The Orphan Who Became a Goddaughter of the Queen

In 1850, a young African girl named Sarah Forbes Bonetta arrived on English shores. Born an Egbado princess, she had been orphaned when her parents were killed in a raid, then held captive for years in Dahomey. Captain Frederick Forbes encountered her during a diplomatic mission and brought her to England, where she was presented to Queen Victoria.

What happened next astonished Victorian society. The Queen did not simply arrange for the girl's care at a distance. Victoria took Sarah as her own goddaughter, gave her a place within the royal household, funded her education, and personally oversaw her upbringing. Sarah dined at royal tables. She corresponded directly with the Queen for decades. When Sarah married, Victoria provided the wedding. When Sarah had a daughter, she named the child Victoria, and the Queen stood as godmother once again.

A captive child, plucked from suffering, was called daughter by the most powerful woman in the world. And that is what she was.

This is the staggering claim of 1 John 3:1. The Apostle John does not say God merely notices us or tolerates us. He says the Father has lavished such love upon us that we are called children of God — and that is what we are. Not honorary. Not symbolic. Actual sons and daughters of the Almighty. And one day, when we see Christ as He is, the transformation that began with that lavish love will finally be complete.