Potential

Have you ever had a love/hate relationship with someone, where you are extremely thankful for them one day and it seems like the very next day, they do something that causes you to get incredibly frustrated with them? I’m sure we can all agree that there are times this happens to us, and maybe some of us more than we care to admit. Our ministry to the Liberians very much so has these times. This got me thinking about Jesus and how he sees us and those around us.

I find it interesting that Jesus  had the complete capability to raise up a mega church while He was here on earth, after all, He is the Messiah! What better leader could there possibly be then Jesus Himself? But Jesus didn’t do that. He didn’t cater to the masses, even though there were times that the crowds followed. He didn’t run to the synagogues or try to take over the Jewish temple. He didn’t chase after the mega church mentality of having hundreds and thousands of followers. No, Jesus chose 12. Jesus  saw great potential in this small intimate group. He knew that after He returned to heaven, they would be the ones who would literally spread the gospel around the world. The masses wouldn’t do that. The masses would move on to the next “messiah.” But these men would be touched so deeply that moving on only meant they were going to the next town to share about the fire burning within them. In fact, these men were so radical about their relationship with Christ that 10 out of the 12 of them were killed for their faith. The two exceptions: Judas Iscariot who had taken his own life and John who died of natural causes in his old age, of course he died while exile in Patmos. 

The disciples probably earned their fair share of frustration points with Jesus. They doubted, questioned, argued, and even betrayed Him. But not one of these things negated the potential that Christ saw in each of these men. It is amazing to me how Christ could continue to keep His focus on the end result when the disciples were constantly tripping over their own two feet. Yet, this is how we are called to work with others. We are called to see the Christ like potential in them, to foster that potential and help it to grow, even when they do not see it themselves. Christ did not give these men material possessions, but he fostered their relationship with Him. He watched that relationship grow, until the day came that these men could stand on their own two feet and have the ability to see the potential in others. That is what spreads the gospel, walking with people as they learn to walk with Christ. No more no less. 

How about us? Do we see the potential in those around us, or are we too busy getting frustrated with the little they “don’t know,” or  they “can’t do” to foster their God given gifts and abilities to be the next disciples for Jesus Christ who will take the gospel to the world?

Who are your 12? In other words, God is not calling us to the masses. He calls us to influence a small group of those around us. This has been a breath of fresh air to our family while on the mission field. It is so easy to get caught up in seeing all of the needs. But God is not calling us to ALL the needs, or for that matter, He is not calling us to All of the people either. He is calling us to our 12. We have had to ask ourselves who is the small intimate group of people God is calling us to see the potential in, to walk with, as they learn to walk with Christ?

For related reading: Holding Up The Hands of Others, Training Others in Kingdom Living, Call to One Another Living 

Dear Lord Jesus, I thank you for your example. I thank you that you have modeled working with a small group  to empower them to become strong in you. What a relief it is to know that we do not need to feel the pressure or responsibility of shepherding hundreds, because truly that is just a bit intimidating. Thank you for giving us small chunks. Help us to see the potential in others, to walk with them as they learn to walk with you. We pray this in your precious name.
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The Calling

We have been here in Liberia for seven months. I realize I have practically abandoned my blog in the last seven months, but I did not expect to be hit in the face with the adversities of just trying to survive life. I never would have expected that things like preparing meals, doing laundry, dishes, shopping for food, getting water (because we have no running water), and cleaning absolutely everything (especially during dry season when the dust is insane) would take up the majority of our time most days. In the states most of these things are done with machines and take a fraction of the time they do here. Just living is a full time job here!

Liberia is one of the poorest countries in the world! After living here I can honestly say they have surpassed the third world status. Liberia is truly a fourth world country! Their infrastructure was destroyed by 24 years of civil wars and coos. And today, 15 years after the war’s end, they are still struggling immensely! Living here is almost like living 80 years ago, with one exception, cell phones. Many Liberians have cell phones, and often at the expense of buying food for their families. We personally know Liberians who virtually starved their family just so they could purchase a smartphone. That may sound ludicrous to you and I, but there is a rational to why they made that choice. It was done so they could make connections with people outside of their Liberian circle. For one individual family that we know of, it paid off. That is how we met one of our Liberian pastors! No joke! My husband connected with him over Facebook. This pastor is in charge of a large compound and school. By virtually starving his family, he changed the course of life for not only his family, but for the many families that live on the compound and attend the school. Desperate times call for desperate measures. But not all Liberians think this radically. Most Liberians settle for surviving one day at a time and not planning for tomorrow. They eat the very seed that they should be planting to harvest a crop for future meals. Many say “why starve today when there is seed to eat?” It takes radical thinkers and those who are willing to put hope in tomorrow to reach outside the here and now and invest into a tomorrow that may never come. Here in the fourth world, tomorrow is truly just wishful thinking. They don’t plan for tomorrow because they might not survive the hardships of today.

This way of life is so unimaginable to most westerners. We have never had to decide between today’s meal and a chance to survive tomorrow. We can’t understand, we have never felt that degree of poverty. For many of us, we have never even seen it, other than the occasional commercials and pictures we see on television. But even, that is not truly tangible to us. It’s nothing we have touched or seen in flesh and blood. It’s easy to walk away from the scene we see on television, but let me tell you, it’s far more difficult to walk away from the flesh and bones standing right in front of you with eyes of desperation piercing your heart. Everywhere we go there are needs, real, evident, legit needs! We are continually bombarded with people asking for help with this need and help with that need. It’s overwhelming. Before coming to this country I had a family member, who had been a missionary in Africa for 52 years tell me “you really need to know why you are called there, because if you don’t the needs of people will distract you from your calling.” Oh boy, is that ever true! If we tried to help every person who came up to us and asked for help we would miss the reason we are here completely. We would find ourselves frustrated and discouraged. Please don’t get me wrong. We do not go around refusing to help people who ask, but we have learned to ask “Lord who would you have us help.” And yes, at times that means saying no to the voices who are asking for help. Sounds cruel right? Well, let’s take a look at Jesus shall we.

There were times even Jesus could not help people, not because He did not want to, but because the circumstances did not allow Him to act. Matthew 13:58 says “And he did not do any miracles there because of their lack of faith.” If the people of Nazareth (Jesus’ hometown) would have believed and had faith, Jesus could have helped, but their lack of faith kept Jesus from helping. Jesus also said in John 5:19 ...“I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.” Jesus did nothing without hearing from the Father first. If he did not hear, he did not act, or speak.

We truly believe there is a specific reason we are called to Liberia. The longer we are here the more clearly we are understanding that calling. Now as people come asking for help, we are more inclined to run it through the filter of our calling. If it lines up with our purpose, we feel more freedom to help. If it doesn’t line up at all, we do not act. This has given us great peace about when to help and when not to help. It’s not that we don’t care and love those we don’t help, on the contrary, we truly do, but we can only do what God has called us to do, anything that does not line up with that calling is nothing more than a distraction. This has been a hard lesson to learn, and one that we still fail at from time to time, but we are thankful that the Lord is a tuning our ear to his voice in this time.

The saying goes, “give a man a fish feed him for a day, teach a man to fish, feed him for a lifetime.” We are learning to walk the line of giving verses teaching. We desire to see the Liberians not only learn the art of “fishing”, but to have those Liberians teach other Liberians to “fish” as well. In other words. We desire to see Liberians become self sufficient and reproductive. We want them to pass along the knowledge and skills that they have learned from us to others. We have known from the very beginning that we wanted to work our way out of a job. We want the Liberians to not need us anymore because they have the skills they need to be successful. We realize that this is an investment of much time and many years, but that is part of the calling.

For more posts on this subject of calling please click here.

Lord, it has been a challenging road here in Liberia, but one we know that you have called our family to. Father, I pray that each one who reads this post will search out their calling in the kingdom and walk it out with boldness and confidence. Thank you for knowing the plans and purposes for each one of us (Jeremiah 29:11). Let us not grow weary in searching those plans out. Jesus, let your will be done in our lives, and in the lives of our family for your honor and your glory. We pray this in the precious name of Jesus Christ.  

Sold Out

It's been said that sin will take you farther than you want to go, deeper than you had ever imagined and cost you more than you thought possible. But, may I also say that the sold out Christian life will catapult you into water so deep you will literally be in over your head. The sold out Christian life WILL  lead you into the back side of the wilderness at times (just as Jesus was) and it WILL cost you your whole life. Compared to living a life of sin and self-centeredness the life of a sold out Christian life is beyond hard, it's impossible without the Lord holding our hands through each and every step of the way. It's no wonder so many non-Christians don't want to commit, and why so many Christians don't want to sell out.  

It’s the very reason why in Matthew 19: 21-22 Jesus told the rich young man...

“If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
“When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.”

This section of scripture is interesting because of just one little word.  It begins with an “if” statement. So, in other words, Christ is giving this rich young man a choice. Christ also gives us that same choice to sell out or bail out. However,  when we choose, Jesus tells us that we absolutely must “go” out, “sell” out, “give” out and “follow” Him. How many of us are really willing to sell out, give out, go out, and truly, wholeheartedly follow Christ? Do we really even want to? It is hard to sell everything for the sake of the gospel. Speaking from personal experience, there will be people around you who do not understand what you are doing and why you are doing it. When we sell out for the sake of Christ, we will leave people flabbergasted and scratching their heads. Sometimes even other Christians around us will not agree with our decision. But if Christ says “go,” then we must GO and not look at the expressions on the faces of those around us. We absolutely must keep our eyes focused on the face of Christ.  My family has gotten a small glimpse of this one. As you all know, we have gone through a major life change. We not only sold our house, but we sold so many of our personal belongings as well. We liquidated pretty much an entire household of stuff. And honestly, it left people thinking we had lost our minds. All I could do was try not to think about what others were thinking and focus on what we knew God has spoken to our hearts. God has spoken to our hearts that it was time to go and that “the cloud is moving.” Let me tell you when your cloud is moving you better move with it, otherwise, you will find yourself without the covering of Christ and that is one very dangerous place to be!  

When we examine the response of this rich young man we see that he was not willing to sell out for Christ. He was not willing to leave behind the cares of this world to invest in the cares of the kingdom. The sin of self-centeredness had taken him farther than he had planned to go. He was not willing to immerse himself in the deep waters of Christ. He only wanted to dabble in the shallow waters of self. And as scripture tells us it left him feeling sad.

A life not completely sold out to Christ will leave us feeling empty. There is nothing that can replace the peace and joy that comes from fulfilling the call of Christ on your life. I want to encourage you that when Christ beckons you out of the comfort of everything you have ever known. Do not be afraid to go. You never know what might happen. You might even find yourself walking on water.

Lord, I pray that as you call us to come deeper that we come without any hesitation. Helps us to learn from this rich young man who was too scared to sell out for the sake of the kingdom. Help us to sell out, go out, give out and follow after you with every ounce of our being.

Our Placement

God has each of us where we are at for a very special purpose in mind. Sometimes, we are able to pinpoint the Lord’s reason’s behind us being called to a specific location and then other times we will need to seek out God’s reasons through much prayer and simply being patient in God’s timing to reveal to us His motivations for our placement. We have to keep in the forefront of our minds during the season of waiting that God is not trying to punish us, but to teach us. The Lord does not call us to a place for no reason at all. He calls us to a place for His plans and purposes. We just need to make sure that we are not fighting the placement in the process. I have spent way too much time fighting the placement and it wasn’t until I saw the why behind the placement that I was able to be thankful for where I was placed. God does not make mistakes in His placement of us. Sometimes we just have to be willing to wait for His reasons to be revealed, and trust that He knows exactly what He is doing even when we don’t have a clue. That is why it is called faith. We have to trust that God knows better than we do!

Example of Jonah

If we take a look at the life of Jonah, we can see just how quickly things can go wrong when we fight our placement. (Jonah 1) Jonah was called to go to Nineveh. Nineveh was a city so full of wickedness that Jonah had decided he didn’t like the idea that God would call him to such a place. Jonah had viewed Nineveh as hopeless, and a lost cause, so much so that he decided to fight the placement by running from it. This caused a whole mess for Jonah until he finally realized that God’s way was better then his way.

I’m sure we have all run from the placement of God a time or two, and if we have not run then perhaps we have just fought God about the placement. How does fighting with an omniscient God make any sense? When did we get to the same all foreseeing level as our all knowing creator? Can I get a big NEVER on that one! Yet, we are still willing to say to God “I’m not going there”, or “I’m not doing that.” Thankfully, just like God was patient with Jonah, He will be just as patient with us as well.

Are there going to be times when we question the placement? Absolutely, but that does not mean we should not obey. Just because we do not understand everything that God is doing does not give us the license to say “no way.”,  “not a chance.” or “not me God.” Our Lord is looking for a yielded heart, one that is willing to jump out of the boat and walk on water when He says “Come.” (Matthew 14:28-29) How many of us are willing to do that? How many of us would much rather fight the placement and simply stay in the comfort of our little boat when Christ is out in the water beckoning our name? God will not call us to a place and then abandon us. Just like Jonah, he will go with us to the location He is calling us to go. And while we are there He will teach us a few things (sometimes even a lot of things). The Lord is faithful to work in each of us His character through our circumstances and placement, but we must be willing to let Him do the work. When we fight the placement we inevitably end up fighting the very hand of God working out His character in our lives. All this does is prolong our journey around the mountain. It simply means that instead of taking the direct route to where we are called, we just might get swallowed up by a whale until we have learned to trust and obey that God is God and we are not.

Envying others

Not only do we have to make sure we are not fighting the Lord on the specific area He has placed us, but we also must make sure we are not looking at others around us and wishing that we were placed where God has them. God has wired each of us so very differently! I was not designed to function in your placement, and you were not designed to function  in mine. Actually, if we would try to switch places we would find ourselves more frustrated and exasperated then if we had simply learned to flourish where God had originally placed us. It’s kind of like plants. God designed certain plants to flourish in certain environments and if we take that plant and put it in a different environment it inevitably dies because it was only designed for one specific environment. If we put a rainforest plant and place it in the middle of the Sierra Dessert, it will be dead within weeks. God has designed each of us to grow and thrive in a specific placement. Embrace where God has placed you!

Keep in mind too, that sometimes God will call us out of one placement and take us to another. Be willing to not only accept the one you are currently in, but to also look forward to the one you are called to as well. The Lord called the Hebrew children out of Egypt and to the Promise land, but before they could get there, they had to go through the desert. They did not embrace the desert in the least bit. In fact, all they did for 40 years was fight with God about their placement. That 40 years could have been drastically cut down if they had accepted where the Lord had them for the season and looked forward to where the Lord was taking them. Embrace your placement.

Thank you Lord that you work all things together for the good for those who love you (Romans 8:28). Thank you that you know the plans and purposes you have for us (Jeremiah 29:11). Father, I pray that we remember these things in those moments when you beckon us to come to a placement we are uncertain of. Help us to put our trust and our faith in you and to keep it there! You know all and see all and therefore know what is best for us.Thank you for being willing to place us in specific places to build your character in our lives. Help us not to run from or fight the placement you have specifically hand chosen for us. Help us not to envy the placement of others. Lord you have the very best for us in mind. Help us to recall that in those moments of second guessing. In the precious name of Jesus Christ

5 Areas of Hospitality

Before reading this post be sure to read “Hospitality” for more in depth background on this subject matter.

Christ  came as the ultimate example of hospitality. He came in the form of a servant. Scripture tells us to imitate this spirit of servanthood, and to walk in love. So, the example of hospitality that Christ has set is the one we are to follow. But what exactly did Christ do to be a hospitable servant?

Foot washer - In John 13:1-17 Christ washes His disciple’s feet. In Biblical times the lowest of jobs in the house was to wash the feet of those who entered the house. By Jesus taking on the responsibility of washing the disciple’s feet, His hospitality was telling His disciples I love you so much I am willing to serve you in the most intimate of ways. Now I realize that this is not a practice that we do culturally anymore, but there are other ways that we can be a servant to those around us. Maybe it’s mowing your neighbor’s grass, raking their leaves, cooking them a meal, or cleaning their house. There are so many ways we can be a servant. What creative ways can you come up with to serve others?

Breaking Bread - How often do we see in scripture where Jesus was found breaking bread and sharing a meal with others. Whether it was the feeding of the 5.000, visiting with the tax collector, Zacchaeus, or having the last supper with His 12 disciples, food seemed to be a big part of hospitality. I’m not saying that it always has to be involved, but food does seem to bring about  a common denominator for all people across the boards. Every person has a need to eat and when we involve food in our act of hospitality it not only meets a physical need, but it brings a commonality to people who could be complete strangers. Sharing a meal with someone is culturally very relevant in our society today. This part of culture has not changed. Who can you break bread with in the coming weeks?

Miracle Worker - Jesus performed tremendous miracles in the hearts and lives of so many people.This was a way Christ was showing God’s love to others around Him. Now, I realize we do not have the capability of performing miracles, but Christ is not dead. He is just as capable of performing the supernatural today as He was when He was walking on earth. However, we must be willing to pray for those who are in need, lay them at His feet and have the faith to believe that He is capable of performing a miracle in their lives.   

So what does hospitality look like for us in today’s culture and in a practical sense?

5 Areas of Hospitality

1. Our doors must be open.

As Christians the doors to our homes, our churches, our Bible studies, and any other event we hold should wide open! I’m not talking about cracked opened, here I’m talking about blow the doors off the hinges open. We must be welcoming to those around us, to approach them with open arms. They should not feel like they are an obligation, chore or an inconvenience. They should feel genuinely and completely welcomed in whatever event they are taking part.

2. LOVE, LOVE, and more LOVE.

The best gift we can give in our moments of hospitality is to be an overflow of the love of Christ. When we show others what Christ’s love looks like in a practical sense we are ultimately pointing them to the highest expression of love, Christ’s death on the cross. Our hospitality should be Christ’s love put into tangible form for others to see. When hey look at us, they should see Christ.

I heard a testimony one time of a man to walked into a church for the first time in his life and sat down. This man was covered from head to toe in tattoos, his hair was in dreadlocks, he was wearing black eye makeup, and he smelled like he had just been kicked out of the local bar. Now, some of us would have gotten up and moved to the other side of the sanctuary, but the people in this congregation welcomed him in, and literally ushered him into the kingdom with the love of Christ! This man is serving the Lord with all his being today. Part of his coming to the Lord could be credited to that congregation who showered him with the love of Christ. He saw was Christ in a real and tangible way.

3. Connect with people.

Make a conscience effort to have heart to heart connections with those around you. As Romans 15:12 tells us, don’t be afraid to...“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”  Our hearts should connect with others on a spiritual level this will not only help those around us to grow spiritually, but God will also use those opportunities for our own hearts to grow spiritually as well.

4. Be patient with people.

Not everyone is going to recognize the love of Christ that we are showing them right off the bat. For some people, it will take time before their hearts begin to question what makes us different. For others, it will happen within the first five minutes of welcoming them in the front door. We all recognize the love of Christ in our own time and in our own way, so be patient with those who are taking a bit longer to understand that unconditional love.

5. Actively look for ways to be a help and support.

Romans 12:13 tells us to... “Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.” We can not expect to know the needs of others if we are not first actively looking for those needs. Once we have discovered the need it is then our responsibility to share with them so that need can be met. I realize we are not God and can not meet every need that a person can have. For example, when we discover that someone feels neglected and lonely. We can be there to comfort, but we must also remember to always point them to the ultimate source of comfort, their Heavenly Father! We can not possibly fill that void. That is a void only God Himself can fill.

Call to action

My challenge to you is to open your doors, show love, connect with people, be patient, and actively look for ways to help and support others. If this list feels a bit overwhelming, work on one or two of them at a time. Hospitality is a lifelong venture that we can all refine our skills in.

Lord, help us to work on each of these five areas of hospitality. Help us to truly put others ahead of ourselves and to become the servant that you have called us to be. Give us the courage to open our doors wide open to those who need you most, not to shrink back from those who walk through them. Fill us full and overflowing with your love so that we have nothing but your unadulterated love flowing out of us for others to see. Give us a supernatural dose of your patience Lord for those who are having a hard time trying to wrap their minds around this unconditional love that you so freely give. Open our eyes to see the needs of those around us. When you allow us to see the needs of others use us as your instruments to meet those needs, and the ones we can’t, come in and take over so they will know you beyond a shadow of a doubt.  Thank you Lord for showing us what hospitality looks like. We pray that we can be used by you to show others your love.

Family History With Liberia

My husband and I had the precious opportunity to travel to Liberia this past summer, a country that sits on the northern coast of West Africa. This little nation has faced mass destruction from two major civil wars that together spanned a period of twelve long years. The memories from civil wars are still very vivid in the minds of so many Liberians because the second civil war ended just 13 years ago, in 2003. During our stay, we learned that schools had been closed down for fourteen years. Leaving an entire generation of Liberians unable to read or write. This makes it very difficult for their society to make advancements. In 2015, the United Nations named Liberia's capital city of Monrovia, the poorest capital city in the world. To this day the entire nation continues to live with no infrastructure for sewer, running water, or electric power. They have slowly been trying to rebuild roads in the main cities, but to get anywhere in the interior is about impossible during the rainy season even if you happen to be one of the lucky ones to owns a four wheeled drive vehicle. Many of the roads, especially in the interior, are dirt roads and as rainy season progresses, the roads become less and less usable. In fact, so much that by the middle of the rainy season there are many places in Liberia that are completely cut off from anyone being able to come or go.

The history of this little nation runs quite deep in our family. My husband's grandparents were missionaries there for 27 years until the church was nationalized. Soon after the work had been nationalized, civil war broke out across the country. I wanted to spend some time sharing with you the deep family heritage that I have been so richly blessed with. I thank God for the opportunity to be part of such a rich heritage.

When Grandma and Grandpa first went into the mission field they were fresh out of Bible college with a heart for ministry. So when Liberia became available they did not hesitate to pack their bags and make the long journey by ship. Grandma and Grandpa both had a heart that beat loudly for the people of Liberia. There is no greater way to win a soul to the Lord than through agape love. Grandma and Grandpa understood what agape love looked like, sounded like and felt like.

They figured that the only way they were going to make an impact in the hearts and lives of these people is to accept them for who they are and love the “hell” out of them in the process. They based their lives around the scripture says, "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another." (John 13:35) Grandma and Grandma loved these people so much! It was that love that was able to lead many lives to the foot of the cross and to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. They knew that if they would just shower the people of Liberia with agape love that God would take care of the rest.

Grandma and Grandpa were no ordinary missionaries.  Sometimes missionaries go and build for themselves a comfortable house. Yes, while that house may not be equivalent to our American standards, they usually end up living like kings as compared to those around them in their third world environment. However, Grandma and Grandpa did not do this. They built themselves a thatch hut. Yes, you read correctly! They lived in a hut with dirt floors, cooked over a fire, ate the types of food the natives were eating and basically became like one of them. Paul says, "I become all things to all men that I might win some." (1 Corinthians 9:19-23) Well, Grandma and Grandpa took this portion of scripture literally. They became Librarian in order to win some Liberians. They did not try to make Americans out of them. They made themselves Liberians to make disciples out of them. What a different mindset. If we want to win souls, which by the way is what we are called to do, then we must be willing to make some adjustments in how we approach the sinner. We are not called to change them. We are called to show them the agape love of Christ so that Christ can change them. This is how true disciples are made. I have said it before and I will say it again. We do not have the ability to change the human heart. The only one who can do that is God Himself. If we go into ministry like a bull in a china cabinet, then all we will reap is broken people. But if we go into ministry with the agape love of Christ, then we will reap a harvest because the Lord will do the work.

As their ministry continued in Liberia they, along with a team of missionaries began to build a mission community, complete with a church, a school, a clinic, a boys and girls dormitory and houses for the various missionaries and leaders. They taught the Liberians trades so they could earn a living. They taught carpentry, mechanics, electrical, plumbing, farming and so much more. So their days of living in a thatched house eventually did end, but it didn't just end for them, it ended for many of the Liberians whom came under the wing of the school and developed the skills to build their own houses. We had the opportunity to stay on the mission grounds that was once the home of these sacrificing missionaries of years past. But instead of the beautiful facilities that were still standing when the missionaries left, it has encountered much destruction from the wars. The people do not have the funds to even begin to think about rebuilding. They truly are just trying to survive each day. The school, church, and clinic are still functioning, but it is nowhere close to thriving or even remotely close to the degree that it once did. The mission pretty much relies on money from nonprofits and outside organizations to keep things running. Without outside help, it would be non-existent. This was so heartbreaking for us to go and see the devastation that civil war can bring to a nation and the impact it can leave behind for years after its end.

I had always heard the heart for Liberia through the stories told by my husband's grandparents, his aunts and his father who had spent their childhood years living with these beautiful people, but to be honest, I never really truly understood their passion. But having been there, meeting the people whose lives were forever touched by the hand of Christ because of the sacrifices that were made by the missionaries that gave up their American comforts to live among these people, I get it now! I totally and completely understand why their hearts were so enamored by these people. My heart has been forever changed by the things my eyes have seen and the things my ears have heard. The hearts of the Liberians are just so sweet. I only wish I had spent more time at the feet of my husband's grandparents gleaning every piece of wisdom from their 27 years of first-hand experience as missionaries. This now is no longer possible since both of these precious saints have gone home to be with our Heavenly Father. We are now praying for wisdom that the Lord will open up our eyes and ears to the things he wants us to do with and for the people in Liberia. I pray that many hearts will be forever changed for the glory of God!

We were flabbergasted by the number of people who came up to us with tears, weeping, whaling, and even screaming with excitement because they were not forgotten by the missionaries. It did not seem to matter where we were either. We had people approach us in the middle of the bush, and in the cities, out in the middle of nowhere and in little villages. They seemed to appear out of the woodwork when they heard we were the grandchildren “Ma and Pa” as the Liberians called them. The precious stories that these people shared with us of the sacrifices that Grandma and Grandpa made impacted their lives so deeply. Their lives were never the same, and neither will ours. Our hearts were so deeply touched by the sacrificial love that was shown these precious people.  It was such a challenge to my spirit. It got me thinking about my impact in the kingdom. What am I doing to impact others for eternity? What it all boils down to is this...what is done for the kingdom will last, everything else will have no impact on eternity and truly means nothing. It truly opened up my eyes in a greater measure to the urgency that has been placed before us to impact others for eternity.

For more about Liberia read Liberia Trip Part 1 and Liberia Trip Part 2.

Lord, please soften our hearts. Give us hearts of compassion for the lost and hurting. There are so many around us that need your agape love to deliver them from the hurt and bondage that they find themselves in. Help us to know what agape love looks like, sounds like and feels like so that we can be a vessel full and overflowing with it for those around us. Help us to remember that we are called to be missionaries! We do not have to travel overseas or to another country to share the agape love that you have poured into us. We can share agape love to our next door neighbors, to our co-workers, our friends, and our family members.  Fill us with your boldness Lord, that we do not shrink back when we see the hurting hearts of others around us.

Confidence Boosting Glimpses

How often do we as parents ask the question “Are we getting this parenting thing right?” We worry about our children growing up in this ever increasingly evil world. Will they be the influencer or will they will be influenced? Will they be able to withstand the missiles of the enemy or will they be the ones who will be devoured by the enemy? We worry that when we send them out, are they going to take the initiative to put on the full armor of God, or will they walk out the door with only one or two of the items and leave the rest at home? Will they continue to write God’s word on their hearts or will they be hiding other things in their hearts? Will they fight the good fight of faith or will they be overtaken by the enemy? Will they be an overcomer, or will they be overcome? Will they take ownership for the principles that we have worked so hard to instill in their hearts, or will they toss them aside like an old toy, unwanted and disregarded?

As parents we have so many worries about whether or not we are “getting this parenting thing right” that it can sometimes be a bit overwhelming. This is why I am so thankful when God sends little moments of reassurance to my heart that He is working in the hearts and lives of my children. It brings my mind such rest when I hear little reports that my children are taking ownership of the principles that we as parents have labored over to plant in their little hearts. I thank God for these little glimpses into their hearts. The Lord is faithful to show them to me because He knows that my heart and mind need a confidence booster from time to time.

I wanted to share with you one of my latest little parenting confidence boosters. It brought my worried heart such peace! My middle child is my social butterfly. She is one who as James says is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind, unstable in what she does. She is my one who has a tendency to be influenced by the crowed instead of influencing the crowd. She is not one to make waves, but rather rides them. She likes to fit in. She does not like to be different or stand out in the slightest. This has been a challenge for my husband and I because we have always told our children that they were not designed to “fit in.” They were designed to stand out. They do not belong to this world. They belong to the kingdom of God and the kingdom of God will never fit in with this world. Those who belong to the kingdom of God are to be a light in this dark world. They are supposed to stick out, and to be noticed. This goes contrary to her nature. She would so much rather blend in. I share this background with you so that you understand the significance to the my little confidence boosting story, so that you can see just how important it was for my husband and I to see just what is going on inside her little heart. My husband and I have been praying for her in this area of being influenced by the crowd for quite some time. We know that this could potentially be an area where the enemy might try to weasel his way into her heart. So, prayer was and still continues to be an essential part of raising her up.

She was riding in a car with some of our family members and a song came on the radio. Please note here, that my children rarely hear any type of music other than christian music. Their only exposure to secular music has been whatever is being funneled through the sound systems at shopping malls and grocery stores. Other than that, their exposure to this kind of music is just about non existent in our household. By now I probably have some of you asking “really?” Yes, really. We live by the idea that whatever we place in front of their eyes and ears directly affects them in one form or another. We take seriously what their little eyes and ears are exposed to. We want them to be a bright light for Jesus, not a dim one. Needless to say, everyone in the car was singing to this song except her and her little sister because they of course had never heard the song before. One other little girl in the car about her age asked her, “Don’t you know this song?” To which she obviously responded “No.” As she sat there feeling rather awkward, I think the Lord began to work on her little heart because the next song that came on the radio caused her spirit to feel quite uncomfortable. She asked the driver if the radio could be changed to something else and thankfully that was done so quickly without hesitation or question of my little girl's heart.

Here is what I want you to understand about this particular story. My husband and I were not in the car with our girls on this particular car ride. We were not there to monitor the situation and make sure their little hearts were protected from the devil being able to plant seeds that did not belong there. This story was told to us directly by our daughter herself. She shared with us how her little heart didn’t feel right. What she didn’t realize was this was the working of the Holy Spirit keeping her heart from danger. My heart about burst in humility when she shared this story with us because this could have easily gone a different way and we would have been none the wiser to the fact that the devil had taken a foothold into her heart. I share this to encourage you. As you are consistent in sewing God’s principles into the hearts of your children and hold them up in prayer, the Lord will do the work in the hearts of your children to make sure that those principles become part of their own personal set of values. This is why Proverbs says…

“Train up a child the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.” Proverbs 22:6

As our children grow we want to transition them from relying on mom and dad to lead and guide them to them taking ownership of the values they were raised in and using those values to govern their behavior. Mom and dad will not always be around to say “do this” or “do that.” So, when we see these little glimpses into the hearts of our children and we get a clear picture of what is really taking place, it is such a confidence booster when, by the grace of God, we are “getting this parenting thing right.”

Lord, I thank you for the confidence boosting glimpses you give us every once in awhile. Thank you that you are working in the hearts and lives of our children. We know that it is an investment for eternity. Help us to stay steadfast and focused on sewing Biblical principles into their hearts each and every day. As we are faithful to sew, please take those seeds and grow them in their hearts. Help those principles to become apart of who they are, so that they take ownership for those values. We desire for our children to be governed by your value system and not every whim that comes along. We do not want them to be a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. We desire for our children to be steadfast upon you Lord. Give us wisdom in raising up these little ones to be godly men and women who will not waver!

The Disciples

Jesus calls a rather eclectic group of men together to help Him in launching His work on this earth. They were a mismatched group of men that upon closer examination leaves us scratching our heads in wonder as to why Christ would ever have assembled such a seemingly clashing group of men. They rebuked children (Mark 19:13-15), they argued over who was the greatest (Matthew 18:1-5), they were riddled with doubt (John 16:21-22, Luke 24:25-27) and they continually questioned Jesus on everything (Mark 13:3-4, Mark 10:10, Matthew 24:3).

Upon closer examination of the 12 disciples and their backgrounds I had a understanding as to why Jesus would frequently rebuked them for being of little faith. It was so interesting to compare the disciple's the personality traits one against the next. Jesus truly had an intriguing group of men to train up in sending forth His gospel. I hope this background picture of each disciple helps you better understand the unique dynamics that Jesus was working with during His three years of teaching and ministry.

Background facts

One thing I found interesting in my research of these men was the uniqueness surrounding the names of that time period. It was common in the Middle East during the time of Christ for men to have two names. Many of the disciples had more than one name as you will see below.

11 of the 12 disciples were Galileans. Judas was the only one who was not, he was a Judean.   

Peter, James and John were the three disciples who were considered to be in Jesus' “inner circle.”

Andrew

Andrew was a fisherman by trade. He was an original disciple of John the baptist (Mark 1:16-18). He often times stood in the shadows of his brother, Peter. Andrew died a martyr by being crucified on an X shaped cross. He was bound but not nailed to the cross.

Bartholomew/Nathanael  

Bartholomew means "son of Tolmay" or "son of the furrow," which could mean he was the son of a plowman or a farmer. Nathanael means "God has given" in Hebrew. We don't have an abundance of information on him from scripture, but he did died a martyr. He was put to death by knives.

James (the older of the two James’)

James was inseparable from his brother John. In fact his name is never mentioned in scripture without his brother’s name being mentioned as well. He was labeled as a man of courage, great strength, full of forgiveness, a man without jealousy, and a man of great faith. He was the first of the twelve to become a martyr.

James (the younger of the two James’)

He was the brother of Jude. He wrote the book of James. Some scholars believe him to be the brother of Matthew the tax collector. He was a man of strong character, full of fire and exuberance. He died a martyr by being sawed into pieces.

John/Boanerges

John was the older brother of James. John was a fisherman. He was known as the beloved disciple. He wrote John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John and Revelation. He was held was prisoner on the isle of Patmos. He was known as an ambitious man, and a man of action. John’s second name, Boanerges, means Thunder and he lived up to this name in his younger years. He was quick tempered, easily angered and explosive in his expression of his anger. As he got older he learned to embrace a Christ like attitude. John died of natural causes in his old age.   

Judas Iscariot

Judas was labeled as the traitor, because of his blatant betrayal of Jesus. He was the treasure. He committed suicide by hanging himself.

Jude/Thaddeus/Lebbeus

Jude is referred by different names in different parts of scripture. Thaddeus means “the man with three names.” He was thought to be a fisherman. He is the brother of the younger James. He died as a martyr by being clubbed to death.

Matthew/Levi

Matthew was a tax collector. Jew’s abhorred tax collectors. The tax collectors were notoriously unjust and dishonest. The Jews believed the only one they should give monetary tribute to was God. Matthew became the first man to write down the teachings of Jesus when he wrote the book of Matthew. He died a martyr.

Peter/Simon Peter

Peter was a fisherman. He was the only disciple that we are certain was married (1 Corinthians 9:5), because he had a mother in law. Peter was the leader among the twelve. He was strong willed and outspoken. He was known for asking some reckless and challenging questions. Peter died a martyr by being crucified upside down on a cross.

Philip

Philip was thought to be a fisherman as well. He had a warm heart but a skeptical mind. He wanted things done for others, but did not see how they could be done. He died a martyr by being hanged.

Simon the Zealot

Simon was a fisherman, devoted to the law. He hated Rome and anyone who would compromise with them. He did learn to overcome this hatred. He was a man of faith who died a martyr.

Thomas/Didymus

Thomas was also called Judas at times. We call him “Doubting Thomas” because he is the disciple who said unless he sees the nail marks in Jesus’ hands and his pierced side, he would not believe. Thomas was a man who did not believe until he saw. He was a pessimist by nature. He died as a martyr by the spear.

Can we see the vast differences that Jesus had to work with here? With these vast differences in personalities I’m not so sure I would have been as patient as Jesus was in training this group of men. In fact, it truly baffles me how He ever trained them at all. This just goes to show us that Christ never gives up on any of us. He has plans and purposes for even the most unique of individuals. His kingdom is never too full that He doesn’t have room for us to play a significant role in spreading the gospel. I am thankful that Jesus never gave up on the disciples. He is never going to give up on any one of us either! What beautiful encouragement that is to my soul! I hope this resonates with your spirit today as well.

Lord, we thank you that you took the time to invest in the 12 disciples. You even invested in the life of the one disciple who handed you over to be crucified and you did it with love and compassion. You have set such a beautiful example of just how miraculous you can work in the hearts and lives of people. You have shown us that you love and care for each one of us just as you cared for your disciples. I thank you that you desire for us to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15) just as the original 12 were called to do. You are also calling us to do greater works (John 14:12). We count it an honor and privilege to be part of such a heritage in the kingdom! Thank you Lord for training us, teaching us and trusting us with spreading the gospel to the ends of the earth.