After spending fifteen days in the poverty-stricken country of Ethiopia, something feels incredibly appropriate about the thought of living in one small room for the next four years of my life.
God is clever like that.

Culture Shock

They told me to prepare to deal with some culture shock when I entered Africa. And naturally, the culture was rather overwhelming at first. Streets lined with hungry children and devastated mothers cried out to my heart. Unsanitary water, no plumbing, no front doors, dirt floors and tin roofs. Slaughtered goat heads scattered the street corners: "what do your dogs eat?" they continually asked us when we cringed at the sight of them. Being the only white people in a city of several hundred thousand caused quite a stir. Wanting so badly to understand what the little boy was trying to tell me, and finally accepting that I didn't recognize any of those Amharic words -- so I smile and I nod, defeated by the language barrier. Finding no salt or pepper at meal time, but only a jar of chili powder -- the Ethiopian staple. One loaf of bread costs one Ethiopian Birr. Conversion -- 5.8 cents.

It was a totally different culture. And it was, indeed, shocking.
But the thing is, I expected it.
I expected the poverty and the language barrier and the different food.
So, after a few days, I was naturally able to accept it and become quite content with my new little world in Africa.

In Ethiopia, I experienced a bit of culture shock.
But there was another country where it hit me like a ton of bricks.

Upon re-entering America on August 9th, 2011, nothing made sense to me.
Why is this airport so cold?
Where are these people in such a hurry to be?
Why are they so rude?
Why is everything so expensive?

With each new place I went, building I entered, or city I drove through, new questions, emotions, and heaviness fell upon my heart.

"Here is $200 for allowing us to park our car here in Chicago for two weeks."
Two-hundred dollars...
That's 3,400 Ethiopian Birr
That could buy someone a horse to make a living,
Pay for two year's worth of rent,
Send 17 kids to school.

"This air is so clean. So fresh. It's incredible."

Stop at rest stop. Wash hands five times. Smell them.
They smell clean.
They haven't smelled clean in two weeks.
Dry them with air that blows right out of the wall.
What kind of insane contraption is this?

"Why are these streets so bare?
Where are all the children?
Why aren't they playing soccer?"

When I actually arrived at home sweet home,
I opened our solid wood door,
entered the cool, air-conditioned space,
walked across the soft, carpeted floor,
and collapsed onto the ever-comforting sofa.

It was then that I looked up,
soaked in my surroundings,
and with tears streaming down my cheeks
uttered to my mom,

"We live in a mansion."

It took me a few days to be able to shower without crying through it.
The clean, warm water fell over me with the perfect amount of pressure to wash off the exfoliating mango body soap with moisturizing beads, and every child's face flashed through my head, as I realized that they would probably never experience what I was doing right then.

A clean shower.
A comfortable home.
Fresh air.
Soap.
Transportation.

May I never take a single thing for granted again.
May this culture shock never quite wear off.
For I -- a middle class American -- am rich.
Filthy rich.
And chances are, you are too.

"Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”  Matthew 19:24

God help us.

Fraol

Pronounced: Fra-wool
Age:11
Grade:2

What could I possibly say that would be able to fully express the story of this sweet blessing of a child? Do know that this blog post will not do his circumstances justice. This is only a mere attempt to bring a glimpse of Ethiopia to America. May your heart be moved.

Froal lives in a small little shack with his young, beautiful mother. He is an only child. When I say "small little shack," I mean what I say. This was the smallest home I had seen in all of Ethiopia. I would say his entire home is the size of my bathrooom. Now, I acknowledge that you may have never been in my bathroom. But, it can be assumed that it is normal bathroom size. One shower, one sink, one toilet. Nothing extra. Nothing excessive. So, we're talking about a small place. If you sat on the floor up against one wall and I sat on the floor up against the opposite wall, our knees would touch. Froal's mother owns a bed and a small stand.

When Froal was three years old, his father died, serving as a police officer. Froal's mother did not find out until it was too late that her husband was HIV positive. Consequently, Froal and his mother are both now living HIV positive as well. While there is medicine available for this disease, it comes with some conditions. Due to the severe side affects of the medication, Froal's mother chooses not to take it. The treatment works similarly to chemotherapy, in that it makes you sicker before it makes you better. Froal's mother feels it is her job to raise and take care of her son, and she can not afford to be sick. Froal does take medicine for his HIV, but it is necessary that he take it daily with milk. Milk can often be very expensive, and it is hard for Froal's mother to keep up on it. His mother works part time in the fall at a seasonal shop. But, for the summer, she is unemployed.

The home Froal and his mother were living in during our visit was provided for them by the Ethiopian government. It was a benefit of his father being employed as a police officer. But, as we were talking with the family, his mother shared with us that since her husband had been gone for 10 years now, the government was deciding to take their home away. They anticipated that they would lose their house within the next week, having nowhere else to go and no family to live with. Their situation was severe and uncertain.

There's one more thing about Froal. He doesn't know that he is HIV positive. When talking with him, his social worker refered to him as "a patient." His mother has chosen not to tell him about his illness yet. He knows that he takes medicine every morning and that sometimes he feels sick. But, he does not know the reason for either of these things. Froal's mother keeps his illness from him because she wants him to be able to live a normal life for as long as possible. Often, when a child knows he or she is infected with HIV, he/she becomes embarrased, ashamed, and anti-social. The child may withdraw from his friends and become as secluded as possible. Froal mother did not want this for her precious son. So, at this point, he is still unaware.

This family was a joy to spend time with. In their little house they made us spiced tea from wild herbs and served us the little bread they had. Froal blew bubbles out the door to the neighbor kids who stuck their little heads in, curiously. When we gave him a letter from a child in American who had written to a child in Ethiopia, he was thrilled. As soon as the letter was translated, he found some paper so he could write a letter back. He was filled with questions and curiousity about the boy in America who had written to HIM. He wanted to know everything about him. What is his favorite color? What is his favorite game, favorite subject in school? What does he want to be when he grows up? Fraol wants to be a doctor so he can help people in Ethiopia who are sick. This tends to be a common aspiration among the Ethiopian children.
Before we departed, we prayed, as was a common part of our home visits. We prayed for the health of both Fraol and his mother. We prayed for their finances, living environment, and food. And in faith, we know that God will provide. As I left Fraol's home, I hugged him and his mother, knowing that the experience I just had would forever change me.

Walking down the poverty-stricken Ethiopian streets moments later, tears welled up in my eyes for the first time since I had entered the country. In that moment, it was becoming so real. Fraol's mother probably won't live more than a few more years. They don't have anywhere to live. They pray to God to give them food for the next day. That was a rough one. Yes, that one indeed....was rough.

With some of the donated money we received for our trip, we were able to provide one year's worth of milk for Fraol, and three months worth of rent for a new home until his mother can continue her employment in the fall. We thank God for the opporunity to bless this family. If you are interested in sponsoring Fraol or any of the other children in the BCI program, you can contact me for more information, or visit http://www.blessingthechildren.org/

God bless you.

Natnael

Pronounced: not-nay-el

Age: 5

Nickname: Nati

My family and I are huge supporters of Compassion International, a child sponsorship program that helps provide basic needs for impoverished children all over the world. Being blessing with some extra money this year, I decided I wanted to sponsor a child. So, over the summer, at Cornerstone Festival, I began looking through the Compassion child packets, seeing if any of them caught my eye. I didn't really come across the age/gender child I was looking for, so I chose to wait and sponsor a child through Compassion online. But quickly, my summer turned into an insane mess of busyness, and I found no time at all to sit down and make such a serious commitment. Then, I found myself in Africa. This, of course, was God's perfect plan working itself out the entire time.

God had a child for me in Ethiopia. God had a perfect plan for me to meet, fall in love with, and choose to sponsor this specific child. So here is his story:

Nati was born in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. When he was four years old, both of his parents died, leaving him orphaned. Friends or servants of the family took Nati and put him on a bus, sending him an hour away to Debre Zeit, the city we were staying in. Apparently somewhere in this city of thousands of people, Nati's uncle lived. His uncle had no word of him coming and Nati had no idea how to find him. When Blessing the Children (BCI) found Nati, he was on the streets crying and starving. It is estimated that he had been in Debre Zeit 20 days before he was found. Upon finding him, BCI took Nati to a medical clinic to have him looked at. This is when it was discovered that Nati has a heart condition. "Heart condition." That is simply all anyone knows. There is no money available to take Nati to the hospital in Addis Ababa to have something diagnosed. When I saw Nati, it was very clear that he was ill.

Nati now lives in a small, one-room home with his uncle, aunt, and baby cousin in Debre Zeit. They have a dirt floor and one bed for the four of them. They also have a bench. When I first met Nati, he was sitting on the bench in his house, kicking his feet back and forth, stuffing some sort of food into his mouth. He looked hungry. Also, upon arrival, it became clear that there was something wrong with Nati's uncle. His eyes were crossed and he didn't seem to be fully present. Our social worker eventually told us that Nati's uncle has a "mind like a child." In America, we would call that mentally handicapped.

Nati was very quiet at first, just staring at us...strange white people handing him candy and speaking in a foreign language. Eventually, though, he opened up and started giggling and smiling. Then, my sister, Lindsey, asked him to come sit on her lap. It was then that I knew this boy would be mine. As he got up to walk over to my sister, putting one foot in front of the other, he almost fell down, losing his balance. He shuffled and limped the rest of the way over. Nati can barely walk.

I asked Tigist, his social worker, what was wrong. She said it was part of his heart problem. She had Nati come to her and take off his shirt. I then saw something that may be very serious. His chest is deformed. Part of it bulges out, while another part sinks in. It is as if part of his heart is much closer to the outside of his body than it should be. It is something that, in America, we would not go one day without heading straight to a hospital to get some care. It is something that Nati has lived with his entire life. It is something that no one really knows the severity of.

Nati can't run at all. He tries, but it turns into something like a limp/gallop/trip. He knows he doesn't fit in and can't keep up with the other kids. As a result, he isolates himself, playing alone, eating alone, sitting alone. He knows he is different. He knows that putting himself with other children will only hurt him.

And the last thing about Nati; perhaps the most heartbreaking of all: Nati's aunt and uncle don't agree about keeping and caring for him. His uncle, his blood relative, cares for Nati to the best of his ability. His aunt doesn't feel the same. She feels the burden of Nati's health. Tigist told us that Nati's aunt and uncle constantly argue and disagree about keeping and caring for him. They do this in front of Nati. It is just a terribly heartbreaking part of this little boy's life.

So there he is. My sponsor child. As soon as I returned home I got online and set up my sponsorship through BCI. With my support, Nati will be fed, sheltered, clothed, and educated. He will also be actively involved in his local church and be able to attend school for free.

                           His name is Natnael. And he is mine.

It costs $30 a month to individually sponsor a child. A full child sponsorship is $90 a month. That way, each child has the possibilty of having up to three sponsors. These sponsors receive letters and pictures from their child and have the opporunity to send letters, picturres, and care packages. Hopefully, through my relationship with Nati, he will be able to receive better medical care and an overall better life. And most of all, he will connected with people who are eager to share the love of Jesus Christ with him. I can't wait to get to know this little boy!

Nati still needs two more sponsors in order to be fully supported. This would provide him with even more healthcare, food, etc. I witnessed firsthand that a little money goes a long way in Ethiopia, as the exchange rate is 17 Ethiopian Birr to 1 US Dollar.

If you are interested in sponsoring Nati or any of the other children in the BCI program with similar, different, and equally heartbreaking stories, please get in touch with me. I would love to talk to you and give you more information. Or, you can visit http://www.blessingthechildren.org/ for more information.
If you would like to sponsor a child through our loving partners at Compassion, visit http://www.compassion.com/


 “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, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.  Matthew 25:34-40

Fekerite

Pronounced: Fa-keer-ta
Age: 16
Grade: 3

For me, Fekerite's story begins two years ago, when I decided to take sign language as my homeschool elective. I didn't know anyone who was deaf or even knew sign language. I was just tired of trying to learn spanish and thought sign language could be a fun alternative. So I taught myself for the last two years of high school. I really grew to love it and started learning more in my free time. Signing became something I had a passion for. But still, I had never signed with another person, besides my mother who was trying to learn with me. I just knew that there was a reason I was learning it and that God was going to use it in my life somehow at some time. Until then, I was patiently submitting to learning as much as I could.

Now, skip ahead to my trip to Ethiopia.

Upon arrival, I was telling Danielle, a member of our team, about my signing and about how I had never met a deaf person. With interest, she mentioned that there was a deaf girl in the BCI orphanage. (BCI is the organization we were working with in Ethiopia) I immediately got excited, and then Danielle said, "But I doubt she knows sign language, and even if she did, it wouldn't be American Sign Language like you know."
I then asked a BCI social worker about her, who agreed that the chances she knew American Sign Language were very slim.

With small hopes, I visited the orphanage the following day and found this "deaf girl."
She seemed to be on her own, a lonely, quiet type, keeping to herself.
I walked up to her, formed my hands into the correct shapes, and made the sign for "name."
She looked at my eyes, smiled, and made the sign for "Fekerite."

And my heart filled with joy.

So Fekerite and I sat down that day and talked and talked. She told me how she enjoyed school and church and her younger brother, Teddy, was in the orphanage as well. She told me none of her friends at the orphanage knew sign language. Not even her brother or the adults knew it. No one knew it. She told me about how she sits and watches the kids talk and play and have fun, and she can't follow any of it, so she just stares in boredom and frustration. She told me how glad she was that I had come and talked to her.

I told her she was the first deaf person I had ever signed with.
She thought that was pretty cool.
I thought God was pretty cool.

So I spent a lot of my time in Africa getting to know this girl, connecting with her, and loving on her. But that's not even the best part. That's not even the point. The point is this:

That's a picture of my new friend and I talking. But do you see the rest of the picture? See all those kids sitting around the table staring at us? Those are orphans; the kids who live with Fekerite. They're staring at us as if they've never seen anyone speak in sign language before. Well, I quickly realizes that they never had seen anyone speak in sign language before! There is no deaf culture or deaf awareness in Ethiopia. There is no education on the deaf society. Fekerite was probably the only deaf person they had ever met, just like me. So these beautiful children had no idea that the motions Fekerite had been making with her hands her whole life actually made up a language. They didn't know it was actually a way of communicating, until they saw someone else come in and do it too. And they were enthralled.
The next day I went back to the orphanage to hang out with Fekerite. Now, do you see the girl in the far left of the picture, wearing the green shirt? Her name is Beza and she is 15 years old. When I walked into the orphanage the next day, Beza walked up to me and excitedly showed me the signs Fekerite had taught her the previous night. She was learning. She wanted to learn. I was so EXCITED.

And by the end of the week, I was talking to Fekerite about teaching more of the kids, and another girl had already started learning. I am going to send a sign language book to the orphanage so they can all learn together.

God is so good, my friend. And he shows up in totally unexpected ways. If for nothing else, THAT is why I learned sign language. And if for nothing else, THAT is why God sent me to Ethiopia; to introduce this beautiful language to lovely orphans who only needed to see in order to want to reach out to their silent sister.

The point wasn't that I got to spend two weeks using my sign language skills with a lonely, deaf girl in Africa. Although that was an incredible experience. The point was that Fekerite will soon be communicating and laughing and playing with the kids she's lived with for years.

Never take your eyes off of God.
Always follow his direction,
even when you don't understand it.
Never doubt his plan.

Because he has a plan.
Boy, does he have a plan.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28

Wuha

Pronounced: woo-haw
Language: Amharic
Translation: Water
Defintion: a transparent, odorless, tasteless liquid; a compound of hydrogen and oxygen, H2O, freezing at  0°C and boiling at 100°C, that in a more or less impure state constitutes rain, oceans, lakes, rivers, etc.

I don't think I've ever thought more about water in my life than I did during those two weeks I spent in Ethiopia.
Clean water.
It seems like such a simple thing to us
One of those things that just comes along with life
Complementary clean water

I never even realized how much I loved water
Until I had to put forth effort to obtain it

I never realized how much water I use everyday
Or how quickly one can dehydrate
When water takes time, money, and effort
to become drinkable.

Rule #1 for missionaries in Africa:
Do not drink the water from the tap,
Either boil it for at least 15 minutes
or drink bottled water.

That means we have to check our water bottle supply everyday and make sure we're not running low. We have to make sure we don't empty the bottle if someone else in the house hasn't filled up their personal bottle yet. If we want oatmeal in the morning, we have to get up early and boil the water. If we want to cook pasta or rice at night (which is pretty much all we had to cook) we have to start dinner quite earlier than usual, to allow time to boil water. When we wash dishes after dinner, we have to boil more water so we aren't using bacteria-filled water to sanitize with. Don't accidentally use the faucet to brush your teeth; you could get very sick. Be sure to always keep bottled water stocked in the bathroom for that purpose. And try to stay on top of the disinfecting wipes/hand sanitizer supply if you actually want your hands to be clean after you wash them. Refill your water bottle (as long as there is enough water stocked in the house to do so) everyday before you leave the house, because there will be nowhere else to get drinkable water throughout the day. And after you shower, just put some deodorant on and let it be, because you may never quite be sure if you smell better or worse after a shower, due to the stench of the water.

And the crazy thing is, the Ethiopians feel more than blessed to have this water available to them. For there are places near them who do not have access to even that.

So, how was Africa?

Incredible
exciting
overwhelming
heart-breaking
devastating
encouraging
refreshing
exhausting
dirty
eye-opening
lovely
beautiful
life-changing
the hardest thing I've ever done
the most amazing thing I've ever done.

You all keep asking me this question, as if I can give you a couple of sentences and completely sum up everything I saw, felt, experienced, and learned. Don't worry, I'll answer you. It just might take a while. Keep an eye on my blog, I'll be posting Africa stories one by one. But while you're waiting for that, soak this up: Thank you. Thank you so much for getting me there. Whether you donated money or toys or clothes or prayer support or just gave me a hug or a word of encouragement, thank you. Because it was by God's grace, through all of your support that I was able to go to that incredible country. So thanks for that. Yeah...thanks.

We were made to be lovers

bold in broken places,

 pouring ourselves out

again and again

until we're called home.

Is Anyone Among You Suffering?

Well, you see, I was going to write you a beautiful little post about the wonderful power of prayer. I would tell you about how when you pray, you had better expect God to move. Because He will and He does! I would tell you about how I've been praying more lately, and I've been praying with faith. And I would tell you about how prayers are being answered, people are being healed, hearts are being restored, lives are being flipped around, and friendships are being formed. And I would even mention the small things -- like cars starting and bills being paid and cool breezes on hot days -- so that you would know that God cares about every detail of your life. But then I realized that I could go on and on about how super awesome and lovely and powerful prayer is...but I would still fall short of communicating my point to you. So, with that, I will just give you this:

Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone cheerful? He should sing praises. Is anyone among you sick? He should call for the elders of the church, and they should pray over him after anointing him with olive oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The intense prayer of the righteous is very powerful.
James 5:13-16

Breathe that stuff in.

There is Power in the Name of Jesus

I spent the last seven incredible days of my life at a crazy little gathering called Cornerstone Festival. And, let me tell you, dear reader; it rocked my world.

I told my friend last week that I think Cornerstone is the closest place to Heaven I've ever been. Not that it actually has anywhere remotely close to the perfection and glory that Heaven will possess. But, what I mean by that statement is that Cornerstone is closer to...what it is supposed to be like. It is a little glimpse of glory. The unique people, embracing community, abounding love, judgement-free environment, and constant riduculously insane worship to God. That's what it's supposed to be like, man! THAT is what it is supposed to be like. That is how God made us to function. And, oh man, that little taste of glory was so intensely satisfying. You need to know about it.

God moved/spoke/provided/loved in the following ways at Cornerstone 2011:

• Anchor Stage -- Place where God dwells
• Worship every single day, and I never tired of it -- I think we need to worship more than we do
• Baptism times three
• Hippie Cindy -- a woman healed of many ailments by the glorious power of God
• Meeting a man who is walking across the country to minister to the homeless
• Meeting a man who is homeless
• Moshing for Jesus -- sweat, mud, and Flatfoot 56
• Losing my wallet; praying to find it; finding it with nothing taken from it
• Teenagers who are on fire for GOD
• Signing three people up to sponsor children; realizing those people were 15, 16, and 17 years old
• Jeremy John Smyth -- a Canadian gem
• Spending the whole week with my wonderful friend Erin; knowing her more, learning new things with her, growing in Christ together, loving
• Watching people worship in full abandonment, holding nothing back
• God is supernatural. Believe it. Never doubt.
• Tears just because God loves us so stinking much!
• Listening group -- three minutes of my story and three minutes of yours and we'll be friends forever
• Gungor -- worship as an art
• The lake -- God's gift to the over-heated
• Meeting many people who have been to or are working in Ethiopia! Asking them so many questions. Connecting.
• The Got Your Back Movement -- providing school uniforms to kids in need
• Praying for/with people...and then meeting them
• Kaitlyn and Ashleigh
• Not getting sunburnt
• The song "Jesus Paid it All" over and over and over
• Hardcore bands that talk about Jesus in between screaming
• Learning about God through sand castles that continuously fall when the water comes
• Talking to a Catholic Priest....actually seeing God in him. Knowing that he's legit about Jesus.
• Being challenged in new ways. Questioning things over and over. Seeking truth.
• The man in the merch tent who just wanted to talk to us, not sell us his stuff
• Not passing out
• Anthony makes me smile. God is good.
• Free ramen. A ministry, I think.
• Dancing my heart out for Jesus
• Three dollars saves three girls from sex-trafficking
• Sunday night. When I thought it was all over...and God had more in mind.

The intense prayer of the righteous is very powerful.
James 5:16

 And just so you can soak a little more of this goodness up, here are some quotes from various speakers, singers, friends, random hippies from the week, that I found worthy of being written in my little yellow notebook:

"None of us really care about what we smell like, we just love Jesus."

"And an Athiest came up to the front and said...I didn't really believe in God until right NOW."

"Physical healing is purely a window into the soul."

"There is power in the name of Jesus. So break every chain. Break every chain. Break every chain."

"Freely you have received -- freely give."

"I have a fat crush on Jesus and I love it when he talks about me when I'm not around!"

"Even those who reject the word of God reject it out of a place of  blindness."

"God does not need me to save anyone."

"You're going to find yourself standing up for people you can't stand to be around."

"Forgiveness is not giving someone a free pass for hurting you. Forgiveness is allowing God to be God."

"Most of the people that hurt us are actually the people that we love."

"Forgiveness = seeking justice"

"Humility is the path to intimacy with God."

"There is absolutely nothing you can do to turn His love away."

"Just let Him be Abba, Father, Daddy."

"What is this thing in our culture that when we try to love someone and they don't love us back, we think that is God telling us that we don't have to love them?"

"Don't get all hung up over all the theological bull crap in this society. Love. Participate in what God is doing."

...and hearts were restored that week.

Summer Adventures

I'm going to take a break from my usual deep/spiritual/emotional post and just give you an update on my life. Because a lot is happening at once these days, and you may start wondering if I dropped off the face of the earth here sometime soon. I assure you, I have not. But here's what's up:

Last week I went to Senior High camp at Faith Bible Camp. It rocked my socks. God moved like no other. Friendships were formed and relationships were strengthened. I dove into the book of Philippians and fell in love. I shared tears with a girl who lost her dad at the age of 8 from a drug overdose. I made friendship bracelets for some beautiful girls and was really encouraged by God's elements of surprise and perfect timing. He knows what He's doing. Camp was amazing.

Tomorrow begins the first day of Cornerstone week. My lovely friend Erin is coming to stay with me for the week and experience the fest for the first time. I'm really excited about this. I'm really excited about how powerful God has always been at Cornerstone. I'm ready to be stripped down and broken for God. I'm ready for mud pits and mosh pits and free ramen noodles. But most of all I'm ready for the Holy Spirit to MOVE. Be praying for the fest, friend.

I went to the doctor today to talk about a lot of Ethiopia stuff. I got a prescription for malaria and learned how to pop my ears so they don't explode on the airplane. I got 4 shots last week and almost passed out. I don't do well with needles. I have to get 2 more shots next week and I am not excited about it. Yellow fever and typhoid...which apparently can have some nasty side affects. I always get every side affect. So pray for that too.
As far as our trip goes...fundraising is going well. We still have a few hundred dollars left to reach our goal. But we are SO thankful that God has provided so much for us! He has been incredible and you guys have been incredible in supporting us. We are beginning to collect donations to take over there. Childrens clothes, multivitamins, stickers, small toys, toothbrushes/toothpaste, etc. We've had some stuff come in already and are praying that more will come. We would love to take an extra suitcase of donations...but this will cost another $200. If the money comes in, you know we will be doing that!

On July 9th we will be having a pillowcase dress making days with some of the ladies from my church. It should be a wonderful time and I can't wait to see the children's faces in Africa when they get a brand new dress! This will be an exciting time.

I could really go on with details on our Ethiopia trip for a long while. Perhaps I will try to make another post about that.

College. That is happening. I got registered for classes at WIU at the beginning of June. I'm pretty satisfied with my schedule. I met my roommate, too. Her name is Kate and she is an answer to prayer! She is such a blessing. God has definitely brought us together for His Glory. I can't wait to share my college years with this beautiful, Jesus-loving girl. God is so good.

God has provided for me abundantly financially for college. I am going to do my best to use it all for His glory. This is such a blessing. I am so thankful.

Due to my financial stability, I am going to be sponsoring a Compassion International child at Cornerstone this next week. We've sponsored a girl named Kiriti as a family for several years now. I am really excited about being able to do this on my own now! Be praying for me and for the child I sponsor. I will post information about him/her as soon as I can.

In mid-July I am going back out to Faith Bible Camp to counsel 3rd-5th graders. It's a pretty awesome experience. I love it a lot, really. Those kids keep me busy! And God is so wonderful in giving me the opporunity to teach them.

Lindsey and I leave on July 25th for Ethiopia. We will return on August 8th. And on August 20th I will be moving into my dorm on campus!

So....my summer is kind of crazy. And kind of amazing. I am loving every minute of it. God has given me soooo many opportunities to serve Him. He is so faithful and so holy. He is my joy and my righteousness.

Thanks for being a part of this beautiful life, dear friend.

Now if  I don't post for a couple of months...you will know why.
I'm doing that stuff^^.

Be a Firefly

I caught a firefly tonight.
First one of the summer.

The thing about fireflies is
they are actually around all day,
they just don't have any reason
to shine in the daylight.

When the darkness comes
they reveal their light,
and then it's impossible
to not notice them..

And the other thing about fireflies is,
the darker the world around them,
the brighter their lights shine.

You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. --Matthew 5:14-16



Fear Not, My Love

We had a guest speaker at church this week. I don't remember his name or where he was from. But, I do remember that he had a really powerful message, and he was full of passion and the Holy Spirit. I know that he was legit about Jesus Christ.
I got up and shared about my trip to Ethiopia in front of the congregation on Sunday for a few minutes. I guess that's all that guest pastor knew of me. I didn't talk to him or tell him my life story. I didn't share with him how I was feeling about Africa and college and growing up. ...But I guess he figured it out anyway. I guess God must have filled him in. Because, he came up to me after the service and blessed me with this wonderful verse:

So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
--Isaiah 41:10

And I guess I didn't recognize until right then....how scared I really was. Because when he started talking to me about not being afraid, my eyes began filling up with tears -- unexpected tears. So then I sat there and starting thinking about it. And the more I thought about it, the more I realized how scared I really am. And the more I realized how scared I was, the more that verse continued to bless me and fill me with peace. And the more I was filled with peace about my fears, the more I found myself in awe of the greatness of God.

Yeah, I am scared.
I'm scared of being fully surrendered and heading to a country halfway across the world with no idea what to expect. I'm afraid of a 14 hour plane ride. I fear being completely out of my element and not knowing how to reach the people there. I'm afraid I won't be able to handle the utter poverty that I'm going to face. I'm scared that my own pride is going to get in the way of my ability to share God's love. I'm afraid of not being able to make the impact that I'm supposed to make there. I fear that Africa will not meet all the hype -- that I will come home disappointed and exhausted.

I'm afraid of coming home and having my life completely flipped around, trying to figure out how to deal with what I've just experience in Africa...and then having to pack up right away and move away from home and start this college thing. I'm afraid I won't be the same person I am when I left, and at the same time I hope Africa changes me. I fear I'm trying to take on too many life altering things at one time. I'm afraid of college being ridiculously more than I can handle. I'm scared that the crazy college world will suck me in and corrupt me into someone who I am not. I'm scared of not being able to find that solid group of Christian friends that I am going to need for support. I'm scared of not knowing what to say when my psychology professor lectures on humanism and how there is no way to possibly know the meaning of this life. I'm afraid of wasting my time day after day...not doing enough for the Kingdom of God.

I feel like I'm probably going to have some sort of epic, super-spiritual breakthrough sometime soon. Sometime between intimate cabin devotions at camp, falling on my knees at cornerstone, and giving a poverty-stricken boy his first pair of new shoes...I feel that God is definitely going to take hold of me and teach me something ridiculously powerful. How could he not?

I talked to a man who spent some years in Africa. I told him about my trip. He told me this:
"Don't go to Africa and not expect to be changed."

So that scares me, and also is pretty exciting.

I guess the whole point of this post is that I didn't realize how scared I was until someone told me not to be scared. And then God worked in a pretty awesome way. Because He will strengthen me and help me and uphold me with His righteous right hand.

And when I meditated on that promise, the fears began to fade away.
God says, "Don't be afraid."
Don't be afraid of failure or illness or the days to come. Do not be afriad of life or death or any trial you may face. Because He is with me.

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,  neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. --Romans 8:38-39

And as I start worrying about the trials ahead, the Lord comforts me in speaking these words:

 Consider it pure joy, my brothers,whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
--James chapter 1

Take that psychology professors, scary plane rides, and intimidating circumstances.

I have a crown waiting for me.

Cardinal Baby

This little guy has been hanging out in the bush by my porch for a couple of weeks now.
First, in gray spotted egg form.
And just 2 days ago, in mutant baby bird form.
Just give it some time, guys.
I think he'll look a lot cuter real soon.
I noticed today that he's starting to grow little tiny feathers!
Isn't life just so cool?

Life.

A woman came into the pregnancy center today
with three happy children
and glowing
because she was expecting another.

There are two baby cardinals
in a nest right by the porch
that were born just today.
Their fuzzy, squirming bodies
know only how to open thier mouths
to receive food from their mama,

Life is happening today.

It is beauty
and it is hope.