Author Archives: Elea Lee

Unknown's avatar

About Elea Lee

Foster parent, adopting parent, family advocate, educator, homeschool parent

The parable of the lost…iPad?!

Posted on by
Reply

I went on a trip today. God took care of everything. He got us to the airport(s). He got us to and from planes. He let little ones play when they should and sleep when they should.

I praised and thanked Him for each step of a blessed and safe journey. Sure there were some scary times, some kids with spring coughs. Even some upset stomachs. They were troopers.

I doubt my kids noticed the consternation on some people’s faces–so many kids!!! Young! What if they cry? They did not. They were amazing.

But.

We left an iPad at the airport….we think. Coulda been car rental? But no, we figure it was Dallas. That is a big airport. But we figure we left it in the waiting area of C terminal, Gate 37? That is what we think.

It is a pretty beat up iPad and there is a reward for it’s return. So let me know if you find it.

I love it because it has stuff on it that matters–my children’s stories and pictures. But make no mistake–I would rather have the children. I can live without the iPad. But if I lost my kids it would break my heart.

I know this because I have already lost a few.

Don’t wanna lose anymore. In fact I have a crazy idea that the ones that have slipped away will one day return.

Isaiah 49

“Born that Way”

Posted on by
Reply

Let me just say this: we have jettisoned history. We do not know it and it has led us into some serious foolishness.

When Paul wrote:

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 (NIV)
Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders [10] nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. [11] And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

he was addressing a Greco-Roman civilization where children were castrated and bartered as slaves and prostitutes.

We moderns see this verse as divisive and hazardous–separating us into camps of sorts, but we need to work on our reading comprehension.

Read it again.

In my life I have been a few of those people on the list. I am a broken and hopeless person without Jesus.

Most sinners I know go to church often. Most are heterosexual. Most try to clean up their outside and hold on to their mendacity.

Paul is saying,

we all must come clean.

All
Clean
And verse 11 is a triumph, a resounding affirmation of the power of Love in us–to bring about life, healing, safety, and transformation.

Don’t miss God’s outpouring of grace because you refuse to believe you need a bath.

Trust Him. We all need a bath.

Finding

Posted on by
3

Pretend you are just a wisp of a thing
Standing in a maze
But…
Someone you
Love is looking out for you.

He says–

Mark 8:34-38 (NIV)
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. [35] For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. [36] What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? [37] Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? [38] If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

Which can be translated–follow Me. Trust Me.

He can see the whole maze so I do. I do trust him. Sometimes in my life I have hoped there was an easier way through. I have always known that others wandered through their mazes and had to slay monsters…or be slain by them.

The ultimate question for me is not how?

He answered that when he came back from hell with my life in his hands.

No. The only question is when?

When will we all
Walk into the Light?
Glorious Light.

Rev. 22

Losing

Posted on by
4

We all hope it will turn out ok. We will be the ones–long full life, no pain. We optimists.

You have to be an optimist to foster and adopt kids you already know have problems. You have to believe in miracles.

Our belief in miracles went something like this: yes, we know they are tough kids, but consistency, love and faithfulness combined with God’s healing power will help these kids.

My goal was a picture–all my adult (stable, law-abiding) children gathering with their families for thanksgiving dinner.

So you may imagine what a blow to the gut it was to find out our plan hadn’t produced the picture. Our adopted kids hurt our family, hurt our other children. They committed crimes before they graduated from high school.

I still remember the old me, the believer in the miracle, the picture….

Part 1 of 2

The Picture

Posted on by
Reply

The poster shows familiar faces–Oprah, Ashley Judd, Tori Amos. There are people in it I did not know were sexual abuse survivors. I was a struck by the stories I did not know as the dozens of people who were survivors who weren’t on the poster.

Each made a choice to tell their story. Each has helped me to tell ours.

Victims become survivors when someone shows them they are not alone. What happened to them has happened to others.

We need to speak out.

To heal
To save others
To break the power of silence

Frog Boils

Posted on by
Reply

For years now I have refrained from using the creepy and depressing frog in a pot of water analogy because I had been told it was not true.

Turns out it may be true. It could be true in the following ways:

1. The frog has been mentally or physically disabled. A brained frog or a frog with broken limbs will or can’t jump. Hardly proves anything beyond extreme cruelty.

2. The water is heated extremely slowly.

The “successful” experiments for this story were conducted by “scientists” in the 1800s. The quotation marks indicate my personal distaste for this kind of experiment. What normal person boils frogs in the name of science?!

The unfortunate truth: amphibians now have more advocates than babies. Imagine what PETA would do if NIH started boiling frogs.

But the children born as the result of incompetent abortionists (here I resist the quotes but must ask you to dwell on exactly what a successful abortionist does) are targets for medical murder.

Not only have abortion clinics been quietly snuffing out human life for years, now Planned Parenthood (recipient of tax funds) is openly advocating extending abortion to live human babies.

Who needs frogs when you can experiment on humans instead? Are you feeling cozy and warm in that pot? Check your limbs, check your cerebral cortex, and then find a way to jump. ‘Cause things are getting hotter here. One degree at a time.

Why Facebook needs an “ugh” button…

Posted on by
Reply

The story circulates and re-circulates but the video never should: two men taped themselves abusing a child a decade ago and this week it goes viral on Facebook?!

Why would anyone “Like” that?!

Why would thousands repost it?

While I am glad people have reported the video, I would prefer it had not been viewed or more than that, made.

No one should do that to a child. And we are no longer a civilized nation if we promote child abuse on social media or do nothing to stop it.

Anyone who helps who spreads child pornography should face charges.

But of course, they won’t.

Where is the equal sign for children?

5 a day

Posted on by
Reply

Last April I made a commitment to write about child abuse every day in remembrance of National Child Abuse Prevention Month. It was spiritually and emotionally painful.

This year I have committed to write about recovery. I don’t think most kids have happy, stress-free childhoods, but some experience more grief and trauma than others.

And then there are the five each day.

In the United States of America 5 children die each day from the fatal effects of child abuse. Beautiful little children like Toryn Buckman.

Imagine if it were 5 celebrities, 5 soccer moms, 5 athletes, 5 politicians. Any other group of people in this country gets killed off in groups of five or more a day and we would have a national crisis. It would be national news. It would be a scandal. Advocates would call for change.

But not children. Children in our country are second-class citizens. They have no voice. We have to be their voices.

When I contacted elected officials and bureaucrats to ask them to assist abused children to a man they said the same thing–this is not my issue.

Is it yours?

Forever

Posted on by
Reply

He says, I want to live here forever
Can we live here forever?
And I understand what he means–
We are close to heaven
Close to sanctuary

He doesn’t know
What happened to his sister
He doesn’t know
That everything
He does is a reminder
Of how very young she was
The ghost
Hurt my babies.