T Y P O L O G Y of T H E IN THIS ISSUE:“ The ... - Moriel Ministries

South Africa News Allen & Sue
In this newsletter we would like to ask
for prayer to insure the continued care
of our children in our home without
the fear of them being placed elsewhere. We
have just received news from our social worker
that calls for changes in direction for Bezaleel.
Before I begin I’d like to share regarding
God’s goodness to us in terms of His prompting
and provision. At the beginning of the
year the Lord prompted me to bring our home
into order during the coming year in a practical
sense. I.e. sorting through things, keeping
what we need, giving away what we don’t need
and so on. I was sure it had something to do
with the house. As you know, we were looking
to the Lord for the house we’re living in as
the owners are selling and the ability to purchase
it is beyond our reach. Friends of ours,
knowing our plight visited us and said they
have a house that would become available in
about a years time that will meet the needs of
a large family such as ours. It is still in Springs
which facilitates the continuation of visits
for some of the children from their dads. We
are very grateful for their faithfulness to the
Lord and we pray His blessing on their lives.
I am humbled by the love of our heavenly
Father in a world reeling from one crisis to another,
creating fear and uncertainty around the
world and seeking to encroach on our lives.
The Lord in His unfailing character shows
Himself as faithful, true and unchanging. We
serve a God who is the same yesterday, today
and tomorrow, the Alpha and Omega of
our lives and His world. When change comes
upon us that is beyond our control, we know
we can run to Him who tells us that He has
not given us a spirit of slavery leading to fear
again, but a spirit of adoption as sons and
we can safely hide under the shadow of His
wing. Romans 8:14-25 and Revelation 1:8.
We were informed today that another provision
for childcare, namely Foster Cluster
Care (something we investigated a number of
years ago when it was still at discussion stages)
has been gazetted and passed into South
African law. It falls somewhere between foster
care and residential care (i.e. children’s
homes or villages). Also leans more to the side
of residential care in terms of requirements for
registration and services rendered by the department,
or NGO one is working with. Unregistering
of such a home also carries with it
a lot of red tape. According to South African
law, one can only foster up to six children.
But, because of the crisis South Africa faces
with regards to HIV/AIDS, this appeared to
open a window where allowances were made
for some people to foster more than six children.
Besides our three adult children, we
0 Moriel Quarterly • June 2010
have one adopted child, eight legal foster children,
two children living with us by private arrangements
(with their respective fathers) and
one child who stays with us on weekdays for
the purposes of homeschooling and who goes
home on weekends and school holidays. Now,
because of the new law it puts our arrangement
in jeopardy because it places us beyond
the perimeters of the new law. We have two
viable choices so as not to lose any of the children.
Firstly, to register as a foster cluster care
home or secondly, to adopt some of the children
to bring us back under the perimeters of
the new law. Allen and I believe by the direction
of the Lord and among other reasons our
age (getting older has a wonderful way of reminding
us how finite we are) have agreed not
to take any more children into care and that
decision has not been an easy one on our part.
The children we now have require a tremendous
amount of care simply by their number,
homeschooling, their medical conditions and
the very real reality of what the future holds
in terms of the life expectancy of our HIV
positive children. Also the strain from the care
they will need and the heartache if their ARV
treatment fails as well as our commitment to
prepare the children for adult life in a world
where finding ones feet is not always easy. In
discussion with our social worker we believe
it best to adopt the three younger children. We
are not allowed to adopt any of our children
who have known living parents, which four
of our children do. She has urged us to begin
proceedings as soon as possible and we will
go to children’s court next week to make the
application for adoption. We will cease to receive
the grants for the children but the Lord
has shown His faithfulness to us in the past
and our hope is in Him. We will look to the
Lord in terms of adoption of the other children
at a later stage.
Thank you for taking the time to read this
and allowing us to share our burden with you.
We cherish your prayers and we know that
within all the changes taking place He is our
Peace and we pray that all things be done for the
children’s sake and to the glory of His Name.
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to
you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let
not your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.
Yours in Jesus,
Allen and Sue
Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to
you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do
not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.
–John 14:27
NASB
Allen and Sue’s granddaughter
giving Ruth a kiss . . . . . !
Your righteousness is like the mountains
of God; Your judgments are like a great
deep O Lord, You preserve man and
beast. How precious is Your lovingkindness,
O God! And the children of men take
refuge in the shadow of Your wings. They
(F)drink their fill of the abundance of
Your house; And You give them to drink
of theriver of Your delights.
–Psalm 36:7
Rosie and Ruth . . . .
Bezaleel Introduction: Bezaleel is a
family home in the Springs Community
providing permanent care for children
affected and infected with HIV/AIDS
within the context of a family. Aims:
(1) To provide a loving environment,
medical care, anti-retroviral treatment
required and an education within the
structure of foster parenting; and (2) to
be available for education concerning
HIV/AIDS and provide support to those
interested in fostering children living
with AIDS.