A New Year, A New Life, A New Strength
A New Year, A New Life, A New Strength
“But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles.
They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not grow faint.”
Isaiah 40:13
Wow It is 2019 – who can believe that? In one more year we will be entering the third decade of the 21st century! As a child I was sure that by this point we would be living on the moon or at least flying around in Jetson type flying vehicle. Except for the modern technologies of computers, smart phones and the social media activities that come with them – life on earth is still pretty much the same.
We live as families, we eat together, we go to work and school, and share our lives with family, friends and neighbors and perhaps we share too much of our lives with all of our “friends” on social media! Each January we make new resolutions about the things we are going to do this year. To renew ourselves and our families. To renew our lives with healthier lifestyles, getting back to our spiritual connections, and generally trying to BE better. And I like most of you – am not very good at keeping those resolutions going throughout the New Year. In fact, I lose most of them around mid-February!
But this year I would like to ask you to think about another resolution. Think about perhaps not just changing your lives for the better, but to reach out and attempt to do that for someone else. To try and do that for a child. Just one child or perhaps two, a sibling group residing in foster care or a teen in a group home. They started this New Year out just as you did except for one thing, they probably DO have the hope that they can make their lives better – because so much of their lives are completely out of their control and someone else makes the decisions.
What can you give them? Hope and a future! A safe place to be cared for, to feel love, to try and trust again and to be trusted. To be part of a family, perhaps for a short time or perhaps for a lifetime. It seems so simple really, just say YES and not NO. Think about opening your heart and home to children who need you perhaps more than anyone else has ever needed you. But, you say – we cannot do this, we are not strong enough to handle all the issues and problems that come with these children, we are not special, we cannot do this thing you ask of us.
And we say yes you can. You do not have to be special to foster or adopt children. You do not have to be strong like Hercules. You just have to believe that you can do this thing. You have to trust God that you can do this thing and you have to be full of love. You have to care so much for our world and for the children in our world who don’t have what you have, what your children have, what you most likely had as a child. But it is not too late for them. It is never too late – if you say yes. You will make a difference in their lives, just by saying yes.
We will ask you to trust in the Lord and to find the new strength of a new year. We will ask you to come to the edge and we will push you off….and you will soar on wings like eagles. We will ask you to run and you will not grow weary. We will ask you to walk beside these children and you will not grow faint. Because you will be making a new resolution. One like you have never made before. This one will not be about YOU and changing your life. This one will be about a child. And changing their life.
Remember this – God does NOT call the qualified – but He does qualify the called!
Can you do this thing we ask of you? Yes – you can. If you believe. And if you say YES! Will you?
If you are interested in learning more please email openyourheart@kidscentralinc.org or call 352-873-6332!
