Our Growing Family

Our Growing Family--female student with books in library

“Would you be interested in keeping one or two university students from Taiwan during Christmas break?” That simple question in December 2002, began a marvelous adventure that continues for our growing family today.

Our Growing Family Begins

We agreed to keep a girl for two weeks, and what a joy! She attended the university one semester, taking English as a Second Language classes. Financial concerns required a return home. However, a friend convinced her to remain during the holidays to improve her English and experience the culture of a “real” American family. Due to complications with her flight schedule, those two weeks became six.

Our Growing Family Continues

Our Growing Family--globe with "Worldwide" around itNever could we have imagined the impact on our lives. Not only did our love for her grow, but through her we gradually met students from several countries. Over time, we became family to a multitude of students. A few remain in the United States. The majority returned home or began work in other parts of the world. Some visit when possible, now bringing our grandchildren with them. With most of them, we rely on telephone, internet, and postal services to keep in touch.

We claim no legal ties to these young people, adults with biological parents from a different language and cultural background. Yet we proudly call them our children. How they have enriched our appreciation for the love and commitment God extends to each of us as adopted sons and daughters.

Lessons learned

  1. Our Growing Family--children of different races holding hands in a circle and looking upWe’re all more alike than different. Cultures may differ, but we share the same basic physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual needs as everyone else in the world.
  2. Differences become less threatening when we discuss them. Whether we eventually agree or disagree about our varying approaches to life, we gain understanding when we share in an open and accepting atmosphere.
  3. Love knows no biological or geographical boundaries. Just as God loves each of us with never-ending, unconditional love, we can experience and extend that same love. We may never step foot in our loved ones’ countries, but that doesn’t prevent us from fully embracing them individually and collectively.
  4. We can solve a world of problems while gathered around a dinner table. Sharing from the same dishes, exploring unknown dietary territory, and laughing while stumbling through another round of language lessons draws people closer together. I believe informal dining, rather than state dinners, may be a vital step toward improved diplomatic relations.
  5. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. A cliché, I know, but a good one. My initial concerns included language difficulties, unknown guests living under our roof, and my worst fear: That’s a lot of cooking for someone with well-known culinary challenges. (Any guesses where visiting students want to spend most of their time? That’s right. The kitchen. The greatest wonder of all: They think I’m a great cook!)
  6. We need to share what we have. God loved us enough to provide financially and when we share those provisions, whether meager or great, God’s provision blesses us all.

Invitation Extended

Our Growing Family--flagsWhat joy we gain when we open our lives to new avenues of sharing God’s love!

What about your family? Could God be calling you to reach out to your neighbors in a previously untried way? Who knows? You may find it one of the most challenging, yet rewarding, experiences of your life. Share His love. Share His provisions. Bless and be blessed.

Diana Derringer

Diana Derringer is an award-winning writer and author of Beyond Bethlehem and Calvary: 12 Dramas for Christmas, Easter, and More! Her articles, devotions, dramas, planning guides, Bible studies, and poems have been accepted more than 1,200 times by 70-plus publications, including several anthologies. In addition, Diana writes radio dramas and question-and-answer television programs for Christ to the World Ministries. Her adventures as a social worker, adjunct professor, youth Sunday school teacher, friendship family for international university students, and caregiver for her husband supply a constant flow of writing ideas. For a free copy of Diana’s “Words of Hope for Days That Hurt” and her weekly Words, Wit, and Wisdom: Life Lessons from English Expressions, join her mailing list at https://dianaderringer.com.

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