The Love of Family: Maxim’s Story

He wasn’t supposed to survive. He was brutally beaten by his own father. His skull… fractured in two places, but somehow he defied the odds.

Maxim who is now 15 years old has finally found peace and love at Mercy House in the Odessa region of Ukraine. Housemother Lina has taken him under her wing, like a son.

However, the road to get here wasn’t easy for Maxim. He was only 3 years old when his father took his anger out on him. He threw him to the floor in a fit of rage causing severe fractures to his skull. The toddler was immediately taken to the hospital where he underwent brain surgery. Doctors fought for his life, not sure if he was going to survive. But God had other plans for this child!

Maxim spent several lonely months in the hospital, for he had no family. His mother had died and his father was incarcerated. When Maxim was well enough to leave the hospital he was placed in an orphanage where he remained for the next 8 years of his life. During that time his father committed suicide. Maxim now had no living relative.

Living in the orphanage was brutal for this sickly child. The older children threatened his life… physically and mentally. “There were death threats against this boy because of his medical condition.”, said the director of the orphanage, “One strong blow to Maxim’s head could end his life.” Orphanages can be violent places where children fight for their food and fight for their place in this world.

A few years ago when Lina was at the orphanage preparing documents for graduating orphans, Maxim approached her and gently said he was praying to God for a family to rescue him from this place. His eyes… windows to the soul… revealed his deep pain. The orphanage director told Lina that no one wanted to adopt him because he was an older orphan with a medical condition. As the director was telling her this, Maxim asked Lina if she would take him. Tears quickly filled her eyes, as she knew then that she was his only hope.

Maxim now lives at Mercy House and is taken to the doctor every six months for treatment. As his skull grows, he will have to undergo surgery to replace the metal plates. He is a happy young man who has asked the Lord into his heart. Not only has he become an active member of his church, but a great son for Lina.

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