Tears welled up in his eyes. “Did you do this?” I asked, “Tell me the truth”. With all the love in my heart I wanted him to tell me the truth because I knew he had made a bad choice. But, I also knew that years of living effected by trauma make it hard to speak the truth, even when it’s obvious. I waited for him to squeeze the words out, hoping for some proof of success for the years of parenting we have given. As a mom to kids from trauma, the greater success in that moment of parenting was whether or not this guy was going to lie or tell the truth. Kids make mistakes. We all do. But a child from tough places has to learn to trust enough to admit the mistake, to feel secure enough to accept that we won’t reject him, and know that we will always love him even when we don’t like the choices he made. He doesn’t have to lie anymore to protect himself. He can be honest and stop living in fear and guilt. The tears welled up in my eyes too. My heart breaks for the pain I know so many kids carry from the trauma they have suffered. My heart breaks as I see the effects that run so deep. This time, thank the Lord, he told the truth. Progress. While the conversation continued about right and wrong, honesty was celebrated. My hope is that one day the children from hard places will overcome, despite the odds, because we have a big God that does great things for those that love Him. He is the Miracle Worker, the Healer, the Provider. He is the one that has overcome the world and His spirit has victory for all those that love him. I see that victory happening little by little every single day.
“We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.” Romans 5:3-5 NLT