The Shaping of a Life June 9, 2009

My oldest is in Nicaragua on a church mission trip…for about the 4th summer in a row. He loves the work there.

His first summer there, he left as a boy and returned a man. I am so proud of him.

I attended most of the mission meetings with him this year. That way I received the updates on details of the trip and could keep up with the group’s progress. It was fun to support Barrett in this way. He seemed to like my presence in the meetings. I was honored.

I rarely attended these meetings in the past. I didn’t want to keep him from going, but I could hardly stand it. It was difficult for me to think of him so far away, so I avoided thinking about it. Attending the mission meetings were overwhelming to me.

I’m so glad I went with him this year. He’s a senior now and will be gone so quickly. I treasure this time with him under my roof.

His life is being shaped by the work and relationships in Central America through the power of the cross. Praise God.

Have No Fear April 21, 2009

From Proverbs 3:

²⁵ Have no fear of sudden disaster
or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,

²⁶ for the LORD will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being snared.

These days, it is so easy to fear financial disaster with our nation in economic turmoil or disease with failing health all around us or natural phenomena during the spring storms.  But God instructs us to put our confidence in him.  He will keep us in his care through any troubles this world has.

People without a childlike faith in the creator of the universe fear such catastrophes.  We can be confident that our heavenly Father will never leave us and will someday take us to be home with him.

What a joy it is to be a part of his kingdom!

A Hero Who Hears April 16, 2009

“God heard the boy crying…”  Genesis 21:17

God hears us when we cry.  God cares about our fears and concerns.  Ishmael had just been sent away by his father and was wandering in the desert with his mother.  Hagar left him under some brush because the Bible says, “she thought, ‘I cannot watch the boy die.’” Genisis 21:16.

The angel of the Lord visited Hagar again in the desert and asked her, “What is the matter, Hagar?”

Then before she could respond, he told her, “Do not be afraid; God has heard the boy crying as he lies there.”

The care and protection that God gave this Egyptian woman and her rejected son shows us a glimpse into the astounding love that God has for all those he has created.  Whether rejected and misplaced, forgotten and alone, God is the one who sees us, the one who hears us.

In what ways have you experienced God as the One Who Sees Me or the One Who Hears Me?