Eleven kids... We picked them up from all over North Georgia to take them to Judgement Day, a walk-thru drama about life, death, and the judgement. They all had so much in common. They all come from broken homes. They have all been dealt a bad hand. Disappointment is the rule... not the exception. They learn young to hide their feelings. They learn to laugh when all want to do is cry. They hurt... I see it every day.
Three sisters, I haven't seen in about six months, came tonight. They all have different fathers... it's not their fault. They have been abused, dragged from place to place. The oldest counted over 30 different times she has moved in her life. When I met them they were so happy that their mom was marrying a nice guy. They moved into a nice double-wide and things were looking up. The marriage lasted little more than a month. Then they left to live with relatives until they could afford a place of their own. I usually don't see them again, but God brought them back for a reason.
Two brothers and their sister came as well. They recently moved out of the trailer park they were in when I met them and now live in a small hotel room with about 6 or 7 other people. They told me that the place is known as a crack shack. Their parents split up, but are back together for now. Their older sister just moved back in because of her divorce. Her new boyfriend was recently put in jail for getting drunk, going after her with a gun, and busting her windshield out.
Another girl that used to live in the same trailer park just moved in to the same hotel. Last week they got kicked out of their ex-mother-in-law's house and had to find a place of their own. They are borrowing a friend's car so the mom can keep her job. While we were on the way home she called me crying because her boyfriend had walked out on them and she was afraid her daughter was going to be devastated. She said he was the closest thing her daughter had ever had to a father. He promised her he would never leave, but decided to go back to his other girlfriend tonight. They had been together for one year. Now, her mom doesn't know how she's going to be able to buy groceries for the week and pay the rent (240 a month). There were 2 other families staying in the room with them.
We picked her cousin up from another park. She was in bed already, but got up to go with us. I don't know much about her family situation, but gathered it was much the same as the others.
Three other kids we have been picking up came with their dad and step mom. We went by last week to get them and they had moved again. Their sister recently left because she was in trouble with the law and had to go live with an aunt. I didn't even know they were coming. It was a nice surprise.
They have so much in common... but I left the greatest common denominator out...
THEY ALL TRUSTED CHRIST TONIGHT!!! Eight of the eleven we took and one of the girls that came with her parents chose to publicly repent of their sins and follow Christ.
We have taken 4 groups through Judgement day since last week and every night some of the kids have responded. 22 in all have confessed their new faith in Jesus.
GOD IS SO GOOD!!! He knows how to put broken lives back together again!
