Thoughts on Prayer

Hey guys,

So we’re looking the next couple weeks at the ideas of worship and prayer, leading up to our first Connections gathering in March.  If you’ll remember these are some things we’re focusing on:

*Reflecting on Worship

                        -what brings you to worship?

                        -how do you prepare your heart for worship?

                        -how have you met God individually and corporately in the past?

            *Praying About Connections

                        -Pray for a clear vision and purpose for the planning team.

                        -Pray for a core group of people willing to covenant to be a part of this gathering and pray for it.

                        -Pray for the logistics of place, time, and people to all come together

Mariya Jones, is our new Young Adult Ministry Assistant and she wanted to share some thoughts about prayer in this week’s devotional.

Devotional from Mariya –

We drop hints about Christmas presents to mom or dad or say things to get people to do what we want. This is sometimes how we pray to God. God wants us to pray with purpose, with a goal in mind. He wants us to step out on faith and believe in Him. He is omnipotent and knows what is happening and what is in our hearts. We don’t have to give him a report of what is going on in our world because he already knows that. We must pray with an ending in mind. We must have an outcome in mind and God will be more willing to give it to us. If we are faithful, he will grant us our desires.

Acts 4:23-31

²³On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. ²⁴When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. ²⁵You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:
   ” ‘Why do the nations rage
      and the peoples plot in vain?
 ²⁶The kings of the earth take their stand
      and the rulers gather together
      against the Lord
      and against his Anointed One.

²⁷Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people^[c] of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. ²⁸They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. ²⁹Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. ³⁰Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

If we want something certain we must pray for it certainly. We have to truly believe that it will happen and that God will grant us that and pray for that very specific thing we want/need. We know this because Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer.” (Matthew 21:21-22)

Now, I think we all know that praying for a new convertible or hot tub isn’t going to benefit God’s kingdom and God probably won’t give it to us anyway. If we pray, wholeheartedly, for a sense of peace and a company to create a new position for our family’s sole provider who lost his/her job, He will make something happen. If we pray for a friend who is not a Christian and ask God to bring something to them so that they will not be able to deny His power, He will do it.

In order to receive this from God we must be blameless in his eyes. We must stand in His presence and not fear His wrath because we have not done anything to receive wrath for. We must protect our hearts from evil so as to remain blameless.

Deuteronomy 18:13

You must be blameless before the LORD your God.

Psalms 15

¹ LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary?
       Who may live on your holy hill?

 ² He whose walk is blameless
       and who does what is righteous,
       who speaks the truth from his heart

 ³ and has no slander on his tongue,
       who does his neighbor no wrong
       and casts no slur on his fellowman,

 ⁴ who despises a vile man
       but honors those who fear the LORD,
       who keeps his oath
       even when it hurts,

 ⁵ who lends his money without usury
       and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.
       He who does these things
       will never be shaken.

I heard a great speaker talk on this at Urbana this year in St. Louis. His name was Sunder Krishnan. He started by talking about a thing he read in Sojourners Magazine written by Walter Wink. Mr. Wink said this: “History belongs to the intercessors who thus believe the future into being.” He meant that if we just believe and pray it with our whole heart, God will provide.

 If you want to hear his talk, go to: http://www.vimeo.com/8467883.

-Mariya Jones, WYM Young Adult Ministry Assistant

 Have a great week!  Pray with purpose and with faith!

 To the King!

Katy

 P.S. Our WYM Winter Retreat is coming up in a couple weeks.  If you are free on Feb. 13th this would be a great event to attend.  The theme is “Building Up the Body of Christ”.  If you would like to attend WYM will cover your registration fee if you contact me ahead of time.  Registration deadline is Feb. 8th (a week from today!)

http://www.westernym.net/pdf/WinterRetreatBrochure2010.pdf

Connections

Hey guys,

So we are making some changes to our Sundesmos college/young adult ministry this coming year.  Many of you know that we have provided the opportunity for young adults to serve as Ministry Interns that past few summers to give you guys an opportunity to identify some of your gifts and use them.  Because of the current climate of WYM we are switching gears.  Instead of focusing on giving you opportunities for Leadership Development, we’re going to focus on giving you chances to grow spiritually, hopefully away from the drama and conflict of the Yearly Meeting.  So one new thing that you’ll hear more about in the coming month is that we are initiating a Young Adult led worship/fellowship gathering once a month in the Indy area.  We’re calling this gathering Connections and we’ve hired a young adult, Mariya Jones, to lead and coordinate  this gathering.

This is a new adventure.  We’re still working on developing a clear purpose and vision for this gathering and I’m going to give Mariya the opportunity to write some of these devotionals to help direct you guys and share that vision with you all.

I want to ask you all to start praying about Connections right now.  We need to surround this gathering with prayer from the very beginning and I would love it if, leading up to our first Connections gathering in March, this weekly devotional could become a time for you to spend:

*Reflecting on Worship

-what brings you to worship?

-how do you prepare your heart for worship?

-how have you met God individually and corporately in the past?

*Praying About Connections

-Pray for a clear vision and purpose for the planning team.

-Pray for a core group of people willing to covenant to be a part of this gathering and pray for it.

-Pray for the logistics of place, time, and people to all come together

So to start things off, I want to ask you to spend some time this week thinking about worship…think of a time when you felt like you were truly worshipping, you were in God’s presence and you felt that communion in such a real way.  We have a whole book of the bible dedicated to worship.  Spend some time reading a few of the Psalms.  Its there we find a tapestry of emotions offered up in worship…a blend of reverence and anger, of joy and confusion.  What does worship look like?

Sing God a brand-new song! Earth and everyone in it, sing!
Sing to God—worship God!
Shout the news of his victory from sea to sea,
Take the news of his glory to the lost,
News of his wonders to one and all!
For God is great, and worth a thousand Hallelujahs.
His terrible beauty makes the gods look cheap;
Pagan gods are mere tatters and rags.
God made the heavens—
Royal splendor radiates from him,
A powerful beauty sets him apart.
Bravo, God, Bravo!
Everyone join in the great shout: Encore!
In awe before the beauty, in awe before the might.
Bring gifts and celebrate,
Bow before the beauty of God,
Then to your knees—everyone worship!
Get out the message—God Rules!
He put the world on a firm foundation;
He treats everyone fair and square.
Let’s hear it from Sky,
With Earth joining in,
And a huge round of applause from Sea.
Let Wilderness turn cartwheels,
Animals, come dance,
Put every tree of the forest in the choir—
An extravaganza before God as he comes,
As he comes to set everything right on earth,
Set everything right, treat everyone fair.

Psalms 96 (MSG)

Have a great week!  If you’d like to chat with Mariya about our upcoming Connections gatherings she can be found on Facebook at our Connections Facebook group:

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=logo#/group.php?gid=267862603159

or at: msjn111@sbcglobal.net.

Praying for you!

To the King!

Katy

Why Does it Hurt?

Hey guys,

So it’s been a while since I’ve done a devo, sorry about that. We’ve started a new year and a new semester….new routines and new expectations.  We’ve seen the colossal tragedy in Haiti and asked:

“Why?”

“How does God allow this to happen?” 

“Why so much hurt and pain?”

The answer to those questions may not come easily but the truth is that in all of life…our God fiercely loves His creation.

Tell Me What Hurts You

by Brennan Manning

An old Hasidic rabbi, Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev in the Ukraine , used to say that he discovered the meaning of love from a drunken peasant.  The rabbi was visiting the owner of a tavern in the Polish countryside.  As he walked in, he saw two peasants at a table.  Both were gloriously in their cups.  Arms around each other, they wer protesting how much each loved the other.  Suddenly Ivan said to Peter, “Peter, tell me what hurts me. “  Bleary eyed, Peter looked at Ivan.  “How do I know what hurts you?”  Ivan’s answer was swift: “If you don’t know what hurts me, how can you say you love me?”

Do you know what made Jesus so loving a person, the greatest lover in history?  He knew what hurt us.  He knew then and he knows now – the loves and hates, hopes and fears, the joys and sadnesses of each of us.  This is not pious poetry.  The risen Jesus is not a vague figure in outer space.  His resurrection did not remove him from us; it simply made it possible for him to touch not only Naim but New Orleans , not only Magdalene but me.  Christian living makes no sense unless we believe that at this moment, Jesus knows what hurts us.  Not only knows but, knowing, seeks us out – whatever our kind of poverty or pain, however we weep, wherever we feel unloved.

 Don’t be afraid.
Dear Zion ,
   don’t despair.
Your God is present among you,
   a strong Warrior there to save you.
Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love
   and delight you with his songs.

Zeph. 3:16-17 (MSG)

 Have a great week!  Praying for you!

 To the King!

Katy

 P.S.  Consider coming to our upcoming WYM Winter Retreat.  The theme is “Building Up the Body of Christ.”  Let me know if you’d like to come but can’t afford the $15 registration fee…we can make it happen!

http://www.westernym.net/pdf/WinterRetreatBrochure2010.pdf

What’s it all about?

Hey guys,

So this will be my last devotional for the next couple weeks.  I know many of you will be heading home for the holidays soon.  In the midst of all your busyness, here’s a couple questions for you:

*How have you prepared for Christmas?

*What is it all about?

 

Have you taken time during this Advent season to prepare?  I’m not talking about getting your shopping done, or your decorations and lights put up, or whatever traditional preparations we all have.  I mean, have you prepared your heart for Christmas…to celebrate the birth of your Lord?

 

I attached a movie clip from this movie called God Grew Tired of Us.  This is a documentary that follows the journey of the “Lost Boys” from Sudan who left their homeland of chaos and war and moved to America.  This clip sees our “American Christmas” through their eyes for the first time. 

 

As you watch this clip ask these questions:

            *What is the focus of our Christmas celebrations?

            *Do all the “things” (trees, presents, shopping, lights, carols, Santas, traditions) we surround ourselves with at Christmastime really help us celebrate Christmas?

            *Do we prepare ourselves spiritually for Christmas? 

 

The Gospel of John presents the Christmas story as this, plain and simple:

The Word became flesh and blood,
      and moved into the neighborhood.
   We saw the glory with our own eyes,
      the one-of-a-kind glory,
      like Father, like Son,
   Generous inside and out,
      true from start to finish.

John 1:14(MSG)

 

The Glory of the Lord became incarnate, came to us. 

 

Emmanuel…God with us. 

 

That’s what it’s about.

 

That’s something to celebrate!

 

Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy New Year! 

 

We still have some spaces left on our Alabama mission trip.  Let me know ASAP if you are interested in going.  Also, I attached a letter from Tim Hagmaier, the clerk of the Executive Committee of WYM, responding to the Young Adult Minute we presented to them this last weekend. 

 

Blessings!

 

To the King!
Katy

 

Clip can be watched at: http://www.wingclips.com/cart.php?target=product&product_id=16272&category_id=536

 

Letter From Tim Hagmaier:

Young Adult Minute Acknowlegment

 

Preparing for Christmas

Hey guys,

So it’s the season of Advent.  The season to prepare for Christmas. 

What do you do when you’re preparing for something big?  Like a big event that you know is going to happen?  Or a big conversation you know you need to have with someone?  Or a right of passage or milestone in your life?  I know sometimes I get butterflies in my stomach and get nervous.  Or I run around like crazy trying to get everything done before I run out of time.  There’s a sense of urgency in the air…and a sense of expectancy.

There’s a really great Christmas carol by Charles Wesley called Come Thou Long Expected Jesus.  Listen to the words and reflect on the urgency and expectancy of Christmas.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKyMoxTLqOw&feature=related

Come, Thou long expected Jesus
Born to set Thy people free;
From our fears and sins release us,
Let us find our rest in Thee.
Israel’s strength and consolation,
Hope of all the earth Thou art;
Dear desire of every nation,
Joy of every longing heart.

Born Thy people to deliver,
Born a child and yet a King,
Born to reign in us forever,
Now Thy gracious kingdom bring.
By Thine own eternal Spirit
Rule in all our hearts alone;
By Thine all sufficient merit,
Raise us to Thy glorious throne.

 Come, O Long-Expected Jesus

By Dr. Mary Manz Simon

This hymn is hard for me to sing.  The tune…is not particularly difficult.  The words are easy to pronounce.  It’s the image of the cross of Calvary, not the star of Bethlehem, that makes me uncomfortable.

 “Born to set your people free…by your death on Calvary” is a picture that’s easy to avoid during this pre-Christmas season.  Mary and Joseph with their Newborn is such a tender scene.  It’s so easy to focus on the baby Jesus as a precious, cuddly, tiny human being.  That’s the mental image I like to remember during these busy days.

 There’s more than the star of Bethlehem in Christ’s life.  The cross of Calvary waits.

That Child born of Mary will grow up, enjoy a brief adulthood, and then die.  But the cross soon will be empty, for Christ will rise.  Even as we anticipate the birth of Jesus, we think of the time when he will raise us to the glorious throne, in the words of this hymn.

 To Bethlehem and beyond, we travel this Advent.  We move toward Calvary, then even further, to an eternal home with Christ our Lord.

 

Are you preparing for Jesus’ arrival this Christmas with urgency and expectancy?

Do you feel the excitement of His love and joy in your life?

That’s what this season is about…remember?  Jesus Christ came to set you free because He loves you so much.  And He came to die on the cross at Calvary for you and for me.  Christmas leads to Easter.  You can’t have one without the other.  You are a child of God, set free by the blood of that baby born in Bethlehem.

But when the time arrived that was set by God the Father, God sent his Son, born among us of a woman, born under the conditions of the law so that he might redeem those of us who have been kidnapped by the law. Thus we have been set free to experience our rightful heritage. You can tell for sure that you are now fully adopted as his own children because God sent the Spirit of his Son into our lives crying out, “Papa! Father!” Doesn’t that privilege of intimate conversation with God make it plain that you are not a slave, but a child? And if you are a child, you’re also an heir, with complete access to the inheritance.

Gal. 4:4-7 (MSG)

Take a few moments to soak in the reality of God’s love for you today.

To the King!

Katy

Remembering Thanksgiving!

Hey guys,

So I was doing a little shopping last night while I was killing time waiting for a meeting to start…not the most economic way to waste time but effective none the less.  In the midst of my shopping I was shocked by the explosion of Christmas already in all the stores.  Every single store I went into had Christmas music blasting and red and green sparkles everywhere, like the Christmas elves had gotten a little too excited.

What in the world?  How is it time for Christmas already?   What happened to Thanksgiving?   It feels as if we’ve gone straight from Halloween into Christmas.  When did that happen?

Now don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas and the wonderful celebrations that accompany it but we’ve become such a consumerist culture that we no longer even pause to give thanks for the things we have…we just move right into the sales and money that can be spent on the season of spending.  Wow, what a statement!?

I urge you to rebel against it!  Take time for thanksgiving…not just the holiday and the food and the family time but the concept of thanking God for all He has given you.  Christmas is a wonderful time of the year but let’s not forget to thank God in preparation for what He did for us during Christmas, for loving us so much that He sent His one and only Son to earth as a sacrifice for our sins.  That’s something to be thankful for!

Thank God because he’s good, because his love never quits.
   Tell the world, Israel,
      “His love never quits.”
   And you, clan of Aaron, tell the world,
      “His love never quits.”
   And you who fear God, join in,
      “His love never quits.”

Pushed to the wall, I called to God;
      from the wide open spaces, he answered.
   God’s now at my side and I’m not afraid;
      who would dare lay a hand on me?
   God’s my strong champion;
      I flick off my enemies like flies.
   Far better to take refuge in God
      than trust in people;
   Far better to take refuge in God
      than trust in celebrities.
   Hemmed in by barbarians,
      in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
   Hemmed in and with no way out,
      in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt;
   Like swarming bees, like wild prairie fire, they hemmed me in;
      in God’s name I rubbed their faces in the dirt.
   I was right on the cliff-edge, ready to fall,
      when God grabbed and held me.
   God’s my strength, he’s also my song,
      and now he’s my salvation.
   Hear the shouts, hear the triumph songs
      in the camp of the saved?
         “The hand of God has turned the tide!
         The hand of God is raised in victory!
         The hand of God has turned the tide!”

I didn’t die. I lived!
      And now I’m telling the world what God did.
   God tested me, he pushed me hard,
      but he didn’t hand me over to Death.
   Swing wide the city gates—the righteous gates!
      I’ll walk right through and thank God!
   This Temple Gate belongs to God,
      so the victors can enter and praise.

Thank you for responding to me;
      you’ve truly become my salvation!
   The stone the masons discarded as flawed
      is now the capstone!
   This is God’s work.
      We rub our eyes—we can hardly believe it!
   This is the very day God acted—
      let’s celebrate and be festive!
   Salvation now, God. Salvation now!
      Oh yes, God—a free and full life!

Blessed are you who enter in God’s name—
      from God’s house we bless you!
   God is God,
      he has bathed us in light.
   Festoon the shrine with garlands,
      hang colored banners above the altar!
   You’re my God, and I thank you.
      O my God, I lift high your praise.
   Thank God—he’s so good.
      His love never quits!

                         Psalm 118 (MSG)

To the King!

Katy

The Big Story

Hey guys,

Hope you are having a wonderful day.  I’m starting to get around to visit campuses and check in with people.  Its one of my favorite parts of my job, because not only do I get to eat a lot of meals out on WYM, but it also gives me a chance to step into your lives and see and hear about your struggles and joys.  So if you haven’t gotten an email from me about a free meal on WYM, you probably will soon.

I was at a conference this last week and I purchased a children’s picture bible because I had heard that it was really good.  It’s called The Jesus Storybook Bible; Every Story Whispers His Name.  Ok, so I realize this may sound a little odd but…I’ve been reading this little storybook bible before I go to bed each night.  Yes, cheesy…I’m aware of this, but it is such a precious reminder of what God’s word, God’s story, is all about.  In the first chapter it gives a wonderful intro into the bible and I wanted to share it with you.

Bear with me and become a little child-like for a moment…remember what it’s all about?

The Story and The Song

God wrote, “I love” – he wrote it in the sky, and on the earth, and under the sea.  He wrote his message everywhere!  Because God created everything in his world to reflect him like a mirror – to show us what he is like, to help us know him, to make our hearts sing.

The way a kitten chases her tail.  The way red poppies grow wild.  The way a dolphin swims.

And God put it into words, too, and wrote it in a book called “the Bible.”

Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn’t do.  The Bible certainly does have some rules in it.  They show you how life works best.  But the Bible isn’t mainly about you and what you should be doing.  It’s about God and what he has done.

Other people think the Bible is a book of heroes, showing you people you should copy.  The Bible does have some heroes in it, but most of the people in the Bible aren’t heroes at all.  They make big mistakes (sometimes on purpose).  They get afraid and run away.  At times they are downright mean.

No, the Bible isn’t a book of rules, or a book of heroes.  The Bible is most of all a Story.  It’s an adventure story about a young Hero who comes from a far country to win back his lost treasure.  It’s a love story about a brave Prince who leaves his palace, his throne – everything – to rescue the one he loves.  It’s like the most wonderful of fairy tales that has come true in real life!

You see, the best thing about this Story is – it’s true.

There are lots of stories in the Bible, but all the stories are telling the one Big Story.  The Story of how God loves his children and comes to rescue them.

It takes the whole Bible to tell this Story.  And at the center of the Story, there is a baby.  Every Story in the Bible whispers his name.  He is like the missing piece in a puzzle – the piece that makes all the other pieces fit together, and suddenly you can see a beautiful picture.

And this is no ordinary baby.  This is the Child upon whom everything would depend.  This is the Child who would one day – but wait.  Our Story starts where all good stories start.  Right at the very beginning…

Remember that Story?

Spend time reading the Story.  See how much God loves you.  See the impact of His love.  See the grace and love and redemption He sent in His Son.  Like a young Hero who has come from a far country to win back his lost treasure, He has written a great Story which you are a part of.  A real-life fairy tale.  There’s conflict and pain in every story, that’s what makes a story compelling, that’s what makes a character change.  And because God loves His creation so much, He gave us a way to be rescued from that conflict and pain in our story, a way to finally be in His presence for eternity without pain…His only Son.  That’s the Big Story.

Remember that Story?

Praying for you!

To the King!

Katy

Plan on coming to Alabama with us this January!  Don’t forget!

Contentment

Hey guys,

Sorry I missed the devotional last week.  I was busy getting ready for the mission trip we took down to Kentucky with the WYM Young Friends.  We had a wonderful time and while I was there I had this devotional that I wanted to share with you all this week.  I hope it challenges you.

Contentment

by Bob Crandall

What do you think of when you read the word contentment?  For me the word evokes a mental picture of a charming cottage in an idyllic mountain setting.  The back deck overlooks a clear, bubbling fishing stream.  The temperature is perfect as the sun beams down.  Nearby is a hammock between two shade trees.  Oh yes, and it is located less than twenty miles from a golf course!  I haven’t yet found such a place.  Now will I, for contentment is not a place, but a state of being.  It is rest for the soul.

The more we work at contentment in our own strength the more elusive it becomes.  We think that after we have accomplished some goal, acquire more money or things then we will be content.  But life doesn’t work that way.  Contentment come not from our wishing or willing; certainly, it comes not from our effort.  To the Greeks in the apostle Paul’s day “being content” meant a serene self-sufficiency.  But Paul’s sufficiency came from Jesus Christ and was centered on him.  No wonder he could say, “I can do everything through him who gives me strength” (Phil. 4:13).

Contentment doesn’t just happen, it is learned.  Contentment is not the absence of conflict, but adequacy for everything in life.  The truly happy person has learned, with God’s help, to handle life rather than being handled by it.  They know to whom they belong and from whom help comes.

Read Phil. 4:10-20.

Have a wonderfully content week trusting in the One who will meet all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus

Praying for you!

To the King!

Katy

Faith, HOPE, and Love

Hey guys,

Here are some thoughts for you this week:

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Heb. 11:1

In looking at it there appears to be, according to this verse, two different aspects of faith.

The first: being sure of what we hope for

The second: certain of what we do not see

I think personally I’ve found it pretty easy to follow the second aspect faith here.  I have no problem trusting in a God that I cannot see, in a Savior that died for me with a love I do not understand, and equipping me with the Holy Spirit that guides me, sometimes in ways that I don’t see.  For me, I can do that.  Maybe that’s more difficult for other people to do, but for me I’ve known that kind of faith for a long time.  But then I stop and look at that first aspect of faith in this verse and I kind of get stumped. 

Being sure of what we hope for.  Hope…

What do I hope for? 

Can you answer that question?

What is hope?  Do I have hope?  What does that mean?   One definition of hope that I found is: not wishful thinking but a firm assurance.  Over and over again we see in scripture that hope is often connected to two other Christian virtues…faith, hope, and love.  They go together, almost like you can’t have one without the other two.  Like you can’t have a vibrant faith life without an active hope in what God is going to do, which gives you the ability to then love unconditionally. 

Paul writes to the Colossian believers:

We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints—the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already   heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth.

The faith and love that springs from hope.  A hope that comes from the truth of the gospel, that bears fruit all over the world.

You know I’ve had the chance to go to Kenya now twice and both times God has blessed me richly by His people there and the view of how big His Kingdom really is.  I feel like the Kenyans have such a different faith than I do.  They have so little materialistically, and so much spiritually.  I get jealous and it’s hard to come home to our world of things and noise and stuff.  It makes you feel guilty and question the depth of your own faith when you are with them.  And the more I thought about it, the more I started to see that maybe it’s because they have such a deeper understanding of hope than I do.  And that deepens their faith richly.

I want to tell you a story about a lady I met in the Kibera slum in Nairobi on our trip to Kenya this last May.  I think our trips into Kibera were some of the most memorable moments of our trip.  The Kibera slum is one of the largest slums in the world.  There are estimated 1.5 million people living in a 2.5 square mile area.  Its poverty like I had never seen before. Images I’d only seen on TV and in movies but never with your own eyes.  And in this place, the Kenyan Friends are doing ministry.  Some of you may have heard of the Lindi Friends school which is located in Kibera.  There are actually four Village Meetings in the Kibera slum, Lindi is one of them and another Meeting that also has a school that we were able to visit is called Mashimoni Friends.  They are basically funded by their own people in the Meeting and the small school fees that the children can pay.  They recently received a grant to purchase a water tank which will provide them with needed clean water for the school and also be a source of income and ministry to the people around them in need of clean water.  It was truly a joyous place to visit.

It was here that I met Lillian.  Lillian is the head teacher at the Mashimoni Friends School.  She and one other teacher manage anywhere from 30-40 children every day.  And she has been at the school for seven years, which is a long time for these teachers.  They often don’t get paid if the students are unable to pay their school fees.  There is no prestige or honor in working at this school, no potential for growth or advancement.  It is a ministry that she has been committed to longer than any of the other teachers and staff at the school.  She has four children of her own, they are now grown and out of the house.  She is married, and her and her husband live in Kibera.  At any one point she has 10 of the school children that come and live with her in her home, five of which are total orphans (or children that have lost both of their parents).  When I asked her about her job she smiled a very humble and precious smile, and she said she loves her job and feels it’s such a blessing to be able to do God’s work and see Him in each one of the children. 

I’m was amazed at this woman.  Such a clear calling and vision to fill the needs around her.  Such patience with so much to do and so little to do it with.  Such hope in a God who provides and guides her every day as well as the children she works with.  And everywhere we went we met Kenyan believers who had dynamic hope in their Lord which fueled the fire of their faith.  There are many other stories to tell, such as this church we went to who had, only the day before, erected their church building out of sticks and mud, where before they had just been meeting under a tree nearby down the street.  The day before we arrived they all pitched in brought sticks and helped put up this structure for us to worship in.  Or the wonderful people at the HIV/AIDS clinic at the Kaimosi Hospital who tell heart-breaking stories of children and women who are in desperate need of their life-saving treatment but often come inconsistently for various reasons and the staff work diligently to accommodate their needs and provide for them as best as possible with little resources and money.

It gives you perspective. 

I feel blessed to have been able to travel again to Kenya and for the perspective God gave me while I was there.  I’m trying to not forget this picture of hope that I saw in the eyes and hearts of the Kenyan believers.  And I think I need reminding of that particularly now.  Our country and our society have seen some harder times than we’re used to.  Our families are struggling.  Our Yearly Meeting is in crisis.  And in the midst of it all we are called to be people of faith.  People who are sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.  That we don’t forget that what Jesus did on the cross was enough…that nothing more is needed and that we are called, just like Lillian, to do God’s work and bring the reality of the Gospel into the lives of His children.  That is where we find hope and that is how we are to live out our faith. 

Please pray for Western Yearly Meeting this week.  We have a special called Admin. Council meeting this Saturday and one of the items on the agenda is a possible redemptive separation within WYM.  Please pray for the Holy Spirit to guide this meeting.  This is your Yearly Meeting.  Please, please pray!

To the King!

Katy

Kibera Slum

Kibera Slum

Kibera Slum

Mashimoni Friends School

Lillian

New Church Building

Kaimosi Hospital HIV/AIDS Clinc

 

 

 

Questioning Faith

Hey guys,

How’s your week been?  Anything interesting happen in your life?  Same old, same old?  Do you find it easy or hard to see God working in your life on a daily basis?  Did He try and teach you something this week?  Were you able to hear Him speak?  How did you see Him actively pursuing you?

What would you like to hear God say to you?

Seasons are changing.  This is my favorite time of year.  I love feeling the chill in the air, hearing the walnuts fall like bombs on the roof of our office and watching the squirrels run around like crazy getting ready for winter.  There’s rarely times in my life that I doubt the existence of God.  But every now and then I’ll have that moment of questioning.  I think…is this for real?  But in my life, faith is a gift that I may take for granted.  What’s been your experience?  Do you feel that certainty of God’s presence in your life?  How often do you feel yourself on the cliffs of doubt and questioning? 

I’m a firm believer that God doesn’t mind us questioning our faith.  He has given us free will for a reason, He doesn’t want us to blindly follow him without our heart and soul and mind involved in relationship with Him.  Often it’s through these questions that God reveals His love in an even greater way, exposing the reality of how the sacrificial death of His Son provides the way for us to be in that intimate authentic relationship with our Heavenly Father.

David wrote in Psalm 46:

            God is a safe place to hide, ready to help when we need him.
               We stand fearless at the cliff-edge of doom,
                  courageous in seastorm and earthquake,
               Before the rush and roar of oceans,
                  the tremors that shift mountains.

               Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
                  God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.
            River fountains splash joy, cooling God’s city,
                  this sacred haunt of the Most High.
               God lives here, the streets are safe,
                  God at your service from crack of dawn.
               Godless nations rant and rave, kings and kingdoms threaten,
                  but Earth does anything he says.
            Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
                  God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.
            Attention, all! See the marvels of God!
                  He plants flowers and trees all over the earth,
               Bans war from pole to pole,
                  breaks all the weapons across his knee.
               “Step out of the traffic! Take a long,
                  loving look at me, your High God,
                  above politics, above everything.”
            Jacob-wrestling God fights for us,
      God-of-Angel-Armies protects us.

Take some time to “step out of the traffic” and really “take a long, loving look” at your Heavenly Father.  He wants you to.  He loves you so much.

Praying for you!

To the King!

Katy