adopting a change of heart

Today I read an article in Homelife, November 2008 issue, by Marie Armenia. An excerpt is below:

Orphans matter to God. What are you doing about it?

In the past several weeks, God has been messing up my paltry little life plans by giving me a writing assignment that's tearing my heart out. Here I am, 'Little Miss Bible Teacher,' and I seem to have overlooked the numerous verses that clearly, emphatically, and repeatedly drive home the truth that God wants me to care about orphans. He does. He really, really does.

and this...

The United Nations estimates that there are 300 million orphans worldwide. Every day 5,760 more children become orphans -- that's 240 children an hour.

Four children every single minute, of every single hour, day and night for every day.

God says...

Defend the poor and fatherless. Psalm 82:3

And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts. Malachi 3:5

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. James 1:27

See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
1 John 3:1

From Mrs. Armenia:

"You are a helper of the fatherless. LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their hearts. You will listen carefully, doing justice for the fatherless and the oppressed, so that men of the earth may terrify them no more" (Psalm 10:14b, 17b-18, NIV)."

And this from Jim Daly's article, entitled "Growing up as an orphan" in Focus on the Family...

"In the United States alone, 127,000 kids go to sleep at night dreaming of the day when they might be adopted. They crave real homes where Mom and Dad tuck them into bed and where hugs, laughter and acceptance abound. Although 127,000 is a big number, it's important to note that more than 300,000 churches grace this country. Think about it--that's less than one child for every two churches. One of the best ways God's people can demonstrate Christ's love is by adopting these children.

"'Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world' (James 1:27). What does keeping oneself from being 'polluted by the world' have to do with caring for widows and orphans? I think part of the answer lies in the fact that as sinful creatures, we are amazingly selfish. Our American culture embraces a me-first mentality that rejects self-sacrifice. We enjoy limitless opportunities to entertain ourselves with sports, movies, hobbies and an assortment of consumer goods. Those things aren't inherently wrong, but when the pursuit of them distracts us from loving and caring for those who are hurting, we have allowed the world to pollute our core values."

Whew. That is some to reflect upon...

For more information on adoption or caring for orphans in their distress, go to www.icareaboutorphans.org.

A ministry we consider worthwhile to support is All God's Children, International. http://www.allgodschildren.org/ .