Monday, November 28, 2011
OBVIOUSLY THE SITE IS UP! YAY!!
And I have been having another whirlwind month. Thank you Jesus for sustaining me!
In Mississippi, my niece who is a daughter to me gave birth on 11-22-11. Nicole Alicia Bates Freeman delivered Rayner Bates Freeman at 5:35 pm in a birthing pool.
We are in LOVE!
I am a Grandmother! Grandma! Yes!
I love you, Nicole!
More about everything soon.......
In Mississippi, my niece who is a daughter to me gave birth on 11-22-11. Nicole Alicia Bates Freeman delivered Rayner Bates Freeman at 5:35 pm in a birthing pool.
We are in LOVE!
I am a Grandmother! Grandma! Yes!
I love you, Nicole!
More about everything soon.......
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
TGD site is down
I am so sad that http://www.tgdonline.com/ is down right now. My son hosts our webserver and he is in transition right now. He's moving to another address and then coming to visit us for a week for Thanksgiving. It should be up by Dec.1st, God willing. Please pray with me that donors persevere if they desire to give to the children for Christmas, in the name of Jesus. Several have asked about how to give Christmas gifts and so I am thankful God is putting it on people's hearts.
Our beautiful needy children have been blessed and their lives are improved and our TGD Kenya Team keeps working to make sure the children have maximum impact and support. Most of the children began with a mattress and mosquito net at the introduction to the program last year. Through the year, they have gotten shoes, uniforms, coats and library books which the team circulates through the whole program and even each child's school. We work to address their medical needs, which began before we started the program. Children like Cynthia and Gladys both have videos on my YouTube site www.YouTube.com/stephanietexasrivers showing their circumstances. Cynthia has malaria and Gladys had a fungal infection nearly septic (which doesn't usually happen.) We are working to address health issues in Abednego, Vivian, Sharon (the first Sharon,) Fridah, and Zainabu. I pray the Lord heals them completely, in Jesus' name! All Glory to God for the love the sponsors have for their children. Even now, I will go to prayer for my family, Cornerstone Ministries (pastors, churches, school, and donors), our Trinity Global Development family which is the staff, team, students, orphans, guardians, sponsors, donors and their families. I pray for many of these by name each day (by the grace and calling of God who loves them,) and I pray for them as a whole. God is able to make all grace abound to us so that at all things and at all times, having all that we need, we will abound in every good deed, according to His Word, in Jesus name.
Our beautiful needy children have been blessed and their lives are improved and our TGD Kenya Team keeps working to make sure the children have maximum impact and support. Most of the children began with a mattress and mosquito net at the introduction to the program last year. Through the year, they have gotten shoes, uniforms, coats and library books which the team circulates through the whole program and even each child's school. We work to address their medical needs, which began before we started the program. Children like Cynthia and Gladys both have videos on my YouTube site www.YouTube.com/stephanietexasrivers showing their circumstances. Cynthia has malaria and Gladys had a fungal infection nearly septic (which doesn't usually happen.) We are working to address health issues in Abednego, Vivian, Sharon (the first Sharon,) Fridah, and Zainabu. I pray the Lord heals them completely, in Jesus' name! All Glory to God for the love the sponsors have for their children. Even now, I will go to prayer for my family, Cornerstone Ministries (pastors, churches, school, and donors), our Trinity Global Development family which is the staff, team, students, orphans, guardians, sponsors, donors and their families. I pray for many of these by name each day (by the grace and calling of God who loves them,) and I pray for them as a whole. God is able to make all grace abound to us so that at all things and at all times, having all that we need, we will abound in every good deed, according to His Word, in Jesus name.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Don's Story
Greetings’ hoping you and your family is doing great and fine. Here in Kenya, am pleased to inform you that we are doing well. How about the weather there? Here in Kakamega, it’s raining a lot but we are quite pleased with that because we are assured of good harvest in the long run.
I know mum Stephanie it’s late to share with you my personal story but am pleased to get this opportunity to at least share with you my personal life experience till today.
I was born in middle class family and the best part of my life which I enjoyed very much is when I was a kid. My childhood life was the best anyone could imagine. I got the opportunity to have the best education in private school. During those days, life was so simple, comfortable and very splendid. When I turned fourteen years, I could do a variety of things even driving because my Dad used to have a car and he taught me and my brother how to drive. Sometimes, when he came back from work, we could steal the car and go to have fun with it.
Anyway, as the saying goes, life is full of changes. My Dad got an opportunity to travel to South Africa for his education. Things changed when came back from South Africa with my step mother and that was seven years ago. Life took a drastic change since my mother couldn’t bare it anymore and they decided to get a divorce. The funny part of my life was the fact that, my big brother and my only sister were given custody to my mother while my little brother and I were handed over to my father. Life was so unfair at that time since my little brother and I we were forced to live with my Dad’s Grandmother since we couldn’t stand our stepmother. Since then, Dad never gave us any help especially education wise coz we all qualified for a University entry but he didn’t dare gave any of us an opportunity to go to University since he could at least afford to pay fees for one of us.
What gave me hope was my mother; she sacrificed a lot for our wellbeing. She was forced to look for a job in order to cater for my little sister education. Am proud to inform you that my little sister she is now in grade eight and she is sitting for her primary certificate tomorrow. I came to realize that everything happens with a purpose and my Dad and my mum separation opened my eyes wide to realize that challenges do exist.
My biggest moment of my life took effect when I got the opportunity to be TGD student. At first, I almost gave up on my education since I wanted to look for a job to at least support my mother who by now is living with my big brother and sister in Nairobi. I really thank God who gave me hope to go on with my education. At TGD, I got the opportunity to have the best computer knowledge which any Kenyan University student is yearning for it .Right now, I give praises to God coz I can now do a lot with my computer knowledge. I can’t imagined am surviving well in the village with my Grandmother because am able to fix client’s computer problems, do a variety of tasks with my computer knowledge and get something little which I manage to support myself for buying clothes and even my buy something good for my little sister and mother.
Till now, I still thank God for everything because I came to realize that everything happens with a purpose and above all I Thank TGD family for bringing me this far. Am pleased to share with you my life history and even Bishop Titus knows my life experience. Anyway, send my regards to your family and if you don’t mind, please accept my Facebook request. I happen to have opened the Facebook account long time ago but I was in active. I opened it with my first and middle name i.e. Don Adrian. After accepting, please forward for me some photos you took while we were playing football with Kevin outside the church premises.
Gratitude’s,
Don Adrian Ingutia.
Friday, November 11, 2011
scriptures
okay, i got these from a site that seemed a little fearful for being a Christian, but these are the WORD OF GOD and so I copied the text and I am pasting it here for you. Number 2 is a personal fave memory verse and number five is something that I consider often....part of my natural thinking. I do not (in general) mind dying because I am no longer afraid. However, I DID scream when Steve ran a light and we crossed in front of the car who was running the light and coming straight toward us! Nevertheless, it would have been an awesome day to come face to face with my Beloved Jesus Christ!
Consider the power of the blood of Jesus!
1.“… that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” (Hebrews 2:14)
2.“He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13)
3.“Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.” (Colossians 2:15)
4.“For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8)
5.“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Revelation 12:11)
Consider the power of the blood of Jesus!
1.“… that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” (Hebrews 2:14)
2.“He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” (Colossians 1:13)
3.“Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.” (Colossians 2:15)
4.“For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil.” (1 John 3:8)
5.“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Revelation 12:11)
Spiritual Disciplines
I'd like to write a book on Spiritual Disciplines, but I wonder if I truly am following the Holy Spirit.....or do I want to do something great? I am tired of the sin of Pride. Just today the Lord unvieled a whole new level. Honestly, I don't want to think about it. So that's why I decided I would make myself write about it.
First, I am always embarrassed to confess pride because I am sure that I am not measuring up to other people's standards of perfection in anything and so I feel I open myself up to criticism---and pride doesn't like that. Second, I want people to see my strengths, not my weaknesses. But really, God sees everything as it is and LOVES. So there is no fear in confession. People may reject or judge, but that is between them and God. I want to walk before God in truth.
So I would really love to write a book on the disciplines because God really has taken me from one spiritual place to another and He has done it by means of continual Grace. I believe He makes me sensitive to His voice by bringing me continually to Him. I believe many people long to grow in the Lord. It seems to me that people want to become suddenly "spiritual" and wise....as I did. But this book would have to be for the UNdisciplined.
As an undisciplined person, every habit I have has come by excrutiating effort! For some reason, I am naturally a retarded free spirit who is slothful and comfort oriented. The weirdest thing about me (well, hmmnnn....probably not the most weird, there is so much!) might be how I cannot do repetitive tasks in the same repeat manner. Praise God I do not work on an assembly line.
This peculiarity manifests itself in many ways. When cutting potatoes, I cannot cut them each the same way. I cut one or two in a certain way and then I change the process. When something is uncertain in writing or designing something, I will do it first one way and then the other---definitely ruins uniformity. I have always liked to drive different paths to the same destination. One day going the fastest, the next day going another route if possible.
I think that is what makes me a good choice to write a book about disciplines. It has taken such brokeness and well, I hesitate to say humility, but a distinct effort to look this in the face and declare it sin. That makes people SO UNCOMFORTABLE these days. People don't want to acknowlege their sin! But I see it this way....if it is a sin, I CAN REPENT! THERE IS DELIVERANCE FROM SIN! And I praise God for forgiveness.
The Word from God tells us that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We know that we can approach the Throne of Grace boldly to receive mercy in our time of need. We don't have to stay in our sin. But we have to come humbly.
and maybe we don't have humility and that is why we can ask for it. We can ask God for anything. He truly does want to show us how much He cares for us. If we are in the growing process, He is SO GENEROUS with all that He gives! And He is faithful to answer prayers specifically and openly so that His children can see He is active and immediate in our lives. This often gives us strength to endure the parts of our lives that we find distasteful but must endure. He helps us to see He has not forgotten us during what we may see as a trial. Instead, He leads us through by His Grace openly.
Yet for a Christian who has been walking with Him for some time, He takes us higher by NOT answering prayer. Oh, do we trust Him then? He shows us how shallow we are because in the early days, we do NOT trust Him when we don't get what we want. We pout and get angry (hey, maybe I am speaking for myself.) and I think I still struggle here at times. Even all these 24 years later, which is nothing. I'm still a child in Him.
and WHY am I still a child in Him 24 years later? Because I loved Him so deeply at first but PRIDE was destroying me. I felt that I was more dedicated to Him than others. Pride comes before a fall and I had a terrible time that I call my Christian teen years. I doubted everything and did not get any joy from the Lord. I didn't want to belong to this Christian club anymore and wondered if I could fit in with the rest of the world.
THANKFULLY, I never could fit in with the world. Why? Because I never fit in anyway! Ha ha! But I interpreted it as the profound change in me due to Christ would no longer enable me to look at things the way the rest of the world looked at them. I STILL saw things through God's view. Except that now I had no consolation in terms of my good behavior. I wasn't reading my Bible, praying and wasn't really ever worshipping as I switched to listening to secular music. I yearned to know more of the world.
Again, I think I could write about the disciplines because God was so gracious in taking me through the book, "Celebration of the Disciplines" during this time. Somehow, He allowed me to crawl back little by little, but the amazing thing was every turn towards Him was met with such disgusting forgiveness and sappy love and acceptance. It seemed so wrong. But He really wanted me to understand, He saw my life from beginning to end--NOT the way I saw it as a big failure after some good growth. No, He saw how I would be restored completely and He made sure I knew that. Personally, it seemed like something ridiculous to imagine that I might actually believe in His Word again or really believe He existed, so it was sort of like mental gymnastics to flip flop between this part of me that was hearing and seeing God and this part of me that wanted to run away from God. But where do you run from God? He is everywhere and He is within. He won me over.
Everything was different coming through that and it still took several years to process. It wasn't until 2008 that God showed me the depths of pride in my soul. I'm glad He saved it for me until I could stand it. By then I was making sure my life was founded in discipline. I realized the value of coming before the Lord in mulitple ways across my whole life. As an undisciplined person, I struggled to orient myself to God in everything, but this was the beauty of Life. I don't think that sentence captures my meaning at all, since I can't really see a time since Salvation where I didn't know that everything related to God. But I guess I mean growing more and more to think like Him.
I am soooo weak and yet so loved by God. In my romantic moments, I am truly a martyr, a nun, whatever full devotion looks like--that's me. But living out day to day? Whiny, lazy, irritable and selfish. OUCH! Big difference. Practicing the disciplines of spiritual life have enabled me to be far more relational in my family and far more productive in my mundane obligations. This borders on miraculous when viewed from my own internal perspective.
That's the hope I wish I could bring to weak people like me. The transformation is so appreciated! So needed! God really FORMS His children! He is FAITHFUL. His Word is true and can be trusted. He is always right. He knows what is best. He is always ultimately good. He answers your doubts and questions. He puts you through fire and walks through it with you.
So how can an undisciplined person write about the spirtual disciplines? I don't know. By miracles, I suppose. I want something to pass on for all God has given me but it is only for those who don't care about external fruit but want to press on in loving God and making much of Him in spite of their own weak character. There is an audience out there, I know it. There are souls like me who adore Him but have much to be criticized for.....and I know that writing it out will bring so much more criticism!
Bring it on. Kill my pride. I want to live for the NEXT life and I want to bring as many people with me as possible. Perhaps some sweet soul who thought they loved God was really serving a god they created and by practicing disciplines, God reveals Himself to them and brings them forever into His eternal Kingdom! It could happen. We come to Him in so many ways.
I long to be a good evangelist but I seem to fail there despite prayer and effort. Yet God does use me to evangelize the heart of the believer. Whatever work He has for me, I want to be content in it. Yet I always want more of Him.
I meant to post about suffering, but that lack of discipline. ugh! I began reading St. John of the Cross: The Dark Night of the Soul and God showed me my immaturity in moment and it just stunned me. I'm such a baby Christian! And my reasons for wanting to be wise are just PRIDE!!! yikes! And that was why I wanted to be a missionary (He told me in 2008) and it just is always so ugly. But we must be killing pride. John Owen, a beloved Puritan, said, "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." and the disciplines really help with killing sin.
We go to God humbly and confess. We remember we died with Him on that cross and we invite His Life to come live through us. He forgives our sins because He paid for all of them. We thank Him for that blood that covers and cleanses. Through His Spirit, we follow a new way. The Holy Spirit leads us to that repentance that means we turn from that old way. We repent of our own efforts to do good or to change. This is DEATH and leads to pride again.
Acknowlege you have no good in you and invite the Holy Spirit, who lives in you if You have received Christ as Lord, to serve through you by His Power. He is all glorious! It is HIS work that is of value! You had no good in you ever, so repent of works and of efforts and yield and follow.
In Jesus' name, amen.
First, I am always embarrassed to confess pride because I am sure that I am not measuring up to other people's standards of perfection in anything and so I feel I open myself up to criticism---and pride doesn't like that. Second, I want people to see my strengths, not my weaknesses. But really, God sees everything as it is and LOVES. So there is no fear in confession. People may reject or judge, but that is between them and God. I want to walk before God in truth.
So I would really love to write a book on the disciplines because God really has taken me from one spiritual place to another and He has done it by means of continual Grace. I believe He makes me sensitive to His voice by bringing me continually to Him. I believe many people long to grow in the Lord. It seems to me that people want to become suddenly "spiritual" and wise....as I did. But this book would have to be for the UNdisciplined.
As an undisciplined person, every habit I have has come by excrutiating effort! For some reason, I am naturally a retarded free spirit who is slothful and comfort oriented. The weirdest thing about me (well, hmmnnn....probably not the most weird, there is so much!) might be how I cannot do repetitive tasks in the same repeat manner. Praise God I do not work on an assembly line.
This peculiarity manifests itself in many ways. When cutting potatoes, I cannot cut them each the same way. I cut one or two in a certain way and then I change the process. When something is uncertain in writing or designing something, I will do it first one way and then the other---definitely ruins uniformity. I have always liked to drive different paths to the same destination. One day going the fastest, the next day going another route if possible.
I think that is what makes me a good choice to write a book about disciplines. It has taken such brokeness and well, I hesitate to say humility, but a distinct effort to look this in the face and declare it sin. That makes people SO UNCOMFORTABLE these days. People don't want to acknowlege their sin! But I see it this way....if it is a sin, I CAN REPENT! THERE IS DELIVERANCE FROM SIN! And I praise God for forgiveness.
The Word from God tells us that if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We know that we can approach the Throne of Grace boldly to receive mercy in our time of need. We don't have to stay in our sin. But we have to come humbly.
and maybe we don't have humility and that is why we can ask for it. We can ask God for anything. He truly does want to show us how much He cares for us. If we are in the growing process, He is SO GENEROUS with all that He gives! And He is faithful to answer prayers specifically and openly so that His children can see He is active and immediate in our lives. This often gives us strength to endure the parts of our lives that we find distasteful but must endure. He helps us to see He has not forgotten us during what we may see as a trial. Instead, He leads us through by His Grace openly.
Yet for a Christian who has been walking with Him for some time, He takes us higher by NOT answering prayer. Oh, do we trust Him then? He shows us how shallow we are because in the early days, we do NOT trust Him when we don't get what we want. We pout and get angry (hey, maybe I am speaking for myself.) and I think I still struggle here at times. Even all these 24 years later, which is nothing. I'm still a child in Him.
and WHY am I still a child in Him 24 years later? Because I loved Him so deeply at first but PRIDE was destroying me. I felt that I was more dedicated to Him than others. Pride comes before a fall and I had a terrible time that I call my Christian teen years. I doubted everything and did not get any joy from the Lord. I didn't want to belong to this Christian club anymore and wondered if I could fit in with the rest of the world.
THANKFULLY, I never could fit in with the world. Why? Because I never fit in anyway! Ha ha! But I interpreted it as the profound change in me due to Christ would no longer enable me to look at things the way the rest of the world looked at them. I STILL saw things through God's view. Except that now I had no consolation in terms of my good behavior. I wasn't reading my Bible, praying and wasn't really ever worshipping as I switched to listening to secular music. I yearned to know more of the world.
Again, I think I could write about the disciplines because God was so gracious in taking me through the book, "Celebration of the Disciplines" during this time. Somehow, He allowed me to crawl back little by little, but the amazing thing was every turn towards Him was met with such disgusting forgiveness and sappy love and acceptance. It seemed so wrong. But He really wanted me to understand, He saw my life from beginning to end--NOT the way I saw it as a big failure after some good growth. No, He saw how I would be restored completely and He made sure I knew that. Personally, it seemed like something ridiculous to imagine that I might actually believe in His Word again or really believe He existed, so it was sort of like mental gymnastics to flip flop between this part of me that was hearing and seeing God and this part of me that wanted to run away from God. But where do you run from God? He is everywhere and He is within. He won me over.
Everything was different coming through that and it still took several years to process. It wasn't until 2008 that God showed me the depths of pride in my soul. I'm glad He saved it for me until I could stand it. By then I was making sure my life was founded in discipline. I realized the value of coming before the Lord in mulitple ways across my whole life. As an undisciplined person, I struggled to orient myself to God in everything, but this was the beauty of Life. I don't think that sentence captures my meaning at all, since I can't really see a time since Salvation where I didn't know that everything related to God. But I guess I mean growing more and more to think like Him.
I am soooo weak and yet so loved by God. In my romantic moments, I am truly a martyr, a nun, whatever full devotion looks like--that's me. But living out day to day? Whiny, lazy, irritable and selfish. OUCH! Big difference. Practicing the disciplines of spiritual life have enabled me to be far more relational in my family and far more productive in my mundane obligations. This borders on miraculous when viewed from my own internal perspective.
That's the hope I wish I could bring to weak people like me. The transformation is so appreciated! So needed! God really FORMS His children! He is FAITHFUL. His Word is true and can be trusted. He is always right. He knows what is best. He is always ultimately good. He answers your doubts and questions. He puts you through fire and walks through it with you.
So how can an undisciplined person write about the spirtual disciplines? I don't know. By miracles, I suppose. I want something to pass on for all God has given me but it is only for those who don't care about external fruit but want to press on in loving God and making much of Him in spite of their own weak character. There is an audience out there, I know it. There are souls like me who adore Him but have much to be criticized for.....and I know that writing it out will bring so much more criticism!
Bring it on. Kill my pride. I want to live for the NEXT life and I want to bring as many people with me as possible. Perhaps some sweet soul who thought they loved God was really serving a god they created and by practicing disciplines, God reveals Himself to them and brings them forever into His eternal Kingdom! It could happen. We come to Him in so many ways.
I long to be a good evangelist but I seem to fail there despite prayer and effort. Yet God does use me to evangelize the heart of the believer. Whatever work He has for me, I want to be content in it. Yet I always want more of Him.
I meant to post about suffering, but that lack of discipline. ugh! I began reading St. John of the Cross: The Dark Night of the Soul and God showed me my immaturity in moment and it just stunned me. I'm such a baby Christian! And my reasons for wanting to be wise are just PRIDE!!! yikes! And that was why I wanted to be a missionary (He told me in 2008) and it just is always so ugly. But we must be killing pride. John Owen, a beloved Puritan, said, "Be killing sin or it will be killing you." and the disciplines really help with killing sin.
We go to God humbly and confess. We remember we died with Him on that cross and we invite His Life to come live through us. He forgives our sins because He paid for all of them. We thank Him for that blood that covers and cleanses. Through His Spirit, we follow a new way. The Holy Spirit leads us to that repentance that means we turn from that old way. We repent of our own efforts to do good or to change. This is DEATH and leads to pride again.
Acknowlege you have no good in you and invite the Holy Spirit, who lives in you if You have received Christ as Lord, to serve through you by His Power. He is all glorious! It is HIS work that is of value! You had no good in you ever, so repent of works and of efforts and yield and follow.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Wednesday, November 09, 2011
The Lord is my Shepherd
Psalm 23
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.
Your rod and Your staff they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You annoint my head with oil.
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
I love this Psalm. It may have been one of the first passages I memorized as a new Christian 24 years ago. I used it as a prayer for Laura when she was a preteen and young teenager before she went to bed.
We had it printed out for her wedding as a group reading. Beautiful.
Today I am thinking about suffering. I am thinking about willingness to suffer.
I think suffering is easier to endure when you have a true faith in Jesus. It certainly is tested when you experience or witness intense suffering. So many people want to turn away from God in the face of suffering. How wise is that? There is an eternal one who runs the universe. What benefit is it to a small finite person to turn their back on their Creator?
When we suffer, we tend to say one of four things (maybe all of them.) No! Why? Help! and Ouch (or some groans from deep within and many tears.)
Our first instinct is to deny what is now inevitable. We dread the pain we are about to slide into. We fear it will consume us. Our whole world may have changed irrevocably in one moment and we want to get back to the immediate past and restore things, please. Please. No.
We are confused. We all long for the eternal joy and peace of heaven, but it is not here in this life. We feel cheated. We should not have to lose anything. We should not have pain. We hunger for a perfect life. Now it is worse than imperfect. Why me? Why now? Why? Why? WHY!?!? We demand an explanation from the universe. We grope for something to cling to for hope or we sink into despair.
Here it is so beautiful if we have given our lives to Jesus in a true switch--His life for our life. Here we can remember that this is HIS life we are living and He is our Rock. Our circumstances and our loved ones and our job or our health--those things are not our Rock. We are eternal and no matter how horrifying, these things will pass. We can endure all things because we endure forever with Him. I consider how God brought people through horrors like Nazi Germany or Rowanda and all genocide, abuse, and torture. Human beings can transcend these agonies because the Lord made us to live for all time and beyond into infinity. Once created, we cannot be uncreated. We are an eternal soul with a body.
I guess I was just thinking how thankful I am to know and love Jesus and to trust Him implicitly. Perhaps I will experience the most horrifying losses and question him profoundly. He will take me through. Besides that, I'm not LIKELY to experience intense suffering beyond general human experience but all of my suffering, and all of yours, is so deeply personal. We have to look to God for ourselves and find Him there with us because in Him we live and move and have our being. He is close. We usually ignore Him and trust all the world is telling us, particularly what we sense through our eyes, ears, and other senses. As if that reality is "real" and our invisible God is maybe real.
Oh but we will SEE! We will see Him as He is! and this temporal world will all pass away! It will roll up like a scroll. Eons from now, this world will be so remote. Our time here nearly forgotten. Some will be in everlasting life rejoicing. I like what Mark Driscoll says when imagining himself in heaven, living in eternity, sometime in the future and looking back, "I think I wore a hat." Yes, all our experiences will not be the primary ones!
and for those who refused to believe in Jesus as Messiah. Those who refused to trust Him. Those who wanted to keep their lives. Oh my gosh, the horror of it. Eternal damnation, just like the old Puritans warned. Easy to criticize and laugh them off. They were vying for your SOUL! They desired that you would be SAVED!!! It was LOVE of God and LOVE of man that compelled them to insist you come to Jesus--even as they were mocked and scorned and laughed at and dismissed. I feel their pain. I feel the agony of knowing so called Christians loving the world and everything in it and unwilling to die to this life. How horrifying their rude awakening. Now THAT is suffering! This life can do nothing to match it.
(to be continued....)
The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name's sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.
Your rod and Your staff they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You annoint my head with oil.
My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
I love this Psalm. It may have been one of the first passages I memorized as a new Christian 24 years ago. I used it as a prayer for Laura when she was a preteen and young teenager before she went to bed.
We had it printed out for her wedding as a group reading. Beautiful.
Today I am thinking about suffering. I am thinking about willingness to suffer.
I think suffering is easier to endure when you have a true faith in Jesus. It certainly is tested when you experience or witness intense suffering. So many people want to turn away from God in the face of suffering. How wise is that? There is an eternal one who runs the universe. What benefit is it to a small finite person to turn their back on their Creator?
When we suffer, we tend to say one of four things (maybe all of them.) No! Why? Help! and Ouch (or some groans from deep within and many tears.)
Our first instinct is to deny what is now inevitable. We dread the pain we are about to slide into. We fear it will consume us. Our whole world may have changed irrevocably in one moment and we want to get back to the immediate past and restore things, please. Please. No.
We are confused. We all long for the eternal joy and peace of heaven, but it is not here in this life. We feel cheated. We should not have to lose anything. We should not have pain. We hunger for a perfect life. Now it is worse than imperfect. Why me? Why now? Why? Why? WHY!?!? We demand an explanation from the universe. We grope for something to cling to for hope or we sink into despair.
Here it is so beautiful if we have given our lives to Jesus in a true switch--His life for our life. Here we can remember that this is HIS life we are living and He is our Rock. Our circumstances and our loved ones and our job or our health--those things are not our Rock. We are eternal and no matter how horrifying, these things will pass. We can endure all things because we endure forever with Him. I consider how God brought people through horrors like Nazi Germany or Rowanda and all genocide, abuse, and torture. Human beings can transcend these agonies because the Lord made us to live for all time and beyond into infinity. Once created, we cannot be uncreated. We are an eternal soul with a body.
I guess I was just thinking how thankful I am to know and love Jesus and to trust Him implicitly. Perhaps I will experience the most horrifying losses and question him profoundly. He will take me through. Besides that, I'm not LIKELY to experience intense suffering beyond general human experience but all of my suffering, and all of yours, is so deeply personal. We have to look to God for ourselves and find Him there with us because in Him we live and move and have our being. He is close. We usually ignore Him and trust all the world is telling us, particularly what we sense through our eyes, ears, and other senses. As if that reality is "real" and our invisible God is maybe real.
Oh but we will SEE! We will see Him as He is! and this temporal world will all pass away! It will roll up like a scroll. Eons from now, this world will be so remote. Our time here nearly forgotten. Some will be in everlasting life rejoicing. I like what Mark Driscoll says when imagining himself in heaven, living in eternity, sometime in the future and looking back, "I think I wore a hat." Yes, all our experiences will not be the primary ones!
and for those who refused to believe in Jesus as Messiah. Those who refused to trust Him. Those who wanted to keep their lives. Oh my gosh, the horror of it. Eternal damnation, just like the old Puritans warned. Easy to criticize and laugh them off. They were vying for your SOUL! They desired that you would be SAVED!!! It was LOVE of God and LOVE of man that compelled them to insist you come to Jesus--even as they were mocked and scorned and laughed at and dismissed. I feel their pain. I feel the agony of knowing so called Christians loving the world and everything in it and unwilling to die to this life. How horrifying their rude awakening. Now THAT is suffering! This life can do nothing to match it.
(to be continued....)
Monday, November 07, 2011
Christabel reports on Vivian
On the 4thof November, David and I attended Vivian’s prayer day at Bumamu primary school. Henry also accompanied us. They were glad to see us and gave us a warm welcome. We arrived on time, as it did not take long before the ceremony began.
There were orations from various teachers and parents. They also acknowledged our presence and Henry introduced us and gave a speech on behalf of TGD.
Most of the speeches were full of encouragements to the candidates.
We were also blessed with a word of God from a priest from the Anglican Church who happens to be the sponsors of the school.
We had a chance to meet with Vivian, encouraged her to put all her efforts together and do her best in her final examination, and told her to look for ways to be an active force in her own life. Take charge of her own destiny, design a life of substance and truly begin to live her dream.
She promised not to disappoint TGD and her sponsor. We are certain she will perform well because she has been the best pupil in her class.
Otherwise, we had a great time and she was very happy to see us there.
There were orations from various teachers and parents. They also acknowledged our presence and Henry introduced us and gave a speech on behalf of TGD.
Most of the speeches were full of encouragements to the candidates.
We were also blessed with a word of God from a priest from the Anglican Church who happens to be the sponsors of the school.
We had a chance to meet with Vivian, encouraged her to put all her efforts together and do her best in her final examination, and told her to look for ways to be an active force in her own life. Take charge of her own destiny, design a life of substance and truly begin to live her dream.
She promised not to disappoint TGD and her sponsor. We are certain she will perform well because she has been the best pupil in her class.
Otherwise, we had a great time and she was very happy to see us there.
Prayer for Vivian's High School Entry Exams...
Lord, we thank you for providing for Vivian and we ask that she excel in her exam. Help her to remember all You have taught her. Help her to answer every question correctly. Thank you that You are making a way for her where there was no way. Thank you for letting us take the burden of her education upon us, Lord. Thank you for letting us come alongside her guardian and extended family. Thank you in advance for the great blessing in her life and we ask that she be a light for Your Glory and give you praise all the days of her life. May you reveal Jesus to her and may she trust in Him alone. May you set her free in this life and the next, in Jesus name. Lord, we ask this for all our children, bless them and heal them and strengthen them in their spirit, soul, and body, in Jesus name. Grant them your salvation unto eternal life. Let them be a light to the nations, Lord, to carry the GOOD NEWS to other lands and other tribes and other peoples. Equip them, Lord. Guard them from temptation, in Jesus name. Be exalted in their lives. Provide for their needs and let them live generous lives. We ask all this for Your Glory, and Your Name, in the Name of Jesus, amen.
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Way behind......
Donors and Sponsors: We LOVE YOU! Thank you so much for caring for our Kenyan friends and family. You cannot imagine the gratitude that is poured out to God for the things you are doing.
I am a bit behind on some thing I'd love to do for you. I went down to see Anita and Titus last week and had a great time! I got to meet some sponsors and SOME LOVELY SAINTS WANTED TO BECOME SPONSORS OR INCREASE THEIR SPONSORED CHILDREN. Do I have the best unpaid job in the entire world or what?!? I could not be happier (well, if Jesus was visibly right in front of me.....then again, I might not be able to handle that. I need a glorified body first.)
This week I went to see my Dad and Alitya in Port Townsend, Washington (state). Oh we had a great time. A nice short visit (the way Dad likes em.) He turned 79 this year! wow! and great health. Steve went, too, and we all went hiking in the woods. It was beautiful.
You know, I think it would be nice to avoid some travel, but how can I avoid loving others! I love all of you! Now I just need a trip to Austin, maybe one to Tennesee for Elaine and one to Florida for Allison. and I am ready to go to Kenya again. I did not get enough time with my beloved students turned men and women and my precious children, the sponsored orphans and needy ones. They are really wonderful individuals and how I wish I would SPEAK easily with all of them. My Kiswahili seems to have abandoned me--but my heart overflows with love and joy for my Kenyan family. They all make me so proud of them and glad to be in community with them and glad to be participating with them in glorifying the Lord Jesus. I will try to get some pictures up here.
Kevin has taken some AMAZING photos of the animals we saw there and he has said if anyone buys any of the photos, he will donate that to TGD.
Blessings to readers! I am thankful you stopped by to visit us here on blogspot. May God bless you abundantly, in Jesus name.
I am a bit behind on some thing I'd love to do for you. I went down to see Anita and Titus last week and had a great time! I got to meet some sponsors and SOME LOVELY SAINTS WANTED TO BECOME SPONSORS OR INCREASE THEIR SPONSORED CHILDREN. Do I have the best unpaid job in the entire world or what?!? I could not be happier (well, if Jesus was visibly right in front of me.....then again, I might not be able to handle that. I need a glorified body first.)
This week I went to see my Dad and Alitya in Port Townsend, Washington (state). Oh we had a great time. A nice short visit (the way Dad likes em.) He turned 79 this year! wow! and great health. Steve went, too, and we all went hiking in the woods. It was beautiful.
You know, I think it would be nice to avoid some travel, but how can I avoid loving others! I love all of you! Now I just need a trip to Austin, maybe one to Tennesee for Elaine and one to Florida for Allison. and I am ready to go to Kenya again. I did not get enough time with my beloved students turned men and women and my precious children, the sponsored orphans and needy ones. They are really wonderful individuals and how I wish I would SPEAK easily with all of them. My Kiswahili seems to have abandoned me--but my heart overflows with love and joy for my Kenyan family. They all make me so proud of them and glad to be in community with them and glad to be participating with them in glorifying the Lord Jesus. I will try to get some pictures up here.
Kevin has taken some AMAZING photos of the animals we saw there and he has said if anyone buys any of the photos, he will donate that to TGD.
Blessings to readers! I am thankful you stopped by to visit us here on blogspot. May God bless you abundantly, in Jesus name.
11th distribution===ALL PRAISES TO GOD! Report from Jack.....
Lydia
ElizabethThe day was great. Most of the guardians were present together with their children. Diana, Vivian, Chrispinus and Evangeline are busy preparing for the national exams and therefore were not present at the venue. Their guardians were not there either and instead of giving them monthly supply, the team is now focusing on how they will make it to the high school. This is going to be a great challenge but we are believing the lord of miracles.
The meeting kicked off at exactly ten o’clock with the junior team and then the senior team joined later. Most guardians did not have questions during the session. I think this is because most of the questions were answered during the last distribution. They just came for their gifts and also get some information from the staff.
Christian morals of the children was the main topic. The team encouraged the parents to help their children to understand how the lord has loved them and pray for salvation to their children for there is no meaning in all of these when they are destined to go to hell. Joseph urged the guardians to unite in prayer and dedicate the team which is going to sit for national exams next week to the almighty God.
Frank highlighted on various things including the plans a head. He urged the guardians to work hard in whatever income generating activities they are involved in e.g. farming, small business etc. This will enable the guardians to become independent hence being able to take care of the children on their own. He said TGD is willing to help so long as they have a good plan and strategy.
Each child received the following items; 2kgs of sugar, 2kgs of rice, 2kgs of wheat flour, 1 liter of cooking oil,100gms of Dettol soap, bar soap,2 rolls of tissue paper, tea leaves, salt and mango fruits.
Special cases were as follows; Zainabu, Cynthia, Sharon and Lillian received sanitary towels. Fredrick and Yvonne received amaranth and aloe vera juice which has greatly boosted their general health. The following continues to receive money for buying milk to keep them throughout the month, these are; Emmanuel, Benjamin, Yvonne, Fredrick, Elizabeth and Asman.
There was lunch for the whole team. Children took fresh juice and bread while the guardians and the staff had sodas and bread. We shared these blessings together and their faces spoke much louder than words. After the meal all the guardian received their luggages. We had photos together and gathered for a special closing prayer by Joseph. We also had a short staff meeting after the distribution.
This program is a great relief to this impoverished society. We pray that our God helps our donors to really understand the critical role they are playing in the lives of these children. We bless them and may goodness and mercies of our lord follow them all forever more. Amen.
Fridah doesn't seem to be getting enough food
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