Here's the Story of Hope

I introduced her as "Faith," but have been referring to her as "the baby" while we were waiting to find out her real name and story.  It turns out that she was not named Faith by her parents. I was told by the childrens officer who referred her to us that they just gave her that name the day we picked her up so that they could do the paperwork.  (Faith is a very common baby name here.)  

So, as I prepare for the guardianship papers to be processed, I have decided to call her Hope.  I know, it is similar to Faith, but the name Hope carries such significance to her, to her place in this world and to her place in this home, Haven of Hope.  

So, meet Hope. Three weeks old, 5.0 lbs. She is wearing Preemie clothes (Thanks, Auntie Bev!) and you can see she still has room to grow in them.

Hope's Story

Hope's mother died in childbirth. She was then abandoned. We have two conflicting reports: one from the District Children's Department and one from the Police Department where she was found.  Crazy, isn't it?  Par for the course for Kenya!
One report says that her mother died, the family came and took the body of the mother and left the baby.  The other report says that the baby was found on the ground at a plot, meaning a plot of land, and then taken back to the hospital.  Either way, it is believed that the family was most likely aware of the doctor's report of a heart lesion and were afraid of the implications and their ability to care for her, so they decided to abandon her.  

Once she was stable and released from the hospital, the district police took her to Nairobi Children's Home.  That was the day we showed up to get Eli. I sat while the social worker was telling me about this baby, overwhelmed with emotion. On one hand, the "unknown" was frightening, wondering how I would care for this baby if I chose to take her.  On the other hand, the "known" was a settled reality in my heart: that God gave me the vision for this home and called me here for the purpose of carrying out His will.  The vision for this home was to take the small babies that no one else would take, regardless of the circumstance; to provide a home for babies who needed one and offer them the hope of a future.  I have said countless times that we may not be able to care for many babies, but we would provide quality care for the ones God entrusted to us.  There is no way the Lord would call me to do this and not be the One to provide for these babies....no matter the circumstance.  As I tried to weigh the options, I realized there were no "options."  There was no way I could walk away from this little one, leaving her in a place where I was told that they would "wait to see if she would live or die."  They had no way to provide any medical care and would therefore not take any measures to inquire of more details.

In my heart, I knew I was supposed to take this baby out of that place.  If she turned out to be perfectly healthy, great! Why wouldn't we want to take a perfectly healthy two week old into our home?  If she turned out to have a problem, why wouldn't I take her?  Isn't that exactly what God asked me to do...take the babies no one else would care for?  Her own family obviously chose not to keep her. And what hope of a future would she have at NCH, especially with the unknown health factor?


This baby is in our home now with a true hope of a future. Because of God's faithfulness in showing Himself as Jehovah Jireh, our Provider, we are able to be a part of giving this gift to Hope.  She is here, safe and sound.  And though I believe her heart lesion is a simple heart murmur that she will outgrow, I know that God is her Healer, her Jehovah Rapha. What others, like her own family, might have seen as an obstacle in being able to care for Hope, I know that it is a testament to God's sovereignty and provision over her life. He has a plan for her.  His plan offers her hope and a future. 

How blessed, honored and humbled I am that God allows me to have a part in that! As I sit here writing this, Hope is sleeping on the couch next to me.  I look forward to seeing His faithfulness played out in front of our eyes as this little baby grows to become a healthy, strong, beautiful little girl.

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." (Jeremiah 29:11)