Saturday we welcomed two new orphaned boys Abdul (9) and Abraham (11) into our Hope’s Rising Children’s Home. These boys were living with their Aunt who regularly “flogged” them. They didn’t get much food, and they weren’t in school.
Abdul was so proud to show his friend (a missionary’s son) his new bed and plastic box. Did you read that right? He was excited to have a bed and plastic box. See, the children of Hope’s Rising each get one small plastic box. In that they keep ALL their belongings.
I can’t stop thinking about this. We have so much, and still are often unsatisfied, wanting more, waiting for our next material fix. And this precious little boy, without parents to love him, with little food, who was regularly beaten was filled with joy over a bed and a box!
The missionary’s son said that the boys were “lucky” because “now they didn’t have to worry about getting flogged, they would get plenty of food to eat, they have soft beds to sleep in, and they get to go to school.”
WOW
Ironically on Saturday (the same day the boys moved in) our family spent the day going through our basement purging of all the excess we have. We probably could do that every Saturday for the next few weeks and still have so much more than we need!
This is not meant to put a guilt trip on you, or tell you to go and sell everything you have. But maybe we can all learn a lesson from the plastic box. How much do we really need? What could we do without to help someone else? Someone who just needs the basic things: a bed, education, clean water and a small plastic box.
Kate
Kate, this really speaks directly to my heart. Last year, when my husband and I got married, we sifted through and donated our excess to combine two houses into one. But still we continue to sift thru even more as i think “we have too much and others have so little.” Your words illicit no guilt but rather a tenderhearted request for us to look outside of our world to help those in need. This is a great time of year to remind us.
God is using you and your ministry in such amazing ways. To HIM be the glory. We are blessed to know you!