The Needs of the One

Emily’s Story

We don’t know much about Emily.  She has been gone for close to 200 years.  But I will tell you what we do know.

We know about Emily because of George Müller.  She was a catalyst that moved George to care for the orphans of his time.  Emily was not a child in an orphanage that he ran.  She was a child he met before he opened the first orphanage.  Emily weighed on George’s mind so much, it made him realize he had a mission field right where he was.

If We Care at All

When George met Emily, she was about 5 years old.  That was in 1832.  A precocious child, she walked the streets of the busy port city of Bristol, toting her toddler brother on her back, asking others for money.

Emily’s mother had died from cholera.  Her father said he was going to work in the mines, but never came back.  The question that lingered for George, and now for us is, what became of Emily?

Imagine, a 5-year-old girl caring for her younger brother on the streets of a busy city filled with poverty and crime.  If you are like me then many scenarios compete in fear at what could have happened to this little girl.

Of course, now it does not really matter because she is dead and gone.  But still, she lived and we at least need to ask what became of her?  Compassion demands it.  We will never know the answer but that is not the point.  The point is, if we care at all for our fellow travelers in this life, then we at least must allow our concern the freedom to explore the possibilities.  Most likely the worst happened to little Emily, but as with the rest of us, there is also the possibility of the best.

The Troubles of Her Childhood

One might wonder where God was at a time like this?  Yes, God used Emily to touch George’s heart and lead him to help thousands of other orphaned children, but what about Emily?

Was Emily alone, caring for her brother without adult supervision or guidance?  Was she abused in a crime ridden city?  Did she live to become an adult or was she struck down with the same disease that took her mother?  Did Emily grow to be a productive adult and have her own family?  Did the troubles of her childhood drive her to help others when she was able?

One can only hope.

Although we will certainly never know, God knows.  The apostle, Matthew, recorded the words of Jesus Christ in the Gospel that bears his name, “Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows.” Matthew 10:29-31

Drove His Compassion

It is fact that God knew Emily, and her brother.  What became of her, only God knows, but I am convinced that Jesus Christ is a God of love.  Why else would He have sacrificed His life on a cross for all mankind?  And because of His love, which is greater than the sum of all people who ever lived, I believe drove His compassion to provide for Emily and her brother and eventually into His loving arms in heaven.

We don’t need to fear for Emily or her brother.  Yes, she lived.  And yes, she probably suffered, more or less than the rest of mankind on their journey through this life to what waits for us on the other side.

The Bounty of Heaven

I suppose the next question we should ask is, when Emily’s life was over, was she carried into heaven like the beggar Lazarus in the story that Jesus told in Luke 16:19-31?  I believe so.

God has a way of drawing the broken to Him because they are more acutely aware of their need.  The ones who struggle seeing the salvation Jesus Christ offers and heaven are those whose need is little.

The ones who are successful in this life, whose needs are all or mostly met, who live in comfort satisfying the desires of their heart, are deaf and blind to the eternal needs of the spirit within them.  They are the ones we really need to be concerned about.

I have said it before.  Eternity is a long time.  So many people will miss the mark of heaven because they refuse to be added to the guest list.  All it takes is believing that Jesus Christ is God, and He came to the earth 2000 years ago, living as a man and offering His life willingly so that the rest of us can share the bounty of heaven.  It is so simple, but so many refuse to even consider what Jesus Christ did because at this moment in time, their needs are met, unlike Emily’s.

Yes, I believe that Emily is in heaven, with her brother, because she was aware of her needs.  Are you?

Resource

Christian Heroes: Then & Now; George Müller, The Guardian of Bristol's Orphans; Janet & Geoff Benge; pages 92-93

What the Bible Says

The Rich Man and Lazarus

“Now there was a rich man, and he habitually dressed in purple and fine linen, joyously living in splendor every day. And a poor man named Lazarus was laid at his gate, covered with sores, and longing to be fed with the crumbs which were falling from the rich man’s table; besides, even the dogs were coming and licking his sores. Now the poor man died and was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom; and the rich man also died and was buried. In Hades he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus so that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool off my tongue, for I am in agony in this flame.’ But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your life you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus bad things; but now he is being comforted here, and you are in agony. And besides all this, between us and you there is a great chasm fixed, so that those who wish to come over from here to you will not be able, and that none may cross over from there to us.’ And he said, ‘Then I beg you, father, that you send him to my father’s house— for I have five brothers—in order that he may warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’ But Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’ But he said, ‘No, father Abraham, but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent!’ But he said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be persuaded even if someone rises from the dead.’” Luke 16:19-31