"It's About Giving"

This month is often Americans' favorite of the whole year, because it means we are finally at Christmas.  That means hot cocoa, time with family, Christmas carols and holiday songs on the radio every day, Santa Claus, and, of course, presents.  We love getting presents, don't we? Who doesn't enjoy unwrapping the present (whether it's in a beautiful box with a bow or wrapped in the funny pages from that weeks' newspaper - my big brother's favorite wrapping material)?  There's all the excitement of finding out what the people who love you got you, how they are demonstrating their love for you. 

For many of us, we measure how much we are loved by how much we get.  But in God's economy, what matters is not what we get, but what we give. Giving is at the heart of our faith.  There are so many places in scripture that we could see this, but let's look at just a few points tonight.

1. We give because we serve a God who gave up everything to save us.
Philippians 2:5-8 "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-- even death on a cross!"

Romans 8:32 - He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 
 
Jesus, our LORD, gave up His rights as God, all the privileges of being the One True God, the Alpha and Omega, the Creator and Lord of all things.  He gave that up to inhabit a human form, to live a human life with us on earth. And then he willingly gave up that life - for you. He died the death we deserve so that we might live through his sacrifice.  The Father gave up His own Son, sacrificing his only son for your sake.  If He was willing to do that, how could we doubt that He will give us all that we need?

2. We should give because our God is a gift-giving God.
Romans 3:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life.

Romans 5:17 - For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
*Our salvation is the free gift from God, dependent not on anything that we have done, but wholly dependent on the goodness and mercy of the Lord.

1 Corinthians 7:7 - But each man has his own gift from God; one has this gift, another has that.  
Romans 12:6 - We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
*Beyond the gift of eternal life and salvation, God also gives us each spiritual gifts that allow us to work together as the body of Christ. 

James 1:5 - If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
Beyond salvation and spiritual gifts, the God we serve gives wisdom generously to all who ask.  He also gives grace and mercy and forgiveness (see 1 John 1:9 - If we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sin and purify us from all unrighteousness.)

3. We give because God loves when we give to others. 
2 Corinthians 9:7 - Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

4. We give because we recognize that all gifts ultimately come from God, not from us.
James 1:17 - Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.  
*When our motivations are right, we give to others because we ultimately recognize that all that we have is from God.  Whether we have much or we have little, all we have is His.  

Whether we give our money, our time, our conversations, our things, our prayers - when we give to others out of the overflow of God's blessings to us, we have the opportunity to glorify Him. We have the chance to say, "This isn't about me; this is about how good God has been to us, that we can share it with you.  He is the one who deserves the thanks."  

I think that when we stop worrying about what we're going to get and start focusing on how we are going to give, we please Christ.  

This December, there are wonderful opportunities for you to give to others and glorify our God in Heaven.  For the next 19 days, Compassion International is sponsoring an initiative entitled, "It's All about Giving."  By simply clicking here - Compassion Christmas Gift Catalog, you have the ability to radically transform the life of a child, a family, or a community.  I wrote about this in my last post, but to reiterate, you could: 

• provide garden seeds for a family in Africa for $10 
• protect a child from malaria for $18
• build a water reservoir for a family for $23
• provide safe and sanitary bathrooms for $30
• provide shelter for a family and a highly vulnerable child for one month for $42
• feed a baby and its mother for 3 months for $48 
• provide for a baby's medical care for a year for $55
• provide clean water for a family for life for $79

And there are so many more possibilities.  Our goal is to raise $20,000 in 20 days for the most vulnerable and needful children around the world.  

Will you help?  Will you give out of the blessings you have been given?  Again, the campaign is #ItsAboutGiving (in case you look for it on other social media) and the link to the Christmas catalog is http://www.compassion.com/catalog.htm?referer=128060

We have been given so much.  Perhaps today is the day to give in return.

'Tis the Season

I can't believe it is November already! In fact, it is November 2nd, which means a very important person in my life is celebrating his birthday today.  Between his birthday, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, my mind has begun to turn toward the idea of giving and receiving. 

We all love to receive, don't we?  Most of us love receiving letters or cards in the mail, emails when we log in, presents on our birthdays and at Christmas.  For some people, this is part of their "love language," and the act of giving and receiving is how they best express their love for someone or know they are loved in return.  And in the U.S., we place a high premium on getting.  We spend billions of dollars between Thanksgiving and Christmas every year.

But I have a question: does it satisfy you? Does it really fulfill you to receive and receive and receive?

I know it doesn't satisfy me.  There's always something more, something better, something new.  Receiving, getting, never really fulfills me. Perhaps this holiday season, we need to stop demanding and pleading and begging for things for ourselves and begin focusing on giving. 

Here are a few things that God has said about giving:

"Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land." ~Deuteronomy 15:10-11

"The sluggard's craving will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work. All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing." ~Proverbs 21:25-26

In the gospels, Jesus said, "Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you." ~Matthew 5:42

"Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give." ~Matthew 10:8 

"Jesus answered,  'If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.'" ~Matthew 19:21

"Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'" ~Matthew 25:34-40

"Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom. Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will not be exhausted, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." ~Luke 12:32-34

"Then Jesus said to his host, 'When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.'" ~Luke 14:12-14

"Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." ~2 Corinthians 9:6-7

 We could go on, but it seems quite clear that God wants us to be giving people.  It makes the most sense - after all, we serve the God who gave Himself as a sacrifice and gave up the rights of being God to become human and pay the price for our sins (see Philippians 2 and all of Romans).  Our Lord Jesus gave up his rights, gave up the privileges of being the God of the universe to become human and lay down his life - for you.

The sacrificing servant whom we serve desires that we, too, be sacrificing servants. 

You might not be called to give up your life for another. You might not be called to sell everything you have to give to the poor or become a missionary to groups who have never heard of Christ.  So what steps can you take to be a more giving servant? 

This holiday season, would you be willing to give up receiving gifts for yourself so that the poorest among us might receive?  

You can make this a reality through Compassion's Christmas Gift Catalog.  

Through Compassion's gift catalog, you can donate in someone's name to provide vitally needed care for the poorest of the poor around the world, through Compassion's local church partners. 

Some possibilities: 

• For only $4, you can help protect a child from deadly and sickening parasites. 
• For $14, you can provide food for a mother and baby for a month. 
• For $23, you can help build water reservoirs for a family or community. 
• For $25, you can provide HIV testing for a child.
• For $32, you can provide needed dental care for a child. 
• For $40, you can help treat a child with a deadly illness. 
• For $55, you can provide medical care for a baby for a year. 

For those who can give even greater amounts - or for those who want to combine forces to share the costs, these are some of the possibilities: 

• For $280, you can provide livestock to a family that can provide them with wool, milk, and meat. 
• For $300, you can provide long-term medical care for a child who has been injured or who has a long-term illness. 
• For $300, you can provide support for a child or caregiver living with HIV/AIDS.
• For $504, you can provide one year of shelter for a highly vulnerable child.
• For $528, you can provide all the necessary prenatal care, birthing assistance, and newborn assistance to a new mother and her baby. 
• For $1320, you can help provide a stable roof for a vulnerable family 
• For $1045, you can help rescue a child from a dangerous situation - especially those in danger of being sold into slavery or exploited as part of human trafficking.
• For $5000, you can give a child access to live-saving surgeries. 

(These amounts are merely suggestions - those who choose to give can donate any amount to any particular gift.  If you are passionate about health care, for instance, but cannot afford to give the suggested amounts, any donation that you can offer will be used for that gift.) 

And if none of those gifts strike your fancy, would you consider sponsoring a child living in extreme poverty for only $38 a month?  You can bring hope, education, compassion, and Christ to a child who desperately needs them by sponsoring a child through Compassion.

Or you could donate money to Compassion's disaster relief funds, education and parenting initiatives, malaria prevention and HIV/AIDS initiatives, or offer one-time support to children waiting for sponsors.  

This Christmas, you have the potential to radically transform a child's life, or perhaps their family's life, or a community's life.  If you have been given much, will you consider giving up your rights for things to help bring hope and needed care to those who need it most? 

Wrecked - a letter to Jesus

My dearest Jesus,

A few months ago I asked you to break my heart.  You had me study the book of Nehemiah for 6 weeks, as you remember, and the big question that the study posed was: “what has God put on your heart to do?”  I really didn’t know.  But I asked you to break my heart and help me to love others with your love.

Wow – when you answer, you really answer! I thought you’d break my heart for someone or something here where I live – having me serve in some mission here in town.  I thought you’d put something on my heart regarding my church or my family.  But you did what I should learn to expect by now – you turned me to a totally unexpected direction.  You turned me to Ghana, to beautiful little Rebecca, and back to Mexico to my handsome young Michel.

While Michel has been in my life for a few years, I really had not been a very good sponsor.  I cared for him, but I was too easily distracted by the cares and concerns of my own life to show him your love like I should have been doing.  I wrote, but nowhere near as often as I should for such an amazing young man. I loved getting his letters and reading about how he was doing, what he was interested in doing, and looking at his drawings.  His letters went up on the fridge door.  But I was so inadequate in my love for him.  You know this – you tried to tell me over and over again. Please forgive me for not obeying you for so long.

I asked you to break my heart for the things that break yours. And you did. Not just broke my heart. You wrecked it.   

You brought me back to Michel’s picture – looking at that gorgeous head of curly hair and that adorable smile.  You brought me back to reading about how he loves to ride a bicycle and his favorite animal is the horse. You reminded me of his mother and how hard she works to care for him.  And suddenly, in an instant, he was my son. 

In an instant, my heart was overflowing with so much love for Michel and his family that I thought I’d never stop crying.  I couldn’t stop thinking about him, praying for him and his family, wish we could fly to Mexico to meet him.  You gave me that, Jesus. And I am so grateful.  You broke my heart for Michel. 

And then you wrecked me some more and brought me to my darling Rebecca, who might not even know she’s been sponsored yet.  I don’t know what it was – her name (the same as my mother-in-law), her big dark eyes, her brightly colored dress – but I couldn’t take my eyes off of her.  I couldn’t stop worrying about her.  I wanted nothing more than to pick her up in my arms and love on her and tell her how special she is. 

Jesus, you know I haven’t been the best sponsor.  I didn’t let myself get too close.  Maybe I was afraid it would hurt. Maybe I was afraid that they wouldn’t want me in their life.  I guess what you’ve been trying to show me is that hurting is good, when it’s hurting for them the way you do.

Oh, Lord God, thank you for putting Michel and Rebecca in our lives.  Thank you for giving us children in two parts of the world.  Thank you for making my heart long for these two precious ones.  I never realized that I could love these two children like they were my flesh and blood – especially since we don’t have children of our own yet. But when I open this computer and see their beautiful faces that you created and that you knew even before they were knit together in their mother’s wombs, I know.  Michel is my son.  Rebecca is my daughter.

I have such hopes for them both, such dreams for their future.  For Michel, Father, give him a heart after yours.  Help him to grow into a man of integrity and honor, a man who loves and serves you and cares for those who need help.  Give him confidence that he can do anything with Your help.  Give him big dreams, Father, and use Michel to bring others to your throne.  Give him passion and a servant’s heart. Protect him and his family, and provide all that they need each day. 

For Rebecca, Father, may she be like Ruth, Esther, and Mary, who trusted you and served you with all their hearts.  Please protect her and her family, especially from the slavers and human traffickers that are so prominent in Ghana even now.  Please provide clean water and food and security for them all.  Help Rebecca to grow into a woman of virtue and integrity, a woman who loves you first of all and who radiates peace and love from you.  Give her confidence that you created her for a purpose, and that she can do anything with Your help.  Give her big dreams as well, Father, and use Rebecca to transform the world for you.  Give her joy and compassion, and teach her of your love.

Jesus, I can’t ever thank you enough for giving us the chance to be a small part of Michel and Rebecca’s lives.  I have such joy – not because of anything they have done, but just from the opportunity to love them.  This is what you wanted from me all along, isn’t it?  

Please help me to love them and their families with your love.  Continue breaking my heart over them, Jesus. And if it is possible to give us the privilege of adding to our family in the future, please help me to be open-hearted.  Give me your love for them, Jesus. 

Thank you for loving me enough to break my heart.

Your beloved daughter,
~Rachel

**This post is about the two children my husband and I sponsor through Compassion International. 

**Those of us who are "Bloggers for Compassion" are working in the month of September with the goal of helping 3,108 children gain sponsorship before October 1.  Last week, the first of this month-long challenge, 837 kids were sponsored!

**Whose life could you change for only $38 a month?  Click on the picture below to see the faces of those precious children who most need your help.

Sponsor a Child

Allowing your heart to break

As the badge off to the right of this post indicates, I am participating in the September "Blog Month for Compassion" initiative.  My previous post ($38) was my contribution to the first assignment for Blog Month.  Our goal for the month of September is to get 3,108 children sponsored in 31 days.  Those of us who have agreed to dedicate time on our blogs to raise awareness and point people to the needs of these precious children are getting weekly assignments to fulfill. 

In the end, it's not so much about the number - 3108.  It is about the lives of precious, beloved, unique children who are waiting for the hope that comes from Christ and a more secure future.

Anyway, to get my thoughts in the right place, I spent an hour or so listening to and watching videos that Compassion had put up on Vimeo and Youtube, looking especially for videos that talked about the impact sponsorship had on a particular child's life.  I wanted to be moved before I wrote my assignment.

A funny thing happened, though.  In watching the videos, in looking at the pictures of the children still waiting for sponsorship, and in carefully considering what I wanted to say to encourage my friends and family (and anyone else who ends up on this page) to sponsor a child, I myself was moved.

I began crying.  A lot. My heart was breaking for the thousands of children who need Jesus, hope, and clean water.  I have sponsored children with Compassion since I was 19 - Fatima in El Salvador, Omar in Mexico, and now Michel in Mexico.  Omar's family moved away from the Compassion center and no longer participates in Compassion-sponsored programs.  When he moved and we said our mutual goodbyes, Compassion asked me if I would consider continuing my sponsorship for another little boy in Mexico.  I readily agreed.  But this morning, looking at the faces of these precious children around the world who need hope, my heart broke.

I turned to my husband while we were eating lunch and asked him, "Can we sponsor a second child?"  Now, money isn't exactly flowing into our pockets these days.  Things have been very tight lately, and money has been a concern.  But we started thinking about what it would take to save up $38 in a month.  A few less meals eaten out.  Eat off of $1 menus rather than the full menu.  Get coupons to save money at the grocery store.  This past weekend, I saved $44 on groceries. That's a month's sponsorship. The more we thought about how easy it would be to save up the money, the clearer the answer was.

So let me introduce to you our two beloved children: Michel and Rebecca.

 

Michel is 6 years old and lives with his mother in a coastal village in Mexico.  His mother makes pinatas and is only occassionally employed.  His parents were never married, and so his mother is on her own to care for Michel.  He should be starting school this fall, and he is very good at coloring (if the pictures I've gotten are any indication)!

 

Rebecca is the newest member of our family.  Since my husband and I do not have children of our own yet, these are our children.  Rebecca is four years old and lives with her mother and 4 siblings in northern Ghana.  I fell in love with her at first sight.  She and her family live in a very poor area, with the average adult earning less than $10 per month.  It is also an area that is affected by AIDS/HIV, and Rebecca's father is no longer supporting or living with the family.  She has been waiting for a sponsor for 410 days!  Over 1/4 of her life she has been waiting for someone to love her and her family.  I am so honored that my husband and I get to be her sponsor.

 

So these are our kids.  I've never met them in person.  In fact, Rebecca doesn't even know that she has a sponsor yet.  (Though I already wrote her and sent pictures!)  But I am praying that God gives me His love for them and their families.  They are my children, now and forever. 

 

Will you join me? 

$38

$38

What is $38?  To you, $38 might be:

• A nice dinner for two (at least, for my husband and I, that would be a very nice dinner).
• Three or four new books to read.
• Two movie theater tickets or two new dvds.
• $1.27 per day - probably less money than your daily cup of coffee or that soda you buy from the vending machine at work every afternoon.
• One dinner for your family of four at a fast-food restaurant.
• What you pay for a month of high-speed Internet

But to a child living in poverty around the world, $38 is so much more.  $38 can change the world for a child.  To a child living in seemingly hopeless situations, $38 means:

• Medical care - both basic instruction in personal hygiene and medical attention to treat illnesses for the child and their family.
• Education - the provision of school supplies, school fees, literacy programs, possibly tutoring - all things that the child would not be able to receive or would only be able to receive for a short period of time
• Food for the child and their families to prevent them from starving
• Individual attention and love through a local church and their volunteers
• Training in social skills and the chance to develop self-confidence
• The chance to be told the good news that Jesus loves them, died for them, and wants to be their Lord and Savior
• Hope

Do you need tangible proof that this is even possible? Good - because I can show you!

$38 a month can radically change the life of a child and their family.  Will you consider sponsoring a child through Compassion International?

You can change the world.  You can start by changing it for one child who needs you.

If you can't sponsor a child, will you consider going to the Compassion Sponsorship page and praying over the children found there?  Perhaps you get overwhelmed by the enormity of the need.  What can you do?   Here are a few thoughts:

1) Search for a child whose birthday matches yours or one of your children, and pray for that child whenever you pray for your own child or whenever you think of your birthday.

2) Go to the Sponsorship Page and read about the lives of the children who are waiting for sponsorship.  Explain to your children or grandchildren or siblings what these children's lives are like.  Use this to teach the children in your life about poverty, compassion, and what it means to love others and to be grateful for what God has given you.

3) Learn about what Compassion does for children around the world and pass on the information to your friends, your family, your church.  Share God's love for these beautiful children.

Jesus said, "Let the children come unto me."  Can you give up $38 a month to give one child hope and a future?  Will you love these children on behalf of our Lord Jesus?

Please go, look at the faces of the children God loves, and pray that God would provide someone to love them.

Who is God, part 2

A long while back, I wanted to start a series of posts about who God is.  You might recall I had one post talking about how we can know anything about God, followed up by a post on why we as Christians believe the Bible is the holy, inerrant Word of God given to us for our instruction and faith.

Today, I want to focus on the first of many attributes of God: His Sovereignty.

First, let's answer the question: What exactly does "Sovereignty" mean?
* For something to have sovereignty, that thing contains the absolute or supreme power or authority in the system.  It is the ultimate authority, the ultimate power, the one who sets the agenda and can exercise independent decision making. 

* For God to be sovereign, it means that He is the ultimate authority.  He is fully and wholly in charge.  It means that He is the one who orders and designs the universe.  He is the one who makes the rules, because He alone has the authority to make them. 

Let's look at some verses that declare and demonstrate God's sovereignty, and then we'll consider what this means for us. 

Flippancy and Fear

My husband and I both enjoy sarcastic humor.  I've always had a sarcastic streak in me, though over the years I have worked on keeping it in check so as to not hurt people by being unfeeling.  But both of us can appreciate sarcastic humor, satire, and irony.  In itself, I don't think there's much wrong with that.

But...

Love of books

I absolutely love reading.  When I was a child, I often got in trouble for staying hidden in my room reading instead of coming downstairs for lunch or dinner.  I used to make tents in my room with old sheets and blankets, throw a pillow on the floor, and read all day (once my chores were done, at least). 

One of the things I have been so thankful for over the past 14 months has been the amount of reading I've been able to do.  Beginning the week before our wedding, I have been keeping track of the books I've read.  So far, in 15 months (minus a few days), I've read 94 books. 

Some of my favorites have been:

Joni Eareckson Tada, A Lifetime of Wisdom: Embracing the Way God Heals You
* I first read Joni's autobiography when I was a kid.  She broke her neck diving in the Chesapeake Bay at age 17, and since has become one of the foremost Christian speakers, advocate for people with disabilities and other challenges, and overall in trusting God's sovereignty. This book is a recollection of what she has learned about God's grace, mercy, and sovereignty in the 45 years since her accident.  Reading this book encouraged me to go back and re-read her autobiography.  Joni has survived much, including breast cancer over the past few years.  She is a living testament to how much God really loves us.

Susanna Foth Aughtmon, My Bangs Look Good & Other Lies I Tell Myself: The Tired Supergirl's Search for Truth
* I'd never heard of the "Tired Supergirl" before; I bought her book on a whim.  Susanna is a wife, mother, and - even more pressure-filled - a pastor's wife at that.  She is brutally honest about the things that she struggles with, but speaks the Truth of God's Word.  If you feel inadequate as a woman or as a child of God, this book will speak to your heart.  And make you laugh - she has a wicked sense of humor. :-)

James Kalikos, The Physics of Superheroes, Spectacular Second Edition
* I know.  I'm a nerd.  A big one.  As someone with degrees in Spanish and History, I'm not supposed to like math and science.  But I have a secret love affair with physics.  I don't know why, but I love physics.  Over the past few years, I've read a number of books on physics.  This one is all about superheroes.  You get to learn things like why Spiderman couldn't have saved Mary Jane unless he first matched her velocity, then caught her, and then slowed down.  Or how many calories the Flash would have to consume to keep up his phenomenal speeds.  It is enjoyable, funny, and teaches you a lot of fascinating physics.  It's not as hilarious as Chad Orzel's How to Teach Physics to Your Dog, but a great read nonetheless.

Madeleine Albright, Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948
* I have this odd fascination with Czechoslovakia and Budapest.  Albright - the former Secretary of State - was born in Prague just before WWII broke out.  Only as an adult, in her 60s, when she was being vetted for the Secretary position, did she learn that most of her family had died in the Holocaust.  This book is not just a personal family history about Albright's parents and grandparents.  It is also a well-documented, intricately woven political, social, and cultural history of the complex web that was Czechoslovakia in the years before, during, and after the war.  It kept me interested from page one, and I would seriously consider assigning it for my students to read in the future. 

Elizabeth M. Bonker and Virginia G. Breen, I am In Here
* This was one of a number of books I read by parents about their children who live with Autism.  I have a special place in my heart for kids with Autism Spectrum Disorder, having worked with them for three years until the program I worked with ended due to budget cuts.  The amazing thing about this short book is that the daughter in question is entirely non-verbal.  But through an innovative and somewhat speculative therapy, this mother suddenly learned that her daughter understood everything.  A great amount of the book contains the young girl's poetry that she writes.  She reveals herself to be aware of everything around her, and filled with a deep love of her family and her God.

Emily Colson, Dancing With Max: A Mother and Son Who Broke Free
* This was another of the books I read about children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.  Emily Colson is the daughter of the late Charles Colson - yes, of Watergate fame and the founder of Prison Ministries and a number of other international ministries.  Emily Colson tells the honest story of her marriage falling apart, her struggle to get her son the therapies he needed (and keep him out of institutions when public schools and state therapists expressed no desire to help her son), and her complicated relationship with her father and God.  This was especially poignant for me because only two months after I read this book, Charles Colson passed away. 

Kim Meeder, Hope Rising and A Bridge Called Hope
* These two books are by a woman who, along with her husband, run a ranch for rescued horses and minister to kids and adults with all sorts of needs.  Meeder writes about the founding of the ranch, the rescuing of horses from all kinds of horrific situations, and the many ways that those horses bring healing to people with emotional, spiritual, and physical struggles.  I was so encouraged and so touched by the stories she related in these two books.  God has truly blessed their ministry, and the books are a breeze to read (I read them in only a few nights each). 

So there you have it, world.  A few of my favorites of the 94 books I've read since June 2011. Hope you enjoyed it!

Changes

There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:

a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,

a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,

a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,

a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,

a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,

a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,

a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.

~Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

Solomon - the presumed writer of the book of Ecclesiastes - was a wise guy.  No, not a funny guy; at least, not that we know of.  But a wise one.  God offered to give him whatever he asked, and he asked for wisdom.  God gave him that and riches and power and success beyond his imagination (see 1 Kings 3 for the whole story).  He knew that, in God's ordaining of our lives, there is a time for everything. 

Solomon understood that things never stay the same.  Things always change.  You are born, but then you die.  You plant, then you harvest or uproot.  You maim and then you heal.  You tear down and then you rebuild. You weep and mourn, but eventually you turn to laughter and dancing.  You are silent until you speak up.  You go to war, but eventually turn to peace.

If you're like me, your life has been constantly changing this year.  Perhaps too much so.  I often joke that over the past few years, I probably could have checked "yes" on almost every one of those "stress-inducing items" on the old psychological survey to see how much stress you are under.  Remember those?  I first had to take it in my high school psychology class.  You check whether or not you have endured things like changing jobs, moving, the death of a friend or family, new relationships, pregnancy, etc.  In the past two years, I have moved twice, gotten married, merged my life/things/cat with those of my husband, changed jobs twice, worried about money, found a new church home in both places I lived, endured the death of both family members and very dear friends, helped my husband through a job search and transition into his new career, etc.  Three weeks ago, we found out our pastor is leaving at the end of the year to be a church planter again; one week ago, we learned that our music minister is leaving after Sunday's services to work in a new church plant here in our area; and last night I sat in a meeting for the music ministry and learned that much is going to be changing beginning immediately.

My first reaction is: "NO!!!" I don't particularly like big changes.  I want my routine.  I want to feel safe.  I want to feel comfortable.  Most of us, when we're being honest, would say the same.  (Unless you're one of my crazy friends who thrive on adventure and excitement and the unknown, that is!) I don't always take to the changes very well.

But here's the thing: Our lives were never meant to stay the same. 

Scripture (through the Apostle Paul) says this about our lives in Christ:

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. ~ 2 Corinthians 3:18

The Greek word that the NIV translates as "being transformed" is metamorphoo, where we get our word, "metamorphosis" - changing into another form. 

Interestingly, that same word is used in three other places in the New Testament.  The first also comes from Paul's writings:

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God. ~Romans 12:2

But the other two times this word is used is in reference to Christ Jesus:

After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him and led them up a high mountain, where they were all alone. There he was transfigured before them. - Mark 9:2

There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. ~ Matthew 17:2

Our lives in Christ were not meant to be stagnant.  We are to be transformed - transfigured - into something new.  A new form, a new creation - Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! (2 Corinthians 5:17) In church, we often call this "spiritual growth."  We seek to become new people - people whose lives, inside and out, are more and more like Christ. 

Change is not always comfortable.  Sometimes it's not even remotely pleasant.  But we are called to be constantly changing.  Renewing our minds.  Transforming into the image of Christ.  Changing from the inside out, and living our lives in response to those changes. 

But lest you fear that nothing stays the same, remember this:

God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should change His mind. ~Numbers 23:19

He who is the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind; for he is not a man, that he should change his mind. ~1 Samuel 15:29

I the LORD do not change! ~Malachi 3:6a

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. ~James 1:17

In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.   They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. Like clothing you will change them and they will be discarded.   But you remain the same, and your years will never end. ~Psalm 102:25-27

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. ~1 Corinthians 12:4-6

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. ~Hebrews 13:8

So if your life is like mine right now - changing more than you'd like - hold on to the Scriptures above.  Remember that God is constantly working to transform you into a new creation, His child.  But He, Himself - He never changes.  Hold onto that when life seems to be a whirlwind surrounding you.  He is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Nehemiah Recap

Earlier this past week, I finished my six-week study of Nehemiah using Kelly Minter's, Nehemiah: A Heart That Can Break.  As I mentioned earlier, I was doing this along with Beth Moore's Living Proof Live Blog - Siestasville, as we call it.  Hundreds of women took part either on their own (like I did) or in groups and shared what we were learning as we went. 

If you've never studied the book of Nehemiah, here is some background:

The people of Israel had divided into two kingdoms: the northern kingdom of Israel, made up of 10 tribes, broke away under Jeroboam during the civil war during the reign of Rehoboam, son of King Solomon; the southern kingdom of Judah, made up of 2 tribes, remained under the heirs of King David.  The northern kingdom of Israel immediately rejected the LORD, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and eventually was taken captive by the king of Assyria.  The kingdom of Judah thought they would never be that bad, but they continually flip-flopped between obeying God for the most part and utterly rejecting Him. 

After decades of warning, God finally allowed the Babylonian King, Nebuchadnezzar, to defeat Judah, burn down the Temple of Solomon, tear down the walls of Jerusalem, and take most of the inhabitants of Judah into captivity back in Babylon.  To fulfill the prophecy spoken by the prophet Jeremiah, the people of Judah were in captivity for 70 years, until King Cyrus the Great of Persia conquered Babylon.  Cyrus issued a declaration that God had put it on his heart to rebuild the temple to the LORD, God of Israel, and allowed any Jew who wished to return to Jerusalem to begin rebuilding the Temple.  This happened under the management of a scribe named Ezra.  Around 40 years later, an Israelite who was serving as the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes, named Nehemiah, heard about how disgraceful Jerusalem was without its defensive walls, and how the people of Israel suffered there.  He prayed for months until, finally, he asked for permission to rebuild the walls. The king granted his request, and the book of Nehemiah recounts how Nehemiah - with God's blessing - organized the people, rebuilt the walls, re-instituted the Law of God, and defended the city and its people from their enemies.

On the face of it, Nehemiah reads like an administrative book, recounting the names of those involved in each part of the rebuilding.  But it has so many gems of wisdom if you look closely.  Here are the most important things God has taught me over the past 6 weeks:

1)  I am terrible at waiting on God. 
I could have told you this already.  I was the kid who, knowing someone was due to arrive at our house, would spend an hour in the living room looking out the bay windows in anticipation, playing piano to keep myself busy but constantly glancing outside to see if I could catch a glimpse.  Even as an adult, I get terribly antsy when I am waiting on someone.  So it's no surprise that I, naturally and in my own power, am almost incapable of waiting on God and His timing.  I tend to rush into things, dreaming big and planning fast to make something happen.

But here's what God revealed: Nehemiah prayed for over 4 months about the condition of Jerusalem and about his desire for God to bring the city back out of disgrace.  For months, his heart broke over the slavery of his people, the utter vulnerability of the city that once held the very Temple of the LORD God is Israel.  But he prayed. 

God kept telling me: "You are not like Nehemiah. You rush forward without me, then wonder why I close doors and why you endure hardship meant to bring you back where I wanted you in the first place. This time, pray. And if I don't answer, pray some more.  And if you still don't know what I want of you, pray some more.  Eventually, in my timing, I will show you what I want of you."

I wrote before about all the closed doors and the "No" answers I've been getting. I am still struggling with this idea of patience and waiting, but I am committing to pray and asking God for help in the waiting.  For someone who likes to be actively involved, it's hard to remember that you can be just as faithful while waiting on God as you can be while moving with Him.  But I'm trying.


2) There can be no obedience without repentance.
Nehemiah started by confessing to God how the people of Israel, his own family, and he himself had failed to live up to God's standards.  And when the walls were finally rebuilt, and the singers were proclaiming God's goodness, the entire population of Jerusalem stood for hours and confessed their corporate sin. 

Would the walls have been rebuilt if Nehemiah had not returned to the LORD and brought his people with him?  Possibly.  But what blessings those people would have missed.  They would not have been part of the rebuilding project.  They might have been left on the outside, only hearing about what God was doing rather than experiencing it firsthand. 

I don't know about you, but I generally think of myself as a good person.  I don't do anything "horrible," I try not to intentionally break most rules, and I try to care for others.  On the days when my pride tells me these lies, I don't necessarily feel the need to confess and repent (return to God).  But they are lies.  God tells us,

• If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, "Love your neighbor as yourself," you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.  For he who said, "Do not commit adultery," also said, "Do not murder." If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.   ~James 2:8-11

Catch that?  Whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.  God doesn't say, "As long as you don't stumble on the big ones, like murder, you're good."  He says that if you break even one part of the law - no matter how minor - you are guilty of breaking all of it.  So even if I've only done what to me is a "little" wrong, I still need to confess and repent.  It is impossible to obey God without repentance, and it is impossible to love God without obedience.  (Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. ~ John 14:21)

The good news is this: God, in His mercy, has provided a way for us to meet the requirements of the law.  It is through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ, who fulfilled the law and accepted punishment for all sin in His death, burial, and resurrection. 

3) Sometimes, the most important thing is to be willing - willing to serve, and willing to be broken.
Nehemiah was the leader God chose to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem because, ultimately, he was open to brokenness and open to being used.  He felt compassion for those in disgrace.  He felt broken for the disgrace the Name of the LORD endured because of the disgrace of Israel and Jerusalem.  And He was willing to do whatever necessary - even to transform a cupbearer to the King, with all the privileges of a high, trusted political position, into a wall builder, defender of the powerless, and enforcer of the Law of God. 

I still don't know what God has planned for me and my husband in the future.  I don't know if anything will come of the three or four places we have contacted in the hopes of trying to meet some of the physical needs of the poor in our city.  I don't know if anything will come of the attempt I made to reach out to the leaders of the women's ministry at our church because I have some ideas and leads on things in which I hoped others might be interested.  I don't know if I'll ever have the opportunity to work in a job where I make an actual living wage  - you know, one that earns more than a kid working minimum wage. 

But what I do know is this: I want to be willing.  I want to be open to whatever God has for me.  I want to say with Isaiah, "Here I am, Lord, send me."  I want to lay down at the feet of my Lord and offer myself for whatever He has planned - even if it's not at all what I would choose for myself.

The book of Nehemiah is so rich in pearls of wisdom.  I encourage you, if you have never read it before, to delve into this book and see what God will show you. 

Water, water, and ne'er a drop to drink

If someone were to ask you what the leading cause of death is around the world, what would you guess?

Cancer?
Heart disease?
Accidents?
Homicide?

Would you believe that, according to the United Nations, the answer is diarrhea?  The UN states that 88% of diarrhea-related illness and disease is due directly to a lack of proper sanitation and clean water for consumption and sanitation.  Over 2.6 billion people around the world lack even the most basic sanitation.


*Image from water.org

Every 20 seconds, a child dies as a direct consequence of improper sanitation.  That's over 1.5 million preventable deaths every year.  Children under age 5 represent 90% of diarrhea-related deaths (see UNICEF's Child Info.org).

What would you do if you couldn't provide clean drinking water for yourself and your children?  What if you couldn't go to the store and buy bottled water, but had to bathe and drink in dirty, feces-filled water? 

This is not just a rhetorical exercise.  This is daily reality for millions of people around the world.  What if you could make a difference in the life of a community?  A family?  A child? 

What if you could help provide safe drinking water for a lifetime for a child and their community? Here's the good news: you can! Through Compassion International's Water For Life program, you have the opportunity to provide water filtration systems to families around the world.  Compassion's filtration system has been tested and approved by the United Nations, is simple to construct, easy to maintain, and can radically change lives.

For $55, Compassion's Water For Life will enable a local church to distribute a bucket & filter system that can provide up to 1 million gallons of water. 

The average person consumes around 15,000 gallons in a lifetime.  This system, then can provide safe drinking water to somewhere around 66 people for their lifetimes.  An entire community could be transformed by this simple gift.

The next time you get a drink from your kitchen, please consider: would you give $55 to save lives?

A Season of "No"

For the past eight months or so, I've been in a season of "No." 

For all of 2012, I have been praying for wisdom and for guidance from God when it comes to my career and to the ways I serve Him.  My husband and I both started praying this way last fall, when our church worked through the book of James in both our sermons and our small group bible studies. 

Our primary focus was James 1:5 - "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him."

God has been so faithful to answer in this.  He gave my husband the go-ahead to quit his teaching job (where he was absolutely miserable every day) and to start looking for other work.  He provided a jot b with an amazing boss and helped my husband pass his state licensing exam on the first try (something only about 40% of first-time test takers do on this particular test).  And just to show off a little, God ensured that my husband's previous employer chose to waive the $2500 "damages" - it's basically a fine they slap on teachers who try to quit.  Since we don't have $2500 to our name, this is huge for us.

God has been faithful to provide for us.  But He's also been faithfully telling me "No" on most every one of the ideas I have or directions I think I might be able to go.  It's no secret to my family that I haven't been especially happy in my job.  It's not that anything unpleasant or bad is happening; it's just that what I love most about my job I can't do.  I love teaching because I love forming relationships with my students and encouraging them even if they never come to enjoy studying my subject.  But teaching online, from so far away, means that I don't get any real interaction with my students.  I feel more like a lecturing, grading, tech support employee than a teacher who is invested in their students.  I'm been praying for months that I'd be able to do something else that doesn't leave me working at home, alone all week, with no interactions with other people until my husband is home at night.

I can't even count all the things I've considered over the past year.  I've applied to probably 100 jobs - of all of them, I had two phone interviews, one in-person interview, and had the potential for one job until the employer found out that the position (a contract position) was not at all what he had been told and I had to decline.  I've thought seriously about returning to school to train in a new field - to the point that I spent a month getting all sorts of ridiculous things (like my high school vaccination records!) and applying to the major university here.  I've applied to serve as a volunteer in various ministries in town.

And every single time, God's answer was, "No."  Every door was shut.  The timing was bad. The leaders had no interest in me being scheduled to help. The circumstances radically changed. Oh, there were a few things, like returning to school, that I could have pushed.  Obviously, they accepted me without any problems. But God clearly said, "Okay, I let you pursue this to this point, but now my answer is no.  You are not supposed to go this way."  So I pulled back and stopped.

I freely admit that it has been extremely frustrating for me.  I am not a patient woman, unfortunately.  I have never been good at waiting - for other people, for myself, or for my God. But I keep remembering this:

"For I know that the LORD is great, and that our Lord is above all gods.  Whatever the LORD pleases, He does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.  He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth, who makes lightnings for the rain and brings forth the wind from his storehouses." ~Psalm 135:5-7

And: "In his heart, a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps." ~Proverbs 16:9

Ultimately, my life is not about what *I* want or think or plan.  It's about what my Lord Jesus Christ wants and plans for me.  In this long season of "No," I am learning little by little what it means to try to set aside what I think is good or right or useful.  I am learning to really trust that He is in control, and that if He is closing a door, then He has something else planned.  I'm praying that He helps me to be still enough to hear what He says next.  I don't want to miss his "Yes," but even more do I want to ensure I don't rush ahead when he's saying no.

I know that the God I serve is faithful.  He is the one who guides my steps, even if, for now, He's mainly trying to get me to live out my least favorite verse:

"Be still, and know that I AM God." ~Psalm 46:10

Blogging for Compassion

This is my very first post as a Compassion Blogger.

You might be wondering what a Compassion Blogger even is.  That's a good question! Basically, it's someone who is volunteering to devote some or all of their blog space to advocating for the children whose families are helped by Compassion International.  Compassion is a non-profit organization that is working to combat extreme poverty and all the problems that accompany it by meeting the needs of children and their families around the world. 

Compassion partners with local churches to provide medical treatment, education, leadership development, childcare education, and, most importantly, the hope that Christ Jesus offers to millions of children and their families.  Compassion sponsors, like me, support one child (and their family) with only $38 per month and as much prayer and correspondence as you can offer your child. Millions of families barely survive on less than $2 per month, so Compassion sponsors can help bring about immense change in the community through their pooled resources. Compassion also works to meet desperate medical needs and helps empower the local churches to respond in disasters and emergency situations (like they did quickly and successfully in Haiti). 

I have been a Compassion sponsor since I was in college.  My sophomore year of college, we had a Compassion table set up at the back of the chapel after one of our weekly chapel/convocations.  A friend and I were both looking at the pictures of these beautiful children who desperately needed hope.  At the time, neither of us earned much money, but we were both drawn to this absolutely gorgeous little girl in El Salvador named Fatima.  She was only 3 years old and already a heart-breaker.  My friend and I both fell in love with her on sight and decided to co-sponsor her as long as we could.  We were especially excited because we both spoke Spanish fluently and were excited that we would be able to write directly to our little girl in her heart language. 

For about 6 years, including three after we graduated from college and went separate ways, my friend and I sponsored Fatima and loved her from afar.  We sent birthday gifts and wrote her as often as we could.  My heart always leaped whenever we'd get a letter from her, especially after she learned to read and write.  I still treasure a picture we received from her - with her birthday money, she had picked out this gaudy, multi-colored mattress.  The picture of her laying on this bright mattress is one of my most treasured possessions.

After six years, though, the logistics didn't work to keep co-sponsoring from opposite sides of the country. My friend kept up with Fatima, and I started sponsoring a little boy in southern Mexico named Omar.  I sponsored him for over 7 years, until his family moved away from the area, but was blessed to watch him grow into a handsome, athletic young man.  His father is a fisherman and they lived in a small village on the southern coast just across from the Yucatan Peninsula.  Through letters and photos, I watched Omar grow from a rambunctious 7-year old to a wonderful, loving 14-year old.  He always called me Madrina (Godmother) in his letters; I so loved writing him and sharing with him how special he is to Jesus and to me.  While my sponsorship of Omar had to end when his family moved, I still look forward to meeting him some day.

I now sponsor a cute little 4-year-old, Michal, whose family also lives in a small village in Mexico.  While it has been a challenge to communicate since he is so young, I look forward to watching him grow into a godly young man. 

While my life has changed drastically since I first started sponsoring Fatima - I've gone from a single, active 19-year-old in college to a 30-year-old married history professor - I honestly believe that my relationship with these three precious children has been one of the most significant parts of my life.  Whatever else has happened, I know that God has worked in these three children and their families, and He allowed me to be even a tiny part of it. 

So many children around the world are living in desperate poverty, without adequate food, clean water, basic medications, education, housing, or hope.  Through your help - prayers and a few skipped take-out meals a month - these children can have hope for a future.  You can help meet their physical needs and their vocational needs.  But most importantly, you can help them learn about the solution to their greatest need: the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Will you help bring hope to the hopeless and help to those most in need?

Go to Compassion.com to see where you can help meet these needs.  If you are a blogger and want to join me in advocating for these precious children, go to compassionbloggers.com.  Here, you can learn more about blogging for the cause, with information on these topics:

1. Why blog for Compassion?
2. See a list of who else is blogging for Compassion
3. Read posts from bloggers who joined Compassion in Tanzania in 2012

Please consider giving a little of your time and blog space to share in Compassion's mission.