Eight years later God reminded Sandy of her promise. After trying for five years to have a third child, “God’s answer was no,” Sandy says. “That’s when God reminded me of my promise. My arms still ached for my own child, but it hit me that God was telling me to give that love to someone else’s child.”
The county hospital opened its doors to Sandy. She began her first Friday vigil holding, feeding, and blessing the premature babies of teenage mothers, crack addicts, and the working poor. From the moment she held her first fragile infant, she knew, at long last, she was in the right place, at the right time, for all the right reasons.
“Initially I went there to fill my arms, but I quickly realized it wasn’t about me, it was what God wanted to do through me,” Sandy says.
Family Stop
How is Sandy showing kindness? How does her kindness show her love for God? Why does holding babies give her such joy? Who gets the most benefit from Sandy’s act of kindness: the babies, their families, the nurses, or Sandy? Why? What can our family learn from her example?
Ask God to bless all those involved in this ministry of kindness.
oN FrIDAY morNINGS you’ll find Sandy Griffith in the
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of Houston’s Ben Taub Hospital. Sitting in a circle of rocking chairs, Sandy rocks, feeds, soothes, and blesses premature infants and those struggling to overcome other severe health problems.
“Every baby should begin life with a blessing,” she says. “My joy is found in asking God to bless each baby I hold.”
Sandy rarely meets the mothers of the babies she nurtures, but she understands their fear. Eighteen years ago, Sandy held her own premature son.
“I was able to be there with him the entire time he was in intensive care. While I held him, I looked around and realized there were 10 other babies in that nursery, some who had been there
Family Faith is a fresh approach to family devotions, designed to help you follow the parental mandate of Deut. 6: 4-8. Each month focuses on a key element of spiritual growth. Share the story with your family (all at once or in weekly sections) as a springboard for discussion. Learn suggested Scriptures from Memory Lane. Select ideas from Family Stop, As You Go, and Family Challenge that work best for your crew.
six months or longer. The nurses did what they could, but my son was the only baby held for any length of time. It was heartbreaking. I promised God that if I ever had the opportunity, I was going to hold babies for mothers who can’t be there.”
© Fancy
Through Sandy, God has encouraged others from her church, Memorial Drive Presbyterian, to wrap their hearts around this ministry. Many contribute to the church’s “Little Angels” outreach, which fills gift bags with infant necessities as tangible expressions of God’s love for those who need it most. The church also funds a playroom for siblings, allowing moms bonding time with their babies, and two apartments that enable working parents to spend the night with their infants and learn vital medical skills.
Perhaps most touching are the senior adult women who make gowns, booties, caps, and blankets as bereavement gifts for families whose babies don’t make it. Nurses dress an infant in the special clothing so the last memory grieving parents have of their child is his or her sweet face framed by beautiful, handmade garments. “Our ladies make [clothes] from full term to Barbie-doll size. The parents are extremely grateful,” says Sandy.
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