Several years ago, my husband and I visited a small community in a location several hundred miles from our home. Because of the nature of this story and the legal implications surrounding it, I think it is best not to mention the exact location.
We had occasion to visit a local nursing home and to visit a baby, a resident in this facility. She was just over a year old, and she lay in a bed dying from child abuse. She was so beautiful but with no hope of surviving her injuries.
It makes no difference who committed this unspeakable act or the exact condition of this beautiful baby. Those things were yet to be determined by a court of law. What does matter is that Heather will not grow up in a home with loving parents and an opportunity to love and be loved.
In this nursing home was a young social worker. She was loving, energetic, and a Christian. When she walked into the room and began to talk to this child, Heather’s eyes would move back and forth. She didn’t respond in any other way. She did not cry or laugh or play; yet I believe that somehow she knew that this young woman cared for her.
Heather was hooked up to machines, and it was difficult to change her bed or even her diaper. Nothing was easy for this precious little girl or for those that attended her.
I watched as this young woman gently held this baby, talking to her as though she could understand her. Tears streamed down her face and mine as the baby held herself erect, unable to cuddle because of her injuries.
This young woman said that she had always wanted to be a social worker. Her desire to serve God in this way began when she was in the eighth grade. She and several other students from her school service club visited a home for children. Most of these children had parents in prison, some of the children addicted to the drugs their mothers took while they were pregnant.
The sponsor of this service club wanted the girls to share some time with those who were not so fortunate. They read to the children and played with them. When they started to leave, the social worker said a child clung to her, begging her not to go. Then and there she decided this was what she wanted to do with her life.
She was just a child herself, but the influence of the class project, the teacher of her class, and the events of that afternoon will be with her for a lifetime.
If you teach school, are a Bible class teacher, or work with children in some other way, you may be the only good influence in their lives. Are you influencing them for good? As a Christian mother, do your children see you lifting up your hands to the needy?
Heather is gone, but there is a wonderful Christian young woman who cared for her and loved her. She was there because of her love for the Lord and her love for others. I am grateful to the teacher who had such an influence on this young woman. I am grateful because she is my daughter.
Sandra Oliver