Maria

Matthew 19:13-15 “Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.’ And he laid his hands on them and went away.”

I often visit orphanages while I travel around Nicaragua. Children are everywhere with almost half the population under the age of 15. (42% was the last report from the W.H.O.). These are precious children--many hungry, unclothed and in need of care and security. I will never forget the impact one girl had on my life as I visited with her the first time. She came from a family that lived in the city dump of Managua, La Chureca. This dump is home to several hundred people, mostly women and children trying to survive day to day. “For to such belongs the kingdom of God...”

The first time I saw Maria she was a wild-haired and scary-eyed girl of age 8. Life had not been good to her I would soon find out, having been abused and beaten by her aunt and facing the certain sexual trafficking most young girls in the dump will face. I recall how she would not even look at any male adult and would cling to the house parent at the orphanage. “For to such belongs the kingdom of God…”

It was several months later before I returned to the orphanage where Maria lived. She had been in my mind from time to time thinking of her life and how she was rescued just in time to save her from a life filled with despair. I wondered how she was now…but God has a way of changing people. The moment I got out of my car and began to approach the home for girls this wild-haired and scary-eyed girl came and jumped into my arms. She did not know that I was helping support her or that I had been praying for her. What she had discovered was that someone cared and her heart was being changed. “For to such belongs the kingdom of God…”

I have returned to the orphanage many times over the past few years to share with this young girl in her life, studies and playtimes. I rejoiced this past summer when word came that Maria had accepted Jesus as her Savior. “For to such belongs the kingdom of God…”

Maria, like countless others, is a precious child of God, and God cares for each one-- just as He cares for each one of us regardless of our age. You see, we are all His children, and He is seeking us wherever we are.

Blessings, Rip