I Am From...

So Maggie wrote a poem... 

and it was hard and it was good...

and it brought me to my knees.

Organizing her thoughts into understandable words is a struggle.

The effort it takes to transform those words into coherent sentences is considerable.

Taking that effort and twisting it into a poem is extraordinary but I have learned to expect extraordinary and while that extraordinary was celebrated, it is not what brought me to my knees.

What brought me to my knees was the poem that formulated in my heart, the poem that could have been...

I Could Have Been From...

I could have been from where the darkness hangs above me.

I could have been from where the beds are comfortless

and the smell of hopelessness wafts all about.

I could have been from where the green grasses are absent 

and the trees are only for those allowed outside.

I could have been from where the hungry homeless dogs 

overcome fear for food.

I could have been from where laughter dare not exist

and where love slowly fades into survival. 

I could have been from where faith is persecuted 

but Almighty God lives and weeps and moves and grows.

I could have been from where very little is wonderful and learning is not for me.

(Church) Where . are . YOU...

Y'all, this "could have been" for all of our precious children from Ch*na and all we did was say "yes". 

However, we did not rescue them, we are blessed by them as our "could have been" is just as hopeless, it's just a gussied version of hopeless.

It's that version of hopeless that the American church slaps some lipstick on while living their "best life".

Why does abortion continue to be the number one cause of death in this country, year after year?

Why do children wait for foster homes?

Why do foster children simply exist in foster homes never hearing about Jesus?

Why does the cycle of abuse and neglect seem endless?

Why do orphans wait for forever families?

Why do orphans and foster kids age out?

Why are we relying on a system instead of the church?

Why... because we are from where there are beautiful chandeliers and green grasses and plentiful trees and soft sofas and laughter and love and the broken is messy and we are not saying "yes"...