Some days are wonderful, dreamy, enchanting. Other days make you feel like an untied balloon. You get blown up, then depleted, then blown up, then depleted. It's the days that keep you on your toes that remind you of what life truly is.
For me, each day is a reminder of who I am in Christ, and what He has created me to be. If I believe that He has created me to someday fulfill the role of wife and mother, than cleaning up toddlers potty training messes, dealing with clogged sinks, sopping up the floods from leaky laundry pipes, filling book orders and all the other eventful situations that can pop up in a day are a blessing. They are a training ground for the role God has me to fulfill.
Right now, my role is to serve in my family. If while I serve my family I am preparing for my future role, then it's all BLESSING. - I just have to keep reminding myself of that fact every few minutes.
God created me to serve, to help others, to follow Him and to spread the Gospel.
As I was cleaning up steamy litter stew (the cat litter box got filled with water from the leaking pipe) I was reminded of a movie we once watched about a missionary lady in Africa. I wish I could remember her name, but it has escaped my mind. In the village that she and her husband were working there was a dump. Not a nice green bin, but a mountain of filth and garbage. It was in that dump that the poorest, sickest people lived. No missionary had ever gone there because of how terrible the flies were. But, this lady knew that these people needed to hear the gospel just as much as everyone else. So, she went there. She wore no mask, rather she held the little filthy, naked children in her arms. She did not wear a look of disgust, but of love and care.
I got to thinking, if I can't clean out a litter box, or some messy underpants, what's going to happen when God calls me into the filthiest of places to spread His name.
My problem is often not that I don't know how I should be reacting to frustrating situations, but that I choose not to be thankful. When I'm thankful then suddenly all these problems don't seem so bad. As I scrubbed litter boxes out, I suddenly had a reason to be happy.
I was thankful.
I was thankful for the homemade drain-o recipe that my Mom and sister were using in our clogged drains.
I was thankful for a scrub brush so I didn't have to use my bare hands.
I was thankful that my little brother at least had a desire to clean up his own mess.
I was thankful for power sprayers.
I was thankful for the beautiful day.
Then I laughed.
Because really, when it's all said and done, my crazy morning could put Shakespeare's "Comedy of Errors" to shame.
Life is not a china vase. It's meant to be lived. When we live in a state of thankfulness we come to find out that all along we weren't really living it to the fullest.
Now the messes are cleaned, the book orders are packaged, the emails sent out. Now I can breathe. But I feel wonderful. I'm not crabby and angry like I normally would feel after a morning like this. I feel happy. God opened my eyes and showed me all the gifts in my morning. Yeah, I had to wash away a lot of filth and grim to see them - literally. But now that I see them, I wonder how it is that I usually miss them.
I am blessed!
I AM BLESSED BEYOND MEASURE!!!
And so are you.
Showing posts with label Missions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Missions. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Monday, April 30, 2012
My, My, It's Been A While
Ah, it seems that my posting has been a bit scattered these days. I do have a legitimate excuse though. :-) We are switching the bedrooms in our house around, and my new room is currently under construction. Plus, 4-H Communications Arts Festival is tomorrow, which I am not really ready for, so life has been a wee bit on the crazy side, but it's wonderful!
The Bible Reading Challenge has been going well. I did get a few days behind this week. (There is nothing quite like the realization that you have to read 45 chapters today in order to get back on track. - I split it up.) But, I am back on track and lovin' it. I've been reading about David as of late. I'm always so inspired by his life. God used him in mighty ways, and yet he wasn't some perfect being. He was a completely human man that made some pretty bad choices and yet God used him.
We listened to a sermon by Paul Washer on Sunday night called "What a Man is Not." You can listen to it here. David and his life were talked about quite a bit. My Bible readings kept reminding me of the sermon. By the way, this is good for the girls too. I was sorely convicted, in fact there some parts in that sermon that are especially important for all people, men and women alike.
Today, we were reading some stuff on this website about the persecuted church in North Korea. Oh friends, my heart aches for our brothers and sisters there. It is so easy to put them out of our minds, but they so need our prayers. I really feel burdened for them, so I would like to ask you all to keep them in your prayers this week - and month, year, decade... They have endured so much for Christ.
That's all for now.
Maybe I'll have some pics of the work I'm doing in my new room later.
Blessings to y'all!!!
Kaila
The Bible Reading Challenge has been going well. I did get a few days behind this week. (There is nothing quite like the realization that you have to read 45 chapters today in order to get back on track. - I split it up.) But, I am back on track and lovin' it. I've been reading about David as of late. I'm always so inspired by his life. God used him in mighty ways, and yet he wasn't some perfect being. He was a completely human man that made some pretty bad choices and yet God used him.
We listened to a sermon by Paul Washer on Sunday night called "What a Man is Not." You can listen to it here. David and his life were talked about quite a bit. My Bible readings kept reminding me of the sermon. By the way, this is good for the girls too. I was sorely convicted, in fact there some parts in that sermon that are especially important for all people, men and women alike.
Today, we were reading some stuff on this website about the persecuted church in North Korea. Oh friends, my heart aches for our brothers and sisters there. It is so easy to put them out of our minds, but they so need our prayers. I really feel burdened for them, so I would like to ask you all to keep them in your prayers this week - and month, year, decade... They have endured so much for Christ.
That's all for now.
Maybe I'll have some pics of the work I'm doing in my new room later.
Blessings to y'all!!!
Kaila
Sunday, January 1, 2012
A Missionary
From a very young age my parents have instilled in me a heart for missions. I remember reading missionary books with my mom and standing next to my dad as we talked to missionaries at church.
Since I was a very little girl I have always wanted to be a missionary. I was the five year old that said, "When I grow up, I am going to be a missionary to South Korea."
Then when my family was adopting, I became the eleven year old that said, "I'm planning on being a missionary, perhaps to Liberia."
Then I got a little older and wiser and became the fourteen year old that boldly said, "I want to go North Korea and share the gospel." I still vividly remember my mom trying to explain that I wouldn't be a missionary in North Korea, I would most likely be a martyr in North Korea. :-) (Not that she was trying to discourage me, she just wanted me to understand what I was talking about.)
Through the years my heart has changed in the area of missions. It's easy to lose sight of a six year old vision, but whenever I begin to forget the Lord brings it back. Yesterday, on New Years Eve, we watched some old family videos of when my parents went to Liberia to pick up my siblings. I still remember how absolutely excited and jittery I was on the way to the airport when my parents and new siblings came back. I felt like a four year old on Christmas morning, except magnified. Unfortunately, as it is in life, the "honeymoon" died away and reality hit home that my new siblings were totally different from me. In the first couple years many ugly truths were brought out of the dark that our family wasn't prepared for. In the course of the last six years we have had to go through HHS investigations, countless social worker visits and meetings, police searches and visits, days of overwhelming stress and anxiety, and many other nightmarish moments that we were shocked at. There were many times that I felt angry or upset, our family wondered at times if we had truly heard God's call to adopt. These experiences changed my view of many aspects of life. Spiritual warfare has a whole new meaning to me. It's easy to be skeptical about demonic effects on people when you have never beheld it.
But last night as we watched those videos from Africa, something very strong stirred in my heart. When I saw the groups of tiny little children, that I now know were active in many wicked and evil actions, my heart ached. I cried as I watched those little hands reaching out, and their little voices yelling out, "I love you Mom! I love you Dad!"
What if those children had been raised by parents who loved and cared for them? What if from their birth, prayers had been lifted up against the family curses that bound them? What if they were truly taught about Christ and the Bible? What if they had all that I have been given?
I haven't thought about missions much in the last year. Oh, I gave it a thought every now and then when I heard about someone going on a missions trip or missionaries came to church, but other than that I didn't give it a whole lot of thought. But watching that video stirred in me emotions that I can hardly describe because if those children had been raised in Godly Christian families, their lives wouldn't have been destroyed by sick perversion to the point that they no longer know how to live.
Adopting my three siblings from Africa was the hardest thing my family ever did. My parents have gone through so much. But I wouldn't reverse what God has done. Yes, we have suffered many things that may seem unfair to a lost world, but I can clearly see that it was all indeed part of God's plan. My adopted siblings childhoods were stolen from them and though they may not know how to truly move forward, they now have a chance too. In Liberia there is 80% unemployment. One of my adopted sisters now has a full time job and my brother had a full time job all summer. My other adopted sister is learning some new skills so that she can start her own business. They are being taught about Christ and being given a Godly education. They have everything that they need including food. They didn't have that in Liberia.
Yes, we have struggled.
Yes, there are times it seems unfair.
Yes, there are strongholds that seem like solid concrete.
But am I thankful God has allowed all this to happen?
Yes!
I do not glory in the evil we have gone through, but rather I glory in the fact that my family has been given the chance to do some of the toughest mission work there is together as a family. My adopted siblings have many things in their pasts that they have had to deal with. Their whole lives in Liberia were about running and surviving, but even if our family is just a bridge helping them get across a deep cavern to a better life, it will still be worth it.
I've become a tougher, harder person through these experiences; I know it and yet my heart still melts when I see those old videos. When I see people that need the Lord so very much my heart weeps. I have no idea what the future holds. I may never become a "missionary," but God has given me a work to do here in my family and for now I am content. I cannot change people, only God can, but I certainly can be a willing vessel for His service.
If someday God calls me elsewhere, I'll be there, but for now, I'm working here and that's exactly where He wants me.
Since I was a very little girl I have always wanted to be a missionary. I was the five year old that said, "When I grow up, I am going to be a missionary to South Korea."
Then when my family was adopting, I became the eleven year old that said, "I'm planning on being a missionary, perhaps to Liberia."
Then I got a little older and wiser and became the fourteen year old that boldly said, "I want to go North Korea and share the gospel." I still vividly remember my mom trying to explain that I wouldn't be a missionary in North Korea, I would most likely be a martyr in North Korea. :-) (Not that she was trying to discourage me, she just wanted me to understand what I was talking about.)
Through the years my heart has changed in the area of missions. It's easy to lose sight of a six year old vision, but whenever I begin to forget the Lord brings it back. Yesterday, on New Years Eve, we watched some old family videos of when my parents went to Liberia to pick up my siblings. I still remember how absolutely excited and jittery I was on the way to the airport when my parents and new siblings came back. I felt like a four year old on Christmas morning, except magnified. Unfortunately, as it is in life, the "honeymoon" died away and reality hit home that my new siblings were totally different from me. In the first couple years many ugly truths were brought out of the dark that our family wasn't prepared for. In the course of the last six years we have had to go through HHS investigations, countless social worker visits and meetings, police searches and visits, days of overwhelming stress and anxiety, and many other nightmarish moments that we were shocked at. There were many times that I felt angry or upset, our family wondered at times if we had truly heard God's call to adopt. These experiences changed my view of many aspects of life. Spiritual warfare has a whole new meaning to me. It's easy to be skeptical about demonic effects on people when you have never beheld it.
But last night as we watched those videos from Africa, something very strong stirred in my heart. When I saw the groups of tiny little children, that I now know were active in many wicked and evil actions, my heart ached. I cried as I watched those little hands reaching out, and their little voices yelling out, "I love you Mom! I love you Dad!"
What if those children had been raised by parents who loved and cared for them? What if from their birth, prayers had been lifted up against the family curses that bound them? What if they were truly taught about Christ and the Bible? What if they had all that I have been given?
I haven't thought about missions much in the last year. Oh, I gave it a thought every now and then when I heard about someone going on a missions trip or missionaries came to church, but other than that I didn't give it a whole lot of thought. But watching that video stirred in me emotions that I can hardly describe because if those children had been raised in Godly Christian families, their lives wouldn't have been destroyed by sick perversion to the point that they no longer know how to live.
Adopting my three siblings from Africa was the hardest thing my family ever did. My parents have gone through so much. But I wouldn't reverse what God has done. Yes, we have suffered many things that may seem unfair to a lost world, but I can clearly see that it was all indeed part of God's plan. My adopted siblings childhoods were stolen from them and though they may not know how to truly move forward, they now have a chance too. In Liberia there is 80% unemployment. One of my adopted sisters now has a full time job and my brother had a full time job all summer. My other adopted sister is learning some new skills so that she can start her own business. They are being taught about Christ and being given a Godly education. They have everything that they need including food. They didn't have that in Liberia.
Yes, we have struggled.
Yes, there are times it seems unfair.
Yes, there are strongholds that seem like solid concrete.
But am I thankful God has allowed all this to happen?
Yes!
I do not glory in the evil we have gone through, but rather I glory in the fact that my family has been given the chance to do some of the toughest mission work there is together as a family. My adopted siblings have many things in their pasts that they have had to deal with. Their whole lives in Liberia were about running and surviving, but even if our family is just a bridge helping them get across a deep cavern to a better life, it will still be worth it.
I've become a tougher, harder person through these experiences; I know it and yet my heart still melts when I see those old videos. When I see people that need the Lord so very much my heart weeps. I have no idea what the future holds. I may never become a "missionary," but God has given me a work to do here in my family and for now I am content. I cannot change people, only God can, but I certainly can be a willing vessel for His service.
If someday God calls me elsewhere, I'll be there, but for now, I'm working here and that's exactly where He wants me.
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