Matthew 17:14-18 NLT “At the foot of the mountain, a large crowd was waiting for them. A man came and knelt before Jesus and said, Lord, have mercy on my son. He has seizures and suffers terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water…Jesus said… ‘Bring the boy here to Me.’ Then Jesus rebuked the demon in the boy, and it left him. From that moment the boy was well.”
The little boy in this story was in a desperate situation. His father knew Jesus was his only hope to find healing from this demon. At PS I Love You, God has called us to be the hands and feet of Jesus to foster children in our community. We are to give the hope of Jesus to hurting kids that God allows us to encounter on a regular basis.
We don’t have the miraculous power to heal their hurts, but the healing can begin by meeting their immediate physical needs as He calls us to do. Healing can begin for a child in foster care by providing a new pair of shoes and clothes to be like other children at school.
Sometimes healing begins by providing a bicycle for a 6 year old little boy who came to the Resource Center Tuesday…..He came into foster care the night before, the 2nd time in foster care in 6 months. Separated from his siblings, less than 2 weeks till Christmas…..He looked up at me and said “Can I have that bike?” I choked back tears and said “that one is for someone else, but I have another one!” He was very excited! As he was leaving (riding his bike out the door), I explained who provided all the clothes, shoes, and new bicycle for him, not me but God. I was able to introduce him to the love of Jesus through a bicycle, clothes, toys, and a backpack with a Bible in it.
In Matthew 25:35b-36a, 44. Jesus says “I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36b I needed clothes and you clothed me,” 44“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
When healing begins in the heart of a child, hope is not far behind. After the boy in Matthew 17 met Jesus, he was healed of his problem and his hope returned. The healing we see at PS I Love You isn’t instantaneous, but we count it a privilege to point foster children to the hope and healing that only God can provide. Please pray for John and the many foster children across the country as they go through this Christmas season needing Hope & Healing.
