Sweet baby R...

And then she arrived just 2 days before we were to leave for the states...

Sweet baby R....
All of a sudden she was there... brand new to this place and with a expression on her face that immediately drew me to her... The hurt she was experiencing was undeniable... my heart TOTALLY went out to her...

Can you see that look in her eyes??  Can you see the distrust in her expression?  Her expression over our last 2 days was changeless... not one bit of change in it... The only thing that did change was the tears... Occasionally she would cry... other times she had silent tears falling down her face... (I have never seen that before, a child crying silently)

She had been left by her mom with her dad... then abandoned by him... My guess would be that she was around 18 mos... But clearly wasn't very healthy and was very small...  Can you imagine the fear in her heart as she now has to adjust to orphanage life... Life with not nearly enough care givers and way too many kids needing the attention offered... (please hear me...I am not coming down on the caregivers...  I think most of the mama's, what they call the care givers, really do try to care for the kids... it is just next to impossible to provide the adequate care that these little ones deserve)

She had scars that were suspicious of being used in witchcraft rituals... Can you imagine that precious little soul being used in witchcraft rituals?  BREAKS MY HEART!

She had some scars on her legs making it seem that at some point her little tiny legs were bound.  MORE PIECES OF MY HEART BREAKING... 

Her story is not uncommon... I will say it again... her story is not uncommon... I know... how can it even be possible one time... right???  Yes this kind of thing is repeated again and again... day after day in Uganda... babies abandoned by the family that is supposed to love them and provide the best care for them.  Some of those abandoned babies even found in the squatties (their deep pit latreens, toilets) left to die.  I DON'T THINK MY HEART CAN ACCEPT ANY MORE HEART BREAK FOR THESE LITTLE INNOCENT ONES...  I just wanted to hold her close, never put her down, and make sure she felt loved, safe, and cared for...  (Oh I would still be doing that right now if I could...)

That is the kind of trauma that many of these little orphaned souls need to recover and heal from.  Only by the grace of God can one heal from that kind of hurt...

That is my prayer for baby R... that God does a transforming miracle in her life and heart.  That He can slowly replace that look of fear and distrust with joy and confidence in the love and care that a forever family can offer her.  I pray that God heals her physically as well as emotionally so that her little heart can be receptive to the work of the Holy spirit in her life... She is a beautiful, precious little creation...

 Will you pray with me for  baby R's healing?
Will you pray with me for all the Baby R's in Uganda and the rest of the world?