I'd Leave 99 to Find You

Luke 15:3 So Jesus told them this story: 4 “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them gets lost, what will he do? Won’t he leave the ninety-nine others in the wilderness and go to search for the one that is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he will joyfully carry it home on his shoulders...7 In the same way, there is more joy in heaven over one lost sinner who repents and returns to God than over ninety-nine others who are righteous and haven’t strayed away!

You're probably all familiar with the story in Luke 15. Jesus gives the illustration of a shepherd who loses 1 of his sheep. He is willing to leave 99 to find the one lost sheep. In the same way, a woman who loses her coin would diligently seek until she found that coin. How much more so, does a heavenly Father seek after those who are lost spiritually? This song (below) is on my Zambia music CD. I've heard this song countless times, but last night it meant something so much more to me.

Elizabeth asked me to read to her last night. She has a girls' devotional Bible and she randomly picks a story (so I think), but it wasn't random at all to God. God used the story of the lost sheep and the lost coin last night to remind me how precious even just one Zambian child is to Him. I almost started laughing when I saw the page she had opened for me to read. God is so good!

This song also says that "nothing in the world can keep Me away!". That's how Jesus feels about us. NOTHING could keep Him away.

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words...add some music and it's worth much more. This video says more than my simple words could ever say. I hope you'll watch it!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

I Love Africa! Can You Tell?

Freedom

One of the most powerful things that I witnessed in Zambia is the power of Christ to set prisoners free. One of my favorite passages of Scripture is Isaiah 61 which says

"The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners."

These orphans in Zambia are living in darkness and are captives of the lies of the enemy. They have nightmares. There are witch doctors in every town that are putting curses on these children and claiming them for Satan. There are enemies within the houses...caregivers that choose to verbally and physically abuse the children that have been entrusted to them. Why would these children believe that they have any value in God's kingdom? Why would they believe that anyone could love them?


On Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday we sang a song called Freedom. Greer had warned us that we might possibly see some demonic activity during this song. At the beginning of the song, we would go down the row and pray over each child. The verse in the song says "I cry freedom from the chains that bind Your children, freedom from the chains that bind our praises, freedom from the lies of the enemy, Freedom, we cry, freedom, freedom, freedom..." Well, you can imagine that Satan doesn't want freedom for these children. Demonic activity is rampant in Zambia. As we prayed over children and sang this song, some of them fell down and started convulsing. Immediately Zambians and Americans would begin to lay hands and pray over these children. Many of these children had demons and they needed to be cast out in Jesus' name. We would pray for awhile and once the child stopped convulsing they would carry them to the "deliverance room". Zambians would continue to pray over these children. Our translators would show up late for our small group session and say "I'm so sorry I'm late. I was in the deliverance room exorcising some demons." This is real life for Zambian Christians! This is one of the reasons that they are so bold. They believe in the power of Christ to set prisoners free. Do we believe like that?


It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1


I can't put into words everything that happened during the week. I had girls in my group that have had nightmares for years, and once they started declaring "The Lord is my Shepherd", the nightmares stopped.

For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Cor. 3:17

Here's a video from Camp Life 2007. This video is so powerful and it shows how we would pray over each child. I think the video can explain it more clearly than I ever could. I hope the power of the words in this song minister to you and that you realize that Christ set us free. We do not need to be held captive to ANYTHING any longer.



Here is the link to YouTube if you can't view it here.
Camp Life Freedom Video

BUT God

It's 3 in the morning Saturday morning and I can't sleep. Maybe it's the caffeine in the tea from last night, or the Bloomin Onion from Outback (Happy 39th Anniversary Mom and Dad), or maybe it's the Krispy Kreme doughnut that I had for dessert or maybe it's just that life sometimes isn't fair at least not according to our way of thinking.


A casual acquaintance at church has just found out that her sweet pregnant body is carrying a child without a heartbeat. See here to read her heartbreaking post. My heart is broken for her. She is not just a sister in Christ or just a sister at TSC but a sister in a club that we never voluntarily signed up for...infertility.


It was August 1999 when we went to the doctor for an ultrasound at 14 weeks. I thought something was wrong, the nurses thought I just had new pregnancy mom nerves. I convinced them to let me come in for an ultrasound. I'll never forget that day (and I tend to forget a lot of things). Looking at the screen and just seeing a very still baby on that screen...no heartbeat. We had already seen the heartbeat before. We had been given the clear from our in-vitro doctor. Once you see a heartbeat, then there's a 95% chance that you'll carry the baby to term. Well, who cares about statistics especially when they didn't work for us. We are in that 5% that never got to wake up in the middle of the night and rush to the hospital to deliver a baby. We are the ones that don't have a curly haired (dominant gene from Alicia) beautiful blue eyed (recessive gene from Derek because that's what I pick) child running around here on earth. Instead God chose to remove that child from this sin sick world and take he/she to Himself.


All the days that were ordained for our sweet baby were written in God's book before there was even one of them. (Psalm 139:16)


And we claimed "Our God whom we serve IS ABLE to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; BUT even if He does not, let it be known, we will not bow down..." Daniel 3:17-18


God didn't deliver us from infertility. I shared with our Bible study group on Thursday that God could've delivered us, but chose not too. For whatever reason, Derek and Alicia needed to stay infertile and that's okay, because He's God and He knows best even when we don't understand.


Just like God sent Joseph to Egypt, God sent us through infertility. Do you think Joseph's to do list included the following: betrayed by my brothers, sold into slavery, accused of rape, thrown into jail, etc.? No! Absolutely not, but God had a bigger plan and He walks us through those things to get us to His plan. God has a plan for our lives, but so does Satan. Satan wants us to give up, throw in the towel, stop fighting the fight, because the pain is just too much to bear and the cost is too great.
But God...
Genesis 50:20 (New Living Translation)
You intended to harm me, BUT GOD intended it all for good.


And so as sad and heart broken as I am for Melissa and David and all those who experience incredible and devastating loss and disappointment, I know on the other side there's a BUT GOD.


Until then all I can offer is Psalm 34 "The Lord is near to the broken-hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit." I know they are broken-hearted and crushed, we've been there.


BUT GOD...


Here's our first BUT GOD born in December 1999, welcomed home January 2000




Here's our second BUT GOD born August 2001, welcomed home October 2001





Here's our third BUT GOD born August 2002, welcomed home a few days after birth

Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, to Him be the glory!

It's a Meme

I have to confess that I wasn't even sure what a meme was. I understood the concept, but wasn't sure about the name. Maybe I learned this at some point, but a lot of my learning was motivated simply by the desire to get an A or an A+ in the class, not a desire to actually learn and retain anything.


According to Webster's dictionary, here you go.

Main Entry:
meme
Pronunciation:
\ˈmēm\
Function:
noun
Date:
1976
: an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture



What were you doing 10 years ago?

We were living in Tennessee praying for a baby. We had started the process of doctor's visits and had officially been labeled "infertile". No hope without in-vitro was basically the diagnosis.



Favorite Snacks

Unsweet tea with Splenda from McDonald's (it used to be Diet Dr. Pepper, but I traded one addiction for another)

Fresh pineapple from Publix

Sun Chips

Snickers, anything with milk chocolate and caramel or milk chocolate and peanut butter

I don't like dark chocolate...Sorry, my dark chocolate loving friends



To Do List
It's too long to list. Have you seen my pile of laundry that needs to be ironed?
Look here.


Jobs I Have Had
Babysitter
Accompanist for instrumental competitions
Secretary at a landscaping company
Waitress
I worked on the assembly line at Chrysler one summer (yes I did!)
Honeybaked Ham (it's good money for a college kid and lots of hours at holidays)
Bob Jones University Post Office (yes, I did go to Bob Jones University)
Lord and Taylor (This was just spending money for my love of shopping, not actual income)
Junior High and High School Teacher (Math and German)
Mary Kay Consultant (free make-up...really it's not free)
Wife and Mom
Women's Ministry Director



Places I Have Lived

Michigan, Texas, Michigan, Germany, Michigan, Tennessee, Michigan, Tennessee
Do you see a pattern? Lord, please don't call us back to Michigan.



Bad Habits

Overcommitting
Doing things out of a sense of obligation, because I feel guilty if I don't do them
I'm kind of messy in a somewhat organized kind of way. I know where things are and can usually find them pretty quickly, but piles of papers tend to stack up in the office and on the desk and on the kitchen counter....you get the picture.
I tend to be very direct and forceful and preachy sometimes according to my hubby. This is hard to believe since my Zambian name is grace and the comments made about me in Zambia were that I was soft and mellow. I mean well, I really do, but I will tell you what I think whether you want to hear it or not.



5 Random Things People May Not Know

I was 6 days away from getting married to someone other than Derek in May 1993. Derek and I started dating in October 1993, got engaged in February 1994 and then married in April 1994. Some people told Derek I was on the rebound, but 14 years later prove otherwise.



On our first date, I asked Derek probably 50 questions. After what I had been through and how close I had been to marrying the "wrong one for me", I wasn't going to waste anytime. If Derek didn't meet the criteria, then let's just move on. Let's just say Derek made the mark and then some. He's a keeper! No one else could deal with me so patiently and lovingly. (after all, I am forceful and direct and preachy)

I lived in Germany my senior year of high school as a foreign exchange student.

I have some Southern blood. Even though I was born in Michigan, my mom was born in Mayfield, Kentucky and my dad's roots are in Paris, Tennessee. I cut my teeth on cornbread and grew up in Michigan drinking sweet tea with dinner each night.

However, I do not like collared greens, turnip greens or grits.


CDs I would want if stranded on an island

Just some praise and worship. I'm not particular, but if I had to pick, I would probably pick Chris Tomlin.



What I’d Do if I Were a Billionaire

1. Go to Lusaka, Zambia, Africa each summer. I would go for the full 8 weeks of Camp Life not just one. Derek would quit his job or at least work part-time so that we could all go as a family for the summer.
2. Obviously, pay every single bill, so that we'd be 100% debt-free forever.
3. Buy some more Brighton jewelry.
4. Anonymously fund others' mission trips.
5. I would pay for several houses to be built at the Tree of Life Village for Zambian orphans.
http://www.legacymissions.org/treeoflife.html
6. I would pay someone to clean my house and I would also install those beautiful wood closet organizers in each closet.
7. I would take my whole family on a vacation to Europe.
8. I would help pay off some of Big Nanny's fancy new preschool building (I know it's God's and not really hers) Hey, I have to return the favor since she's paying for my Africa trip each year when she becomes rich.
9. We'd definitely have to visit several theme parks a year, because the Jordan family loves roller coasters!
10. I'd share the wealth with anyone in need.

That's about it. A lot of this you may have already known, but it's been fun for me.
Back to Africa posts tomorrow!

My Girls' Stories

I know the pictures are big and the post is long, but this is a brief summary of my girls' lives. They almost all have nightmares (I didn't include that in each summary) and rarely do they receive 3 meals a day. They usually get lunch and dinner and sometimes just one of those meals (plain bread or porridge is considered a meal). If one or both of their parents have died, it most likely is from AIDS although none of them will say that was the cause of death.

Jeriah has 5 siblings and her older siblings frequently beat her. She also has bad dreams.

Another girl, Juliet, both of her parents passed away in 2007 most likely from AIDS. (They rarely will state this as the cause of death, because there is a stigma attached to AIDS/HIV) She lives with her grandparents and wants to be a doctor so that she can help the sick.

Falesi...Another 12 year old girl whose father died when she was 7. She stays with an aunt so that she can go to school. Her mother lives somewhere else and she rarely sees her mother or her other siblings. Her aunt and uncle do not treat her well. (verbal and physical abuse)

Martha lives with her mom and 5 siblings. Her father is mentally disturbed and lives somewhere else. She cried as she talked about her dad. She misses him very much. Sometimes they only have enough food for one meal a day, sometimes two.
















Anna lives with her mother and two siblings in a 2 room house. Her dad died in 2005. This girl has dreams of being choked and people giving her food in her sleep. Her grandmother verbally and physically abuses her.
















Kaluba has friends that steal from her. (Her family gets 3 meals a day, which is rare in Zambia) She has dreams of ghosts. She hopes to be a teacher some day.




















Another girl, Cynthia, her father died and she lives with her mom, aunt and younger sister. She has nosebleeds, malaria and headaches. She also has nightmares.
















Helen lives with her aunt and 2 younger siblings. She has two other siblings that live with her grandmother. Her dad passed away in May 2008, her mom in June 2008and an older sister passed away before her parents. Her youngest brother suffers from malnutrition. She has nightmares and her prayer is that her guardians would be there for her, that they wouldn't pass away like her parents.
















Queen has step-brothers that beat her. She has an uncle who passed away that frequently is in her dreams. He chokes her and beats her in her dreams.















Bridget lives with her grandmother. Her dad died and her mom is in prison. She has bad dreams about someone chasing her and it scares her. She stays awake at night sometimes because of these terrible dreams. She has a younger sister that lives with a different relative. She sometimes only gets one meal a day. Her grandmother is sick with malaria, so much of her time is spent caring for her grandmother.















Monica lives with her grandmother and her sisters. Her parents died when she was young. She doesn't remember a lot about them. Her mother died after injuries from a car accident and her dad died of malaria (most likely AIDS). Her grandmother is sick. She thinks about her mom a lot and it makes her very sad. This sweet girl wept as she told her story.












Mary (in the white shirt) said that all was well at home. She lives with her mom and dad and younger sister. Her dad works and she said that there is enough food. (Personal note, I think there's more to the story than she shared) More about Mary later.








This is sweet Clara. Her story is one that I received on Monday during our one-on-one time. I was prepared for "hard stories", but when these girls that don't even know you sit there and cry because their life is so hard, it's very difficult. I would just sit with them and cry sometimes and then I would struggle through my prayer for them, because my heart would just break for them. NO 12-16 year old child should have to endure the things these children have endured.

Here's Clara's story...Clara lives with her father and step-mom. Her mother passed away years ago. She has two biological brothers that live somewhere else. She lived with her brothers and aunt, but they said they couldn't afford everyone so she went back to live with her dad and step-mom. There is a lot of conflict with the step-mom. She verbally abuses her and deprives her of food. She has told her that they're planning to marry her off because she's a burden to the family. (she's 12 years old!) She was raped twice by an uncle. She went to an aunt for help and they went to the police. Clara's father paid off the police so that charges wouldn't be pressed against this man. (step-mom's brother) The father insists that Clara is lying and that she's not being abused by the step-mom or the uncle. This uncle comes and has lunch/dinner with the family every single day. This is very difficult for Clara to see this man.

Dreaming

Thanks to those of you who said a prayer for me. Today, I feel much better. There is power in prayer and in the spoken Word of God.

When I lived in Germany my senior year of high school, I started dreaming in German. It was the strangest thing because people in my life who didn't even speak German would be speaking German in my dreams. They say that once that happens, you are close to mastering the language. I guess I believed that because I ended up making German my major in college.

I'm not dreaming in Nyanjan, but I do dream of Zambia almost every night. I'm thinking that means that part of my heart is still there, maybe always will be. Any of you that know me well know that I have a heart for missions and adventure. I would love to travel the world and so almost any mission opportunity sounds exciting to me...work for God and travel the world. I will say that I have no desire to go to India or the Middle East though, so I'm hoping God doesn't call me to either of those places.

My call to Zambia began in 2006 when I really wanted to go on the mission trip to China. God called me to Albania instead in 2006 and I didn't go anywhere in 2007. I was convinced that I would be going to China in 2008. I even began to recruit some friends to go with me to China. At our missions banquet in January, when they held up the Zambian flag and read about the trip, there was a lump in my throat and I got teary eyed. I thought, "No way Lord. I thought I was going to China". Well, that began the path to Zambia. Now, I can't imagine ever wanting to go anywhere else, but who knows what God has in store?

I'm hoping to return to Zambia summer 2009 and hoping that Derek can join me. All my blog reading friends are invited as well.