Living a life of adultery

I am a prostitute when I tell God "You are not enough for me."  I am restless and need to find my rest solely in God.  If I look for rest anywhere else I am awhoreing myself to the ways of the world.

O Lord may I solely look to You to be my everything.  Forgive me for the numerous times I have sought after the things of the world over the things of You.  I desire an intimate relationship with you and you alone!

Precious in His sight

Children...

"All it takes is a moment to change a child's life."

I spend a minute wasting time worrying about something minuscule when I could be pouring into a child. Children are so precious to God. Shouldn't they be just as precious to us???

After having the pleasure of visiting Compassion International and Focus on the Family, God has reminded me of where He wants me. So many times children are forgotten. They are the first to go hungry in a famine. They are the first to lose their education in the midst of financial crises. They are the first to be killed when it's inconvienent. They are the first to be living on the streets when sickness occurs. To so many these children are invisible and dispensible. Are we seeing these little ones from the eyes of God or are we so wrapped up in our agenda and busyness that we push them aside?

God has really convicted my heart on seeing children through His eyes... through this conference, seeing the stand that Compassion and Focus on the Family take on children, and from the book "When Invisible Children Sing" by Dr. Chi Huang. During all my flying time over the past few days I read this book from cover to cover on the street children of Bolivia. Throughout the book, I was in tears and the Lord showed me aspects of these precious little ones and what they go through on a daily basis. Things that have been ignored by American Christianity because it is so far away but I have been challenged that these are God's children.

"Do you see our invisible children? Economics and technology widen the moats and heighten the walls between us in the developed world and the poor of the developing world. Political parties distort our vision. Many on the left wish us to believe tht our street children are innocent and helpless victims. In contrast, those on the right often define these children as violent, lazy vermin deserving of their torture. Street children are not good or bad, but rather complex human beings with good and bad qualities- just like us all." (When Invisible Children Sing, pg 291-292)

What can we do... ignoring it won't make it go away so I challenge myself and you to pray and see what God would have you do for these invisible children...

would it be sponsoring one child through Compassion International releasing them from poverty in Jesus' name?

would it be becoming a foster/adoptive parent to an orphaned child?

would it be teaching a child in our path about the love of Jesus?

would it be serving on the mission field or praying for one who does?

If Jesus said "Let the children come to me" (Matthew 19:14) should we turn them away???

Enough

"Great is your faithfulness. All I have your hand has provided." You are truly ENOUGH!



The hand of God that created the majestic rock formations... is ENOUGH to provide for each need according to HIS riches in glory!





Over the past few days I had the privilege of going to Colorado Springs for the International Early Education Leadership Conference (IEELC) with ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International). The theme has been "ENOUGH" with seminars entitled "Finding Enough", "The illusion of Enough", "Beyond Enough- Going the Extra Mile to Build Bridges", "Small enough to impact", and "Enough is Enough".





So my question is -Is God enough for what He has called us to do? Am I trusting in myself to do enough or listening to God as to what He says is enough for me to do? How many times do I try to do things out of my own strength when God's is enough?





God used these conferences to remind me that I am to only do what He has called me to do. It is not my job to do everything that people want me to do but to do only the things God has put before me. What a freeing fact to know that I don't have to be enough by myself because I will never live up to that.

He created enough supply. He offers enough supply. He is ENOUGH! Are you tapping into the right source?

Understanding Children

Conference by Wess Stafford

DL Moody- "If I had my life to do it all over again, I would spend it educating children."

In an upside down world... the little ones are big in God's kingdom.

*Everytime a child is mentioned in scripture, God is doing something big... Abraham-Isaac, Miriam- Moses, Eli- Samuel, Josiah, Jesus, little boy with fish and loaves,...

*Satan attacks when people are small... battle over the unborn whether poverty or convience.
Matthew 18:10

*Every child that comes into our path is a divine appointment. 
*Like wet cement, children are so pliable.  All it takes is a moment to change a child's life.


A critical time- Children ages 5-18 (George Barna)
"If you want to shape a person's life... whether you are most concerned about his or her moral spiritual, physical, intellectual, emotional, or economic development... it is during these critical eight years that lifelong habits, values, beliefs, and attitudes are formed."

Bridge Building

notes from Beyond Enough Conference...

Going the Extra Mile to Build Bridges
by Julia, Brooke, and D'Arcy

Myths about Bridge Building

1.  Building bridges is comfortable
2. Building bridges will change people
3. Success is guaranteed
4. Building bridges is easy and quick
5. The problem is everyone else
6. You can delegate and not be involved
7. One construction method/material to be used
8. Building Bridges does not require homework
9. The bridge will always go in the direction you want
10. Building bridges is convienient
11. You are totally in control of this process.
12.  Building bridges is cheap
13. This isn't going to be worth it
14. The bridge benefits me alone

Jesus' foundation was to do the will of His father
*Am I doing this because it is ithe will of my father?

Implementation of Bridge Building

• with a team
• have grace when abandoned halfway through
• open handed surrender
• long term goals- not our ideas but God's
• gain empahty for others

Truths of Bridges

• beautiful
• strong
• connect
• depict a culture or area
• all unique
• commintment of time
• once they are build you can go farther easier
• not build by one

"It only takes a spark"

As I sit here in my living room on this Sunday afternoon, my entire house reeks of campfire smoke and there is billowing smoke all around. Every few minutes one of three yellow emergency helicopters fly over with buckets attached transporting water to much needed hot spots. Thankfully my house at this time is safe and sound but Molokai is being burned to a crisp.

When I was a small child there was a song that we sung at church that went... it only takes a

spark to get a fire going. This is a vivid reminder of how something so small can do so much. The cause of this fire is unknown at this time but more than likely it started with something very small and insignificant. Whether a match or a camp fire, 2500+ acres have been burned. What an impact!

We as Christians are called to have that kind of impact on our communities and world. Setting our world on fire for Jesus. It is really hard to cover the light that fire produces at night whether by candle or a brushfire. Last night it was such a sight on how much of our island was on fire... areas that couldn't be seen during the day. But as soon as the sun went down the fire lit up the night sky. I sat out in my backyard perched on my neighbors rock wall watching the mountain glow. This was a great reminder to me that we need to shine Jesus especially in the dark of night.

Please be praying for safety for all the fire fighters, emergency crew, helicopter operators, and people that are helping keep people's houses safe. Pray that the wind would die down and that God would send some rain.

A relaxing evening

Ever have that moment when your body is so relaxed it doesn't feel connected... a perfect peace where there is not even a thought going through a normally chaotic brain???? Well for the past hour and a half, I have been in complete relaxation mode as I received a full body massage (including feet)!

For my 30th birthday, one of my friends and co-workers who went to massage school gave me an IOU for a massage. With a mix of emotion (apprehension, excitement, nervous, etc) we scheduled a date and time. As I am not a huge touchy, feely person, this was stepping outside of my comfort zone just a bit (especially the foot part as I normally don't like my feet messed with). After remembering my 100 things list and my goal to be daring and try some new things... I put on a new emotion and jumped in!

OK... now that the massage is pau and I am sitting here letting the rest of the oil soak into my skin, I have to say that it was SUPER AMAZING! I am truly blessed to have such a friend with amazing hands. And boy am I going to sleep well tonight!!