The Fatherless

⁵ A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows,
   is God in his holy dwelling.
⁶ God sets the lonely in families…  Psalm 68:5-6a

With the passing of Steve Jobs, much was said about his accomplishments.  Not much was mentioned, however, about the fact that he was adopted as a baby.  Can you imagine if Jobs had spent his life in an orphanage?  What would his life have been like?  I wonder if he would have ever met his buddy Stephen Wozniac, his business partner, with whom he built the first model of what would become the Apple Empire. 

How about Babe Ruth?  He was placed in an orphanage at age 7 and classed as “incorrigible.”  At age 19, the scout who discovered him became his legal guardian and mentor.  And Dave Thomas, he was also adopted!  Can you imagine the horrible repercussions?  Had he not been adopted, there might not be any Wendy’s!  No Wendy’s?! NOOOO!!!

The ripple effects of adoption are immeasurable.  Once we begin to speculate “what would have happened if,” the implications are overwhelming. 

November is National Adoption Awareness month.  An entire month dedicated to think about the miracle of adoption.  The United States is the adoption country of the world.  Families and individuals formally adopt more children foreign and/or domestic than any other country in the world, and that is something worth being aware about.  Adoption is a relationship so blessed by the Most High that He placed His beloved Son in the arms of an adoptive father when He came into this world in the flesh.  Adoption is also what defines our relationship with God for He adopts us as His sons and daughters. 

The fatherless are very near to the heart of God.  He repeatedly calls on His adopted children to care for orphans.  We find many passages in Scripture that exhort us to “defend the cause of the orphans,” and to care for the abandoned.  So throughout this month, let us think about the thousands of children who have no family to call their own.  Let’s keep them in our prayers.  The Lord, Our Good Shepherd, already knows their fate, but we should join in prayer and grow in awareness of their needs so we pray for the will of God to be done.  His good and perfect will; which I’m sure involves a forever family for each one of them. 

And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me.  Matthew 18:5