The “Mzungu” is coming!

In exactly 48 days I will board a plane bound for Uganda, via London, with a change of planes in Nairobi, Kenya! To say I am excited would be a gross understatement! I am in absolute awe that the God of the Universe began weaving the tapestry of my life before the foundation of the world to include a call to and passion for missions. Oh, I certainly was not aware of His “behind-the-scenes” design. In fact, had anyone told me even 20 years ago that I would be serving on foreign soil anywhere as a missionary, I would have scoffed at the mere implication! How I remember the many times I bargained with God that I would do anything for anyone anywhere anytime…”just please don’t ever call me to be a missionary overseas! PLEASE!” Guess what! He did anyway! Isn’t that just like God?!?!?!

Tapestry weaving takes time. It is an arduous process, from the design layout to the intricate stitching of the pattern, to edge finishing…a slow, intentional, and deliberate process culminating in a lovely masterpiece. The artist has control; the threads only do what the artist guides them to do. Thus was the process of my calling to a passion for missions. All the while I was learning about Lottie Moon and Annie Armstrong…and going to the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky as a student and later as a youth leader for mission trips…and teaching the GA’s at church…and listening to messages from our missionaries to Japan who attended our church…and thought I was bored listening to and teaching about this “bland” information, God was actually designing threads of desire within me to serve those less fortunate within my own city, state, country..and on to foreign lands. It could only be a God thing! I was oblivious; but God was working nonetheless! Just like our God, isn’t it? 

I can trace the beginnings of this tapestry back to about age 12 (so about45 year ago), though I know the Lord began this good work in me the moment I was conceived. I heard…not much sunk in; I kept hearing and gleaned a bit of head knowledge; I taught it and, as I did, continued absorbing the information (God was working, but I didn’t know it!); I went on some trips to Appalachia (my friends in youth group were going, so I did not want to be left out); I returned later as a youth leader, slowly developing a love of those we were in contact with; I became a Mom, so for many years the process seemed to become dormant…oh, but my God wasn’t dormant! Like the EverReady Bunny He just kept going and going, working and working, planting and weaving within me; until one day I read that my church would be taking a short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic for a week of building, feeding hungry children and loving on people! I KNEW that I HAD to go! I cannot tell you why or how I knew…I just knew that I knew! And…this from one who despises flying!

So I responded obediently to that call…and I have never been the same, nor have I ever looked back! This summer will be my 11th year to serve in the Dominican Republic with folks who have become my family! I love them SOOOO much and I always return home feeling much more blessed than I have BEEN a blessing! Some of it is hard manual labor; other parts involve loving on people…all of it requires being Jesus with skin on, to be a shining light in many dark places, where life is hard…and painful…and, at times, helpless, leaving many feeling hopeless! Our job is to show them that there is ALWAYS hope…ALWAYS~ in and through Jesus.
I cannot tell you when, but some time back I felt a stirring in my spirit to serve in Africa. Really, Lord?! AFRICA? YES, REALLY! Africa! I had no idea how, when or specifically where…but, again, I knew that I knew that I knew that I was to go to Africa and serve. In typical God-fashion He prompted me, at a school event, to speak to Tina and ask to meet with her to discuss her ministry (which, at that time, was in Latin American countries, inner city New York, Nashville, and Chicago)! Tina and I had children at the same school and knew who each other was; we spoke mostly when we saw each other on the beach in Destin, Florida on Spring Break each year with our children! I know! Crazy, right?

So, we met for coffee one morning, she told me about her ministry, invited me to co-lead a trip with her that summer to Chicago…that led to her asking my husband and I to serve on her Board of Directors…concurrent with her first trip to Uganda, which morphed into a strong call of the Lord on her heart to focus the ministry on Uganda…and the rest, as they say, is HIS-story! Tina has been living in Uganda since January, performing due diligence on our future plans, while we, as a Board, have been processing the information she has given us (many of our Board just returned from a visit there) and prayerfully and carefully seeking the Lord’s perfect will for H.E.A.L. Ministries (www.heal-ministries.org). I am counting down the days until it’s time to head out for that lllllllllllllllooooooooooooooonnnnnnnnnnnnnnnggggggggggggggg flight to Uganda (this for a lady who does not like flying! Really, God? Yes, really, Lisa)! We will be serving in many places, including the following: 

www.amanibabycottage.org
www.servinghischildren.org
www.ekisa.org
http://cure.org/hospitals/uganda/
www.rafikifoundation.org

Would you please join me in prayer for our journey~ for safety, health and for a spiritual experience for all of our team? Please also pray for our families who will be at home while we are away, that they will be safe and healthy, as well. And, would you please prayerfully consider becoming a monthly donor to our ministry (www.heal-ministries.org) as we begin this venture the Lord is calling us to?
Thank-you for reading this length email and for your faithfulness to love and support me by visiting my blog. I invite and encourage you to share a link to this blog post, as we want to spread the word about all the Lord is doing and desiring to do through H.E.A.L. Ministries.
 
Blessings and love,

Silence is golden!

The ocean of emotion

Raging waters beneath the surface force the waves crest to rise and fall...
     .....then ever so gradually disappear.....

               Waters soak into the sand, while others join forces with the next rush of chaotic flow.....
Rise and fall.....then crash and calm.....rise and fall.....then crash and calm.....

                         The distant horizon appears steady~ flat~ but is that a mirage or is it real?

The storm's a'comin' and won't be stilled!  It will rage for a while, its fury of wind will sweep over, dredging up muck from the deep, blowing around in wild fashion.....and then will follow the calm!

     Waters recede.....winds die.....sun shines.....turquoise, cerulean and white again define the Emerald Coast.

Life presents much the same.....raging emotions, rising and falling..... chaos, confusion, frustration, calm.....repeat.....

          Storms of life come and go.....assuredly the cyclical motion remains.....

                   But God.....the One who calms the raging seas with a spoken word.....
He who healed the blind, the lame, the leper, the dead.....
                            The Resurrector of the dead.....
The Perfect One, fully God and completely man.....
                                           the Suffering servant, stooping to the lowest position to wash His disciples feet.....
           the Savior of everyone, everywhere, for all times, who took all the sin of the world to a vicious, brutal murder on a rugged cross so that mankind may have life abundant and free.....

THAT GOD will replace the storm within with grace unmerited, peace unwavering and love unending.....

          The storms may last for a while, but rest in the assurance that clouds will fade, the sun will shine, and joy will come!

Praise be to GOD!

Bye, Bye Trees!

We live in down in the valley, yet we are surrounded by woods! Most any type of tree that grows in the south (TN.) grows in or around our property! SERIOUSLY! We have red oak, maple, locust, box elder, hack berry, white oak, white mulberry, poplar, cedar, ash, Japanese Red Maple, sugar maple, paradise, paw paw, black maple, sassafras, sumac, cherry, walnut, bodock (Osage orange), beech…. I’m not even kidding!

Red Oak

We could not grow grass in our front yard no matter what we tried! Too much shade! I bet over the 23+ years we have lived there we have sown grass seed 15 times, to no avail. Over the past few years my man has noticed some dead trees---BIG DEAD TREES---that needed to come down before they fell on the house. Also, behind our house was a GIGANTIC red oak that needed to come down, much to my chagrin. That tree was at least 126 years old, if my hubby’s calculations are correct from counting the rings! Oh, how I hated to see that one go!!!

These trees were not easily accessible by an amateur; a bucket truck was needed along with a very long-bladed chain saw. So….after our electric company marked trees that needed to come down, and knowing a bucket truck would be dispatched for that little job, my man talked to the company about assisting us in removing some other trees. In the initial process they did some damage to our concrete driveway. So, in exchange for not repairing that little mess, they agreed to cut down some trees for a very reasonable price. Last weekend we had to cut down a locust, hack berry, box elder, and the GIGANTIC RED OAK! This was a process, done in stages, in between their “regular” (i.e. "paid") job. We were promised that all the mess would be cleaned up before our dinner party last evening. YOU GUESSED IT! Didn’t happen!

I grabbed my camera to capture the memories of our beloved trees that no longer adorn our yard, albeit one tree! YES, I said ONE tree remains---that’s all! One measly tree! No need to worry about too much shade anymore! Sunlight will be abundant, no doubt about that! I’m sad! I don’t like it! We went from the ridiculous to the sublime! I’m trying to look at the positive, but it ain’t happenin’!

As I perused the mess left in the yard, it hit me~ that’s kind of like my life at times! A big fat mess!  Everything in disarray; no rhyme or reason; a tangled mess just waiting for someone to clean it up. Yes, I could get out in the yard and move some of the smaller limbs, the twigs, the lightweight pieces. But the big Mama firewood logs I could not budge if I tried.

So it is with my life! God has given me a mind, a body, and the ability to do many things. AND, I believe He expects me to use those resources effectively! Yet, He has also told me in His Word that much of the mess of my life I cannot clean up, try as I may! Only HE can remove the big debris in my life; only HE can untangle most of the messes I have created; only HE can bring order out of the chaos in my life. However, in order for Him to bring order into my life I must be available to Him, and willing to allow Him to move and work in me. He does not need (or want) my ability; He does need (and want) my availability!

Why, then, do I work and labor and struggle so hard to clean up the disarray of parts of my life? So He will love me more? Not true! So I will feel more worthy of His love? Won’t happen! So I will find more favor in His eyes? NOTHING I can do will make Him love me any more or any less! HE loves me just as I am…right now…flaws and all! I HAVE favor in His eyes. But I MUST get the focus off of me and onto HIM; off of who I am not and on to who He IS! Sounds so simple, so easy…yet so hard to do!

Eric Ludy - Depraved Indifference

I love/I don't love/I like/That's all!

I love…
Unexpected surprises, like soft pure snow blanketing the earth !
Unsolicited laughter from children when life tickles their fancy!
Unabridged recitations from a creative mind!
Uncharacteristic comments that soothe a sin-sick soul!
Unconditional love flowing from the perfect heart of our Lord!
Uncanny wit that makes me belly laugh!
Undeserved “just because” gifts!
Unceasing forgiveness from an unchained heart!
Unbeatable songs from the 70’s…like “Endless Bird”; “Stairway to Heaven"; "Layla"; "Smoke on the Water"; "Piano Man"

I don’t love…
Unaffordable “stuff” that I really desire!
Unfashionable low-rider-pants-on-the-ground!
Unpleasant, unceasing sarcasm!
Unreasonable expectations!
Unnatural makeup!
Untidy homes!
Uncomfortable situations!

I like…
Lobster!
Bread!
Books!
Serving!
Shoes!
Art!
Piano!
Singing!
Pinterest!
Board games!
Gospel music!
Praise and worship music!
Instrumentals!
Theatre!
Blue!

That’s all!!!

In the beginning…GOD

GOD.  The GOD of the Universe.  The CREATOR of the Universe.  The AUTHOR of the Universe.  The ARTIST of the Universe.  GOD…who CREATED man and woman… who SPOKE the world into existence…who GAVE the blueprint for life to Moses…IT WAS ALL GOD!  HIS IDEA!  HIS IMPLEMENTATION OF HIS PLAN!  The World!  You and me!

 

GOD…NOT the author of “religions” or “denominations”.  NOT the  creator of doctrine or religious sects.  MAN fabricated those, and continues to do so!  MAN is not GOD!  GOD, in one of the three parts of the Trinity, became MAN, yet remained God and the Holy Spirit.  So GOD was man; man has never been GOD, nor will he/she EVER BE!  Really?  Yeah, really!  NEWSFLASH:  Try hard as you may, YOU HAVE NEVER BEEN NOR WILL YOU EVER BE GOD!!! 

Look at the current state of our world, of our country, of our government, and it seems that we have many people~ perhaps it is safe to say a majority of people, of “us”, who try so hard to be God…to be in control of their little universe…who try to control the direction and outcome of their lives, either never relying on God or perhaps placing HIM on the back burner and reaching for HIM in a real crisis!  “Oh, God, my family member is dying, please do something!”  “Oh, God, my spouse is threatening divorce…or “I just lost my job and have a family to feed”…or “Oh, God, I really want to marry and have children”, etc., etc., etc.  Then we pull GOD to the front burner, turn up the heat and hope he gets hot really quickly.  When HE does show up and answer, we push HIM back to his little back burner position again in our lives, and take the reins of control back from HIM.  Oh, but we know HE will always be there when we reach for HIM…because we know HE is true to HIS Word, and it will NOT return to HIM void.

So my question is this:  IF GOD was in the beginning; if this whole Universe was HIS idea and HE made it just like HE wanted it; IF GOD is not the author of evil or confusion; IF GOD saw all that HE had made and “behold it was very good” (Gen. 1: 10, 12, 18, 21, 25)…then what happened to get us into the mess we are in right now?  Wars!  Economic downfalls!  Divorce rate increase!  Hatred!  Violence! 

I believe it is because we have forgotten WHOSE we are, WHO we are, WHO we were created to be, and WHO is on the throne (hint:  it is not you or I!) 

Just some of America’s roots: 

1.  Mayflower Compact, 1620:  “In the name of God, Amen, We whose names are underwritten, the loyal subjects of our dread sovereign lord King James, by the grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland….having undertaken for the Glory of God and Advancement of the Christian Faith…”  You won’t find these words history in public school textbooks today!  Might be offensive to someone!  Might step on someone’s toes!  Might violate someone’s rights!  REALLY?!  Maybe it needs to offend and violate what are some “perceived” rights!
2. Our pledge of allegiance:  “I pledge allegiance….one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all”. “One nation”?  REALLY?!  Ideally, maybe, but not reality! “With liberty and justice for all” (bold mine).  Justice?  What is that?  (definition)  For who?  ALL?  Who is that and what is that about? 
3. “In God we trust” was adopted as the official motto of the US in 1956.  It has appeared on coins since 1864 and on paper money since 1957.  In 2006 the senate reaffirmed “In God We Trust” as the official national motto of the USA.  And the House of Representatives passed a resolution affirming it in 2011 with a vote of 396-9.  There was a joint poll but USA Today, CNN and Gallup in 2003 that found 90% of Americans support the inscription “In God We Trust” on coins of the USA.  In whom do we trust?  GOD!  Who is GOD?  Is it us?  NO, NO, and again I say, “NO!”  Is it Buddha, or Mohammed, or Joseph Smith, or your preacher, or you?  NO! NO!,  And again I say NO! 

C’mon people!  Wake up!  While the USA is still the best place on the earth to live, and while we have freedoms and privileges that others don’t have, we are in a mess!  A BIG MESS!  And it is not getting better; in fact, we are declining!  When will we ever learn?  Will God continue to be patient with us, or will HE—is HE—losing His patience with us and may we be seeing some of the signs of the “wrath of God” we read about in His Word?  Will it get worse? 

Psalm 2 says this:  ^“Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?  The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One. “Let us break their chains,” they say, “and throw off their fetters.”  The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, “I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.”  I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance,  the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them with an iron scepter ;you will dash them to pieces like pottery.” Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”

But make no mistake:  His love never changes!  His mercies are new every morning! (Lam. 3: 22-23) He longs to give us the desires of our hearts! (Ps. 37:4)  BUT…(there’s that conditional word…but!)  God’s promises are true; yet, they are conditional!  Don’t believe me?  Read the Word and see!  Here’s an example from 2 Chronicles 7: 14-16 (NIV):  “When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people,  if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. Now my eyes will be open and my ears attentive to the prayers offered in this place.  I have chosen and consecrated this temple so that my Name may be there forever. My eyes and my heart will always be there.”

There it is!  HIS Word for us!  “IF”…”THEN”.  God longs to forgive our sin and heal our land IF we will:  1. Humble ourselves 2.  Pray   3.  Seek His face   4.  Turn from their wicked ways

I propose that it is time to turn things around!  WE, as a generation of God’s people and as Christ-followers, must become less tolerant of and desensitized to the ways of this world and turn back to the precepts of God’s Word and beseech the God of the Universe to find favor with us and to turn our hearts back to Him.  May we work hard to become “one nation, under God…”

Please leave your comments…but not hate mail!