He was born to a mother more interested in using and manufacturing illegal drugs. His little body absorbed countless toxins. While he lay nearby, neglected, wanting so badly for her to include him, she played video games.
The State of Oklahoma took him away, but not many months after, they’d return him to her. All this physical trauma and neglect, yet he longed for her love. One case worker stated, “He has been through more change in his first three years than most people might have in a lifetime.”
A caring, stable, and loving couple took him in as a foster child. A few years later, they adopted him. He gained a brother and sister and another set of grandparents. They each loved him as their own.
All was not well, however – for him and for the adoptive family. Weekly counseling, medical, and psychiatric needs consumed them all. His resentment towards his birthmother produced bitter anger. The adoptive parents were his target.
His years of abuse overshadowed the years of kindness. He became combative. It was so dangerous that they locked their bedroom door at night. They hid sharp utensils and tools. There was little or no gratitude for all that was done to help him recover and become whole.
This is a sad, but true account of one family’s very real nightmare. They still don’t understand their son’s rejection. They gave him back -- to the uncertainty of the world. The scars linger.
How great is your gratitude? Were you part of a loving, safe home during your growing years? Is there thankfulness to the Lord for placing you into that home?
You could have been born into a destitute African or South American family. You might have had to live in a hut on a jungle hillside. No running water or electricity. Having a distended belly from hunger. Daily living on the edge of life. How great is your gratitude?
In the Bible we read of a woman who met Jesus and changed her life as a result. She was a prostitute. Taking much of her ill-gotten funds from plying her trade, the woman went in to Jesus. Some balked at her presence. Others complained about her frivolous actions.
Jesus said, “Because of her great love, I tell you, her many sins are forgiven. The person who feels only a little need to be forgiven will feel only a little love when he is forgiven” (Luke 7:47). How about you? Do you need God’s forgiveness? How great IS your gratitude?