A Boy Named Christmas Broke Our Hearts Today

 

Today while meeting with the leaders of World Relief at Kings Orphanage, we met a boy named Noel, age 13.  He approached our group with great confidence, and inquired about the purpose of our visit.  Surprisingly, Noel spoke to us in excellent English, so we spent some time hearing his story.  He has lived at the orphanage since the age of five when his mother died and his father felt unable to care for him.  He dreams of being a surgeon one day, so he takes his academic studies very seriously and is self-taught in many subjects.

When the earthquake struck, Noel was out in the yard under a tree, studying English and Spanish.  He told us "I know the Word of God, so I thought it was the time in Revelation".  He began to run but fell to the ground and cried out to God to save him.  Now he says he has pain in his heart for all those who died, but he keeps his tears inside.  I asked Noel what we could do for the children of Haiti, and his answer was "find them a family".  As we prepared to depart, Noel came to me again and asked if we would be returning to his orphanage again tomorrow.  I explained to him that we would not, as we have many places to visit and not much time.  Then, he looked me straight in the eyes with sincerity and said "then I will miss you very much" in perfect English.  And so we walked away leaving Noel standing in that same yard, watching us walk to our cars.

Your church can partner with HORT to bring hope and love to children like Noel.  Won't you see your pastor today and advocate for your church to become part of HORT.