Your Love is Relentless

Zambia Progress Update

2013-04-05T21:45:00.001-04:00

If you`ve kept up with me in blog world you would remember in December when I announced that I would be doing a fundraiser for World Vision: Zambia in memory of my sponsor child, Melody, who died last September unexpectedly. The grand total of $1500 was donated in her memory by January first and this week I got the first progress report! As I shared before, World Vision has decided to rebuild/add onto Melody`s gradeschool... where her little siblings will all attend school as well.

They have finally had everything transferred into Kwacha (Zambian currency) and have begun to buy supplies such as windows, concrete, and wood.

Here are a few pictures of the progress so far!

The schoolhouse

The supplies along with the headmaster of the school,
and Melody`s mother and father who you see carrying flowers in her memory.

And lastly, the World Vision staff used $100 to donate to Melody`s father, Rodson, in order for him to buy fertilizer for all of his farm land. He supports his entire family, along with mother-in-law with his farmland. He shared in his letter to me that the fertilizer is a vital part in ensuring a good harvest and he thanks God for the donation and provision over his family.

Rodson and his fertilizer!

I will keep you updated as more pictures or news comes. It all takes a long time to get done and then sent here. I am so excited that God has given me the chance to be just a small part of the Muchimba`s lives through building up the school and through supporting Melody`s father. Melody was and still is a beautiful gift in my life and I am so happy to be able to give back. Thank you for your support and prayers for this amazing family and the work of World Vision in Zambia!

In Memory of Melody

2012-11-23T20:06:00.001-05:00

You may remember back to last year, when I relayed the story about Melody Muchimba in my report back after spending three weeks in Zambia. I explained briefly that Melody had been my sponsor child through World Vision since I was only 13 years old, and that I would have the chance to actually meet her face to face and spend the day with her and her family.

And I was. I was able to meet Melody, as her mom called her to come from her small one room hut that she shared with her 6 siblings. And we spent the day together as she taught me about her small home and her daily life in southern Zambia. She introduced me to her mother, father, siblings, and her grandmother who still lived with them. She also introduced me to dozens of neighbors who had come to celebrate the coming of the “muzungu” white man. It was one of the most memorable days of my life, and not only can I remember it distinctly, but I will always remember it distinctly.

Little did I know that in the first week of October 2012 Melody, weeks after her 18^th birthday, would lose her life here on earth.

I cannot explain the grief that struck me, for more reasons than one, and the hardship it still is to let go of her and trust God’s plan. God’s plan to take the life of a beautiful, talented, gifted young 18 year old who dreamed of making a difference for herself and many others. The life of one who loved him and desired to see many others love him too. I don’t understand it and the anger I have dealt with, but I am daily giving that anger and grief of her family, her loves ones, and myself to the Lord, trying to trust.

All I know today is that I can be so thankful that somehow, world vision chose Melody. That somehow a 13 year olds parents from Missouri chose Melody one night after a concert. That somehow God had ordained this beautiful girl to know him and be known by him. And she did. She was chosen and now she is rejoicing with him in heaven. So many loved her and cherished her dreams.

One of those dreams includes the ability for children in her area to be educated, all of them. Because of that Melody’s parents have accepted a donation of about $1500 to go towards rebuilding and expanding Melody’s school, which is in need of repair as well as space to incorporate more children into their program. This is the direct quote from the Charles, the director of World Vision Zambia: "The family is humbled by the gift, and suggested that the gift go towards the rehabilitation of a 1 x 2 classroom block at Chikanta. This is a school which Melody attended, together with three siblings. The siblings are still there, it also provide an opportunity for other children in the community to attend school. Most schools have challenges such as limited number of classrooms which hinders a lot of children from attending and furthering their education. The family said it is the best way to honor and remember their late child if more children in the community are given the chance to progress in their education."

I plan to donate that money before Christmas of 2012 so they can start building by January 1^st. Any extra donations will go to cover books, chalkboards, and uniforms for the children. The addition will be dedicated in memory of Melody Muchimba.

I write to share with you the legacy of a girl who changed my life. In 2010 when I went headed off to Zambia it was only because my heart was there with Melody. Knowing the desperate needs of her and her family opened my heart to God in a way nothing ever had before. The poverty of their world opened up the poverty of my own heart. When I heard the words from Melody’s mouth that she wanted to be a nurse one day, tears streamed down my cheeks. She would have nothing less than helping other children to very literally reach their very own dreams.

Melody, me, and her two younger sisters who will attend the school

Melody`s school

If you would like to donate please contact me via e-mail: lesleyrwilkinson@gmail.com Otherwise, I want to remind you of the encouraging and beautiful story of this girl and I hope that her memory will live on through our hearts and our actions, especially in the way we love Jesus.

Erinnernd

2012-08-12T15:03:00.002-04:00

Today I am thinking about you Africa. I am thinking about you Zambia. I am thinking about you sweet Melody and your beautiful family in Southern Zambia. I am praying for you.

I am thinking about you CURE and the little and thousands of lives you are touching. I am praying for your wise hands, wise decisions, loving hearts, and spirit-filled souls.

He is good. Never forget in your seasons of weariness, dryness, temptation, mountain climbing, fear... He is good.

He is with you.

Zambia...2012

2012-02-28T12:49:00.001-05:00

I am broken hearted already to think that I will not be going back to Zambia this summer. I won`t be hugging those precious children and singing with them into all hours of the night. I won`t see doctors and nurses praying hours over the lives of their patients and giving them food, water, and a place to lay their heads each night.

Because of my health and circumstances of life, God isn`t calling me back to Zambia...at least not yet. But I am excited to share with you that instead of a GO Team, there will be two nursing teams going to the hospital from the USA. Cure headquarters hopes to send to teams of registered nurses to go and help by serving the hospital in the clinics and children`s ward, each for a couple of weeks in late summer. I know that will be an incredible asset to the hospital staff, and especially to the children, who love to see us Mazungus (white people).

I will keep you all updated, especially with further prayer requests and possibly needs that may arise. For now I am excited to see the furthering of the kingdom through Beit Cure and their work in Zambia especially. I also pray that this will be a life-changing trip for the nurses from the USA who decide to embark on it.

As we search for HOPE this holiday, let us also HELP others find it

2011-12-01T11:34:00.001-05:00

I am 22 years old now. I grew up in a very poor Cambodian family. My parents didn’t own land, so we worked as laborers on other people’s farms. My parents were very violent towards my siblings and me. We never felt love for them. We lived in fear and shame. I never went to school because I had to work all day. It was hard to imagine having a good future.

I still don’t believe my mother thought I had value. Money was more valuable to her than me. To them I was just a laborer. When my parents fell into debt, they sold me for $500 to a family.

The family treated me like a slave. The husband attempted to rape me many times, but I refused with all my strength. He hit me every time I refused. One day I decided to run away from the family, but I got caught. They hit me with electric wire. I stayed there, but I did not give up.

Finally, I escaped with a man I fell in love with. We got married. He introduced me to his parents and they rejected me because I was poor and homeless.

One day my husband and I were in a very serious car accident and my leg was broken. We went to the hospital for care and he left me and never came back. I felt rejected and hopeless. I wanted to kill myself because I thought that no one wanted me.

The hospital sent me to Hagar’s Women Shelter. I was so nervous when I arrived. I didn’t know anyone. I cried. My legs felt horrible. And, I did not have the will to live.

Hagar staff were persistent and encouraged me. Their words were so wonderful. Living in the shelter, gave me hope. I received care, love, counseling, food and other things I never expected to have in my life. Job training from Hagar’s Career Pathways Program in cosmetology really helped me recover. I have a skill that belongs to me and I can support myself. I have value and worth. Now I can say,

“I am priceless. I am more valuable than money.”

Even though my leg still hasn’t healed, Hagar staff keep praying for me. I have hope that God will heal me completely one day, and I just keep praying and waiting.

-Malis

"We are entering a season of light. Trees will sparkle. Candles will glow. Stars glisten as a reminder of God's light of the world. But in Cambodia, Afghanistan, and Vietnam, there are thousands of women and children in darkness. They are abused, trafficked, and rejected by society. During this season of light, will you help more women and children move out of darkness? Together, we can bring light to very dark places. In God's eyes, each woman and child is priceless."

This girl is my age.

We need to wake up from the reality of our own self-centered minds and discover the desparate need for hurting lives all over the world. Whether it is the woman in Cambodia struggling to survive, or the hurting neighbor nextdoor, Jesus let us love like you. Let this season of searching for light in our own hearts and homes bring us more love to share that light with others. Move us to give, pray, serve, love the broken.

Cure Cards-FOR SALE

2011-10-30T21:45:00.006-04:00

Cure Cards-FOR SALE

I am still selling packs of blank cards with photos from Zambia-Go Team 2010 and 2011, 5 for $15, 10 for $25, to help raise support for Cure Zambia.
These funds will go to supporting children in need of surgery. I hope you will join me in supporting Cure and also spread the word about what Cure International is doing all over the world through sharing these cards. Let me know by leaving a comment or e-mail if you want to buy cards. I am also glad to mail them. (lrwilks@vt.edu)

When I think of you

2011-10-07T19:08:00.000-04:00

When I think of you...

Every problem I could ever have becomes obsolete

Every doubt I have in God`s provision disappears into the air

Every worry that fills my minds becomes prayers for you and your family

Every anxious desire is met with the realization of how much our God loves us

Everything in this world takes its place before the maker of heaven and earth and I am humbled

I am thankful for...

2011-08-24T14:50:00.000-04:00

o Having food in plenty

o An incredible family who loves me and reveals Jesus to me

o Clean, running water

o Hot showers

o A refrigerator

o Beautiful friendships

o A bible based, missional church body

o Wise women who pour into my life

o Having a bible and being able to read it publicly

o A bed

o Air conditioning

o A car

o Challenging conversations

o Faithful, steadfast, loving God

Help a meet a huge need in Zambia!

2011-08-23T20:10:00.001-04:00

Hey I just received this from JA who is still in Zambia at the CURE Hospital...Pastor Justin served with us last year and this year and is in a tight spot with his family and finances...keep reading if you want to know how you can help!

So if you read my latest blog entry, then you read a story at the bottom about Pastor Justin (from the outreach) and Blessings. Mutinta (his wife), Blessings, and their 5 and a half month old daughter Think Grace have been hopping family and friends homes for around 2 months now because they can't pay for the water bills, or an electric one that would amount to anything. Justin is paying the bare minimum for electric, and the water has been shut off because they have around $350 to pay for overdue bills.

I was able to have dinner with Mutinta when Harold invited me over for dinner on Friday. Several times I just had to look away cause if I looked at her too long I was going to cry. I also got to hold Think Grace and play with her. There is NO reason why they can't be at home with their dad, and it's time that we saw to that.

I have no clue where any of you are financially. So please don't feel like I'm cornering you. If you don't have many to spare, it's fine. But I do know some hard facts for us to swallow: we're rich, even if we're poor by American standards. We could easily skip a few meals. Add that to the fact that Harold said about $50-60/month should give the family good electricity and keep the water running, and my heart can't stop breaking for their situation.

So we for sure need $350, but I would love to set them up for a year. I asked Harold, and this is the best way to go about it.

Again, I know it's short notice, but God's done a lot bigger things in 1 day, so we have one week (and we have Him on our side). Ask your friends, your family, your church. Let's reunite this family.

Love ya.
And hello from Africa.-JA

Let me know if you want to help!

A Taste of Africa

2011-08-16T22:23:00.003-04:00

Kumulu

Kumulu mayo

Eko ine nkabila

Kwa lesa

Kwa lesa mayo

Eko ine nkabila

Kugulu

Kugulu bama

Eko ine nkabila

These are the words to one of the songs we sang multiple times a day in Zambia both last year and this year. The song was written by Pastor Gongalo, the pastor of the local bush church, and put to work by all the locals who love the song! The words mean 'My desire is to be in heaven' in three different languages, three local Zambian languages. These words should be the desire of each one of our hearts. I know I want them to be mine, and I pray through Christ they will be. They definitely make me want to sing and dance!

The Battle is On

2011-08-14T00:41:00.002-04:00

I have been trying to write this blog for nearly an hour and I am still not satisfied. The first time I tried to write I was angry. Complaining about consumerism, legalism, lacking compassion, our endless lust and coveting, our misunderstanding of love, and so much more. I read over my thoughts and knew my pessimism would help no one, inluding myself. So I started to write again and after reading it, I knew it sounded so fake. All the hurt, pain, and sin was masked by a layer of false perfection and artificial love. Then I stopped and realized the battle that is going on in my life and mind is happening in my writing.

I spent the last week resting and recovering from being sick, and realized today, my battle is at it’s peak. The battle of two worlds colliding in my mind and in my experiences as I try to go about a normal American life once again. The Africa in me is colliding with the America in me.

Last year when I came home from Africa the hardest thing for me was the stuff. The endless amount of worthless stuff we as Americans harbor and save. I was moved to donate much of what I owned for the needs of others. Only to find out I still had more than enough stuff. I was moved to start giving more of my money to specific needs I a saw in those around me. I was convicted to start spending less on myself and giving more away to others. And I struggled as I watched the world around me only wanting more stuff, buying more gadgets, new clothes, and amazingly enough, still never being satisfied with what they had.

This year, the Lord pierced my heart deeper and relentlessly. And I believe it’s the most important reason he brought me back to Africa. He took me from the stuff to the reason for the stuff. He took me from the ridiculous amount we spend and ridiculous amount we accumulate to the reason why we always want more and are never satisifed. He showed me that it isn’t a problem of culture or region but of our hearts. It is a problem of humanity.

Children in Zambia are dying daily from starvation and malnutrition. Yet children in America are starved daily of the affection and love of a parent, or anyone at all. Is one worse than the other? When I try to fathom the things that I saw and experienced in Africa I begin to compare them with my experiences here in America. They cannot be compared: the places, the people, the governments, the resources. None of it. I am reminded of Jesus’ word’s in Matthew 5: ‚everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment for murder, everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ There is no comparison. They are the same sins of our flesh, of our broken humanity. And the most incredible miracle of all is that although we sit and compare, Jesus doesn’t. He sees them all the same and he forgives them all the same. And these are his words to us:

'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’

Matthew 25: 34-40

So whether it be a dying orphan in Zambia, or a love starved child at daycare in Missouri…let us love them as our own. Whether it be a woman worn by years of tough living and tasks much harder than she can manage or a woman struggling with the burden of pain and emotional turmoil…let us comfort her. Whether it be a teenager faced with the temptations this world has to offer or a teenager flawed by the fear of never going to school or never being wanted…let us show them what they’re worth.

As odd as it may sound I am thankful for having malaria. In perspective it doesn’t compare, but as a young, healthy, American, I am grateful to have experienced only for a couple of weeks the disease, which takes the life of 1 child every 40 seconds in Africa. I am grateful to have survived it, to learn to be thankful for the medical care and education I have access to. And I am thankful for the time it has given me to read and think and allowed God to teach me and mold my heart. I am so quick to focus on the bad, the pain, the ugly, and the sorrow of life. Sometimes I get so lost in it, that I am incapable of seeing the good, the beauty, the joy, and the room for change. Yet I know that is exactly who my God is. He is a God who breaks into the pain and the ugly and creates beauty and good. He is the God who leaves his place of perfection and holiness to dwell with the sinners and the losers. It is who He is. And it is who He has called us to be.

I pray He breaks my heart for His people everywhere. Because He is not only the God of Africa, or America, He is the God of His people, everywhere.

Grace, a precious orphan being treated at Cure for club feet

All this pain
I wonder if I'll ever find my way?
I wonder if my life could really change at all?
All this earth
Could all that is lost ever be found?
Could a garden come up from this ground at all?

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of us

All around
Hope is springing up from this old ground
Out of chaos life is being found in You

You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of the dust
You make beautiful things
You make beautiful things out of us

Home and recovering

2011-08-11T11:38:00.000-04:00

Micah: an incredible orphaned boy being treated at Cure for club feet

I wanted to write a quick note to let everyone know I am home safe. Everything with the flights and baggage went smooth as ever before, no problems at all. And I arrived home tuesday evening to STL. My only goal this week is to sleep a lot and rest and try to get over malaria and its side effects before school starts up again on the 22nd. I am also spending time with my family and a few friends here in STL before heading back to Blacksburg. Sharing my pictures and writings are definitely on my to do list as well as sending out a report back letter to all of you to share what God did and what I learned. But for now I am resting and processing all that has happened in the past month and I look forward to being able to share more of that with all of you who so diligently supported and prayed for our ministry with Cure in Zambia.

'May you have the eyes of your heart enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might.' Ephesians 1:18-19

Last Update

2011-08-04T06:07:00.000-04:00

Thank you to those who were aware and were praying for me to recover quickly. I came down with Malaria on tuesday but after starting treatment I am feeling so much better already. It is definitely a blessing that I am staying at a hospital and working with an abundance of nurses. I have plenty of people to take care of me.

Meanwhile the team was busy organizing the supply closet and repacking all the materials from the outreach week. They also were able to watch a few surgeries and shadows different doctors and nurses throughout the past two days. They had a great time and experienced lots of new things. Yesterday they led the staff devotional with song and sharing about their experiences while being here in Zambia and what God has taught them. We, especially me, are laying low today enjoying the weather and playing with the kids recovering in the ward and then we will have an early to bed night since we will be off to Livingstone tomorrow around 4 am. We will spend tomorrow and Saturday there and then return on Sunday. Then we will head off to America on Monday afternoon! Each day seems to go by slowly, but to think we have been here nearly three weeks, it has gone by much too fast.

I am grateful to God for all the time here in the word and in prayer with the Lord. I am also grateful for new experiences and lessons learned through the different circumstances that have come up. More than anything I am grateful for the struggles, my own personally, and for those of the team, because they have taught me so much and made me so excited to go home and to apply those lessons to my life and my ministry in Blacksburg. I deeply desire God to change my heart towards the importance of relationships in my life and help me to see them and value them more. I also deeply desire God to make the Gospel more alive in my life and help me to share it more freely and more often, that many can experience the saving knowledge and love of Christ Jesus.

Leaving is always bittersweet. But I am trusting God to help me through the hardships and bring to light the things of importance and beauty for me to focus on and be changed by.

Deeper, deeper, deeper in love

2011-07-31T16:54:00.002-04:00

This prideful side of me

lifts my fists and shakes at you

This prideful side of me

is being broken down by love

Oh you love me deeper, deeper, father

This broken side of me

it needs you so badly

This broken side of me

doesn’t understand you at all

Oh I need you deeper, deeper, Father.

This child side of me

lifts my hands to be held by you

This child side of me

is ecstatic in your love

Oh I love you deeper, deeper, father

I’m up to my toes

I’m up to my ankles

I’m up to my waist

I’m up to my neck

Deeper, deeper, deeper in love with you

Deeper, deeper, deeper in love

I built a palace around my heart

Would not let you have a part

Now come dismantle every room

Widen it and make it bloom

Your healing and rebuilding me

And my affections rise to sing

That everywhere the river flows

Your bringing life and bringing hope

Everywhere the river flows

Your bringing life and bringing hope

The lyrics to this song bring the past 7 days to life as my words fail to. They were days of hard work, much joy, spiritual chaos, precious smiles, endless singing and dancing, serving until it hurt, loving without expectations…

God answered prayers abundantly more than we could have asked or thought: protection, a harvest of hearts ready to hear the gospel, huge turnouts for our afternoon activities and Jesus Film showings each night, growth in attendance as each day progressed, great health amongst our team and the locals, many new believers, growth amongst the discipleship and leadership classes, and many new lessons learned.

And yet amidst the growth and the beauty there was disunity, complaining, exhaustion, hurt feelings, aches and pains, challenged hearts, unhealed wounds, broken spirits…

We are sinners. Our hearts are deceitfully wicked above all things, who can even understand it? The things we do, say, and think. It is a constant battle.

Oh we need you deeper, deeper, Father. We are in desperate need of a savior. I saw that more this week than I have in a long time.

And we have a savior, the Savior.

He gave his life for our pride, our brokenness, our selfishness, and our insufficiency. He substituted his perfection for our utter depravity. He loves us deeper, deeper, deeper. He loves us as our perfect Father. He loves us as perfect husband. He loves us as a perfect friend. He is more than enough for every want, need, and desire and he gives us eternal satisfaction.

That is what I saw this week. I saw a God who loves African bush children that have nothing. Nothing. Nothing but the smiles of joy on their faces and the melodies of Jehovah on their lips in constant rhythm. Yet they are completely content in who they are and what they have. And they are thankful. I saw a God who loves selfish Americans like me who have everything. Everything. Everything that leads to constant distractions and tempting permanence of ungratefulness. We are never content in who we are or with what we have. And yet he loves us. Yet he chooses to use us, in our utter depravity, to reveal his glory to even those who have nothing.

It is a beautiful paradox. An incredible story. A truthful testimony. Just like the song lyrics, life is process. It is a progression of seeing and realizing our sin, and feeling the weight it hold on us. Then seeing and realizing our need for him, our need to be washed clean. Then reaching out and telling him, being honest and transparent before him, trusting he will still love us. And as the progression continues we are led from telling ourselves he loves us to overflowing with a continuous relentless love for him. For only him.

And we look back and we see that in a dry and scorched land, his brought living water to our souls and filled us overflowing. And he does it again. He has done it for me time and time again in my life, and this week was another example of his love and grace over my life. He is healing and rebuilding me and I pray my affections rise only to Him. Everywhere his river flows he brings healing, life and hope.

Remember not the former days, nor consider the past.

See I am doing a new thing. Can’t you see it?

I am making a way in your wilderness and rivers in your deserts.

–Isaiah 43:18-19

Off to Mpongwe

2011-07-24T19:12:00.000-04:00

For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways,
declares the LORD.
  As the heavens are higher than the earth,
   so are my ways higher than your ways
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.
-Isaiah 55:8-9


Please pray for the team and I this Monday through Sunday as we venture out into the bush, Mpongwe northern Zambia, for 7 days of ministry. Pray for safety in traveling and especially for strength and stamina to not only make it through the long days and little amount of sleep, but that we would be filled with strength to minister and worship with the people of the villages and to share Jesus with our entire lives while we minister to them. Pray God would be our focus and bring unity to our team, to the Zambians we will be joining, and to the locals assisting us in ministry. Pray many will find healing, physically and spiritually. To God be all the glory, the honor, and the praise. He is worthy and he is the reason for it all. We take joy in the fact that he uses us for his work, though he doesn't need us. It is for his fame and his renown.

The team has arrived!

2011-07-21T16:26:00.001-04:00

Short update to let you know that the team has arrived safe and sound in Lusaka today! They only lost one bag, which will come tomorrow, and all the supplies were untouched through customs and nothing broken, praise the Lord for that answer to prayer.

We did a short orientation and tour of the hospital and played soccer for about an hour before eating and then watching them slowly fade, one by one. They are all exhausted and resting now to be prepared for many long, tiring days ahead. Tomorrow we will join a team of about 20 volunteers to paint the Children's ward. It is very exciting and with bring color and life to the ward in many ways. We are excited to serve alongside the staff here and serve Cure through funding the entire painting project through our fundraising!

It will be a full day tomorrow and then some days of rest this weekend before we pack Sunday night and head out to Mpongwe on Monday to the bush outreach for 6 days. We are all so excited and anticipating many challenges and times of being stretched and learning to lean on the Lord in new ways-the team is ready and excited for what God has ahead for them!

The lips of the righteous feed many,

but fools die for lack of sense.

Proverbs 10:20

Please pray that through the Spirit our words will be His and will feed the hundreds of spiritually starving people we will meet along our path to Mpongwe and as we serve there in the bush area. Pray for God to prepare the soil of their hearts so His truth will sink deep into their souls.

Limitless

2011-07-21T15:54:00.001-04:00

Miles and miles of outstretched savannah lie before me,

clouds of dust sweep across the horizon

The land is barren and the vegetation aching,

yet I see glimpses of life hidden within

The scent of water brings life to every being, sustaining every mile,

Near every small spring, shallow pond, or winding river abundance of life is found

I see in those waters the current of a God who loves his creation, who cares for every insignificant bird, giving to all their food in due time

A tree, few and prized, brings refuge to its land,

animals take refuge in its shade and seek escape in its branches

I see in those trees the protection of a God who loves his creation, who

spreads wide his wings over us and leads us under his shadow

Though the land is barren, trees and waters scarce,

I see a God whose power to sustain is limitless

Though life brings drought and seasons of doubt,

I see reason to believe even then my God will sustain

Mabukabuti (Good morning in Tonga)

2011-07-20T18:51:00.003-04:00

Learning how to make porridge in the village

I finally arrived in Lusaka, Zambia on Monday around 3 am after enduring a 3 hour power outage in Nairobi which messed up all the flights of course. Luckily with the delay I made my next connection and made it to Cure around 3:30! I slept a few hours and then had a full morning at the hospital before getting on the bus to Choma. I stayed one night in Choma and then today was spent with World Vision Zambia staff and meeting my sponsor child, Melody. There aren't words at all to describe what it was like. I will definitely post pictures once I am home. I was able to see the medical clinic and school World Vision built for their ADP area in Zambia as well as go to Melody's home and be welcomed into her family with dancing, singing, and tears, and MUCH JOY. It was incredible. We talked and played games and cooked and danced. Her mother, through tears, thanked me with the most sincere thankfulness I have ever heard in my life, for giving the the support they need to raise their 7 children and sustain their small farm. And with tears I thanked them for showing me what it means to be thankful, I told them how Melody had been a picture of that in my life, for so many years. How although I had never met them, they taught me what it meant to be thankful for each and every thing the Lord provides for us. From our most basic needs to the abundant gifts he bestows on us. Melody and her family taught me their exists beauty in this world I couldn't even fathom before beginning to sponsor her.
The most special moment for me was when I asked her what she wants to do after secondary school and she replied, I want to be a nurse. The whole day I held in tears, but especially in that moment. I was able to share even my heart for healing with this precious sister. She will make an incredible nurse in Zambia some day, maybe even for Cure International.

I could write forever about my time with her...but I will save more for later. I arrived back in Lusaka late this evening and am eagerly awaiting the Go Team's arrival around 1 pm tomorrow. And then 3 full weeks of long days and tiring ministry sustained by the power and strength of our God will begin! I am so excited.

Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

John 6:28-29

Melody's grandmother dancing out of thanksgiving

Jesus calls us only to believe, that is our work, our job, our purpose. It is through our believing and trusting in him that we share our lives with others and through that, the incredible news of the Gospel of Christ Jesus.

Melody's mother helping us cook, with two of her sisters watching

Melody's dad teaching all about his farm

Safari Survivors

2011-07-17T12:08:00.001-04:00

Welcome to the Serengeti

Jack and I returned today from our 3 day Serengeti and Ngorongoro crater safari. It was incredible, and challenging in lots of ways. It goes without saying that the scenery was absolutely breathtaking and the animals, stunning. We saw every african animal except rhino, and most of them only 5-10 ft from the car, even lions! The safari was thrilling but my favorite parts were camping in the Serengeti with rangers walking around with assault riffles, meeting Jack's friends and getting to know them a little better, talking with our guide Hassan and our cook, Jonathan, and definitely taking in all the scenery, through the clouds of dust. We saw beautiful sunrises and sunsets and the crisp horizon of the Savannah meeting the blue skies. I loved spending that time with my crazy-Africa-loving brother and comrades. It was an adventure I will never forget, for more reasons than one.
Tonight and tomorrow morning will be our last time in Arusha and I will head to Lusaka around 3 pm and Jack will maybe stay one night and then head to Zanzibar and a few other places before he returns to the US for school. Pray for the team coming the long hall from the US tomorrow to Lusaka. They will arrive Wednesday around lunch time. Pray for safe travels for myself, all connections and luggage to be worked out, only so I will be on schedule to meet my precious sponsor child, Melody, and shower her and her family with gifts! I cannot wait to see everyone at the hospital and then to meet Melody and see her village, school, and family! It will be an eventful next few days. The Lord is going before us and he goes with us, that I cling to.

"I set you as a seal upon my heart, as a seal upon my arm. For love is as strong as death, jealousy demanding as the grave. The flames of the Lord are fierce. Many waters cannot quench this love, nor flood drown it."
Song of Solomon 8:6-7

Along the Safari

One of our campsites

Karibu Tanzania

2011-07-14T06:32:00.001-04:00

I am just writing a quick note to let everyone know I am alive and well in Tanzania. It has been a great couple of days visiting with him and exploring Arusha. Today we will do some hiking and then from Friday to Sunday we will be on a safari! It is going to be an exciting and crazy trip, I am loving all the time with my brother, and trying to overcome my jetlag. I rode my first motorcycle and went to my first African bar. Karibu Tanzania, welcome to Tanzania. I may write again before the safari, otherwise from Lusaka!

"And the word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glor,

glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth."

John 1:14

One Hour

2011-07-11T21:12:00.000-04:00

In one short hour I will board the plane to London and then be on the way to Tanzania. My heart is excited but my thoughts are definitely anxious and worried. I pray this trip will be one of great confirmation and wisdom in discerning what God has for me with my future. I hope serving these children and the weak and destitute of this world will open my eyes once again to the vital importance of trusting and relying on my God, everyday, because I am weak and destitute. I pray it will move me to greater faith and to seeing the truths of the Word magnified and exalted above all the worries, sins, struggles, and burdens I so often focus on in my life.

This is really the core issue of it all. Do we trust him?

Do we trust Jesus when he tells us to give radically for the sake of the poor?

Do we trust him to provide for us when we begin using the resources

he has given us to provide for others? Do we trust him to know

what is best for our lives, our families, and our financial futures?

The will of God is for you and me to give our lives urgently and recklessly to making the gospel and the glory of God known among all peoples, particularly those who have never even heard of Jesus. The question, therefore, is not “Can we find God’s will?’

The question is “Will we obey God’s will?”

-Radical by David Platt

These are the prayers of my heart spoken by David Platt. The questions he asks pierce my heart and definitely bring anxiety to my heart. Do I trust my God in that way? Do I obey my God in all things, the most crucial and central purpose of my life: in making the gospel and glory of God known among all peoples? So often the answer to those question is no. I pray this time serving in Zambia and seeing the work of God in those places will teach me how to answer those questions with a resounding, YES! My God is worthy, my God is everything. There is no reason to not say YES!

Even a tree has more hope!
      If it is cut down, it will sprout again
      and grow new branches.
Though its roots have grown old in the earth
      and its stump decays,
at the scent of water it will bud
      and sprout again like a new seedling.

-Job 14:7-9

May these verses be a picture of the lives in Zambia as hundreds of people find physical healing to death bringing diseases. May these verses be a picture of their hearts as they experience spiritual healing as they meet the God who created them, who brings them the water so they will sprout again, so they will have life again in his name and bear fruit!

'Liebe Gott, We praise you for who you are and for what you've done. We are nothing without you. We are broken and sinful and needy and empty. You have given us life, you have restored our souls and redeemed our lives from the pit! We praise you God for your incredible love and gift of grace poured out over our lives. We are so undeserving. Lord I pray you go before me as I travel and protect me and my luggage carrying supplies to Zambia. I pray you will be the luggage that I carry. I pray your name will be the tag on my life that is visible to all. I pray I will speak for your glory and stand for your fame. Lord I lift up the team to you and pray that you continue to prepare their hearts and their minds as they think and plan for this trip. Lord may all the issues and worries with traveling and baggage fall into place and may they use these little experiences to learn to trust you more. God I pray you bring in the remaining funds needed for some of the team members and once again that you use your providence as a way of teaching them about who you are, Jehovah Jireh, and that you are faithful to be trusted! Gott I thank you that you have chosen and appointed us to go and share your name and glory with your people of Zambia. I pray Father that you will be the voice spoken through our mouths and the love shown through our hands and feet as we serve. Lord may this entire trip, every aspect, exist to glorify you. Take our pain, our shame, our sin, our baggage, Lord use it for your glory. Danke, thank you father, for everything.'

Be all my hopes, be all my dreams
You're my delights
Be my everything

And I will worship You, Lord
Only You, Lord
And I will bow down before You
Only You, Lord

And it's just You and me here now
Only You and me here now

Your name and renown

2011-07-10T01:28:00.001-04:00

Yes, LORD, walking in the way of your laws, we wait for you;

your name and renown are the desire of our hearts.

Isaiah 26:8

As always the Lord provides. He truly is Jehovah Jireh. Sometimes he provides just the opportunity for worry to arise, that we can learn to place our full trust in him.

My insurance is back up and running and with that the malaria meds are beginning to be taken! I spoke with World Vision headquarters today and they have finalized everything for me to visit my sponsor child, Melody, and her school and family on July 19th. What an answer to years of loving this sweet girl. I also cannot believe that although she was only 9 when I started sponsoring her, she will be 17 in September! It will be the last year I can sponsor her. What a blessing to be able to meet her, see her, hug her, and definitely cry with her.

Please continue to pray that all the cards and ALL supplies the team is carrying will arrive safely and nothing will be stolen as they pass through customs into South Africa and Zambia. Pray the Lord watches over them and brings everything safely to the hospital!

I spent yesterday in West Virginia with JA, my co-leader for the team, talking and planning for all that lies ahead. Bailey, another team member from last year, also joined us and it was an exciting time to anticipate and look forward for all that God has in store for us, for the team, and for Zambian. Everything is falling together- all these separated puzzle pieces the Lord has dealt us are finally beginning to look like a finished masterpiece. God always makes beautiful things out of our chaos and worry, he makes beautiful things out of us, out of dust. He takes the broken and bruised and left to die, and he restores, redeems, fills to an overflow with life abundant in his name. Praise him for that...we can never praise him enough, thank him enough, for his gift of life to us.

Tomorrow will be our last team conference call where we will all touch base and go over some last minute tips and then say our last group prayer before I head out on Monday afternoon for Tanzania. Pray the Lord will go before us and prepare the way for his word to be displayed and spoken through us. Pray he will continue to prepare our hearts, no matter what each one of us is dealing with, that we will let him have it all to be used for his glory.

Pray for these precious children of the King who will hear about and see his love for the first time in their lives. Pray we will be the hands and feet of Christ to each and every one of them...

His name and renown are the desires of our heart!

Be my everything

2011-07-07T00:54:00.000-04:00

Take my fret, take my fear

All I have, I'm laying here

Be all my hopes, be all my dreams

Be all my delight, be my everything

I will worship you, Lord

Only you Lord

________________________________

With the help of an incredible woman from our Blacksburg church and the hands of many she gathered together, we have finished all the cards! I cannot thank each of you for your sacrifice of time and sleep to get these cards finished and ready to send off to Zambia. With the completion of suitcases full of cards comes the stress and worry about how to best get them there. I am trying to rest in the peace of the Lord that he will take care of all the baggage and flight issues and get all the supplies, and us, safely to Lusaka.

The Lord provided the means and the hands to make this happen, and I have to trust he will provide the way to get them there.

Days are passing and I am realizing how many things are left to be planned and worked out with everything! If you are reading this please pray for peace of mind and the ability to rest in the peace of Christ and trust him in all things, really give him every burden. There is still much to be worked out in terms of my health insurance being absent and in the process of getting fixed, with that problem of getting my malaria medication, also with getting from my brother to Lusaka and the travel plans, and lastly I finally received word that I will hopefully get to meet my sponsor child in Zambia, Melody. With that I am also anxious about the planning that remains and the extra funds it will require. Melody is the reason God brought me to Zambia and I know he will provide the way, but I need to trust and walk in that way!

Pray that in the next 3 days the insurance will come through, the malaria prescription worked out, and the travel plans and their funding will fall together. Lord help me 'worry about nothing but pray about everything, in prayer and petition, may the peace of Christ which transcends all understanding guard my heart and mind in Christ Jesus!' All that more may know your name, all that more may see your fame.

And It’s just you and me here now

Only you and me here now

You should see the view

When it’s only You

...11 days...

2011-06-30T23:50:00.002-04:00

Feed my lambs...tend my sheep...feed my sheep....Follow me.

It is hard to believe that in 11 short days I will board the plane and will send off to Africa for a month. For 7 days I will be traveling Tanzania with my brother, experiencing his world and learning more about his work for the U.N. and his life there. We will see and experience many incredible things and I cannot wait for all of that, but more than anything to spend time with my brother and really talk to him and learn more about his life and his world. I am praying God will open the eyes of his heart to the Gospel and to the Truth. I am praying Christ will soften my heart and quiet my doubts and fill me with an overflow of his grace for my brother. Lord prepare my heart…

From the 18^th to the 25^th we will be serving in the hospital in Lusaka. Getting to know each other as team members and serve Cure however we can: serving the mothers and children recovering in the ward, attending surgeries and patient appointments with the doctors, participating in staff devotionals and worship services, and ministering to the staff and patients individually. From the 25^th to the 31^st we will be on the outreach in Mpongwe where we will serve the local tribes through our medical clinic, but most importantly through evangelism and delivering the Gospel through the Jesus film and daily ministry to the villages. Please see my “prayer warriors” page for specific prayer requests you can be lifting up while we are serving the whole trip. From the 31^st to the 9^th we will be serving again in the hospital and by the grace of God shining his love and mercy to all those around us as we serve as we are called and build up the hospital staff and patient at Beit Cure Zambia.

Writing about the trip…thinking about the trip…praying for the trip and these people…ignites flames of passion in my heart. I cannot wait to see them, smell that place again, worship with them in dance and song and laughter, pray with them, watch the lame become healed and the broken be restored! But it also reminds of how weak and desperate I am for the Gospel. It reminds me that I am crippled and hopeless apart from the saving knowledge and grace of Jesus Christ and the cross. I pray heaven will be poured out over my life as I enter this trip tired, worn out, weary and with many struggles and the baggage of sin and shame…that Jesus will reign, that the light of his love will cover all my darkness and bring freedom to my captive soul. I trust he will heal, he will restore.

May these verses be the fountain of my words and the steps that I walk:

“…Jesus welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing.” Luke 9:11

“Whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” Matthew 10:38-39

Cause Jesus only did what He saw You do

And He would only say what He heard You speak

And He would only move when He felt You lead

Following Your heart following Your spirit

So How could I expect to walk without You

When every move that Jesus made was in surrender

I will not begin to live without You

For You alone are worthy and You are always good

Where You go I go

What You say I say God

And what You pray I pray

Father God go before us and by grace alone, lead us as we follow, for we know your voice. You call each of us by name and you lead us out of darkness and temptation. You have freed our souls, now lead us into freedom. It is for freedom you have set us free! May we walk it out with you. Take up our cross and follow you…step by step, where you go we will go. (John 10:3-4) (Galatians 5:1)

In the next week I will be working a lot, spending precious time with my co workers and continuously yearning for them to know Christ. As well as spending time with my roommates and last but not least finishing the remaining 900 cure cards we have to make in 10 days! In Christ we can do all things...I am clinging to that truth. It will be a full 11 days, and I cannot wait to see what God will do and teach me as he keeps preparing mz heart and working through sanctification. This is the hard road...but the one that brings lasting joy, peace, and freedom. This is the road that brings glory to God Almighty, and that is all that matters.

Wir preisen dich Herr. Du bist unser Gott.

§ I am may or may not send another last fundraising update, but with GREAT JOY I want you all to know that I have exceeded my fundraising goal by $1405. PRAISE GOD that $1405 more than I prayed for will be going to the Cure Zambia Hospital to aid in the surgeries of children anxiously awaiting a cure. Praise God...may he richly bless you for your love and prayers and support.

Jehovah Jireh

2011-06-28T22:57:00.003-04:00

The incredible rainbow God gave us in Wyoming on the road trip...

Rainbows appear after mighty storms
when things look their very worst
Just when skies are darkest gray
look for the rainbow first.
The rainbow is a sign of God`s promise
that he will guide us through any storm.
That he will see us through all our trouble
no matter what their form.

When you feel battered by Life's storms,
And you are filled with doubt and dismay,
Just remember God's rainbow will come,
For it's only a prayer away.

"Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds,

I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between

God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."

Genesis 9:16

Though my heart finds itself now in solitude, I must rejoice in telling you that as of this morning my funds are all in! I am completely funded for my flight and the cost of the trip, to support Cure in doing the village outreach in Mpongwe, with all remaining funds going towards surgeries at the hospital! Just when I doubt...just when I worry...just when I surrender and say, "Okay Lord, you are in control, all I can do is trust you." He provides. The Lord God our provider, Jehovah Jireh never fails.

He never stops being faithful to us: faithful in love, faithful in provision. This is a lesson I am learning constantly lately, not only in regards to Zambia, but God is definitely using this trip and the preparation to teach me yet again. I pray I will keep learning how to trust him with the lost in my life, jobs, school, friendships, my family, money, and life completely. He is all I need, he is more than enough for all of me.

His rainbows are only a prayer away...

Thank you for being faithful supporters of this trip and all the work and preparation that goes into it, as well as praying for God to go before us and be with us, because we know that we can do nothing apart from him. And he longs that your prayers be an essential part of that. So thank you, thank you for trusting him in giving your time, money, and prayers to support Cure and support the go team for this summer.

"Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it." Luke 11:28