{"id":75,"date":"2011-01-14T10:06:53","date_gmt":"2011-01-14T10:06:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/activistfaith\/2011\/01\/the-orphan-i-am-a-theology-of-adoption.html"},"modified":"2011-01-14T10:06:53","modified_gmt":"2011-01-14T10:06:53","slug":"the-orphan-i-am-a-theology-of-adoption","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/activistfaith\/2011\/01\/the-orphan-i-am-a-theology-of-adoption.html","title":{"rendered":"The Orphan I Am [A Theology of Adoption]"},"content":{"rendered":"

Orphan care is a huge issue for all people, and should especially be close the the heart of those who claim to follow Jesus. Activist Faith co-founder Dan King share a great article to pass along on his experiences in this area:<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

It’s always been easy for me to overlook the orphan care epidemic as
\nsomething that ‘other people’ are working on. And because the Bible
\ntalks a lot about taking care of the fatherless and the orphan, I’ve
\nalways considered their work admirable… and potentially<\/em> worthy of support.<\/p>\n

That is until I spent some time with a group of orphans in Haiti.<\/p>\n

Haiti has always had an overwhelming number of orphans, but the
\nearthquake on January 12th, 2010 opened the floodgates of children left
\nparentless.<\/p>\n

Of course I felt bad for the kids, but it was the soft heart of my
\nseven-year old son that made me realize that I needed to do something
\nmore.<\/p>\n

In the weeks after the earthquake, my son would come downstairs in
\ntears hours after going to bed. We asked what was wrong, and he told his
\nmother and I that he wanted to pray. And when we asked what he wanted
\nto pray for, his tear-filled response was…<\/p>\n

\n

I want to pray for all of the little boys and girls
\nwho don’t have a mommy and daddy anymore and have to sleep outside
\ntonight because of the earthquake.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It didn’t take me long to realize that it was time for me to set my excuses aside. It was time for me to take action.<\/p>\n

Why now?<\/p>\n

Because I started seeing the heart of God manifesting itself through my very own child.<\/p>\n

Since that time, our family has been dedicated to making a bigger difference<\/a>. I went on a mission trip to Haiti<\/a>
\nin August, and stayed at a boys orphanage housing about 50 kids. Our
\nteam built some strong connections with those boys. Watching them cry
\nwhen we left was one of the most difficult things that I’ve had to do…
\never.<\/p>\n

It was a difficult time because they rarely get the kind of love that
\nwe showered on them that week. Their caretakers took good care of them,
\nat least as much as their means allowed (one meal every other day). But
\nthe few adults that provided for them is no replacement for the love of
\na parent.<\/p>\n

A simple hug becomes a rare special event for these children.<\/p>\n

This is a stark contrast to the life of my child (and so many others
\nin the U.S.). When I got home, we would get (and give) more than our
\nfair share of hugs. We’d get to cuddle on the couch while relaxing and
\nwatching TV together. We’d do all kinds of things that those kids back
\ndown in Haiti would probably never get from an adult in their life.<\/p>\n

This made me think…<\/em><\/p>\n

Isn’t that what we are spiritually without God? Aren’t we all orphans
\nwandering this earth with little to no hope of ever experiencing True
\nLove?<\/p>\n

But as Christians we’re adopted into the greatest family of all… by
\nthe greatest Father we could imagine! And when we’re adopted into that
\nfamily, we get to have more than our fair share<\/em> of hugs from the Creator Who IS<\/em> Love!<\/p>\n

And that’s really why I believe that this whole issue of orphan care is so important for the church to get a hold of.<\/p>\n

We’ve been given a new life, and it’s a life full of hope and a with a
\ngreat future. We no longer have to suffer alone, but get to experience
\nthe great joy that comes with being in a family like ours.<\/p>\n

The best part is that we have the ability to share this hope with
\nothers. Not only spiritually, but also physically and emotionally.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

+++<\/p>\n

Read the original post or more from Dan here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

+++<\/p>\n

DILLON
\nBURROUGHS is an author, activist, and co-founder of Activist Faith.
\nDillon served in Haiti following the epic 2010 earthquake and has
\ninvestigated modern slavery in the US and internationally. His books
\ninclude Undefending Christianity, Not in My Town (with Charles J.
\nPowell), and Thirst No More (October). Discover more at DillonBurroughs.org<\/a>. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Orphan care is a huge issue for all people, and should especially be close the the heart of those who claim to follow Jesus. 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