​I had a chance to be in India this past week, and it was a ridiculously joyful time with Ratnakar (our India director), his family, and the children and families in the Children of the Kingdom program. 

​I want to share some of that joy with you here. Each day, we made multiple home visits to see the children and their families, and every time I took off my sandals and walked over the threshold into their homes, it was a reminder to me that I was on holy ground. It was such an honor to bear witness to the stories that were shared from the families that gave me windows into their resilience, their grief over unspeakable loss, their delight in one another, and their fierce and abiding love and commitment.

​In hearing people’s stories through the week, the story of Hagar was a poignant one to share about at church on Sunday morning. In spite of the fact that Hagar was a non-Israelite woman with no power or status, she was the first person in Scripture to be visited by an angel and the only person in Scripture to give God a name--El Roi, “the God who sees me.” 

Sunday evening, we gathered again to celebrate Mother’s Day and hosted a banquet for the mothers in the community. I asked the children through the week what they loved about their moms, and they named many things: their cooking, listening, nurturing, helping them when they are hurting, calling to check up on them, buying special things for them that they know they will love, and taking care of them whatever situations come up- good or bad.  They shared stories about their smiles, kindness, affection, gentleness, and love. 

​We gave crowns to everyone as they walked in the church, and after the Mother’s Day message that I shared, we passed out necklaces with rhinestone pendants to the mothers to remind them of Proverbs 31:10: “She is far more precious than jewels.” 

​And after the gifts were handed out, we handed out bubbles to blow in honor and celebration of their mothers there in our midst, and it was a time of sheer delight and joy for everyone. There really is something magical about a whole room filled with bubbles! 

It seemed that everyone left that night glowing from the celebration and the love that filled that room. How great is the love the Father has given unto us that we should be called the children of God! 

​It was a wonderful time to be there this past week, and the investment in these children through this program over the last 14 years is showing much fruit as they are growing up in such a beautiful community clearly anchored and grounded in God’s love. Thank you for your continued support of these precious children around the world! 

In honor of the mothering heart of God and of mothers around the world, I offer you this beautiful prayer from Cole Arthur Riley and a video from Christine Sine to celebrate the mothers in your life this weekend. Happy Mother's Day from Children of the Kingdom! 

​God Our Mother,
We thank you for grounding your character in the tenderness, protection, and even sorrow of a mother. To know that no human experience- mother or child- is far from you gives us permission to uncover the particularities of how we were made to love and be loved. On this day, we’re reminded that we do not begin with ourselves. Our beauty, our pain, do not exist in a vacuum but are tethered to those who’ve come before us. We pray for the mothers who have protected us, who are weary, who have stayed, who have left, who are grieving, who are proud--- understanding that the story of what it means to be a mother is not singular. And as children, would you remind is that it is okay to lament the ways we have not been loved well while also celebrating the miracle and mystery of those who loved us fiercely? We are made of more than us. Help us to behold it. Amen.
-Cole Arthur Riley, Black Liturgies