Heavenly Citizenship

These two promises from God’s Word are especially near and dear to me tonight. Continue reading and you’ll understand why.

“See what kind of love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God.” 

– 1 John 3:1

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” 

– Philippians 3:20

Wherever you’re reading this blog update, I bet you could easily reach into a pocket, purse, or wallet and pull out your ID. You probably know where your birth certificate is (or could call your mom/wife/etc. to find out where it is) and would be able to list some sort of identification number like a social security number on a form that asked for it. For most of us, this is something we take for granted. I know I did, until the past few days when I was made aware of a problem that several of our students have here in Monte Plata. You see, many of the children who live in Casa Monte Plata are orphans. These students attend the Eva M. Russell School where I work along with almost 50 other children from around the community. Right now there are five children in Casa Monte Plata who do not exist according to the Dominican government. When they were born, their mother never registered them with the government, therefore they have no birth certificate. Birth certificates are necessary to obtain your “cedula” in the country when you turn 18 years old and want to take the “Pruebas Nacionales” which are the high school exit exams. You also need a “cedula” in order to get a phone, get a bank account, obtain a driver’s license – almost everything that successful, functioning adults need comes through having a “cedula.” The problem we have with some of our kids here is that even if they wanted to get a birth certificate (which can still be done when you are older), their parents aren’t around to claim them anymore. The effects of this broken system are best demonstrated by the story of one of our most promising young men in the Kids Alive program here. He is in his last year of “liceo” (high school) and shows incredible potential. He is loved by all the children at Casa Monte Plata and is respected by his teachers and the Kids Alive directors here. But he has no papers. Even though he is about to turn 18 years old and is ready to take the “Pruepas Nacionales” and receive his “cedula,” he can’t. And sadly, he is only one of many who are walking similar paths. There are some children who still have mothers who could help them get their papers in order, but they themselves have no papers so they cannot register their own children. It seems hopeless.

The Kids Alive directors are working on a solution to this problem. My own roommate, who grew up in the Kids Alive program, was also an orphan. She was born here in the Dominican Republic but her parents were born in Haiti. So to get papers for her, Kids Alive hired an investigator to go to Haiti and find a family member to claim her as a Haitian citizen. So even though my roommate has never set foot in Haiti in her life, she is a Haitian citizen and has a Haitian passport, which enabled her to take the “Pruebas Nacionales” and graduate. There are ways to work around the system, but it takes time, patience, and money to get the job done. I am so thankful to be part of a Godly organization that cares for children in such a holistic way. When the Bible says that “religion that is pure before God is to visit the orphans and widows in their affliction,” (James 1:27) Kids Alive is not merely visiting them, but is living with them, walking through life with them, and helping them even when it’s costly and demanding of sacrifice.

I hope that you read these verses with new perspective today. How comforting to know that it doesn’t matter if we have two parents, one parent, or no living parents. We are still called the children of God. How comforting to know that our citizenship here on this earth pales in comparison to our heavenly citizenship, which is granted to us not by a government, a birth certificate, or our parents, but by the saving blood of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

“See what kind of love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God.” 

– 1 John 3:1

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.” 

– Philippians 3:20