Denton County Living Well Magazine Spring 2015 | Page 19

We live in a culture of fatherlessness. If the state of our
nation concerns you, we’re going to have to address this
head on. How do we do that? It begins one child at a time.
A few years ago, I traveled with friends to an orphanage
that we support in Vietnam. My friends had been drawn
to a young girl who had been abandoned there by her
mom. Before coming to the orphanOne night, I woke up age she was forced
tickets
and was led to the to sell lotteryto feed
on the street
passage of scripture her family. She was
that says, God settles a sad, introverted,
scared child. She
the lonely in might have been
eight or nine the
FAMILIES first time Kevin saw
her, but when he
saw her, his father heart melted. God wrecked my friend
through those orphans, especially one lonely little girl.

On Sunday, we visited church with my nieces. Our church
is large and has a security program where they take photos
of each child. They enter the parents and children’s information together where they can be identified when parents
pick their little ones up from Sunday school. Honestly, my
older niece was adjusting but the baby never smiled. Her
hair was very thin and coarse from lack of proper nutrition.
My sister took her to the pediatrician who said it would just
take some time.

Every six months or so, they would travel to the orphanage and spend time with her. Soon, she would begin to
see them as her family, even though they lived a world
apart. Adoption was closed at the time that I visited with my
friends. I saw their hearts break when we left the orphanage each day to go back to the hotel.
One night, I woke up and was led to the passage of scripture that says, God settles the lonely in families. I knew it
was a promise for them, and I shared it the next morning,
but when we arrived that day, the head of the orphanage
announced plans to put the little girl back on the street.
They were devastated. She was getting older now. What if
she was made to sell more than lottery tickets? What happened next still overwhelms me. While I was still reeling
from the news, Kevin looked across the table and humbly
said, “We know your love for these children, and we’re so
thankful for