The Redemption of Souls is Costly - Psalm 49:16

I wrote to a couple friends this last few months and relayed to them my thoughts on taking in our newest children Puhn and Ouksa. My motivation in writing to them was mainly to process in my own heart to make sense of why once again we would be considering more children. “Why,” you may ask, “wouldn’t you take in more kids? You are an orphanage.” Yes, yes we are. But the question of how big that orphanage should be or how long we plan to take new children is a serious consideration as we look at the vision of Heritage House Home for children. So, again, as I pondered I wrote out thoughts .As I wrote, I wanted to weep. It began to be therapeutic. “How can we?” I allowed myself to question. “ I simply don’t have the energy,” I stated to my heart in that quiet moment.

As I wrote I considered how effective I felt we were being in seeing the children’s lives improve. We had at that point fed, clothed, educated, and significantly raised the socio-economic situation in which all the kids lived. All the Heritage House kids were much better off physically, socially, educationally for sure. Spiritually, we have seen fruit of repentance born in so many hearts ,and once where there were jealousies, fear, anger, hurt, rejection, we’ve seen kids who now worship, know scripture, make Godly decisions, and seem so much more peaceful and joyful than they had ever thought of being when we found them. But there were more considerations. Were they prepared for life after Heritage House? The statement that came banging at my heart and mind was, “I don’t want to just ‘feed’ kids.” That was my way of expressing that I just didn’t want to fill them up on all this good stuff only for them to leave one day and none of it have really taken deep root.

We had for over a year at the point I sat writing that , been pouring ourselves out before the Lord in petition over the older kids who were beginning to leave the house or prepare to leave. To those folks reading this that have gone through the season of having to begin to release adult children, you know my struggle. I am sitting there seeing each of those faces and wondering at the challenge of each individual situation, how could I go through the years of concern for each one, intercessions, handing out tough dictates, and even the emotions of so much potential good that may have risen as opportunities for many of the kids, but even in those situations the decisions that would have to be made to see them go forward were weighty. I had shored up my heart before the Lord relying on His grace for those kids, but could I take in more? I would have to count the cost again. I couldn’t just assume that a few more could dangle on to the grace I felt flowing for the others.

So, before I felt I had had a moment to really ponder, Lewis and Vutha were out the door and headed for the village in which these two little ones lived. We had been praying for a few days and I honestly thought that they would once again just be discussing with the aunt and village leader the situation before we’d need to make an offer to take them. Nope. Lewis called. “Hey hun, what are you sensing?” was the question. He told me that he and Vutha had left to grab lunch and that they would pray together and discuss whether they would be taking the kids. Upon their arrival back at the house they would be taking the children or leaving them there. I knew it was time.

Lewis described the situation and the utter poverty they all lived in. He agreed with the aunt that there were just not the resources to continue feeding the kids. So, the question that I had wrestled with that day was staring me in the face again. Do we simply feed kids? What if we begin to bring in kids hastily and they are numbered as ones who leave our care in 8 or 10 years and all we can say of them is we simply fed them. I didn’t know how we were doing on the monthly support needed to feed the ones we had. I didn’t know if we were ready for them to come. Lewis expressed he had had the exact same thoughts and then he stated the inevitable. He said “Kristen, we may only be feeding kids, but after being out here today, I don’t know what else to do. We have to bring them in. We have to trust Jesus to feed them and to change their lives.”

He simply echoed the Truth that was resounding in both of us. They must be fed. Jesus came so that the captive might be set free. He didn’t come to ensure that they would. Every human born under the sun will have a choice; to do good which leads to righteousness and blessing or not. But God withholds provision and love from none. If they will come, He will receive: He states in Luke, in the synagogue before the assembly, reading from Isaiah the very prophetic statement of Who He was; Who He is:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me

Because He has anointed Me

To preach the gospel to the poor,

He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind

To set at liberty those who are oppressed

And to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord.

Am I just feeding kids? I don’t think so. I believe the great commission is being lived out. His goodness must be preached. Will Puhn and Ouksa receive this glorious good news and be radically changed as well as generations to come after them. That is our passionate Hope for them. I have nothing in my heart I desire to give them except that one thing, for it is life and life not only more abundant but everlasting. To that end, the story will continue to unfold, but in the mean time, I believe that these prophetic words Isaiah wrote and Jesus proclaimed will continue to resonate throughout the earth, that Messiah has come. He has fulfilled this scripture in the hearing of all! He has preached the gospel of good news to the poor and He continues to call those ones to the fountains of provision. Yes, He continues to just “feed kids.” And I am sure that I am all the better off because He sought out and fed me.

Another scripture that burned in my heart as I considered what must be done is the one I have written at the beginning of this piece. The redemption of their souls is costly. I had to consider, and do daily, the cost of seeing a way made that others might know the Savior. In order to redeem our situation, it cost Him everything. Pray with us as we continue, and hopefully you continue there, to do all we can regardless of the cost, to see people fed. Don’t be hasty in your vows, but do be ready to be used.