Seeking Him

20 Little Faces

Now that the pictures are posted everywhere, their 20 little faces haunt me.

For years, I have talked about my opinons about our country's gun laws to anyone who would listen. When asked why I primarily vote for Democratic Party candidates, generally gun control is the issue I mention first. On Mother's Day in 2000, I attended the Million Mom March in Washington, D.C., but that has been the extent of my so-called "activism."  Since that time, except for voting and an occasional forwarded link on Facebook, I have done little else but run my big mouth.  With each mass shooting, I shake my head and say something should be done.  Columbine, Virginia Tech,  D.C. sniper attacks, Tuscon, Aurora, the mall in Oregon just last week.  And now those precious little ones and their brave teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School.  And this list is only a small representation of the mass shootings in the US in the past few decades.  SOMEONE should do something, right?

While I did not pull that trigger on Friday, I can't help but feel that I bear partial responsibility for the deaths of those little ones.  

I was sobered by these words that I read this week:

A study in the Journal of Trauma and Acute Care Surgery found that the gun murder rate in the U.S. is almost 20 times higher than the next 22 richest and most populous nations combined. Every one of those nations has stricter gun control laws.

And then there's this fact: add together all the gun deaths in the 23 wealthiest countries in the world and 80 percent of those are American deaths. Of all the children killed by guns in those nations, 87 percent are American kids. 

I am not so naive that I believe that stricter gun laws will entirely eliminate violence in our society. There are many other issues involved in these situations, including a culture that glorifies violence and gives media attention to desparate, attention seeking individuals who are in need of mental health care.  All of these issues need to be addressed, but I feel strongly that our first priority needs to be evaluating very seriously our love affair with guns in this country and what we are willing to sacrifice to maintain our "right" to own guns that are created primarily to kill other human beings. At the very least, in my opinion, we must reinstate the ban on assault weapons and eliminate access to high capacity ammunition clips.

Today, finally, way too late for those children in Connecticut, I decided to do something other than talk.  First, as I have been doing since Friday, I prayed and wept and prayed.  Then I wrote to the President.  I also wrote to my Senator and my Congressional representative.  I signed a petition and I emailed the President of our local chapter of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence to see what else I can do. And then, I told my children that I did those things so that they would know that the adults in their lives are not helpless in the face of tragedy.  We have a voice and we will use it to protect them and keep them safe.

Now I am writing this blog to invite you, if you are led to do so, to join me.  I would love to hear from you in the comments, if you do.

I am encouraged today by the number of politicians who are making statements about a desire to take action.  I was encouraged last night by the resolve I saw in the President's eyes as he spoke to the grieving families of the victims.  But, it is not enough for them to make promises. We have heard promises before.  We must hold them accountable and let them know we have not forgotten once the media coverage subsides.  They, after all, work for us.

One of the little girls in the photos reminds me of my niece Amanda Jane, who is only a year or so older than the kids in Newtown.  I allowed myself to "go there" in my mind...to picture my sweet AJ in the situation those kids faced...a gun that fired continually for endless minutes, most of them shot multiple times by a stranger loaded down with hundreds of rounds of ammunition and guns that fired and fired and fired.  I wept again and vowed that this time, we must do more than pray. 

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."- Edmund Burke

No more.

 

The Hands and Feet of Jesus

"Christ has no body on earth but yours, no hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ's compassion for the world is to look out; yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good; and yours are the hands with which He is to bless us now." ~Saint Teresa of Avila

I posted the quote above as my Facebook status one day last week and was interested to see how many people responded positively to it.  Since then, I have been thinking about what it means to be Christ's hands and feet on earth.  Clearly, this idea resonates with people, but how do we go about doing it?

It seems to me that we might begin to "be" Christ's hands and feet by considering how Jesus used his hands and feet while He was walking among us.  Jesus, God Incarnate, lived on earth in human form and, before He returned to the Father, promised that we who had faith in Him would do "greater things than these." (John 14:12) Through the writers of scripture, we have a record of the way Jesus lived out His earthly existence and these stories offer us clues on how we might continue His work.  

First, Jesus knew that He had to spend time with the Father in order to know where to go and what to do next. Throughout the gospels, we hear that Jesus often "withdrew to a solitary place" in order to hear from His Heavenly Father.  Jesus says this in John 5:19 (the Message):

I'm telling you this straight.  The Son can't independently do a thing, only what He sees the Father doing.  What the Father does, the Son does.  The Father loves the Son and includes Him in everything He is doing.  

If Jesus needed down time with His Father, how much more must that apply to us?  I have found that even my most well-intentioned attempts to do God's will are useless unless I regularly "withdraw to a solitary place" to listen to my Father. Through time in His word, sharing my heart in prayer AND being still enough to listen, I begin to see the path God has for me to get involved in what He is doing in my little part of His world.  Without that time, I find that I am often tilting at windmills.

Secondly, Jesus was willing to be interrupted as He went about the work the Father had given Him to do.  Most of the accounts that we have of Jesus interacting with people and performing miracles begin with a phrase like "as Jesus went on from there."  He was often traveling to another destination when someone approached Him in need of healing.  While His disciples often tried to discourage or deter these seekers, Jesus always had time for the people who crossed His path.  Jesus was all about relationship.  In these instances, He made the choice to stop and offer healing and care to the persons involved.  Because He was not overly tied to His agenda of the moment, He could attend to the higher purposes for which He was sent.  In our own lives, we similarly have the choice to view the unexpected, the unplanned and the inconvenient interruptions we encounter as precious opportunities for ministry....divine appointments to realize our own role in bringing about the Kingdom of Heaven.  

Third, Jesus was willing to get His hands dirty.  One of my favorite stories about Jesus was the time He chose to wash the feet of His disciples in order to teach them about being a servant.  In their culture, washing dirty feet was the lowliest of jobs, yet Jesus got on His knees and tenderly washed and dried the dust-covered feet of those He loved most and then entreated them to do the same in His name.  In fact, He said clearly in John 13:15  "I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you."  As I seek to find the "important" work that I can do in God's Kingdom, I sometimes overlook the opportunities for smaller acts of service...acts that become holy when done from a place of love and grace and gratitude.  Life is messy.  People are complicated.  Getting our hands dirty; literally or figuratively, requires a willingness to get involved in the middle of the mess and complications.  Yet, that is exactly what Jesus has called us to do.  I have written on this before and I quoted this song from Michael Card in its entirety.  Here is my favorite part:

And the space between ourselves sometimes
is more than the distance between the stars.
By the fragile bridge of the Servant's bow
we take up the basin and the towel.

Finally, if we are to truly become Jesus' hands and feet, we must share His love for "the least of these."  This is the hard part of the gospel message for us sometimes.  Jesus was revolutionary in His approach to the downtrodden and forgotten in His society.  He touched lepers, He welcomed women and children, He dined with criminals, He championed the poor, He defended the powerless.  Jesus spent His time on earth with the hated and the outcasts and claimed that He had come to "preach good news to the poor."  There are a number of examples of this in scripture.  Here are just a few:

• He tells of a rich man and a poor one, and how the poor man goes to heaven and the rich man doesn’t.(Luke 16:19-31)  
• He tells of others who’ll be surprised they didn’t get into paradise because they didn’t take care of Him when He was hungry or in prison. They object that they never saw Him that way; He replies that whenever they neglected the hungry or imprisoned or unclothed, they neglected Him (Matthew 25.)  
• He says it’s harder for a rich person to enter heaven than a camel to go through the eye of a needle. He tells a rich man only one thing is between him and the Kingdom: he needs to sell what he has and give it to the poor (Mark 10:17-31.)
  

While Jesus came to reconcile us ALL to the Father, He is clear that He expects us to take care of one another and to begin with "the least of these."  God does not call all of us to sell everything we have and give it all to the poor, but He does call us to get involved and allow Him to show us how.  If I want to be the hands and feet of Jesus, I have to open my eyes to the suffering in the world and allow my heart to be broken by those things that break the heart of the Father.  Because there is so much brokenness in our world, I can become overwhelmed by the need and throw my hands up in despair.  I recently read a book that addressed these issues in a profound way and gave me hope for the Church.  Please read it, if this topic tugs at your heart.  It is called The Hole in Our Gospel. Bottom line: we each can make a difference and it matters that we try...God is at work in the world and we can be part of it.  We can be the hands and feet of Jesus in our part of the world...what a privilege!

Around the Table

Last Monday night, my husband and I had dinner with a bunch of "powerful" people.  There were 9 of us for dinner, including the two of us.  I won't give names because I would hate for someone to Google one of these nice people and end up here on my silly blog, where there is a high likelihood of me saying something that could be embarrassing for someone running for high office.  I will just describe it like this: in attendance were three sitting judges, a gentleman who was a member of the Cabinet of two former Presidents, a high level political consultant who served as a senior advisor to Obama in his recent campaign, and our host, the Governor of one of our neighboring states.  We dined in a 54 room mansion that was built in the 19th century, surrounded by treasures dripping with historical significance. 

Initially, I was awe-struck by being in the Governor's Mansion, surrounded by people whose names I had read and whose pictures I had seen.  It was one of those "pinching yourself" kind of occasions.  Yet, as the evening wore on, I found that the people with whom I was dining were just....well, people.  Yes, they had some fascinating stories to tell.  Yes, they were incredibly bright and well informed about politics and government.  But, they also talked about their grand-kids and their kids.  We looked at some funny red spots on their youngest son and did that "mom" thing as we tried to figure out what they were.  We talked about teaching teenage daughters to drive and the high cost of sending your kids to college.  By the end of the evening, we were laughing and talking like old friends sharing a meal around the table...something I have done many times before with many different people.  My primary feeling when I left was "these people are just like me."

The next day, I gathered around a different table, with a different group of people.  As I do every Tuesday afternoon, I joined with my homeless friends at the Lamb Center for afternoon bible study.  The topic I chose for that day was God's strength in our weakness.  We began by singing "Jesus Loves Me," a song we all knew by heart.  We delved into what scripture says about God's strength and power being "made perfect in our weakness" and shared what those verses meant to us.  We explored how difficult it is to admit our weakness and related common struggles that we all have in really surrendering to God's authority, even when we know that His grace is sufficient for whatever we are facing.  Two of the gentlemen shared from the heart about how God's grace and strength had gotten them through a time of great darkness and loss in their lives...they had similar stories and one of them was especially encouraged by this brother of his who was further along in his journey of healing.  Gathering around that table on that day, I was struck by the holiness of that place.  My primary feeling when I left was "these people are just like me."

Two vastly different worlds, neither of which I would consider the place  where I "live" on a day to day basis. While I can try to offer a helping hand and a listening ear to my homeless friends, I can't truly understand what it must be like to sleep in the woods on a cold night.  While I can visit the Governor's mansion, I can only imagine what it is like to live your life in a media fishbowl and have your every move and word analyzed.  Yet, in spite of the differences in our daily environment, the things that connect us are so much more meaningful than the things that separate us.  Our common humanity, our struggle to make sense of the place where we find ourselves, to find meaning in this journey...these things make us human and draw us together.  The people with whom I shared a meal on Monday, the people with whom I shared the Word last Tuesday and again today, each and every one of them are God's beloved creation, made in His image...just like me.  The important thing for me to remember is that God loves each of us...my Monday friends AND my Tuesday friends... equally, completely, passionately. 

Confessions of a Part-time Liberal

I'm working out in the basement the other day and I am concurrently watching MSNBC to distract myself from the fact that I am exercising.  During one of the many commercial breaks, an ad came on about the plight of the polar bears.  You know, a celebrity person speaking dramatically over pictures of precious polar bear cubs frolicking with their precious polar bear mommy.  The type of music and the tone of voice of the actress led me to infer that I should be very concerned...in fact, it seemed that the situation was quite dire and required my immediate attention.  The very lives of these polar bears was apparently in my hands.  At that moment, something occurred to me.  In fact, you might even call it an epiphany .  It seems I could not work up one ounce of passion or moral outrage for these poor polar bears.  Here I am, a good card-carrying, tree-hugging, peace and love swearing liberal and I did NOT care about those poor little polar bears.  I mean, look at them; they are adorable.  

Don't get me wrong.  I don't think we should go around randomly slaughtering polar bears.  They are some of God's creatures and we should respect them as such.  However, the inference of the ad suggested that this was an issue of grave importance and should be treated as a top priority in the allocation of our resources.  I just couldn't get that excited about it.  If I have $100 and I have to decide how to spend it in saving the world, polar bears are going to be pretty low on my list.  Obviously, that is a pretty simplistic assessment of the issue, but you get my point.

For the record, in terms of "liberal" stereotypes:

• I personally think we better get busy drilling for oil wherever we need to do so WHILE we are developing alternative fuels; we need to do EVERYTHING we can to end our dependence on foreign oil.  So...drill, baby, drill!

• I both oppose this war AND love and support our soldiers.  When I see a person in an armed services uniform, I go up to them, look them in the eye, and personally thank them for their service. 

• I am not willing to give up my SUV as long as I can have the opportunity to stuff 7 teenage girls into the back of my car on the way back from the Homecoming dance and listen to them giggling and talking about the evening.  I can afford to pay for the gas.  Consider it my part in stimulating the economy.

• I could care less how much money the RNC spent on Sarah Palin's clothes.  I would love to have whoever is dressing her take me shopping....she has been wearing some awesome outfits!  Girlfriend, I don't much like your politics, but I applaud your right to look fabulous while you are doing your job as chief name-caller for the Republican party.  Fair or not, a woman has to "dress for success" if she is going to be taken seriously as a potential leader of the free world.  So, you go girl!

• Lastly, and much more seriously, I think abortion is one of the saddest symptoms of our "live for the moment, damn the consequences, throw it away" society.  It is a heartbreaking decision for a woman to make and noone is "pro-abortion."  I am pro-life, in spite of the fact that I don't think criminalizing abortion is the appropriate solution.  A consistent ethic of life, in my opinion, also includes issues surrounding hunger, healthcare and the death penalty.

So, what is my point?  People should not be put in little boxes and labeled .  My decision to support Senator Obama's bid for the presidency does not mean that you can check off every box next to some person's definition of the label "liberal" if you are describing who I am.  Human beings are much more complicated than any particular label would imply and labels are almost always dismissive, discounting and disrespectful.  When I first started blogging, I wrote about the "us vs. them" mentality that is so pervasive in both the political world and, sadly, in the church.  That was in 2005 and I'm afraid it hasn't changed much since then.  The current name-calling....specifically the labels of "terrorist" and "socialist"...do nothing to raise the level of political discourse.  It just gives the media something to talk about.  I can't believe that the offensive robo-calls that we have been receiving are winning any votes for the party financing them. 

I had lunch the other day with 4 of my Christian sisters and, as might be expected, the discussion turned to politics.  All 5 of us are planning to vote for Senator Obama, for a variety of reasons.  One thing that we all had in common was the experience of having to defend ourselves against the accusation/ question of "how could we call ourselves a Christian and vote for someone who was pro-abortion?"  We talked about how we answered that question and why we felt that Senator Obama does represent the best choice, FOR US, in terms of the values that we believe are central to our Christian faith.  Each of these women deeply loves Jesus and tries on a daily basis to follow Him.  They believe that they are both voting their conscience AND voting as an outpouring and an expression of their faith. It angers me that anyone would question their faith because of their political choices.  I applaud their right to make their choices and I applaud John McCain's supporters' right to do the same. I pray that by the next election, Christians will indeed realize that God is not a Republican or a Democrat.  God is definitely too big for any label of this world!

As I have mentioned before, my husband and I generally cancel out each other's vote.  This year will be no different, yet we agree on many more issues than we disagree.  He doesn't completely fit the "conservative" label, anymore than I completely live up to the "liberal" label....although we have a good time joking about it.  Our voting will be a reflection of our opinions about the most serious issues facing this country and our beliefs about the best approach to solving those problems.  In these difficult times, it is important to remember that voting is a great privilege and responsibility.  We must vote prayerfully and with a sense of gratitude for the right to do so...a right that many people in this world do not enjoy. 

One more "confession from a part-time liberal"....I wore a mink coat to a fancy event the other night!  It was my grandmother LaVon's coat and her name is embroidered in the lining.  She loved a party and she would just love to have seen me in it.  While I would not wear a polar bear coat, I do not care much about minks either...in fact, if I am not mistaken, minks are rather rat-like, aren't they?  If I had to only save one, I would choose the polar bear. These particular minks (is that the plural of mink?) had probably been dead for 30 or 40 years anyway!!  You will be glad to know that there were none of those annoying "liberal" types there to throw paint on me :-)

Start by Noticing

As I mentioned in my last serious post ...you know, the ones that DON'T mock our political candidates...I have been thinking a lot about what I gleaned from our Outflow series that our church just completed.  One of the speakers in the last video suggested that, as we become more interested in finding ways to pour out God's love to a hurting world, we might begin by simply "noticing."  Noticing the people whom God puts in our path each day...noticing the look in their eyes, the tone of their voice, the deep sigh, the pause.  As God opens our eyes, we will have the opportunity to see God at work and have the privilege of joining in.

I am reading a book right now by Dallas Willard called Hearing God: Developing a Conversational Relationship with God.  The chapter I most recently read tied in beautifully with the experiences and observations I have had in recent months, including they ways I have seen the Outflow curriculum apply in my daily life.  The primary focus of the book, as you may have gathered from the title, is the ways in which we speak to God and God speaks to us.  The author suggests that there are two primary ways that God offers us personal guidance in our every day lives.  "First, God communicates through what we will recognize as a voice or words addressed to- or even through -us."  The foremost way we hear His Word to us is through scripture and prayer.  These are certainly ways of God speaking with which most Christians are familiar. 

The author describes the second way of hearing from God as "discerning God's voice in shared activity."  He further describes it like this:

There is a second way in which the intentions and thoughts of God are communicated to those who are with Him.  It is one that involves a much more active role on the part of the recipient and is very common among those who are most mature in his family or kingdom.  Here we come to understand what God wants us to understand through immersion with Him in His work...

The author goes on to liken this relationship to what the Psalmist described as being "guided by God's eye (Psalm 32:8 KJV)"  He describes it like this:

This happens when we are working or playing closely with another and know the intentions and thoughts of the other's mind by our awareness of what they are focused upon....  In many cases our need to wonder about or be told what God wants in a certain situation is nothing short of a clear indication of how little we are engaged in His work.

 Now here is the REALLY exciting part...the part that gives me goosebumps:

So our union with God---His presence with us, in which our aloneness is banished and the meaning and full purpose of human existence is realized---consists chiefly in a conversational relationship with God while we are each consistently and deeply engaged as His friend and co-laborer in the affairs of the kingdom of the heavens.

Isn't that awesome?  We are talking about working side by side with God...noticing Him at work in our world and choosing to get off the couch and join Him in that work.  His life-affirming, unconditionally loving, transformational work that He is ALREADY doing all around us.  I think what the author is trying to communicate to us is that sometimes we need to get out of our prayer closet, put down our bible study and get out there and get our hands dirty, if we really want to hear God's voice.

Don't get me wrong.  Time spent in prayer and bible study is NEVER wasted.  I just know that I have seen too many people, myself included, get stuck there wondering what God is trying to say to them about doing His kingdom work.  We can be paralyzed by trying to figure out what great and wonderful thing God is calling us to do.  What I am hearing lately says "JUST GO!!"  Go out into my world...the grocery store, my kid's schools, my nail salon, the church, the Lamb Center...and open my eyes!  See what God is focused on and head that direction.  There are people hurting all around us who are desperate to hear some good news...to have someone listen to their story with no judgement and no agenda.  I think we start by noticing where God is at work, jump in and listen for further instructions WHILE we are living our life prayerfully, mindfully, lovingly. 

I love this new song on the radio.  Here are the words to the chorus of "Give Me Your Eyes" by Brandon Heath. 

Give me your eyes for just one second
Give me your eyes so I can see
Everything that I keep missing
Give me your love for humanity
Give me your arms for the broken hearted
The ones that are far beyond my reach
Give me your heart for the once forgotten

Oh Lord, yes, give me Your eyes and Your heart and Your love AND Your courage!  What could be better than that!  Don't let me miss a single opportunity to hear Your voice as we work side by side in my little corner of the world. 

 

If necessary, use words.

I am thinking this morning about something we talked about in our small group last night.  The question posed in our video lesson was this: how are we to BE the good news in our world?  More specifically, what would it look like for me to be "good news" in the lives of the people with whom I interact every day?  With all the bad news that bombards us each day, isn't good news something we all desperately crave?  In contrast to what we hear from the world, what does our faith have to offer that would make it "good" news and how would we communicate it in such a way that it would be heard? 

One of the speakers in our video last night reminded us of one of my favorite quotes from St. Francis: 

Preach the Gospel always, and if necessary use words.

Obviously, this thought represents the power found in the ways we simply live our lives on a day to day basis.  Lives lived from a place of love, connection, compassion and service "preach the gospel."  When someone is the unexpected recipient of service without an agenda or love without judgment, it is likely to be received as good news. And, as Pastor Rob said in his sermon yesterday, when we see light in the darkness, we are likely to trace it back to its Source. 

In checking the exact words of the quote above, I ran across the other familiar words that we associate with St. Francis.  I thought they held special meaning in the context of being "good news" to a world who so desperately needs it.  What it look like for me, with God's help, to REALLY live out this prayer?

Lord make me an instrument of your peace

Where there is hatred,
Let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is error, truth;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
And where there is sadness, Joy.

O Divine Master grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled
As to console;
To be understood,as to understand;
To be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

 

Better Hands Now

Since my daily PTM postings ceased after my fearful announcement that I was driving the church bus the next day, I am sure you will all be relieved to know that all riders survived my maiden voyage as driver of the church party bus. Thank you for your prayers....it was surprisingly easy!  I guess it helps that my regular vehicle is nearly bus sized!   With a special mix of Christian rock and rap tunes, we successfully "rocked" our way to and from Woodstock, Virginia to work on the Volunteer Farm last Thursday.  My children who are allergic to yard work at home, seemed to find no problem digging up beets and turnips for a "worthy cause."  We are still working on translating the lessons that they have learned about having a servant's heart into the home :-)

On Friday of last week, I went with a group of girlfriends into Washington, D.C. to attend the Women of Faith conference while the girls finished up their mission week for a final day.  I was really sad to miss my last day with Team Beautiful Babes, but I had made plans for the conference a long time ago.  The pre-conference on Friday included the incredibly funny Anita Renfroe.  If you haven't seen her before, be sure to click on the link.  She is truly side-splitting hilarious.  The main conference was Friday evening and all day Saturday and included the usual WOF speakers and some incredible musical guests, including Natalie Grant and Nicole C. Mullins.  It was such a joy to spend time worshiping, singing, laughing and learning with my Christian sisters....both the ones with whom I attended and the rest of the 16,000 sisters there at the Verizon Center. 

When we were finishing up our second day at the Lamb Center last week, I felt very strongly that I didn't want my association with their ministry to end there.  I filled out a volunteer application while I was there and I have been offered the opportunity to lead their afternoon bible study on Tuesdays.  I started today and it was truly a joy and a blessing.  I took my girls along and they spent three hours doing laundry...yet another chore they act like they simply can't figure out at home!!  Again, we are working on the "servant heart" attitude at home :-) 

I am absolutely blown away by the courage and faith of the guests that I am getting to know at the Lamb Center.  Today, during bible study, we were talking about how loving God and loving other people are connected (using 1 John 4 as our text.)  We had been talking about how we access the power of the Holy Spirit to help us in loving people who are hard to love, for one reason or another.  I asked the question "how has being a believer...having the Holy Spirit within you...made a difference in how you are able to love others?"   I wish I could share the specific words and stories that came as a result of that question, but I'm not sure I could capture it in a way that could really do it justice.  One thing I will never forget is the one gentleman who said that, as a result of his growing hunger and love for the Lord, he is "not afraid anymore," Although he is homeless and he has to deal with some very difficult people and situations, he is not afraid anymore because he knows God is with him and is changing the way he looks at the world.  In my much safer circumstances, I will remember my friend's humility, faith and hope the next time that I am worried or afraid.

I downloaded the new Natalie Grant CD after the conference this weekend.  The whole thing is wonderful, but I thought of my friend from bible study when I was listening to this song tonight.  Enjoy!

God Moments- PTM Day Three

It was another powerful day for the Beautiful Babes.  It has been my absolute privilege to serve as a tour guide for the girls on this journey.  I wish I could share with you all the special moments as I watch each girl find her unique way to serve...as I watch each girl step one more tiny step outside her comfort zone.  My job as tour guide is to notice God at work, point that way and say "WOW!  Did you guys see that one?  Isn't He awesome?"  Three days in and they are already taking over my job, as I hear them exclaiming to one another "that was so great when that happened" or "you really made that guy smile" or "God gave great weather to the other team (who was working outside) today."  Now, I am just sitting back and watching God do His stuff.

The most beautiful moment today came when one of our quieter girls drew a picture of one of the guests at the Lamb Center and presented it to him as a gift.  This person who feels invisible, unseen, forgotten was given the gift of seeing himself through the loving eyes of a truly gifted artist...a young girl who was stepping WAY outside her comfort zone to even be here this week.  He was deeply moved by the gift and expressed this appreciation to her.  The other girls noticed...one of the other guests noticed...and this young woman spent the rest of the day hearing affirmation from her new friends that she had been used by God by sharing herself in the way that she knew best.  The other girls even shared the story with the rest of the group when we returned to the church this afternoon.  Christian community at work.

This experience is another example of God's "fishes and loaves" economy.  When we lift up whatever He has given us....when we lift up our blessings from Him with open, outstretched hands, He blesses it and multiplies it and uses it to achieve His purposes.  It is really that simple and that beautiful.  And, it is the purpose for which we were made, so it just feels really true and right and real. 

Pray for me tomorrow, SERIOUSLY.  Apparently, I will be driving the church bus to Woodstock, Virginia where we will do some farming!  Agreeing to drive the bus is ME stepping outside my comfort zone! 

Perspective- PTM Day Two

I was witness to God at work today....in the children that are participating in this mission week, in the lives of strangers who we now call our friends, in the community that is forming as a result of our common focus on the "things that break the heart of God."  I know God is always at work all around me; but today was one of those days when I was repeatedly moved to tears at the sight.  

This morning, our team had the privilege of spending time with the guests and the volunteers at the Lamb Center.  The Lamb Center is a day shelter for homeless individuals in our own seemingly wealthy Fairfax County. The center is a place where Lamb Center guests can receive their mail, get breakfast or lunch, take a shower, use a phone, launder their clothes; any number of activities that we take for granted in our own homes.  What I witnessed today leads me to believe that the most important thing that the staff and volunteers offer is a smile, respect and the love of Jesus Christ.  In addition to the other services, Lamb Center guests are also invited to times of prayer and are offered the opportunity to participate in a morning bible study.

The girls helped out for a while with serving food and doing laundry, but our team quickly realized that the greatest need was for a listening ear.  I was so proud of the girls for their loving presence.  We were all blessed by the stories we heard of God at work in the lives of these folks and by the powerful ministry of this place of refuge.  In the afternoon, we made some breakfast casseroles that we will bring to our new friends tomorrow morning when we will have the opportunity to spend a few more hours with them.

Tonight, I can't stop thinking of one couple that I met today.  I spent a majority of my time this morning talking to J. and his wife, S.  J. is a student of scripture and speaks eloquently of the redemption, deliverance and providence he has found in the years since Jesus found him.  He told his story with not one ounce of self-pity...he gave God all the glory for the changes he has made in his life.  He shared how God had used a number of His servants to help them over the years. He also related the ways he is trying to give back, in whatever way he can.  He shared with me how grateful he is for the ways that God is providing for he and his wife...and what a significant role the Lamb Center has played in the most recent chapters of his story.  He and S. each told me separately how God had recently blessed them with a significant improvement in their living situation.  J. told me that God had provided for them "abundantly" with their recent acquisition of a new tent that doesn't leak when it rains.  They saw this as clear evidence that God loved them and was providing for their every need....just as scripture had promised them.

Joy, gratitude and service should naturally flow out of walking with Jesus.  I met a man today who lives in a tent, yet he seems to understand the concepts better than many of us who are currently experiencing more worldly success.  Kind of puts things in perspective, doesn't it?

Tender Young Hearts- PTM Day One

Today was our first day of Passport to Missions (PTM)- our middle school mission week.  As we did last year, my girls and I are participating with our friends from church.  This year, instead of going to West Virginia, we are serving in a variety of local sites.  Our group consists of 5 young ladies and 2 adult leaders....one of the adults being my precious friend Sammy who has just finished her freshman year in college and has tons more mission trip experience than me.  She is also much wiser than about 75% of the adults I know...you know how some people just "get it?"  At just about to turn 19, Sammy just gets it.  Anyway, I am thrilled to be spending the week with these six young ladies.  Being known as Team B and being an all female team, we have renamed ourselves the Beautiful Babes!

Today the Beautiful Babes kicked off our mission week by visiting Central Union Mission in D.C.  We did a variety of office jobs for them, in addition to getting a tour of their facility.  Having worked in similar types of institutions back in my social worker days, I can't tell you how impressed I was by their program.  In case you are wondering, it appears to me that God is at work with the homeless men in our nation's capital through the ministry of CUM.  If the issue of homelessness tugs at your heart, I would recommend looking into this organization for ways that you can support their work. 

After we had lunch, we spent the afternoon doing yard work at the home of one of our church's older couples.  This precious couple has recently suffered with some health issues that have prevented them from being able to keep up with their large, beautiful garden.  The girls worked hard and we were proud of what we were able to accomplish.  We were sad that we couldn't completely finish our project, but we were relieved to find out that another group will visit them tomorrow.

During our lunch break mid-day, we were invited to spend a few moments alone with God using a prepared Quiet Time guide that gave us some scriptures, questions and suggested prayer topics.  This paragraph was particularly meaningful to me:

Ask God to provide for people that are in need, whether they are homeless strangers, or our church family...  God wants you to pray these things with a tender heart.  He wants you to be so intuned with Him that what breaks His heart will also break yours.  Pray "Break my heart for what breaks yours."  When you begin to hurt over the needs of God's children (including yourself,) God will provide the resources you need to make a difference.

That last sentence really stuck with me.  When our hearts are tenderized by God, we cannot sit idly by and see suffering and injustice without wanting to do something.  Yet, so often, the "something" that we might be able to do seems like so little.  I love this verse from Ezekiel: 

Ezekiel 36:26 (New Living Translation)

26 And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.

We are trying to teach the kids that having a servant heart matters in this world.  That the "something" that they can do...no matter how small...can be multiplied by God to make a difference.  You know, a modern day "loaves and fishes" story.  

God had the girls fired up today and it was contagious.  I can't wait to see what He will do with the rest of our week!  If you read this post this week, would you please pray for us?  If you read this post next week or in upcoming weeks, would you please pray that we don't forget?  That our hearts will stay tender?

Faith Without Works

Barack Obama is talking this week about steering more federal money towards empowering faith-based organizations that reach out to less privileged communities.  In an article about these initiatives, "Obama also talked bluntly about the genesis of his Christian faith in his work as a community organizer in Chicago, and its importance to him now."

"In time, I came to see faith as being both a personal commitment to Christ and a commitment to my community; that while I could sit in church and pray all I want, I wouldn't be fulfilling God's will unless I went out and did the Lord's work," he said.

This reminds me of the verses in James that talk about the relationship between faith and works:

James 2:14-17 (New Living Translation)

Faith without Good Deeds Is Dead

 14 What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? 15 Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, 16 and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?

 17 So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.

Same Kind of Different As Me

I stayed up until 2:00 this morning reading one of the best books that I have ever read.  I couldn't put it down.  I read a lot of books and this was probably the most beautiful story I have ever had the privilege of reading.  I haven't stopped thinking about it all day.  It is a true story called "Same Kind of Different As Me" and you have to read it.  Truly, here is the Amazon link.  Go buy it right now.  That is all that I am going to say.