A Beautiful Story

I've been wanting to share this video for some time and, as I was preparing to include it in this blog post, I started thinking about how wild it is that I get to be involved with this family's story through Children in Families. Please watch this video and then read on.....



I've had the privilege of meeting Sam Ang and he is such a bright, charming, delightful little boy. I thought this video captured the best of what CIF is about. What struck me today though, is that when God first planted a seed in my heart to pursue the kind of ministry I'm doing now, one of the things He used was a television feature I saw when I was in college (I think it was 20/20) about the problems experienced by orphans in Romania who had been placed in overcrowded, understaffed orphanages. Some of these children went into the orphanage with very mild disabilities but became profoundly disabled because of the lack of stimulation, love, and affection they received. They were given food and water and not much else. I was struck with the need that existed for physical therapy services in other parts of the world and felt compelled to prepare to one day use my chosen profession as a means to love children with disabilities with the love of Christ. I am marveling that in my current role I am not only using my background and skills to show the love of Christ to children with disabilities and their families in a place where there is great need, but I get to do it with an organization that is actively working to reduce the institutionalization of children in all situations through family based care. Our organization is not perfect - we are constantly learning and growing - but Sam Ang's story is a great example of what God is doing through CIF and I think it's awesome to think how God has been connecting lives, weaving people like me and Sam Ang into His big beautiful story.