Home, but not alone

Sick, but cared for, but not street children …

“…always seek after that which is good for one another and for all people” (1 Thessalonians 5:15, nasb).

Recently my wife talked me into staying home to work from the house. It seems that a cold has hit me with a vengeance. Perhaps the cold is a result of my excessive travel and work schedules these last several weeks. I have had difficulty sleeping because of jet lag, but when I lay down after lunch, I immediately drifted off.

As I lay on the bed, there was fresh air blowing in from the window, the smell of homemade bread, the sheets were warm and clean. Margaret made sure I was eating well and drinking fluids, and to top it off, she brought me chicken noodle soup and bread that you could smell for a block! To say the least, I was well taken care of.

As I closed my eyes, I couldn’t help but see the street children I have come to love. What do they do when they are ill? Where do they sleep? Who cares for them? Believe me, there is no fresh water to drink, no smell of homemade bread, and no chicken noodle soup. There may be scraps from a garbage dump, but they have no energy to forage for it. There is no place for them to sleep in safety, no soft bed, no toilet or fresh air—only the polluted filthy smell of an unfriendly alley.

There are 160 million street children throughout the world. In the major cities in which we work – Lusaka, Lilongwe, Kampala, São Paulo, Bogotá, Mexico City, Phom Penh, Manila–street children simply exist by animal instinct.

Would you pray for ACTION and other ministries which are reaching out to street and underprivileged children with the glorious Gospel of Christ and compassionate care. We are praying for 100 additional missionaries from age 21 to 70 to work on the street with children. Perhaps you sense God’s calling to serve with our team among 160 million street children of the world. If so, just write or call any of us in ACTION. It will mean more to us than homemade soup!

by Doug Nichols