O.K. So today has been one of those quiet, reflective, “pondering” kind of days that I have really come to enjoy. Nothing pressing I had to do today and just a great time to hang out with Jesus.

I took the time to really reflect on my journey thus far with Jesus. It’s a choice I made (and boy am I sure glad I did) and my prayer along the way has always been in the form of Gen 24:42-

“O Lord…if you will, please grant success to the jorney on which I have come”  He has surely been ever gracious to me in answering that prayer. Sure there has been and will continue to be ups and downs, triumphs and disappointments, joy and sadness. Those are all the things that make the journey real. The best part is that yes, God has put me on this journey and He wants to join me in it, but ONLY if I will allow Him. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman who never forces anything on us but is ALWAYS there for us as our guide and comforter. Some of the Bible promises really came alive to me today as I pondered these simple realities of my walk with Jesus.

Deut. 31:8- “The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you: he will never leave you or forsake you” 

And in the New Testament Jesus promised, “Surely I am with you always, even to the very end of the age” (Math:28:20)

God always delivers on His promises. He has given me an inner peace that surpasses all understanding, a joy within that I just want to share with others that have not yet discovered their own journey with our Creator. Sure I still have some rough edges, anyone that knows me well can attest to that, but God continues to work on me (as I allow Him to) and He will keep on “until the day of Christ Jesus”

What I know is this: My old path promised peace and security that ended up in fear, anxiety, heartache and sorrow. It promised freedom, but instead I was a self centered slave to lust, greed, anger and bitterness. It promised me everything and left me with nothing……Nothing but a NEW path to follow, a new jorney with Jesus and a path that I know will lead me home. Hebrews 11:13 says we are “strangers and pilgrims on the Earth”. My heaven on Earth will be to march along this path and drag as many people along with me as I can. If I can spend the rest of my journey serving and helping to grow the local church, raising up, training and empowering new leaders while at the same time worshipping and honoring the name of Jesus, then there’s just not a whole lot more for which I could ask then, Is there?

Always choose the path that leads towards home.

What an amazing week it has been here in Pretoria. God has taken me on another unexpected journey, revealing Himself in so many ways day in and day out. Have been here since last Wednesday with a precious little 9 year old girl from Swaziland named Lomasontfo. What began as a simple trip to South Africa has really turned into another great “God” adventure. Lomasontfo has a rapidly growing aneurysmic bone cyst on her left mandible that has grown to the point of needing immediate attention if she was to survive. (look at all the fancy words I’m learning too)

 Our medical team at Childrens Cup has been working for months to get the Swazi government to pay for her treatment in South Africa as the Swazi doctors are simply not equipped to deal with her condition. Long story short, the progress was coming to a halt so our medical team and Cup staff went to work to find a way to get Lomasontfo some help. As always, after much hard work God came through in the form of help from Mission of Mercy who granted a substantial sum of money in order that her life could be saved. 

So here I go to Pretoria, South Africa with 3 people I don’t know and only one that speaks English as a native language. Along with Lomasontfo was her older sister, who initially was not too happy about the whole thing(had to bring a family member as we were transporting a minor across international borders as well as for medical consent) and Lori Schweighardt, a missionary who works with the church and CarePoint near Lomasontfos home. Lori is just an incredible lady who has worked with Lomasontfo for quite some time and really has a gift for children. She’s also pretty good at reading a map, keeping my directionally challenged self from getting hopelessly lost!!

In the midst of all the medical procedures and occasional frustrations that go along with such things (especially in Africa!!) God has been our constant comfort and companion, always paving the way in front of us and showing up just at the right time. There are way too many examples to try to capture them all here, but from providing a 3D CT scan at no charge, to finding a safe place to stay He has just blessed us beyond belief.

My heart was heavy for this incredible little girl as we started this journey, not knowing for sure whether she could be helped, or even the grim reality that she may not survive the surgery. Even though she is so severely afflicted she still has that childlike joy and innocence. You can see the smile in the pictures. She got her very first Barbie doll (well sorta, it was a knock off Barbie, coconut scented doll with a big sticker that said “smell me”)  as well as her first trip to Macdonalds on this trip. I was pretty excited about Macdonalds too!

 She doesn’t talk much but she loves to sing and dance, both of which she is very good at. It’s been so cool to watch her and her sister too as they really open up to the love that God has for them both. I can only hope that in some small way to be an example to them of the unending love of Jesus. These are ministry opportunities that are just priceless, I don’t want to miss a single one.

My prayers have gone from those of healing to those of simple love and thankfulness to God for the life of this beautiful child that He has so graciously allowed me to be a part of. God is in the healing business. He can and will heal her completely as He sees fit. As we continue to embrace His love, we are embracing His presence in our lives and if nothing else that’s the “Romans 8:38” kind of love I want them both to experience.

 And after all….If God be for us, who can be against us? Thanks for your love and prayers.   

O.K. So I’ve been a little slack in the blogging department. Sorry, I made 2 round trips to Mozambique in the past 7 days in addition to being “homeless” so I am just getting back to a somewhat normal routine….or at least as normal as it gets in Africa!! Here’s my random thoughts for today. I read a quote from Oswald Chambers the other day that has just really stuck with me. It goes something like this (actually it goes exactly like this or otherwise it wouldn’t be a quote now would it?)

“You should always recognize the difference between what you see Jesus to be and what He has done for you. If you only see what He has done for you, your God is not big enough” 

I think there are lots of people who are saved and going to heaven but have never really “seen” Jesus. They have received and share in Gods grace but boy are they ever missing out on so much more. They go through the motions of their day to day lives never stopping to take the time to look for Him. Yes, we have to look for Jesus. Many times His presence can be very easily seen through our human eyes, other times I think He play a game of divine “hide and seek” with us. He refuses to fit anywhere because He is everywhere although it seems many times we are all too quick to point out where we think God is not.

Jesus is with us in our grandest moments of happiness but also in our deepest, darkest moments of agony and despair. He is there when we are awake and when we are asleep, in our laughter and our tears, in our comings and our goings, to our left and to our right. NO one can see Jesus through your eyes, neither can you see Him for anyone else. We all need to get Him out of heaven and bring Him down to earth. Stop looking up and start looking out and around for Jesus in the midst of everything. We CAN discover Jesus in so many places where you just might not expect to find Him.

The pictures show some places i have seen Jesus lately. I will leave you with a thought and a question. I think if we spend more time celebrating what is good in this world, rather than constantly rallying against the evil things we would be so much more effective in helping people to see Jesus for themselves. Yes, I know evil does exist in this world. I probably know it as well or better than most. What I’m saying is we can fight it by concentrating on the “God” things in this world. Seems like it says so in the Bible…

Phil 4:8-9
Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise. 9 Keep putting into practice all you learned and received from me—everything you heard from me and saw me doing. Then the God of peace will be with you.
NLT

And the question…………How BIG is your God?

O.K.  Pictures are back for all you pic lovers. Sorry I been a liitle slack. You just would not believe how long it takes to upload a picture here. Here are pictures of some of my new friends from this week. (and one picture of the hands I thought was cool, THANKS Kelly, we miss you). Some of these kids are from Swaziland, some are from Mozambique where I got to visit the CarePoints this week with Kaitlyn and Patrick, 2 incredible people from Mission of Mercy.

Take a look at these children.  These are the faces of the future leaders of Africa. Here’s one of the things Jesus had to say about the children:

 Mark 9:36-37
 36 Then He took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, 37 “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”
NKJV
There’s just nothing better than to be able to take one of these precious children in your arms to let them know that they are loved, that someone truly cares about what happens to them every day. That someone cares that they have enough to eat, that they have warm clothes and a safe place to sleep, that they do not have to live in fear of abusive adults who should be loving and caring for them and most of all that someone cares enough about them to have a plan and purpose for each one of them. That someone is Jesus. I am so thankful to be able to partner with Him in some small way to introduce the children of Africa to SOMEONE. What an awesome God we serve!!! 

P.S.  Stay tuned for a new Top Ten list coming soon.  I got lots of new ones!!