Some time ago our Provincial Family and Children's Services thought to remove all "fundamentalist Christians" from being foster parents.  It was clear to some in the hierarchy that having foster children cared for in such homes would expose them to "indoctrination in fundamentalist values".    A word of wisdom from within the system suggested that they might like to determine how many of those doing foster parenting were in fact "fundamentalist Christians"  before removing the children from their homes.  A quick revue found that almost 90% of those doing foster parenting held to a conservative Christian value system.  The initiative to remove them died quickly and quietly.  No Christians?  No Foster Parents?  No foster care system.

Jesus made two absolute identifications.  He said that "Whatever is done to the least is done to me."  And when he confronted Saul at the height of his career as the persecutor of the Christians, he asked Saul, "Why are you persecuting Me?"   Jesus is one with His body and Jesus is one with every suffering individual.  

Where is God when it hurts?  He is hidden in the hurting and He is hidden in the church.  God is manifest when the church embraces and serves those who suffer.   That is why James said, "Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is to visit the fatherless and the widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world."   That is the manifest presence of God!  That is the Emanuel, God with us!  

We just met some news friends who had adopted a little boy the doctors said would never read.  They said he would read.  They prayed, loved and home schooled him.  At ten years old he did begin to read and is now reading everything. 

Blessings on the millions of the friends of Jesus who do foster care, who adopt special needs kids, who pack Samaritan's Purse gift boxes, who sponsor kids through any number of child care programs like World Vision, who serve the refugees, who are big brothers and big sisters, who give to put the go in the gospel, who man the food banks, who risk their lives to bring food, water, and medical aid-  all who make the daily sacrifice to do the stuff that makes Jesus manifest in the earth.

Blessings on the millions of the friends of Jesus who are faithful to their spouses, their kids, their jobs and their friends.