What Now?

This post is so late...oh well...

We went to Shriners on Wed. so that Zoey could give her leg back and have them do the finish work on it.

She had to do lots and lots of walking so that the prosthetist could make the necessary adjustments. He let her walk near the playroom so that Jake and Kate could play because it was a rather lengthy process. Poor Zoey....she is all about playing. Walking back and forth was so NOT what she wanted to be doing. She kept getting distracted and staring at what her siblings were doing. Finally he just had to give her a break and let her play for 20 minutes to get it out of her system.

I looked over at Jake and saw this:

Dude...your shoes are on the wrong feet AGAIN!

Leaving the hospital--back in the wheelchair again--drat!

When we got home, she laid on the kitchen floor and wailed, "I don't wanna hop again. Hopping is...is...so boring."

Bless her heart.

She was soon up and hopping though because, well....she doesn't have a choice unless she is going to be stuck sitting in one place.

She is counting the days until next Wednesday when she can go back and get her leg.

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I have shared before about the adorable little girl we saw there who had double prosthetic legs. She hasn't been there the past few times, but there is another child--a little boy--who has. He, too, has double prosthetics and is from China.

I have wondered about him because he has many scars on his body.

Last week, I heard the stories of both children. And ya'll...it is breaking my heart.

I met a man there who has a charity that provides prosthetics for children in China. Their website is, www.handreach.org if you want to check them out.

He told me that Handreach had brought some children here--and guess what? Both of the children we have met have been brought here by them.

The little girl, FeiFei, was left on the railroad tracks by her grandfather when she was a baby. The train ran over her legs.

She is now four. She is absolutely precious with a smile that lights up a room. It took about five seconds for me to be enchanted by her the first time I saw her. The website story is that the grandfather must have been mentally ill to do such a thing but I'm not so sure. I'll leave it at that.

The little boy--I would guess to be about eight. He is usually fairly somber when I see him, but on Wednesday, I saw the staff surround him, encouraging him and then I saw him laugh! A little while later, I watched with tears in my eyes as he tried to walk without his crutches. He wobbled forward and fell. Struggled to his feet...wobbled forward bravely...and fell again.

Our names were called just then and we had to leave the area so I don't know how long Min practiced on his new legs. But I know he will persevere and win.

This little guy's story is just as heartbreaking.

He was the pride of his parents--the popular boy in his village. A jealous neighbor lured him into her house, tied him up, put him upside down in a pit and set him on fire.

He lost his legs, his fingers and has severe burns on the rest of his body. Mercifully, his face was spared but he has patches of skin on the back of his head where no hair grows.

These two precious children are just two of many. The man I talked to said his assistant lived in China for awhile and has story after story that would break your heart. There are a lot of accidental burn cases because some families still use alternative fuel sources to heat their homes.

Many of the children end up being orphaned because the family cannot pay the medical bills. They abandon the child in hopes that the government will provide the medical care that the child needs.

The children then go to an orphanage and some of them are available for adoption.

So who will go?

Is there room in your heart for a child who needs a family?

Could you be the one to provide healing, hope and a future? They have no future in China with those types of medical needs. But here...oh my goodness...they have a chance at a normal life!

On Wed, we saw an older Asian guy in his late teens getting his prosthetic legs adjusted. He walked PERFECTLY. I was amazed at how perfect his gait was. He was there with his adoptive mother. And he wore a shirt that said he started his mornings with God and coffee.

How different his life would be if he had not been adopted.

Would he know that Jesus loves him? We have seen beggars with no legs on the streets in China. Would that have been his fate?

We are the hands and feet of Jesus, are we not? What are we going to do about this need we see?

There are currently over 2000 Chinese children on a waiting child list for adoption. They are waiting for someone to care. Waiting for it to be 'affordable.' Waiting for it to be 'convenient, easy.' Waiting for someone to come for them.

Could that be you?

Some of them are listed here: www.rainbowkids.com

Steven Curtis Chapman has a song called "What Now?" that I will leave you with...

I saw the face of Jesus in a little orphan girl

She was standing in the corner on the other side of the world

And I heard the voice of Jesus gently whisper to my heart

Didn't you say that you wanted to find Me?

Well here I am, here you are

So, What now?

What will you do now that you've found Me?

What now?

What will you do with this treasure you've found?

I know I may not look like what you expected

But if you remember this is right where I said I would be

You've found Me

What now?