Joel Rainey, a frequent guest at this site, has shared a need that we would like to make public. If God lays this on your heart as a burden, contact Joel at joelrainey@wecare.org. Please join us in praying about this situation.
“Father of the fatherless, a defender of widows is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families….” –Psalm 68:5-6 NIV
For more than a decade, my wife and I have maintained a prayerful awareness of the global orphan crisis. We’ve had several opportunities to contribute to the solution by helping families bring their children home, orphan awareness and advocacy, and bringing our own daughter home from China a little less than three years ago. As followers of Jesus, we truly believe that the hand of God is in these actions, because He indeed sets the lonely in families.
Recently, we’ve become aware of an imminent need for a young lady in the People’s Republic of China. In China, children “age out” of the system at 14 years old. Once they celebrate their 14th birthday, they are sent out to “make it” on their own. For too many young teen children in this country, they don’t make it. The chances of kidnapping, trafficking, or some other gross human rights violation taking place in the lives of these beautiful image bearers is astronomical.
Amy and I are aware of a beautiful young lady who is months from “aging out.” In February, her birthday will not bring a celebration. Rather, she will graduate into the category of “unadoptable”. Her chance for a family, for a mom and a dad, will be gone forever. A large fee normally charged by the orphanage has been waived. A home-study qualified family could be bringing her home within six months. At this point, the process would need to be expedited to get to her in time. Her English is good, and improving every day, and she waits for her family.
I asked my friend Dave Miller to make these particular needs public on SBC Voices, on the chance that there might be a couple who stop here regularly, who have been going through the adoption process, and who have thought—at least up until reading this post—that you were years away from meeting your child. You may even have been working to adopt from another country, but you read this story, and you sense God saying to you “your daughter is here!”
If this is you, please contact me directly, and as soon as possible, at joelrainey@wecare.org. I will not try to “guilt” you into bringing a child home or push you in any way. I will simply pass on all the relevant information necessary for you to pray with your spouse, and come to a conclusion.
For security reasons, I cannot give you her name or post a picture publicly, but would be glad to answer any and all questions via email. Could this young lady be your daughter?
Thank you for reading, for praying that the Lord will set this young lady in a family, and where applicable, for contacting me about this need.