Of The World’s Children

A Sunday morning somewhere in the world saw the woman being signaled by another. “Please pray for these children. Lay your hands on them and pray.”

The woman looked and took in an image of three huddled children; two girls and one boy. Their ages appeared to range from six to 12 years old.

“Who are they? What is their story?”

The woman was told . . .told the ugly story that resonates with countless other children who are accursed, disrespected, and tossed headlong into the societal rubbish that is strewn about our globe. Deeply troubled, the children have no set point, no guiding star, no clear direction for their raw baby lives. Physical, mental, and sexual abuse have been their instructors. Confusion, loss, and black abandonment are daily companions.

The woman grieved as she learned the little boy has never known his father. Never. The mother of the children are dead. The man who fathered his daughter, then had erotic activities with that child now fights for custody.

With stretched forth arms, the woman circled the three. “Come here,” she said to them. “I want to pray for you. Jesus loves you. I want you to always remember that. No matter what happens, do not forget that Jesus loves you. He’s on your side.” She prayed aloud as was her custom, the children standing still and huddling close to her. “Jesus, be the guardian of these dear children. Protect them. Keep them from harm . . . ” After the prayer, the conversation was of distances, and churches, and hope.

The woman did not sleep well that night.

Baby Born with Two Faces Considered a Goddess

Edit: Tueday, April 1

“At first I was a little bit afraid,” Vinod Kumar Singh, the 24-year-old father of the girl, told ABC News. “But then I accepted whatever God gives.

She is now two weeks old and the parents of this little girl have not yet named her. Understandably, they seem to be confused and are reluctant to accept the medical care that has been offered them. She has not been examined in order to assess her medical condition.

_______________________________________________________________________

All around us every day are both joy and sorrow, confusion and order, war and peace. And because we are all brothers, what sad thing happens to a family far removed from our doorstep, brings a tear to our own eye. Such is the case of the family in India where a few days ago, a child was born who, because of an error in the womb, is tragically challenged.

When such births come to my attention, I am reminded to be thankful for my health and Jerry’s health, and that of my children, my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren. A slight chemical abberation or a small injury as the embryo developed could have caused any one of my family to be born less than perfect. I am indeed thankful, and my heart goes out to this family and to this little girl.

She probably is a conjoined twin, and as more medical releases are made available it is possible her life expectancy may be considered minimal, although at this time she is known to be healthy. Some conjoined twins may be surgically separated, but because of the profound joining of this baby and the location of the joining, it may not be possible. Let us all pray for this family and for the medical team of this little girl.

The link here will take you to a video of the child and of the village in India in which she was born. She is considered by some as a goddess, and you will observe their worship of her.

______________________________________________________________________

My devotional blog is here.

A Dog Story

Nothing grips us as does a situation in which someone gives his life to save another’s, and when the saviour is seen to be a small dog, and when we understand he was protecting little children, few hearts remain untouched. Enter George, a plucky Russell Terrier, who was mortally wounded as he leaped between two marauding pit bulls and five youngsters. Called by AP as “vicious attack machines with steel-trap jaws and razor-sharp teeth,” George nevertheless fought them off and in the process was mutilated to such degree that the veterinarian to whom he was taken described the wounds as being the worst he had even seen. George must be put down. And so five children are alive and safe and George, the plucky Russell Terrier is dead. The pit bulls are locked away.

AP and Fox News

 

 

• 

 

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — This is a dog story.

It’s about a plucky little Jack Russell terrier named George, who stood like a giant against two marauding pit bulls and gave his own life to save five kids from the steel-trap jaws and razor-sharp teeth of the vicious attack machines.

Local officials say it’s also a story about the people who trained the pit bulls to kill and who may have fed the animals methamphetamines to make them even more deadly.

The tragedy unfolded Sunday afternoon on New Zealand’s North Island, in the town of Manaia, where a group of children — and George — were walking back from a trip to the candy store.

The rest of the story is here.

I’m wondering if all of you are as taken with dogs as I am–especially heroic ones such as George. I love all kinds of animals, but there’s just something about a dog and its relationship to people that seems especially dear. When I was a youngster, I read many dog story books–especially the Lassie and Laddie series. I can recall often walking home from school, reading as I walked, fairly engrossed in what often was a story of a boy and his dog. Jerry tells of the first time he read Where the Red Fern Grows. He was an adult, yet at the book’s conclusion, he cried.

My heart is touched this morning by the bravery of George, the Russell Terrier from New Zealand. The parents of the children he spared will never forget the priceless gift he gave them. I wouldn’t be surprised if his small grave is often visited by five little people, their parents and their friends, and that flowers and doggy treats and pictures are laid there. It is fitting.

____________________________________________________________________

My devotional blog is here.