A Day of Denim

Peace Over Violence has announced the Annual 2010 Denim Day to be TOMORROW, April 21st, 2010! This is a campaign to raise awareness and educate the public about rape and sexual assault ...

Want the back story?

In 1998, an Italian Supreme Court decision overturned a rape conviction because the victim wore jeans, reasoning she must have helped her attacker remove them. People all over the world were outraged. Wearing jeans became an international symbol of protest against erroneous and destructive attitudes about sexual assault.

Unfortunately, I know first hand that there are many destructive attitudes about sexual assault. You've probably heard them before: it was their fault, they asked for it, they wanted it, they could have stopped it ... the list goes on and on.

Tomorrow, wear denim and show the world that sexual assault has many victims - every age, race, gender, and background.

Someone you might not expect could very well have been a victim ... or an aggressor.

Thanks for your support!

Journey to Africa - Part I

"Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

So, we can officially share the news: I will be going on a mission trip this summer to Kenya, Africa. We have been praying about this for ... what seems like forever ... and God has given us both peace AND JOY with this decision. We are excited for the opportunity I have - and I am getting to do something I've always dreamed about.

As for what we're doing ... we will be: visiting the school in Turkwel, spending some time with the kids, meeting sponsored children, and hosting a celebration rally; visiting a former peace rally site, maybe even a new one; breaking ground and beginning to build the 2 dormitories for the orphans in Kapenguria - each will hold 25-30 children (we hope to build one for the boys, and one for the girls); scouting out a place for a clinic, as well as educating pregnant moms & children; looking for some new cottage businesses, like sewing to create some sustaining income; and of course, passing out Bibles!

I will personally be lugging over a lot of dresses my Bible study has been making to deliver to the orphanage ... so we are all really excited for the hand-delivery.

Thank you for all your prayers. God is faithful, and we cannot wait to see what He will do on this journey.

I would love continued prayer as I begin making all the necessary plans (which unfortunately includes a-heck-of-a-lot of shots), and I will update as I progress in the upcoming steps!

"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of Jesus!" Isaiah 52:7

My Last Words

I was reading through 2 Timothy, and I read this passage:

"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing." 2 Timothy 4:6-8

When I read those words, my heart skipped a beat. I want those to be my last words, my final breath, my closing argument. To have lived a life fighting the good fight and keeping the faith - nothing seems more encouraging. To know that you will soon be getting your crown of righteousness - from the LORD Himself - seems exhilarating, a dream come true. But more than that - leaving the legacy of hope in Christ to those that follow after me - seems more important that anything else.

This world is cruel. I don't see it getting any more pleasant as time passes. I want my children and my children's children to have the same hope I do - even in their trying times. Just like my parents have passed down their love, hope, and faith - I am responsible to continue it on.

It has to be me who leaves the legacy of hope and faith.

So I surely hope that I do.

A Great Testimony

I often hear about people who are ashamed of their testimony. For some reason, they hate to share it because they feel like it's 'too bad,' or they desperately wish that they had come to know Christ sooner in their life - so as to avoid said 'bad' events.

However, while I was reading my Bible today, I stumbled across this encouraging passage:

"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners - of whom I am the worst. But FOR THAT VERY REASON I was shown mercy so that IN ME, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display His IMMENSE patience as an example for those who would believe in Him and receive an eternal life." 1 Timothy 1:15-16

God uses our lives, however imperfect they are, for His glory. Paul is one of the most well-known conversion stories in the Bible ... if God can use his life (AND his past), He can certainly use ours. I don't know of many people in my community who are persecuting, murdering, and imprisoning Christians. Paul considered himself the worst of sinners ... and yet he understood his life's and past's purpose: to bring glory to God and to bring others to know Him.

Look back at your past with awe ... and reverence. The God of the universe sees our worst mistakes and forgives them. He's cast them as far as the east is from the west.

So share on ...

Used by God

A student shared a lesson at FCA this morning about serving those in need. It is always powerful to hear these high school kids passionate about helping others. The student shared a particularly powerful quote that I had never heard before from an anonymous source ...

"Sometimes I would like to ask God why He allows poverty, suffering, and injustice when He could do something about it."

"Well, why don't you ask Him?"

"Because I am afraid He would ask me the same question."

God wants to use us in our world. Sometimes we forget about all the horrible things other people face because ... well it's other people facing them - not us.

Out of sight, out of mind.

We are called to show His love ... but too often we try to show His love through only encouragement and prayer when we should also be DOERS.

"Be doers of the Word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves."
James 1:22

DECEIVING yourself. That is powerful. We deceive ourselves ... we think donating once to Haiti is enough. We do our "good deed for the day" and then we check that off. I'm fully convicted of this too, mind you. I want to be doing more. Helping more. And I hope you do too.

"Let us not love with WORDS or TONGUE, but with ACTIONS and TRUTH."
1 John 3:18

Sensitive Sally

I wonder sometimes if God made a mistake in the make up of my DNA. I know He didn't ... but sometimes I still wonder. When I was little, I would cry when I saw hurt animals. My best friend and I even formed a club to help animals that were injured - we were young, so our idea was to use band aids and Neosporin.

My brother still doesn't let me live that down.

I would cry when someone was mad at me. I would cry when someone even raised their voice at me - let alone yelled at me.

I spent most of my childhood being called a baby. I was too emotional. I was too sensitive. I swear, if I had a dollar for every time someone called me a baby, I would be a wealthy woman.

I didn't mean to be a baby. I really didn't. But no one would ever tell me how to stop - or what being a baby looked like. All I heard was, 'you're being a baby."

I ended up equating 'baby' with 'sensitive.' I spent the next 10 years of my life literally quizzing all of my friends, trying to find out what was wrong with me. I would ask them what I could differently, what I needed to work on, what would make me a better person. I would call my mom and share with her (and being a mom she always said I just had a fragile heart - like the Grinch at the end of the movie where his heart is three sizes too big and it breaks the box).

Sometimes I prayed God would change my fragile heart into a Titanium heart.

But I wonder sometimes if I would be the same person if I wasn't so sensitive. If I had a Titanium heart, would I still be me? I hesitate to pray for less sensitivity because what if that changes the core of who God made me? A thicker skin, a harder heart - those things would definitely make life easier. Maybe more people would like me. Maybe I wouldn't cry so much. Maybe I would get my feelings hurt less. And maybe, just maybe, no one would ever call me a baby again.

But maybe God made me this way for a reason. Maybe my sensitivity is just compassion. My prayer is that God would reveal the issues in my heart - bad or good - and help me find a way to grow from it.

"Jesus wept." John 11:35