I would like to introduce you to this adorable little Charmer.
When our Down Home team first met him, he was TWO DAYS OLD.
Along with last summer's move-in sponsor, O'Keeffe O'Brien Lyson & Foss, Down Home was able to transform his empty space into a baby haven to embrace.
I recall meeting his young mother, 8 months pregnant. Exhausted. Lost. Broken. Quiet. The abridged version of her story was intense. Second generation. Poverty. Neglect. Exceptional sadness in her eyes. Tattoos marked part of her tattered childhood story on her body. Tiny belly. Baby Charmer ready to make his entrance into the world. Time a-ticking.
I went home wrestling with my thoughts. Judgments and questions really. Lord, how does such a young life deserve such a burdened reality? Mind you, this was still in our own Down Home infancy, 6 months in, and an internal battle was activated.
"Do we serve her? What if? What if? What if?"
Then, I remembered her eyes. The Lord speaks through people's eyes. I look at my own children, and I can quite literally get lost in their eyes of innocence, potential, sadness, excitement, and I can envision their futures.
For those of you who had the privilege of awkwardly dancing (or better described as rocking back and forth) with your Homecoming dates to the band, Firehouse, in the late 1980's thru the 1990's, you know all about what it means to look into someone's eyes. If your memory escapes you, allow me to refresh.
"When I look into your eyes
I can see how much I love you
And it makes me realize
When I look into your eyes
I see all my dreams come true
When I look into your eyes."
That's right. I see all my dreams come true. When I look into your eyes. In my moment of questioning and reckoning, I had to dare to change three words that changed the meaning of this song and ultimately the trajectory of this young mother and Charmer's stories.
"I can see how much God loves you...I see all God's dreams come true, when I look into your eyes."
My internal challenge has been to raise my eyes to the heavens. Then, look into the eyes of the Divinely created families entrusted to Down Home and see Jesus. My eyes well up with tears right now in complete humility. I am humbled by the mission set upon us. I am humbled by the privilege to hold the hands of heartache, embrace the spirit of the children we serve, and be empowered to now ask the Lord, not "What if?" but "What next?"
The Lord has exposed a gap in our community. Time for all of us to sink into discomfort, squish our feet around in it a little. Get a little helpless, and hunker down in determination to continuously "discover" the Lord's mission and purpose within our own lives.
Charmer's 1st birthday is upon us. What a hunka hunka burning love! Doesn't he kind of remind you of Elvis? In honor of his special day, please lift him, his mother, and all impacted by Down Home, up in your prayers. YOU are an integral part of the Down Home story. Thank you for joining in the mission of empowering lives as we transform empty spaces into comfortable homes to embrace for families transitioning from homelessness into housing.
P.S. We are just a little over a month away from our Hoedown fundraiser. We invite you to round up a team for this memorable night out for a fabulous cause. Did I mention it's going to be at a Kick Up Your Boots kind of venue? Join Us! Click the flier below & Register Today!
Comentarios