But that's neither here nor there. Now, it begins some of the most important news I will ever share. Please note that I wrote them, very tired, around 4 am last night. I edited tonight, but it's nearing 2 am, so I can't vouch for my own coherence, however, I double and triple checked the children's statistics here, so those are NOT typos.
There is a child, across the world, right now, who has a family committed to adopting her (I'm not sure it's a her, I'm only guessing). Little information is available at this time because of the sensitive nature of dealings with this orphanage. But this child... is in bad shape. She is fighting for her life. She doesn't know that across the ocean, many people love her. She doesn't know that there are a mama and a papa coming for her soon. She doesn't know that her endless days of lying in a crib, feeling the pain of hunger, bored and alone, in pain and ill... are coming to a close. She just knows that she's tired. Tired of hanging on. Tired of fighting. Tired of being in pain, tired of waiting. What reason does she have to hang on? What sign of hope tells her that the day will come when she need not suffer any more?
I first learned of her situation here, at my favorite blog. The author could not give much information due to the sensitive nature of international adoption, but I heard her message loud and clear: PRAY. http://theblessingofverity.com/2012/02/very-bad-news-please-pray/
My request to you, is to pray. Pray for the health, the heart, the soul of this child. Pray that God wraps her in his mighty arms and blesses her and carries her during this time when she cannot make her own way. Pray for the hearts and minds of the officials who make decisions for these children, that they will see her value and the urgency of her situation and do something. Pray for her to hang on.
And dear precious angel, may these words, these feelings reach you through God's grace - you are loved. You are a special treasure and someone wants you. Around the world, many people already love you and see you for the beautiful soul you are. Someone is coming for you. A family... of your own. Precious jewel, I know it's hard, I know it hurts, but hold on. Lean on God's grace while you wait, let Him carry you... the end of this appalling chapter of your life is nearly over. You. Are. Loved.
(My apologies, little one, if you are a 'he', instead of a 'she'. I preferred not to refer to you as an 'it', because you are not a thing, you are a tiny, precious, valued person.)
To understand the urgency of this prayer request, I want you to see the photos of some of the children waiting at this place. This is the place where this child came from:
Katie, age 9 years, just over 2 months home.
Back then, she was this little girl:
'Veronika', age 9 years, before coming home.
What a difference love has made!
Now, there are more children, in that same place, waiting for their families. Do me a favor. Meet them, please, just briefly. Look into their eyes. Say a prayer for them. Do anything except for nothing.
First, the children who have families coming for them. One of these, and I don't know which, or perhaps it is a child I don't have a photo of... is facing the dire conditions I described to you. Not knowing this detail, our only choice is to pray over each and every one. Please note that NONE OF THESE AGES OR WEIGHTS ARE TYPOS. Oh, how I wish they were. Also, for a size point of reference, most of these photos are taken of children lying in cribs, propped up in cribs or beds, in infant bouncers, high chairs, or walkers. None of these children are under 4 years old.
'Annie'. 4-5 years old.
'Mary', 5-6 years old.
By God's grace, all the children pictured have families committed to them. There are more children in this particular facility who are unable to be listed for adoption at this time, but whose lives differ very little from the children pictured.
They do not have dwarfism or short stature. Mostly, they have Down Syndrome. Their tiny size is caused by severe neglect and malnutrition which caused their bodies to stop producing human growth hormone.
(As a side note, many of these children's waiting families have blogs of their own. I want to get this posted as soon as possible so that it can be seen and prayers can be sent up as soon as possible, but I will track down those blogs and edit soon to make the descriptions under each child's name a clickable link to their family's blog, if I can find it. Please check back if you read this before I get finished.)
One of these children, or perhaps one of whom I don't have a photo, is right now on the precipice of life and death. Stand with me and pull her back to safety, back to her family. Pray with me. Put away your spare pennies in a jar to donate. I put eight pennies into an old vinegar bottle tonight. It's not much, but over time, it will pile up, and if we all to the same... it will move mountains. Faith, prayer, love, charity. These are all I ask of you. Please... Now is a time of dire need. It is up to us to pray the 'least of these' back into God's grace.
And from the bottom of my heart... Thank you.
Editing note: This information was collected to the best of my ability from public sources. Dealings with foreign countries and orphanages in adoptions often involves a great deal of uncertainty, sometimes from where your child is to what his diagnosis, or age, is. I have used the best information provided to me and believe it to be correct given the recent events where these children are. I have been able to find blogs for some, but not all of the children's families. Some families are adopting multiple children (up to 4 or 5!) at once, so some of the links may be the same. Please feel free to ask questions and I will answer with whatever is both within the scope of my knowledge, and allowed to be publicly shared at this time. Thank you for your prayers.
Editing note: This information was collected to the best of my ability from public sources. Dealings with foreign countries and orphanages in adoptions often involves a great deal of uncertainty, sometimes from where your child is to what his diagnosis, or age, is. I have used the best information provided to me and believe it to be correct given the recent events where these children are. I have been able to find blogs for some, but not all of the children's families. Some families are adopting multiple children (up to 4 or 5!) at once, so some of the links may be the same. Please feel free to ask questions and I will answer with whatever is both within the scope of my knowledge, and allowed to be publicly shared at this time. Thank you for your prayers.
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