I apologize in advance, I read this a few days ago and it's so true I have to post it...
“I have three things I’d like to say today. First, while you were sleeping last night, 30,000 kids died of starvation or diseases related to malnutrition. Second, most of you don’t give a shit. What’s worse is that you’re more upset with the fact that I said shit than the fact that 30,000 kids died last night.”
- Rev. Tony Campolo
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
Happy Friday!
Doing lots of thinking and reading today. I keep reading this scripture over and over and over. Trying to see if God is really saying to me what I think He is. Yikes! What does He say to you when you read it?
Proverbs 24:12 paraphrased--Once our eyes are opened we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows that we know and holds us responsible to act.
There are so many wonderful stories out there of people that God is working in and through once He opens their eyes and moves them to act. Here are a couple that speak to me and keep me humbled and convicted....
http://youcomeliketherain.blogspot.com/
http://www.caseyandsarahafrica.blogspot.com/
http://mycupoverfloweth.blogspot.com/
ENJOY!
Jessica
Proverbs 24:12 paraphrased--Once our eyes are opened we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows that we know and holds us responsible to act.
There are so many wonderful stories out there of people that God is working in and through once He opens their eyes and moves them to act. Here are a couple that speak to me and keep me humbled and convicted....
http://youcomeliketherain.blogspot.com/
http://www.caseyandsarahafrica.blogspot.com/
http://mycupoverfloweth.blogspot.com/
ENJOY!
Jessica
Worth the Risk
To laugh is to risk ... appearing a fool.
To weep is to risk ... appearing sentimental.
To reach out for another is to risk ... involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk ... rejection.
To place your dreams before the crowd is to risk ... ridicule.
To love is to risk ... being loved in return.
To go forward in the face of overwhelming odds is to risk ... failure.
But, risks must be taken, because the greatest risk of all is to risk nothing. Those who risk nothing ... do nothing, have nothing, are nothing. They may temporarily avoid suffering and sorrow, but they cannot feel, learn, change, grow, live, or love. Chained by their certitudes, they become slaves Forfeiting their freedom. Only the person who risks is free.
-Chuck Swindoll
To weep is to risk ... appearing sentimental.
To reach out for another is to risk ... involvement.
To expose feelings is to risk ... rejection.
To place your dreams before the crowd is to risk ... ridicule.
To love is to risk ... being loved in return.
To go forward in the face of overwhelming odds is to risk ... failure.
But, risks must be taken, because the greatest risk of all is to risk nothing. Those who risk nothing ... do nothing, have nothing, are nothing. They may temporarily avoid suffering and sorrow, but they cannot feel, learn, change, grow, live, or love. Chained by their certitudes, they become slaves Forfeiting their freedom. Only the person who risks is free.
-Chuck Swindoll
Thursday, February 3, 2011
A little love .. a little kindness, it will be what makes the difference.
We have made a few homeless friends in our neighborhood and give them our left over dinner every night. The majority of them are woman. For me as a female there is something overwhelmingly sad about another female who is homeless. That is not to say it is not heartbreaking to see homeless men, because it is .. but for some reason it really strikes me hard when I see a woman begging for food or money. What happened in her life to bring her to this point?
Grace is starting to catch on. This afternoon after she ate her peanut butter and Jelly sandwich she said to me "momma I wanna give this to the lady to make her feel better, like Jesus"... I couldn't believe it! Such a big heart already. So we made a stack of peanut butter sandwiches and she handed them out to our homeless friends this evening. Grace smiled as she handed them out, the ladies smiled as they filled their hungry stomachs, and I have good feeling God smiled too as he watched her big heart shine.
Grace is very proud of her peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and ready to go hand them out!
"A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor." Proverbs 22:9
Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little. ~ Edmund Burke
Jessica
Grace is starting to catch on. This afternoon after she ate her peanut butter and Jelly sandwich she said to me "momma I wanna give this to the lady to make her feel better, like Jesus"... I couldn't believe it! Such a big heart already. So we made a stack of peanut butter sandwiches and she handed them out to our homeless friends this evening. Grace smiled as she handed them out, the ladies smiled as they filled their hungry stomachs, and I have good feeling God smiled too as he watched her big heart shine.
Grace is very proud of her peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and ready to go hand them out!
"A generous man will himself be blessed, for he shares his food with the poor." Proverbs 22:9
Nobody made a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could only do a little. ~ Edmund Burke
Jessica
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Going through the motions
How much different would our lives look like if today we decided to give it all to Him instead of just "going through the motions"?
I wrestle with this myself, I challenge you to trust him completely.
God Bless,
Jessica
I wrestle with this myself, I challenge you to trust him completely.
God Bless,
Jessica
I remembered this quote as I walked through this incredible city ...
People see God everyday, they just don't recognize him.
~ Pearl Bailey
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Not to us, but to your name be the Glory
I write this through tears. Tonight was a night that absolutely rocked our world. This week as we have been putting things away in our apartment we have realized we brought an abundance of things with us. It took us hours to unpack what was crammed into 6 suitcases. Some of those things we hardly wear, so why would we even bring these things all the way to China? It hit me that it was no mistake to haul these things all the way here. God pressed on my heart to go through everything from clothing to household items and set aside things to give away. Jon and I both did this. We weren't sure how we would give them away as there is no Goodwill or Salvation Army around here. It can be difficult at times to determine who is in the most need here. The majority of the people dress professionally, but many go home to the slums. We also wanted to be careful not to just go and offer our things to someone that we thought might need them. They are very hard workers here, and very proud. We would not want to hurt anyone's feelings.
We loaded up a suitcase full of clothing, shoes and a few household things. We weren't sure what the response would be, and were not really sure how to go about it. I knew that the Chinese locals would probably think we wanted money for the things, so we made a sign that said "Mian Fei" which means FREE in Chinese. It seemed a little odd but we emptied our things out onto a sidewalk and sat there as people gathered around the three of us just staring. We were not prepared for the reactions that came from some of them.
Many of them seemed nervous, and scared of what we were doing. They did not believe the things were free so they would just stand there staring at us, but refuse to take anything. I could tell that they were setting their eyes on different things but they were not convinced that we wanted nothing in return. For a good 25 minutes no one would take anything, the crowd got bigger and bigger and they all started talking amongst each other.
I noticed a gentleman standing behind us for a while watching what we were doing. After about 10 more minutes he finally walked up introduced himself as Dave and said Are these things really free .. Why would you just give things away there's gotta be more to this??? We told him we had plenty and wanted to share with anyone that needed anything. Then he said well where are you all from .. I mean I've never in my life seen anything like this happen in my country, I'm sorry but I don't understand.
He told us he had been watching us and the crowd and wanted us to know these people were scared of what we were doing. When he was convinced that we wanted nothing in return he then told the crowd that the items were indeed free, and that they could take anything they wanted or needed.
We continued talking to Dave as the people looked through our things. He continued asking questions and at one point he said, this is the kind of thing that makes the rest of the world think the Americans are backwards. He said the people here have never seen anyone just offer them something without wanting something in return, you are so kind. He then turned to us and said can I ask you something... Are you all Christians?? We replied yes, and before we could ask him the same question He said I am too with a huge smile on his face.
We both said wow, that's awesome .. How did you become a Christian? He said someone gave him a Bible years ago, and he began reading it on his own. He felt the holy spirit working in his heart and has been reading his bible and living for Christ ever since. With tears in his eyes and shaking hands he said now this all makes sense. The only people who do things like this are Christians. He then explained to the crowd that we were Christians and once again assured them the things were free and we wanted nothing in return. By the time we said goodbye to Dave all of the things were gone. The people started to say goodbye with big smiles on their face one by one. I could see them talking to their friends as they walked off and showing off their "new" things. I had no idea I would feel so happy, yet so broken after it was all said and done. It's just hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that these people were truly scared of what we were doing because they had never seen anyone do that before.
It was truly a divine moment. The only person that could speak English in that whole crowd other than us was Dave. I believe it was a moment orchestrated only by God. Dave was able to explain to the people that we were Christians, and why we would do something like this. I believe seed was planted in some of their hearts. God planted Dave on that street corner just as we sat down to help us shine a light to these people. I'm sure the people may have thought we were very nice, and a little crazy but they would not have heard the name Jesus in that moment without Dave standing there all along.
Even when there is a language barrier you can share Christ with others through the way you act, and through the way that you love. I believe that God makes Himself known and all we have to do is show them the reality of His love. I want them to see the fruits of a God who has captivated my heart and soul.
My prayer for you is that in 2011 you give all that you are and all that you have to God and see what He does with your life. I think He has called us all to a place where we get our hands dirty and our lives messy in meeting the needs of hurting people.
There are a few pictures below of Dave, the crowd, and one little girl who was ecstatic to get one of Grace's old dresses I made a while back.
Enjoy!
*** PS LESLIE AND ASHLEY *** One lady in the picture is holding a MEKO birdie sling bag. I LOVED that bag, but I loved giving it to her even more. She was so excited, she couldn't stop smiling.
Jon and our new friend Dave
This picture taken once the crowd died down, these ladies started calling their friends to come check it all out.
This Little girl was so happy to get a "new" dress, she started dancing around once she realized she really could keep the dress.
We loaded up a suitcase full of clothing, shoes and a few household things. We weren't sure what the response would be, and were not really sure how to go about it. I knew that the Chinese locals would probably think we wanted money for the things, so we made a sign that said "Mian Fei" which means FREE in Chinese. It seemed a little odd but we emptied our things out onto a sidewalk and sat there as people gathered around the three of us just staring. We were not prepared for the reactions that came from some of them.
Many of them seemed nervous, and scared of what we were doing. They did not believe the things were free so they would just stand there staring at us, but refuse to take anything. I could tell that they were setting their eyes on different things but they were not convinced that we wanted nothing in return. For a good 25 minutes no one would take anything, the crowd got bigger and bigger and they all started talking amongst each other.
I noticed a gentleman standing behind us for a while watching what we were doing. After about 10 more minutes he finally walked up introduced himself as Dave and said Are these things really free .. Why would you just give things away there's gotta be more to this??? We told him we had plenty and wanted to share with anyone that needed anything. Then he said well where are you all from .. I mean I've never in my life seen anything like this happen in my country, I'm sorry but I don't understand.
He told us he had been watching us and the crowd and wanted us to know these people were scared of what we were doing. When he was convinced that we wanted nothing in return he then told the crowd that the items were indeed free, and that they could take anything they wanted or needed.
We continued talking to Dave as the people looked through our things. He continued asking questions and at one point he said, this is the kind of thing that makes the rest of the world think the Americans are backwards. He said the people here have never seen anyone just offer them something without wanting something in return, you are so kind. He then turned to us and said can I ask you something... Are you all Christians?? We replied yes, and before we could ask him the same question He said I am too with a huge smile on his face.
We both said wow, that's awesome .. How did you become a Christian? He said someone gave him a Bible years ago, and he began reading it on his own. He felt the holy spirit working in his heart and has been reading his bible and living for Christ ever since. With tears in his eyes and shaking hands he said now this all makes sense. The only people who do things like this are Christians. He then explained to the crowd that we were Christians and once again assured them the things were free and we wanted nothing in return. By the time we said goodbye to Dave all of the things were gone. The people started to say goodbye with big smiles on their face one by one. I could see them talking to their friends as they walked off and showing off their "new" things. I had no idea I would feel so happy, yet so broken after it was all said and done. It's just hard for me to wrap my mind around the fact that these people were truly scared of what we were doing because they had never seen anyone do that before.
It was truly a divine moment. The only person that could speak English in that whole crowd other than us was Dave. I believe it was a moment orchestrated only by God. Dave was able to explain to the people that we were Christians, and why we would do something like this. I believe seed was planted in some of their hearts. God planted Dave on that street corner just as we sat down to help us shine a light to these people. I'm sure the people may have thought we were very nice, and a little crazy but they would not have heard the name Jesus in that moment without Dave standing there all along.
Even when there is a language barrier you can share Christ with others through the way you act, and through the way that you love. I believe that God makes Himself known and all we have to do is show them the reality of His love. I want them to see the fruits of a God who has captivated my heart and soul.
My prayer for you is that in 2011 you give all that you are and all that you have to God and see what He does with your life. I think He has called us all to a place where we get our hands dirty and our lives messy in meeting the needs of hurting people.
There are a few pictures below of Dave, the crowd, and one little girl who was ecstatic to get one of Grace's old dresses I made a while back.
Enjoy!
*** PS LESLIE AND ASHLEY *** One lady in the picture is holding a MEKO birdie sling bag. I LOVED that bag, but I loved giving it to her even more. She was so excited, she couldn't stop smiling.
Jon and our new friend Dave
This picture taken once the crowd died down, these ladies started calling their friends to come check it all out.
This Little girl was so happy to get a "new" dress, she started dancing around once she realized she really could keep the dress.
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