Marie's Story

This is a story of a little girl who breaks my heart.

I got a phone call about a week and a half ago from Michelle. She told me that a baby had been dropped off at our clinic. This is baby number 2 that has been dropped off, and I already knew that Michelle had this baby in her possession. We meet up and I see this HUGE baby! She has got to weigh 30 pounds. She is seven months, has two teeth, and is all around pretty adorable.

I hold her for a few minutes, and she pees on me. This is the beginning of our love-hate relationship. I'm still getting used to "babies" so having one pee on me was not a good start. I really wanted to know her story so Michelle filled me in on all of the details.

Marie's dad is a voodoo priest. Every November, there is a ceremony where babies are sacrificed to the voodoo religion. Marie's mom brought Marie and her younger brother to the clinic that day covered in blood. Quickly, the staff at the clinic found out that the children had been abused by the father, and he was planning on killing baby Marie. My heart sunk. How can ANYONE kill an innocent child. My heart started beating fast, and I was so glad that she was in our possession.

We are home with Marie, and she starts SCREAMING. Every time we put this child down, she cries uncontrollably. I automatically get nervous for this child. I know she is out of her comfort zone, even though her comfort zone was being beat. I can't imagine what this baby has seen, but I do know that she hates being put down. If she is held, she is perfectly fine, but the minute she is put on the couch, or on the bed, the tears start flowing.

We are trying to calm her down when Michelle gets a call from the clinic director. The mom has returned to the clinic saying that the dad wants the baby back, and we have to bring Marie back right now. Heart sinking part 2. Michelle says that Marie has to go back to the clinic because the dad is still in charge. The pastor of the community church is going to the dad to try to get him to relinquish Marie, but at this point, anything could happen. He could definitely say I want my baby back, and that baby could be sacrificed tomorrow.

Marie left our house, and I couldn't help but plead with our Father to save this baby's life. I was reminded that whether this baby comes back to our house or not, God is still in control and has this baby surrounded in love. We prayed and weeped, and prayed, and weeped. I was sick to my stomach thinking that this baby could go back to her earthly father just to be harmed and possibly even killed.

After praying for a while and talking to some girls that are staying at our house, I walked down to our guesthouse to see what was going on. We got a call and the clinic director said that the dad decided to relinquish his responsibility! He said the baby was his wife's and she could do what she wanted! I immediately started praising the Lord for sparing this baby's life! Once again, the power of prayer showed me how little faith I have. God knew all along what would happen to this baby, and it reminded me once again how sovereign and awesome He is.

So Marie is now living with us. For the first 3 days she did nothing but cry. She would start crying, then Melissa would start crying. We were having a really hard time, but she has finally gotten used to us and has started playing and smiling a lot more. She can even sit on the floor with some toys and not cry! She truly has come a long way, and I'm so blessed to see the transition that is happening in her life.

I don't know where Marie will end up, but I am confident that she will always be protected under God's wing. She has already impacted several people's lives, and I know that her story will impact so many more. I hope her story even moves you as you are reading this. God really is in control, and He knows what is best for us, and baby Marie.

I'll keep you updated as she grows and we find a permanent place for her.

Until next time...