This Christmas we received Gifts…
We watched children, abandoned at birth - left in ditches,
pit latrines, and tea fields but rescued by the merciful hand of God - preform
a Christmas play celebrating the birth of Jesus. A Gift.
During the short presentation, a little girl sat on my
lap. She finds me every visit and climbs
up. Who could know behind those inquisitive eyes and nimble fingers lies
experiences far beyond her 12 months? She came to the home plagued with sickness leading to death, but now she radiates life.
A Gift.
A small boy, dressed like a shepherd with a towel over his
head, tied snug with a pink headband, sucks his thumb and waves at me. He doesn’t speak yet his smile says everything. He came to the orphanage at 16 months,
significantly impaired by cerebral palsy. Today he runs like he’s dancing,
giggles bubbling from his belly.
A Gift.
She stands, leaning into a gold-colored walker, forcing her
feet to obey. Dressed in white with
tinsel woven around her braided hair, she is an angel. Last summer, she crawled along the ground,
frustrated by overwhelming limitations. Her last trip to the hospital, as she
waited, she sang songs about Jesus, encouraging those suffering around her.
A Gift.
He needs constant care, tucked in a wheelchair, anticipating
a push onto the porch that’s dressed like a stage. A sparkly cardboard camel taped to the side
of his chair indicates he’s a wise one. He grins while others sing, and his
hand reaches out to hold the air. I think he’s holding the hand of his Savior
that no one can see.
A Gift.
These children – found as babes in places no child should be, challenged by physical handicaps and developmental delays, the ones left behind
when families come to adopt, the ones ignored because they don’t fit the scheme
of healthy and normal – they are the gifts we are blessed to receive.
We thank God for the gift of life – the life of Jesus who
came to seek and saved those who were lost. He also was born in a place not worthy of a child. But God had a plan... May we remember the hopeless and
helpless this Christmas season and bring them the gift of Jesus.
Matthew 25:40
Merry Christmas!
hugs from the haugers Ooo0