Let the little Children come...

As most of you who follow me on social media already know, I just recently returned from a trip to Haiti with Coreluv International. My husband, son and I spent 5 days in Gonavies, Haiti touring the orphanage that Coreluv oversees and the brand new orphanage they are building. This is my second trip to Haiti and I loved this trip as much as my first time there!

While touring the Myan orphanage, the newest facilities that Coreluv is building, children from all over the village came running to see the “blanc’s” (the white people). Most of the children were without clothes, shoes, or underwear. In other words, BUTT NAKED! They were covered in dirt from head to toe and their feet were so thickly calloused, shoes would have only been a fashion accessory! 

One little boy in particular stole our hearts. His name was Watson. (see above picture) Watson was a child about 7 or 8 years old and had a reputation for never wearing clothes. Coreluv and their team had given him clothes many times, but he chose not to wear them. I guess it was cooler for him?! On the few occasions that he did wear the clothes, he wore only a t-shirt and nothing else. 

On the day we were at the orphanage, cleaning and setting up for Coreluv’s first annual Pastor’s conference, as usual, Watson came running up to us wanting to play. There was not an inch of his body that wasn’t caked with dirt (and who knows what else?!). I was sitting on the porch taking a little break from the work and Watson runs up to me motioning for me to let him sit with me. The native language in Haiti is French Creole, so I was at a HUGE disadvantage! He also wanted a photo taken of us so the above picture is the result of his wish.

My natural, human instinct would have been to allow him to sit NEXT to me, not ON me. But I heard Jesus’ words in my heart at that moment, “….let the little children come to me and do not hinder them.” Let Watson come and sit on my lap, wrap his little dirty, skinny arms around my neck and let him love on me and me love on him. LET HIM COME.

Those words that rang in my ears were the words of Jesus to his own disciples when they tried to shoo the children away when they came running to Jesus.

Matthew 19:13-15 (The Message) says, “One day children were brought to Jesus in the hope that he would lay hands on them and pray over them. The disciples shooed them off, BUT JESUS INTERVENED: ‘Let the children alone, don’t prevent them from coming to me. God’s kingdom is made up of people like these.’ After laying hands on them, he left.”

Jesus intervened in my heart that day too. "LET HIM COME. Lay your hands on him. Let Watson sit his dirty, little naked body on you. Do not shoo him away. Let him feel My love through you. By doing so, you will see the kingdom of heaven.” So I listened. And I loved. And I prayed. And I saw God’s kingdom that day...made up of little, dirty, naked children AND THEY CAME.

Many of you may not have the opportunity I had that day, but you do have the opportunity here in your world every single day. Not with dirty, naked children, but with people that may not look like you or smell like you. Or dress like you. Or believe like you.

But Jesus still says, “LET THEM COME”. Let them come to you for you to love them and accept them, to pray for them, and for you to point them to Jesus. When you do, you will see the kingdom of heaven because when you “let them come”… you see God. You feel the smile of God and the grace of Jesus on your own life. You see God’s kingdom in a way you’ve never seen it before.

I know...because I felt it and I saw it. 

All because of a little, dirty, naked boy named Watson. 

        

P.S. Please visit www.coreluv.org to see how they are building God’s kingdom in Haiti and prayerfully consider how you can partner with them.