One of our first babies ever at Abba's House was our little "miracle baby." This, of course, is not his real name. But after we learned the full extent of his story, he most definitely became our living, breathing story of a miracle. "Miracle" as we'll call him for this story, was born to two very young parents who, unfortunately, had become addicted to a substance called "Tik" here or "Meth" in America. He was also only 1/2 of a set of twins, and the fourth child of this young couple, the only survivor of them all. "Miracle's" older twin siblings had passed away about a year before we met him. A few months after he was placed in our care, we learned that he also had a twin brother who had passed a few days before they found our sweet boy. The tragedy of drug addiction without any resources for recovery, is that it corrupts your normal thinking and destroys families that should otherwise be successful. This young couple was so lost in addiction, that they did not even have money to feed themselves, or their children. When they visited the local clinic in their area, after all of their children had passed from "malnutrition" other than "Miracle," they discovered that the government would provide them with formula for their last surviving child. They left the clinic with many resources to help their baby. Unfortunately, addiction being the all-consuming beast that it is, they made the sad decision to drink the baby formula themselves in order to save their own food money for more addiction. "Miracle" was brought to the clinic and sent to the hospital in a severe state. The doctors who received him at the hospital told the nurses to pray for this sweet boy. No one expected him to survive the night. He was four months old and weighed less than a newborn. He was so underweight that they had to put premie nappies on the poor boy, and even those were too large for him. So they prayed and did all they could for him over that first night. And the next day, "Miracle" was still fighting to survive. Every day after that, he fought and surprised the doctors more and more. After two months in hospital care, at the age of 6 months, sweet "Miracle" had gained enough weight to wear a size 0 nappy and a size newborn clothes. Of course, he could not be returned to his former living situation. So he came to live with us at Abba's House. His medical needs continued to be overseen by the hospital doctor and our team of specialists. This sweet little warrior still had some "after shocks" of medical issues resulting from the long-term malnutrition at such a vital time in his life. But more and more this little boy grew strong, grew confident, and gained the love of everyone on the team. After staying with us for the period of his court cases and investigations, a new family was found who was willing to take our "Miracle" into their home for long-term foster care. When the time came for his case to move to that more permanent solution, we were honoured to present "Miracle" in the best, healthiest stage he had ever been in. He was developing normally and hitting all of his monthly milestones. His weight was back to normal range, albeit small, for his age. And his immune system had strengthened to such a level that normal childhood illnesses no longer landed him in the hospital. "Miracle" is a great example of why we exist at Abba's House. Without the safety of our home, we aren't sure where he would have stayed for the several months needed for this court cases to process. And if it had not been in our home, we couldn't guarantee that he would have received the consistent, developmentally focused care that helped him recover so beautifully from his early trauma. His new "adoptive" mother has been such a blessing in his life. She loves him and her extended family has accepted him as one of their own. She renamed him to help him separate himself from his "reputation," as most of the town knew of his story. And she gained long-term placement for him in the courts allowing him to have a safe, loving, consistent home. She will have to return to court every two years, as that's how long-term foster care works in South Africa. However, for "Miracle," the chances of his removal at any of these court appearances is very slim as his poor parents lost their battle with addiction last year. They passed away within days of each other. In every way, "Miracle" exemplifies the truth that God knows the burdens of all of His children. He cares about everyone, no matter where they live or how they came to be. And He found a way to protect this sweet boy and provide him with the love and care he will need to grow into the person and purpose he was created for. We thank God for saving "Miracle." And we thank God for allowing us to be a part of his journey, and the ability to see the change that can happen for these children when we follow the instructions He has given us at Abba's House. Thank You, Lord for "Miracle" and his story! Thank You for never giving up on us. And thank You for using us to show Your love to others.
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