My Hope

It’s been wonderful seeing family and friends. I feel like the time is passing too quickly though and I haven’t had a chance to see as many people as I’d hoped. I feel like we’re close and yet so far away up in Clarkston. Always know you’re welcome anytime you’re up in Atlanta to come on over and see us- we’d love to have you and show you everything going on!! We’d taken two cars to church and the girls got back slightly earlier than the boys. After unstrapping H and letting both out of the car, M started to dash for the garage door. As she started I could see my father-in-law driving down the road and about to pull into the driveway. I called out a quick ‘whoa’ to M and she immediately stopped. I smiled at her (happy that she’d obeyed the first time) and explained I hadn’t wanted her to get squished by Poppy’s truck (which is my usual speech in parking lots or near roads). Her reaction wasn’t usual though- she burst into tears and came running to me for hugs. Unlike previ...

I had an amazing time seeing family and friends recently and am looking forward to seeing everyone next week too! I was grateful to be able to share at our church while in Bainbridge and a friend asked me to post part of my message. Much of what I said I’ve also written about in these three posts http://hope535.blogspot.com/2015/09/fleeing-home.html , http://hope535.blogspot.com/2015/11/part-2-world-divided.html , and http://hope535.blogspot.com/2015/11/part-3-call-to-acts.html so I won’t bore you with repetition. I asked everyone to imagine the following situation- I ask you to read through them slowly and let each sink in: A man and his father discuss the raging war and lives being lost. They both agree that it’s best for the man to leave his home and now is the right time. He gets to a new and foreign place only to be whisked away from his host family because they’re afraid of the danger that may befall him simply because of where he’s from. As time passes he makes f...

How often do we allow ourselves to be vulnerable? To bear our souls and admit when we don’t have it all together or all the answers? Our society doesn’t encourage it, instead we arm ourselves and put up fronts both individually and as a country. There are times I understand it. What is the purpose of showing your weaknesses to someone who may turn and use it against you? 2 Corinthians 12:9-10 9 And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast [a]about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. 10 Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with [b]insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ’s sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. Last night I had the privilege of talking to someone who allowed himself to open up and be vulnerable at the risk of disappointing others. He didn’t grow up in a Christian home, but got to know Christians and ...

Part 3 A call to Acts It’s easy to fear those that are different than us, but we are told that perfect love drives out fear. How then should we react? How did the early church react when they were persecuted from all sides? Did God call for the annihilation of those that martyred Stephen. No. He welcomed at least one of them into His church and changed his name to Paul. I don’t blame the apostles for being skeptical (Acts 9:26). I have no doubts that they wanted to make sure this was the real deal, that he wasn’t trying to sneak his way into the inner circle in order to gain insight and bring greater destruction. We have the advantage, we’ve gotten to fast forward to the end and see how God used Paul throughout his life. The early disciples just had to trust in the changes they saw (I’m sure it also helped that God gave a vision to Ananias). Paul went from persecuting to being persecuted. He did not seek suffering, but he did not run from it either; nor did he return vi...

Part 2 The World divided The rush to suddenly stop welcoming refugees who only a few months ago were being welcomed with open arms is making my head spin. Can we guarantee that all refugees will be law abiding residents? No. They undergo vigorous interviews and background checks, but there is no way to give people 100% assurance. Can we guarantee that all U.S. born citizens will grow up to become law abiding residents? No. There are untold things that will influence them. There are no guarantees that our citizens won’t leave and join terrorist extremist groups, then return and carry out mass killings. There are no guarantees that our citizens won’t stay and carry out mass killings as lone gunmen. The bottom line is we don’t have any guarantees in this life. We never have. We never will. We are called to love despite these uncertainties. NAS Hebrews 13:1 Let love of the brethren continue. 2 Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by this some have ent...

I’m breaking my thoughts down into three parts this week. I realize I’m not in the vocal majority at the moment, but I hope you’ll hear me out. Part 1- The Church divided We came to Clarkston to prepare to go overseas. We expected to minister to the people around us, but we could have never expected the current events and politics to put us in the middle of such a heated controversy. That being said, I feel since we are here and have seen a different side than most Americans, I feel compelled to speak. My voice must be heard because many of the refugees have no voice in this country. Is the world a scary place? Absolutely! I don’t think anyone denies that. It’s been filled with sin and turmoil and strife since Adam and Eve. The first murder occurred in just the second generation of humans. Do we just sit around and watch the world go down in flames? No. We are called to pray for the world. We are also called to love everybody, because Christ died for us all. First...

So I’m pretty much over the nausea, gagging and vomiting. Most people would be thrilled. But oddly enough, I miss it. This is my least favorite time of pregnancy. I’m always ready for the morning sickness to go away, but then when it does, I long for it. You see, it’s too early to feel consistent movement. Every now and then, if I’m super still I may feel a flutter… but not always. So I’m stuck in this land of limbo where there isn’t much sign at all that I’m pregnant (besides what my scale and clothes tell me). I can’t wait for the day that the kicks are so strong that even the girls will be able to feel them. I know that will be weeks from now though. Sometimes we get discouraged when our faith is like that. When times are tough, it brings us to our knees. Often when times are hardest it is when we feel closest to God. We can feel God’s comfort when we’re in the midst of suffering and see His love shown through the body of believers reaching out and lifting us up. Wh...

We grew up in an innocence/guilt society but we’re now living and working around people who primarily grew up in honor/shame societies. There is no right or wrong, all three structures are addressed in the Bible, but it takes some adjusting. I’ve had some social and cultural blunders in our short time here. First and foremost, what’s the difference? What motivates you to do what is right? Do you get a ‘guilty conscience’ if you’re breaking the rules? Tommy always laughs at me for seeing the world in black and white- it’s right or it’s wrong, there isn’t much grey. I’m a work in progress- what can I say. I’m a rule follower and feel guilty if I break a rule- even if no one else knows (or cares for that matter). Our justice system centers around the idea that people are innocent until proven guilty. American churches focus the gospel message on the cleansing power of Jesus’ blood- bringing innocence and washing us white as snow (which in itself is humorous as this w...

I went to a new grocery store yesterday. The rules are different there though and no one warned me. You have to deposit a quarter to get a cart and there were no bags. I was blindsided and hadn’t brought my own this time. It wasn’t too big of a deal until I got home and didn’t want some of my neighbors to be offended by the ham I was bringing in, so I quickly bagged everything up to haul ten feet to our door. It’s easy to be thrown off when the rules are suddenly different, even in our own culture. I expected different social rules when we moved out west and when I’ve visited people here from different places, but I expected the rules of a grocery store to be fairly standard (except of course in states that are banning plastic bags across all stores). How much harder must it be when the rules everywhere are new and different? Do our rules intimidate in churches too? I overheard one person sharing how she went to a new church and realized she wasn’t taking communion the ‘ri...

There’s a community garden in Clarkston where Tommy has been helping. I have found so much healing tilling the soil of our garden in Bainbridge and spending time talking to God and am glad there is a place here for people to feed both their bodies and souls, in more ways than one. I’ve wondered what the transition to the United States must be like for some of the families, coming from war torn nations where violence disrupts day to day life. I’ve wondered how they adjust to different cultures in which values are vastly different from those in their homeland. There were some disruptions to family life that I hadn’t taken into account though. Leaving their homeland and coming to the United States has created an imbalance in the multigenerational family units. The normal hierarchal system allows the wisdom of the ages to be revered and honored. The grandparents guide and assist their children and grandchildren with knowledge and understanding, gleaned through years of experience ...

It’s easy to forget that not everyone has the same perspectives. Different things take on a different meaning when viewed from different cultures. Last week a family we’ve been getting to know came knocking on our door asking for a ride to the grocery store. The rain was just starting and it appeared to be getting harder. Not the type of weather I generally want to go grocery shopping in but I couldn’t tell them no. The whole family came along. On the way the wife kept telling me how much she loved the rain. I started thinking about it from her perspective. She comes from a dry desert climate. Rain is not an inconvenience, something to grumble about. It is something to be cherished, savored. There’s a little boy in the apartment complex who literally lies in a puddle that forms in the parking lot. Free water falling from the sky is such a blessing, just ask anyone in California. We’ve just grown so accustomed to it, we forget to see it for what it really is. The Word ...

The internet is hit or miss and our phone reception is terrible, but word of mouth can travel faster than the speed of light at Clarkston Oaks. Everyone seems to know who we are, especially the kids. We’ve had kids ask us about stuff that we were unaware people noticed- the ice cream truck came by Saturday and someone who hadn’t been nearby asked us two days later what flavor popsicles the girls picked out. When I seemed surprised and told him, he laughed and informed me that people are watching. The banker when we set up an account said the same thing. Not that I really do anything I feel the need to hide, but it’s good to know. I’ve felt under a microscope for the past five years anyway. I want the girls to view my life and faith as consistent which means I have to do my best to live out what I say. Do you ever get the feeling you’re being watched? It’s because you are. That isn’t always a bad thing though. God is always watching over us. Sometimes we treat his careful ...