It’s that time of
year again…the Holidays are getting closer, and that means kick off for
Reece’s Rainbow Angel Tree has begun! I
love this event, even tho I advocate and donate all year ‘round, it’s usually
for a specific family. This Angel Tree
season will be especially fun, and interesting, as I juggle 2 families I’m
advocating for, and one orphan. My goal
is to raise $1,000 for him by January 1.
Without further ado, meet Kael.
Wait, what’s that you say? No
photo? Nope! With international adoption you don’t always
have the luxury of a photo, or much in the way of vital info on the child. This makes it much more difficult to raise
money for them, much less find a family for them. People want to see the child, look into their
eyes, feel a connection. Can’t happen
when there’s no photo. I chose Kael this
year for a reason, just as I’ve chosen all my past Angel Tree children. I chose him because he is the same age as my
Kellan. So the photo in my mind of Kael
is Kellan. But this Kellan is all alone, in a cold, dark orphanage, probably
hungry, maybe sick, or scared. My Kellan
is warm and cozy tucked into bed beside me, belly full of food, heart full of
love. He could be Kael. My Kellan could be Kael in that orphanage,
waiting to be transferred any day now to an adult mental institution, as is
what happens when they turn age 5 in many Eastern Europe countries. It breaks my heart. I asked God a long time ago to break my heart
for what breaks His. And this was His
answer. It is my hope that everyone who
knows and loves Kellan will find it in their heart to donate to Kael, in
Kellan’s honor. It doesn’t have to be
much, $5 goes a long way in an orphan’s life.
And even if you can’t donate, please say a prayer tonight for the
orphans of the world, that one day they will know they are loved and
wanted. (The link to donate is to the right)
Angel Tree breaks my heart every year. Scrolling through the faces, seeing so many
that I know are malnourished, mistreated, sad, and afraid. Why do I continue to do it you ask? Why do I torture myself by looking at them,
when the need is just so overwhelming? I
can’t, after all, save them all. No, but
I have seen their faces, I have heard their stories, I know their names. I cannot go back to not knowing they
exist. Proverbs 24:12: “Once our eyes are opened we cannot pretend
we do not know what to do. God, who
weighs our hearts and keeps our souls knows we know and holds us responsible to
act.” James 1:27: “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure
and faultless is this: to look after orphans…”
I truly believe that in giving me Kellan, God was asking this directly
of me. He used Kellan as the tool to
open my eyes, because He knows my heart, and knew I wouldn’t be able to say no,
not when it came to children, much less children with Down syndrome, like my
Kellan, that are without mommy’s and daddy’s.
So He will continue to break my heart, and I will continue to let Him,
because without Him, who am I?
