God has been doing some pretty incredible things in my life lately to show me just how amazing are His ways! The first was this weekend when I had the chance to serve down in the Bonton community.
I was with a team of other women who were going and praying for different women in the community and encouraging them. We also prayed for a nearby school. And we wrote notes of encouragement to a woman going through some particularly hard times.
I loved agreeing with these women in prayer and could really sense the Lord's presence among us ... One of the highlights of this time for me was when we stopped at the house of a woman who was just about to go visit her son in prison. The awesome thing is that it sounds like her son is coming around and wanting to do the right thing ... the amazing thing in all of this was how perfect God's timing is. If we had been a few minutes later, she probably would have already headed out to go visit her son!
She told us we had just caught her ... and we could tell how much our hugs and prayers meant to her. :) My heart rejoiced to think of the perfectness of God's timing and ways ... and even now, I am so happy as I write this! :)
The second thing was this morning ... Once every week, our department goes through reports from the mission field to decide where each will be used. Well, there was one about one of our missionaries and his motorbike. It turns out the person who gathered that story just kind of "came across" it ... It wasn't one he was originally planning to cover, but we know now that the Lord brought it his way. Because we needed it for a very specific use ... for something we've never done before (motorbike appeal letter) and that he was unaware that we even needed at the time. But God knew ... how wonderful and unsearachable are His ways!
He is so amazing and good.
Welcome, dear friends! Here you will find an assortment of snippets and reflections ... and hopefully some encouraging quotes from people like John Piper and C.S. Lewis and ... most of all ... the Scriptures. :-) Leave a comment if you'd like - I would love to hear from you! Have a GREAT day.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Friday, September 19, 2008
Sunny Fall Weather, Groceries and Prayers
This weather has been ... absolutely gorgeous ... no other words to describe it! Makes me want to own a laptop computer and just work outside all day long. :) Yesterday I was out walking in it after work. And it's Friday, and that means a weekend to enjoy some of this indescribable weather. :o)
I had so much fun running to the grocery store during my lunch break and grabbing ingredients for the new recipes (soups) I want to try this weekend. I love cooking ... there's just something about it! :) And while I'm cooking, I plan to have the windows open in my apartment to let in some of the great breeze outside!
There continues to be persecution in Orissa, and in fact it has now spread to Karnataka state. Yet the believers in these places have such a pure, sincere love for Jesus that is carrying them through. It's really incredible to me. They still need our prayers though ... Please do pray for them, especially for comfort for those that have lost loved ones for the sake of Christ.
I had so much fun running to the grocery store during my lunch break and grabbing ingredients for the new recipes (soups) I want to try this weekend. I love cooking ... there's just something about it! :) And while I'm cooking, I plan to have the windows open in my apartment to let in some of the great breeze outside!
There continues to be persecution in Orissa, and in fact it has now spread to Karnataka state. Yet the believers in these places have such a pure, sincere love for Jesus that is carrying them through. It's really incredible to me. They still need our prayers though ... Please do pray for them, especially for comfort for those that have lost loved ones for the sake of Christ.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
They Know Jesus is Priceless ...
Hebrews 13:3 tells us, “Remember the prisoners as if chained with them—those who are mistreated—since you yourselves are in the body also.”
*I love that this Scripture is in the Bible. How timely and appropriate it is, given the things Christians were going through for Jesus’ sake back then . . . and the things they are still going through centuries later because of their love for the Savior.
How does this verse play out in my day-to-day life as I long to know Jesus more each day and see things through His eyes? I know that I want to be faithful in lifting up the needs of the persecuted Church to Him . . . as well as the hearts of those who still need to know Him. Prayer … whether for His work across the globe or in the lives of those around us … is such a privilege, as a friend reminded me last night. I know my own faith is often greatly strengthened through prayer.*
*During prayer meeting the other night, we saw pictures portraying some of the suffering being experienced by believers in Orissa. Images flashed across the screen, bringing a face to the horrific suffering people are facing for their Christian faith. Pictures of houses and churches burned down. Or pictures of groups of believers fleeing their villages to seek refuge in the forests, or the ones living in little tent cities. One image of far more horrific suffering was omitted because they felt it would be too graphic to show for a family audience.
I was deeply moved and my heart went out to the believers, especially as I saw the pictures of them being driven from their homes to hide out in the forests and others who were living in tent cities. Seeing these made me think of the passage in Hebrews 11 that tells us Abraham dwelling in tents because he knew this world was not his home. That chapter goes on to list some of the suffering of the believers in the early church, telling us that they joyfully accepted the plundering of their possessions, knowing they had better and lasting possessions in heaven.*
*I think their perspective amazes me. We live in a fallen world with many perspectives that are vastly different from those of Christ’s kingdom. I think of that verse in Isaiah that tells us that His thoughts are so much higher than ours.
I know that in my own life … whatever may be going on around me, whether in Orissa, or in the lives of those I love around me … or in my own life at times … it is vastly comforting to know that God’s ways are higher, more grand, than anything we could ever think up for ourselves.*
****Think about Orissa, where six believers … people with not much as far as this world, but with a simple faith in Jesus and heartfelt love for Him … have given their lives. And thousands of families are still hiding in the forests as the beatings and burnings of homes/churches continue.
... or the dear friend from my college church who watched her husband die of terminal cancer . . . all the while both of them clinging to Jesus and His Word whatever the outcome. I received this incredible email from them not long before he passed away, while he was in hospice care.
… We love you and thank you for praying for us and trusting God with us. His display of love for us is exceeding abundantly above all we could ever ask or think. Steve looks more and more like the man described in Jeremiah 17:7,8 as he trusts God completely …
When I asked her how I could pray for her in the months following her husband’s death, her prayer request blew me away! It was not for herself but instead, she asked for prayer that she could shine the light of Christ in his workplace (after his death she began working there full-time to support herself), continuing the work that he had started as he witnessed to co-workers before his death. It reminded me of the stories we've heard of widowed missionary wifes continuing to reach out and share the Gospel in areas where their husbands had served.
*Whether in the Church across the globe, or in the lives of those around me … I see so many incredible examples of the worth of Jesus. That is He is so worthy and infinitely priceless . . . I truly can’t imagine this life without knowing Jesus!
Those of us who know Jesus, may we always remember the worth of Jesus and the amazing thing He did for us on the Cross . . . and His incredible, sustaining grace in each of our lives for each new day … whether we are going through difficult times like some dear people are that I know … or whether we’re simply have a day where we’re maybe tired and discouraged. Praise Jesus that He is always with us and is our everlasting portion! And may we be faithful to intercede for our brothers and sisters in Christ in other parts of the world. (This webpage has a link to stories of believers' faith amidst persecution ... and prayer requests for the persecuted Church in each story.)
And … for any of you reading this who don’t know Jesus yet … from my heart I would encourage and challenge you to consider Him who is so worthy that men and women in Orissa would give their lives for Him . . . and other Christians throughout the centuries as well. I promise you won’t regret it!
*I love that this Scripture is in the Bible. How timely and appropriate it is, given the things Christians were going through for Jesus’ sake back then . . . and the things they are still going through centuries later because of their love for the Savior.
How does this verse play out in my day-to-day life as I long to know Jesus more each day and see things through His eyes? I know that I want to be faithful in lifting up the needs of the persecuted Church to Him . . . as well as the hearts of those who still need to know Him. Prayer … whether for His work across the globe or in the lives of those around us … is such a privilege, as a friend reminded me last night. I know my own faith is often greatly strengthened through prayer.*
*During prayer meeting the other night, we saw pictures portraying some of the suffering being experienced by believers in Orissa. Images flashed across the screen, bringing a face to the horrific suffering people are facing for their Christian faith. Pictures of houses and churches burned down. Or pictures of groups of believers fleeing their villages to seek refuge in the forests, or the ones living in little tent cities. One image of far more horrific suffering was omitted because they felt it would be too graphic to show for a family audience.
I was deeply moved and my heart went out to the believers, especially as I saw the pictures of them being driven from their homes to hide out in the forests and others who were living in tent cities. Seeing these made me think of the passage in Hebrews 11 that tells us Abraham dwelling in tents because he knew this world was not his home. That chapter goes on to list some of the suffering of the believers in the early church, telling us that they joyfully accepted the plundering of their possessions, knowing they had better and lasting possessions in heaven.*
*I think their perspective amazes me. We live in a fallen world with many perspectives that are vastly different from those of Christ’s kingdom. I think of that verse in Isaiah that tells us that His thoughts are so much higher than ours.
I know that in my own life … whatever may be going on around me, whether in Orissa, or in the lives of those I love around me … or in my own life at times … it is vastly comforting to know that God’s ways are higher, more grand, than anything we could ever think up for ourselves.*
****Think about Orissa, where six believers … people with not much as far as this world, but with a simple faith in Jesus and heartfelt love for Him … have given their lives. And thousands of families are still hiding in the forests as the beatings and burnings of homes/churches continue.
... or the dear friend from my college church who watched her husband die of terminal cancer . . . all the while both of them clinging to Jesus and His Word whatever the outcome. I received this incredible email from them not long before he passed away, while he was in hospice care.
… We love you and thank you for praying for us and trusting God with us. His display of love for us is exceeding abundantly above all we could ever ask or think. Steve looks more and more like the man described in Jeremiah 17:7,8 as he trusts God completely …
When I asked her how I could pray for her in the months following her husband’s death, her prayer request blew me away! It was not for herself but instead, she asked for prayer that she could shine the light of Christ in his workplace (after his death she began working there full-time to support herself), continuing the work that he had started as he witnessed to co-workers before his death. It reminded me of the stories we've heard of widowed missionary wifes continuing to reach out and share the Gospel in areas where their husbands had served.
*Whether in the Church across the globe, or in the lives of those around me … I see so many incredible examples of the worth of Jesus. That is He is so worthy and infinitely priceless . . . I truly can’t imagine this life without knowing Jesus!
Those of us who know Jesus, may we always remember the worth of Jesus and the amazing thing He did for us on the Cross . . . and His incredible, sustaining grace in each of our lives for each new day … whether we are going through difficult times like some dear people are that I know … or whether we’re simply have a day where we’re maybe tired and discouraged. Praise Jesus that He is always with us and is our everlasting portion! And may we be faithful to intercede for our brothers and sisters in Christ in other parts of the world. (This webpage has a link to stories of believers' faith amidst persecution ... and prayer requests for the persecuted Church in each story.)
And … for any of you reading this who don’t know Jesus yet … from my heart I would encourage and challenge you to consider Him who is so worthy that men and women in Orissa would give their lives for Him . . . and other Christians throughout the centuries as well. I promise you won’t regret it!
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