First Seen on The Fatherheart
This past weekend we had the privilege of attending a baby-shower for a place of Safety. Incidentally, this particular place of safety looked after our little one before he came home to us. Such a wonderful idea, getting a bunch of people together, most of whom would never be at a place to hear about the victories and losses experienced at a home like this.
Some stories gave you such hope and others reached deep within and had people questioning how others could be so cruel to those so small. Stories of sheer determination being found in the most unlikely places arose, from Corporate grinders turning their lives around to babies who in spite of the outside world’s desire to abort them, refused to give up, valiantly fought the odds, defeated cruel intentions and made their way into the hearts and lives of forever families.
But, and there always seems to be a “but”, what will result from an encounter like this? Even though many sat, listening intently, sharing a moment of vulnerability and agreeing with the mission, will anyone be moved from being a fan of the idea to becoming a champion of the cause?
I have two avenues I would like people to explore, the one is simple. It doesn’t hurt, it probably won’t even be felt by most and yet it will create something that may result in a ripple that will affect change that was never expected. The second idea, will require a little effort. I will need a few fearless explorers to go on a journey that in spite of their feelings may lead them into a future where their hearts and lives are rocked to their core, where they become partners in prophetically altering the course of people’s lives. Whatever avenue is taken, I am certain, a difference will be made and lives changed for the better.
The first option is something I have been mulling over for far too long. The irony of money is that no-one has enough, yet there is more than enough to go around. We tend to look at mountains and see the size of our shovel and decide the project is impossible. We believe that without the heavy machinery, we toil in vain. Yet Jesus tells us, the harvest is great, but the workers are few (Mathew 9:37). He doesn’t say the harvest is great, pity about our little shovel! Theres a saying that begs the question “How do you eat an elephant?” The answer is, one bite at a time. When the task is huge, we focus on the size of the whole and not the size of our whole. When things are broken up, the impossible becomes possible. Jesus shows us clearly that the issue we will face is not the harvest or the task but the manpower.
The idea of funding homes, adoptions, medical costs etc in the process of adopting is huge and we typically rely on big business, corporates, to come to the party and donate through events, golf days, fundraisers etc. Mostly for the incentive of tax breaks or corporate noddy badges that tell every one that you’re a “Good guy”. Don’t get me wrong, this needs to continue and if this is you, from the bottom of my heart thank you!
But what about you and me?
What about giving up 2 cappuccinos once a month? What if your decrease in caffeine resulted in you being a part of the greatest fund raising initiative since the lottery. What if you could be a part of effecting massive change from the comfort of your closed circle of friends. What if you could see on a monthly basis that you were a part of supplying thousands of nappies, formula, medicines, food, homes, caregivers or whatever else is needed.
I want to start a fund! It’s called the fatherheart fund. It starts with me picking 10 people plus me, so 11, and then having those 10 each find 10 more. Basically a pyramid scheme approach with the beneficiaries being places of safety and orphans. Before your discredit the idea, think about this, if I get 10, those 10 get 10 each and then those 10 find themselves 10 each, with only going to the third tier, the fund is generating over R50 000.00 per month. That’s over half a million every year aimed directly at the needs arising out of these homes and the adoption process. BOOM! All of a sudden, with the increase in shovels, moving the mountain may still be difficult, but it’s no longer impossible.
Let me have your thoughts, this is happening and I’d love input!
The second avenue, yup the harder route is this. Even though I don’t believe everyone should adopt, I do believe everyone should consider adoption. I have found that even though some say “I could never do what you’re doing” or “That’s not for us” my experience is that no-one actually puts any real effort into putting themselves in the position of meeting one of these little super stars, no-one does any reading or active inquiring into whether they actually could do what others do. The response to adoption is often knee jerk, based on opinion and a faulty belief in our own financial and emotional capacity.
I’m not saying you must, I believe you should, but at least put some thought into your response. take a look at the following:
Give them a call, find out what they’re about, can you help, how can you help. You’d be amazed at how your capacity grows. It’s like a muscle, work it a bit and it grows, you look and feel better and life takes on a whole new meaning.
