Galatians 6:9
Don’t get tired of helping others. You will be rewarded when the time is right, if you don’t give up.
Scripture taken from the Contemporary English Version © 1991,1992, 1995 by American Bible Society, Used by Permission.
Somewhere around 1980, when I was teaching kindergarten, the principal asked me if a first-grade boy could spend most of his day in my classroom, because he was not able to function properly in his own. The child was evaluated and deemed to perform on the level of a child of about age 3. So I agreed to let Chuckie play in my classroom. And he did spend most of his day quietly playing with toys, puzzles and games. The other children even accepted that this was what Chuckie did all day - that is…when he wasn’t eating.
I could not feed this little boy enough. Clearly, the only time Chuckie really ate was when he was at school. The cafeteria manager gave him double helpings. I fed him “snacks” for breakfast and again before the last bell rang. I knew that he might not eat again until the next morning. He would tell me that he and his sister ate “pasketti” (spaghetti)… but all they got was what was left after his mother ate. Chuckie’s dad was determined to keep Mom happy, so she ate first.
The Department of Human Services was notified of this situation, and a caseworker was assigned. And the more she did for this family, the more the parents demanded. One day, the father was listing his “needs” to the caseworker, and he ended with… “Oh, and we need a car.” The caseworker replied, “What color would you like?” She said, “This was such a preposterous request that I figured it deserved a similar response!”
Ultimately, most everyone who tried to help this family came together in a court of law, where a judge was prepared to sign adoption papers for the children to be placed with a loving, stable couple. The parents were ready to sign, until the judge told them they would never get their children back. The parents reneged. And a local pediatrician bought the entire family bus tickets to Pennsylvania, where other relatives lived. Those in the courtroom had reached the end of their rope… they had given all the help they could… they were exhausted and exasperated.
I don’t know whatever happened to Chuckie and his family. I probably don’t want to know. I don’t fault those who made the decision to stop trying to help, because they had given all they had to give… and more. Their efforts were better served helping children whose families were more cooperative. But I do wonder about Chuckie…and others like him. And I think about people in our own circles who exhaust and exasperate us - so we throw up our hands and move away. What happens to them? Do they find other benefactors? More importantly, what if God threw up His hands and walked away from us?
Here’s what I have concluded. When you are tired and fed up… when you don’t have anything left to give to others…you can still love them and pray for them… and that is something. But don’t close the door completely. Don’t shut them out of your heart and stop caring. There is always hope. You don’t have to spend yourself into bankruptcy. You don’t have to give of your physical time and energy until you are literally sick and tired. But you must continue to care. And prayer is a powerful tool…often the only one we really need.
I am grateful to know that God never gives up on me… even when I exhaust and exasperate Him (which must be a dozen times a day or more!). And I must remind myself not to give up on others. I am not looking for a tangible “reward” – and neither should you. It should be payment enough to know that we are doing what God does for us… that we are serving Him as the hands and feet of Jesus on this earth – and showing His love to others in the bargain. In my heart, I am believing that God sent another loving group of people to minister to Chuckie and his sister. And I am thankful for the opportunity I had to look after this child, if only for a few brief months. I was greatly blessed by this experience… and forever changed.
How and where is God using you in the life of someone who needs help? And how are you answering His call?
©2012 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment