The word that makes us all cringe....

Forgiveness…

It’s interesting the kind of emotions one word can stir up in a heart… You would think this word would bring to us fond memories of relationships restored, marriages saved, hearts that are happy. But often times…when this word finds it’s way to us through an article, a book, a blog, or the bible… it smacks us in the face with pain. Maybe because we have refused to offer it to someone in our lives, maybe because we have sought it from another and they have walked away, or maybe because we don’t believe it can fully restore not only a relationship but our own heart… so we hold it tight and we do not give it freely. This results in that heavy sigh we let out EVERYTIME we run into the road of forgiveness.

I put out a “disclaimer” a few days ago J So as I continue to blog be aware… I plan on being honest… I’m working towards living authentically…. Meaning I’m the first to share my insecurities and weaknesses.  I hope at the end of the day If I see you at Target or the gas station you can still look me in the eyes … haha!

Ok back to “THE word”….

I think it’s safe to say that each one of us..at some point in our lives .. have put another person on the “grading scale” of forgiveness.  Depending on the “sin”  and the type of pain they poured upon you… determines the level, or amount of forgiveness we are willing to give. You know what I’m talking about… the “ I forgive but I wont forget” kind… or the “I’ll forgive you but it’s gonna take years to build back my trust”… or how about this one… “I can’t forgive until they apologize”…. We forgive with condition…

Another dangerous road in the forgiveness journey is the path that results in never being the first to say we are “sorry”… Ya know the conversation where you admit you were both wrong but you never actually say the words… you never ask for the “pardon”.  Most of the words that come from our mouth are reasons for our mistakes, excuses for our feelings. Admission to many of us is a sign of weakness…

You may be wondering what any of this has to do with TRS….

I can remember the first time I saw TRUE forgiveness in action. The kind without condition, the kind that holds no record of wrong.

There is a brother and sister that live in our center. I won’t say their names as I hope to protect their privacy… but they were 10 and 7 when they came to live at The Covering. You could tell they had a deep love for one another. They never left each others sight. When I got their background information, I sat in my office and cried. The abuse they had endured was more than my heart and head could process. Their mother sacrificed their innocence for food, their future for immediate necessities. They were left alone most of the time while she spent her days and nights with men… trying to make a buck.  Take note…the mother had not always been this way. For the first several years of their life, the children had both a mother and a father… they lived in a family. After their father died, their mother began walking a dark road…and the children were forced to live with those consequences.

I remember meeting these children for the first time thinking… “Wow, how will they ever recover… talk about needing therapy, counseling… how will they ever get past what she has done to them.”

About a year later I was visiting the center… sitting outside in the courtyard watching the kids playing soccer. It was a Sunday afternoon, Visitation Day.  One by one, very sporadically…. A birth parent or relative, would walk through the gates, sign in with the guard, and wait patiently, as their child made their way to the bench under the tree for their monthly visit.  This was the day I saw the beauty of forgiveness in action.

A small-framed, thin, but beautiful woman walked through the gate.  You could tell she was shy, and very uncertain of herself. She signed in and sat down. Her hands carefully made their way to her lap as she pressed and smoothed out her dress..nervously repositioning her head wrap, a sad expression across her face.  She sat there for about 10 minutes as I watched her from afar… not knowing who she was at the time.  Then from across the yard, I saw them…. the children… sibling 1 and 2… came barreling down the stairs… ran across the concrete… barefoot and smiling from ear to ear… as they threw their arms around her they almost knocked her right off the bench. As they embraced the woman cried tears… the silent kind, .. the "big enough to fill an ocean" kind..rocking back and forth… with that relieved smile etched across her face.

My first initial thought was “What the heck!”  Do they realize who they are hugging? Do they remember what that woman has done to them, how she almost ruined their lives?.”  I need to send her away… they don’t need to see her… it will destroy the progress that has been made in their restoration. They don’t need to recall those memories”….

What a jerk huh. It was at that moment God smacked me in the face with THE word. F.O.R.G.I.V.E.N.E.S.S

I felt him reprimand me as he made it clear to me…part of their healing process is to accept the power of forgiveness… not only for their heart … but for hers.

I cannot restore a broken heart, and honestly neither can he… if we don’t let forgiveness in and if we refuse to give it away. I guess that is where our will and choice comes in.

Watching those children embrace their hurt, embrace their mother, and let it all go… ALL at the same time.. with no condition… knowing very shortly she would walk out of their lives again.. reminded me of my own insecurities and hurts I have held so tightly to..and how important it is that I learn a lesson from these beautiful children… It was time I thought and acted as a child again…it was time I let him stitch the scars in my heart and more importantly, realize the scars I have given others.

One of my hopes for this year, 2012, is that I keep no record of wrongs, and that I can embrace those who have hurt me. I also pray I can make right the relationships that have suffered along the way. I want to model the faith and love the children of Sierra Leone have showed me. I realize it’s ok to admit we all have those strained relationships in our lives. After all we are human.

I thought about ending this blog with a scripture on forgiveness.. or some famous quote… but do we even really need that?  We have heard them all before and still it hasn’t moved us all to action everytime we hurt another….I mean isn’t it  obvious that forgiveness has to be part of the human equation if we are to finish the race of life well?

Instead I will end with this…

As I have written this blog…I am overwhelmed with the loss of one of my dearest loves… and while I will not name who it is or what our relationship is.. I will say out loud… in the middle of the blogosphere… that I love you… I forgive you…and above all...I hope you will forgive me.

Grief.

Before I begin.. I should probably give a disclaimer to cover this entire blog from here on out... I have remained silent for some time on some of the journey we have experienced in Sierra Leone... mostly to protect the hearts and faith of others... or so that was my excuse... Trying to only encourage with each word spoken publicly... however, I have been in a place of stirring recently... knowing I am being called to tell the WHOLE story.... to be the voice of injustice... no matter what. In this fight there is no room for tact... for sugar coating the obvious.. the act of "sweeping things under the rug" is why our world is in the shape it's in... Soooooo.. having said that, you now have a disclaimer... and I have held myself accountable to share the whole story... no matter how much it hurts me to recall it.... and you, the reader, can keep reading... or you can turn your eyes toward an easier blog to swallow. Please do not misunderstand... this will continue to be a place of joy as we watch our children grow... and rejoice in restoration of the orphan... but I think it's important we share just how hard this journey really is.

Now for today's blog :)

Grief. It's debilitating. Grief. It throws you somewhere between moving on and the memory of what was. That space that seems somewhat like an abandoned field.. there you are... alone... traces of a battle lie all around... flashbacks in your head of what occurred.. you are standing smack dab in the middle of what remains...and everywhere you turn looks the same.. no way out.. just an empty field that goes on and on...

Grief.  Nomatter what the situation.. regardless of the reason for the grief... it rocks your core... noone is immune... it is no respecter of age, race, or sex. It can hit anyone..at anytime...and most often you never see it coming. Once it grips you... wriggling from within it's grasp.. is almost impossible.

Before Sierra Leone I'm not sure I would have agreed that some reasons for grief are worse than others.. I think I would have just assumed that all grief is the same... no matter the reason behind it... it's a response to a tragedy or possibly a heartbreak. Nomatter what causes it..grief is grief...it is what it is...

I can remember just like it was yesterday.. getting the call on Thanksgiving Day that my grandmother had been killed in a car accident. The shock of that news... watching my father deal with the loss of his mother... it was almost too much for me at that age. I experienced for the first time what it felt like to lose someone you love without warning... I can remember thinking and even telling others over the years... that losing someone suddenly was probably the worst type of grief you could ever experience.. there is no preparing the heart... it just hits... like a tornado in the middle of the night... you never knew what was coming or what kind of mess it would leave behind.... When you are forced to look at the remains of your heart... when you assess the damage .. you begin to realize ... "Wow... a freak accident... no way to prevent it.. nothing we could have done to stop it... it just... happened".

Years later, after my first few years in Nashville, I lost one of my closest friends to cancer. Sometimes when I walk down my hall I get flashbacks of the moment I got the call... I can remember sliding down the wall... tears falling and letting out a cry that came from a place inside I didn't know existed.  You see I knew that one was coming... After you see someone suffer for so long.. you almost long for their release. "God take them now... please do not allow them to suffer a minute longer." But how many of us are really prepared for that moment when the whole world stands still as the person you love takes their last breath. Thankfully, the day of her funeral, I also had my first session with one of the biggest songwriters of our time... Pat Alger... he walked me through the loss, using the art of songwriting... this is when I learned the importance of processing grief.

After experiencing the loss of my friend Elaine, I felt her loss may have been easier than the sudden loss I had experienced years earlier.... we all had a chance to say our goodbyes, once the reality sunk in... knowing she was out of pain and in the arms of her maker... seemed to ease the loss.. But then again, who was I really kidding... I quickly took on the opinion that all grief was the same.... no matter the circumstance. It hurts... we bleed... it leaves permanent scars.

Then I began working in Sierra Leone.

I have now learned and taken the strong opinion... that all grief is not the same.. I was wrong... I was wrong because I was inexperienced in the sufferings of the world... I guess God decided to give me a taste of his grief.. and he showed me a glimpse of it using "loss due to injustice" as his example.

I have watched children... of bones... little flesh... die right in front of my eyes. They had no last words, only sucking noises, one of the last sign of starvation. I have seen birthmothers collapse in the hospital floor  ..broken... weeping over the loss... not only because it was her child.. but because it was her 3rd, 4th, or 5th child that she has buried. You see starvation is a senseless way to die... a preventable death is something you just cannot swallow. It's haunting..especially when you witness it in person.

I look at our last year... When we lost Little Q... if he had been in the states... he would still be here. He had a cold.. and was premature... that's it. But in Sierra Leone it was his death sentence.

Then I think about Adama... again not ready to share this story... but her death screamed injustice ... yet her story was buried in field along the highway.... her loss has been more than I can bear. The grief... comes daily as I think about the injustice that imposed itself upon our family... that took her from this world... It is sickening to me.

Most recently Aunty Jeneba... a sudden loss... again had she been in a waiting room in the US she would already be home... recovered from her infection. Planning her son's next school year... her daughter's wedding. Instead, she was laid to rest yesterday. Her family left with nothing... our center left in anguish as our children face another loss in their life.

When the team left last week I was scared for them. I knew it would be a very difficult trip. They were coming in at a very difficult time... they would be seeing the loss, the grief... firsthand. I wanted so badly to shield them from it. To protect them... to prevent them from experiencing the grief... the pain of injustice.

God made it clear to me that was not my job... in fact I would be hindering his work. I knew he had called each one of them by name.. for this moment.. and he would walk the road with them... giving them every tool they would need to wrap their arms around the pain and embrace the hearts of those that were suffering.

At this moment they are on a ferry... heading back to the airport... to get on a plane that will take them back to their homes... and Im sure that plane is quite a bit heavier as these passengers bring home the burdens of what they have seen and a heart that has grown... And while I wish they could have been protected... it's their experience that will now help ease the burden that TRS faces everyday.

Ya know...I hear advocates, adoptive parents, and other organizations screaming from facebook on a daily basis ... pushing their agenda on what the world should be doing about hunger, the orphan, poverty... the list goes on and on.. If I'm completely honest.. I am sure at times I was one of them. There is a deep frustration you feel when you experience all this first hand and the majority of the world turns away and pretends it doesn't exist. BUT... I now realize it takes time... if someone turns away from this story... from the injustice that plagues millions... it's only because their heart is not ready.. and that is a journey between them and God... When their heart is ready... God will call them... and they will step forward.. because they will realize it's time to help carry the burden... living for themselves will no longer be enough... but until then... it's not our responsibility... my charge is to tell the story... to present the facts.. and though l've shared with you ways you can change the world along the way... the rest will be up to you.

I do believe that as we work together.. the grief will be easier to bear... while it will never dissipate...working together gives us the strength to continue... a community to share the journey with... Once we all get "home"... I'm sure all the grief will be replaced with the presence of God and the burdens we have helped him carry will all make sense.

Please know I am not discounting any grief... in any form... just addressing the different kinds... and hopefully encouraging some to do what they can to prevent the grief that we can control... just by giving a little of what we have...to someone who has not...

I also want to encourage you to reach out to those who grieve... it can be a very dark and lonely road...it is not temporary... it will remain etched in their heart.. but sharing the journey with another does make the trip  easier...

And for those of you grieving today...remember... when we grieve... he also grieves... and if he seems silent in the midst of your tears.. it is most likely because his tears are falling too.

Erica

A Place of Rest

Today was the funeral for our dear Auntie Jeneba.  The entire TRS staff, 60 of the TRS children and several U.S. team members attended the service and burial.  I spoke with Kelly and Lori and they honestly had very few words to describe the day other than, "It was very hard"..."It was a beautiful service" and "It is just the beginning of the grieving process for our kids".

Rest in peace sweet Jeneba...you will always be in our hearts and never forgotten...

Counting Stock

I was recently given some really good advice… I was told that when all is dark, and your failures and losses are giants looming over your shoulder.. take stock… count the times God has shown up…you may be surprised….So I decided to take that challenge… God knows loss and grief has kept a tight grip on my heart over these last 6 months.

In my everyday life… I hate numbers.. My son will tell you that math is my least favorite part of homeschool.. my husband will tell you I'm not so good with the checkbook….Ive never been interested looking at numbers on a daily basis… I'm sure many of you can relate! It’s funny how life works.. little did I know that when TRS began we would be staring numbers squarely in the face EVERYDAY. 

The group of us that give our time to orphan care everyday are faced with all kinds of numbers, variables, and equations….. It started with looming statistics…. 163 million orphans… 350K+ live in SL.. less than 1800 are safe in care centers.  The majority of care centers are operating in deplorable conditions…3 out of 5 children do not reach their 5^th birthday in SL…no wait… now it’s 4 out of 5… whewwwww okay this year we are back to 3 out of 5…making progress…

These numbers kept many of us awake at night… You see they were more than numbers …to him they were more valuable than that…

In 2009 we took the plunge…. Fought for 86 children living in an exploitation ring… only rescued 5…  painful….heart breaking… yet redemption for those 5… a gift that’s irreplaceable…. A beautiful restoration, God allowed us to see from the front lines..

By December 2009 we had 53 children in our center and 30+ staff… this computes to 53 children rescued, 30 jobs provided, 30 families that can feed their children… 120+ children whose parents now have work in a country where 80 percent are unemployed.…

Slowly the numbers began to rise…our first mission team traveled… 7 of us… the next team…. 14…

In 2010 our center was turned upside down by a ferry accident that claimed hundreds of lives…  resulting in dozens of families who lost their fathers and their children. After that accident our center grew from 53 to 85 Our staff grew from 30 to 40+…which included our first American missionary, Cari Logan.  This means an additional 32 kids were given hope and 48 more people were directly affected by receiving a job … resulting in food and education…a future….

Today our center is home to 92 kids, serves as an emergency shelter to children who are recovered from being trafficked, and provides jobs to 60 staff and children… this computes to 352 adults and children whose lives are counted… who have been given hope and who have a future.

Now many of you may be wondering what any of this has to do with the current team on the ground…

Lets keep going… just stick with me…

In 2010 we sent 14 people to SL. Those 14 returned with a passion and heart set to spread the word… In 2011 the number of travelers grew to 121… Those 121 reached the heart of SL through their service and commitment… they not only loved on our children but fed more than 8000 people throughout the year, and shared the hope of Christ to hundreds. Those 121 returned and shared the stories of our children… increased our sponsorship support by more than 200% and through their support… provided a larger building for our growing family.  In 2011 we also gained the support of 7 churches and had hundreds of thousands of meals delivered to our door from Kids Against Hunger.

This brings me to today….

As of now we have sponsors in at least 25 states… We have 95 travelers scheduled to land on African soil before July 1^st…  125 acres of land …. And the dream to create an orphan village …. Bringing hope to a new community and becoming home to 120 more children. The wells on our new property … will bring clean water  to over 1500 people.

At this very moment we have a missionary family on the ground…18 travelers on the ground… who have just delivered food to 41 families in the outside community… they have delivered formula to dozens…women whose children are dying in a local “nutritional” unit for the malnourished.   Tomorrow they step foot through the doors of the youth detention center… and will look into the eyes of broken abused children… Some out there may ask WHY? Why waste time in a unit or a hospital where the kids wont come out… Isn't that a waste of resources… to that I will carefully swallow…take a deep breath and respond by saying this…

Our charge as human beings… as believers.. is to share love and give what we have to the lost and dying world… the ultimate goal is Heaven… this life is fleeting… just a speck on the timeline God has for us…  So we better make it count… and love those who are still here… even in their last breath.

I count the minutes till I’m able to talk to the team… count the days till I hear the voices of my children over skype…and pray for strength beyond their reach as the team continues their journey…

This “Counting Stock” is not at all meant to discount our losses… they follow us everyday… there is a darkness when fighting  injustice.. even pure evil that threatens our own faith… our own lives…

This brings me to 3… lives lost along the journey…. Little Q, Aunty Jeneba….

And now 1…. My precious Adama…. I plan to share with you her journey but until those words come I will leave you with this…

Don’t ever believe 1 life… cant change the course for thousands… Adama proved she could…and she did. So can you.

Auntie Jeneba's Legacy

Today I had a long conversation with Quami.  I have been feeling so grieved at the loss of Auntie Jeneba and it is so hard to be here when our staff and children are so deeply grieving such a tremendous loss at our center.

Quami shared that the younger girls who were really close to Auntie Jeneba have been afraid at night and grieving the loss deeply.  The staff are all also feeling the loss and there has been a clear shift at the center.  A center that is usually full of laughter, smiles and pure joy is now a home where a family is bonded together as they experience the pain of loosing a dear family member.  Quami stated that things are very somber and quiet.

Yesterday, Quami, Osseh and Mohamed went to visit Auntie Jeneba's home and the children she left behind.  They reported that Auntie Jeneba was 46 years old and left behind 3 children.  When the children were young, their father who was an alcoholic abandoned Jeneba and the children.  Her story of bringing up her 3 children, her faith in Jesus Christ and service to others was remarkable....

Her oldest son, Augusin is 21 years old.  Auntie Jeneba was so proud that she was able to save enough money to pay his first semester of college fees from the money she earned at TRS.  Based on her salary from TRS, I am amazed that she was able to pull enough money together to pay his first semester.  Quami shared with me that some of our staff had actually helped her by giving some of their personal funds to help.  Augustin wants to be an accountant and is currently attending the IPAM University.  He is currently a member of Christian Youth Fellowship and a devoted Christ follower.  He is referred to as a promising child.

Rebecca Brima is her middle child and is 17 years old.  She has finished high school and is awaiting entrance into Fourbay College.  She wants to study economics.  Again, I am amazed that Auntie Jeneba was able to fund her education to the point where she is ready to attend college.  Rebecca's concern and worry at this time is how she will pay for college now that her mom is gone.

The youngest child, Josephine is currently attending Anni-Walsh Secondary School and is in Senior Secondary 1 Class.  Quami described her as a member of her church choir and a devoted Christian with great potential.  She is feeling the loss of her mother most deeply.

Quami was overwhelmed when he went to Auntie Jeneba's home to visit the family.  He was taken back at the living conditions the family was experiencing.  Her home was extremely small with her grown children, a sister and Auntie Jeneba all living under the same roof.  He could not imagine that 4-5 grown people are all living in such a small space.

Quami also mentioned that when he met the children, Augusin was wearing a pair of flip flops that were completely worn and unacceptable as footwear.  He was so grieved to learn what some of our staff are dealing with after they leave our center and return home.  He offered to bring Augustin some of his own clothes to help him.

I honestly had the same reaction when I saw the photo of Jeneba's home.  It astounded me even more to learn that all of Jeneba's children are fully educated regardless of their obstacles.  I wonder how they study once the sun goes down...how did they buy school supplies if they couldn't afford a pair of shoes?

I learned that Jeneba had a small business of her own in addition to her job as a caregiver.  She made gari, which is somewhat like rice and a by-product of cassava.  Gari is a popular food.  Quami said that she provided the gari to the center every Saturday as a special meal for the kids.  She also gave gari to all the staff that were in need and allowed them to pay her when they could.

I think of the constant joy that Jeneba had every time I saw her at the center.  She was always laughing, smiling, joyful and interacting with the children.  She never seemed bitter or angry that she spent her days working in a place where our kids never go without...food, clothing, medical care, education, toys...only to go home to a place where her biological children have to go without every day.  She was joyful about giving herself to our children at TRS each day she worked.  I never saw a day where she was not smiling.

I am amazed at the strong leaders in Christ she was raising given her circumstances.  She should be so proud of her children.  When I read through her staff profile, it stated that her dream was "to see all of my children educated".  I pray that during her last hours as she began to realize her time has come to see the face of Jesus, that she had some peace in knowing that she was part of a great family of Christian believers with TRS.  I hope she had some kind of peace in knowing that TRS will not leave her children alone...they are part of us and we will continue to care for them in her place.

If you are interested in sponsoring the school fees to help Auntie Jeneba's children continue in the legacy that their mother began in their lives please contact us at tina@therainingseason.org

Rebecca, Josephine and Augustin

May you rest in the glory of Jesus Christ, Auntie Jeneba

Auntie Jeneba, doing what she loved...

By: Jen Diers, Mother to Lucy

I sat on the edge of my bed. The kids were on the bus, Doug was working on his computer downstairs. My freshly brewed coffee with just a touch of Nestle's Peppermint Mocha cream was steaming on the little green table beside my bed. As I lifted the mug and took a sip, the words on the page soaked into my heart, into my soul, into my being:

"Let me prepare you for the day that stretches out before you. I know exactly what this day will contain, whereas you have only vague ideas about it."  

Hmmm...my heart skipped a bit of a beat. I don't know what today will bring. I can fill my date book, chalk it up on our family chalkboard and plan ahead, but in reality I have no idea what lies ahead. The thought brought me excitement and fear all in one. 

"Amma"  Lucy's sweet little voice from the stairs below jolted me out of my devotional time.

"Ok Lord, here we go...you know what today will bring, I do not. My trust is in You."

The subject line just eeked of bad news...actually that was the subject line: "BAD NEWS". 

I actually took a moment and opened three other emails before I had the guts to open that one. 

It was from my friend Tina and I just knew it wasn't going to be good. She's not the type of person to just throw around that heading without having just cause. 

"We received word today that Aunty Jenneba, one of Lucy's caregivers, died last night. She was scheduled to have surgery next week for an ovarian cyst, but developed a fever last night and died. She leaves a son who was to begin college next week and possibly other children."

Yep, the devo nailed it...I had no idea what today would bring. 

My heart flooded with emotions. I opened the picture and remembered the day it was taken. It was our final goodbye at the orphanage. Lucy was dressed in her favorite pj's ready to embark on the journey of a lifetime, ready to leave the center and board the plane to America with me. Aunty Jenneba wrapped Lucy in her arms, hugged her and began to cry. I knew she was joyful at the prospect of Lucy's new life and yet she grieved over the loss of the little one she had cared for every day since her arrival at the center. On that day, in that moment, my heart and mind wondered "why me?" Why had God chosen me?

Again today, I come to that place. "Why me?" Why do I get to live in America, with open hospitals and qualified doctors? Why do I get so much when so many others get so little? Why does a woman like Jenneba, who has the same deep, embedded faith in our Savior die from a preventable disorder, and yet I get to live? "Why me Lord? Why me?"

Today when the news came, my heart was hurt. I cried out for her children, now also left to be known as "orphans". I cried out for our children, those at the center whom she loved and cared for. I cried out for her co-workers. Women of faith who despite having an abiding love in our Lord, must be wondering when God will hear their cries and send someone to help. I simply cried. 

You see, this woman...AUNTY JENNEBA...well, she bathed my baby. She fed her and clothed her. She did all the things that today God has allowed me to do. It's just emails like the one about Jenneba...someone I have hugged, someone who cared for my baby girl, someone who cried out in grief knowing that Lucy was going to a better place but missing her in her heart before we even left the center...well, when I hear she has died due to something as simple as a cyst...it just hits me all over again. 

And this my friends... this is why I fight. This is why I will never let the country or the people of Sierra Leone leave my heart. This is why I have become known as the "woman who won't stop talking about Africa". 

This is why ... because Aunty Jenneba...well, Aunty Jenneba...she was our sister!

"Let me prepare you for the day that stretches out before you. I know exactly what this day will contain, whereas you have only vague ideas about it."  

Exodus 33:14  

The LORD replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

My ONE Story

This is a story that was written by one of the TRS sponsors, 

Rachel Britz from St. Peter, MN

Stories inspire us, teach us, move us. We have all experienced a time or two in our lives when that ONE story was so overwhelming, filled with such a powerful emotional feeling, that the yearning in our gut shook us and caused a movement unparalleled to anything we have ever known.

About two years ago our family began sponsoring a child from The Raining Season. His name is Musa and he is 8 years old. Like most child sponsorship experiences we first received a picture. Standing in my kitchen, I devoured every detail of this picture. From his smooth skin, to the color of his shirt, I just waited for the story in his eyes to leap into my heart. We tacked the picture to our fridge and thanked God for the privilege to be a part of this boy’s life. 

A short while later I received a notification informing us that we could have the opportunity to Skype our sponsored child from Sierra Leone, Africa. All we had to do was sign-up. For those unfamiliar with Skype, it is basically an online application that allows you to dial in (make a phone call) from your computer to another computer. It's like having a live conversation along with live streaming video to the person on the other end of the line. Absolutely techno-amazing! From America to Africa I set up our first Skype session on a morning the kids would be home from school. I was tickled. My children were clueless.

Then came Skype day. Sitting at our kitchen table we met face to face with a little boy on the other side of the world. It was Musa. We watched him blink and breath and smile. His face was so timid yet he was so alive. During our time with him he showed us pictures he drew in school. He spoke in English. He told us that his favorite color is blue and that he likes to play ball. Even through broken sentences, a story, a life was being put together through the fragment of time we shared.  In a short 20 minutes, our time was coming to a close. We waved good-bye, grinning from ear to ear. Then, in those last seconds Musa leaned into the camera and clearly said, "I love you!"

And that's when it happened, my heart shattered into a million pieces. Love sorta does that do you, especially when it’s staring you right in the face. It comes in softly and unexpectedly sweeps you off your feet. Sending $40 a month to help pay for an orphaned child's basic needs and schooling is one thing.  An opportunity to look into the eyes of some ONE God has given you the privilege to cover is completely overwhelming.  So that's my ONE story. What is yours?

Musa, the Britz's Sponsored Child

 The Britz Children