6 More Days!
Sunday, January 16, 2011 I was reading in The Zookeeper’s Wife about Janusz Korczak last night – a pediatrician that chose to stay in the Warsaw Ghetto during WWII when offered a chance to escape. He chose to stay with the children in the orphanage that he founded before the war, and taught them to use their imaginations to escape the terror around them; he created an environment in which the children learned and played and prayed to thank God. When the liquidation of the Ghetto began and the orphanage children were deported, he chose to go with them, knowing that “his presence would calm them”. An eyewitness said, “A miracle occurred, two hundred pure souls, condemned to death, did not weep. Not one of them ran away. None tried to hide. Like stricken swallows they clung to their teacher and mentor, to their father and brother, Janusz Korczak”.
I want to have faith like that; to truly believe that I can follow God anywhere with no fear. I have seen some of the women at NightLight embrace God in that kind of way – so willing to trust God to pour mercy and grace all over them. They have such faith in a good God that knows them, forgives them, and loves them. We have seen God do miracles in our lives and provide for us OVER and OVER – I don’t know why I forget that so easily.
The chapter ends by saying that in Israeli tradition, Korczak is one of 36 Just Men who “are ordinary people, not flawless or magical…most of them remain unrecognized throughout their lives, while they choose to perpetuate goodness, even in the midst of inferno.” With only 1 week left in Thailand, I am again so grateful to have met so many people like this – ordinary people who have done great things by simply obeying the call on their lives.
Reader Comments (1)
Loved this post...so inspirational. I want that kind of faith as well! And, you are so right about the women at NightLight. I marvel at God's work of restoration and healing and how many are embracing their freedom.