Opening Home and Heart
Sometimes God sends people into our lives by divine appointment, and from then on they seem like family–extended family, at least.
One Sunday morning some years ago our pastor announced, “Jesus needs some innkeepers.” He explained that a few young people were coming as interns to work with our church youth for a year and they needed housing. We volunteered to be house parents to one of them.
When Mike called to accept our invitation to join our family, I phoned our pastor’s wife for some advice, since she had been a foster mom to several boys his age. Her guidelines were helpful to me.
“Make him part of the family immediately by giving him responsibilities– like making his bed and washing his own clothes. Plan things together as a family and be sure he knows he’s included, whether he can make it or not. Make time for him just as you would your own children. Let him know you love him as he is but correct him in love when necessary. Let him be free to bring his friends to your home, for it is now his home.”
“He will be a blessing to you, and God will honor your obedience to love and serve Him through Mike,” she added.
He was 23 when he bounced into our lives to bring us much joy and fun. He looked like a young Abe Lincoln with his dark beard and six-foot-three, slightly bent frame.
Mike would roughhouse with our teenage son (with whom he shared a room), play the guitar for our family’s morning devotions, talk me into hosting 60 kids from the church’s youth group at our house for a party, and leave his smelly tennis shoes perched on our dining room table occasionally.
He was flexible, funny and uncomplaining. He lived with us for more than a year. I prayed a lot for him, especially that God would give him a wife. Robin, a gifted schoolteacher who volunteered with the youth group, was the answer to that prayer. And when they had children, Robin homeschooled. Mike eventually went to seminary and became a compassionate pastor.
I’ll never forget the letter he wrote us ten years after he’d lived with us as our adopted son. He thanked each member of our family for what he or she had meant in his life. I cried bucketfulls as I read it.
Our enjoyable experience as surrogate parents to Mike led us later to open our small Dallas apartment to special young people while my husband and I–the oldest Bible students on campus–served them food, love and counsel. And sometimes paid their late tuition fees. Our three kids had already graduated there so some of the second-year students had been their friends.
One who became our beloved adopted daughter, Sharona, was born in Israel, and at the age of 20 had already explored 20 countries. After Bible school, she stayed on in Dallas to complete a degree at another college. She still came over almost every weekend to either eat or spend the night with us, bringing laughter, love and song into our lives.
In our campus kitchen I kept a prayer board filled with pictures of all our adopted kids there, some of whom had left after their graduation to serve the Lord in missions overseas. Sharona made us a sign in Hebrew to hang above that picture board: MISHPACHA—Our Family. Our extended family.1
Opening our hearts and homes as an “innkeeper” to those young people years ago blessed our family in amazing and unexpected ways. And some of them are still in contact with me today. I think God is still looking for innkeepers.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for extended family. For some people it means aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents. For us it is that but also the many young people You brought into our lives and homes. Thank You for the delight of knowing them and for their unique contribution to our family. I pray that each will continue to experience Your direction, provision, protection, peace and presence. I pray this too for all our kinfolk—our natural family members of all ages. I ask in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Scripture: Contribute to the needs of the saints. (Romans 12:13) Be hospitable to one another without complaint. (I Peter 4:9)
Footnote:
1. Quin Sherrer, Good Night, Lord, Ventura, CA.: Regal Books, 2002, pp. 84-86.
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