We live in a country where we have the opportunity to make something out of our lifes...the American Dream if you will...if you work hard enough you can overcome your circumstances and back ground. Even in poverty, with enough hard work and determination you can overcome your environment...I've seen this in my own family......
We've just returned home from a place that doesn't have the same opportunities...a place where, for the most part, the circumstances you are born in are the circumstances you will die in.
We also have the INCREDIBLE opportunity in our country to have the freedom to follow Christ...in freedom...with as much passion as possible or as little sadly...we can share the Truth of Christ everyday without fear of persecution (dangerous persecution) not the kind that means we are called a "Jesus Freak" but that kind that can mean we may go hungry or without water or be beaten or worse....and YET...we take this for granted...we realize missed opportunities on a regular basis...but does that break our hearts...we'd rather have our weekends to ourselves than serve...and we justify this...we want our kids involved in as many activities as possible...even when that means there is no time for church...and again we justify...we protest and march for this right and that right bu when was the last time we took the same amount of time...spent on our faces...seeking God's will for our lives...our nations...we call our selves Christians...but when was the last time we truly had time for Christ...is that really all there is to our faith?
The place/people we just returned home from understand the true cost to be a follower of Christ...they understand what it is like to be the only follower in their village and be under true persecution...to be the only believer in their home...to have water withheld from the village well...to have no one purchase goods or crops from them so that they can make a small living for their families...or the fear of being tied up and beaten for no other reason than they love Jesus...and yet they stay the coarse...they run the race...they fix their eyes on Christ...
We met a young man who is the only believer in his family. He has been for several years now...He is the eldest son and it is time, his parents say, for him to be married...they have arranged a Hindi bride for him...this young man is having to make some very difficult decisions...in his culture, to refuse this request/demand from his parents will bring great disgrace to them...yet to obey them means to disobey God...he is choosing to obey the Lord, however, this may cost him his family...forever...yet he stands firm...he counts the cost and decides Christ is worth it...Please pray for our friend...and for salvation to come to his parents and brothers....
Each time Scott and I return from one of these trips it is more and more difficult for us to return to the states...where it is so easy to be a Christian...it's easy to attain the "American Dream" in our own flesh...with this freedom, I fear we really don't see a need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ...When I think of America and then some of the other countries where persecution is rampant...I think of the story in the Bible Jesus tells of the rich man and the beggar...oh how I pray America wakes up...for those in America who ARE passionate about a relationship with Jesus Christ...and sharing the Gospel...may we be sold out to the very end...may we be willing the count the cost...
The village we were in had no real modern conveniences...no electricity...no refrigeration...no prepackaged items to whip together for a quick meal...and CERTAINLY no McDonald's...we had some of the people who came to our training sessions who walked 3 hours to get there...sat on a concrete floor for 4 hours to learn what God had to say to them...then walk home 3 more hours...THEN they would begin the task of cooking a meal that would take at least 2 hours to prepare for their family...then do dishes...get up early to prepare breakfast (remember they don't have pop tarts!) and begin the 3 hour journey again...and they did this for 6 days straight...and we complain one day a week if the pastor speaks to long...how dare we put our limit on the Holy Spirit...
I cannot adequately find the words to describe how this impacted my life...I can still close my eyes and see the faces of the 50 plus women who came each day for teaching...how they shared the hard part of being a Christian there...and yet staying faithful...one lady shared that her family are the only believers in their village and their village was having a meeting to decided what they might do about them...and yet she said we came...it's too important to not come...she said they didn't know what they would face when they went home...that is counting the cost...you see they all came...dad, mom and all their children...if we, as American's won't count the cost to miss a ballgame, how in the world will we count the cost when true persecution comes....not only for us...but our children...is HE worth that? Let me ask you this...is their (our children and grandchildren) eternity?
Please know this are all thoughts the Lord is speaking to my heart about...will I COUNT THE COST...will I stop worrying about things that have no eternal value...like women's rights in America...really? However, the rights of the women in persecuted countries or religions...that has eternal value...that is the example heavy on my heart today...God's word is eternal...so many, many things of this world are not...yet we put some much of our earthly energy into things of no eternal value...
Matthew 6:33, Romans 10:14-15, Deuteronomy 6:5-9
These people are beautiful...we went to serve the Lord and to serve them...they have forever changed me...
We've just returned home from a place that doesn't have the same opportunities...a place where, for the most part, the circumstances you are born in are the circumstances you will die in.
We also have the INCREDIBLE opportunity in our country to have the freedom to follow Christ...in freedom...with as much passion as possible or as little sadly...we can share the Truth of Christ everyday without fear of persecution (dangerous persecution) not the kind that means we are called a "Jesus Freak" but that kind that can mean we may go hungry or without water or be beaten or worse....and YET...we take this for granted...we realize missed opportunities on a regular basis...but does that break our hearts...we'd rather have our weekends to ourselves than serve...and we justify this...we want our kids involved in as many activities as possible...even when that means there is no time for church...and again we justify...we protest and march for this right and that right bu when was the last time we took the same amount of time...spent on our faces...seeking God's will for our lives...our nations...we call our selves Christians...but when was the last time we truly had time for Christ...is that really all there is to our faith?
The place/people we just returned home from understand the true cost to be a follower of Christ...they understand what it is like to be the only follower in their village and be under true persecution...to be the only believer in their home...to have water withheld from the village well...to have no one purchase goods or crops from them so that they can make a small living for their families...or the fear of being tied up and beaten for no other reason than they love Jesus...and yet they stay the coarse...they run the race...they fix their eyes on Christ...
We met a young man who is the only believer in his family. He has been for several years now...He is the eldest son and it is time, his parents say, for him to be married...they have arranged a Hindi bride for him...this young man is having to make some very difficult decisions...in his culture, to refuse this request/demand from his parents will bring great disgrace to them...yet to obey them means to disobey God...he is choosing to obey the Lord, however, this may cost him his family...forever...yet he stands firm...he counts the cost and decides Christ is worth it...Please pray for our friend...and for salvation to come to his parents and brothers....
Each time Scott and I return from one of these trips it is more and more difficult for us to return to the states...where it is so easy to be a Christian...it's easy to attain the "American Dream" in our own flesh...with this freedom, I fear we really don't see a need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ...When I think of America and then some of the other countries where persecution is rampant...I think of the story in the Bible Jesus tells of the rich man and the beggar...oh how I pray America wakes up...for those in America who ARE passionate about a relationship with Jesus Christ...and sharing the Gospel...may we be sold out to the very end...may we be willing the count the cost...
The village we were in had no real modern conveniences...no electricity...no refrigeration...no prepackaged items to whip together for a quick meal...and CERTAINLY no McDonald's...we had some of the people who came to our training sessions who walked 3 hours to get there...sat on a concrete floor for 4 hours to learn what God had to say to them...then walk home 3 more hours...THEN they would begin the task of cooking a meal that would take at least 2 hours to prepare for their family...then do dishes...get up early to prepare breakfast (remember they don't have pop tarts!) and begin the 3 hour journey again...and they did this for 6 days straight...and we complain one day a week if the pastor speaks to long...how dare we put our limit on the Holy Spirit...
I cannot adequately find the words to describe how this impacted my life...I can still close my eyes and see the faces of the 50 plus women who came each day for teaching...how they shared the hard part of being a Christian there...and yet staying faithful...one lady shared that her family are the only believers in their village and their village was having a meeting to decided what they might do about them...and yet she said we came...it's too important to not come...she said they didn't know what they would face when they went home...that is counting the cost...you see they all came...dad, mom and all their children...if we, as American's won't count the cost to miss a ballgame, how in the world will we count the cost when true persecution comes....not only for us...but our children...is HE worth that? Let me ask you this...is their (our children and grandchildren) eternity?
Please know this are all thoughts the Lord is speaking to my heart about...will I COUNT THE COST...will I stop worrying about things that have no eternal value...like women's rights in America...really? However, the rights of the women in persecuted countries or religions...that has eternal value...that is the example heavy on my heart today...God's word is eternal...so many, many things of this world are not...yet we put some much of our earthly energy into things of no eternal value...
Matthew 6:33, Romans 10:14-15, Deuteronomy 6:5-9
These people are beautiful...we went to serve the Lord and to serve them...they have forever changed me...
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