Reunion
“On Judgment Day, I’ll bring you back home – a great family gathering! You’ll be famous and honored all over the world. You’ll see it with your own eyes – all those painful partings turned into reunions! God’s promise.” Zeph 3:20
I am frequently asked how I can “leave” the orphans behind. I hold steadfastly to His Word and promise in Zephaniah – all the painful partings I experience will be turned into reunions. Our last day in Voronezh brought a taste of the verse in all its sweetness and joy.
We were scheduled to do a short program and deliver the beds made for the children – but again, communication and information was in short supply. Would volunteers from the team be needed to assemble the beds? Would team members need to paint them? Where would this take place? When? What time would we leave for the bus to take us to the train? It presented an endless stream of questions and a great deal of “we don’t know yets.” When we arrived at Semiluki and V had a chance to see the director, she came to us and said “there are only about 25 kids here and many of the young ones are gone.” My heart sank. My “queens” would not see me, and I could not even calculate or calendar what would put Voronezh back on my schedule.
We walked through the hallways, again establishing where our stations would be, when our program would begin, how many children, etc… on the logistics of having a good time – infinitum! It was not long into the walk before I heard the scurry of feet, a quick slide to stop, grab of my hand, and there they were, Natalya and Masha, my two queens. What a reunion indeed. I explained through my interpreter I thought they would be there that day. They both laughed, “no, look at us, here we are for you.”
The popular Christian song “I Can Only Imagine”, speaks of encountering the glory of Christ for the first time:
I am frequently asked how I can “leave” the orphans behind. I hold steadfastly to His Word and promise in Zephaniah – all the painful partings I experience will be turned into reunions. Our last day in Voronezh brought a taste of the verse in all its sweetness and joy.We were scheduled to do a short program and deliver the beds made for the children – but again, communication and information was in short supply. Would volunteers from the team be needed to assemble the beds? Would team members need to paint them? Where would this take place? When? What time would we leave for the bus to take us to the train? It presented an endless stream of questions and a great deal of “we don’t know yets.” When we arrived at Semiluki and V had a chance to see the director, she came to us and said “there are only about 25 kids here and many of the young ones are gone.” My heart sank. My “queens” would not see me, and I could not even calculate or calendar what would put Voronezh back on my schedule.
We walked through the hallways, again establishing where our stations would be, when our program would begin, how many children, etc… on the logistics of having a good time – infinitum! It was not long into the walk before I heard the scurry of feet, a quick slide to stop, grab of my hand, and there they were, Natalya and Masha, my two queens. What a reunion indeed. I explained through my interpreter I thought they would be there that day. They both laughed, “no, look at us, here we are for you.”
The popular Christian song “I Can Only Imagine”, speaks of encountering the glory of Christ for the first time:
“Will I dance for you Jesus, or in awe of You be still?”
This last day with the orphans of Semiluki, as well as my encounter with Sasha, the boy who had been moved out to Boguchar 150 miles away, reminded me there really is no way for me to imagine the ultimate reunion with all the orphans around the globe He has entrusted me to see.
“God’s Promise.” Zeph 3:12
