prayer, pokot, peace (a.k.a. monday’s alliteration)
I have a lot of thoughts floating around in my head after the weekend and should have taken time to write some of them down yesterday rather than waiting until today, but, here I am contemplating them over lunch because I chose to spend the afternoon finishing my book for this week’s book club. 600 pages later I feel exhausted and a small sense of accomplishment for reading it quickly. More tornadoes last night so we spent some part of the evening hiding out in the church basement (since we don’t have one of our own) with an agitated cat who was angry about being shoved into her carrier, eating cereal bars for dinner due to the timing of the storm while we waited for the all clear.
The most important thing that we did this weekend was pray for my mom. She and I had been talking a bit lately about trusting that God could provide an entire healing of her body. She was challenged by a friend to not limit what He can do. I have struggled with this recently, I pray for Him to completely heal here and then I say ummm…if you can’t do that, then here is my secondary plan. Why do I limit Him? Why do I go to him with a laundry list of alternatives, in case He can’t do what I trust Him to do? Why does it scare me so much to trust so much? So, we laid hands on mom and we prayed for her to be healed. It is scary to put so much faith in God, it stretches me and challenges me. But, I have to rest in His assurance that He will do what He knows is best and right.
We had folks from C.O.P.E. come and share with us at church yesterday. This is a truly amazing ministry to the people of the Pokot tribe in West Africa. Barb (the American) and John (the Pokot tribesman) shared how much they have grown their ministry in the past couple of years. They started with a school of 45 children and they now have 750 children in school from pre-school to 8th grade. They also have 65 adults that they have in adult studies and they also have started programs to teach technical skills such as masonry, etc. They have been approached by the tribal leaders to start a high school at their site as well. They have opened a safe house (that has caused some death threats to them) for girls who want to escape arranged marriages, servitude or refuse to be subjected to female circumcision, a prevalent tradition. They have jump started pockets of the economy by providing the women seed money and supplies to make beaded jewelry that is sold in the states. The women are now self-sufficient and can buy their own supplies and make an extra income from these sales. They are teaching an illiterate culture to read, they are teaching about infection, good hygiene, and fighting starvation. They feed 800 people two meals a day and employ 45 local folks in the school alone. In the midst of it all they are teaching them all how much Jesus loves them.
John spoke and was so compelling, in his broken English. He spoke with such compassion, clarity and thought. He shared so many profound things that the church in America forgets or doesn’t get and it amazes me that in West Africa, there are followers of Christ who do get it! He said that he knows that they are not called to reach all of the Pokot (over 200,000) but they are called to touch the lives of those who come to the school and by doing this, they can reach many, many more. He said that a man who is starving or dying can’t hear the gospel; he has much more immediate needs that override his need to hear about a savior. He said that our lives are more of a reflection if we live with love because people won’t hear what we are saying, but they will see how we live. He said that we should think that nothing is impossible..if we believe in our God who makes all things possible.
I think that is where I am today, believing in a God who does impossible things and trusting that He will…holding onto that promise because I have nothing else to hold on to and trusting in the peace that brings.
listening: “streets of soho” from little peppermints by antje duvekot
reading: bee season by myla goldberg
The most important thing that we did this weekend was pray for my mom. She and I had been talking a bit lately about trusting that God could provide an entire healing of her body. She was challenged by a friend to not limit what He can do. I have struggled with this recently, I pray for Him to completely heal here and then I say ummm…if you can’t do that, then here is my secondary plan. Why do I limit Him? Why do I go to him with a laundry list of alternatives, in case He can’t do what I trust Him to do? Why does it scare me so much to trust so much? So, we laid hands on mom and we prayed for her to be healed. It is scary to put so much faith in God, it stretches me and challenges me. But, I have to rest in His assurance that He will do what He knows is best and right.
We had folks from C.O.P.E. come and share with us at church yesterday. This is a truly amazing ministry to the people of the Pokot tribe in West Africa. Barb (the American) and John (the Pokot tribesman) shared how much they have grown their ministry in the past couple of years. They started with a school of 45 children and they now have 750 children in school from pre-school to 8th grade. They also have 65 adults that they have in adult studies and they also have started programs to teach technical skills such as masonry, etc. They have been approached by the tribal leaders to start a high school at their site as well. They have opened a safe house (that has caused some death threats to them) for girls who want to escape arranged marriages, servitude or refuse to be subjected to female circumcision, a prevalent tradition. They have jump started pockets of the economy by providing the women seed money and supplies to make beaded jewelry that is sold in the states. The women are now self-sufficient and can buy their own supplies and make an extra income from these sales. They are teaching an illiterate culture to read, they are teaching about infection, good hygiene, and fighting starvation. They feed 800 people two meals a day and employ 45 local folks in the school alone. In the midst of it all they are teaching them all how much Jesus loves them.
John spoke and was so compelling, in his broken English. He spoke with such compassion, clarity and thought. He shared so many profound things that the church in America forgets or doesn’t get and it amazes me that in West Africa, there are followers of Christ who do get it! He said that he knows that they are not called to reach all of the Pokot (over 200,000) but they are called to touch the lives of those who come to the school and by doing this, they can reach many, many more. He said that a man who is starving or dying can’t hear the gospel; he has much more immediate needs that override his need to hear about a savior. He said that our lives are more of a reflection if we live with love because people won’t hear what we are saying, but they will see how we live. He said that we should think that nothing is impossible..if we believe in our God who makes all things possible.
I think that is where I am today, believing in a God who does impossible things and trusting that He will…holding onto that promise because I have nothing else to hold on to and trusting in the peace that brings.
listening: “streets of soho” from little peppermints by antje duvekot
reading: bee season by myla goldberg
posted by Anna at
12:59 PM
1 Comments:
I do most definitely love you. Let's take a walk when you get home since dinner's already made.
By
Casey Tygrett, at 4:40 PM, April 03, 2006
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