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You Are God’s Inheritance

Have you ever wished that you were born into a different family? I did. As the only child, I witnessed my father verbally and physically abuse my mother on infrequent occasions. While the physical abuse was limited, the verbal abuse seemed to occur on a daily basis for this or that.

As I got older, I became used to being yelled at for reasons that seemed inconsequential. There was one occasion when my father bought dinner for the family. With anticipation, I couldn’t wait to see what he ordered. To my surprise, it was something I’d never seen before. It was called scallops. Just looking at them made my skin crawl. They had this weird looking finish on their surface. Almost like the same one when someone looks at uncooked chicken.

I was told in no uncertain terms to eat it. So, I bit into one of them and swallowed. All of a sudden, I ran to the bathroom and threw up into the toilet. And so, the angry response from my father ensued.

It appeared that he was always on edge. There was reason to assume that something would happen that would spark the flame. When we’d visit his brother or one of his five sisters, their households always appeared to be welcoming, calm, and loving. My cousins seemed to enjoy being home and interacting with both parents. I wished we could change places.

How about you? What was your home life like? Do you wish you belonged to a different family?

Did you know that some children have no parents to go home to? The reasons for such a dire situation vary. Both parents died. A single parent couldn’t afford to keep them. Displacement due to war separated them. Alcohol or drug abuse caused the parent to abandon them. Ever wonder what happens to them? It really depends on what country they were born in. Let me provide you with an article that provides alarming statistics concerning this plight.

ORPHAN AND CHILD POVERTY FACT SHEET

[It’s] estimated that there are over 100 million orphans worldwide (UNICEF). To give you an idea of the enormity of the [numbers,] compare it with the population of the United [States, which is just a little over 325 million,] or the current population of Russia -145 million. Over 100 million children would equal the combined populations of New York City, Los Angles, [Chicago, and 47 of] the largest cities in the USA, plus the combined populations of Ireland, Norway, Denmark, France, [Greece, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. These aren’t] just numbers and [statistics;] these are CHILDREN! - distressed, [struggling,] and with little hope in the world.

According to UNICEF, almost [5,700] children become orphans every day due to war, natural [disasters,] poverty, disease, [stigma,] and medical needs.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2017, 15,000 children under the age of 5 died every day; that is equivalent to 1 child every 17 seconds. 2.7 million children die every year in the first month of life.

Every 15 seconds, another child becomes an AIDS orphan in [Africa.]

60% of orphan girls will become victims of the sex trade. 10-15% [of] orphan children will commit suicide before age 18. 70% of orphan boys in Eastern Europe will become criminals.

250,000 children are adopted [annually,] but 14,050,000 orphan children will grow up and age out of the orphan care system without ever having been part of a loving family. That means that every day 38,493 children will age out of an orphanage. That’s one orphan every 2.2 seconds who will leave an orphanage or foster care with no family to belong to and no place to call home. Less than 1% of all orphan children will be adopted. Who will care for the rest of the millions of orphaned, [abandoned,] and homeless children?

Russia – [It’s estimated that since the fall of the Iron Curtain,] there are between 1 and 4 million homeless children in Russia. There are 30,000 children living on the streets and in the sewers and subways in Moscow (see the Google [video - “The Children of Leningradsky”). At around age of 16] or 17, orphans are forced to leave the orphanage system and enter the world with limited education and minimal support.

Within the first five years, almost 90% of these orphans end up in crime, prostitution, [drug, and alcohol addiction, or commit suicide. In Ukraine and [Russia,] 10% -15% of children who age out of an orphanage commit suicide before age 18; 60% of the girls are lured into prostitution; 70% of the boys become hardened criminals. Another Russian study reported that of the 15,000 orphans aging out of state-run institutions every year, 10% committed suicide, 5,000 were unemployed, 6,000 were [homeless,] and 3,000 were in prison within three years.

India - The orphan crisis in India is staggering. According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), India has more than 29.6 million children living on the streets. Orphanages are filled with abandoned [children,] and millions more wander the streets just doing what they can to survive (see the movie: “Slumdog [Millionaire”).]

Africa - Africa has an estimated 39 million orphans. Every year 2,102,400 more children become orphans in Africa alone. Every 15 seconds, another child in Africa becomes an AIDS orphan. There are an estimated 14 million AIDS orphans in Sub-Saharan Africa; 8 out of 10 children in Sub-Saharan Africa will be orphaned by AIDS (a number higher than the total of every [under-eighteen-year-old] in Canada, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Ireland combined). Uganda has over 17 million children, 15% of whom are orphans (2.5 million orphans). According to the UN, over 50% of Uganda’s children under five suffer from malnutrition, and the country has a 60% child mortality rate. Thousands of West African children were orphaned by losing parents to Ebola in countries like Guinea, Liberia (where Orphans Lifeline International is working), and Sierra Leone.

Haiti has an estimated 1.2 million orphans and vulnerable children (OVC). About 7,000 children roam the streets of Port-au-Prince. Thousands more can be found across the island in cities such as Cap Haitien and Gonaives. Over 6 million Haitians live below the poverty line on less than [$2.41 USD] per day, and more than 2.5 million are below the extreme poverty line of [$1.23 USD] per day.

Every week hundreds of babies and children are abandoned in Haiti shortly after birth. They are left in hospitals, shop doorways, alleys or simply dumped in the street. Many are abandoned because their parents have no means to feed and take care of them. A large number of children become orphaned because their parents have died from disease, natural [disasters], conflicts, and political turmoil. The January 2010 earthquake left tens of thousands of new orphan children in this impoverished nation that is only 600 miles from Miami, USA.165

I can’t imagine this kind of existence. Can you? What awaits each and every one of us is the opportunity to belong to a family that will never stop loving us while making available the necessities of life for those who are their children. Would you like to hear more about this? Please turn to the book of Ephesians.

Ephesians 1:11

In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

The Jews, who are in Christ, have been made an inheritance. The verb have obtained in Koine Greek is in the Aorist Passive Indicative. At a point in time in the past, when they responded to the gospel, facts state that they received the spiritual blessing of becoming God’s possession.

Likewise, you’re God’s heritage. At salvation, you’ve been born into the family of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, which contains millions of spiritual brothers and sisters. A whole new spiritual world awaits you. No longer will you be alone. No longer will people not care about you.

The next spiritual reality tells us that we’re dead and yet alive. How can this be?

Endnotes

165“Orphan and Child Poverty Fact Sheet,” ORPHAN’S LIFELINE INT’L 06 March 2023

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