I had an ugly cry today. 

It was a normal day…well, as normal as it can get on a trip to Ethiopia.  We were visiting the home of a Compassion child with her sponsor.  I was with the sponsor doing my usual thing.  I was asking lots of questions and learning about the child, the home, the family and how Compassion was helping.  The child was so happy to see her sponsor, Kaitlyn, and together they visited in the child’s home.

While we sat there, I was noticing someone in the other room.  The father was sitting with us; the mother of the sponsored child had died.  The father had remarried, but his wife was working.

“Who is in the other room?” I asked.

The father said something in Aramaic.

Our translator said, “It is a little girl that lives here.”

“Can I meet her?” I asked.

The father called her out.  A shy little girl appeared with tattered clothing.  She held her head down, as if ashamed.  Instantly I needed to know the story of this child.  Here we were visiting Kaitlyn’s sponsored child, while this precious child hid in the kitchen.

I asked,“Why is she in this here?”

The father answered.  “Her mother abandoned her.  Her father is in prison for murder.  My wife brought her home last year because she had nobody to live with and the victim’s family wanted to kill this child to avenge the murder.  We are protecting her.”

I asked, “How old is she?”

The father responded, “We think she is 10, but we have no birth certificate.”

The child came over and sat quietly near us.  Once in awhile she would look up and peek at us, but most of the time she held her head low.

I asked, “What is her name?”

He answered, “Her name is Wuluagersh.  It means All Nations.”

I was so concerned for this child. “Is she in school?”

The father answered, “Yes she is in school.”

I could not fully grasp the situation, but the child was not in the Compassion program.  Her clothing told me the story.  Her hair was a mess, her shoes worn, I was loosing it inside at the sight of this child, but I was still managing on the outside.

Then I looked Wuluagersh in the eye, I took a deep breath, put my hand on her shoulder and said, “GOD WILL NEVER ABANDON YOU.”

She began to cry.

I asked her to come and be next to me; she came over and curled up underneath my arms.  I then prayed over her.  As I prayed, she laid her head down into my lap and I knew that this little girl needed a mommy.   I could not longer hold it together.

After I prayed for her I told her…

You will grow up and be strong.

With God, anything is possible.

YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL!

YOU ARE LOVED!

DO NOT BE ASHAMED!

GOD WILL NEVER ABANDON YOU.

The words flowed along with my tears.  She lay on my lap and I wiped her tears with my hand.  Together we cried.

After I said goodbye, I could not even speak.

Tomorrow I will see her again.  I told her to sit with me in church.

Once in awhile I come across a child who just takes my heart and splits it wide open.

Wuluagersh was that child today, and I will not forget her.