December 18, 2008
By Suzanna and Lawrence Savage, retired workers to Mongolia
Shortly after arriving in Darhan for our first term of missionary service, we heard of three children living by themselves in a nearby apartment. We tracked them down and learned that their mother had recently died of an illness resulting from an infection during pregnancy with her fourth child. Because of his wife’s death, the father took to drinking heavily and ended his life a few months later.
The oldest of the children was 14, her brother was 12, and the youngest sister was only 8. Three months after their father’s death, we visited them in their parents’ apartment, which the kids owned. The place was neat as a pin!
We then had them over for dinner along with two Mongolian translators. When the children prepared to leave, the oldest one buttoned up her younger sister’s coat and put on her hat, scarf, and gloves, just like a “mother” would do. God touched us that night and put a burden in our hearts to care for these children, to protect them and to love them.
We were able to do this until we moved to Ulaanbaatar the following year. From then on, we would see them only once a month when we traveled back to Darhan on mission business. We would take them grocery shopping and leave them money to last until we returned the following month. We did this for two years.
Hope and a Future
This summer we had the privilege of having “our kids” stay with us in Ulaanbaatar. During those two weeks they finally opened up to us, smiling and laughing as they rediscovered what it means to have a family. We took them shopping, to the movies (they had never been to a theater before), to cultural events, and out for walks. When they left to return to Darhan, they were calling us “Mommy” and “Daddy.”
They are now 17, 15, and 11. The oldest is now attending university in Ulaanbaatar. She accepted the Lord Jesus a year ago and is sharing a room with another Christian girl. Initially, she had planned to stay in the university dormitory, but we checked it out and decided it wasn’t suitable for a young girl. We praise the Lord for providing another place for her to stay.
After her father’s death, the oldest daughter was angry at him for leaving her with the responsibility of looking after her siblings. At times she felt so hopeless that she wanted to end her life too. But she said that after experiencing God’s love for her and her siblings through our care for them, she knew there was hope after all.
We are still praying for her brother and sister to receive Christ. Even though we are back in North America, we continue to support them. We appreciate and solicit your prayers for them on a daily basis. And, if you feel led to help them financially, that would be much appreciated.
Thank you for supporting us these past three years in your prayers, in your encouragement, and in your finances; it really means a lot!