Yesterday, Ben, Brian and I went to visit the kids at My Father's Houses 3 and 4, while Megan and Kate went to MFH 1 and 2. We met Mama Juliette, her biological son, Sam, who had come for a visit, and some of the kids - Hope, Dorcas, Daniel, Michael, Ida, Edna, Lisa, Esther, and a few other boys whose names I have yet to learn.
We spent some time telling them where we are from and showing them the location in their picture atlas. They then sang Zambia's national anthem for us in both English and French. Then they asked us to sing our national anthem, so we did, but not nearly as well as they had sung their anthem. :P
Dorcas and Mama Juliette showed us how to make sheema, and we all got a chance to stir the pot. Stirring sheema is HARD! Mama Juliette and Dorcas stirred with no problem, but Ben, Brian, and I had to use both arms to stir just a little. I guess we'd better start lifting weights. :)
When the sheema was ready, the kids sat down for lunch. Hope prayed a sweet prayer to bless the food, and the kids dug in. While they ate, we talked with Mama Juliette to learn about how long she had been a MFH Mama, and where she used to live. As we waited for the kids to finish their meal, I thought a bit about how Mama Juliette had already spent time raising her own biological children and sent them off as adults to raise their own families, and now she's starting all over again with children who weren't even her own. What a special heart all these mamas have, caring for and raising these orphans. God knew what he was doing when he chose these women to be the Mamas to these dear children.
During one of our many football games, I went inside to put Brian's jacket away, and I saw Dorcas sitting on the sofa with a Picture Bible in her lap. I went over to see what she was reading, and I asked if she'd like me to read to her. She seemed extremely eager, so I asked her to choose a story, and she ended up picking the story of Job. I found this interesting, and wondered if perhaps she just picked it randomly or if she really knew what she was picking. Either way, we began to read together and she seemed captivated by the story. I stopped once in a while to make sure she understood what we had just read. It was interesting that she picked this story because, as most of you know, Job is a guy who had everything and had done nothing wrong, but was tested by Satan to see if he really loved God. Job had everything taken away from him, but he never cursed God. He did, however, question God, wondering why all this was happening to him. The lesson of the story was that even though God knew Job loved Him and wouldn't denounce Him, He wanted Job to experience Him. Job knew about God through what other people told him, but never experienced God for himself. I always found this to be a tough story to comprehend, especially as a child, which is why I found it interesting that Dorcas would choose this story. These orphans don't have much, and may wonder why God took away their parents, so Job's story may be hard for them. I don't know what was going through Dorcas' mind, but my prayer is that each of these children will get to experience God for themselves, so that He will be REAL to them. I am praying this for myself, as well.
Sorry for the rambling...hope it made sense.
In Jesus' Love,
Andrea
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