Ukraine orphans – Erin Ulerich

Reaching Out and Fighting Doubt

If God’s vision for the helpless includes you and me, where do we even begin?

Let’s start with those doubting thoughts niggling away in your mind. I know, I had them too. But God placed a child and her adoptive process right in front of me. I wanted to be involved, and God wanted me to wade through these doubts and watch Him provide.

Doubt #1: If I can’t solve the problem, why even try? I wrote about wrestling with this question in the post Stretching Out a Hand of Relief.

Doubt #2: It’s such a big problem. 153 millions orphans! What can one person do to make a difference? Not much on their own. But one person can join with others who are reaching out by:

Supporting Organizations Reaching Out To Orphans & Children in Difficult Situations

Heritage Ukraine – Odessa, Ukraine

Read more about the amazing ministry of Heritage Ukraine in the post

Heritage Ukraine: A Light in Dark Places

Hispanola Mountain Ministries – Haiti and the Dominican Republic

French Camp Academy – French Camp, MS

Sponsoring Children in Difficult Situations

Hope for the Fatherless– Ethiopia

Compassion International

Cross Mountain Mission Legacy Centers – Nicaragua

Providing funding for homes for orphans who are too old to live in the orphanage.

Orphan Mission Transition Homes – Ukraine

Jeremiah’s Hope – Hope Market

Considering adoption

Walking beside a family in the adoption process.

The adoption process is filled with mountains of paperwork, moments of doubt, and uncertainty that all will work out. An adoptive family needs a network of friends who will pray for them, encourage them, and help them raise the necessary finances.

This post tells the story of an adoption process our family was incredibly blessed to be a part of: FIshes, Loaves, and Cookie Dough

God’s Vision for their Future

Day 7

God’s Vision for The Helpless

It is dangerous to our comfort zones to pray about something that is close to God’s heart, to use God’s Word to remind Him of what He has said He would do for the helpless.

Stepping into the brokenness of the world is not meant to be comfortable. It will stretch us and test our faith, but it is what we are called to do.

When we plead with God to remember His promises to be a helper to the helpless, a father to the fatherless and a refuge to the oppressed, we just may hear a still, small voice asking us, Will you be the way I keep my promises?

His vision for the helpless includes you and me.

“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their afflictions, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:27)

The concept of visiting in James 1:27 is the idea of helping, of stretching out a hand of relief. What will this look like? The answer to that question is as varied as our gifts and abilities.

It may be helping with physical needs, encouraging through notes and birthday cards, prayer, through giving financially, or a combination of these.

When we answer God’s invitation to become part of His plan of redeeming the brokenness, acknowledging His sovereignty means that we listen for His voice and follow His leading. The more our view and vision matches with God’s, the more we will see His hand at work.

Because of God’s sovereignty, we don’t have to feel rushed, or desperate or pressured. We can prayerfully and purposefully respond to the needs He places in front of us.

As we follow God’s leading to reach out to the helpless, we can pray that through the twists and turns in their life, they will see their need for Him, and that, one day, they will see Him face to face.

What limitations come to mind when you think about stepping into the brokenness of our world? What do these verses say about God’s limitations?

Jeremiah 32:17,27

Job 42:2

1 Corinthians 2:9

2 Corinthians 9:8

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We’ve made it to Day 7, but there ‘s more! Check back tomorrow for a bonus Day 8: How Could I Make A Difference? I’m Only One Person.

Don’t want miss out on any of the fighting-for-hope encouragement that goes on around here? Sign up for our mailing list in the sidebar.

Getting Involved in Orphan Care

Suffering & God’s Sovereignty

♥ ♥ Day 6 ♥ ♥

God’s view of suffering

As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” (John 9:1-3)

In His Sovereignty, God gave this man the condition of blindness at birth. He was unable to change his situation without God’s direct intervention.

In the suffering we see and experience, we don’t have Jesus standing there, explaining the purpose for the suffering. In fact, in the moment, it is very hard to see how suffering can bring God glory.

In Growing Your Faith, Jerry Bridges sums up three truths God’s Word teaches us about God and our adversities in this way:

God is completely sovereign. God is infinite in wisdom. God is perfect in love. God in His love always wills what is best for us. In His wisdom, He always knows what is best. And in His sovereignty, He has the power to bring it about.

These assurances can change the way we react to suffering. They give us the ability to look for evidence of God working in the darkness. They give us confidence to pray God’s words back to Him.

We can respectfully say, “Your Word says that You are the helper of the fatherless. It says that You have not forsaken the needy.” And we can pray for God to act.

In His Sovereignty He places each of us right where we are.

In His Sovereignty He uses suffering in our stories to bring us to Himself.

What is God’s view of suffering? What is His goal?

Romans 8:28

Psalm 40:1-3

2 Corinthians 4:17-18

Romans 5:1-11

James 1:2-4

1 Peter 1:3-7

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This is Day 6 of The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for them.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, subscribe to my mailing list on the sidebar.

Hearts that Hunger by Design

♥ ♥ Day 5 ♥ ♥

Hearts that Hunger By Design

At the core of our being is a desire to be connected, to be wanted, to be known. It is part of who we are because God put it there.

Sin entered the world and complicated things. Sin caused a breach in the close relationship God, Adam, and Eve shared. And today, our hearts yearn for that closeness.

People spend their lifetime searching for something to fulfill this need. But the only way it can be truly fulfilled is by the One who created us to enjoy that blessing. The One who formed our hearts is the only One who can fully answer its cry.

Psalm 65:5 describes God as the hope of all the ends of the earth. The word used for hope in this verse conveys the idea of a refuge, a safe place.

Being in relationship with God has blessings. In God’s family, we have a Redeemer (Proverbs 23:10-11). We have God’s commitment to save (Psalm 31:1). We have a refuge (Psalm 9:9-10).

The greatest need of the helpless is the same as ours – a relationship with God.

What does God do on behalf of those who are His?

Psalm 31:19

Psalm 18:1-19, 25-35

Psalm 107:6

Psalm 33:13-15

Psalm 72:12-14

Jeremiah 29:11-13

Isaiah 43:1-4

Isaiah 41:10

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This is Day 5 of The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for them.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, subscribe to my mailing list on the sidebar.

Since God is King, What is Our Response to His Kingship?

♥ ♥ Day 4 ♥ ♥

Our Response to God’s Kingship

When God brought His people out of Egypt, He was their only hope.

Powerless to change their circumstances, they were at the mercy of a human ruler who showed no mercy. When God stepped in, He showed His power and authority over the Egyptians gods through the plagues. Then he went head to head with Pharaoh. This way of delivering His people was meant to show His absolute rule. “…and the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord.” (Exodus 14:4)

And His people’s response?

Worship

“Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses. Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord…” (Exodus 14:31-15:1)

When we see God’s Kingship firsthand, worship is our first response.

1 Chronicles 16:24-25

1 Chronicles 29:10-13

Psalm 67

Psalm 115

Psalm 5:11

Trust

What about the times when God works in ways we don’t understand? Times when He doesn’t do what we think He should when we think He should?

What is our response to His Kingship then?

He is still King.

We can cling to the kind of King He is and His heart toward the helpless.

We can tell Him we don’t understand. We won’t be the first to bring that up with Him. As King, he has no obligation to share His plans with us.

In His grace and mercy, He proves His character and shares His promises with us in His Word. And that is our anchor in times of questioning.

Isaiah 45:9-10,18 Psalm 20:7

Job 38-41 Psalm 31:14-15,24

Job 42:1-6 Psalm 37:5-7

Proverbs 3:5-6 Psalm 62:8

Psalm 13:5

Which verses stood out to you most today?

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This is Day 4 of The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for them.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, subscribe to my mailing list on the sidebar.

If God Is King, What Kind of King Is He?

♥♥Day 3♥♥

What Kind of King is He?

Having someone in authority over us is fearful when we don’t know what they are going to do with their power. On the human level we have experienced leaders who wielded their authority in abusive ways.

If God is in control, what is He going to do with that control?

What kind of King is He?

He is the kind of King who was so concerned with our salvation, so moved by His desire to see His people face to face in eternity, that He who was 100% God also became 100% man.

Jesus went through the cities and villages, proclaiming the Gospel and healing every disease and every affliction. When He saw the crowds, He had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. (Matthew 9:35-36)

Jesus knew the people in the crowds were created for more than being harassed and helpless. He healed them physically to show His power to heal them spiritually as well.

He is the kind of King who lived in the broken world we live in and has felt every emotion we feel.

He knows what it is like to be abandoned.

He knows what it is like to feel broken-hearted over the helpless.

Knowing what kind of King God is helps us trust Him, especially when we don’t understand what He is doing.

When His path is untraceable, we can trust His heart.

List the words and phrases that describe the kind of King God is.

Isaiah 54:10 Psalm 12:5-8

Psalm 99:4-5 Psalm 146:9-10

Psalm 10: 16-18 Psalm 147:5

Deut. 10:14-15, 17-18 Zephaniah 3:17

Psalm 9:7-10 Hebrews 4:14-16

Psalm 107

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This is Day 3 of The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for orphans.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans on November 11, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, subscribe to my mailing list on the sidebar.

Who’s In Charge Here?

♥ ♥ Day 2 ♥ ♥

God is on His Throne

In this world, infants lie five to a crib in orphanages, the room reeking of the smell of diapers needing to be changed.

Little ones fervently pray for a family to belong to, countries shut down adoption for political reasons.

In this world parents choose drug addiction over their own children.

In our honest moments the questions bubble to the surface.

Lord, where are you? Do you see what is going on?

Do you care?

When a king sits on his throne, it shows a position of authority.

When we say God is on His throne, we acknowledge that God is King of everything He created. Whether people choose to recognize it and follow Him or not, this truth remains.

He is King.

Kingship is difficult to grasp. We like to think we are in control of our lives. We like to think that we can bend circumstances to benefit us. But acknowledging God’s Kingship is vital to reaching out to the helpless, because the hope of the helpless is grounded in God’s position as King.

God’s dominion is total. He carries out all that He wills, and no one can stop what He has planned. He is sovereign over the every-day events of life as well as the big events.

God never leaves His throne. He never sleeps, He is never caught off guard. He is constantly moving forward with His plans for His people, His plans to build His Kingdom.

And the end goal of His plan? Relationship with His people. They shall see His face. This plan guides His rule as King.

I believe the heartbreaking situations grieve God’s heart, because He knows every name of every baby crowded in those cribs. He formed the heart of every child to need the connection of a family. I also believe that the heartbreaking situations will not have the final say.

There are things that happen that won’t make sense on this side of eternity. But we can cling to this truth:

God is King. He sees. He hears. He knows. He redeems.

Write the words and phrases that describe God and the way He rules as King.

Rev. 4:11 Psalm 11:4

Psalm 45:6 Psalm 93

Psalm 47:1-2 Psalm 96

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This is Day 2 of The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for orphans.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans, November 11, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, you can subscribe to my mailing list in the sidebar.

When We Want to Fix the Brokenness

Stepping into the Darkness

Our world is broken.

Five minutes of watching the evening news or a couple of clicks on any screen and it’s evident. The effects of the brokenness are everywhere.

When we hear about the 153,000,000 orphans around the world the unfairness grabs our heart. These are children who are helpless to change their circumstances, caught in systems that offer them no future and no hope.

We want to fix it.

But God hasn’t asked us to fix the brokenness. He asks us to step into it.

God knows the world is broken, and moment by moment He is redeeming it. He is not wringing His hands in worry. He is not wondering how to work in spite of the brokenness of our world. He plans to work through the brokenness in amazing ways.

Stepping into the brokenness begins with seeing the heart of God for the helpless. Over the next 7 days, the following devotions and Scripture references will give us a glimpse of His view of their situation, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to take part in His plan to bring the beauty of redemption in the darkest places.

♥ ♥ Day 1 ♥ ♥

God’s Heart for the Helpless

In Scripture, a description of the plight of the helpless is often coupled with praise that God is on His throne, that His reign is everlasting, that He is sovereign.

But we have questions: If God is in control, why are there children without fathers, why are there widows who need defending?

Does being sovereign mean that God is going to do whatever He wants? Whatever He ordains?

Most certainly.

However, does it mean we have no responsibility, and even worse, no impact on the world around us?

Not at all.

Scripture is clear. While God is absolutely sovereign over all things, including the sorrows and heartaches of this broken world, Scripture is equally clear regarding His love and care for the needy and the helpless.

Since the beginning of time He has been weaving a story of redemption. A story of belonging, a story of adoption, a story of family.

He walked in the garden with Adam and Eve before the fall, He went looking for them while they hid. And He provided a way for us to step back into relationship with Him through Jesus.

Throughout the Old Testament, His desire for His people to be in relationship with Him is clearly seen. Over and over He says, “I will be their God and they will be My people.”

Through His sovereignty, He is weaving beauty through the brokenness by showing us our need for Him. In His patience and kindness, He gently calls us back into relationship with Him, exactly what we were made for, precisely where we belong.

God’s heart has always been for the helpless, because once sin entered the world, every person became helpless, separated from God. And in His mercy, God reached out and rescued us through Jesus. Even now, He works through the muck and brokenness of our lives to bring beauty.

We aren’t so far removed from the orphan.

His end goal for His people can be seen in Revelation 22:4, They will see His face. As God sovereignly works in the world, He has that in mind.

As you read the verses below, list the words that describe God and His care for the helpless.

Job 42:2 Psalm 146

Psalm 68:4-6, 19-20, 32-35 Psalm 147:1-11

Psalm 10:13-14 Ephesians 3:20

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This is the Introduction & Day 1 The Hope of the Helpless, a 7-day devotional I wrote as a guide for praying for orphans.

The Hope of the Helpless walks us through God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for orphans.

In honor of the International Day of Prayer for Orphans on November 11, I am posting a devotional from The Hope of the Helpless each day this week.

I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

If you would like to receive these posts directly to your inbox, please subscribe to my mailing list on the sidebar.

Orphan Care and Our View of God

There are 153 million orphans in the world.

That fact brings many questions to mind, but mainly “Why?”

Why are there so many orphans?

The International Day of Prayer for Orphans is a great time to ask questions, to begin finding out about the situation of orphans in America and around the world.

There was a time when I didn’t know much about orphans, or orphanages, or street children. It was one of “those problems out there” that didn’t really impact my life. That changed 10 years ago, when Matthew and Sheila Nasekos made the ~~crazy~~, ~~questionable~~, bold commitment to adopt a 13-year-old girl named Karina from an orphanage on the other side of the world.

I’m so thankful they followed God’s leading. The ripple effect of their decision has been life-changing for many others, including Karina, of course.

Then there was Vladick, the little boy who God gave me a mother’s heart for, and yet closed every door in our adoption process.

That heart-breaking journey involved wrestling with some pretty big questions about who God is, about the way He works, and about His ability to work on behalf of the helpless.

Orphan care brings us face-to-face with our view of God. How big do we believe He is? How powerful? Can He really work in desperate situations? What about when He doesn’t work in ways that we think He should?

One ripple effect of my journey is The Hope of the Hopeless, a 7-day devotional on praying for orphans that I would love to share with you this week.

The Hope of the Helpless brings us to the perfect place to start when it comes to orphan care: God’s heart for the helpless, His vision for their future, and His gracious invitation to join Him in caring for orphans.

I will post a devotional each day this week. I am looking forward to your responses, to having real conversations about orphan care, and to talking through your questions.

Even the tough ones, my friend.

Heritage Ukraine: A Light in Dark Places

Slavik motioned toward the couch and chairs in his living room.

“Spasiba, spasiba.”

My mind went blank. Spasiba was one of the 5 Russian words I knew, but a 13 hour flight, a race through the Paris airport to catch our connecting flight, and the experience of going through customs had me completely numb.

Our team stood in the middle of the room, smiling and nodding like a collection of bobble heads.

Thankfully, Alyona came in the room and said “Please, sit down.”

The next morning I tried to tell Slavik’s mother Good Morning, but my version of “Dobroe utro” was, no doubt, too Southern. She just waved her hand impatiently and pointed toward the kitchen as if to say “Don’t bother, just go get breakfast.”

Traveling to another culture is so humbling.

I needed help turning on the shower. Which knob is for hot water and which one is cold? I needed help plugging in my hair dryer.

And I certainly couldn’t read the gas pumps.

One afternoon our team sat on the floor of the Slavik and Alyona’s home office wrapping Christmas presents to take to the orphanage that we would be visiting the next day. Suddenly 3 clowns walked down the stairs.

Thankfully, they weren’t the creepy kind of clowns. They were colorful, cheerful, and in full costume from head to toe.

They nodded at us, and we nodded back, bobble head style, as they walked out the door.

I never knew what to expect from moment to moment.

Ukraine had delicious pizza, huge grocery stores, beautiful landscapes, cold weather unlike anything I’d ever experienced. And beautiful, hospitable people who welcomed us into their homes.

There was also brokenness and pain. I spent time with the children in the orphanages and heard their stories. I saw fear beneath their tough exterior. These children were placed there by the decisions of others and are helpless to change their situation. Being helpless can take us to some pretty dark places. And here, in the middle of darkness, Heritage Ukraine is a ray of light. A sliver of hope that things don’t have to stay dark.

The ministry of Heritage Ukraine involves children in one of these settings:

Orphanage ministry: Teams visit the children in the orphanage each month doing a variety of different activities including sharing Bible stories, playing games, doing crafts, teaching life skills lessons, and establishing mentor relationships.

JAM (Jesus and Me) Day Center: ministers to children from troubled homes and their families. Children in troubled homes often end up in orphanages. This center is a way to help prevent that from happening.

Joy Center: ministers to children with special needs and their families.

Camp Lela: Summer camps run from the beginning of June through the end of August. Each week of camp focuses on one specific set of children. The first week this year was for children from the Jesus and Me Day Center, the second was for children with hearing disabilities, the third for children from the Eastern Ukraine Conflict Zone. There are camps for the children from specific orphanages with special needs, camps for children from other orphanages and a family camp in the mix.

Three things I love about Heritage Ukraine: :

Slavik and Alonya are a great team. The Lord has given them the ability to dream big and communicate their vision to others in a way that generates momentum.
They give practical ways for others to become involved in stretching out a hand of relief to those in need. It’s easy to see a need, it’ s hard to know where to step in to help.
Everything they do is consistent with their purpose statement: Heritage Ukraine exists to shine God’s light in dark places for orphans, troubled children, children with special needs, and refugees.

Ways You Can Get involved:

Find out more about Slavik, Alonya and Heritage Ukraine on their website, http://www.heritageua.org/

Subscribe to their monthly newsletters to get an idea of what is going on that month and what they need.

Check out their Heritage Ukraine YouTube Channel to feel the energy, especially in the camp videos!

Like their Facebook page to get updates on Facebook.

Give financially.

Travel to Ukraine and volunteer with Heritage Ukraine on a short-term mission trip.

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This post is part of the Fighting for Those Who Can’t page at erinulerich.com

Fighting For Those Who Can’t is a resource to share the stories of people who are reaching out to the brokenhearted, the forgotten, and the helpless and to give practical ways others can reach out right where they are.