Visit the Fatherless

We first met Boris when he was living at the Magadan Home for Children in Magadan, Russia. He was typical of many sixteen year olds who were used to living on the streets of this city in the far northeast of Russia, which is also known to students of the Gulag era as the capital of the Kolyma region.

As part of our mission work, we regularly visited institutions where children are living without their parents. We helped them purchase food and other basic necessities. These orphanages are a hold-over from the old Soviet system where parents could simply declare that they didn't want a child, or perhaps the mother was declared as "unfit" to raise the baby. Boris' mother was one deemed to be unfit because of alcohol abuse and living with many different men.

When babies are first dropped off at the Children's Home, they are cared for in a ward that resembles a pediatric center without any modern equipment and at times no hot water or heat. The workers simply do the best they can under such challenging circumstances. The infant stays in this home until they reach their third birthday. Some may be adopted during this time by a family from some Western country, or more rarely by a Russian family.

Most of the babies are not adopted, and the day comes for them to take their meager little possessions and with many tears be taken to another institution where they remain until they turn eighteen. During these years they do not have much loving care, and hardly any supervision and guidance. Many of the kids simply leave these institutions and choose to live on the streets. In the artic winter weather, they live beneath the streets where the steam pipes carry heat around the city. We once learned of seventy five kids living this way. Most do not have warm clothing, and they wander around the streets in the day time begging for money. Many of them have become addicted to sniffing glue as one escape from their dark and hopeless life.

The home where we first met Boris is operated to care for children who have been rescued from the streets. A bus driver or taxi driver or some other citizen may report them to the authorities and they will be brought to this home. In 1998 and 1999, Russia was only beginning to slowly recover from their great economic disaster brought on by the currency devaluation and bank failures. On one visit to this home, Galina and I noticed that the only food the children had to eat was some bread and watery soup. Our hearts were crying to do something, so we began to go each week with the director and purchase food from local storage warehouses. We were also allowed to teach the children Bible stories about God's love and mercy.

When we first met Boris he had been cleaned up, but still had the wild look of the streets in his eyes. It was very difficult for him to concentrate on our lessons, or to be attentive during a conversation. He went back to the streets, preferring the harsh life as a beggar or petty thief to that of an institutionalized kid. He got in trouble with the law for some thefts, and was sent to prison. While he was in prison, he met a young man who had become converted to faith in Jesus Christ. Boris noticed that his friend regularly had visitors from the church, and they called each other "brother" and "sister". He always longed to have a mother, or family.

Boris was recently released from serving three years in prison, and the first place he wanted to go was to the church where he remembered we had tried to teach him and care for him. Olga wrote us that he was sincerely trying to learn what God wanted from him, and he longed to have this spiritual relationship. There were some old charges against him, and now he is back in jail awaiting sentencing for other thefts. We pray that he will continue to learn about Jesus, and God's plan of eternal salvation.

This is just one example of many orphans around the world who are in need of love and care from the rest of us. We have children in our own small community and surrounding area who do not have a normal home with a mother and father. The Bible says: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." (James 1:27 NIV)

Are we looking for a better life for ourselves and our children? Then we must take to heart what Jesus teaches: "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." God's people cannot turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the cries of the fatherless children. Do a good deed today for a child and watch our community become a better place to live!

You are invited to attend the services of the Church of Christ at the corner of 3rd and E Streets. Write me with any questions or comments David Binkley, Sr., P.O. Box 186, Cedar Key, FL 32625 or E-mail at dgbinkley@aol.com. Or you may also request to receive the daily WORD OF THE DAY by e-mail. Check out our web site at www.cedarkeychurchofchrist.com