If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?
I'm still thinking on this...some days I would say yes, other days unfortunately, maybe not so much!
Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14
Monday, April 26, 2010
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
The Rest of the Story
So Monday, I debated all day about whether I should've given her consequences for her actions (the previous post explains Elizabeth's lying). She truly had a repentant heart. I heard someone say the other day though that "God never removes the consequences". I don't know what I think about that. Part of me disagrees with that. Part of me agrees with it.
Parenting is hard work!! I was thinking I have one kid who has an attitude, a second kid who complains about just about everything and a third one that has started lying. Honestly, sometimes I just think we're not doing this whole parenting thing well, but then I have to remind myself that the end result will be when they're adults and if they're serving the Lord, then we've had success in parenting!
Monday night I had Bible study and a few of us went to Starbucks afterwards. A lot of the conversation revolved around parenting. How can we do it better? Where's the balance of respect and love in parenting? And on and on the conversation went. I got home around 9:30 and Elizabeth ran down the stairs and said, "Momma, I asked Jesus into my heart."
Bam!! God hit me over the head. The resounding question was, "Do you trust Me?" God is always working on our behalf even when we can't see it. I was a little disappointed in myself that I didn't trust God enough to take our messy parenting and use it to bring about eternal good for His glory. But if we're wholeheartedly seeking Him, I think that's exactly what He does.
And so...this is the sweet note that my daughter wrote to God.
Dear God,
I am sorry to lie. I am a sinner but God I love you. You see I fine, but I see you make me your daughter forever. I am your son. God, why do Satan trick Adam and Eve? Satan is a big fat liar. My God, you are the Lord our God. One day, you are the King. I love you Lord. When I see you I am going to be so happy. So happy I am going to jump. From Elizabeth
To God,
God is our Lord our God. God is alive forever. God you die on the cross for our sins. God you are Lord our God. There is no way that Satan can break you, no way.
And then because we serve such a sweet, sweet God. She ended her note to Him with
Here am I, send me. Isaiah 6:8
(Derek had a Nicaragua tshirt on yesterday proudly sporting that verse)
And that makes this momma so happy!!
In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Luke 15:10
Joy, great joy, unspeakable joy!! For my sweet Elizabeth was lost, but now she's been found by a precious Savior who promises never to leave her or forsake her! I'm so happy I could just JUMP!
Parenting is hard work!! I was thinking I have one kid who has an attitude, a second kid who complains about just about everything and a third one that has started lying. Honestly, sometimes I just think we're not doing this whole parenting thing well, but then I have to remind myself that the end result will be when they're adults and if they're serving the Lord, then we've had success in parenting!
Monday night I had Bible study and a few of us went to Starbucks afterwards. A lot of the conversation revolved around parenting. How can we do it better? Where's the balance of respect and love in parenting? And on and on the conversation went. I got home around 9:30 and Elizabeth ran down the stairs and said, "Momma, I asked Jesus into my heart."
Bam!! God hit me over the head. The resounding question was, "Do you trust Me?" God is always working on our behalf even when we can't see it. I was a little disappointed in myself that I didn't trust God enough to take our messy parenting and use it to bring about eternal good for His glory. But if we're wholeheartedly seeking Him, I think that's exactly what He does.
And so...this is the sweet note that my daughter wrote to God.
Dear God,
I am sorry to lie. I am a sinner but God I love you. You see I fine, but I see you make me your daughter forever. I am your son. God, why do Satan trick Adam and Eve? Satan is a big fat liar. My God, you are the Lord our God. One day, you are the King. I love you Lord. When I see you I am going to be so happy. So happy I am going to jump. From Elizabeth
To God,
God is our Lord our God. God is alive forever. God you die on the cross for our sins. God you are Lord our God. There is no way that Satan can break you, no way.
And then because we serve such a sweet, sweet God. She ended her note to Him with
Here am I, send me. Isaiah 6:8
(Derek had a Nicaragua tshirt on yesterday proudly sporting that verse)
And that makes this momma so happy!!
In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Luke 15:10
Joy, great joy, unspeakable joy!! For my sweet Elizabeth was lost, but now she's been found by a precious Savior who promises never to leave her or forsake her! I'm so happy I could just JUMP!
Monday, April 19, 2010
Half Truths
I saw this on the sign of a church the other day, "Beware of half truths. You just might have the wrong half." How true that is.
So begins my story about lying. We met friends at Pancho's on Sunday. I noticed that Elizabeth had a little gold ring on her pinky. I asked where she got it. My teacher gave it to me. I began to ask which teacher, why did they give it to you, etc. I started to think that she wasn't telling me the full story, but then I let it drop and thought "we'll talk about this later". I took the ring and put it in my purse. There was something fishy about this conversation.
Then later that day, I probbed some more. The story then became that she found it and she tried to give it to her teacher, but the teacher wouldn't listen to her, etc. I then talked to Elizabeth about how she had stolen the ring because it wasn't hers and that she had lied to me and how disappointed I was. At this point, she was a little irritated with me, not mad, just irritated. Elizabeth's top lip disappears when she gets irritated, just like my dad's does.
We had devotions and I sent the boys upstairs to bed. Elizabeth and I talked some more and I didn't lecture, I didn't yell, I just told her that she had made two bad choices. Then she said, "I have a secret and I don't want to tell you." I told her that she could tell me anything. She then told me that she had found the ring in the drawer of the preschool kitchen and that she had taken it. At this point, she is crying as she's telling me this story. She definitely is full of remorse and I'm debating about consequences. Is the remorse and repentant heart enough or should there still be consequences? I prayed with her and asked God to help her make better choices next time. I told her I loved her and that she was very special.
She was still heart broken. She ran up the stairs and covered her head with the covers and cried. I went into her room and told her that it was over and done. We just need to learn from our mistakes and make better choices next time. She told me that she had another secret...through tears she told me that she and her friend MC went into the bathroom at Pancho's and kept waving their hands in front of the automatic towel dispenser to get lots of towels. Inside I was chuckling, but also think that Pancho's prices are going to go up because of the cost of paper towels! But I told her not to do that again and off she went to sleep.
Then I wondered....Did I do the right thing? Should there have been some stiff consequences for the lying and the stealing? You'll have to read tomorrow to find out the rest of the story....
So begins my story about lying. We met friends at Pancho's on Sunday. I noticed that Elizabeth had a little gold ring on her pinky. I asked where she got it. My teacher gave it to me. I began to ask which teacher, why did they give it to you, etc. I started to think that she wasn't telling me the full story, but then I let it drop and thought "we'll talk about this later". I took the ring and put it in my purse. There was something fishy about this conversation.
Then later that day, I probbed some more. The story then became that she found it and she tried to give it to her teacher, but the teacher wouldn't listen to her, etc. I then talked to Elizabeth about how she had stolen the ring because it wasn't hers and that she had lied to me and how disappointed I was. At this point, she was a little irritated with me, not mad, just irritated. Elizabeth's top lip disappears when she gets irritated, just like my dad's does.
We had devotions and I sent the boys upstairs to bed. Elizabeth and I talked some more and I didn't lecture, I didn't yell, I just told her that she had made two bad choices. Then she said, "I have a secret and I don't want to tell you." I told her that she could tell me anything. She then told me that she had found the ring in the drawer of the preschool kitchen and that she had taken it. At this point, she is crying as she's telling me this story. She definitely is full of remorse and I'm debating about consequences. Is the remorse and repentant heart enough or should there still be consequences? I prayed with her and asked God to help her make better choices next time. I told her I loved her and that she was very special.
She was still heart broken. She ran up the stairs and covered her head with the covers and cried. I went into her room and told her that it was over and done. We just need to learn from our mistakes and make better choices next time. She told me that she had another secret...through tears she told me that she and her friend MC went into the bathroom at Pancho's and kept waving their hands in front of the automatic towel dispenser to get lots of towels. Inside I was chuckling, but also think that Pancho's prices are going to go up because of the cost of paper towels! But I told her not to do that again and off she went to sleep.
Then I wondered....Did I do the right thing? Should there have been some stiff consequences for the lying and the stealing? You'll have to read tomorrow to find out the rest of the story....
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Lost
No, it's not about the tv show. I've never even seen the show, I don't even know what's it's about except that obviously someone is lost.
I cannot stand to lose things. I've probably blogged about it before. Some lost pictures...a lost "faith" ring...Elizabeth's glasses. It drives me bananas. So as we're packing up to leave Africa, I look for my cell phone. It doesn't work in Africa, so I hadn't seen it in several days. I thought it was in my little suitcase. I unpacked and repacked it three times looking for that crazy phone. Then I did the same thing with my large suitcase and my backpack. I was about to go crazy. Not because my phone is some precious commodity, but because I just can't stand it when I can't find things. (On a side note, Derek says next time he's irritated with me, he's just going to find something of mine to hide and then watch me tear the house apart looking for it. I hope he's joking with me or that he doesn't ever get irritated with me again!)
I didn't find the phone in Africa, but I thought, I'll search again once I get home. Maybe I just overlooked it. And then I couldn't find my headphones for my ipod and I started thinking...maybe my phone and my headphones got left on the plane in Amsterdam or slid out of my bag when it was under the seat. No time to look for headphones...I'll look when I get home. At this point, I'm still extremely frustrated that I cannot find my phone, but God starts talking to me about the lost coin and the lost sheep. How the woman looked and looked for the lost coin and how the shepherd looked and looked for his lost sheep. It didn't matter that he had 99 other sheep, where was the one? And then God reminded me, that it's all about the "one".
Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the need all around me and feeling like, "can one person or one family really make a difference"? We can make a difference for at least one. Have you heard the story about the starfish on the beach? It mattered to that one.
And because God just has a good sense of humor, my luggage got lost. Never made it to Atlanta with the plane. And it stayed "lost" for several days. It finally came minus a simply love Africa shirt that some airport employee is now sporting (that's a whole different story). My phone and headphones were never found, but that's okay because there was a lesson to be learned in all of it.
May we be found faithful with whatever "one" or "two" God entrusts to us. Let's not miss the oppportunity we have with "one", because we're overwhelmed with the thousands. God's capable enough to handle it all without us, but He gives us opportunity to partner with Him. I don't want to miss the opportunity!
Luke 15:6
Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'
Luke 15:9
And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.'
Luke 15:24
For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.
Luke 15:10
In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
I cannot stand to lose things. I've probably blogged about it before. Some lost pictures...a lost "faith" ring...Elizabeth's glasses. It drives me bananas. So as we're packing up to leave Africa, I look for my cell phone. It doesn't work in Africa, so I hadn't seen it in several days. I thought it was in my little suitcase. I unpacked and repacked it three times looking for that crazy phone. Then I did the same thing with my large suitcase and my backpack. I was about to go crazy. Not because my phone is some precious commodity, but because I just can't stand it when I can't find things. (On a side note, Derek says next time he's irritated with me, he's just going to find something of mine to hide and then watch me tear the house apart looking for it. I hope he's joking with me or that he doesn't ever get irritated with me again!)
I didn't find the phone in Africa, but I thought, I'll search again once I get home. Maybe I just overlooked it. And then I couldn't find my headphones for my ipod and I started thinking...maybe my phone and my headphones got left on the plane in Amsterdam or slid out of my bag when it was under the seat. No time to look for headphones...I'll look when I get home. At this point, I'm still extremely frustrated that I cannot find my phone, but God starts talking to me about the lost coin and the lost sheep. How the woman looked and looked for the lost coin and how the shepherd looked and looked for his lost sheep. It didn't matter that he had 99 other sheep, where was the one? And then God reminded me, that it's all about the "one".
Sometimes I get overwhelmed with the need all around me and feeling like, "can one person or one family really make a difference"? We can make a difference for at least one. Have you heard the story about the starfish on the beach? It mattered to that one.
And because God just has a good sense of humor, my luggage got lost. Never made it to Atlanta with the plane. And it stayed "lost" for several days. It finally came minus a simply love Africa shirt that some airport employee is now sporting (that's a whole different story). My phone and headphones were never found, but that's okay because there was a lesson to be learned in all of it.
May we be found faithful with whatever "one" or "two" God entrusts to us. Let's not miss the oppportunity we have with "one", because we're overwhelmed with the thousands. God's capable enough to handle it all without us, but He gives us opportunity to partner with Him. I don't want to miss the opportunity!
Luke 15:6
Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.'
Luke 15:9
And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says, 'Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.'
Luke 15:24
For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.
Luke 15:10
In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Do You Know What I Love?
Easter came and went. It was a great day, but I didn't take a single picture. No pictures of the family, no pictures of the baskets (overflowing...by the way), no pictures of the 300+ egg hunt. Nothing. My parents' neighbors were photographing their kids like crazy at the egg hunt and I thought...maybe I should've brought a camera.
Life's been crazy since we returned home on Wednesday night. I lost my phone somewhere on the trip, so Derek and I (mostly Derek) have been researching phone and cell phone plans. Exciting stuff, I know.
But then yesterday morning and this morning, I saw this on my kitchen counter.
This is what I love. Not the craft...what it says. Read Matthew 28:6, "He is not here; for He has risen, just as He said." That makes me want to jump up and shout it from the mountaintops!! Our God is a promise keeping God. His Word is filled with His promises and I can know that they are true and sure. He is faithful and true and He did just like He said He would. He rose again (or got picked up like my little African friends say) on the third day! Yes! Our God lives!
This is why Derek and I are willing to leave our families for weeks at a time. It's hard. It's hard on the one going and it's hard on the one staying home. It's hard to go door to door on Sunday nights and share the gospel. It's hard to take the high road when you just want to yell at people because they are just mean and cruel and unkind. But God! Two words that sum it all up. God keeps His promises! One day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. That Jesus did die and that He was buried and three days later He rose again conquering death and sin forevermore.
I don't have any family pictures of Easter this year, but I have one picture of an Easter craft. And that picture is precious to me. Easter's not about the bunny or the candy or the pretty clothes or the egg hunt, it's about His promise and His offer for eternal life. I am thankful that my God lives and that He keeps His promises...every last one of them!
"He is not here; for He has risen, just as He said."
Life's been crazy since we returned home on Wednesday night. I lost my phone somewhere on the trip, so Derek and I (mostly Derek) have been researching phone and cell phone plans. Exciting stuff, I know.
But then yesterday morning and this morning, I saw this on my kitchen counter.
This is what I love. Not the craft...what it says. Read Matthew 28:6, "He is not here; for He has risen, just as He said." That makes me want to jump up and shout it from the mountaintops!! Our God is a promise keeping God. His Word is filled with His promises and I can know that they are true and sure. He is faithful and true and He did just like He said He would. He rose again (or got picked up like my little African friends say) on the third day! Yes! Our God lives!
This is why Derek and I are willing to leave our families for weeks at a time. It's hard. It's hard on the one going and it's hard on the one staying home. It's hard to go door to door on Sunday nights and share the gospel. It's hard to take the high road when you just want to yell at people because they are just mean and cruel and unkind. But God! Two words that sum it all up. God keeps His promises! One day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. That Jesus did die and that He was buried and three days later He rose again conquering death and sin forevermore.
I don't have any family pictures of Easter this year, but I have one picture of an Easter craft. And that picture is precious to me. Easter's not about the bunny or the candy or the pretty clothes or the egg hunt, it's about His promise and His offer for eternal life. I am thankful that my God lives and that He keeps His promises...every last one of them!
"He is not here; for He has risen, just as He said."
Saturday, April 3, 2010
It Doesn't Hurt to Ask
This is Matthew's note underneath his Easter basket. I suppose it doesn't hurt to ask!
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Overwhelmed with Opportunity
The trip was great! I can't go too deep emotionally just yet or I'll just be a weepy mess, so I'm going to start with something a little more lighthearted.
On Sunday night, we picked the nine kids up from the trash dump/landfill. We went to eat pizza and drink coke with them (coke is a staple for me in a foreign country) and then headed back to the guest house. To hear the giddy laughter of three girls in the shower together is indescribable. When Sumer turned on the water, they just reached their hands in and touched the water. They've most likely never had a shower before. Korah doesn't have running water or toilets (more funny stuff about that later). They were just giggling like crazy in the shower. It truly made the long hours of travel worth it. A sweet kiss from God...hearing three teenage girls giggle with joy over a shower. (By the way, they took three showers during their two nights at the guest house.)
We drove four hours (it seemed like 20), to a boarding school. We are hoping to send 100 children from the dump to boarding school in September. They will have toilets and running water and three meals a day and an education and be overwhelmed with opportunity. There future is dependent on it. Right now, they don't go to school and really have no hope. Some of them are double orphans (both parents deceased). Some of them have lost a mother or a father and the other parent is a beggar or visits the trash dump every day and makes a living on selling trash. They are in desperate situations. It is not a healthy home life. Boarding school is a great opportunity for them. The kids all loved the school and the school is on 180 beautiful acres of Ethiopia.
It only costs $700 a year to send these kids to boarding school. If you're willing to sponsor a child, please email Erin at erin_k_allen@hotmail.com
Our family is sponsoring this sweet 12 year old boy Yasen. Let me give a big shout out to Yasen. He was the only teenager that didn't fall asleep during our long English speaking meeting. He made me a proud mama sponsor. He is going to do well and I believe his future is bright.
Yasen is in the brown in this picture. This picture was taken on Saturday.
My parents are sponsoring Habtamu (not sure if I spelled it right). He was a last minute addition to our already full bus, but I'm so glad he came. We shared a very small seat together on the way home.
What can your family sacrifice this year and in the following years so that these kids can have opportunity? Pictures and words cannot describe the desperation and despair that we saw. We cannot turn away and do nothing. To whom much is given much is required. Let me tell you again, America has been given MUCH. Much will be required of us. Let's make our "much" count for something that has eternal value!
On Sunday night, we picked the nine kids up from the trash dump/landfill. We went to eat pizza and drink coke with them (coke is a staple for me in a foreign country) and then headed back to the guest house. To hear the giddy laughter of three girls in the shower together is indescribable. When Sumer turned on the water, they just reached their hands in and touched the water. They've most likely never had a shower before. Korah doesn't have running water or toilets (more funny stuff about that later). They were just giggling like crazy in the shower. It truly made the long hours of travel worth it. A sweet kiss from God...hearing three teenage girls giggle with joy over a shower. (By the way, they took three showers during their two nights at the guest house.)
We drove four hours (it seemed like 20), to a boarding school. We are hoping to send 100 children from the dump to boarding school in September. They will have toilets and running water and three meals a day and an education and be overwhelmed with opportunity. There future is dependent on it. Right now, they don't go to school and really have no hope. Some of them are double orphans (both parents deceased). Some of them have lost a mother or a father and the other parent is a beggar or visits the trash dump every day and makes a living on selling trash. They are in desperate situations. It is not a healthy home life. Boarding school is a great opportunity for them. The kids all loved the school and the school is on 180 beautiful acres of Ethiopia.
It only costs $700 a year to send these kids to boarding school. If you're willing to sponsor a child, please email Erin at erin_k_allen@hotmail.com
Our family is sponsoring this sweet 12 year old boy Yasen. Let me give a big shout out to Yasen. He was the only teenager that didn't fall asleep during our long English speaking meeting. He made me a proud mama sponsor. He is going to do well and I believe his future is bright.
Yasen is in the brown in this picture. This picture was taken on Saturday.
My parents are sponsoring Habtamu (not sure if I spelled it right). He was a last minute addition to our already full bus, but I'm so glad he came. We shared a very small seat together on the way home.
What can your family sacrifice this year and in the following years so that these kids can have opportunity? Pictures and words cannot describe the desperation and despair that we saw. We cannot turn away and do nothing. To whom much is given much is required. Let me tell you again, America has been given MUCH. Much will be required of us. Let's make our "much" count for something that has eternal value!
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