Sometimes God gives us opportunities that we would never excpect...i am going to Turkey in a little over a week! So crazy! It all started when last Tuesday I sat down to eat lunch in the SDR (Student Dining Room) next to a friend. Jokingly, she asked me if I wanted to go to Turkey with her for spring break...the girl that she was going to go go with had backed out last minute. Well...i actually put thought into it, prayed about it for a few days, and really feel like this is where the Lord wants me for spring break. I am so incredibly excited!
We will be staying with missionaries for a few days, and living with some girls our age while we are there. Just some quick facts about Turkey:
it is the largest unreached country in the world.
there are only about 3,000 believers in the entire country
it is 99.9% Muslim
Please pray for us, as we go, for divine appointments, conversations, and that we will both just draw so much closer to our Lord. Pray that we will both learn a lot, and that we can be an encouragement to the believers there.
In HIS strength-may i continue to decrease until people only see Him when they look at me.
Thursday, February 24, 2005
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
Invisible Children
Imagine you are eight years old. Every night you walk from your home on the outskirts of the city into town. There you try to find a safe place to sleep. You are not safe in your own bed at home. If you remain there, soldiers might come, kidnap you, and force you, if you are a boy, to fight in a war that is going on. You will learn how to shoot a gun, you may even be forced to kill your own family members, or other children. If you are abducted and try to escape, you will be killed without question, if you cry, you may be killed because that would mean you are thinking about home...and thinking about escaping. You may even be younger than eight years old-perhaps five. On a day, you may be told that you must kill 30 people, 40 people...
If you are a girl and are abducted, you will be sold in the sex trade, used as a sex toy by rebel soldiers... you may be as young as five. you may be as old as 18. and your home is not safe.
And you are not the only one...in fact there are thousands of you who are walking into town.
Unfortunately, this is not a fabricated scenario...it is very real, and it is getting worse...
In northern Uganda, thousands of children crowd into the cities at night for fear of being abducted. Many have lost brothers or sisters to the rebel soldiers...they all live in fear...
and most likely, you have never heard of them.
This past Tuesday i had the chance to see a documentary on this here at Moody. It is called Invisible Children.
The makers of the movie (one whom i was able to meet) originally went to Sudan to document the war going on there...however, they stumbled upon these children, with their camera from ebay, having never made a documentary before, and said "we found our story, we are staying here." They made a rough cut of it, brought it back, and have been touring the U.S. for the past six months, not only raising awareness, but informing people on how to be actively involved. One of the guys appeared on Oprah. They are returning in a month's time to finish the film, this time with 20 other videographers, and endorsements from Target, Starbucks, and Urban Outfitters.
If you would like more info, visit their website:
www.invisiblechildren.com
If you are a girl and are abducted, you will be sold in the sex trade, used as a sex toy by rebel soldiers... you may be as young as five. you may be as old as 18. and your home is not safe.
And you are not the only one...in fact there are thousands of you who are walking into town.
Unfortunately, this is not a fabricated scenario...it is very real, and it is getting worse...
In northern Uganda, thousands of children crowd into the cities at night for fear of being abducted. Many have lost brothers or sisters to the rebel soldiers...they all live in fear...
and most likely, you have never heard of them.
This past Tuesday i had the chance to see a documentary on this here at Moody. It is called Invisible Children.
The makers of the movie (one whom i was able to meet) originally went to Sudan to document the war going on there...however, they stumbled upon these children, with their camera from ebay, having never made a documentary before, and said "we found our story, we are staying here." They made a rough cut of it, brought it back, and have been touring the U.S. for the past six months, not only raising awareness, but informing people on how to be actively involved. One of the guys appeared on Oprah. They are returning in a month's time to finish the film, this time with 20 other videographers, and endorsements from Target, Starbucks, and Urban Outfitters.
If you would like more info, visit their website:
www.invisiblechildren.com
Thursday, February 10, 2005
Indescribable
From the highest of heights to the depths of the sea
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
Incomparable, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Creation's revealing Your majesty
From the colors of fall to the fragrance of spring
Every creature unique in the song that it sings
All exclaiming
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Who has told every lightning bolt where it should go
Or seen heavenly storehouses laden with snow
Who imagined the sun and gives source to its light
Yet conceals it to bring us the coolness of night
None can fathom
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
All powerful, untameable,
Awestruck we fall to our knees as we humbly proclaim
You are amazing God
Indescribable, uncontainable,
You placed the stars in the sky and You know them by name.
You are amazing God
Incomparable, unchangeable
You see the depths of my heart and You love me the same
You are amazing God
You are amazing God
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
God's Goodness as told by my random notes
This past week-end i had the chance to go home, surprise my familiy (even though i only saw them for a few hours/minutes, and help out at camp winter retreat. It was so incredible to see everyone, hang out with the youth group, and play in the snow a little.
This week is Founder's week at Moody, so all classes are canceled and instead we go and listen to amazing speakers (3 a day!) it is a little tiring, but is a nice break from studying...which i should still be doing even though i don't have class...
This morning, Chip Ingram spoke about God's goodness, and i thought I would share my notes with you guys...they are a little random..the blanks aren't completley filled in, but the just of it is there.(the theme of Founder's week this year is Who is God?)
We need to desire to know God, not for who we want him to be, or who everyone has told us he is-but for who he truely is-all preconcieved ideas aside.
God is good: and he is good to us because he loves us-simply because he wants us to delight in him and he does want us to be happy- God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him (a little john piper add-in there..).
So many times we have a low view of God-and how we think about God affects our response to him, and how we think God thinks about us will affect our relationship with him.
(it is like meeting someone for the first time, and stereotyping them by what we see on the surface....we may be intimidated by that person, and as a result, will not desire to get to know them (or whatever)...but when we do get to know that person and realize that they are amazing, not intimidating, and great to be around, we will respond differently to them.)
God is generous...and it has nothing to do with me...God is not good because I am good-he is good because he is good...nothing I can do can earn God's favor or blessing...he gives it out becasue he is generous..not because I deserve anything.
However, if we are to get that blessing, sometimes risk is involved. Where there is no risk there is no faith..if we will allow God to move us to that place that HE wants us/where he is wanting to give us something amazing-it will most likely be out of our comfort zone...it requires us to be moved beyond ourselves.
Jesus is the supreme expression of God's Goodness. the cross. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us that we may have access to the Father.
This week is Founder's week at Moody, so all classes are canceled and instead we go and listen to amazing speakers (3 a day!) it is a little tiring, but is a nice break from studying...which i should still be doing even though i don't have class...
This morning, Chip Ingram spoke about God's goodness, and i thought I would share my notes with you guys...they are a little random..the blanks aren't completley filled in, but the just of it is there.(the theme of Founder's week this year is Who is God?)
We need to desire to know God, not for who we want him to be, or who everyone has told us he is-but for who he truely is-all preconcieved ideas aside.
God is good: and he is good to us because he loves us-simply because he wants us to delight in him and he does want us to be happy- God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him (a little john piper add-in there..).
So many times we have a low view of God-and how we think about God affects our response to him, and how we think God thinks about us will affect our relationship with him.
(it is like meeting someone for the first time, and stereotyping them by what we see on the surface....we may be intimidated by that person, and as a result, will not desire to get to know them (or whatever)...but when we do get to know that person and realize that they are amazing, not intimidating, and great to be around, we will respond differently to them.)
God is generous...and it has nothing to do with me...God is not good because I am good-he is good because he is good...nothing I can do can earn God's favor or blessing...he gives it out becasue he is generous..not because I deserve anything.
However, if we are to get that blessing, sometimes risk is involved. Where there is no risk there is no faith..if we will allow God to move us to that place that HE wants us/where he is wanting to give us something amazing-it will most likely be out of our comfort zone...it requires us to be moved beyond ourselves.
Jesus is the supreme expression of God's Goodness. the cross. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us that we may have access to the Father.
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