Category Archives: Loving through Serving

when your surprise doesn't look like you expected

When your surprise doesn’t look like you expected

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“Every experience God gives us, every person He puts in our lives, is the perfect preparation for the future only He can see.” ~Corrie ten Boom

When we were living and working in the country of Latvia, The Sweetheart went on a prayer walk by himself one day. Most everyone he would meet on the street spoke either Latvian or Russian, unless they were 30 years or younger, then they were taught English as the international business language in school. So there was not much interaction, but plenty of time for praying, as you walked.

Coming upon a little park area, he noticed a man slumped over, shirtless and likely inebriated. He felt led to talk to the man and at least see if he could help in some small way so he started over towards the park bench when all of a sudden, the naked-from-the-waist-up man sat up and The Sweetheart shockingly discovered he was not a he but a she! Surprise! Likely in her late 60’s, heavy set and definitely not cared for, this poor soul was so drunk she had left the house without any upper clothing.

None. Nada. Zilch. Naked.

Lord! Why would you lead me to talk to someone like this? She won’t speak English, she isn’t half there and how could I be of help to her when I can’t even look at her? Arguing with himself and with God, he decides to go into the little market and get some meat, bread and water to at least have something to offer her if he must go through with this mission.

Coming out of the market, he sees Latvian policija have approached the poor soul and were helping her back to her apartment. A sense of relief and confusion came over him as he wondered what it all meant.

Did he miss the opportunity because he hesitated?

when your surprise doesn't look like you expected

 

Sad and sorrowful, thinking he had totally messed up a chance to share the Gospel, or at least be the hands and feet of Jesus, he stood there wondering what to do next when he saw him.

“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:37-40 NKJV.

Digging in the trash in the park was another older man, who was really a man, with all of his clothes on. Obviously, he had not eaten a good meal, or a fresh meal, in a long time and truly looked destitute. The Sweetheart approached him, and in his limited Russian, offered him his little lunch. Surprised and thankful the elderly man uttered, “Spasiba! Spasiba!” thanking him over and over for his generosity.

He wasn’t able to share the Good News that Jesus saves but he was able to bless him and give him strength for his physical body. Was that what it was all about? Was the Lord just wanting to see, like Abraham with Isaac, whether this American, out of place in Eastern Europe, would be willing to approach a lost soul, any soul, and trust God to take care of the rest?

I think so. The Sweetheart discovered much about himself that day and discovered much about others as well. We are all lost like the woman on the park bench or the man digging in the trash. We might even be wealthy and think we have need of nothing but in reality, stripped bare, we are all the same: lost and undone if we do not have Jesus Christ.

How many people do we pass on a daily basis that are hungry, physically or spiritually, that are just waiting for someone to stop and share either their lunch or the bread of life? Are we too busy? Are we too embarrassed to be seen with some of them?

Will we let God surprise us in the big and little ways and allow ourselves to be a tool in the hand of the Creator?

God will use us for great things if we make ourselves available in the little. Some of the situations might surprise us and some might cause a giggle or two (I like to think even God was smiling while watching The Sweetheart in his dilemma). But the surprise might really be when we stand before the throne and discover that one that we reached for, shared with, or just offered a cup of water to, might be standing beside us.

Remember, one plants, another waters but God gives the surprise, the increase.

 

Be the Hands and Feet of Jesus!

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Be the hands and feet of Jesus!

 “No man is an island.” ~ John Donne

“Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you…For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a  drink…when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’”  Matthew 25:34-40.

Jesus has always called us to reach to the “least of these”, to serve the needs of others as He did.

“I tell you the truth, anyone who believes in me will do the same works I have done, and even greater works, because I am going to be with the Father.” John 14:12.

One of the greatest examples of the apostles being the Hands and Feet of Jesus in the early Church is found in the third chapter of the Book of Acts. Peter and John were on their way to the Temple to pray like they did every day at around three o’clock. There was a man who was lame from birth being carried in. Every day he was put beside the Temple gate, the one they called the Beautiful Gate, so he could beg from the people going into the Temple.

When the lame man saw Peter and John, he asked them for money too, but Peter said, “Look at us! I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazarene, get up and walk!” Acts 3:4-6 NLT.

According to the Word, and the Name of Jesus, the man’s feet and ankles were instantly healed! He jumped up and began to walk and the Bible said he went “…walking, leaping and praising God…into the Temple with them.” Acts 3:8 NLT.

Peter and John were being the Hands and Feet of Jesus. Jesus had already ascended into Heaven. He had told the disciples to wait for the Promise of the Father, the Comforter, which He would send. And He did. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost, according to Acts 2.

And The Church is born.

Such as I have

We are the continuance of the Early Church; we are the 29th chapter of Acts!

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And the only way we can continue to write that 29th chapter is to be the Hands and Feet of Jesus.

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” Matthew 5:14-16 NIV.

Jesus entrusted us to be the Light when He left us in charge of things here on this earth. Here we find ourselves in the Endtime. It doesn’t take a scholar or a theologian to realize that things are winding down. Jesus is coming back for His Church, His Bride! But that doesn’t mean that we are to sit back and just wait for Him to catch us away. We are to be about our Father’s business. We must be the Hands and Feet of Jesus.

We are responsible to reach out as much as we possibly can, to touch as many as we can with the Good News that Jesus is alive and lives to give eternal life to all who want to partake of it.

“How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!’” Romans 10:14, 15 NKJV.

The story is told of a small town in Italy that had a beautiful statue of Jesus in its town square. One day there came a horrific hurricane that devastated the city. The statue was toppled and when the clean-up crew finally came around they found that the statue was mostly intact except that the hands and feet were missing and crushed beyond repair.

It was finally decided to erect the statue back to its original place and a plaque was put up that said, “Jesus has no hands and feet except yours…”

Those words are true for us today. We are His hands and feet in this world. The Sweetheart says this so often in his sermons, “He didn’t save us just to save us. We are here for a bigger purpose. He saved us to reach others.” He means that after salvation we aren’t just to sit down and fold our hands and wait for Heaven. Jesus told us to go into all the world and share this truth; we have a responsibility!

Let us do all we can today to reach our world with the Good News, the Gospel that Jesus Saves!

For the kingdom

 

 

What I’ve learned from Henry in Haiti

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“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusement, etc., is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little. If our giving does not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say it is too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot because our commitment to giving excludes them.” ~ C.S. Lewis

What I’ve learned from Henry  in Haiti

My heart has been turned every which way but loose these last few days since we landed in Port au Prince, Haiti.

Just a couple of hours after we touched the ground we were visiting our first orphanage. You can read about that here!

We have hosted 135+ children at the missionary compound, what a day that was. So much fun and such a blessing to see them enjoy the day and get some much needed nourishment.

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Then, we went back to one of the group homes again last night right before dark. They have no electricity and it is so difficult to see where you are walking or which one you are hugging.

So, for the third time, Henry met me at the car, threw his arms around me and followed me like a puppy. Henry is 14. Henry wants me to take him out of the orphanage and, ultimately, out of Haiti.

Henry wants to go home with me.

what I've learned from Henry

(Henry is the one at the very bottom with the yellow t-shirt on. They were surrounding my son, Korey.)

Before I could get a big head about being chosen, those that know Henry said he has worked his magic on every Mom that comes to visit. And every Mom leaves here brokenhearted, knowing she cannot really take Henry home with her.

But yet, it tugs at your heart when, in his broken English, he says, “Nan-nette, I pray for you every day, so when you leave I can go with you, oui?”

To understand how we are all born with a different lot in life is impossible, at least to me. Why am I living in a free country, with a nice home, more food than I need, cars to drive and nice clothes to wear when someone such as Henry lives in complete poverty and despair?

Adoption isn’t easy in this country, or any other. Most of them only let those with physical disabilities and special needs be adopted out of the country, which is good and also not so good. Henry is neither one of those. So what is his lot in life? What is his hope?

I cannot explain it to me or to Henry. The only thing I can tell him is that he is loved by a Savior that knew his name before he was born. That His love is unconditional, never fails and never runs out.

Missionaries from around the world live here on this beautiful, yet impoverished, island and call it their home. They are here to make a difference as much as is possible. I have watched the missionaries we are staying with, Ronald and Terry Brian, LOVE BIG. That seems to be the answer to me. Yes, they give financially, very big. They give food, supplies and as much physical help as is possible. They are superintendents over a work of 600+ congregations, all over the island; it seems overwhelming to me that you cannot necessarily change the future of so many people, most who will always live this way.

BUT, if you take it one day at a time, if every day you get up, such as the Brian’s do, and make a little change for someone THAT DAY, hand out some extra rice and beans, grill some hot dogs for 135 kids, pass around extra water that they normally wouldn’t get, and most of all? Generously hug and love on adults and kids alike; they are starving for that affection at times even more than their natural food.

So, there is hope for Henry. Hope that if he stays connected to the Church here, the Body of Christ, that even though he may never leave his homeland for bright lights and big cities, God’s plan for him can still be huge. Henry can change lives too one day by sharing Christ with his friends, relatives and those even more less fortunate than himself.

I love you, Henry, and I pray for you every day that God will fill you with His spirit, full and overflowing with His love for others. That, as the Brian’s have loved you, and hundreds just like you, that you will now continue on and grow the Kingdom of God. Go, make a difference, Henry, for someone just like you.

May we not be so consumed with what we do not have that we cannot see the needs of others around us. But may we be so filled with the love of God that we will use what He has given us, whether it is natural things or spiritual things, and GO, DO, LOVE BIG.Kingdom2

 

DF cover side viewChurches and individuals all around the world will be coming together to fast the month of January. Have you got your copy of The Daniel Fast Devotional? This 21 day easy-to-read book is great for ANY FAST! It does have Daniel Fast recipes at the end of each chapter. Every day is a short example from the Bible of someone who fasted and how it relates to us today. There are also THREE DAYS of PREPARATION chapters to help you decide what type of fast is best for you, why we fast and the benefits from participating. Get your paperback or Kindle copy today on Amazon!

 

 

 

 

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