Voice of the Orphan Blog

Pain and Loss

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” –Psalm 34:18

I gave birth to a stillborn daughter a few weeks ago.  I was 36 weeks pregnant and I lost her.  There was a knot in her umbilical cord.   My husband and I are simply grieving and seeking the God of all comfort right now.   

Laboring knowing that I was giving birth to a child who had died the day before was the most difficult thing I had ever done.  And the irony was that my own brother and sister-in-law had given birth to their own son the day before, only three hospital rooms down.  They were there on the same floor in the hospital while I was losing my daughter.  There were so many ironies that I could not ignore that all of this was from the hand of God.  I have experienced enough of God thus far in life that I did not have the ability to deny Him or His love for me. But, I can honestly say I did not and do not know why he orchestrated or allowed things to take place like this.

Yet I choose not to waste my sorrow.  When I lost another child via miscarriage at 15 weeks a couple years ago, I made a decision to pray for those things in earnest that matter the most to me, because I was acutely aware that God was close to me – for He promises that He is close to the broken-hearted.  He answered all of my prayers that I prayed during that time.

For all those who are also in the valley right now, I want to encourage you that there is a fellowship in suffering and not to forget to give your hurt and sorrow to the One who created you.  Watch how He will do miraculous things with it, for you, for those you love and for the kingdom! 

He will not leave you in this place, and He will bring about His purposes for your good because you are His! 

Believe Him, Trust Him – He loves you!  Just as I know He still loves me.

Praise Him

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“Praise the LORD, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD.”   -Psalm 117:1-2

I recently received this story from a good friend, and it is a beautiful reminder of the power, not just of prayer, but also of praise.  I hope it will encourage you as it did me.  This young woman has been battling cancer, and she explains one way that God has met her in this trial:

    “I just wanted to tell all of you who have supported me throughout my treatments that next week is my LAST chemo treatment! HIP HIP HOORAY! After the last treatment, they will continue to monitor my blood work weekly for about a month. If everything comes back negative, then I will see the doctor once a month for the first year.
    “It's been on my heart to share an experience I had a few weeks ago. It was the Thursday after Christmas and about an hour after I got home from my treatment I started to have a reaction. My entire body started shaking like I had the chills, but the shaking continued to intensify and I couldn't get my muscles under control.  It was very painful as my muscles repeatedly contracted.  A call was made to my doctor, who said to go to the emergency room.  My mother-in-law, Dinah, got me into the car and started the 10-minute drive to the hospital. I was praying out loud for God to touch my body and make the reaction stop.  I had been praying for about 5 minutes of the ride with no obvious result.
    “Suddenly, my thoughts focused on a sermon my husband Bill had taught to the children in our Children's church about David.  He and his men were returning home from battle and found their city had been attacked.  It was burned to the ground and the women and children had been taken as prisoners.  David's men fell to the ground sobbing and turned on David in anger.  In the midst of his grief, David found strength in the Lord; He began to praise God.  God sent David after the attacking army and gave him the victory over them. Everything was restored to David and his men.
   “When this sermon came to my mind, I decided to follow David's lead.  I started to pray in a different way.  I praised God for who He is, regardless of whether he chose to stop the reaction or not.  Within 30 seconds, my muscle contractions had been reduced by 50% and within a few minutes they were gone.  By the time we pulled up to the ER, I was okay. They ran a bunch of tests but found no explanation for what happened.
    “After thinking about what happened, I feel I was given a glimpse of God's heart.  He desires our praises more than anything. In fact, the Bible says that is why we were created and if we don't, then he will cause the rocks to cry out.  This experience has impressed on me the importance of praising God regardless of my circumstances.  I know that all of us go through difficult times, and I wanted to share this with you and encourage you to praise God through everything.  He won't disappoint you.
     “Please feel free to share this with anyone in your life that you feel needs to hear it.  It has been a powerful experience for me and I feel led to share it with as many people as I can. I love you all!”
   -Brandie

Be Free to Seek Justice

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” -John 8:36

To whom are we specifically called by God to administer justice?  God is often quite specific, and in this case He most certainly is.  “Defend the poor and fatherless; Do justice to the afflicted and needy” (Psalm 82:3).  God has been our example: “He administers justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the stranger, giving him food and clothing” (Deut. 10:18).  “I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted and justice for the poor” (Psalm 97:2)  “The Lord who executes righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed; Who gives food to the hungry and give freedom to the prisoners” (Psalm 146:7).  God tells us in Isaiah 1:17, “Learn to do good; seek justice, rebuke the oppressor; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.”

For those who have spent time in orphanages, nursing homes, prisons, and on the streets in the lands of the poor and needy, you are acutely aware that our brethren are bound and need those who are truly free to come and free them from their bondage.  But if we are so mired in our own pain, wallowing in our own hurts and refusing to entrust them to God, we are of no use to the bound because we ourselves are still emotionally bound!

It is those who are free who can help to free those who are bound!  These are the ones who can truly succeed in justice ministries.  My husband often says, ‘Hurt people hurt people.”  Likewise, free people free people!! 

The Word says, “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).  May we set aside our own personal hurts, giving them to God to take care of them in His time and His way, and receive God’s gift of freedom so that we may be free to give freedom to others who are bound!  May we who have obtained mercy from the God we have wronged, give mercy to those who have wronged us.  May we who trust our own injustices to a just and powerful God, seek justice for those who are still oppressed!

We desire to be men and women of wisdom, not modern-day hypocrites like the Pharisees. And God has told us, “The wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle and willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy” (James 3:17). The Lord told the Pharisees that although they paid their tithe, they neglected the weightier matters of the law:  “justice and mercy and faith” (Matthew 23:23).  My we not neglect the weightier things of God!

Humble Mercy

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy.  Mercy triumphs over judgment.” -James 2:3

If we were honest about the sin in our own lives, we would long for God’s mercy over all things.  The degree to which we humble ourselves and recognize the reality of our own sin is the degree to which we have the wisdom of God to know our profound need of heavenly mercy! “To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against Him.”  (Daniel 9:9). 

May we cry out as David cried out to the Lord, “Do not remember the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions; According to your mercy remember me, for Your goodness sake, O Lord.” (Psalm 25:7)  “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your loving-kindness; according to the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions” (Psalm 51.) 

The promises of God to those who show mercy as He has shown mercy are worth the effort.  “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy” (Matthew 5:7). “He who follows righteousness and mercy finds life, righteousness and honor” (Proverbs 21:21). 

“Forgive us our trespasses, AS WE forgive those who trespass against us” (Matthew 6:12).  In reciting this prayer of our Lord, we are either freeing ourselves or indicting ourselves.  We are in essence asking God to show us the kind of mercy that we are showing to those who have sinned against us!  “For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy.  Mercy triumphs over judgment” (James 2:3).

I suppose there is nothing unbiblical about desiring to see wrongs made right, even the ones under which we have suffered, but I am learning that it is really not my job to right them.  I have also come to learn that my own opportunities for showing mercy are found primarily in the times when I have been personally wronged.  To give forgiveness, prayer and love to those who have treated me unjustly is for me to truly understand and love mercy.  But what can compel us into such acts of mercy?  Humility!!  When we understand the character of God and our own state before God, we will be compelled to show such mercy to others.  “And he said, ‘He who showed mercy on him.’  Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.’” (Luke 10:37)  “Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renew of the Holy Spirit.” (Titus 3:5)

Letting Go of Personal Injustices

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord.” –Leviticus 19:18

I have long thought of myself as a person of justice.  But God has been revealing to me that my notion of justice and His are quite different.  First of all, I have come to realize that I am too preoccupied with personal injustices that I have suffered, and I am not concerned enough about the injustices faced by others.  How much of our time is spent thinking about how we have been wronged by those around us as opposed to the time that is spent seeking justice for the wrongs faced by our brethren?   The Word actually teaches that we are to leave the injustices we personally face to God for the avenging, “letting them go” in prayer, and actually looking for opportunities to have mercy on those who have hurt us. 

Being misunderstood, slandered, wrongly accused, discounted, lied to, or passed over makes me long to be avenged, and, by itself, this is not a wrong thing to desire.  But God does not call us to waste our time in self-pity, allowing these things to consume us and overpower our spirits; but rather we are to entrust these wrongs to the God we can to have His way in His time on our behalf. We are to believe that He will take up our cause as He sees fit. He actually go so far as to tell us to “bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse…Repay no evil for evil…Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to My wrath; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord.  Therefore, ‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink;’” (Romans 12). 

If we will truly obey God in this way, believing that vengeance is the job of our loving Shepherd, He promises to “Prepare a table before [us] in the presence of [our] enemies and that goodness and mercy shall follow [us] all the days of [our] lives”  (Psalm 23).  So, if we will believe and trust and wait on our God to take care of the injustices we personally face, then we will be free in every way to take up the cause of those to whom God has called us to seek justice. 

A God of Justice and Mercy

By Kerry Hasenbalg
“So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually.” –Hosea 12:6

God is a God of justice.  Psalm 37:28 and Isaiah 61:8 both remind us that the “Lord loves justice.” Psalm 89:14 says, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne,” and Deuteronomy 32:4 declares, “For all His ways are justice.” 

God is also a God of mercy. “For you, Lord are good and ready to forgive, and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon you.” (Psalm 86:5) “The Lord is gracious and full of compassion, slow to anger and great in mercy.” (Psalm 145:8).  And Micah 7:18 says, “[God] delights in mercy!”

How can God be simultaneously just and merciful? Justice requires reward and punishment according to acts committed, but mercy is the withholding of punishment for wrongdoing and the giving of rewards when they are not merited. It is not that sometimes God is one, and sometimes God is the other; He is necessarily both.  And He calls us to be both. How can we act and live justly and mercifully at the same time? We often feel that we are stuck with one or the other. 

For God to be a God of justice and still show mercy to His sinful children, it was necessary for someone else to bear the burden and punishment of that sin. God’s justice and mercy were coupled in the person of Jesus and joined together as the beams of the cross.  So, for the love of Jesus, in return for what Christ has done for us by taking on the just wrath of God for our sins and the sins of others (1 John 2:2), may we now show mercy to others, just as He has called us to do.

We are called, as His chosen people, to be like Him in these ways.  “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). The Lord exhorts us through Zechariah 7:9 by saying, “Execute true justice, show mercy and compassion everyone to his brother.” And in Hosea 12:6 we understand how we are able to comply with this command: “So you, by the help of your God, return; observe mercy and justice, and wait on your God continually.” 

We cannot easily reconcile mercy and justice, much less understand how to live in them both at all times. So we must begin by waiting on our God, and we must continue to wait on our God. It is only by His power and with His guidance that we will be able to exercise His mercy and be agents of His justice as we venture out to serve and love in this broken and hurting world. 

God’s mercy may have met His justice in the person of Jesus, but Jesus never left us a formula or comprehensive set of rules to follow in order to learn how to apply justice and mercy. Even the example of Jesus isn’t very helpful when it comes to the intricate and complicated day-to-day realities we face when dealing with the issues of justice and mercy.  It is a daily leading we need, for rules, formulas, and even examples are not really the way of Jesus. His command was a simple one: “Follow Me.”

Showing Up

By Scott and Kerry Hasenbalg

“Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” - Proverbs 13:12

In terms of Jesus as our example, certainly Jesus took the time necessary to sit before the Father in prayer, seeking Him for direction in order to do the will of His Father.  But once God spoke, Jesus did the will of His father, and the word “did” implies action!

One key characteristic of Jesus was that HE SHOWED UP. Story after story in the Gospels portrays how He showed up to heal, and through Jesus, God wanted to demonstrate His character of being always present.

When we, as the body of Christ, show up and show hope in the lives of orphans, many of whom have had a lifetime of deferred hope, we are part of planting life-giving seeds, which by the power of God, in due season, will bear fruit and will continue to bear fruit for years to come.

Because the hope we give orphans, both in word and in action, is the sharing of Christ in us—the hope of Glory, it is a real, eternal and living hope.  We are part of revealing to them a God who hears their cries for help in their distress now: cries for food, for clothing, for shelter, for love, for a family, and we are part of answering the cries of their young souls for God’s presence for eternity. Jesus was and is the true hope, and we bring Him to them when we show up.

Romans 15:13- “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Showing Hope

By Scott and Kerry Hasenbalg

“Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
–Hebrews 11:1

Faith!  It is a word used to describe the state of a man’s soul, and we know from the Word it is a very powerful thing.   According to the scriptures, faith has the power to heal the one who possesses it, and that through it a man is able to access the grace of God needed for eternal life. The Word says that without faith it is impossible to please God, and it is one of three things that last for eternity – faith, hope and love.

So, what is true faith really?  Isn’t faith just that strong belief of God found in your heart that only you know is there?   Or is faith something more? Can faith really be seen by others?

It is amazing that a word like faith can be used so frequently, yet be so misunderstood.  God knew such a word would need clarity, so He defined it for us in the book of Hebrews, saying, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen.” And He gave us further clarity in the second chapter of James telling us, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”   

In the second chapter of Mark, it says that when Jesus SAW the faith of those who had brought a paralytic to him, he said to the paralytic man, “Son, your sins are forgiven… Get up, take your mat and go home.”  He saw their faith with his human eyes.

Yes, faith indeed is something that can be seen.  It is something that can be shown to others. Faith by definition is actually the showing of the Hope of God.  Faith is Hope Shown! We long to see the people of God evidence their faith by taking action to love and care for orphans!

Loving Close Up

By Scott and Kerry Hasenbalg

“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers.” -1 John 3:16

There seems to be a trend in the church today to separate those who are considered “evangelical” from those who are “humanitarian”, those who pray and serve in local churches versus those who give to the world’s poor and hungry.  Many such “humanitarian types” often found among our youth are even abandoning the notion of the local church. However, these two seemingly different factions are meant to be one. Those who pray and worship in church are also the ones who should go and give of themselves to the poor and needy.

For the One in whose name we pray and whose life was intended to be an example for ours, Jesus Christ, worshipped and prayed in local synagogues and also went to the poor and hopeless and met their needs in real tangible ways. He touched them, He fed them, He held them, He walked with them, knew their names, and dined with them. He loved them close up, not just from far away. 

It’s All God’s

By Scott and Kerry Hasenbalg

“Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.” -1 Chronicles 29:11

In 1 Chronicles 29, King David told the people of God that he was giving all of his own private treasures of gold and silver to help in the construction of the temple, and he asked, “Who is willing to give offerings to the Lord today?” Then the families, tribes, generals, captains, and king’s officers “all gave freely and wholeheartedly to the Lord.”

David then praised the Lord, saying, “Everything in the heavens and on earth is Yours… But who am I, and who are my people, that we could give anything to You?  Everything we have has come from You, and we give You only what You have already given us… It all belongs to You!”

And in Acts 4 we find the very same kind of wisdom and understanding: “All the believers were of one heart and mind, and they felt that what they owned was not their own; they shared everything they had.  And this gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great favor was upon them all.” 

Let us then, as God’s people, step out and show the hope we know to be true! Everything we have first came from God. So may the Lord lead us now, and may each of us be used to build God’s living temple through which He is a Father to the fatherless. Are you willing to join us by giving to this Kingdom work, whether it is by your time, talent, or treasure?

Just as was true of the apostles, may the sharing of our gifts and talents give powerful witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. For we desire the Lord’s favor and His renown most of all.