I feel like I start a lot of my posts with a statement like, "I don't know how old I was when I first read about so and so." But the truth is, I did a lot of reading in my youth. My dad started a small Christian bookstore when I was still in elementary school and all through my middle school and high school years, I worked in the bookstore after school and in the summers. Since we were a small bookstore, we didn't have a lot of customers and I admit, I began reading the books on the shelves one-by-one, taking great care not to damage the books in any way. It was a wonderful way to grow up!
One day, I noticed a new book on the shelf and it's title caught my eye for two reasons. First, it had the name of one of my best friends and I had never known anyone else with that name. But the second reason it caught my eye was because its title seemed so sad. The book was called, Dorie, the Girl Nobody Loved.
Dear reader, if you don't know this amazing woman please give yourself the gift of meeting her through her book. Dorie Van Stone is well worth knowing. Her story is not an easy read. In fact, much of it will break your heart. Let me whet your appetite to learn more by giving you a very brief overview of her life.
Dorie was an orphan, abandoned and unloved. She suffered horrific abuse and rejection throughout her childhood as she bounced from orphanages to foster homes. But, then one day, a group of college students visited her orphanage and told her that she was loved and they introduced to her to Jesus. That changed her life completely.
Through a series of circumstances that can only be described as miraculous, Dorie was rescued from the terrible childhood rejection and abuse. She was finally able to begin a new life. She met and married Lloyd Van Stone at Bible College and together they had two children - a fulfillment of her lifelong dream.
They moved to the remote island of New Guinea to share God’s love with the Dani people. She had a special place in her heart for the abandoned and unloved children around the world. After her husband died in 1986, Dorie spent the rest of her life as an advocate for orphans. She became a board member for Forever Changed International, an Orphan Care Ministry in Guatemala. Their children’s home located in Guatemala City is named after Dorie and is called Dorie’s Promise.
She was known as “The Orphan’s Ambassador” and it is said that she made a point of never leaving an orphanage without hugging every single child.
Her stories are told in the books linked here and in the attached images: Dorie, the Girl Nobody Loved, and No Place to Cry.
Again, these are not easy reads - trauma is never easy to read about. But, they are beautiful testimonies of the power of God to turn our ashes to beauty. And as our world becomes more vile by the minute, we will be surrounded by people young and old just like Dorie who need our love, compassion and understanding to help them heal as they work through the rejection, trauma and abuse like Dorie did. She can encourage us to point them to the ONE who has the power to change a life. It involves getting into the pit with them and guiding them out of it one painful step at a time.
Dorie is still inspiring people today. I hope you will take some time to get to know her more so that she can inspire you too.
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Don't forget to check out my debut historical fiction novel. I wrote The Freedom Chain for my own children during our homeschool study of ancient Rome. It's an Amazon best-seller and is a great addition to your family library.
Cassia, a young slave in the household of Marius Luciano, is devastated when her mother is arrested for her Christian faith. Unless Master Marius can somehow change the mind of Proconsul Pliny, Cassia’s mother will die. To get your copy, click this link: The Freedom Chain.
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