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The Shoe-Box Baby (Johnny Mark Paz)

From: House of Happiness:  “Weighing only 2.5 pounds, Johnny was found in the trash by garbage men on the streets of Quito (the capital of Ecuador, South America). wrapped in a filthy rag, he was taken to the president’s wife, who was overseeing the orphanages of the nation at that time. Henry Davis (the orphanage founder) came to visit her around the same time, and she asked if Henry would take this abandoned little baby to the Happiness Orphanage. He took the baby home to Dorothy, still wrapped in the dirty rags and told her he had a surprise for her. As he began to set the baby down on their kitchen counter top, Dorothy turned around and said, “Don’t set those dirty rags on my counter, Henry!” Before she could get upset, he told her to open the rags and see what was inside. As she opened the rags, she was startled to find a baby. The baby was unnamed, so they began calling him John Mark Peace (“Juan Marco Paz” in Spanish). Johnny was so small and malnourished that they thought he was a newborn. After a visit to the doctor they found out he was one month old. He was so small that Johnny slept in a shoe box. Dorothy cared for him until he was four months old and in good health — then he went to the orphanage to live. He grew up at the orphanage, having no other family. Johnny is now married and has a family of his own. The Lord has blessed him with a charming smile and a natural musical talent.”

I have been researching orphanages and came across this story which I thought I would post to encourage us to be wise stewards with our time and money and to show what a difference one can make.  In America and other industralized nations, we often have so much abundance that we do not have enough room to store all of our goods and need bigger houses, taller attics, and rented storage space.  And even now so many are preparing to increase their coffers with more goods as we approach the holiday season. 

I pray we all might examine our lives and take an accounting of our time, resources and finances to assess how we are using them.  And that we might reach out to more of the disadvantaged, downtrodden and despised and share with them the love of Christ, not only in word, but in deed and truth.  For it is written:

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

And elsewhere, the Psalmist wrote:

Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble. The LORD will preserve him, and keep him alive; and he shall be blessed upon the earth: and thou wilt not deliver him unto the will of his enemies.

If any do know of any reputable orphanges, I would be more than interested in learning about them. 

11 thoughts on “The Shoe-Box Baby (Johnny Mark Paz)”

  1. That was a very good article! I don’t know of any orphanages here in the states as I think they put the children in homes for people to foster instead of orphanages but I’m sure there are orphanages overseas. Maybe there are others that read that could share with you, as well.

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  3. My brother and sister-in-law (who is Nicaraguan) have been assisting a little orphanage in Managua, Nicaragua for the last few years that could really use some extra help. I’ve visited it myself a couple times, and fell in love with all the children there. The orphanage is nicknamed “El Canon” (pronounced can-yone—in English, “canyon”), because it is literally situated in a small canyon, and when my brother first visited it they had very few resources and could only house but so many children. Due to volunteers such as my brother, contributing their time and money, the orphanage has been able to expand and improve their facilities somewhat, but they still need much, much more, in order to properly provide for the needs of the children brought to their doors—often children are simply left there by parents or relatives no longer willing or able to care for them. This orphanage is not run by a church or any other organization—it’s simply some Christians reaching out to the needy children in Managua. If anyone is interested in finding out how they, or their church, can help this orphanage, either financially, or by sending a team down, simply let me know, and I can get one in touch with my brother. There is so much need in Nicaragua! My brother also ministers to poverty-stricken families living in the city dump (which I’ve also visited—it’s absolutely horrific and heartbreaking at the same time). Any help, of any kind, will be appreciated by brother, and by the needy children and families in this area of the world.

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  5. Hope – Thanks for the info. on the orphanage in Nicaragua. I’ll be dropping you an e-mail to get more info.

    Blessings –

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  11. This was very touching. I’m glad Johnny developed and grew up okay – 2.5 lbs. at a month old? That’s a miracle!

    A few months ago, I wrote about a foreign friend of mine who has a Christian ministry (evangelism, discipleship and humanitarian aid) to several orphanages in Belarus: http://theo-geek.blogspot.com/2008/12/of-orphans-and-widows.html

    I had to be careful because the Lukashenka government has been trying to close down all the Christian operations in the country (all but 4 US Embassy staff were kicked out, and all the missionaries they can find have been deported or expelled). The Christian Church is undergoing a time of intense persecution in Belarus, and the country is getting poorer and poorer, so it is only by the grace of God “Elena” is still able to minister to these kids and share the Gospel with them.

    If you are interested, I can send you the ministry’s name and contact info – I’ve been asked not to put it on the web. The ministry still has a webpage, but it only mentions the orphanage programs in Russia – no mention of Belarus purposely.

    Best,

    Marie

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