On Thursday we went back to IHNFA, the government orphanage. When we went last week a little boy named Angel stole my heart. I was so excited that we had the opportunity to go back again. I knew it was going to be hard, but I can’t help it. I left my heart there. When we walked in I couldn’t find Angel. I learned later that he has been in the hospital for the past three days with a fever that won’t break. Keep him in your prayers.
I played with a little boy named Franklin for ahwhile.
Franklin is 7 years old. He is paralyzed on his right side and can’t talk. I had the best time with him. We played catch and took pictures of ourselves on my phone. The joy in him is incredible. I have a lot to learn from him.
I went to a back room to meet Carlitos. I had heard about him from the last time we visited, but I had never gone back to talk to him.
Carlitos is 6 years old. He doesn’t leave his bed because of a tumor on his back that makes it too uncomfortable to be put in a stroller. To be honest there are not enough hands to hold him either, so he stays in his waterbed almost all the time. He can’t walk or sit up on his own. He doesn’t talk either. For almost two hours and sat in his bed with him. I prayed over him, I sang to him, and I talked to him. I fed him formula out of a bottle like you would feed an infant. I sincerely wanted to take him home. I wanted to take them all home. I have such a passion for these kids; I could spend my life there. As I was praying over him, wondering why he was made like this and where his life would end up, I realized something.
Carlitos has the purest heart I’ve ever encountered. This little boy’s spirit is as close to perfection as they come. God is so evident in his heart. I just knew his faith is so much bigger than mine. This boy can move mountains. It became so hard for me to breathe. The air was so thick and heavy in this room. The presence of God was so overcoming it filled the air. It was incredible.
I still feel like every time I go to that orphanage my heart gets ripped out and trampled on, yet I keep begging God to take me back. My heart is so invested there. I never want to leave. I’m forever thankful for that time I got to have with those boys.
After we left IHNFA we visited our friend Mina in the hospital. Please keep her and her family in your prayers. She needs surgery, but we are fully confident God is healing her. She was so joyful while we were there. God is good.
These are pictures from our time in Los Pinos that I wrote about last week. This city needs our prayers, but God is there. He is working. It is amazing.
