Hope for the Hopeless (1)
Scripture Reading — Exodus 22:22-24
He defends the cause of the fatherless ... Deuteronomy 10:18
Earl D., a prisoner in Texas, writes, "At an early age, my home was broken when death struck and took my father. I was only 7 years old when I was told by a preacher, ?God took your father to be with him.'"
"I got so mad and bitter toward God! My mother, an uneducated housewife, was left with seven kids. She was unprepared for the role of mother and father, and she started drinking and going out with strange men. I was the baby of the family and left in the care of my older siblings, who did the things they wanted to do while neglecting me. I remember running after my mother and her date, begging her not to leave me home again. She and her date locked me in a dark closet for the night.
"I became violent and disobedient to all forms of authority and started running the streets. At 8 years of age, I joined my first gang. I was looking for acceptance and love and felt I had found it. I stole cars, broke into peoples' homes, and sold drugs--all in the name of survival. I even became a male prostitute. Many older women like young boys, I soon learned.
"Eventually, I was caught in Hondo, Texas, with a stolen car and was sent to Gateville State School for Boys ... There I learned to fight and to become a convict at age 11. And things only got worse... ."
Lord, it breaks our hearts to see what happens to many of the fatherless children among the destitute and hopeless today. Father, use us to bring them home. Amen.
About the author — H. David Schuringa
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