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| Rita & Aidan (our 6 year old) |
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| Michelle & Rita: making egg fried rice |
"Rita" & "Michelle" are 12 & 13 years old. They were here in the USA for 4 weeks with their school. They spent 2 of those weeks with us and the other 2 weeks in NYC & Boston. I couldn't get over the fact that they were so young and yet their families had sent them here for 4 WEEKS. I kept asking them if they missed their familes and they were like, "What? No. We not miss our families." Their English was pretty good, but still not good enough to have real conversations, so we learned very little about their lives while they were here. When I would pick them up from school every afternoon, they would come running to our car, so happy to see us. They wanted to skip out on some of their field trips just to be with us. We bonded with these girls and loved every second of our time with them. They were in class and on field trips during the weekdays, but they were home with us in the evenings & all day on Sunday. SO we took that opportunity and were thrilled to be able to bring them to church with us. I went to the Christian bookstore to purchase them some Chinese New Testaments, but they didn't have any. They did however have the gospel of John. So I purchased 2 of them and prayed that the pastor (who happened to be a guest speaker that day) would be teaching from John. Not only was his message from John, he challenged the congregation to take a leap of faith and follow God's leading in our lives. He even said, "For some of you, the Lord may be calling you to adopt. What are you waiting for?" I looked down our row that day and there sat 5 Chinese girls. 2 of them were our exchange students and the other 3 were Olivia and her 2 sisters and their family. How God weaves His plans for our lives is so miraculous. I was so overwhelmed with His love and kindness towards me. That He would use a sinner like me, put a dream in my heart, and show us so clearly what we were to do is beyond any words I can find... Only God.
As I was driving the girls to the school on that last morning, I asked them if they knew who Jesus was. Rita had bought Ansley some cross earrings while she was at Universal Studios and Alex a cross necklace. She even caught on to family prayers and initiated one evening. So I was not completely surprised when she answered, "Yes." Michelle said that she did not know who Jesus was. I asked Rita if she went to church in China and she said, "Yes." I was shocked, so I repeated myself & said, "Really? Is your family Christian?" And she said, "Yes! Really!" I still wonder if she understood my questions, but who knows, maybe they are believers. Regardless, the Lord brought these girls into our lives and I will pray for them for the rest of my life. They got a taste of His goodness while in our home and at our church. I pray that it was enough for them to keep searching.
Rita has called me almost every single day since the day she left our house last July. I love hearing her sweet voice on the phone and her giggles when she can't find the right words. Her English has improved leaps and bounds since July. We actually had a real conversation last time about her school. It turns out, she goes to boarding school and only goes home on weekends. No wonder she didn't miss her family. She rarely sees them;(
After our last chat (about 3 weeks ago) I stopped hearing from her. So I started praying. Then again this morning while mopping my floors, I thought of her and prayed that she would call. I emailed her about a week ago, but nothing...
As I sat down to pray after I was done mopping, I heard that "ding" on my iPhone. You know that ding? :) So I looked and there it was! An email from Rita. Of course I started crying and thanking God for His goodness again. She said she had lost her cell phone but she was doing well and would call soon. Please pray for our sweet friends Rita & Michelle. Pray that one day we might meet again and of course, for their salvation.
Blessings,
Rebecca
I will pray for these precious girls, Rebecca!
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