I love hearing the extraordinary stories of how God often draws ordinary people deeper into orphan care. One came recently from a man named Les Gallagher, whom I met earlier this year at an event in Washington, DC. I asked Les if he’ d write out a few paragraphs on what’d happened. Looking closely, it’s hard not to see God’s fingerprints:
In early 2010 my wife, Connie, ask rhetorically, “Should we be more involved in orphan care?” We have six children, the last two via China and Russia. I said safely, “Sure, let’s start something at church.”
Connie decided that the first step should be a trip to the Christian Alliance for Orphans’ Summit in May. However, we didn’t have an extra $500 for the trip. No problem, she’d ask our church to pay for her. That didn’t work out. But just a couple of weeks later, an anonymous gift of $1,000 arrived…and Connie and a social worker friend went to Minneapolis
After returning from the Summit, Connie was convinced that God might be inviting us to even deeper personal involvement than just “Let’s start something at church.” So based on a Summit challenge, she embarked on a 40-day Daniel Fast to hear where we could be involved.
When I joined her on day 20, and Connie mentioned that this could also result in a job change. Four days before the fast ended, while I was checking my email, I noticed a broadcast email from a Christian job site about an accounting job at [Alliance member] America World Adoption Agency. The location wasn’t too far away and the salary wasn’t too low. I quickly responded.
The next day, when I decided to look at the job description to make sure I was qualified, the posting was gone. I reached out to AWAA and was told that the job website had made a mistake. I simply asked AWAA to consider me for a future position. Just two days later (the last day of the fast) AWAA called for a phone interview! In August 2010 I started serving with them as an accountant.
For me and the family, it is indeed far more than some extra activities at church. But I’ve come to believe that is the way things often go when you’re ready and available for the next step. And how great it was to hear Connie say, “God has used you again to answer my prayer.” We celebrated our 35th wedding anniversary this past Sunday.