LifeMission Family, When I moved to Haiti in 2018 and started working alongside a ministry that ran an orphanage there, I got the privilege of getting to know a little girl named Rebecca. Rebecca is the kind of girl that’s FULL of energy and joy, the leader of the pack, and she thinks everything is the funniest thing ever.
Rebecca didn’t have very many moments that she settled down and got serious, so the day she sat with me on a picnic table and told me about her family sticks out in my memory. She shared with me the few memories she had at home before entering the orphanage and mainly about how much she missed her Dad, and how badly she wanted to go home and be with him.
I remember feeling confused. In my mind, the orphanage was good enough for her. She was getting three meals a day, had a ton of kids to play with, could go to school for free and didn’t have to worry about anything scary outside those four walls.
When the leadership of that ministry started looking into the benefits of family reunification versus institutional care, it was abundantly clear that “good enough” in an orphanage wasn’t good enough. When God has entrusted so many precious lives to you, you don’t want just good enough, you want the very best. So, we started the process of partnering with a ministry that could help us successfully and safely reunify all those kids with their families.
Rebecca has been home with her Dad now for a couple years and it brings my heart so much joy thinking about what God has done for her. From a daughter, to an orphan longing to be with her family again but separated by poverty, to a daughter again - this time with a partner ministry standing with her family and promoting their togetherness.
There are so many other precious kids sitting in orphanages and on the streets today that have very similar stories to Rebecca, longing to be back with their families again. This year through our Mission Christmas giving and our partnership with Agape Children’s Ministry, kids get the opportunity to go home and be with their families again - and in my opinion, that’s the best gift we can give this Christmas season.
Blessings, Cara Ernest Global Missions and Local Outreach Coordinator
|