A call to be simple

I love new things :)

In fact, I have never met a person who doesn't.

I looked down at my feet today and smiled from ear to ear in appreciation for my white converse with pink laces and pink glitteration :)
My eyes stayed locked on my feet until my steps led me to stand right next to the tiniest little feet I had ever seen.

Ten little toes stood in front of me on a cold ground. Soon my gaze shifted from the tiny little feet to the tiny little frame these feet carried.

Her hair was dark and wavy. No sparkly clips or extravagant bows andorned her hair. Hey eyes were big and dark...full of question and wonder. Her dainty mouth was curved at the corner from a slight smile that crept across her face. She was wearing a pink shirt with striped tights and her tummy stuck out making the giant smiley face on her shirt appear almost real.

As I looked at her simple frame and then back down at my own feet, I felt as if my heart had been shoved through a meat grinder and then placed in front of everyone to see.
I began to feel tears form in the corners of my eyes as I looked back at her smiling face. I knelt down to talk to her and she could see the concerned look on my face and the tears in my eyes. herr tiny fingers opened around a small piece of candy she was grasping and she walked up to me with a big smile, and handed me her candy. I took it from her with a smile and asked her mother, who was standing behind her, if I could give her a hug. She consented with a warm smile and I placed my arms tightly around this tiny angels body.

In a moment of complete humbleness, I started to understand the true beauty of what it means to be simple and to have a heart like a child.
You see..this little girl lives in the homeless shelter downtown OKC. She is just like any of us. She was proud and happy to have her treasured piece of candy; but with a simple and pure heart she was willing to open her hands and give away her treasure in order to ease my pain. She didn't care that I had more than her;all she could see was my need.

I don't believe that it is wrong to like new things, want new things, or sometimes even wish for new things;I believe that God understand those desires in us.
But what I learned from this little girl is that even if we have nice things we have to be willng to open our hands and release our grip.....
I don't believe that the solution is to sell everything that we own and to feel bad that we have nice things.
The solution that was presented to me today through the life of a little girl is this...

Be proud of what you have, but ask yourself,would you be willing to give up the posessions you love in order to help someone in their time of need???


Oh how He loves you and me!!!!

His love is breathtaking!

Have you ever had a moment that took your breath away????

Today....it happened to me!

Today I went to City Rescue Mission to talk to the Volunteer Coordinator(his name is Seth) and he was telling me about some of the ways I can really dig in deep and help with the women and children at the shelter. As he was talking I could hear the passion and excitment that he had for this place...so I did what I always do...I interrupted him :) I the middle of him explaining how the shelter helps people get back on their feet, I couldn't help but wonder what had created this passion inside of him to get started and help at the mission.
So... I asked him...

He told me that it was something that God did in him instantly one day. He explained that he was from a small town and that they didn't have many places for homeless people where he was from. He went on to say that one day while visiting someone in OKC, he stopped at a McDonalds downtown and saw a homeless person and in an instant he said that God just put it on his heart to act now! He then contacted the shelter and started volunteering right away.
The moment that took my breath away was when he said he even actually lived at the shelter for 8 months in order to better relate and understand the people.....

I have been thinking about this all day....

This man, who is my age, was willing to give up everything, even the comforts of his home to seek to understand the hearts and the minds of those he was serving. (tears in my eyes and lump in my throat)
It was the most humbling and breathtaking experience I have had to date!
He was quick to divert the attention off of his story and went on to tell me how much the people had taught him.
He explained that this ministry was all about pouring into the lives of the people and giving them the hope they need to be able to get back out into the world and stand on their feet.

This idea brought me back to the life of Christ...

Christ calls us to love and to serve all people regardless of their position in life!

The homeless people that I encountered today are no different than me, and they deserve to be treated with the same amount of respect, care and love as any other person.

Today, the Lord showed me through the passionate, humble heart of a young man how precious it is to serve those who are in need of a little compassion.

Oh how He loves you and me!!!!

the long road leads to peace

Someone told me a long time ago that living for God is hard...

I remember thinking at the time "what could be so hard about that???"

If you have walked with the Lord a couple days or many years you will be able to relate to what my friend said.

Walking behind His footsteps sometimes requires so much of us...
It seems to be so unfair at times.

He calls us to forgive someone when they have wounded us deeply...
He calls us to love all people regardless if they love us...
He calls us to get our of our comfort zones and serve people who are broken and dying...
He calls us to sacrifice everything that we have in order to follow Him....
Even though we say we believe in His sovereign will for our lives, we can't help but struggle against what He is asking of us.

Let's be honest...when He requires things of us- it hurts!

BUT..... (yay! So glad there is always a "but" with Jesus)

The most precious and beautiful thing about our Jesus is that He paid the ultimate sacrifice for our joy!
He came down to this earth to suffer more pain than we could ever imagine so that we could be forgiven and have the opportunity to be with Him forever!
He knows that we will hurt and sacrifice things in this life as we seek Him; but He knows that by following Him we will eventually see His plan for us-which will lead us to true joy!

Living for the Lord is not always easy; but living for the Lord will allow you to walk through the hard times with confidence that He will restore you!
As you pour into Him you will find that in the midst of struggle He will sustain you.

Are you in a season of hardship?
Are you struggling with releasing your grip on something that He wants you to trust Him with?

Pretend for a moment that whatever you are struggling with is in the palm of your hand...
Now close your hand tightly around that thing you are thinking of....
You will see that you have made a fist and wrapped that thing you are holding on to so tightly in your hand that you are not able to openly receive anything new into that hand!
The Lord wants to bless you...but you have to have open hands to receive it! ( I am speaking from experience)

Open your hands...
Open your heart....
and watch in amazement as He pours out His love to sustain you in the hard times!

Oh how He loves you and me!

A Divine Intervention

( I took this picture driving to school on I-35 the day I was inspired to write this blog)

The Lord created us with desires, hopes, ambitions and dreams for our future.

He knew we would want for things; and yet He asks us at times to go against our nature and shift our plans for His.

He gave us the free will to make choices; but as believers we are called to die to ourselves and accept His will.

This week I started a new Bible study on the life of Jonah.

The lady teaching the class made a profound statement that has sent my mind into spiritual overload!

She said that sometimes in life we are going along and everything seems great. Then, one day out of nowhere our life is interrupted by change. She went on to explain that instead of looking at this change as an interruption, we should look at it as a divine intervention.

This idea smacked me right across the face of my soul!

If we as believers have one singular mission to serve the Lord and do His will, then when He intervenes we should see it as a necessary step in our journey.

Although change is not easy we should take it as a high compliment that the Lord of the universe is sovereignly placing His hand on our lives....regardless if we enjoy it or not!

If we truly believe that He has our best interest at heart, then we have to do our best to trust and accept where He is asking us to change in our lives.

Are you in a season of change right now?

I know I am!

BUT.... I know that as I draw closer to Him, and focus on His promises for me, the pain from the change gets easier each day.

Eventually, if you choose to surrender to His divine intervention you will get through the hard part and you will find true joy.

He sees ahead of you and knows what's best for you. He knows change will be hard, but He promises to never leave you or forsake you.

If you are in the midst of a storm...just keep going!!!!

SOON you will see your rainbow!

"Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace "

Oh how He loves YOU and me :)

True Love

As I sat on my bed tonight scanning the television for something instresting to watch, one of my favorite movies was on.

Pride and Prejudice

As I settled back on the bed under a comfy blanket I watched in anticipation as the love story unfolded.(even though I have seen it 50+ times and know the ending well)

The movie is one of my favorites because of the tension that exists between the two lovers; but in the end their love sustains them beyond any difficulty they battle.

Because it's a fictional movie I started to wonder if this kind of love truly exists now days....

In honor of Valentines Day and three of the most special couples I know, I would like to give a shout out to them.

My dad and mom....

Since I was a little girl I have watched my parents.....

My dad is from Iran and my momma is from the US. God brought them together from two different worlds to find each other.

They have gone through so much and have stayed honest, pure and true to the beautiful love they created more than 30 years ago.

My dad would do anything for my mother and she would do the same in return for him. They are so different...but I believe that it is what makes their love so strong.

Cody and Sanam....

My sister and brother-in-law ....

For over ten years now I have watched as their love has grown.

My brother in law is the romantic type...always buying flowers, taking my sister to movies and going out of his way to plan something special.

My sister is so deserving of those things because she takes care of him and their children in ways that I hope to be able to some day copy.

They are best friends and when you see them together you cant help smile at the way they connect with each other.

Their love runs deep and has carried them through so many things.

Jared and Reagan...

If you are lucky enough to know these two, you would know that their love is one of a kind. When I watch them together and see them interact I sit in amazement that God brought two people together who are so perfect for each other.

Jared is so sweet, patient and kind to Rea...

Rea is supportive, loving and respectful of Jared...

They make each other laugh and they hold each other when they cry.

As an english major I spend so much of my time reading fictional stories filled with deep and passionate love. It is hard sometimes to believe that love like that really exists; but thankfully, all I have to do is look at these special people and I am reminded that true love is real.

"True love is the soul's recognition of its counterpart in another."

Keep Going!!!!!!!!!!!

Can you remember the times that God called you to a journey that seemed impossible?

Have you had a time like that?

Maybe you are in the midst of a dark journey that He called you to long ago. You knew at the onset that the road would be long and hard, but how could you say NO to God right?

Maybe you didn't choose to be where you are at. It might be that the Lord brought you down a path without asking, but now that you are here He is requiring you to take on His purpose and walk the long road.

Sometimes in life the road we are walking down is rough, dark, and full of unexpected bumps along the way. Life begins to eat away at us, and as we look down the path there seems to be no end in sight. Although we know deep down inside why we are walking down this road, we begin to loose sight of God's purpose for this journey.
We loose sight because life is hard and maybe we didn't really want to walk this road.
As we loose hope all sorts of devestating emotions begin to cloud our view....
Fear becomes a stumbling block that we trip over and begins to slow our pace...
Self-Doubt soon follows, as well as grief, resentment and anger.
Before we know it we have completely lost sight and have fallen to our knees....
I mean lets be honest...it's hard! We feel like nobody can understand our pain and that although we feel like we have been faithful, God will not deliver us!
Oh my friend...but HE WILL!!!!
Whatever journey you are on today, remember that there WILL be an end to the journey. Although we can't understand why God allows us to walk down these paths, we have to remember that each journey we take is a part of His bigger plan for our life.
That plan is called your mission!
God has placed you on this earth for a reason!
You were designed for His glory...and whatever you are going through now will be used for His glory.

I know that sometimes we can't understand why we are called by God to complete a task that seems hopeless and that is okay. However, we have to stive daily to lift our heads high and look towards the horizon. As long as we are alive our mission will never be complete. Its okay to fall to our knees every now and then. In fact, its in those moments that we can bow our heads and ask God for the strength to continue. BUT no matter how hard it seems we have to get back on our feet, bloody and bruised, and keep marching toward the finish line.

Isaiah the prophet faced the same thing. However, he knew his task was destined to fail. He knew this because the Lord told him it would. God said "Whom shall I send?And who will go for Us?" and Isaiah said "Here am I. Send me!"
God was calling Isaiah to go to a nation and preach repentance and salvation to a nation that would turn their eyes, ears and hearts away. He was calling him to a journey that would be lonely, hard and doomed to fail, but He called him anyways.

Maybe your journey seems doomed to fail, but I encourage you to go anyways!
Even though Isaiah knew that his labor would not save the nation, he did it anyways!
His journey was long and hard, but it served the purpose of bringing glory to the Lord.
It was his mission!

So today think about what your mission is in the midst of your current journey....
He has you there for a reason.
If you find yourself down on your knees, lift your head to the sky, wipe the dust from your feet and keep going!

Africa

Africa.......

In 5 weeks I will be making a journey of a lifetime! I will be traveling with a group of people to Kenya to minister to the lives of men, women and children.
I humbly ask that each of you would take the time to pray for the lives of the people we will meet. Pray that their hearts would be softened and ready to receive God's love and grace. These pictures are not the faces of the children I will meet, but I ask that as you look into their eyes that you will be mindful of the children I will have the honor to meet and minister to each day.

I ask that you would pray for the hearts and minds of the people I will be going with on this trip. Pray that the Lord would provide protection and edurance. I do not doubt that the Lord will watch over and protect us, but pray that we stay mindful of that fact as we journey so far away from home.

I will be praying for each of you daily!

You are on a mission field right where you are at each day. In your workplace, in your church, at the grocery store, in your car and even in your home. My prayer is that we all seek to find our mission. That we all find ways to serve others wherever we are.

That we will look into the eyes of someone who is hurting and meet them at their need.

That we will extend a helping hand, extend grace and extend love, even when its difficult.

We are not all called to the same mission field. I didn't always know that I would go to Africa, but I have always known my mission was to help children.

Maybe your mission is your children...

Maybe your mission is to show strength to people through your suffering...

Maybe your mission is to show kindness to strangers with a simple smile...

Those might seem like small things to you, but to those you are ministering to it could make a world of difference.

I want to encourage you, and remind you today that you are valuable and treasured for what you do for those you serve. The Lord sees you and is mindful of you!

He delights in you!

He hears you when you call and He will never leave you!

I look into the faces of these children and tears fill my eyes. I do not know them and yet I have so much love for them.

I can't imagine how much the Lord loves His children as He looks at our faces.

Oh how He loves YOU and me.............

My Dad

When I was a little girl I would wake up in the morning, sit on the couch and watch as my dad put his gloves and coat on before he left for work. He would leave when the sun was just coming over the horizon and always had a smile on his face as he walked out the door.

Me and my sisters and brother would run to the window to wave goodbye to him as he drove off.

Around 5p.m. he would get back from work and we would all sit down to have dinner. Afterwards he would rush off to his room to get changed for his second job.

My dad did this every night for most of my life....

We did not have a lot of time during the week with my dad when we were little, but even in his absence he was teaching us some beautiful things.

(I don't know why we have guns in this pic...hahahaha)

In the twenty plus years my dad worked his two jobs I NEVER heard him complain once. Although I am sure he got tired and frustrated, he never revealed those feelings to his children.

He taught us that we should be thankful for the work that God has blessed us with and that even though his body was tired, he was willing to do whatever he had to for his family.

He taught us that no matter how bad a situation seems if you keep giving your best, work hard, and stay faithful, things will be alright.

My dad doesn't have a lazy bone in his body and anyone who knows him would agree.

His quiet spirit and willingness to serve his family without ever complaining are attributes that are rare to find and that a greatly treasured by all who know him.