You And I Are The Same

by Karen

A gnarled hand grabbed my arm as I passed by. In a depressing common room of a “retirement center” outside of Savron, Ukraine, my fellow missionaries and I had finished delivering the good news of the Gospel to about twenty residents.

I was last in line as the 7-member team single-filed out of the room that smelled of stale urine and cheap alcohol. Only a few steps from the beckoning fresh air, my progress was halted by the twisted hand restraining me.

I looked up from the hand to find a pair of blue eyes wet with tears.

The owner of the hand, an older woman, began to speak urgently in Russian. While waiting a few minutes for one of the translators to get to us, my impatience grew. This visit had disheartened me, temporarily stuck in a warehouse of people whose crime of growing old and poor landed them in a collection of decrepit buildings with staff that seemed uninterested.

This place was far beyond my easy faith. Forged on the comfortable pews of Midwestern Lutheran churches, my faith was rarely challenged. Growing up, I had no doubt that God loved me, that Jesus died to save me from my sin, that as long as I believed (whatever that meant), I would be fine.

But the truth was that I wasn’t fine, and hadn’t been in a long while. As soon as I could, I left those comfortable pews and didn’t look back. I still believed (whatever that meant) but the fruits of my easy faith were far from what God promises. He had recently brought me back to the fold but in significant ways, I was still pretending that I was fine. As I stood there in Ukraine, the reality was that my easy life had crumbled.

When the translator reached us, he told me what the woman was saying: “I’m all alone. My husband is dead. I have no children. My family lives far away. No one loves me.” Apparently, she repeated this mantra as Zhenya, the translator, also repeated it in English.

Listening in stereo, I heard a third voice, one that had become too familiar over the past eighteen months. I heard Satan whisper: “Take a good look Karen. This will be you soon.”

Now, my impatience turned to panic – I craved to be out of that room, away from this woman and back to my “I’m fine thank you, and you?” life.

I didn’t need any reminders of the horrible thoughts that come deep in the night when you find yourself a 41-year old widow. When the reality of your life is absolutely not what you pray for.

I guess the woman stopped speaking because Zhenya also stopped. Now, two pairs of blue eyes were looking at me. I was on the spot, needing something – anything -- to comfort this woman, convince her that God loved her.

But how could I do that for this stranger when I couldn’t do it for myself? When that hideous voice, which came during the night, was here now in the bright sunshine of the day?

I opened my mouth, and in answer to a prayer I didn’t realize I had prayed, the following words came out: “You and I are the same. My husband is dead. I have no children. I live far away from my family. But Jesus loves both of us and tells us we are never alone. His last words on Earth were ‘And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’”

As I spoke, the woman’s grip on my arm loosened. No longer a shackle, her touch now comforted. I covered her hand with mine and said I would pray that she would always feel Jesus’ love.

When Zhenya repeated these words in Russian, I gently lifted her hand from my arm and murmured “Бог с тобой,” (God be with you).

Zhenya and I walked into the fresh air and bright sunshine.

I then realized I had never said aloud those terrible words – My husband is dead, I have no children, I’m all alone. Keeping them silent made them, and their author, powerful. By insisting that I was fine and needed nothing from anyone, I was easy prey for the lion who prowled around me. I resisted Divine Love and the perfect peace found only in Him.

The fairy tale ending would be that, with this realization, I have lived the rest of my days completely content in the Light of the World.

I wish.

The truth is that the end is not yet here. Just like any believer, I struggle with the old Karen every day. But I don’t struggle alone.

The words I spoke to the woman are truth: You and I are the same. God loves us and where His love is, we are never alone, even to the end of the age.

See You In The Round!
Karen

Can You Teach Me How To Shower?

by Kim

"Can you teach me how to shower, just like you taught your kids?"-Daisy

When Daisy first came into our family, she was dirty, bruised all over her body, sick & longing for love. She was so excited to use toothpaste (something she had never used before) that we went through about six tubes of toothpaste the first two weeks. I bought all that the store had to restock our supplies. Even though most of the toothpaste ended up on the floor, it was so special and my little girl was thrilled! Hygiene was a new concept to her.

I did not know that putting her in the bath for the first time would be so momentous. To wash away a layer of uncleanliness, to see hopeful eyes staring back at me, "Can you teach me how to shower, just like you taught your kids?"

"Yes." I replied holding back tears knowing this child had never been taught how to brush her teeth, never been fed properly, barely even knowing what it was like to actually feel clean.

Watching the dirt run down the drain of that first bathwater felt like brokenness and healing all in the same filthy swirls of hope.

Today, my daughter happily plays in the bathtub or shower, whichever she is wanting for the day. She has bath time paints to paint on the wall, bubbles in warm water and most importantly, a loving Mommy who is there to teach her how to wash herself. It has only been a few months of having her here but what a difference a few months can make!

As we allow the cleansing of Jesus' healing to wash over our dirt-covered lives, may we try not to get discouraged when we don't know how to get the filth off. Jesus wants us to come to Him and ask for help to learn, just as He taught His disciples and Saints through history.

Matthew 11:28-30 says

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and LEARN FROM ME, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Lord, humbly, I come before You in awe of Your wisdom. Jesus, teach me. Help me to expand the depths of my thinking to know love and grace which does not come naturally in my humanness.


See You In The Round!
Kim

*Scripture quotations are from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

When Faith Gets Hard

by Ashley

When we truly experience God’s Grace and the Holy Spirit opens our eyes to see Jesus’ finished work on the cross on our behalf, life is never the same. The lifelong adventure of following our Savior begins. We are excited, joyful, and maybe even a bit over-eager as new believers to share with everyone what God is up to.

Life Takes Over

However, somewhere along the way that energy begins to slowly bleed out. Life takes over and if we’re not careful, our First Love becomes routine. Good things like meeting with other believers and studying the Bible morph into a list of obligations rather than life-energizing opportunities. And all of a sudden following Jesus is just hard.

How can we regain the energy that formerly came from a thriving understanding of our faith?

According to the Bible, one way to reinvigorate our faith is to consider the faith of others. Read about the heroes in the Bible (see 1 Corinthians 11:1). Read biographies of those who have gone before us (see Hebrews 13:17). Do not forget to identify godly women in your own circles who have an admirable faith. Paul says in Philippians 3:17,

“(Sisters), join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us.”

Foolish Choices 

In college, I struggled to reconcile my understanding of the Christian faith with my rebellious lifestyle. I would defend Christ as the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6), but my foolish choices birthed debilitating frustrations that ended up making me miserable. My life was a reflection of the discouragement that had overtaken me due to a lack of understanding about how amazing God truly is.

www.uncannytoys.com/drink-hat-red

One day I met two girls and it was obvious they were both in love with Christ. While I have no delusions that their faith was perfect, I saw these joyful girls who loved life, sought adventure, and worshiped Christ through it all. At first, I watched them from a distance. I heard stories of things that you truly can only get away with in college - deciding one night to go downtown in pajamas to see what kind of reaction they got from passersby, buying beer-drinking hats to fill up with soft drinks, again for the sake of funny looks, and other crazy stunts. They did the things I only wish I was brave enough to do.


From these girls, I also saw glimpses of a faith that I previously thought I possessed, claimed to have, and wanted for myself so desperately. I heard stories about meeting people of other faiths, befriending and sharing the Gospel, and fostering relationships with them. I heard about random stories of God’s miraculous hand at work around them. I saw how they loved people with a love that did not make sense.

A Grand Adventure

Through their example, I learned so much about the character of God. I learned that He is not a stodgy, vapid Being. I discovered through fresh eyes that He is active in the lives of His people. He truly transforms hearts to beat for Him. He continues to take us on a grand adventure, whether or not we notice. And when we passionately pursue Him, our faith flourishes and others take note.


These two women very quickly became good friends of mine. Although I never quite grew the....um... ovaries to join in their college antics, my joy in Christ grew exponentially.


This, I believe, is one of the many reasons we are wired to live in Biblical community, especially with other faith-filled women. Sometimes, we all need a helping hand, and honestly sometimes we need to be pulled along.


I’m not sure that I’ve ever shared with these two college friends the extent to which they unknowingly pulled me closer to Christ. Of course, I still struggle with seeing the excitement of living for Christ. I see my Bible gathering dust on my table and the inner-debate begins, much the same way I struggle to do the dishes. However, it is my deepest desire to remain in mutually-encouraging community with other women who will, if necessary, drag me forward in my walk with Christ with their words and experiences. This blog is the result of that desire.

How are you being pulled closer to Christ? Who in your life has been an encouragement in your walk?


See you in the Round!
Ashley

“Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version^® (ESV^®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.