband. My husband had built a connection with two young men there, named Gee and Snyder. The most polite young men. You could see the light of Jesus all over them. My husband was extremely emotional when we had to leave. He wanted to bring them home with us and care for them. We know that we will one day see them again. We also know that those young men will glorify God and change the lives of others around them.
Me, Gee, Justin, & Snyder
I've never seen so much cuteness in my life. These children changed my heart forever. For whoever is reading this I ask that you pray for these children. All the children around the world who are without a sound home. Thankfully we have our loving father to look after them and each other to continue to care for them. I encourage you to make a difference in a child's life. You will not regret it. There are so many programs, missions, outreach, and the list goes on of ways to get involved. These children need US.
I rejoice at the beautiful reality that God is all around these children and is consistently engulfing us with his love.
Blessings,
Ashley
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