Kinda Pierces your Heart...
Some friends of ours have adopted their grandchildren. The parents (the generation in between) have been declared unfit parents. There are three children involved. Right there, that's enough to make a grown man weep. The curses are three-fold:
The oldest of the three is the only one who really had spent any time with his parents. He lived with them until he was three and he's now six. The second and third were taken shortly after birth. The oldest is, predictably, emotionally scarred by this transaction. Today, at a rehearsal for a children's musical at church, the oldest kid started bawling. Not just whimpering, but let it all hang out bawling.
I picked him up and asked, "What's wrong, big guy?"
He said, "I miss my mommy and daddy."
Wow. What can you say to that? I've never been in his shoes. My mom and dad raised me 'til I was 30, and I plan on keeping my kids until they're ready to leave - somewhere around 45. But this... How am I supposed to respond?
I just held him until he quit crying. But there wasn't anything I could say. This kid has some deep problems. His grandparents are getting him to counseling, and they say it's helping. I just let him know that I loved him and he is loved by everyone in this church.
This was more than I was ready for today. With the Lord's grace, I think things went okay. He was able to finish his work on the musical, and when his grandmother came to pick him up (great-grandma in tow!), he was happy with life.
Jesus tells us "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." (Mark 9:37, NIV)
What I did today did not come from scripture, but from the Holy Spirit. I saw a little one crying, and all I wanted to do was hold him. Prior to this day, I've not wanted to hold any kids buy my own. Today, I wanted to hold him and make his tears stop. I really felt like finding his dad so I could show him the tears. "Get your life together, man. Show this child of yours that you love him! He is yours and all you can do is bring pain into his life."
But, I won't do it. If I ever do meet his dad, I'll likely just say "Hi," and mutter something unintelligible.
Pray for all the abandoned children. Love them. They are the innocents of this world. And when they act up, they need to be disciplined in love. Welcome them into your life, and you have welcomed Christ into your life.
- Children taken from their birth parents
- Parents who can't get off drugs long enough to raise their own kids
- Grandparents who should be celebrating and spoiling their grandchildren have become mom and dad.
The oldest of the three is the only one who really had spent any time with his parents. He lived with them until he was three and he's now six. The second and third were taken shortly after birth. The oldest is, predictably, emotionally scarred by this transaction. Today, at a rehearsal for a children's musical at church, the oldest kid started bawling. Not just whimpering, but let it all hang out bawling.
I picked him up and asked, "What's wrong, big guy?"
He said, "I miss my mommy and daddy."
Wow. What can you say to that? I've never been in his shoes. My mom and dad raised me 'til I was 30, and I plan on keeping my kids until they're ready to leave - somewhere around 45. But this... How am I supposed to respond?
I just held him until he quit crying. But there wasn't anything I could say. This kid has some deep problems. His grandparents are getting him to counseling, and they say it's helping. I just let him know that I loved him and he is loved by everyone in this church.
This was more than I was ready for today. With the Lord's grace, I think things went okay. He was able to finish his work on the musical, and when his grandmother came to pick him up (great-grandma in tow!), he was happy with life.
Jesus tells us "Whoever welcomes one of these little children in my name welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me does not welcome me but the one who sent me." (Mark 9:37, NIV)
What I did today did not come from scripture, but from the Holy Spirit. I saw a little one crying, and all I wanted to do was hold him. Prior to this day, I've not wanted to hold any kids buy my own. Today, I wanted to hold him and make his tears stop. I really felt like finding his dad so I could show him the tears. "Get your life together, man. Show this child of yours that you love him! He is yours and all you can do is bring pain into his life."
But, I won't do it. If I ever do meet his dad, I'll likely just say "Hi," and mutter something unintelligible.
Pray for all the abandoned children. Love them. They are the innocents of this world. And when they act up, they need to be disciplined in love. Welcome them into your life, and you have welcomed Christ into your life.
posted by ClayMan at 3:57 PM
1 Comments:
It is so very tragic, and it breaks my heart as well. We had better learn, as a culture, how to deal with this situation. Babies being raised by grandparents are becoming very prevalent in our society. And these children are robbed not only of relationships with their mom and dad, but the joy of candy-doling, spoiling-them-rotten grands. Sad, sad. God bless those grandparents...
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