Cleaving. Hesed.

 Recently, I have used the phrase "leave and cleave" quite often.  When people ask what Claire and Jonah's plans are, I often say that they are moving wherever they find jobs and they will leave and cleave to oneanother. The idea of leaving and cleaving also pertains to our extra Kredit.  Cleave has 2 meanings.  One is to split or divide as by a cutting blow as one would cleave a log with an ax.  The second is to adhere closely; stick; to remain faithful (dictionary.com).  In a bible study book I am reading, she says "Cleaving is both a splitting apart and an attaching-paradoxical experiences poignantly represented by the journey of adoption."  The bible story referenece is from Ruth and Noami.  Ruth chose to leave her culture and embrace that of Naomi, and also to embrace living a life unto God.  

    XK is experiencing this cleaving.  Since he is just a little boy, its really hard because he understands that he is leaving what is familiar and safe and good and moving forward to what is promised to be better, and safer, and so full of possibility but nothing in his experience prepared him to do this.  It is exhausting to work through this transition in a way that is trauma-sensitive, honest and authentic.  This child, by definition, is exhausting.....and to try to move him forward in a good way is way above my pay grade.....and yet....this is what I signed up for.  This is foster care.  God picked a really great family for him and it's just super scary to get him from here to there for all of us....because there is so much cleaving involved.  please pray.  God knows what needs to happen...but please pray against all the schemes of the devil intended to steal and kill and destroy, and pray for favor.   

    Going to a different church (even though it's in the same town) is super scary for him.  He didn't know Jesus or church before he knew us....so today I took him to the church he will attend with his new family.  He was nervous and on the way he asked me how do people get to know about Jesus.  What do you mean, buddy?  Like....how do people get to know there is Jesus?  Well....I learned about Jesus when I was a child, through church and sunday school because my parents knew about Jesus so they made sure I could learn too....and he asked me what happens if there are people who don't ever get to learn about Jesus....and so I told him that it is the job of Christians who know about Jesus, to tell others about Jesus and how much he loves us and how through him we can have eternal life....and he had so many questions and I was straight-up just stressing about how to get him through church with his new family and his nerves that light my nerves on fire...and it was only 9am on Sunday morning.  

    people.

    This is hard.  work.  

He was asking how to spread the gospel...so that all may know what he knows....

    seriously.

There is another word I want to write about.  It is a Hebrew word.  Hesed.  In the book of Ruth, Naomi describes Ruth as showing hesed, which means unfailing love. " In th Hebrew culture, this term represents the deepest level of convenantal commitment.  When an adopted child offers hesed, they make the choice to be part of a family through covenant.  When a mother offers hesed, she maks a choice to graft that child into her family.  At some point a child must choose to cleave to the new life that God has given him through an outpouring of hesed.  And a parent also must choose to cleave to the child.  This does not happpen in a courtroom or while signing papers.  It is not a legal contract in the terms of the world.  It is a covenant that can only exist between our hearts and God. "(Second Mother, by Jodi Jackson Tucker).   

    So here is where we are.  What we need is "hesed".  Pray if you are able, that the God who can do immeasurable more than all we ask or imagine, will make hesed happen.  For, me, for them...but ultimately for this little guy who deserves all the best life can offer him.