Prayers For – Page 40 – trippingdifferently

September 11, 2012September 11, 2012

Hoping…

… we do that all the time. We hope for the sun to shine. We hope that the roast won’t burn. We hope for the day to go well. We hope for our loved ones to be safe. We hope for the future of our children.

Hoping…

…that’s what this little 8-year girl has been doing for the last 4 years and is still doing now. She is hoping; hoping for a family to come and make her their very own little girl.

Meet Jessi – she lives in a children’s home in Africa and is HIV+. She is such a beautiful girl, isn’t she? i look into those eyes and just know that she could do so much in her life if given the right opportunities. Opportunities she would not have if she remains at the children’s home.

Her condition is so treatable, so manageable. Yes it will be a challenge to adopt an older child but this doesn’t mean that it can not be done. It takes a willing heart; a willingness to give lots and expect little returns, a compassionate heart which can care and care some more, and a determination to see a child reach her full potential. Of course, not forgetting a very important aspect (at least to me) – prayer, lots of prayer, for and with the child.

Would you join me prayer for pretty Jessi? Pray for her daily needs, her medical needs and most of all, pray for a loving family to come for her.

Are you thinking about adding to your family? Would you consider the possibility of adding Jessi to your family?

Jessi has a very small grant at the moment. It is estimated that the total costs of adopting her would be between US$22,000 to US$26,000 – i call the costs of an international adoption: a ransom for a child. Donating to her grant today would get her more attention and help her forever family reach her faster. Do consider contributing to her grant, click on her name or photo to go to her profile page to donate.

Thank you very much.

syc

September 10, 2012

Glass Children…

What are glass children? They are ‘normal’ children with special needs siblings.

i heard this term for the very first time a few months ago when i watched a TedX Video from their event in San Antonio. It was a talk presented by Alicia Arenas. She herself was a glass child.

This is her definition of glass children from her website, Sanera People Development Company:

Glass children are healthy children who have brothers or sisters with special needs. They are typically emotionally neglected, experience severe pressure to be problem-free and perfect, take on parental responsibilities within the family at a young age and have an overwhelming need to make others happy. All this while receiving little nurturing and support in their development years.

i like how she said that glass children are actually very strong because of what they have to go through in their unique family situations. But it was sad to hear how much pain she went through. Her parents, and others around her didn’t know, because she was the “perfect” child, she was a good girl, doing whatever she can to make her parents happy; she knew that she had to stay out of trouble because her parents were overwhelmed needing to care for her 2 special needs brothers. She always said she was fine when in fact she was not. She was dying inside, needing attention, love and care.

At the end of her talk, she talked about 1 mile per hour wind; a wind which is near calm and only slightly bends a little blade of grass, a wind which can change the trajectory of a bullet by 15 inches. She appealed to the people in the audience to be that 1 mile per hour wind and make a difference in the life of a glass child.

reecesrainbowHeather-3 — This is an updated photo – about a month ago… she needs her family to come for her today…

While you consider being that 1 mile per hour wind for a glass child, i ask you to also consider being that near calm wind for my lovely Heather.

In a way, Heather is like the glass child among other special needs children. She is perfectly healthy with the exception of that extra chromosome; she has Down Syndrome. But because she only has that one medical condition and very little other information about her on her profile, i think that she may not be receiving as much attention as she should.

This month (September) she turns 11. No one to celebrate for her. No one to bake her a cake, let alone blow out candles with her.

i am celebrating for her by doing a post for her every Monday in September; praying and hoping this will get her the attention she needs; maybe her forever family will finally find her.

Please join me in praying for Heather. Praying for her daily needs and most importantly, praying for a loving family to come and bring her home.

As you look at her picture, think about her situation. Could you be the family who could help her grow up into the wonderful girl i know she is inside? If you think so, then do send an email to Reece’s Rainbow to enquire about her.

Last but not least, she has a very small adoption grant at the moment. You can help it grow by going to her profile page (click on her name or picture) and use the Donate button to contribute towards it. An international adoption can cost anywhere from US$20,000 to US$40,000. A larger adoption grant will help her forever family reach her sooner.

Thank you so much.

syc

September 4, 2012

Known By Name…

This morning i read the opening passage from the book of Ruth in the Bible for my daily reading (or quiet time as it is also called) – Ruth 1:1-18.

It speaks of the life of Naomi and how misfortune had befallen her; her husband and sons died, leaving her and her two daughter-in-laws, Orpah and Ruth, without a hope for the future. It is a well-known story among Christians; it shows how the faithfulness of Ruth to both her mother-in-law and God brought them blessings and a future.

But the point of the reading today was not the faithfulness of Ruth, although it is important. Here was the statement which grabbed me.

For the author of Ruth names are significant. In Hebrew culture to know a person’s name is to know their character: the name is the person. It was terrible to have your name destroyed; it left you as if you had never existed.

Who knows us better than our Creator, the Lord God Almighty? No one. God knows us; He knows our emotions and what we do each moment, He knows our hopes for the future and the number of hairs on our heads, He knows our name – our character, our very being.

Now this leads me to think about two little girls, both of whom i only know as Arina Y. and Arina P. And that is not even their real names. i don’t know their real names – that has been kept a secret to protect them.

i think very few people know their real names, let alone know who they are or what they are thinking or what makes them happy. They are orphans, deemed unworthy by the society they live in because of their disabilities.

They need a mummy & a daddy, maybe a sister or a brother to come and get to know them, to love them, to show them that they are worthy and they have a future.

Arina Y. just turned 4 this month (just like my lovely Heather whose birthday is also September). 4 is the age when a transfer to a mental institution is likely to happen. When that happens, her chances of getting adopted and having a fulfilling life is very slim. This sweetheart has nothing wrong with her except she has Down Syndrome, which is a very manageable condition.

Arina P.is 6 years old and also has Down Syndrome. She also has a number of other conditions: kidney issues, various allergies and is far-sighted. All treatable conditions if she lived in a country with better medical care and a loving family to help her through life. i’m not sure if she is in an institution already but from the very short hair in the picture, it is likely she is not in a very good place.

These precious girls need a family to come and bring the home, to give them the care every child deserves, to be given an opportunity to grow into the wonderful people i know they are.

Join me in praying for them, for their daily needs and most importantly, pray for their forever families to find them.

Looking at their pictures, don’t you think they would be a great addition to a family? Are you their family?

You can also help by donating to their adoption grant – go to their profile page on Reece’s Rainbow (click on their picture or name) to donate. A larger grant helps their family to reach them faster.

Do also remember my lovely Heather and my little Heath.

syc